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betterthanburrow · 10 months

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Since We’re Alone - Joe Burrow

Summary: During times like these; it’s hard for you to think about how much your life has changed in the past year… But when someone from one of your precious relationships makes an unexpected appearance, it leads to an important conversation that you and Joe had been avoiding for far too long.

Genre: Angst and Fluff (New Relationship AU)

“All Your Thoughts Running Through Your Head, The Things You Think Better Left Unsaid… Just Wanna Know Where You Came From” Niall Horan; Since We’re Alone.

It’s crazy how in just one year, your life can changed in ways that is hard to explain without sounding like you’re going insane… It’s hard to recognize yourself because you’ve changed so much, but changing your live and yourself for the better is never a bad thing.

One year ago on Super Bowl Sunday you and Harrison Bryant ,your boyfriend at the time, were attending a small party along with some of the football players on the Cleveland Browns team and their partners to watch the biggest football game of the year between the Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnati Bengals… Despite the Bengals football team and Browns football team representing the same state in the NFL, majority of the Browns football players were rooting for the Rams football team to win the Super Bowl 56.

After a year of experiencing betrayal and heartbreak because of your ex-boyfriend and learning how to love yourself again with the help of your family, best friends, and your therapist… Here you are in the Kimpton Hotel Suite in Phoenix, Arizona getting ready alongside Joe Burrow, your boyfriend, for Michael Rubin's 2023 Fanatics Super Bowl Party hours before Super Bowl 57.

It’s crazy when you think about how last year you were watching your future boyfriend play in the most important football game of his life while sitting next to your future ex-boyfriend and his teammates.

Today at the Super Bowl Party, you and Joe will be making a public appearance for the first time as a couple since the two of you started dating about 5 months ago… For the past few months the two of you have kept your relationship a secret from football fans; but now since it’s the end of the football season, Joe and you felt it is the best time now to publicly reveal your relationship before it got exposed by football fans.

As you were getting ready for the Super Bowl Party in the hotel suite’s bathroom, there was a bubble of anxiety forming in your chest that you were trying very hard to ignore… Because as much as you were excited to go to the party with Joe, you were very nervous about making the first public appearance as a couple.

While your previous relationship was with a football player, that relationship was very private to the point where Cleveland Browns fans didn’t know about the relationship and some Cleveland Browns football players didn’t know that you were Harrison’s girlfriend when the two of you would go to an event together… Harrison always claimed that he wanted to keep your relationship private or else the public media would care about his relationship more than his football career; while your friends said that was an excuse, you believed his reasons to keep the relationship private.

Now in your current relationship with Joe, it’s easy for you to understand what being in a private relationship means because while Joe wants to keep his life outside of football private, he wants you to be involved in his public life as much as you can by inviting you to sit with his parents and friends at football games and now going to public events together.

Once you were finished getting ready, you examined your outfit in the full length mirror in the bathroom. The simple short white dress that Joe had bought you as a 1 month anniversary looked stunning on you and matched the white laced-up sandals as the knitted cardigan that was gifted to you by your grandmother gave your outfit some color and to give you comfort due to the unpredictable weather of Phoenix, Arizona.

Suddenly the bathroom door is opening which causes you to turn around. “Hey Angel are you-“ Joe pauses his sentence as he looks up and down at you, examining your outfit choice. The look on his face is a face you’ve never before which makes you confused.

“Is this dress good to wear at the event?!” you ask. “I know the dress-code is casual attire and I think this outfit is casual, I have other outfits if this is bad.”

“No! This isn’t a bad outfit at all… You look gorgeous!” Joe exclaims as he walks into the bathroom towards you. “I just love this dress on you so much… and what makes the dress even better is that I bought it for you.”

You felt your cheeks get hot as you hid you face in your hands with causes Joe to softly sighed as he moves your hands away from your face and placed his hands on your cheeks, guiding your face to look up at him as he gives you smiles that causes you to blush more.

“You know I love to see you blush because of me Angel.” Joe whispers, as he rubs your cheeks with his thumbs. “There’s no reason to be so nervous.”

“I know.” you whisper.

Joe raises an eyebrow, “You know I’m not just talking about the compliments I gave your outfit right?” he asks, “There’s no reason for you to be so nervous about the Super Bowl party.”

“I know.” you whisper again. “I just can’t help feeling so nervous because this is the first time we’re going to a public event together as a couple.”

“I know and I understand that.” Joe says. “But don’t let your anxiety ruin today for you. You’ll be by my side the entire time and we’ll be around people that you know. We won’t be at the event for long and then we can come back to our hotel suite and relax before the football game. This will be a fun day for us.”

It make you smile to see how much Joe cared about you and how much he wants to take care of you… It’s still very early in your relationship so you haven’t told him about your past relationship and the reasons for your anxiety, but Joe has never pressured you to talk about it and he makes it clear that he’ll be ready to listen when you are ready to talk about your past.

There was a part of you that has been anxious since the beginning of your relationship with Joe that once he found out that you previous relationship was with a football players, he would think differently of you and would shame you for going from one football player to another football player within a few months.

But there was the other part of you that knew once you would open up to Joe about your previous relationship with Harrison, he wouldn’t think differently of you or shame you for moving on from a relationship that was becoming toxic and for allowing your mutual friends to set the two of you up together because the friends knew you and Joe would be so good for each other.

Joe smiles back at you as he leans down to give you a quick kiss on the lips before he takes his hands off your cheeks to pull you into a hug… For the first time since you woke up this morning, you felt that anxious bubble in your chest deflate because of the comforting words and actions from Joe that make you feel safe.

There’s a reason why Michael Rubin's Super Bowl parties are the most popular Super Bowl parties for people to attend every year. You don’t think you’ve ever seen a big crowd of people like this before in your life… It didn’t take long for the anxious bubble to form again in your chest as you held a tight grip on Joe’s hands as he’s leading the two of you through the crowd to try reach where he knew some close friends would be at.

It was difficult at times to make your way through the crowd, but once you and Joe started to see people that you recognized in an area that wasn’t too crowded… When the two of you arrived in the area and saw all of Joe’s good friends in the NFL, you were able to feel more comfortable within your surroundings of not being around strangers.

While Joe and the other football players started making small conversations amongst each other that you couldn’t barely hear because of the loud music from the DJ booth. You start to look around the area to see if you could recognize anyone, but you realized that was a mistake when you made eye contact with someone you never thought you’ll see again.

There he was your Harrison Bryant with his arm wrapped around the waist of a girl that you recognized to be who you caught him cheating on you with… He just smiled as waved at you before turning his attention back to the conversation with his girl and a Cleveland Browns football player that you recognized.

You immediately felt sick in your stomach; for many months you’ve tried to avoid any sight of him whether it was on social media or at football games but here he was at a Super Bowl Party… All you could do was stand next to your boyfriend while trying not to have a panic breakdown in front of everyone around you.

This was the first time you had seen Harrison since the night you caught him cheating on you in your own apartment… All the memories of the things he had said about you and your relationship from the night made you feel like you were going to vomit.

“Are you okay?!” Joe loudly whispered, as his voice pulled you out of your thoughts. Joe had noticed you staring off into the distance for a few minutes, at first he thought that you recognized someone but when your face started going pale and your grip on his hand got tighter. Joe knew that something was wrong.

When you turned you head towards Joe and noticed the concern on his face, all you could do was nod your head and pretend that everything was fine… Even thought the two of you have only been dating for a few months Joe knew that you weren’t telling the truth but, he didn’t want to pressure you to talk about it now.

For the rest of the time while the two of you were at Michael Rubin's 2023 Fanatics Super Bowl Party, you didn’t feel like yourself at all… There was a huge anxious bubble in your chest, you felt so sick to your stomach to the point where you wanted to run off to a private area just to vomit, and you just wanted to go back to the hotel room to cry of how your ex-boyfriend still had so much control over your emotions even if he didn’t say any words to you.

Thankfully, Joe kept his eye on you because he could tell that something must’ve triggered your anxiety and he was slowly wrapping up the loose ends of the conversations with the other football players so that the two of you can leave the party and go back to the privacy of the hotel suit. But just as the conversations were ending, you heard a voice you thought that you would never have to heard again.

“Joe Burrow! It’s good to see you!” your ex-boyfriend yells as he’s walking forward towards the both of you.

“Oh Hey…” Joe slowly says, as he’s not able to recognize the man that is walking his way and you finally noticed that the girl was no longer by his side.

“I’m Harrison Bryant!, Tight End for the Cleveland Browns.” he says proudly. “Me and you have played each other on the football field a few times and I thought now would be the best time to say hello.”

Joe nods his head, not knowing what to say. You just decided to keep quiet. You knew Joe doesn’t know about the history between you and Harrison but you didn’t know if Harrison knew that Joe doesn’t know.

“And look who you have right beside you…” Harrison says, looking directly at you which has Joe confused. “Hello Y/N! It’s good to see you again!”

All you could do was give a fake soft smile as you looked at Harrison who had a smirk on his face before you turned to look and see the confusion on Joe’s face as the grip Joe had on your waist got tighter.

“Hi Harrison.” you bitterly replied.

“How do the two of you know each other?!” Joe asked, looking back and forth between you and Harrison.

Since the three of you have lived in Ohio the past few years, Joe thought you knew Harrison because of friends… but from the tension that could be seen between Harrison and you, Joe knew that the reason the two of you knew each other was complicated.

You didn’t want to lie to Joe, especially in front of Harrison knowing that he would expose the truth… but you didn’t want to give your ex-boyfriend the power of exposing a secret that you’ve been keeping from Joe.

“Harrison is my ex-boyfriend.” you confess. You watch the smirk of Harrison’s face grow bigger as Joe looked more confused than ever before. In that moment, you just wanted to kick Harrison in the crotch and runaway with Joe to a private area to tell the whole truth.

“I’m very surprised to see that you’re dating another football player. You should’ve seen the look on my face when people were telling me that my ex-girlfriend is here with the Cincinnati Bengals Quarterback.” Harrison says. “It’s crazy how things can change in a year. One year ago you were sitting next to me watching your future boyfriend lose in the Super Bowl.”

The grip that Joe had on your waist got tighter to the point where you knew that there would be bruise marks on the skin… You knew that Joe was getting angrier the more Harrison talked. While Joe could be a master of hiding his emotions, if people were paying attention to the conversation they would see his anger.

“Well… I’m sure one day the Cleveland Browns will make it to the Super Bowl.“ Joe states in an angry tone. “But I guess that past 52 years just weren’t the day.”

“Next year will definitely be the year for the Cleveland Browns, you can trust me on that.” Harrison says. “Anyways, I knew I wasn’t going crazy when I saw thought I saw you at the football game between Cleveland and Cincinnati a few weeks ago… I thought that you were at the game to support me but turns out you were at the game to support your new boy-toy.”

“After everything that happened between us… Why would you think that I would ever want to go to a football game and support you again?!” you asked.

“Because girls like you never forget their first love. No matter how the relationship ended.” Harrison answered. “You know I’ll always love you.”

You almost gasped because you couldn’t believe your ex-boyfriend has the nerve to say that he loves you despite the fact that one of the reasons your relationship ended was because you never felt loved by him throughout your entire relationship.

There was silence between the three of you. The only important thing that you knew that you needed to do was leave the party with Joe before a fight could start between him and Harrison… You force Joe to let go of the tight grip that he had on your waist and before he react, you grip his hand tight and started walking as you force Joe to follow behind you.

“Goodbye Harrison. It’s time for Joe and I to leave.” you exclaimed, as the two of you walk past him. You bump into Harrison’s shoulder and don’t look back as Harrison yells for you to say “Excuse Me”.

You knew that you could’ve and should’ve handled the situation better but, you weren’t expecting to see your ex-boyfriend at the party and you weren’t expecting Harrison to walk up and try to have a conversation.

All that you could hope and pray for now is that when you and Joe get back to the hotel suite, he is willing to listen to the reasons why you decided to keep your precious relationship a secret from him.

From the walk to the Uber, to the ride in the car back to the hotel, and to the elevator ride up to the hotel suite. Joe had not said a word to you, he just kept a tight grip on your hand as he kept his attention occupied on something other than you… It was until he let go of your hand as the two of you walked into the hotel suite when he spoke up.

“I’m going take a shower and then we need to talk.” he said, not looking at you as he walked towards the bathroom and then shut the door very loudly.

When Joe was in the bathroom, he felt like he could breathe again as he let go of the breathe he was holding in for so long… There were so many thoughts going through his head and it was overwhelming him to the point where he needed some alone time in the shower to think about everything that happened.

The feeling in Joe’s gut when Harrison walked up towards him should’ve been a warning sign that the conversation between the three of you wasn’t going to be pleasant… Joe wishes he would’ve trusted his gut and walked away with you to not give Harrison any attention because now the two of you have to deal with the consequences of what Harrison has said.

When Joe got into the hot shower, immediately the tension in his body was relieved and he could feel himself relaxing as he let the sound of water take over his mind from the overwhelming thoughts.

Joe has always been a very observing person especially when it came to you… From the moment the two of you met because of mutual friends, he knew that you had just gotten out of a relationship that your friends described to be unhealthy for you.

But, that didn’t stop Joe from catching feeling for you and confessing those feelings only a few months later and he promised you that he would never hurt you the way your ex-boyfriend hurt you (even though he didn’t know any details about your previous relationship).

Joe knew that one day the two of you would have to talk about your previous relationship due to your relationship anxiety because it’s slowly started to affect your relationship with Joe… He doesn’t know what happened between you and Harrison, but he knows that something happened that causes you to have so much anxiety when it comes to relationships.

As Joe is replaying the events of the day in his mind, he realizes that the reason you were so nervous before the two of you left to go to the Super Bowl party was because you were nervous that Harrison would see you with Joe… Joe couldn’t blame you for not wanting to see your ex-boyfriend at a public event, especially since the relationship didn’t end on good terms.

Joe decided to stop focusing on overthinking because he needed to calm himself down in the shower before the two of you had the long awaited discussion… Meanwhile you were walking around the hotel suite, trying not to have a panic attack as your mind is all over the place with overwhelming thoughts.

You knew that you should’ve told the truth to Joe about your previous relationship and your relationship anxiety before the two of you got into a relationship… It was something that your therapist suggested you to do but you never thought there was a right time to talk.

The two of you were still in the early stages of your relationship so it wasn’t like you had kept this a secret from Joe for years… but you knew that because of the things that happened your previous relationship, things in your future relationships would be affected. Your perspective of love and how you wanted to be treated in a romantic relationship had changed.

After pacing around the hotel suite for some time, you finally decided to lay down on the hotel bed to try and stop overthinking… but as you laid down on the bed, you hear the shower being turned off and then a few minutes later, you hear the bathroom door opened and footsteps walking into the hallway into the bedroom.

You watched as Joe walked to the dresser where the clothes were in and changes from just having a bathroom towel wrapped around his waist into a pair of black Nike sweatpants and a big t-shirt.

When Joe turns around he sees you laying on the bed in the simple white short dress that he loved and no sandals on watching every move he made… All he could do was give you a soft smile as he walked toward the bed to lay right next to you.

There was a moment of silent between the two of you as you’re facing each other while laying in the hotel bed together… Neither of you knew where to start the conversation. Your felt your heart beating fast against your chest, as you sat up from your spot on the bed.

“I think the best place to start the conversation is to tell you about my previous relationship with Harrison.” you said, as your attention is focus on Joe as he nods is head in agreement.

“So Harrison and I met because of mutual friends in Ohio and we started dating right before the 2021-2022 football season… Things were good in the beginning of our relationship but, as time went on I realized that the way Harrison loved me wasn’t the way I wanted to be loved. At times I felt like he was embarrassed to be in a relationship with me because he never wanted me to sit with the Cleveland Browns football players’ family and friends at football games and acted like I didn’t exist at events we would go too in front of other football players.” you said before taking a breathe.

Joe reached for your hand to give a comfort squeeze with a smile as he knew that this was hard for you to talk about. “Take all the time you need Angel.” he said.

“I just never felt loved by him and when I would bring this topic up to him, Harrison would say that I was being overdramatic and expecting too much from a guy who is private about his life.” you say.

“Someone being private about their life is different from someone being secretive about their life.” Joe stated. “I’m private about my life but I don’t act like you don’t exist in front of my family and friends.”

“Harrison claimed I was just trying to create issues over things that don’t matter… When I tried to break-up with him the first time, he told me that my reasons for wanting to break-up with him were not good enough and convinced me to stay in the relationship.” you confessed. “He did promise he would do better to love me the way that I wanted him to love me but, that was just an empty promise and I caught him in my old apartment, cheating on me just a few months later.”

Joe didn’t know what to say, he felt like nothing that he could say would comfort you in the right way… All he could do was squeeze your hand to let you know that he was listening to every word that you said.

“When I caught him cheating on me, I immediately confronted him about it and at first he tried to manipulate me that what I saw wasn’t what happened… But when he realized I wouldn’t falling for the excuses, he tried to make it seem like it was my fault that he cheated on me. He said that I set too high of an expectation for him on how I wanted him to love me. I wanted him to love me the way he promised.” you said. “So our relationship ended just a few weeks before we met, and when you confessed your feelings for me… I didn’t think that I was ready to be in a new relationship, but I took a chance because there is something different about you.”

“I’m glad that you took a chance on me.” Joe says. “And I hope that since the day we started dating, I proved to you that I will never be anything like Harrison and I’ll never make you feel unloved the way he did.”

You lean forward to wrap your arms around Joe’s neck as he wrapped his arms around your waist to pull you close to him in a hug… You couldn’t help but let a few tears roll down your face as you felt relieved for letting Joe know the truth about your previous relationship.

“I hope you understand that I want to keep our relationship private, but not in the way that Harrison kept your relationship a secret. There is a different between a private relationship and a secret relationship.” Joe stated. “I’m private about my personal life because I am protective of the people that I love and that includes you. I love you too much to allow you to get hurt my football fans.”

Your eyes are wide open as you sit back up on the bed and stare at him with a blank expression on your face, which causes him to have a confused look on his face as he tried to think about what he said ... Joe didn’t have the chance to ask questions before you spoke up.

“Say that last part again.” you demanded.

“I love you-“

“You love me?!” you asked as you interrupted Joe.

“Yes of course I love you.” Joe answered which causes you to smile and get emotional. All Joe could do was smile, because this was the first time either of you have said those three special words to each other.

“I love you too Joe.” you say as you lena forward to give Joe a kiss. You can feel him smile against your lips as he pull you on top of him to sit on his lap.

When the two of you pulled away from the short kiss, there are matching smiles on your faces... It didn’t take you long to realize that there was something else that was on your mind that you needed to talk about.

“Also, I just want to let you know that I did plan on telling you about my previous relationship with another football player.” you confess. “I wanted to tell you before someone else got the chance but Harrison ruined the plan. I was just scared to tell you because I didn’t want to get judged by you for previously being in a relationship with a football player.”

“I would never judge you and no one has a right to judge you.” Joe answers. “It doesn’t matter if you’ve dated two football players… there’s are a lot of differences between me and Harrison.”

You chuckled at what Joe said because he’s not wrong. There are many differences between Joe and Harrison; there are differences on the football field, but also there are differences off the football field.

“I know that it’ll take time for the anxiety you have about relationships to go away because how you were treated in your previous relationship and I’m letting you know now that I will be right by your side every step of the way to help you overcome your anxiety when it comes to relationships.” Joe says.

Once again, you felt emotional over the words Joe said because you believed your expectations of love were too much for someone to handle… For so long, you thought you weren’t worthy of experiencing a romantic relationship that is built on the foundation of trust.

“I love you so much.” you say as you lay down on top of Joe’s chest with his arms wrapped around your waist.

“I love you too Angel.” Joe says.

It’s crazy how in just one year, your life can changed in ways that is easy for you to explain… One year ago, you were in a relationship with someone that you never felt loved you to the full potential. Now, you are wrapped in the arms of a man who will prove to you every day that he loves you and will be right by your side until the end.

Author’s Note:

it feels like it’s been way too long since my last written fanfiction was published so i hope you all enjoyed reading this written fanfiction… i promise that the next written fanfiction won’t take a month to be published.

i’ve been obsessed with Niall Horan’s music lately so i knew that i wanted to write a fanfiction inspired by one of his songs.

thank you all for the love and support! 🤍

#Joe Burrow #NFL #CFB #Cinncinnati Bengals #LSU Tigers #Joe Burrow Fanfiction #Joe Burrow Fanfic #Joe Burrow Fic #Joe Burrow x OC #Joe Burrow x Reader #Joe Burrow x Y/N #Joe Burrow Imagine #Joe Burrow OneShot #NFL Fanfiction

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snowblossomreads · 5 months

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Exhibit 4: Maybe, Just Maybe

Previous Chapter: Art of Starting Over

Pairing: Sinclair Bryant x Amiee Huang (OC)

Summary: Amiee and Sinclair rush to the hospital while trying to figure out their place in each other's lives. Another life precious to Amiee hangs in a precocious balance.

Tag(s)/Warning(s): Implied Attempted Suicide, Hospitalization, Drug Overdose, Alcohol Abuse, Drowning, Depression

Word Count: 6.7K

A/N: Hooof, is all I can say LOL! This chapter is a bit heavy so do bear with me! Also yesterday from when I'm posting this was Close My Eyes anniversary so happy bday to the movie that gave us a puppy dog (ignores everything else) Anyways enjoy and I'll see you at the end!

A/N+: Jk hold up just in case there is confusion with all the names going on here is a quick blurb for name explanations when it comes to Amiee.

Amiee - English Name , Xuemei (雪梅/Snow Plum) - Chinese Name, Xiao Xue (小雪/Small Snow) - Chinese Nickname

Angela/Angie - English Name and Nickname, Quixiang (秋香/Autumn Fragrance) - Chinese Name

Alright NOW let us continue.

Whatever intrigue Sinclair had about who was calling at this hour had been pushed aside in his mind. He was still busy unraveling from the shock of the delicate yet fleeting kiss that Amiee had placed on his forehead before slipping away. It had caught him off guard yet he also wished that it lasted longer.

Brushing his fingertips along his forehead he couldn't help but let out an irritated sigh at the complicated feelings that were bubbling up.

"Selfish, Selfish, Selfish!" He chided himself quietly as he sunk further back into the couch. "What are you doing Sinclair? You're still technically married so why are you rushing her into something like this? You think you would have learned-."

His self-flagellation was cut off mid-sentence when he heard a sharp wail from the kitchen that caused him to freeze and look down the hallway. It was then followed by Amiee shouting something that he didn't understand before the loud slam of the telephone rang throughout the flat and he watched her fly out of the kitchen into her bedroom.

Something was most definitely wrong and he was up from his seat in an instant as he heard loud rustling coming from her bedroom along with what sounded like sobbing as he approached.

“Amiee what are you doing? What’s going on are you okay?”

His line of questioning was met with silence but before he could poke his head in her room, she had reappeared and he felt as if the wind was being knocked out of his body. Her eyes were rimmed red and tears had begun to wet her cheeks as she kept swiping at her face to clear her vision. But the tears only came quicker.

He had long established that he didn't like it when she cried. She had only done so once in his vicinity and he had gone mad trying to figure out how to stop her from doing so. It wasn’t that it bothered him, well yes, it did bother him, it bothered him a lot actually. He had always seen her as a calm and steady person. Someone he would go to when he needed to complain and she always had a knack for bringing him down from any proverbial ledge.

Yet she was also always a lot of fun to be around, indulging him in his eccentricities and never belittling him for his behaviour that a few would call childlike. She was sweet and an absolutely lovely human and now she was upset. And he wanted to fix that in any way possible because she was Amiee and he wanted her to be alright.

“Sinclair please I need you to take me to Manchester,” she blubbered quickly trying to go past him only for him to gently but firmly grab her shoulders and hold her in place scared that she would run into something with how out of it she was. "I ha-have to go please I'm so-so sorry.”

“Wait! Wait you’re going to hurt yourself darling! Slow down tell me what’s wrong! What’s happened?”

“It’s Angie,” she panted unable to catch her breath as she sobbed again at the thought of her little sister in hospital. “I have to go Sinclair somethings wrong please can you bring me there I need to go p-please.”

A grave look appeared on his feature when she said that and he instantly understood why she was so broken up. With no hesitation, he immediately nodded at her as the thought of not helping never once crossed his mind.

“Yes of course I’ll take you whatever you need!”

It was the last thing said before they rushed out of her apartment, she was barely able to lock her door as she fumbled with her keys only for Sinclair to take them from her and do it for her.

Guiding her to his car with a hand on her lower back he opened the door and let her get situated before he was jogging over to his side to get going. Both were so overwhelmed with the situation that a familiar noise sounded in the air yet neither paid attention. Most of the drive was quiet, in contrast to the one they took hours ago. Sinclair didn’t even think of turning the radio on and he was surprised at himself again when he couldn’t find anything to say to her.

The only sound that accompanied them was the soft hiccups coming from Amiee that would sometimes turn into little whimpers and the bumps in the road as he sped up the M1. He was sure if they got pulled over the fine would be astronomical but it didn’t matter. What mattered was getting to the hospital as soon as possible as he was unsure of the condition of her sister as he sped down the motorway. It wasn’t until maybe an hour or so into the drive when Sinclair glanced in Amiee’s direction to check in on her and found her slumped into her seat. Her arms were wrapped around the bag she had bought with her and her head was slumped in the direction of the window.

She had fallen asleep.

With all the adrenaline that had been rushing through her and the clock now showing almost one in the morning, he was not surprised that she had.

‘She gets cold easily remember?’

The thought floated in his mind when he saw her and he automatically began reaching behind him to pull his jacket off the back of his seat. With one hand on the steering wheel and eyes fixed on the road, he somehow managed to pull the jacket loose. Holding it in his right hand, he carefully leaned over and was able to lay it on her without too much fuss and without driving off the road. A win for everyone he thought as he heard her let out a small sound before going silent again.

Giving her one last glance over, Sinclair went back to concentrating on the quiet roads even though his mind was less quiet with various thoughts that he couldn’t decipher. While he was used to his mind being loud, he was also used to it being clear, but at the moment it was as clear as London’s foggiest days.

That was a novel sensation.

So, he sat in silence most of the drive which was also a novel thing and only when they were about 30 minutes out from Manchester proper did he decide to nudge Amiee awake. It only took a shake of her shoulder and the call of her name before she was stirring in her seat and coming back alive.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the only thing coming alive as her head began to pound and her eyes hurt even in the dark. To compare this to a bad hangover was accurate, except for the part where she didn’t even have the chance to have a drink.

“Sin-hiccup-clair w-what where are we, did I fall asleep?” She questioned as she wiped her eyes which felt sore and tried to blink away the drowsiness that seemed to want to stick around.

“You did, I didn’t want to wake you until we got near, I’m sure you’re exhausted,” he chattered as he rubbed the sleep from his own eyes.

Sitting in silence had gotten a bit dull after a bit so he had turned the radio on to a low buzz to ward away any exhaustion. It had helped if only a little, but he was starting to feel drowsiness attempt to bubble up again and was glad to now have someone to talk to.

“We just passed the sign saying Manchester’s about 30 miles away and thought better to wake you up now and make sure that I’m going to the right place. I assume we are going to the Royal Infirmary but I haven’t been here in so long that maybe they built a new hospital somewhere and we need to go to one of those?”

“No you’ve got it right,” Amiee quipped her voice a bit low and raspy as her throat felt dry like sandpaper from all the crying she had done for almost an hour. She could use some water but that would have to wait.

Shifting in her seat because she needed to stretch, she noticed that she had something soft lying on her front that wasn’t there before. Eyes flickering down, she could tell that it was a suit jacket that was engulfing her smaller frame and keeping her from getting too cold. Not only that, but the scent that wafted from it was the same dark citrus that was distinctly Sinclair and she couldn’t help but want to wrap it around her like a blanket.

“Sinclair?”

He hummed his acknowledgement before flicking his eyes in her direction and noticed she was tugging at the jacket.

“Oh! I wanted to make sure you stayed warm,” he explained glancing over at Amiee who was playing with the neckline of the jacket and pulling it close so that it was under her neck. “I know the cold makes you feel bad, and well…,” he paused for a second, “you’re already feeling bad right now so I didn’t want you to feel any worse so I hope it helps even a little.”

She could see the timid smile that broke on his features as he said it and for a moment there was another emotion other than sadness and confusion that swirled in her mind about what was going on.

“It does,” she whispered before adding a soft, “thank you.” It was almost inaudible but by the way his smile grew and the way he sat up in his seat, exhaustion fading suddenly, she was sure he had heard it.

They talked some more as they approached the centre of the town. It was mindless chatter, yes but she let him talk to her, keep her from thinking too hard and he seemed plenty happy to do so. As he spoke the empty motorways became empty side streets but the scenery changed from forest on each side to houses, shops and all types of large buildings.

It wasn’t long before they were following signs to the hospital and within a few more minutes they were pulling into the lot for the emergency department. Even on a Friday night, technically early Saturday morning there were unsurprisingly quite a few cars as even if it was the weekend people didn’t stop getting hurt or becoming ill.

Oh, if only.

As soon as the car was put into park, Amiee quickly unbuckled herself and put the jacket aside before she leapt out of the car and began to walk briskly towards the entrance. Sinclair followed suit once he turned the car off, jogging to catch up to her as she was already across the parking lot. Once inside the hospital, they made a beeline to the receptionist who was not paying any mind to the coming and going of people or the people sitting in the waiting room.

“Excuse me,” Amiee asked as she approached the counter “My sister is here and I was told I needed to come as soon as possible. Is there any way you could tell me where I could her?”

Not even looking up at her, the receptionist began to shoot her down by saying,

“Visiting hours are over you’ll have to come back-”

“No no no you don’t understand,” Amiee interrupted, panic starting to bubble up suddenly and the urge to just run and look through every room to find her sister growing stronger. “My mum called, said it was an emergency they are up there already with her if you could just let me go up.”

Finally looking up at the two, the woman examined Amiee for a movement before she looked at Sinclair who had just come from behind and absentmindedly placed his hand on Amiee’s lower back. It caused her to look up at him with a worried expression before she turned her attention back to the older woman behind the desk who eyed them curiously before asking,

“What’s the name?”

“Angie-, no sorry Angela Huang they came in just a few hours ago I think.”

Turning to her computer, the woman began to click around and type something while Amiee bit the inside of her cheek and began to shift her weight from one foot to the other. Even with the clicking noises of the mouse and the sound of keys clacking her mind refused to stay silent and began to spiral again.

Was Angie okay? What had happened? Did someone do something to her? What if it was too late what if she-.

“Ah,” the sound of the receptionist brought her back as the lady turned back to them. “Ms. Uhm. Ms. Angela is in room 437 which is in the ICU bay. You and your husband can take the lift behind the doors up to the fourth floor,” she directed pointing towards a door that was diagonally behind them, “and then cross the bridge over to get there.”

While they had heard her, they both were frozen at her statement about Sinclair being Amiee’s husband. Did they look like they were a couple?

“Oh, erm we’re not-.” Sinclair began to fumble his words but thankfully the receptionist seemed to continue to go about what she had been doing earlier too busy to pay attention to them.

Wanting to keep it that way, Amiee interrupted with a, “thank you so much!” Before grabbing Sinclair and pulling him in the direction that they had been told to go.

The lift ride up was practically silent other than the sound of the mechanical gears of the machine working to pull the metal box. Both of them were too busy thinking about what the woman had said and also thinking about what to expect once they reached Angie. Did they seem so familiar with each other that they looked like they could be married? Sure, they were comfortable around each other having dated and all. But there had to have been something else that the woman saw to cause her to think they were married.

Right?

So caught up in their thoughts, the sound of the lift dinging to let them know that they were on the fourth floor startled them though both tried to mask it as they exited the lift and began to almost jog in the direction they had been told.

They had only made it a few feet before Amiee flew from Sinclair’s side with a loud cry of,

“Mama! Baba!” Leaving her lips as she ran towards an elderly couple who he could only assume were her parents as he had never met them.

They were both sitting alone outside of what they guessed was the room that they were directed to. Neither of them were speaking as the older man was slumped over with his head in his hands and the older woman was staring straight ahead. It was only when they heard Amiee’s voice did they seem to be pulled out of their stupor.

“Xiao Xue!” The older woman gasped standing quickly as Amiee ran towards her before giving her mother a tight hug.

Her father a bit slower to rise ambled over to the two women and offered Amiee a small pat on the shoulder as he stood beside his wife and eldest daughter. He had never been one to show a huge amount of affection so it didn’t surprise her too much when he didn’t embrace her as her mother had.

“What happened, what’s going on?” Amiee spoke in rushed Mandarin, pulling away from her mother and looking between both her parents trying to get as much information out of them as she could. “Why are you both sitting outside? Are the doctors in the room right now?”

Nodding, her mother began to explain what had happened all while barely keeping at bay fresh tears that threatened to spill from her once more. Apparently, when they had come home that night from the neighbours, they had noticed that some of the lights were on and the sound of running water in the bathroom.

Assuming rightly that Angie had come home from wherever she had been, they both didn’t think anything of it until they wandered into the hallway and noticed that there was water pooling out from underneath the bathroom door. That’s when her mother started to call out to Angie and when there was no reply the second or third time, she opened the door to find her youngest, unconscious slumped in the tub with water covering the lower half of her face.

“She wasn’t moving or breathing,” her mother wept and Amiee was close to joining her while her stomach tightened and twisted itself in knots. She increasingly thought she was going to be sick with each passing moment and each word that was spoken.

There had to be a reason. This wasn’t her sister. She had seemed fine when they had talked a few days ago. Happy about school starting in just a few weeks. Happy about moving to London and being near Amiee. No no no this was all wrong. Not Angie, she would never do something like that.

She would never k-.

Amiee couldn’t even complete the sentence in her mind as she stood there listening to her mom’s recount.

“I told your baba to call the ambulance and I turned the water off and tried to keep her head up as the water drained but why?” Her mother wailed loudly and stomped her foot in confusion and frustration. And most of all pain. “Why would she do this?”

There was no answer Amiee could give to her, only wrapping her arms around her mom in an attempt to console the weeping woman as she didn’t know what else she could do feeling as confused and lost in the situation as she was. Hugging her tight Amiee glanced up at her baba who seemed unnerved. While it was expected in this situation there was something odd about how he had barely said a word to her. His eyes averted from her own and trained on the ground as if he didn’t wish to look at them.

“Baba-.”

“Excuse me are you all the family?”

Before she could ask him how he was, a voice from right behind them called out causing Amiee to let go of her mom who dabbed at her tears as a man in a white coat, who they assumed was the doctor came up to them.

“Yes we are doctor,” Amiee answered now in English while going to shake the doctor’s outstretched hand. “I’m Amiee the sister and this is mom, Grace, and dad, Andrew,” she introduced pointing at the respective parent who also shook the man’s hand and said their hellos.

“Wonderful, I’m Dr. Davies and I apologize for having you all wait for so long but I first wanted to let you know that Ms. Huang is currently stable and doing fine right now so you all can breathe easy,” the man stated. And god did they all let out an audible sigh of relief. “But,” he continued, looking down at a chart in his hand, “we did have to put her on a ventilator because she was going through respiratory failure and wasn’t getting enough air. We think she'll be on it for maybe a week or so but with how young she is we’re hoping for a shorter amount of time.”

“What is um ventilator? Respiratory failure?” Grace asked in a slightly accented English, puzzled as she and her husband seemed a bit unfamiliar with the term the doctor had been using.

“Ah I’m sorry your daughter was having trouble breathing on her own and so we currently have a machine helping her do it,” the doctor explained as the older couple nodded while Amiee anxiously raked her hand through her hair barely able to listen to the man speak as the only thing on her mind was her sister. “Once her lungs gain their strength again, we’ll be able to take her off of it.”

Understanding shone in their eyes, but before either of the parents could thank the man, Amiee had dropped her hands to her side only for her to cross it against her chest before speaking.

“And her being underwater for a long time I guess caused this?”

There was a brief pause for a moment at her question as the doctor looked at her with an unreadable expression that had more questions suddenly forming in her mind.

“Well, yes that is what we think at first glance.”

At first glance?

“What do you-”

She wanted to ask him what he meant by ‘at first glance’. Was it or was it not the drowning that put her in the hospital it was a simple yes or no question to Amiee but it apparently wasn’t meant to be answered at that second as before she even finished, her mother interrupted.

“We can go see her yes?” Grace asked already making a move towards the room anxious to see her daughter to make sure that she was okay even if the doctor insisted she was.

“Yes of course but please understand that when you go in your daughter will have a, um, mask over her mouth and nose that helps her breathe she isn’t in any pain but some people are shocked when they first see a loved one in this manner,” the doctor assured them before continuing, “also we usually only let two people go in at a time so if it would be possible could one of you stay behind?”

Seeing that her parents were about to protest, Amiee cut them off speaking up for herself before they could,

“It’s fine I can wait! My parents can go in first.”

Even if she wanted to see Angie right then, she didn’t think she could handle it at that very second with how fast everything had been moving. And then the way the doctor seemed to be holding something back when she asked him her question. She needed to know what was going on.

“Xiao Xue,” her father finally spoke his voice raspy and tired; it was borderline fragile sounding which had her eyes widening just slightly as it was not at all like him.

“Baba it’s fine, I’ll be here waiting and will talk to the doctor,” Amiee replied in his native tongue trying to assuage the thinly veil concern in his weary eyes that she could finally see.

His expression had her already queasy stomach twisting more as it was a familiar look she had seen before but she couldn’t quite find it in her memories. It was an uncomfortable look to say the least as her mother began to fuss wanting him to come on so that they could see her sister.

Giving her one last glance, he turned around and followed his wife who was hurrying to the room. She watched as they started to enter the room, pausing only for a moment at the doorway before going in and closing the door behind them.

When they did, she felt her entire body slump, the tension in her muscles giving out immediately and the self-restraint that she had been holding in on the verge of collapsing. But she couldn’t collapse, not yet, she wanted her questions answered. And it seemed as if the doctor sensed that too as he was quick to grab her attention once her parents were out of earshot.

“Amiee, yes?” Dr. Davies questioned, pulling her from her thoughts and focusing her back on him. “About your question earlier,” he started a bit cautiously and seemingly nervous as he spoke. “I’m sorry if I seemed to beat about the bush regarding it. I was just a bit unsure if it be doing more harm than good trying to explain the full situation considering well…” He paused as he tried to find the right words and Amiee who had gone through this a million times before only let out a sigh that was accompanied by a slight shake of her head.

“You mean my parents?” She offered her tone a bit irritated already knowing what he was trying to imply. “I appreciate it doctor but I think I would have appreciated it more if you did try. Just because English isn’t their first language doesn’t mean they wouldn’t understand with some effort.”

The words had more bite than she intended to and she could see from the way the man’s face twisted that he didn’t miss the aggression and impatience that had been stewing in her during the whole ordeal. If he was offended by it, he seemed to quickly shrug it off before making an attempt to explain why he had hesitated initially.

“I understand and I apologize I just thought with the already delicate situation of things it be better if there’s a clear understanding of well…the whole matter.”

“I’m assuming the fact that my sister almost drowned to death isn’t the only situation you’re talking about is it?”

“No, unfortunately, it isn’t,” the man said as he looked at this chart once again before back at her with his eyebrows drawn together and a slight frown on his face. “We took some blood samples when she was first admitted and the labs came back fairly quick. Her blood alcohol content was at a .30 which is incredibly dangerous as that much is technically classified as alcohol poisoning.”

This had Amiee taken aback for a moment. .30? No that was not right and she wanted to ask him again if he had read those numbers correctly. Sure, her sister and she liked to have a glass of wine or something every now and then but Angie was never one to indulge more than necessary.

Even at family gatherings where drinking games were aplenty, she had never been one to partake in excess always complaining about how she didn’t like the way it made her feel. She didn’t have time to ask him though because he continued explaining what else they had found from the labs.

“That’s not all, there also seemed to be a high level of a class of medication called benzodiazepines, or benzos as most people call them in her system when we ran the test.” He continued and she could feel the bile in her stomach try to slowly make its way up her throat because she knew what was about to come even if she didn’t want to hear it.

Angie would never. She would never. Never. Never.

The words were chanted over and over in her head as the man continued to speak, yet she could barely hear his words over the noise in her head. If she was truthful, she didn’t want to hear those words only if to save her from the immense buildup of guilt that she had long thought she’d thrown away.

How had she not known?

“I’m not aware if you know this but these types of medications do not react well with alcohol even in normal doses and the amount that was in her system was more than enough to render her unconscious and even put her in a coma had she not been rushed here. Because of those two things even after she wakes up, we would like to keep her for some psych evaluations just to be on the safe side.”

Had her heart been a glass object it would have shattered in a million pieces at his words. Oh how she wished it was though because at least once it was shattered there would be nothing left to hurt.

But it wasn’t and the stabbing pain that she felt in her heart had her breathless. At a loss for words, Amiee could only stare at the doctor who wore an expression of pity, or concern or something of the two. Yet she couldn’t discern it, too busy trying to not allow the giant hole of despair to drag her into its depths and drown her.

“Are you saying that she tried to k-.” The words caught in Amiee’s throat as her mind felt scrambled and her eyes began to burn with the familiar sensation that seemed to come more easily these days.

How many times would she be on the verge of crying this week she wondered as she tried to swallow the tears down yet they refused to hide. Seeing her struggling to get the words out, it was easy to make an inference of what she was trying to say and the man tried to ease her mind even if it didn’t.

“While we don’t want to jump to conclusions,” he spoke choosing his words carefully, “we do want to make sure that she is okay both physically and mentally. Could it have been an accident absolutely but it’s something we take seriously.”

As much as she had wanted to believe that it could have been an accident, a mere coincidence she couldn’t help but let her mind wander to the negative. With everything he had just told her, from how much alcohol was in her blood, to the medication, which she had no idea she had been on, how could it have been an accident?

Yet the thought that it was purposeful, the thought that her sister, her baby sister, would do this. It refused to stick in her mind and she could only nod in understanding as she feared if she talked the strength that she had left would fade and she would only be left in a puddle of tears.

“I’m terribly sorry this happened Ms. Huang but the good news is that she’s stable now and we don’t expect that to change,” the doctor said as he went to pat Amiee’s shoulder.

She wanted to brush his hand off of her. The gesture, she knew, was meant to be in goodwill, in comfort maybe, and she knew it wasn’t anything but that. Yet she was so hurt, so confused. Angry, and tired as it felt like everything was crashing onto her and she just wanted it to stop. Why couldn’t it all just stop for a moment and let her breathe? It’s all she wanted to do.

“Thank you doctor,” she finally rasped out, her voice not sounding as her own as he gave her one more pat before dropping his hand.

“Of course,” he answered shuffling his clipboard under his arm, “if you all need anything don’t hesitate to call for a nurse at the front desk and I’ll make sure to check in at the end of my shift to update you all on anything.”

Nodding, the doctor gave her a tight smile before retreating down the hall in the direction she and Sinclair had come rushing from just moments ago. Yet as she stared in that direction, she couldn’t help but ponder briefly that something was missing. Her mind whirling and whirling trying to overcome the haze of everything that had been dumped on her while trying to remember what that missing thing was.

Until it finally dawned on her that she wasn’t missing something but someone.

“Oh god! Sinclair!” Amiee half shouted half croaked as she forgot for a second that she was in a hospital and didn’t think the staff would appreciate her screaming in the hallways.

Her feet began to guide her faster than her brain could think and before she knew it, she was turning down a corridor where the unmistakable sound of her lost friend chattering could be heard. He had a knack for making his presence known to everyone and it seemed as if a poor nurse doing her job was the victim of it as she turned the corner and saw him.

What they were talking about she didn’t know but it seemed as if the nurse was trying to get away but Sinclair continued to talk. And as she got closer, she could hear him telling her about the Human Genome Project that had really begun to take off at the start of the decade.

“And did you know that with the help of human genome sequencing, the hope is to be able to develop more medical techniques that can help cure all kinds of diseases along with better protocol to take care of people! I think that’s wonderful, don’t you? And with the amount of money we’ve sent over to help fund it I think it’ll be a great success!”

Enthusiasm dripped from his words as he spoke to the nurse who seemed to be trying to get away but to no avail, as he kept talking not letting the poor woman get a word in. Deciding that it would be for the best to free the nurse, Amiee approached and went to get his attention.

“Sinclair there you are!” She exclaimed, causing him to stop talking and turn in her direction. “I was wondering where’d you run off to I thought you had up and left me!”

There was a joke in there somewhere but she didn’t think it had quite landed as his smile faltered at the sight of her. Or rather at the sight of how red and puffy her eyes were, an easy telltale sign that she had been crying. With his attention on her, the nurse high tailed it away silently not even offering a goodbye. It would have been funny to Amiee if the mood was lighter but it was anything but.

“I got so caught up talking to the doctor I hadn’t even realized you gone missing until I looked around and you weren’t nearby,” she explained, giving him the tiniest smile she could muster when she noticed that he was holding a little tray with four paper cups in it once she was beside him.

“Oh I was just fetching some tea for us and then I got into a lovely conversation with, Nancy here-,” turning to introduce the nurse, Sinclair paused when he noticed that she was gone but it didn’t seem to bring him down at all as he turned back to Amiee. “We talked, well mostly I think I talked about the human genome project because she said her cousin or uncle one of those is working on it at his university!”

“Really? That’s brilliant,” she responded despondently not in the mood to fake enthusiasm as she was too tired to put on a face.

She just wanted to see her sister and go to bed in hopes that when she woke up everything would be okay. That when she got up her sister would be healthy and alert even if that was the very opposite of what she would be according to the doctors.

Sinclair noticed and immediately his expression darkened a bit as he went to put a comforting hand on her shoulder and it took everything in her not to rest her cheek on it. His touch was the opposite of the doctor’s. It was the only touch she could stomach right now and she wished it would stay even if she didn’t dare say it. So instead, she made no move to remove it, only moving forward to close the distance between the two of them.

“Is Angie okay? I’m sorry I didn’t stay, should I have?” He bumbled unsure of the correct answer in a situation like this. “It seemed like it was something that some stranger shouldn’t put their nose in and I didn’t want to intrude so I told myself I should maybe get everyone some tea because I’m a bit knackered and I’m sure you all are too!”

Looking down at the drinks briefly, Sinclair turned his gaze back onto Amiee and she couldn’t stop the way her heart swooped into her stomach. It ached yes, but it was different from the painful sort that had plagued her the entire night.

“You’re not a stranger Sinclair you know that,” she whispered not wanting to answer his initial question right that second as she was still processing what she had been told and was unsure if she wanted to even tell him.

Not only that but she was unsure if she could tell him without just breaking down completely. But otherwise to her, her words were true, even if they hadn’t seen each other for years he didn’t feel like a stranger and if he was well, she had never felt so comfortable with a stranger before.

“I should be the one apologizing for dragging you all the way out here in the middle of the night. I didn’t even say thank you yet.”

“Nonsense you think I would tell you no and make you wait until the Tube was running in the morning?” He asked a bit indignity a pout forming on his lips that had her feeling something other than the dread and sadness that had plagued her. “Of course not, I was there and I could help so of course I did! And even if I wasn’t I would have come. I’ll always help you Amiee you’re my friend!”

‘And I love you!’

Those words he left unspoken for the fear of being misinterpreted worried him more. Yet he did love her, she was his friend and he loved her so much that he hated seeing her so hurt and broken up. He loved her like a friend. A friend that he never wanted to be away from…a friend he wished had stayed. And a friend that he wanted to be as close to as they had been all those years ago.

Yet he would be silent. He had learned because of her how to be silent and not always let his feelings be known even if it was learned in the worst way possible. And plus, this was not the time of place. Amiee had enough to worry about, he didn’t want her to be under more pressure. So he stayed silent as she looked at him though unbeknownst to them both their thoughts were almost on the same plane.

For her, he had proclaimed his care, and his friendship with such convection and such honesty that for a moment she wondered why she had done it. Why she had run away so long ago. Maybe because it was how honest he was, how truthful he was that she was afraid that it would have been seen as her using him. Maybe he could have helped her, maybe if she had stayed things would have turned out differently.

So many maybes because she hadn’t been brave. But she had also been so young and the situation she had been put into still had her wondering what would have been the best approach. But still, maybe he could have helped if she had just told him and not tried to take the burden on herself things would be different. Maybe. Maybe. Maybe.

There were too many of them to deal with and while her past kept trying to linger, the present was where she was needed even if it was equally daunting. She would have time one day to sort her past out. But she needed to be here.

Taking in the softness of his expression that was directed at her, she felt a strange surge of relief begin to flow in her. Even if she was exhausted, desperate for answers, and still confused by everything at least he was there. Someone she could trust, someone who had a place in her heart that no one else could take. He was there and she was thankful for that least.

So with a smile that was less forced than the one she had given him earlier, she reached her hand up and brushed his cheek gently. A puzzled expression blanketed his features as he stared at her curiously though he made no move to push her away.

And with it, she spoke words that weren’t exactly what she wished to say but she at least hoped he understood why, and hoped that the gesture was enough. For now.

“Thank you for always being a wonderful friend,” she paused before adding a soft yet audible, “love.”

His amber eyes lit up and his puzzled expression began to morph into one of joy. With each second that passed, the way his smile grew wider and brighter had her thinking that maybe, just maybe everything would be okay.

A/N: I hope you all are still here with me! I promise the story isn't going to be all doom and gloom but my brain was like we have to have some semi balance of plot and the plot was attempted murder of a sibiling. Ahaha…anyway tell me how you're feeling and if you enjoyed it (even if it was a downer). Probably won't update until next year as i have some other fics I want to write but dont worry we'll see these two again!

#sinclair bryant x oc #sinclair x oc #sinclair bryant #alan rickman character #the art of entangled hearts #blossoms writing

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tapejob · 2 years

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so for those of you who didn't know - over the summer, i got to be a counselor for this academic camp for a couple weeks. one perk of this was that i got to run all the social aspects of it. because of this, i was in the precious and valuable position of being in charge of running Trivia Night™️.

consequently, because i was writing almost all the questions, i got to make a whole little sports section for my own pleasure and imbue it with silly little questions (e.g. what was the first name of both of the coaches during the 1998 super bowl xxxii between the packers and the broncos? a: mike). more importantly i got to force a bunch of kids who have never watched sports in their lives to answer a bunch of hockey trivia for my personal self indulgence. here are some of the best wrong answers

Asexual

Rude

[AN: a surprisingly large amount of teams put nb! proud of them]

Birdman

the flyer

Angel of Death

Genie

genie daddy

Ev Daddy

Big Daddy

[AN: all daddies received credit]

Micheal Scott

Lebron James

Kobe Bryant (Bonus: Michael Jordan)

Michael Jordan (Bonus: Michael Jordan)

Bob

len

Wayne Gretzky

Sydney Crosby [AN: spelled with a y]

Ovechkin

5'3", Sid the Kid

[AN: there is a lot to unpack here]

and the most important question

"you're bad/you suck"

"bird"

"pigeon"

"mockingjay"

"chin up"

"Italians!"

#this was very good for me emotionally lmao #gritty #philadelphia flyers #evgenii dadonov #mason geertsen #tyler bertuzzi #sidney crosby #alexander ovechkin #montreal canadiens

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noxtms · 1 year

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* 𝐀𝐍𝐎𝐍𝐘𝐌𝐎𝐔𝐒 𝐀𝐒𝐊𝐄𝐃 : Can your members reply with their most wanted female charrie and fc????

they absolutely can, but since today is going to be a difficult day to get a large variety of answers from people, i’m going to take a guess that canons most wanted at the minute are going to be andromeda tonks, aurora sinistra, gabrielle delacour, angelina johnson, tracey davis, katie bell and cho chang ! similarly, so you’re not hanging around for very long, the most recent list of most wanted face claims was : zaria, tati gabrielle, summer bishil, erin kellyman, meaghan rath, karla souza, dichen lachman, richa moorjani, jodie comer, khadijha red thunder, jasmin savoy brown, leah lewis, diana silvers, shay mitchell, lucy boynton, ayca aysin turan, nadia hilker, hunter schafer, chloe bridges, zoe love smith, jung wheein, maria pedraza, milly alcock, lauren ridloff, kang seulgi, katheryn winnick, simone ashley, milena tscharntke, gideon adlon, mina el hammani, marlo kelly, christina ricci, emmy raver lampman, kiana madeira, dilraba dilmurat, sofia boutella, beren saat, anna shaffer, ahsen eroglu, mikey madison, alisha boe, lucy liu, reina hardesty, samantha logan, precious mustapha, roseanne park, ritu arya, karen fukuhara, bailee madison, ahn hyejin, tahirah sharif, conor leslie, zion moreno, jessica plummer, taylor russell, madison bailey, barbie ferreira, nathalie emmanuel, vanessa kirby, lyrica okano, hannah john kamen, geraldine viswanathan, jamie chung, neslihan atagul, jurnee smollett, sofia bryant, sarah shahi, hayley law, zazie beetz, priscilla quintana, demet ozdemir, sophie nelisse, lulu antariksa, aisha dee, madeleine madden, salma hayek, adeline rudolph, lesley ann brandt, amber midthunder, greta onieogou, aja naomi king, maggie q, morena baccarin, daisy head, gugu mbatha raw, ursula corbero, natacha karam, brenda song, michelle yeoh, savannah lee smith, hoyeon jung, charithra chandran, amita suman, brianne tju, fan bingbing, sujaya dusgupta, eve best, candice patton, sophie skelton, alba baptista, christian serratos, anna diop, odette annable, danielle rose russell, keke palmer, maya hawke, chandler kinney, antonia gentry, natalia dyer, megan suri, devery jacobs, sofia carson, aslihan malbora, sun yihan, park sooyoung, gemma chan, banita sandhu and alice pagani !

#hp rp #harry potter rp #hp roleplay #dark rp #war rp #magic rp #fantasy rp #book rp #fc help.#answered #anonymous

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helpersofindie · 1 year

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Hello lovely helpers!! <3 May I please ask for some POC female faceclaims? Between 21-40? Who have those bad bitch vibes, strong and alluring, please? Thank you so much for your kindness <3 :)

under the cut, you can find 165 woc faceclaims who i think fit the vibe! i hope this helps!

maitreyi ramakrishnan (21)

josie totah (21) — josie is a trans woman!

miah madden (21)

rowan blanchard (21)

halle bailey (22)

yara shahidi (22)

chandler kinney (22)

dara renee (22)

anna lambe (22)

tarayummy (22)

daniella perkins (22)

sofia bryant (23)

megan suri (23)

alycia pascual pena (23)

braydee cardinal (23)

imani lewis (23)

china anne mcclain (24)

chloe bailey (24)

madison bailey (24)

diamond white (24)

shina novalinga (24)

paris berelc (24)

brianne tju (24)

madison pettis (24)

antonia gentry (25)

coco jones (25)

lana condor (25)

alisha boe (25)

sydney park (25)

alyah chanelle scott (25)

becky g (25)

banita sandhu (25)

amber midthunder (25)

kiana lede (25)

rosé (25)

normani (26)

zendaya (26)

samantha logan (26)

joy sunday (26)

chase sui wonders (26)

madeleine madden (26)

anya chalotra (26)

brittany o’grady (26)

fernanda ly (26)

imaan hammam (26)

leah lewis (26)

park soobin (26)

pia mia (26)

snitcherty (26)

bree kish (26)

cierra ramirez (27)

courtney eaton (27)

tati gabrielle (27)

haskiri velazquez (27)

jennie kim (27)

megan thee stallion (27)

aslihan malbora (27)

im nayeon (27)

zion moreno (27) — zion is a trans woman!

adeline rudolph (27)

christina nadin (27)

camila mendes (28)

ryan destiny (28)

natasha liu bordizzo (28)

khadijha red thunder (28)

kim jisoo (28)

eva reign (28) — eva is a trans woman!

midori francis (28)

hoyeon jung (28)

sofia carson (29)

keke palmer (29)

aisha dee (29)

devery jacobs (29)

yasmine al bustami (29)

nadine lustre (29)

tinashe (29)

yalitza aparicio (29)

olivia liang (29)

saweetie (29)

yvette monreal (30)

kiana madeira (30)

ziwe fumudoh (30)

triana browne (30)

vanessa morgan (30)

chloe bennet (30)

nyma tang (31)

kiki layne (31)

malese jow (31)

grace dove (31)

chelsea tavares (31)

laci mosley (31)

michaela jae rodriguez (32) — michaela jae is a trans woman!

stephanie hsu (32)

keisha castle hughes (32)

la’tecia thomas (32)

lindsey morgan (32)

mitski (32)

patti harrison (32) — patti is a trans woman!

tristin mays (32)

alexa demie (32)

danielle brooks (33)

sza (33)

rachel colwell (33)

logan browning (33)

precious lee (33)

kat graham (33)

aimee carrero (34)

lizzo (34)

candice patton (34)

anna diop (34)

brenda song (34)

janel parrish (34)

melissa o’neil (34)

ashleigh murray (35)

michaela coel (35)

samira wiley (35)

shay mitchell (35)

naomi watanabe (35)

alina serban (35)

javicia leslie (35)

diane guerrero (36)

nicole byer (36)

da’vine joy randolph (36)

meaghan rath (36)

cynthia erivo (36)

amber riley (36)

lilan bowden (37)

karla souza (37)

jessica matten (37)

natalie morales (37)

meagan tandy (37)

nathalie kelley (37)

vella lovell (37)

brandee evans (37)

arden cho (37)

aubrey plaza (38)

america ferrera (38)

tala ashe (38)

issa rae (38)

aja naomi king (38)

jessica parker kennedy (38)

dewanda wise (38)

lupita nyong’o (39)

tessa thompson (39)

jamie chung (39)

janet mock (39) — janet is a trans woman!

gabourey sibide (39)

levy tran (39)

dascha polanco (40)

constance wu (40)

gemma chan (40)

dichen lachman (40)

tiya sircar (40)

ali wong (40)

cara gee (40)

melissa fumero (40)

kimrie lewis (40)

hannah simone (42)

jessica alba (41)

nasim pedrad (41)

stephanie beatriz (41)

tika sumpter (42)

vanessa lachey (42)

freema agyeman (43)

shannon dang (unknown age)

#fc help #woc fc #fcoc help #rph #rpt #indie rph #diana #answered #**#anonymous

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realhousewives-fan · 2 months

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A Friend Group on Shaky Foundation

This is a problem for RHOP. Just see how difficult it was to get these women to be together on a four-hour trip to Surry County.

Nneka Ihim was the only one who showed up outside of Karen Huger’s original plan, unafraid of the hostility she undoubtedly would receive from Wendy Osefo.

It’s understandable that Gizelle Bryant didn’t want to go with Wendy and Candiace Dillard Bassett, and she had expected more from Karen.

But they’re on a show together, and they’ve to film together.

Karen genuinely wants them all to get along, and this could’ve been a bonding experience.

I don’t think Karen would ever use a trip to her beloved Surry County to cause harm. I genuinely think she wants to get the girls back on the right track again.

At one point Candiace and Gizelle must have a conversation.

I also understand why Robyn Dixon didn’t go, because she 100% don’t care, but what’s Mia Thornton’s issue? She doesn’t do last minute invitations?!

I think she just secretly didn’t want to go back to Surry County, honestly.

Again, the only one who showed up except for the originally invited, was Nneka. And Wendy didn’t even try to be friendly with her.

Wendy is holding a grudge against Nneka because she had called her a bitch and mother a witch. But Wendy had also called Nneka a crackhead from LA.

It’s not like Wendy is innocent and a victim in all of this. So why is she acting like Nneka has made this huge injustice against her?

I think that the one who has been most mean is Wendy. She dismissed Nneka and acted like she didn’t know her.

She’s deflecting, crying, blaming, and cursing.

She even forbad Candiace of talking to Nneka about her! Wendy appears to be desperately trying to hold onto control of the narrative.

But this group is a mess. Unless they’re able to overcome their differences, there will be changes with the cast.

If someone is refusing to film with someone, they’ll give precious screen time away to others who might outshine them.

#Real Housewives of Potomac #RHOP #Nneka Ihim #Karen Huger #Wendy Osefo #Gizelle Bryant #Candiace Dillard Bassett #Robyn Dixon #Mia Thornton

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redrorums · 1 year

Text

It’s gonna be a rough read…

Scene Start:

“Hit the Road Jack” plays. Either original Ray Charles version or 2WEI/Bri Bryant cover.

with extra static/dramatic fade in and out when necessary.

“Jack”-Keanu Reeves or Lee Byung-hun, though I originally imagined the live action version as ole man Jackie Chan. Anime version would look like Guts(Berserk) and Han Chun-Woo(The Breaker) mashed together. Big man. Very scary.

Alexei Everton-Anya Taylor-Joy or Erin Moriarty. Or a Jennifer Lawrence type. Anime version is similar to the main gal from The Ancient Magus’ Bride. Not in temperament, just appearance.

Naomi Safyan-Zendaya. Zendaya as a Satyr in anime form. Anime version would be Zazie(Battle Angel Alita:Last Order).

the closest aesthetically accurate visual reps.

There he stood, at the end of the cheery little winding pathway that he himself had lined with white and purple lilacs, on either side. Just like so many other times she had returned home to his wondrously warm embrace. A caring and kind smile on his usually frowning face, as he eagerly awaited tales of her “adventures”. Although she would have to be extremely hard pressed in order to admit it, she too was always brimming with joy at the thought of sarcastically regaling him with stories of her most recent trials and tribulations.

There he stood, smiling sadly at the end of the path, drenched in blood and viscera.

It took her brain a moment to fully comprehend what she was looking at. To really digest it. Then the foul stench of the dead reached her, causing her stomach to twist and knot up. Her heart was racing as she just stood there, mouth agape, staring into his suddenly cold, black eyes.

He took a step towards her.

She took a step back.

They didn’t break eye contact till then, when his eyes drifted down to her hand resting on the sword at her hip, thumb on the hilt guard.

She had never been able to hurt him. She used to scream and throw things at him when she was young, when he had first pulled her from Junker’s Canyon all those years ago. He would grumble like some towering, mildly irritated gorilla, but never lift a finger to stop her. Then, when she calmed down, as if by magic he’d have made soup and tea. He’d sit her down and ask her what was really eating her up inside. Never once did he look even remotely troubled by her outbursts.

That single step backwards she took might as well have been a dagger through his kidney. The wince and the way his brow furrowed, like he realized he’d just lost what was most precious to him.

“What happened?” She questioned softly, in a tone she usually reserved for drunks and brigands. “What’d you do?”

“What I had to.” He grunted back, in that raspy voice he had. Made every word sound like a struggle. She used to laugh and poke fun at him for it. Now it set her on edge.

“A non-answer.” She sighed, “why don’t we go inside and talk about it, old timer?” It was more a statement than a question and a failed attempt at levity. She shivered, even though it was a warm, mid spring day.

“Don’t think that’s smart, Al.” He rasped as he checked what she now realized was a firearm in his right hand. Her eyes widened in horror.

Guns. The favored weapon of Earthborn soldiers. Of Deathmarch Troopers. Of Gebians. The thoughts and realizations flooded her mind with too much speed, her heart beating furiously now. Gebians are the sworn enemies of The Tellustrian Republic. The monsters from another world that had ravaged her land and murdered her parents. My father’s sworn…

Reality struck her like a brick to the head.

Guess she had always seen the signs. Certain slang he used and mannerisms he had. Thought he was just from another Tellustrian world, not that hellhole they call Gebia.

“Why are you using illegal weap-“ she was suddenly and jarringly cut off as she felt every muscle in her body seize up at once. A basic paralyzing cypher followed quickly by a dagger to her throat. The man spoke as his body became visible, as if he were being painted back into existence, the circular glyphs on his cloak glowing and smoking from overuse.

“Now I don’t want no undue fussin’, Mista Dog. Or does ya prefer Jaaack? Rabid Jack! Bit catchy, ain’t it?” He trailed off for a couple seconds, as if his mind drifted somewhere else, then snapped back to reality, “I’ve seen wat you can do to a man and I ain’t interested ‘n joinin ya long list o’ victims…”

She could feel his hot, oily breath on the nape of her neck. He smelled rancid. The smell of Aether Rot, from overuse of potions and elixirs.

Shut it out, ya bloody brainless wench. She thought at her herself harshly. I didn’t go through all that hellish training just to get offed by this dumbass. I have to focus. She breathed in deeply, suddenly serene. She visualized being a piece of flotsam on the open ocean, simply carried by the waves.

“Like having one foot in the ocean of spirits,” Jack had described it once upon a time “the other on solid ground”

With that, she Drifted. Her soul halfway between the realm of spirits and the physical realm, acting as a conduit. She was woven into the cosmic tapestry now, one with every spirit around her. Only a second after she finished breathing in, her eyelids flung open and revealed her now glowing, green eyes.

She immediately expelled all foreign Aether from her body and commanded her muscles to relax. She felt the burn as the spiritual command reverberated through her body, echoed by millions of nearby spirits. It felt sort of like a downed drought of Dwarven FafniPeaks Whiskey, you could feel it blazing down your gullet and all the way though your innards. Felt the burn in every cell of her body. Nearby spirits, like tiny particles of dust made of pure light, magnetized towards her. Maximal Leistung. My technique. Jack’s technique. For the next split second, Alexei’s body would function at it’s absolute physical peak, her spiritual command overriding her physical limitations.

“…U’ll a-ask one more taime since apparently ya deaf, where’s the GODSDAMNED SATY-“

Her assailant was rudely interrupted when his nose cracked viciously to the side, very much broken. In the same split second motion as her headbutt’s recoil, Alexei pulled her chin in and open her mouth wide. To the growing horror of her assailant, her teeth clamped down with crocodilian strength on his dagger wielding wrist, shattering bone. With her left arm she delivered a series of rapid, armored elbow strikes to his ribs. Her right foot lashed out suddenly, kicking another dagger out of his other hand. All this while pivoting in place, wrist still firmly held in her maw, forcing the would be hostage taker to lurch awkwardly in time with her movements. It was as if it was all happening in slow motion from Alexei’s perspective, so she saw a third arm reach out of a pocket in the man’s cloak, fueled by his Aether. It pointed a tiny hand ballista at her, the venomous cyphers within the bolts cackling out evilly in her spiritually sensitive ears.

It never got the chance to fire. Her right arm moved like lightning, sending her elvish broadsword in a screeching arc through the assailant’s abdomen and slicing the adjacent third arm’s hand clean off.

The brown eyes around his fully healed nose bulged in disbelief and anger as his intestines spilled out.

Wait. What!? She watched his nose rapidly shift back into place, bone and cartilage squirming beneath the skin, repairing themselves. A regeneration potion, but when did he-

She felt the reverberating echo shift the spirits around her, causing the hair on the back of her neck to stand on end, right before she heard the axe flying from the woods towards her. She spun and swung her sword in a semicircle, separating the hand in her mouth from its arm with a clean slash. She then nimbly sidestepped the thrown handaxe, noticing the glowing, spinning glyph on the carved bone blade. It spun past her like a cannonball, shattering the tree to her left unnaturally, like glass. Her reprieve was short though, as a hundred or so hail pellets rained down upon her and Jack, conveniently missing the now three assailants.

The first one’s invisible again.

Everything the pellets touched turned to liquified sludge. She weaved a precarious dance through the hail and sludge, filling herself with a repulsion echo. The spirits around her obeyed the echo, repelling nearby Aether and dispelling any pellets that got too close to Alexei. Her soul was nearly burnt out.

I need to stop overusing spiritual techniques. She thought as she took another deep breath.

In front of her was a large Vavoxi warrior emerging from the woods, a large grin spread across their pallid, bald head. The sneer showed off the Vavoxi’s bristling baleen that they had instead of teeth.

Kinda like they got two well used brushes crammed in their mouth.

Living tattoos churned across their pale skin, the magical blue ink depicting the many battles they’d been in.

Jack was fending off a knight clad in full pitch black plate armor who had descended from the sky on giant bat wings, swinging a massive claymore around wildly.

What in Hel’s thrice cursed name is going on!? Alexei fought back panic as she tried to cope with the chaos unfolding around her, on the very land where she’d grown up in relative peace.

“HiYa EVERYONE! Don’t mean to interrupt, but I need a BIG, STROOONG man to help me open this jar o’ pickles!”

Everyone but Jack turned silently to look at the jovial and beautiful Satyr woman leaning awkwardly against a nearby tree in an overdramatic attempt to be alluring. Comedic, perhaps? She was indeed holding a jar of pickles.

The cyphered portion of her brain alerted her that something was amiss, her inner Aether rejecting the subliminal enchantment woven into the words coming out of the Satyr’s mouth. The black knight was not so resistant, whatever mistake he made in that moment costing his life as he detonated, chunks of black armor and charred flesh spewing forth in every direction.

Jack was nowhere to be seen.

Her opponent had also resisted the enchantment, their fully black eyes emitting a neon glow of sorts. The Vavoxi began their ancestral dance, spinning a cyphsteel battleaxe in arc after arc, displaying the techniques of their people.

“You look stupid.” Alexei stated bluntly.

The Vavoxi’s eyelids and brow shot up in dismay and rage. Alexei took this moment to draw her duelist’s wand from its hip holster and fire immediately. An icy beam shot forth from its crystal tip, leaving a trail of snowflakes in it’s wake and freezing the Vavoxi’s chest plate. Another one of those bristly grins appeared as a cypher shield dispersed the frost across it’s translucent surface. They rushed her then, clearing half the 60 foot distance in a single bound, battleaxe raised and churning with latent Aether. She calmly chucked up her sword and used the now empty hand to palm the wand’s glyph turbine, rotating the ingredient-packed chambers one to the left. The Vavoxi’s eyes widened in horror this time, as a blood red fireball spewed forth from the wand.

Somethin’ ‘bout fire and ice in quick succession, magic shields can’t handle it. More of Jack’s “wisdom”.

The explosion was deafening. The Vavoxi was no more. Ironically, pieces of the cypher shield remained floating in place, until they realized there was no body left within to protect and melted away. Her wand was already holstered, her right hand lifted to catch her sword.

She took another deep breath.

Fledermauspfeife. Releasing a pent up echo from her core, she watched as the spirits around her reverberated along with her, dancing wildly in tune to her heartbeat. There was one patch that didn’t echo back. She heard the bubbling, cackling whispers of hungry Aether.

There you are.

She shot forth like a bullet for the tree line, ricocheting off tree trunks in massive bounds. She spiraled as she flew, her pauldrons and secondary cuirass flipping open and releasing liquid bronze plumes from her shoulder blades. The plumes solidified suddenly and flattened into bronze dragonfly wings, the whirlwind generated by their frightfully fast beating enough to snap a nearby sapling in half. She soared straight up, propelled by her armor ornithopter’s highly maneuverable vesper wings, breaching the forest’s ceiling in a split second. It took years of practice to mentally and physically control the ornithopter’s functionality.

Probably the only thing that gives me an edge in the Guilds’ community. She thought, dourly.

She could make out the barely visible form of her original assailant, floating above the Satyr with a rope. Could hear the nearby spirits echo his fear.

He fled.

Floating speedily away on some sort of invisible disc.

She aimed her left gauntlet at him and channeled a fraction of her inner Aether through that arm to it. The bluish, cyphsteel plates detached from the leather components of the gauntlet, flying towards her adversary. As they flew through the air, they left a purple haze behind them, filled with stardust. The plates morphed and grew as they flew, turning into a rather vicious looking set of crimson dragon claws.

“GODS NO! PLEASE NO!” The man screamed as the claws wrapped around his right calf, dragging him back towards her.

“So I’m gonna ask you a series of reasonable questions now and you’re going to be a good sport and answer them. Right?” Alexei’s lighthearted tone did not match her steely gaze. The greasy half-elf bored holes through her with his spiteful eyes.

“You look sick.” She said then, with some small amount of genuine concern. Alexei had lost friends to potion overdose. She knew for a fact there were fates worse than death when you let the aberrant mutations take hold in your body. “How’s about we go see an apothecary. Together. Eh?”

He was looking down now, his hateful eyes locked on the Satyr. She smiled and waved up at him, two more of his dead companions at her hooves.

Then he looked up and made her heart sink.

“Dead. Owr awloive, they says…” his smile then was purely malicious.

His cloak fluttered up suddenly. Unnaturally. A myriad of different appendages sprouted from his back, all of them somewhere between arms and tentacles.

A morphhead.

The appendages all did their best to frantically draw a variety of projectile-based weapons from his cloak pockets. Even illegal Gebian guns. Half aimed at the Satyr, half at her.

They never got the chance to fire. She had already delivered a lightning infused, crescent shaped slash starting at his right kidney and ending at his left collarbone. His magic shield shattered afterwards, the elven plasma blade having cut cleanly through it, his spirit, and his flesh and bone.

As if they were butter.

Simply by lacerating so many of his vital organs at once and electrocuting him, she overloaded his brain. His brain would have to reboot in order to restart the magical regeneration process, which was unlikely now.

She closed her eyes and whispered a prayer as she felt his soul leave the physical realm. Then she stopped Drifting. The wave of exhaustion was always overwhelming, but she was used to it and played it off well. Just like her father.

“OOOOLD MAAAAAN!!!” She shouted as she landed jankily on the mushy ground. She stared at the Satyr suspiciously.

“Wha? Is it cuz I’m a Satyr.” She said, feigning insult and pouting to boot.

“No. It’s because you’re a bard. I hate bards.”

Alexei’s eyes could’ve frozen a frost giant’s heart.

“The name’s Naomi! Naomi Safran.” Naomi said with an outstretched hand. “pleasure to make the acquaintance of my dear protector’s daughter, to be sure.”

There was a flicker of admiration in Naomi’s eyes, as she looked Alexei up and down. Alexei moved in for the shake, but passed her hand, clasping her arm instead.

“Sorry, I don’t do handshakes anymore. Personal reasons.” Alexei said, throttling Naomi’s arm with a bit too hearty an arm clasp.

Naomi raised an eyebrow and smirked.

“Ooooh? Spicy. I like it.”

“Where’s the old man?”

“Dunno. Last I saw he was trying to shoot a wizard outa the sky. Lost track of ‘im.” Naomi said with a nonchalant shrug.

A moment of awkward silence followed. “Sooo, what exactly IS the nature of your relatio-“

She felt the dart prick her lower nape. In a panic, she tried to Drift again, but it was already too late. Gebian dreadroot. Dampens spiritual conductivity. Puts you to sleep.

‘MSorry. Al,” he caught her in his burly arms as she fell backwards. “Things’re. Bout ta get ugly.” He rasped, the jagged scar on his face and neck smoldering ever so slightly.

“A wound left by a holy weapon is ordained to remain by the gods themselves. It can never be healed and will always sting, to remind the sinner what happens when you let pride blind your actions…”

Self-righteous words from a worthless man.

“Can’t have you. Mixed up in.” Jack looked around, practically growling, “all this.”

She reached out to touch the burning scar. Just like when she was a kid and he’d fall asleep in his chair on the porch. His nightmares would make the scar burn an ugly red.

Like pipe embers, ‘bout to go out.

Then there was blackness.

Then there was.

The void.

Rabid Dog

The most grizzled man you’ve ever seen. Black hair, grey eyes sunk from lack of sleep, and a jagged scar that cuts straight through his lips on the right side, making it look like he is constantly snarling at something. His dull, icy thousand-yard stare informs you that it’s the world he’s snarling at.

Everyone.

Everything.

His brow seems perpetually crumpled, a combination of some splotchy burn scars that had took chunks of his eyebrows with them and his permanent scowl.

“The kind of look a man gets when he realizes his dog has just passed. That’s his face all the time”, The local villagers would often say of him.

A piece of his right ear is missing, lookin’ scarily like someone or something had took a bite out of it. All topped off with a bristling 5 o’clock shadow and a peppering of grey hairs spread throughout his pitch black fade. This all combined with the fact that he was six foot, seven inches and about 300 pounds of pure muscle. His size seemed almost unnatural, as if his

That was Jack. No last name. No past.

At least, that’s the only name the locals had ever known him as. He had appeared one day and taken up residence with ole’ man Herman, acting as a farmhand and shepherd for the crazy old lune.

Most assumed he was a foot soldier that had defected from his Lord, on the run. He acted too stoic and soldierly to be a bandit. Perhaps it was because many of the villagers had lost sons and daughters to the War, but many of them simply accepted “Jack” into their midst, no questions asked. A sort of simple understanding amongst the elder folk that, if any of their children had managed to escape a pointless death for an uncaring Lord, they would all keep their mouths shut.

Over time he developed quite a stirling reputation as a standup, though somewhat grumpy, fellow and a real jack of all trades. Patching clothes, thatching rooftops, catching thieves and all without any request for payment. He would always simply ask what they needed of him, do it without question or feedback, and then head back to Herman’s farm without a word afterwards. What really won peoples hearts was when he decided to take care of some local orphans who lived in a junk pit just to the east of the village. Some Guild Slayers had been clearing Vulture’s Ravine of Trolls and scavenger bandits, when they stumbled upon a ragtag group of children who’s parents had presumably been killed in the Great War. The Slayers had taken the children alive, despite the fact that they were affiliated with one of the Ravines bandit troupes, and were bringing them

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