#she is an unsolvable rubix cube!!!!

[boytouya]

Heaven Can Wait - Eddie Munson

w.c: ~1.4k

a/n: i’m back! heyyy sorry it’s not animanga content! if you want to interact w/ me or watch me cry over eddie, my sideblog is @sl4sherfilmz ! not proofread

additional tags: very very light (and unintentional) sexual tension, hurt/comfort, panic attacks (brief), kissing, hand-holding, gender neutral reader (black-coded though)

It’s a quarter past twelve, and you and Eddie rest in the safety of each other’s arms. Your fingers are laced together, palm to palm, and only then, your skin remains the same shade. The lines adorning your palms are fitted, locked together like a complex puzzle — like the unsolved rubix cube lost somewhere deep inside Eddie’s bedside drawers. You remember scavenging through them like it was yesterday. His scent clinging to the trailer carpet, his warm blanket, the guitar he kept attached to his wall (he’d flirt with it more than he’d ever had with you). The recoil of his curls as you play with his hair, bouncing back into place as if you never touched it in the first place. Bunched up napkins and ripped joint paper left discarded, notepads of incomplete thoughts— or were they lyrics? — disregarded. Despite the stark differences, his home wasn’t as divergent as your own.

You had only realized much earlier.

Eddie’s silhouette was undeniably his, tucked away in the corner of your bed, terror etched into his features, laid bare and vulnerable as his white, muddied shoes dug into your bedsheets. Your face briefly contorted, sour, as you gingerly lifted his legs, one by one, to pry off his shoes. His breath trembles, moonlight seeping through the slightly drawn curtains — you’d let him inside discreetly, after all. And perhaps you felt ashamed for thinking it, but the natural light kissing his face made him ten times more beautiful.

“Eddie,” You murmured, voice laced with patience and heavy with thought. His response was delayed, a wordless shake of his head as his cotton socks dampened with unlaundered mud. Hickory eyes flickered across the expanse of your bedroom, anxiously settling on the worried expression bewitching your face. “I believe you— whatever it is. I believe you, okay? What happened?”

“I’m not crazy,” He started, hands shooting up in self defense. Dread coursed through your bloodstream, half-expectant to hear his own interjection, a raised finger and wide smile as he yells, ‘Well, I kind of am.. But I guess that’s what you like about me.’ But, unfortunately, that wasn’t what you received. He inhaled sharply, as if all the air in the room was evaporating before his eyes. “I swear— I’m not… Her body— Chrissy, she just… like, lifted, y’know? Into the air and, uh—”

Eddie whimpered, occupying himself with the rings that suddenly felt much too tight for his fingers, like they’d snap the bone clean off, like the joints would bend just as Chrissy’s had before. Silence filled the air, a secret exchange between the two of you as Eddie hugged himself, swallowing the lump in his throat.

You wanted to— no, yearned to hold him, feel his chest rise and fall as he breathed— as you breathed. To remind him of his life, the life he has ahead of him. To absorb your scent, to break down and press himself into the comforting heat of your body. To confide in your judgement, your presence. Even just a little, just for now.

Maybe it was embarrassing, shameful, even, to feel your heart somersault into your throat as he spoke to you. You couldn’t help it, nodding along and consoling his cries— your chest tightened for more reasons than one. And Eddie, eyes red-rimmed and raw, couldn’t quite register his voice as his own. It was all drowned out, buzzing in his ears like the cicadas outside your window. His heart hammered in his chest, thrumming against his ribcage as he watched your impassioned expression.

After readjusting your position, you placed your hand over his heart and breathed deeply. It hammered into your palm, erratic and rushed until the man was able to follow your lead. His shoulders rose slowly, and with each passing second, the longer he soaked in your presence, the more he felt his apprehension dissipate into the nightly air.

“I… I believe you,” You whispered, falling silent on ears other than his and your own. Color slowly returned to the brunet’s cheeks, his eyelashes were long, dark and damp as he sniffled. For a moment, it’s unbelievable— unearthly. The thought of such a thing just happening, something you can’t really fathom or put into words. The shock of acknowledging the death of someone you’d once known, even if you weren’t close.

You could only imagine how Eddie felt.

Your core trembled as you subconsciously shuffled closer to Eddie. This time, his hands remained planted in his lap. Firmer this time, you cleared your throat. “Really, I do.”

He took a moment to really look at you now, now that the air was forced back into his lungs. Now that his senses are flooding back. He could smell your bare scent, warm and comforting. His lips twinged with the salt of unshed tears, his fingertips brushed against denim, seeking a warm hand to hold. The gentle moonlight caressed his cheeks, leaked into the loose spirals of curls that cascaded down his back. It trickled onto you, so delicate and forgiving despite the harsh realities that keep his footing unsteady. You’re stunning. Unequivocally, downright, stunning. Tonight, that was one thing he’s sure of.

It’s almost unfair.

Awkwardly, cool rings pressed into your arm as he drove a gentle punch to your shoulder. The cold metal spread goosebumps across your skin, Eddie’s knuckles brushing against each raised bump. His smile was watery, but no longer drowned and insincere, “Sorry, that was pretty stupid.”

“Shut up,” You scoffed, molding your hand into a fist just as he had, pressing your bare skin against the black leather encased around his arm. He dramatically flailed at the gentle gesture, laugh lines pulling at his cheeks as he threw himself off your bed. Swallowing a hearty laugh, your eyebrows furrowed. “How is that stupid?”

Sensing the unresolved tension, Eddie holds up his hands in surrender, swiveling his hips in your relative direction. Picking himself back up to lay beside you, his dark eyes narrowed into lazy slits as he looked up at you, concealed exhaustion on his face. Your hands are dangerously close now, barely an inch separating your pinkies. Your left hand sits beside the right-side of his head, and Eddie closely watches you through his curls. Your warmth is radiant, drawing his palm closer and closer.

“Well, aren't you up close and personal,” The corner of his lips curl upward, a mischievous and giddy glint cascading over the sharp edge of his pearly, canine teeth. His eyes trail down your face, studying your nose, your cheeks— how soft your lips look. “I can basically count your eyelashes right now. ”

“Shut up, Munson.” You repeat, reminiscent of a broken record, only breathless and hushed this time. Your breath pans against his face, lips briefly parted to wet them. Suddenly, the air feels much more dry.

“This is gonna sound…strange.. but,” Eddie’s lips, plump and pink, tighten into a line as his Adam’s apple bobs in his throat. Butterflies flutter in his stomach, catching in his throat while he struggles to gather correct words. “Can I.. Your hand looks very hold-able right now. Wow, is it always like that?”

“Like what?” You bark out a laugh, a genuine and large smile pulling at your cheeks. You take the opportunity to interlock your pinkies, electricity and stardust shocking your entire nervous system. Eddie briefly pauses, wide eyes sparkling just like they had on your first date— maybe this was the brightest you’ve ever seen them. His hands are calloused yet soft, rings on three of his fingers that distract you from the sweat on his palms.

Not that you particularly mind.

“Really soft, apparently.” His thumb rubs untraceable patterns into your skin, and it feels like you’ve fallen for him all over again. You can hear him further whisper, seemingly entranced in the softness of your skin: “Wow! That’s crazy..”

“Eddie.” His train of thought is lost, stuck between a rock and a hard place as his glassy eyes bore into yours. He blinks once, twice, three times, before nodding along, lips pursed together as he hums:

“Hm?”

“I think we’re way past holding hands.” But even then, as you lean over to gently press your plush lips against his own, your hands remain fitted. Palm to palm, where your skin remains the same, his pulse beats violently when your lips crash together. It feels like home, like a freshly dried blanket. It feels like cherries in the spring, like breathing for the first time.

Most importantly, it feels like Eddie.

taglist:

@ryoukuna @indigowren21 @cannedfoodisbestfood @junkwhoore @dilfchoso @sanderssidesangsttrash @i-d0g @kaito-asmr @jream-23 @mhasimp666 @princejasno @onehellofasimp @corporeal-terrestrial @angelaturservice @shadows-of-nightmares @double-homiecide @saturnsbend @trailsnix @luckduckanon @oddball215 @toodeepintofandoms @devilgirlcrybaby @playb0ysuna @uwiuwi @yuzukeni

#eddie munson #eddie munson x reader #stranger things #stranger things imagine #x gender neutral reader #eddie munson x trans reader #eddie munson x plus size reader #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson x you #eddie munson imagine #stranger things fluff #stranger things fic #eddie munson x gender neutral reader #eddie munson x female reader #eddie munson x male reader

[dollytraiter07]

I knew Draw couldn't resist if she saw a Rubix's Cube unsolved... Well, don't say I didn't warn ya~

A trade with draw_0428 on Twitter

#tickle #tickling #ticklish #tickle art #tickles #tickling art #beach #swimsuit #swimwear #dnaxcat

[crimeshq]

*     ◟     𝑨𝑪𝑪𝑬𝑷𝑻𝑬𝑫  !      welcome   to   new   york   ABIGAIL   DEARBORNE   ,    ANDREW   ‘ ANDY ’   BLUM   ,   CLEMENTINE   ‘ CLEM ’   DIXON   &   ZEENA   ‘ ZEE ’   WILCOX    try   and   stay   out   of   trouble  .      deborah   ann   wall   ,    jake   johnson   ,   natalia   dyer   &   sophia   bush   are   now   taken   faceclaims   !    you   have   twenty   four   hours   to   send   in   your   account   before   being   reopened  .  

*     ◟    :    〔   deborah    ann    woll  ,      demi    woman    +   she  /  they    〕      damn  !      is    that    ABIGAIL    DEARBORNE  ?      last    i    heard    they    were    making    a    name    for    themselves    as    an    ASSOCIATE    /    ARMS    DEALER    for    the    ITALIAN    MAFIA  .      i    heard    that    the    THIRTY  -  SEVEN    year    old    is    a    bit    UNSETTLING    but    can    also    be    SUBTLE  .      sometimes    you    can    hear    them    humming    ANTLERS    by    ETHEL    CAIN  ,      though    people    mostly    associate    them    with    LONELY  ,      MOLDERING    FLATLAND    STRETCHED    ON    FOR    MILES    AND    MILES   ;      CROWS    WHO    LOOM    FROM    THEIR    KETTLE    ABOVE    THE    GRAY  ,      AND    TITTER    AT    ONE    THROUGH    THE    TALL    GRASS   ⸺   GOD    HAS    FORGOTTEN    THIS    PLACE  ,      LITTLE    BIRD  ,      EVERYTHING    GOOD    DIES    HERE  .      AN    EAR  ,      PRESSED    TO    THE    KNOTS    IN    THE    FLOORBOARDS  ,      HEEDING    WHAT    SORROW    THIS    HOUSE    HAS    TO    SPILL   ;      ECHOING    DIAPHANOUS    AND    WICKED  ,      THEIR    SONG    OF    ROT  ,      AND    OF    BLOOD   ⸺   SPUN    IN    THE    COBWEBS  ,      SWEPT    UP    INTO    THE    EMPTY    CORNERS  ,      LIKE    DUST  .      A    DOE    IN    HIS    SIGHTS  ,      STILL    AND    AKIN    IN    ONE    INFINITE    MOMENT  ,      TO    BE    PREY    AND    HUNTER    BOTH  ;      “   I    KNOW    WHAT    WE    DO    TO    WILD    THINGS   ”  .      (      circe  .      )

*     ◟    :    〔   jake   johnson  ,      cis man    +   he/him    〕      damn  !      is    that    ANDREW   “ANDY”   BLUM  ?      last    i    heard    they    were    making    a    name    for    themselves    as    a    CONSIGLIERE    for    the    THE   ITALIAN   MAFIA  .      i    heard    that    the    FORTY  SIX    year    old    is    a    bit    EVASIVE    but    can    also    be    RESOURCEFUL  .      sometimes    you    can    hear    them    humming    PSYCHOBABBLE    by    FROU   FROU  ,      though    people    mostly    associate    them    with    COMRADERY   IN   THE   CHAOTIC   SENSE,   A   BOTTLE   OF   PRESCRIPTION   MEDICATION,   AND   AN   UNSOLVED   RUBIX   CUBE.      (      melanie  .      )

*     ◟    :    〔   natalia   dyer  ,      cisfemale    +   she/her    〕      damn  !      is    that     CLEMENTINE   "CLEM"   DIXON   ?      last    i    heard    they    were    making    a    name    for    themselves    as    a    KINDERGARTEN   TEACHER     for    the    ELEMENTARY   SCHOOL  .      i    heard    that    the    TWENTY - SIX    year    old    is    a    bit    CHILDISH    but    can    also    be    SUNSHINEY  .      sometimes    you    can    hear    them    humming    YOU   ARE   MY   SUNSHINE    by    ELIZABETH   MITCHELL  ,      though    people    mostly    associate    them    with    GLITTER   ALL   OVER   HER   HANDS,   MESSY   BUNS   AND   SNEAKERS,   AND   FINDING   RANDOM   TOYS   IN   HER   POCKETS  .      (      winn   .     )

*     ◟    :    〔   sophia   bush  ,      cisfemale    +   she/her    〕      damn  !      is    that    ZEENA   "ZEE"   WILCOX  ?      last    i    heard    they    were    making    a    name    for    themselves    as    a   ASSOCIATE   /   DOCTOR    for    the    ITALIAN   MAFIA   (SECRETLY)   /   HOSPITAL  .      i    heard    that    the    THIRTY - NINE    year    old    is    a    bit    SARCASTIC    but    can    also    be    LOYAL  .      sometimes    you    can    hear    them    humming    HOLE   IN   THE   BOTTLE    by    KELSEA   BALLERINI  ,      though    people    mostly    associate    them    with    BLOOD   STAINED   WHITE   COATS,   SECRET   STITCHES,   AND   PAY - OFFS   UNDER   THE   TABLE  .       (      winn   .     )

#crime rp #appless rp #mafia rp #original rp #accepted .

[copperfm]

cindy kimberly ### welcome to copperview, carson ! you're just in time for the live show with our radio hosts in 12 hours, hurry up and make sure to meet us at the cove !

( cindy kimberly + 23 + they/she ) ### was that just carson hadi leaving the black cat? if you ask anyone around here they’ll tell you they’ve been living here for ten years in haven hills and currently spend their days working at the docks as a bartender. they never go anywhere without coconut chapstick, an unsolved rubix cube, and a pair of knockoff airpods in their bag, which is probably because they’re a libra. but it’s hard to keep secrets in a small town and i overheard someone saying that they got in a fist fight when a customer threw a drink at them. they are known for being clueless and optimistic, so it makes you wonder if there’s any truth to it… (c, 21+, est, she/they)

#accepted #tysm for applying!

[fucktyrants]

Odette/ @serenxtyinsxlence said: Hands him an unsolved rubix cube to see if he can solve it or if he'll just throw it.

"These things are designed to make you feel fucking stupid, it's all some elaborate plan to belittle you into buying expensive education." She was right in her prediction, he simply throws it over his shoulder and into a trash can with exact precision.

#.ᴸⁱᵏᵉ ᴬ ˢᵘᵖʳᵉᵐᵉ. [ᴵ.ᶜ] #.ᴹᵃʸʰᵉᵐ ᶠˡᵒʷˢ. [ᴹᵃⁱⁿ] #.ᴵᵗ'ˢ ᵗʰᵉ ᵃⁿⁱᵐᵃˡ ⁱⁿ ᵐʸ ᵇˡᵒᵒᵈ. [ᴿᵉᵖˡʸ]

[thesugarhole]

thoughts from todays page readings: (it might be easier if i do it during commute but then post when im home?)

reread 49 real quick and again. i think i already wrote this so this is just me repeating myself but it will be relevant later so refresher course. as much as i love learning about captain this takes away a lot of whimsy by exposing part of whats up early on... like, youre no longer under that doubt that "is captain really nuts or is this for real the world they live in" you know?? keep some mystery man.

^feeling awkward reading this. dunno why

rubix cube chapter was so cute 🥺 im sad that thing got left behind

and again!!!! worst comic ever makes statement way ahead of its time regarding the internet!!! why does everything need to have fucking blue tooth log in connection talk directly to your brain!!! even a rubik (rubix) cube!!!! arrrgh!!!!!!

it doesnt mention annet by name but it implies that she will try and solve wishes/queries to the best of her ability (currently, think chatgpt lying through its teeth when it has nothing- when annet has nothing, she somehow creates it). nothing to note here just a detail i want to remember, "a god who answers" type of divinity

"Silly willy. Told you I am unsolvable!" I said smugly. Just then, something impossible happened. My User twisted me in 4 dimensions. "That's amazing!" I shouted. "I can't believe you've done it!" I didn't know Users were designed to operate in 4-dimensional space like this! "Hpmf" Charles said, not looking too impressed. "Well, that was surprisingly easy." "No! Charles! You don't understand!" I cried. "You can operate in 4-dimensional space! You've solved an impossible riddle! Something, within you, makes you simply incredible!" In this very moment the ropes holding us up snapped and Charles dropped me. When he let me go, I fell out of 4-dimensional synch into regular 3-dimensional space and all my 6 sides became discorded and unsolved once again.

sorry to squeeze the text to not make too long a post but

type of mysteries i want to hold on to for a little while longer ^

51

now that we know captain isnt bullshitting its even harder to be on snippys side on anything about anything because again. hes just some guy. he has no business knowing about any of this and he has yet to see it in action so why should he believe what captain says you known. needlessly frustrating the reader!!

"Are these children made up like the needy children to whom you and Pilot keep trying to gift my things to?" He asked, tapping his foot angrily. "All of the children I speak of are real, I assure you!" I said. "I doubt it," he huffed. "You're seriously the most absent-minded GIRL I know. Where would you even be without me?"

me at vitaly right now im going to fucking snap. stop doing this and let snippy perceive captain as Undefined. i get hes a Camone but good lord i dont think he would be this stubborn about this particular topic with everything else going on. like. captain allows it but it implies the reading of "zee got tired of correcting everyone" IF YOU KNOW YOU KNOW. and again i got extra beef with it because it definitely feels like backtracking on the nonbinary character to try and make a more main fronting hetero couple which grrrrr.

(...) There are monsters all around that will eat you if I don't protect you."

loss of whimsy (once again) in romantically only text because we know snippy isnt really doing anything other than survive. :( also more instances of snippy/captain being heavy handed in rewrites, i definitely dont remember any of this conversation when i first read the comic

listen its fine. its fine IF, ONLY IF both snippy and captain get this type of romantic dialogue with everyone else because 1. (and not to be a stubborn old mule about it but) reading this as '3 (+117) extraordinary people trying to get affection from 1 boring guy' makes it a lot funnier and engaging 2. you have to love something so so much to try and save it and since captain is trying to save whatever humanity is left in the world zee should be in love with the other guys just as much

^ its far from canon but it would be so fun, i genuinely mean this

"Do any of your organs feel infinite?" what an absolute deranged question to ask someone even with context. yes. now THIS dialogue i like

"Me and my wonderful coworkers, Goodness rest their weary, tuckered souls…"

numbers one through six are dead?? it makes sense i cant even begin to put an image to any of them sdjhgkj. captain considering eight a daughter though is kinda cute i wont lie

"I didn't fix the li..." I started to speak. "Good job on fixing the power here. I'm going to the bathroom," Charles rudely interrupted me again. I watched him depart from my table with a frown. Why was he so G-damn obtuse about things? My explanation was perfectly legible. Everyone else understood me just fine. Especially Pilot. Pilot understood what I was doing right away.

okay listen. im pilots number defender here. and!! as i said before he is VERY!!!! SMART!!!!! even with AFTER being PINEAPPLE BOMBED and ANNET DISCONNECTED!!! but im not sure to what degree he actually understands what you (captain) have going on and instead is just going with the flow of whatever you say. like he has background context, he knows about the stuff annet/g-dir was up to. but if he didnt know about this zero-eight business, which is parallel (and hidden from the public?) to a degree, before The Events then i dunno, might be a "why not, what else am i doing today" type of situation. you get what im saying? does this make sense?

Alas, I was too late. Charles had bumped into the lovely burrowing-worm in the bathroom entrance and then he started to scream.

points and laughs

#'OH GOD WHERES MY GUN' snippy moments #reading romac #sugar.txt

[jennycalendar]

maybe this is because i am quite tired and have been tired all day but i’m just like . i really do not think it can ever be clear enough how absolutely very much jenny calendar means to me. i don’t know if it’s apparent. 

#musings #im just thinking about her and it's like ..... #yes i know i am lost in the sauce i REALLY understand that #but how can you NOT just stare at her forever once you realize that she is a paradox of epic proportions #she is an unsolvable rubix cube!!!! #she is giles's hot normal girlfriend she is a woman honor bound to vengeance and cruelty #she is the love of giles's life she is never worth mentioning again #she changed the course of the show but who is she? who was she? #we point to her death as the moment the show Changed. that's what she did #and yet her name is not worth remembering at all. she died jennifer even though jenny wasn't her name. #i am not even rewriting canon when i say that jenny is Vital #i am taking what is given and stitching it together #even tho it was literally never meant to BE examined #you're supposed to turn away from jenny focusing only on giles despite supposedly having a Sacred Mission #you're not supposed to look too closely or it all shatters. #god she makes me so crazy

[gifted-burnout-archive]

BLUE

Part Three

Day 23/93: Dallas, TX.

Word Count: 7.6K+

Author’s Note: it’s the third installment, and things might be heating up. song in this chapter is ‘Let’s Fall In Love For The Night’ by FINNEAS, it gives me such reggie vibes, and it’s most certainly a reggie x reader song. and if you are wondering why i know so much about dallas, texas and the surrounding area, it’s because i visited! it might be one of my favourite places on earth, and i felt required to include it in one of my stories at some point, so here you go.

Context: This is an AU of Julie and The Phantoms. Here, the boys are now alive again, aging alongside Julie and Y/N, and they are all now in their early twenties: Julie is 19/20, Y/N and the guys are 20/21. Same goes for Flynn and Carlos and Ray and all that jazz, basically everyone is older.

WARNING: abusive behaviours, drinking. Please see this post for more information.

If you are in need of help, please consider reaching out to domestic abuse hotlines in your country. This link leads to a wiki page with a few hotlines sorted by country. Remeber there are people who love you, and who support you.

part one is here - part two is here

--

“Where do I see myself in ten years?” Y/N echoed the question that had been asked of her as the team lounged around the front of the bus. From her spot atop one of the dining tables, sat crossed legged with her camera in hand, she had a view of her entire tour family: from Julie in the kitchenette with Alex, making Poptarts; to Flynn to her right, typing away frantically on her laptop. Luke was the one who asked her the question, sat across from her and throwing an unsolved rubix cube up into the air, and to his right sat Reggie, tucked in the booth seat corner scribbling away at his notebook, a smile on his face that had Y/N warm at the sight. “I asked you a far easier question, Patterson.”

“I’m serious, Y/N. I mean, I can tell you where I’ll be, where the guys and Julie will be. I can guess at Flynn but it depends whether she plucks up the nerve to ask out Carrie or not-” Luke was interrupted by his own chuckle, a reaction to Flynn flipping him off without looking away from her laptop screen. “But you? I don’t know.” He shrugged, catching the rubix a final time before pushing it over the table to Reggie. The dark-haired boy glanced up for a moment, looking Y/N over as she held up her camera and snapped a picture of him.

“Actually, I wanna know the same thing.” Reggie backed up his fellow bandmate, closing over his book and smiling at his friend when she rolled her eyes. “When you’re thirty, Y/N, where do you want to be?”

“Geographically? Emotionally? Ideally?” Y/N found herself avoiding the question because, quite honestly, she wasn’t sure how to answer. She hadn’t really thought what her future might hold, she hadn’t really had the chance to.

But being posed with the question, being asked for an answer, her lips started moving before her brain could register.

“Put me somewhere warm, and green: with enough money to be comfortable, enough friends to be sociable, enough booze to get drunk and enough beautiful things to take pictures of.” She offered, lifting her camera and snapping another picture as Reggie and Luke looked at her with soft smiles. “What about you, Reginald? Luke says he’s got you figured out.”

“I think what you’ve got going sounds pretty good, I might just join you.” Reggie smirked, only taking his eyes off of Y/N to glance over at Luke, the boy’s eyebrow raised and arms folded. “You know, in amongst the fifth album and rock star lifestyle.”

“Would that be the country album no-one expects?” Y/N asked with a grin, and Reggie’s eyes lit up.

“I mean, I’ll still learn fiddle if you’re up for it, Reggie.” Julie commented from the kitchen, returning from her snack making expedition with Alex in tow, the boy munching down on a Poptart like he’d never eat another: the boys had a tendency to eat like it was their last meal. “I mean, perfect place to start learning, Texas bound.” She added, cosying up against Luke, the pair sharing a kiss before she handed over the frosted sweet treat.

“Why didn’t we know you were from Texas?” Flynn questioned, her eyes finally leaving the computer screen to accept a snack Alex offered, who then grabbed another from the plate and handed it to the photographer sat on top of the table. “I mean, I found out from Y/N last week.”

“It never really came up.” Reggie shrugged, sitting up straight to make room for the blonde drummer, their bus taking a sharp turn. “I mean, I only lived here until I was ten: once my dad sold his company off we made the move to California as quickly as possible.” he explained, he and Y/N sharing a small smile.

Their night under the stars had bled into the early morning as they retold their lives to one another, making sure to cover almost every detail: Y/N didn’t mention Stephen, for more obvious reasons than either of them cared to admit. Reggie had told her all about growing up near Dallas, about learning to ride his pony Flash, about his parents thinking the move would fix their marriage, but how it ultimately didn’t. He. Of course, left out some key details too…

The last thing Y/N needed to know about was his dad’s violent fits or his mother’s excessive drinking.

“Glad to be back though… And since we have the whole afternoon and night to ourselves…” Reggie pointed to Flynn for confirmation, her nod causing attention to focus back on the bassist. “Flynn and I have a plan for the night.” Reggie beamed when Y/N clapped her hands in excitement, though his other bandmates looked a little sceptical. “I promise, it’s fun.”

“Reggie, your idea of fun before you met us,” Alex gestured between himself and Luke, who sat across from them, cuddled into Julie’s side. “Was shovelling horse shit at some dilapidated stables and pretending you were a cowboy.”

“Yeah, well, I was supervising.” Flynn sighed happily, closing over the laptop she hadn’t turned off in almost two days. The band wanted to get some recording done in Nashville later on the tour, a surprise they had all constructed for Reggie’s upcoming birthday, but a complication with bookings and the admin over in Tennessee had risked the possibility of it happening. Of course, Flynn hadn’t stopped emailing and calling until it was sorted. “It’s going to be an amazing night. With no horse shit involved, metaphorically and literally.”

“ETA, ten minutes from Dallas folks.” The radio crackled over the sound system, that had spent most of its time being used to play background music as they travelled, with Ronnie sharing their travel information quickly. “Paparazzi inbound, unfortunately.” He added, groans echoing around the cabin.

The last year in particular had been hounded by reporters and gossip columnists looking for the latest rumours to spread about the team. The lies ranged far and wide, from Luke and Julie breaking up to Alex cheating on Willie to them all being part of a cult to Reggie ‘notorious’ love life. The bassist was the last single one of the band, it only made sense that with their rise to fame came constant claims from anonymous girls that Reggie was their boyfriend, their husband, their baby daddy.

“Hotel security say they’ve got it under control, but I doubt it.” Ronnie added, and with that the six set into action to get ready for their swift departing from the bus. Poptarts were quickly eaten before everyone was back on their feet again: Luke and Julie taking on the pre-assigned role of collecting instruments together and packing them away for the moving crew, Alex rushing to his room to grab his last few necessaries that would live in his fanny pack for the next few hours, Flynn disappearing into the back to make one last phone call about interviews happening in Austin two days later with Rolling Stone, leaving Y/N and Reggie alone in the bus’s centre.

“You’ve been looking like Luke the past few days, Reginald.” Y/N spoke up first, slipping off the table and grabbing her camera bag from the overhead storage, beginning to dismantle her device as Reggie fiddled with the rubix cube Luke had left on the table. “Constantly scribbling… I haven’t seen you ever write as much as you have on the bus these past few weeks.” She remarked again, her hands methodical and practised in her work, quick to pack her camera up and close the casing.

“I found inspiration, what can I say?” Reggie said with a smirk, his fingers flicking the cube round and round with practically no effort, his eyes focused on Y/N instead of the colour puzzle before him. “Did you bring any hoodies with you?” He asked, suddenly changing the topic, and Y/N shook her head. She wasn’t really needing to: after all, their US tour was taking place in the summer, they had planned the route rather meticulously to miss the southern heat of July or the rains and wind chill that came to the north in April and May. Constantly travelling away from bad weather meant the need for anything warm had crossed Y/N’s mind, save for the occasional cardigan or blanket.

“Why would I need one?” She asked, walking towards the back of the bus with her equipment as her phone started to buzz in her back pocket. “Shit…”

“We don’t want the paparazzi seeing your face, do we?” Reggie questioned quickly. “Grab one from my room before we jump off.” He added as Y/N picked up the phone, mouthing a thank you as she answered and disappeared into the back of the bus, slipping into Reggie’s room to locate her disguise and shutting the door quickly.

“So we just don’t talk now, is that it?” The voice that came down the line was angrier than usual, and Y/N took her first chance that day to catch a glimpse of the time, Reggie’s bedside alarm clock reading 4.38 pm.

She had forgotten to call Stephen for the third time that week.

“Babe, babe I’m sorry. We were all just chatting and I got caught up in work and completely forgot.” She tried to explain quickly, her face falling when she heard a heavy sigh on the other end of the line. “Did… Did something happen at work?”

“I want to bring you home for a few days.” Stephen spoke up after a moment. “After Nashville. I know you guys are busy with the tour, but do you think you could talk with Flynn? Get someone to cover the Florida and Alabama gigs so we can maybe spend some time together?” His voice was sweet, sincere, and Y/N found herself smiling at the idea. Of course, it wouldn’t be great for the team, but would a few days really hurt?

“I, I think that would be a great idea, babe.” She answered as she opened up Reggie’s drawers, taking a moment to pick out her favourite on his hoodies, one with a rather terrible calculus joke printed on the back, and pulling it on over her travel clothes. By the sound of Reggie’s plans, she’d need to change for their events that night, but she had some clothes laid out in her own room, she could scoop them up and change in the hotel. “I’ll have to make sure with Flynn, it obviously depends on whether we can get one of the assistants to step up for a few days, helping with Julie’s make up and the guys’ clothes and such but-”

“You know Flynn will be alright with it, just say yes already.” Stephen chuckled on the other end of the line, and a part of Y/N wondered if she should just say yes without checking, if she should just this once not fight him on it. Stephen was always in the right on these things, she often challenged him regardless.

Unfortunately, she just couldn’t hold her tongue.

“Babe, that’s not how my job works.” She remarked, walking out Reggie’s room and back to her own with a smile to Alex as she passed by him sifting through some music sheets Y/N didn’t recognise, no doubt new stuff the boys and Julie had been writing. As the bus slowed down a little too suddenly, Y/N grabbed for stability on her wall, waiting to straighten herself back out and continue talking as she collected her necessary items for their evening in Dallas. “I do still need to book time off, to run through procedure with my temporary replacement, to plan ahead at least two weeks in case of an emergency, the whole team do. It’s a lot of work, and I’m happy to do it but-”

“Am I really the bad guy for wanting to bring you home for a few days? So we can sleep in our bed together, so we can see our families?” The heavy sigh from the start of the call came back. “Y/N, you’re acting like you don’t want to spend time with me anymore.”

“I do want to spend time with you, Stephen! You know I do!” Y/N promised it, almost pleading. “But this tour was always going to happen; I skipped out on the last tour to spend time together…” She reminded him. The fact that she had done so, missing on a West Coast trip for two weeks that she wanted to go on, that meant something to Stephen at the time. It was certainly a big decision for her to make, choosing her boyfriend over her friends, her best friends…

“You are coming home after Nashville, alright?!” Stephen snapped, and Y/N had to move the phone away from her ear to stop the harsh noise from echoing around her head. “You are my girlfriend, when I ask you to come home you do it. Or is everyone else in the entire world more important than me?” He asked.

“Of-of course not, baby… I’ll,” Y/N took a deep breath as the bus came to a halt, the sound of her friends outside her door forcing her to quickly roll up her clothes and stuff them into her handbag. “I’ll see you in Nashville, we’ll go home after, we will… I’ll be sure to sort it all out with Flynn and the team.” She conceded, the idea of a week off suddenly sounding like much more of a chore than it had a few minutes ago. “I love y-”

The phone hung up before she managed to finish the words, but a part of her was happy she didn’t have to say it.

“Y/N?” Julie’s voice accompanied a rapping on her bedroom door, Y/N quick to grab her things as it creaked open, the shorter girl looking back into the main area of the bus as she entered. “Are you ready to go?” She asked, stopping dead for a moment once she turned to face Y/N.

“What?” The photographer asked, trying to offset the tension created by Julie’s frown with a soft chuckle, but it did little to assist. Julie took a few paces forward, the girls toe to toe, and reached a hand up to wipe a tear from Y/N’s cheek she didn’t even notice was there.

“IS everything alright, Y/N? Did Stephen do something?” Julie asked with more seriousness than Y/N had heard from her in years: the girl was always playful in her tone, a fan of a joke, but this was new, intense, the concern almost scary.

“Everything’s fine. I had something in my eye.” Y/N lied, putting on her smile and giving a convincing enough performance that Julie seemed to let the subject go, the girl nodding and walking out of Y/N’s room, back to the band and Flynn, prompting Y/N to follow behind before she was left alone. She checked in the mirror to make sure her face was clear of signs of upset before joining the back of the queue.

That was too close for her liking.

“I knew you’d pick that one.” The voice was Reggie’s, a happy remark at her choice of camouflage as he let Julie and Luke pass by him, their four friends heading out into the chaos of camera flashes and loud voices badgering for gossip. Y/N froze a little at the noise, Reggie quick to notice and take her camera bag for her, his free hand offering itself to her. “Grab on, I’ll get you through without a scratch.” He said with that same charming smile she had always found so suiting for him.

“Promise you won’t lose me to the sea?” She asked, half-joking, half-serious. She had been lucky enough to miss most of the band’s brushes with paparazzi, or manage to slip by them without a second glance if she was with the crew: but she was on the bus this time, she was going to pass through them no matter what. It seemed to her better to do it with someone instead of alone.

“I promise.” Reggie recited back to her, and Y/N took his hand tight in her grasp as a response, the feeling sending tingles up Reggie’s arms that he did his best to stifle any physical reaction from. With that, and a shared nod, the pair started in a jog out the bus, into the mayhem.

--

Y/N hadn’t often thought about why she disliked her picture being taken: she wasn’t sure what it was that stopped her from being in front of the camera and instead behind it. And while the utter anarchy of flashes and incessant questioning weren’t the true cause of her strain of scopophobia, Y/N deemed them as reason enough to hate everything about being on camera.

It made her even more grateful to have gotten indoors, the few seconds of exposure from the bus door into the air conditioned hotel lobby feeling like years: gave her an overwhelming sense of relief, after changing into her outfit for the night, a rather lovely white lace dress and  accompanying tennis shoes, to find their mode of transport for the evening in the hotel’s basement, an old blue Cadillac, a 62 series in fact, waiting with an attendant who promised any and all reporters had been cleared off.

The early May weather was ideal for the open topped car drive west from Dallas city centre, Y/N tucked into the front passenger seat as Reggie drove them, Flynn, Julie, Alex and Luke squeezed into the back of the car, singing along to the radio over the sound of the wind rushing past them. It was almost movie-like, ‘Amarillo´ blasting as they drove down the highway, Reggie glancing over at Y/N every once and a while to send a smile her way while he kept an easy control on the wheel, one arm holding the car straight while the other rested on the back of the bench seat, dressed like he belonged at the steering wheel with his black muscle tank on.

Despite the unsure waters she sat in with Stephen, Y/N found herself relaxing into her seat properly, with Reggie’s arm moving down to rest against her shoulder as they drove out of the city, here camera poised and capturing snapshots along the way.

“So, where exactly are we going?” Alex questioned from the back as they passed their second possible turn-off, the mounting suspense too much for the blonde to bear. He had come a long way with dealing with his anxiety, but not that far, and when Reggie and Flynn shared a glance, it seemed high time the truth was revealed about their activities for that night.

“So, obviously this is my home turf.” Reggie started off by saying, taking a moment to remove his arm from Y/N’s shoulder and indicate hi changing lanes before returning it to the preferred spot. “But one place I loved more than anywhere else in Texas is Fort Worth. It’s like, cowboy country.” He had the biggest smile on his face as he revealed their location, Y/N snapping a picture. “They have a stockyard and cattle parades and a cowboy museum and this huge maise maze. Of course, we can’t do all of it, I mean by the time we arrive half the places will have closed for the night, so I’ve compromised and with Flynn’s help, we have two stops tonight.” Reggie pulled off at the correct junction, speeding along the slip road towards Fort Worth.

“We’re going to a rodeo, and a honky tonk.” Flynn informed the group, the four friends without any previous knowledge of the evening’s plans sharing glances.

“Uh, that’s great… But what exactly is a honky tonk?” Luke asked on behalf of the group, the questioned directed at Flynn, but when she just shrugged, as oblivious as the others, all focus was on Reggie for an answer.

“It’s a massive music venue, actually this one is the world’s biggest. They’ve got them all over the south, mainly for country music. Huge dance floor, tons of seating: food, drink, pool. Billy Bob’s is the best, hands down: think of any big country artist, I can guarantee they’ve played there at some point.”

“Billy Ray?” Flynn asked first.

“Yep.”

“Willie Nelson?” Alex next.

“Like, a dozen times.”

“Dolly Parton?” Y/N asked next, Reggie nodding fast and smiling at her.

“We are headed to the home of country music history, folks.” He announced, followed by a whoop that had the whole car laughing away, all smiles and sincerity. There was nothing quite like seeing Reggie happy: he just turned into a sun, their sun, lighting up the entire space around them, his joy infectious and seeping into the cars around them.

The rest of the drive into Fort Worth went by as any car ride the six friends shared often did: with an excessive amount of singing, Alex complaining about Reggie’s speed on turns at least four times, and Luke giving Julie the same lovey dovey expression he had kept plastered on his face for her since high school. By the time they were pulling into parking lot nearest the rodeo, the sun was tickling the horizon, close to dusk, streetlights starting to flicker to life on the nearby streets.

One said streetlight sat right by the rodeo entrance, and under it stood a rather short lady waving enthusiastically at their car.

“I can’t decide whether she’s cute or crazy…” Flynn leaned forward and muttered in Y/N’s ear, causing the girl to try and stifle her giggle at the comment. The boys and Julie were first out of the car, Reggie taking the lead and getting to the woman waiting for them before Y/N had even had time to grab her camera bag, though the girl soon rushed over with Fynn to join the rest of the group.

“Uh, right! Guys, this is Naomi. She is a city coordinator, helps visitors like us feel at home. Naomi, this is Luke, Alex, and Julie, who you probably know of. That’s Flynn, our band manager, and Y/N here is our photographer slash make-up artist slash general beauty guru.” Reggie was quick to introduce, Naomi wasting no time in giving each member of the friendship circle a tight hug.

“Well, welcome y’all.” She said once she had let go of Julie, the last to embrace. “Now, the rodeo has another thirty or forty minutes until it starts, and I was wondering if I could ask a favour of you, Miss Molina?” Her accent was thick, the sort of deep south accent you might expect from the state, with the Texan twang that Y/N could sometimes slip into Reggie’s own cadence.

“Oh, right… I forgot to mention.” Flynn muttered, Julie glancing between her best friend and the older woman with raised eyebrows.

“Well, Julie, we were hoping you might do us the honour of singing the anthem tonight? When we heard Julie and the Phantoms would be visiting, well the whole council just knew we would have to give it a shot and ask.” Naomi explained with the sweetest smile and warmest eyes Y/N had ever seen: they were the sort of deep chocolate brown that, when the light caught them just right, turned into a sea of gold flecks over hazel iris. She lifted her camera, zooming in and capturing the woman’s side profile discreetly as Naomi awaited Julie’s answer.

“I’d love to.” Julie responded to the celebration of the council member before them, who let out a squeak of glee.

“Oh, thank you so much darlin’!” She exclaimed. “Now, the rest of y’all can go have a nose around the area, some of the stores around here might still be open, Cavender’s across the way will be. Get yourselves some souvenirs, some hats, try and blend in with the folk round here.” Naomi offered, and it seemed to be sound advice: for the people starting to arrive for the rodeo that night, almost all of them were wearing the signature cowboy hate one associated with Texas, matched with the boots and buckle belts. Naomi herself had a hat atop her black waves of hair. “I’ll take Miss Julie here in and set her up with her mic and all.” She explained, and with nods of agreement shared amongst the group, alongside a quick kiss between Julie and Luke, the lead singer disappeared into the building.

“You, me.” Flynn said, grabbing onto Y/N’s hand and starting a march around the corner towards the bright shine marking their clothing destination. “I can trust you to pick out the best accessories for everyone, Y/N, and I want some cowboy boots.” Her determination left Y/N’s happily helpless, following after her friend in search of head gear and footwear suitable to the region.

The boys wouldn’t have been too far behind them, the three walking in a lazy line towards the same destination, though their amble compared nothing to Flynn’s near sprint, each of the bandmate’s taking in the atmosphere of the place they had landed themselves in for the night, Reggie most of all. He grew up in the Lone Star state after all, and their walk along the side of the rodeo and the connected Billy Bob’s Honky Tonk brought back memories Reggie had forgotten after almost twenty years since his last visit.

He was reminded of the way everything smelled, of how the air tasted, of how the sound travelled from street to street. He recalled the old junctions, walking the memory alongside his younger self, found himself reminiscing about his fond childhood in the area before his parents’ marriage fell apart.

“You know…” Luke’s words broke Reggie from his day dreams, the guitarist walking backwards in front of Reggie and Alex, pulling his backpack around to the side of his body. “I was hoping you might spare me a minute to talk about your latest work, Casanova?” He continued, coming to a stop and prompting his confused bandmates to do the same, though the words quickly began to make sense when Luke revealed a black notebook from his bag.

A black notebook that wasn’t Luke’s own.

“Really, dude? Taking my shit off the bus?” Reggie reached out to retrieve the journal from Luke’s hands, but the guitarist held it back, opening to the bookmarked page and shaking his head as he read.

“Calm those horses, Reggie… This is really good.” Luke was often one to tease the bassist on his writing ability, Luke was definitely the stronger of the pair, but the compliment caught Reggie quite off-guard. Before he could refute the statement, Alex was by Luke’s side reading, mumbling the words as Luke’s sang out the chords Reggie had scribbled down.

“… That is really good… When did you write this?” Alex asked, looking up at the red cheeked raven-haired boy before him and Luke.

“I just… I was inspired, the touring life certainly helps when I need inspiration.” Reggie shrugged, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he did.

“Sure, it’s 100% not Y/N that’s got you writing love songs…” Luke teased a little more, Alex punching the boy’s exposed bicep in response. “Ow?” He questioned, but when Alex shrugged in response, the pair looked back at a now frowning Reggie. “Dude…”

“It’s just songs…” The bassist sighed, running a hand through his hair and glancing over towards the nearby store, making sure Y/N was nowhere in sight or earshot when he spoke up again. “Never going to perform them, am I? Not when she’s with him…”

“You say that like we prefer Stephen over you.” Alex snorted, and Reggie glanced up at him in confusion. “What? It’s pretty clear to me who Y/N should be with, think it’s pretty clear to everyone but Y/N who she should be with…” He muttered the last part, arms folding as his head ducked down. The words though, they gave Reggie a sliver of hope he hadn’t been offered before: he had thought his interest in Y/N delusional at best, psychotic and cruel at worst, but knowing his friends thought they were good together, that it wasn’t all in his head, made Reggie feel a little better about the love songs he had found himself writing in the weeks prior.

“What you guys talking about?” A call from across the road had the three boys pretending to act natural: Luke quickly shoving the songbook into his backpack while Alex and Reggie tried to seem innocent, like they weren’t just talking about the girl who had asked the question.

Of course, upon second glance, Reggie was left speechless anyway.

Y/N crossed the road with Flynn by her side, the pair accessorised like true Texans with hats and boots, armed with bags of attire for their friends, but Y/N was more than having fun: she looked absolutely beautiful. Her white sundress with its v neckline pulled taunt against her chest now she had added a brown leather belt to her look at her waist, her tennis shoes swapped for a pair of cowboy boots, a hat finishing the look. She presented herself as a local, and Reggie found himself trying not to gawk too much.

“We have hats to go around.” Flynn announced as they came withing twenty paces of the trio, pulling the first from her bag and tossing it towards Luke, who caught the thing with ease. Y/N passed one to Alex as she came to a stop, Flynn fishing a second from her bag and setting atop her own head.

“And for the homegrown.” Y/N handed over the bag in her hands to Reggie with a smile, watching with eager eyes as he lifted out a deep brown hat that fell somewhere between Wild West Sheriff and Indiana Jones, and a belt with ‘TEXAS’ engraved into the buckle. “Need to rep the home team, Reginald.” She added, clasping her hands in hope of a reaction. “You like it?”

“I love it…” Reggie whispered, nodding his head as he spoke, taking a few seconds to take in the items before putting the first on top of his head, a perfect fit, then standing up to loop the belt through the unused belt loops of his jeans, a silly grin on his face as he caught his reflection in a nearby window. While Alex, Luke and Flynn started their walk back to the rodeo venue, the latter armed with a hat for Julie as well, Y/N feel into place beside Reggie, she too admiring their reflection in the glass surface, taking the hat off her head for a moment to rest her cheek against Reggie’s shoulder.

“We look good, Reginald…”

“We sure do, Bug.”

--

Alcohol and unchecked emotions never really mix. After Julie’s performance, and then a night of Y/N hiding her eyes in Reggie arm as bull riders were bucked from the creatures, and using the complimentary liquor provided to take her mind off of her paranoia, heading over to Billy Bob’s next door shouldn’t have been on her cards. She was already buzzed; she should have taken up the offer from Naomi for a lift to the hotel…

But she didn’t want to miss Reggie.

The pair had been inseparable for the entire night, like they usually were on tour: except Y/N was drunk for the first time in a while, and trying to work off her argument with Stephen earlier in the day, she wasn’t letting her Reginald out of sight. He didn’t mind, of course, he always liked her attention, and if he let his mind wander it felt like, for a moment at least, it felt like they were something more. Y/N cuddled into his side, his arm around her shoulders, their friends around them.

With the bar doors opening came a wave of music and cheers: a local band were playing that night, one Reggie seemed vaguely familiar with as he hummed along to the song.

“Hi, we’ve got a table booked under Naomi’s name?” Luke called over the noise to the hostess by the door, Julie tucked into his side, more in an attempt to keep Luke walking straight. There were plenty of perks to being a resurrected ghost-human hybrid: alcohol tolerance was not one of those perks.

“Indeed you do, folks! Lemme just take y’all over, we can get you some drinks too if you’re up for it?” The hostess offered with a cheery smile, slipping out from behind the bar and beginning a quick walk down towards the dancefloor. Alex and Flynn were hot on her tail, Reggie and Y/N ambling along behind, keeping the lanky blonde in sight for reference, while Luke and Julie abandoned the group altogether for the dancefloor as a slow song came on.

“Could we get four, beers?” Alex asked as he and Flynn sat down, catching Y/N by Reggie’s side about fifteen paces out. “And uh, could you open it under a tab. Luke Patterson.” Alex added, pulling a backpack from his shoulder Y/N didn’t even realise he was in possession of, and retrieving Luke’s card from the front pocket, handing it over to the hostess.

“I sure can do. Can I just say, I love your guys’ music, we have it on in here before we opening almost every night.” The hostess said with a bright smile, a blush rising to her cheeks as Reggie smiled back at her, coming to sit down across from Alex and Flynn. “I’ll get those drinks right away.”

“I forgot that bedroom eyes were a thing…” Flynn mumbled as the hostess left, reaching out and clasping onto Y/N’s hands from across the table. “We should both be in bed. We have actual jobs. These guys can party but just watch what happens when we wake up with hangovers tomorrow and the whole day falls apart.” Flynn prophesised for Y/N, who squeezed her hands in reassurance. The smile on her friend’s face though as her drink arrived told Y/N that they were too far gone to stop at any point soon, and as such, the four friends clinked beer bottles as their night began.

--

Minutes were quick to turn into hours, one bottle of beer equally swift in turning to multiple rounds and shots on the side. Within the first hour, Y/N opted to switch her phone from silent to off, tired of the constant calls from Stephen, no doubt wanting to question her whereabouts. By hour two, she had convinced Reggie to spare her a dance or two. By hour three, that had turned to more than twenty songs on the dancefloor alongside Julie and Luke, the four only stopping to grab their refreshments as Flynn and Alex spent a large portion of their evening winning card games against the table to their right.

“Alright, alright, alright! Hey, thanks guys!” A booming voice called as a man ran up onto the stage, the band disappearing off as he took over the centre mic as hour four came close to finishing up. It was almost one in the morning, by what the rather buzzed tour team could tell, and the night was very much still young. Alex and Flynn had joined them all on the dancefloor, the slow dances and coupled dance offs between Juke and Reggie and Y/N forming into a dance circle of the friends showing off their best line dancing moves: Reggie was quite clearly the winner of that one. “We all having a good night?” The announcer asked again, and the crowd of the honky tonk cheered in response.

The place was deceptively large: it had taken Luke a solid twenty minutes just to find the bathrooms earlier in the night, and he got so lost on the way back, a mixture of his over-friendly nature once a bottle of beer was in him and simply the sheer amount of people in the building, that Flynn had to assist Julie in finding him.

The group all stood together near the centre of the dance hall as they watched the stage over the heads of their fellow patrons, Alex boosting Y/N onto his shoulder so she might see better. As she hugged onto the blonde’s back, another few people pushed through the crowd to ask the band for autographs.

This was the other common occurrence of the night: when they weren’t dancing or winning money off of Texan cowboys, the four band members had been overcome with a wave of people asking for pictures, autographs, or just for them to accept the compliment someone was paying. Y/N forgot just how famous her friends were sometimes, but it was overwhelming clarity, that night, that if her four dearest friends got pestered everywhere from the streets of LA to the honky tonks of Fort Worth, they’d be pestered anywhere.

“Now, for those visiting us tonight, I am your Master of Ceremonies for the evening, the name is Jacob Blythe.” As if on command, the crowd shouted back “Well, howdy Jacob!”, causing the man to chuckle heartily into the mic, the sound echoing around the hall over and over. “I introduce myself because a little birdie told me we have some friends from the Sunshine State with us tonight.” He added, and the crowd cheered. The team’s ‘incognito’ night out was truly public record now, but it was far too fun to really care. “So, our band tonight will be back after their break, we don’t wanna tire them out now. But that does mean we are in need of some musical talent!

“Now, I’m not pressuring none, but if any particular individuals wanna come up and give us a tune, I think we’d all be mighty grateful.” The MC stated, Y/N climbing off of Alex’s back as the four bandmates shared glances. “So, do we have any volunteers?”

Before anyone had a chance to stop him, Reggie suddenly disappeared from his spot amongst the group, appearing a moment on the stage behind the MC, who let out a rather high-pitched scream as Reggie sat his hand on his shoulder in greeting.

“What is he doing?” Y/N found herself asking, watching her friend picking up an acoustic guitar from its stand and fixing the strap around him before he clipped on a capo and stood himself in front of the mic.

“Good evening, Fort Worth. I’m Reggie.” He introduced himself to the cheers of the crowd, a spotlight focusing onto him as he spoke. He wasn’t quite sure why he was up on that stage, in fact every bone in his body seemed against it: but his hands settled into place over the strings and his fingers began to play a sweet arpeggio, getting used to the foreign guitar. He was lost to impulse, no doubt partially thanks to the liquor in his system, but he was confident enough to keep going, maybe too scared to stop.

“I think he’s gonna play.” Julie remarked, stating the obvious as she grabbed Luke’s hand and led him closer to the stage, Flynn doing the same to Y/N as Alex followed behind.

“I uh, I usually leave our band’s songwriting up to Luke, right there.” Reggie added as he continued to play, pointing a hand out towards Luke who waved to the surrounding crowd, another round of whoops sounding. “But I dabble, and since this is my home state… I have something new for you guys tonight.” He finally paused the arpeggio, taking one last sigh before using the same chords and beginning to play the mysterious song.

“Let’s fall in love for the night and forget in the mornin’.” He sang out, his voice so soft and sweet that Y/N found herself instantly fixed on the music. She was often this way with Reggie, whenever he sang she could swear that the rest of the world disappeared. “Play me a song that you like you can bet I'll know every line. 'Cause I'm the boy that your boy hoped that you would avoid, don't waste your eyes on jealous guys, stop that noise.” Reggie lifted his hand from the guitar, his eyes scanning the audience to send a wink towards his friends, two of whom recognised the lyrics of his chosen serenade. “I know better than to call you mine.”

“Wow…” Y/N whispered, impressed, lifting her elbow to nudge Alex, but meeting thin air instead.

“You need a pick-me-up?” Reggie sang, Alex appearing at the drumkit on stage behind the raven haired singer and joining in on a drum line, to the cheers of the crowd. “Well, I'll be there in 25. I like to push my luck, so take my hand, let's take a drive.” With a nod towards Julie and Luke, he coaxed the other bandmates onto the stage, leaving Flynn in charge of the entranced Y/N, pushing the girl alongside her towards the front of the crowd. “'Cause I've been livin' in the future hopin' I might see you sooner. I want you ridin' shotgun. I knew when I got one right.” He continued to sing, passing off the guitar to Luke as Julie took her place at the piano and played the chords with a smile Reggie’s way.

“Let's fall in love for the night and forget in the mornin'. Play me a song that you like you can bet I'll know every line.” Reggie sang out, this time accompanied by the harmony of Julie and the backing vocals of Alex and Luke, the four sharing smiles as they performed. “'Cause I'm the boy that your boy hoped that you would avoid, don't waste your eyes on jealous guys, stop all that noise. I know better than to call you mine.”

As Y/N watched on, nestled in the crowd, she couldn’t help but wonder when Reggie was struck with such romantic inspiration. She had spent almost every day for the last near month with him, and with his last big hit being ‘Home Is Where My Horse Is’, she allowed herself the curiosity, a beer in hand that she found herself sipping away at as she observed.

“Where’d you get that drink?” Flynn whispered into Y/N’s ear, who shrugged and took another sip.

“I love it when you talk that nerdy shit. We're in our twenties talkin' thirties shit. We're makin' money but we're savin' it, ‘cause talking shit is cheap and we talk a lot of it.” The song continued, the crowd cheering and dancing along to the music while Y/N found herself fixed to her spot, not even noticing as Flynn played safety guard and relieved her of the drink in her hands. “You won't stay with me, I know, but you can have your way with me 'til you go.” Julie and Reggie harmonised on the line, Luke and Alex suddenly disappearing from the stage, Julie taking her leave, quick to pull Flynn away with her and leave Y/N alone in front of the stage. “And if all your kisses turn into bruises, I'm a warnin’.”

And then, Y/N struggled to breathe, completely paralysed when Reggie’s eyes locked with her own.

“Let's fall in love for the night and forget in the mornin'.” Reggie lifted the microphone from its stand, walking round and jumping off the low stage onto the dancefloor as he sang. There was a confidence in the music he couldn’t dispel, emotions he might have never admitted otherwise coming into the open, at least that was what he hoped. His walk was in time to the best of the drums left to echo as he sang acapella, his feet only stopping once they were toe to toe with Y/N’s.

“Play me a song that you like you can bet I'll know every line.” They had been that close all night, dancing away to the sounds of the country band, or when Y/N had spent half the rodeo hiding in his arms fearful for the bull riders in the arena below them. But it felt different, intimate.

“'Cause I'm the boy that your boy hoped that you would avoid.” His free hand lifted hers from her side, taking her hand in his and lifting their arms above their heads to spin Y/N on the spot: that action too was slow, something that made the rest of the world outsiders looking into a rare moment. “Don't waste your eyes on jealous guys, fuck that noise.”

“I know better. I know better. I know better than to ever call you mine.” The look the pair shared, Reggie finding himself smirking as he let the mic fall, it was nothing either of them had experienced before, and Reggie vanished into thin air as the crowd erupted into cheers.

It was only once he had disappeared, only once the crowd broke into thunderous applause, that Y/N felt herself breathe again. She was overcome with a dizziness she would equate to the feeling after a rollercoaster ride, paired with the sound of her heart in her ears and near pounding out her chest, and that was before mentioning the flush that coloured her cheeks and nose red. A part of her might have called it fault of the alcohol, but Y/N had never felt more sober. His smirk was sketched into her memory, the feeling of his hand on hers burned in her skin, the smell of his cologne a scent she had never noticed was so very enticing before. It was like she had been transported to some kind of paradisal state of being, the way his eyes held her own like she might drown in the deep sea green irises…

There wasn’t much Y/N could make sense of in the few moments that ended the performance, but she knew, deep in her gut:

This wasn’t good.

--

Y/N’s Instagram Feed: Day 23/93

and the rumours begin...

--

Tags:  @reggiesleatherjacket @bookdealer5 @nerdie20 @epikskool @gabriella-superwholock-universe @midnightpsychic @siennanoelle01 @catwx3 @oswin05 @trxnxtysstuff  @strangermiraculousloser  @izzyhogue @random-thoughts-003 @theatricalfangirl @aliceinemeraldcity @kristencoontz @sunsetpatterson @ghostlyb1tch @caitsymichelle13 @lovesanimals @j-mar-memester @avs-hart @ohyoureaqueenbutuncrowned @eries45 @im-a-writer-right @independentgirl @aberette13 @lord-of-the-fried @ellepscal @korydickson @kcd15 @lukeys-giggle @aunicornmademedoit @carleywhittaker @lolychu @delicatelukepatterson @a-whole-a-lot-of-fandoms @voguesir @reggieandthereggies @overlyhypedup @crappy-unicorn @amortiff @writerinlearning @parkeret @kaylinfayezink @uglypeachh @xxcxrolinexx @writingforphantoms @isabellaskyliner @sophiathefirst @musicconversedance @calicokitkat @nynke2004 @lukesrosetattoo @kiss-themoongoodbye @megnmendes @haydieenzzibug @thesweetestsinner @fangirlangioma @moviesbooksandfandoms @saroo-hawks @charliessunset @lanasfandoms @bigdesi @avngrsinitiative @lazydaisy19 @hologramband @rogersangel @mybrainiswhack @uhmitstori @mon-charmante @mjflower @heimdoodle @-episkey- @simp4madi @obxmermaid @sunsetcurvenotsunsetswerve @n0wornever @aliciameix @kinda-just-chillin-here @jatpfan99 @vicesvsvirtuesfanfic @daisiesforlacey @valntynegillespie @ritz-hell-hotel @ssprayberrythings @mishappend @lukespaterson @dovegranger @morganayennefertyrell @queenxxkiller @kmsmedine @parkeret @bookfrog247 @poe30-blog​ @dmcfarland1​ @magnet-girl​

#jatp reggie x reader #jatp reggie #jatp reggie x y/n #jatp imagine #social media au #juke #willex #flarrie #jatp au #julie and the phantoms #reggie imagine #reggie julie and the phantoms #fluff #angst #smut #fluffy angsty smut #jatp alex #jatp luke #jatp julie #jatp flynn #jatp juke #social media alternate universe

[allthecolorsofourlove]

what the fuck is wrong with me?

what the fuck is wrong with me?

fears rattle against my lungs like ice in a sweating glass and my skin is salty and damp. i am petrified in the gentlest way. i am so full of so much and so empty too. i don’t know how i stand before the sun and sky and night as both but i do. 

what if i wasn’t built for this kind of love? what if? why doesn’t anyone fit but her? why can’t i accept hands on my face and hands on my heart and hands in my own, why can’t i let someone in? i feel bile in my throat and panic rising with it, i feel sickened and weak and so alone. why, no matter how much i am loved by someone else, are they still wrong? who is going to get the answer right? and why were your answers wrong? no matter how much i want to love you, why i am i still so scared? no matter how badly i want to brush knuckles and pass pressed flowers or kiss in the back seat and trade leather jackets, how is it still fucking wrong? why can’t i just fucking be normal?

who is going to see me, and why, and how, and when? who am i finally going to look at and see stars? why can’t it be you, or you, or you? why can’t i be happy? why can’t i be safe? 

why can’t i let someone in? why can’t i? is it her fault, or mine? i wonder, feverishly, if i am still red. i wonder if i still miss gardenias and nails along my spine and crow’s down. i wonder if i still miss summer and winter and fall. is that why? i don’t even know anymore. i don’t even know. 

but if it’s my fault, then how? what brought me here? it could have been my childhood. it could have been shopping malls and pretzel bites and running from boys we didn’t want to see. i don’t think it was. i think that is the root of other fears, but not this one. but not this one here and now, and that’s what’s so disorienting. i can pin the tail of my problems onto each and every horse but not this one. not this one here. and as i stand back and look at my wall of fucked up party games and masquerade masks feel the weight on my back grow ten times heavier. 

why can’t i love anymore?

have i just forgotten how?

did i ever really know?

(somewhere, there is a timeline where i am in love at this very moment. i am laying on the hill and dandelion fluff blows over my nose. i turn my head. someone is laying beside me. she’s lovely, i think, but i don’t know who she is. it doesn’t matter. we’ll figure it out together. i take her hand. i blow the fuzz out of my vision and quip about the clouds and the bees and the oncoming rain. she smiles at me, i can hear it in her voice. i don’t have to listen to know what she says next. i tell her i love her too.

the grass is soft beneath me. i don’t think i’ll ever leave.)

(yet here and now, i am alone. and here, now, i know that i would leave her.)

(three times. three times and i am always the one. three more, a little less official, a little less tender, and it was still me.)

(what the fuck is wrong with me?)

(what is in my fingertips that poisons the earth, that pollutes the water?)

(i haven’t wondered these things since i was a child.)

truly, i could use a hug. one embrace, to be held once is all i ask.

(but then again, would i maim that too?)

this uncertainty will kill me, if disease or academia or hatred does not. 

this uncertainty has no end. 

and so i beg for forgiveness, for hope, for something besides all of these question marks at the ends of my sentences, i beg for something that will never come and my pleas fall on deaf ears, on nonexistent beings, on blind eyes.

i have lied my way out of every cage i’ve been placed in. i have charmed and deceived and soothed my way out of every cave, every hole, every corner.

not this one. 

not this one.

(i could never lie to myself so well. there is nothing charming about the pathetic stench of self pity and terror.)

between a rock and a hard place, i demand answers. i demand the truth. 

i demand to know.

(i never know.)

i remain tangled. i remain trapped.

i remain a rubix cube unsolved. 

i remain a child unknown, unseen, unraveled. 

(i know time will pass.)

(but that does not guarantee solutions. that does not guarantee answers. that does not guarantee truth.)

maybe i’ll never know. maybe i will be stuck in limbo forever. maybe this was where i was supposed to be all along. i count on the future to set me free from my own head but maybe it never will. maybe i’ll never figure myself out.

the thought strikes me between the eyes, as the weight of this all crushes me once more.

#writing #writings #written #write #creative writing #creative writings #poems about love #poems about relationships #poems #poem #poetry #creative writer #stream of conscious writing #stream of consciousness #stream of consciousness writing #stream of consciousness poetry #poet #lesbian poet #lesbian poetry #vent poetry #vent writing

[4zx]

what the fuck is wrong with me?

what the fuck is wrong with me?

fears rattle against my lungs like ice in a sweating glass and my skin is salty and damp. i am petrified in the gentlest way. i am so full of so much and so empty too. i don’t know how i stand before the sun and sky and night as both but i do.

what if i wasn’t built for this kind of love? what if? why doesn’t anyone fit but her? why can’t i accept hands on my face and hands on my heart and hands in my own, why can’t i let someone in? i feel bile in my throat and panic rising with it, i feel sickened and weak and so alone. why, no matter how much i am loved by someone else, are they still wrong? who is going to get the answer right? and why were your answers wrong? no matter how much i want to love you, why i am i still so scared? no matter how badly i want to brush knuckles and pass pressed flowers or kiss in the back seat and trade leather jackets, how is it still fucking wrong? why can’t i just fucking be normal?

who is going to see me, and why, and how, and when? who am i finally going to look at and see stars? why can’t it be you, or you, or you? why can’t i be happy? why can’t i be safe?

why can’t i let someone in? why can’t i? is it her fault, or mine? i wonder, feverishly, if i am still red. i wonder if i still miss gardenias and nails along my spine and crow’s down. i wonder if i still miss summer and winter and fall. is that why? i don’t even know anymore. i don’t even know.

but if it’s my fault, then how? what brought me here? it could have been my childhood. it could have been shopping malls and pretzel bites and running from people we didn’t want to see. i don’t think it was. i think that is the root of other fears, but not this one. but not this one here and now, and that’s what’s so disorienting. i can pin the tail of my problems onto each and every horse but not this one. not this one here. and as i stand back and look at my wall of fucked up party games and masquerade masks feel the weight on my back grow ten times heavier.

why can’t i love anymore? have i just forgotten how? did i ever really know?

somewhere, there is a timeline where i am in love at this very moment. i am laying on the hill and dandelion fluff blows over my nose. i turn my head. someone is laying beside me. she’s lovely, i think, but i don’t know who she is. it doesn’t matter. we’ll figure it out together. i take her hand. i blow the fuzz out of my vision and quip about the clouds and the bees and the oncoming rain. she smiles at me, i can hear it in her voice. i don’t have to listen to know what she says next. i tell her i love her too.

the grass is soft beneath me. i don’t think i’ll ever leave.

yet here and now, i am alone. and here, now, i know that i would leave her.

three times. three times and i am always the one. three more, a little less official, a little less tender, and it was still me.

what the fuck is wrong with me?

what is in my fingertips that poisons the earth, that pollutes the water? i haven’t wondered these things since i was a child.

truly, i could use a hug. one embrace, to be held once is all i ask.

but then again, would i maim that too?

this uncertainty will kill me, if disease or academia or hatred does not. this uncertainty has no end.

and so i beg for forgiveness, for hope, for something besides all of these question marks at the ends of my sentences, i beg for something that will never come and my pleas fall on deaf ears, on nonexistent beings, on blind eyes.

i have lied my way out of every cage i’ve been placed in. i have charmed and deceived and soothed my way out of every cave, every hole, every corner.

not this one. not this one.

i could never lie to myself so well. there is nothing charming about the pathetic stench of self pity and terror.

between a rock and a hard place, i demand answers. i demand the truth. i demand to know.

i never know.

i remain tangled. i remain trapped.

i remain a rubix cube unsolved.

i remain a child unknown, unseen, unraveled. i know time will pass.

but that does not guarantee solutions. that does not guarantee answers. that does not guarantee truth.

maybe i’ll never know. maybe i will be stuck in limbo forever. maybe this was where i was supposed to be all along. i count on the future to set me free from my own head but maybe it never will. maybe i’ll never figure myself out.

the thought strikes me between the eyes, as the weight of this all crushes me once more.

[bd-joss-kujo]

|Ahh.. I haven't seen you before, but you look familiar...| *The stand contemplates for just a second, then gives the Human Combo Platter an unsolved Rubix Cube. Don't worry, it's still colored fully.* (ask-lievito-bianchi-and-bic, BiC)

“...Where would you have seen me before?” She asked, looking down at the rubik’s cube.

[twinfoxtails]

Oh, someone's sent in a puzzle for Satori! It's a Rubix's cube, all jumbled up nicely. Little does she know, there is a trick to this cube... someone very carefully took two of the stickers off, and switched them around. So neatly it's practically impossible to tell. But while this might be a small change... it has rendered the cube literally unsolvable. Have fun, Satori~

“This isn’t the first time someone pulled this kind of prank. Luckily, I know which parts was switched.”

And she replaced the stickers which were off, and there it is!

#HELL FAIRIES I TELL YOU #mayohigan-orange

[speedtacular]

❝ Come on, you can be honest. ❞

BROOKLYN NINE-NINE SENTENCE STARTERS

Babs knows him too well-- but maybe she just knows speedsters too well. Hal can call him out on it too, so can Bruce, Clark, and Iris. There’s a handful of people who truly know when speedsters are hiding something or just-- not there. They’re fidgety as is but when something was wrong or being hidden it’s like--- everything that was them trying play normal was cranked up to an eleven. They zone out more, they snap back into focus with a jump, they try to get out of talking for too long, they ramble and speed talk so much more than the usual. There are clues when speedsters are hiding something-- And Babs knows these clues because of Wally. ❝ Honest....? Honest in what...? ❞ All the signs are there. Breaking eye-contact and keeping something in his hands to keep him distracted. This time it was Bab’s rubix cube, Barry setting a timer on his phone as he solved and unsolved it trying to time himself with a better time each time. He’s gotten it down to five seconds-- he swears he could do it in two. ❝ Fine fine- I’ll be honest.. ❞ He starts, eyes never leaving the object in his hands as he worked out the puzzle. ❝ I do like pineapple and ham on my pizza. ❞ This of course, was not what Babs was talking about, Barry knew this, but was still avoiding.   

#oracleonline

[asabovesobelow-rp-blog]

* SOL HYUNJI, the nightwalker

                                                                                 ( please accept the friend request within 48 hours )

DOB august 5, 1997 YEAR sophomore,  music major HOUSING gukwa, double / room 104 EXTRACURRICULAR women’s soccer - vice captain SUBPLOT skeptics - member

VICES impetuosity & ruthlessness VIRTUES confidence & tolerance

W I T H I N

one day hyunji liked insects; she loathed them the next

she has the tendency to be impulsive, depending on the degree of how the event affects her

weakness: her parents. how does she pay her tuition? her brain.

quick point-out: you will never see her finish any meal (due to her being easily distracted by nearly every thing)

she has such high grades… but you will never see her study. 

W I T H O U T

Ah, yes, of course. The school year has resumed- yet again. Oh, how lovely to see you too… whatever your name is! Ah~ I’m doing quite alright, I’ll see you in piano lessons! Oh– At this point, she could just give up in completing the four years of university. She’s tired. It's literally studying for all or nothing. She is nineteen, after all. She can just work her way up to buy herself that cute little apartment space in Seoul. But then again… there is some sort of fun in this university even though she’s spitting hatred towards the people in it most of the time; people wonder if she even has friends. Did she? Were the members of the club she was in even friends with her? Those type of questions were always asked by people who didn’t know her well. She wasn’t a loner, nah. She was just… a mystery. An unsolved 6 x 6 triangular rubix cube. Now, back to giving up her education: She didn’t want to miss out all the fun just because she’s tired. No way! “One day, it’ll happen.” She keeps mumbling to herself. Every time a big test is coming up and she feels like dropping from the university, she would rest her head on the desk, dream about the life she wants to have, and think of how she would be able to achieve it. How is that, huh? “To study and have a boss work.” She groaned, grabbed her highlighter, and started to reread the whole chapter for the second time that evening. A few minutes later, she stops midway from reading. An idea came along, and she was grinning from ear to ear. “I wonder if they would notice, me doing a certain thing.” And BAM! she smacked the pages of her book together, grabbed a sweater, and ran into the depths of the forest.

#ab:accepted #krp #kpop rp #kpop roleplay

[sapphichobbit]

we all have those silly questions you wonder about in life like, why do flowers look so pretty? why do granny smith apples taste better in pies? how do people complete rubix cubes in less than 30 seconds? why did you leave me, what did i do, how is she better than i? you know, dumb, silly, unsolveable questions ^.^

#this is stupid but i'm laughing so hard

[worshipherwhole]

I'll never forget the time I got my first rubix cube. I was 8. So I was moving it once and then moving it back to try and understand it. And also I was that kid that sorted M&Ms and shit like that so I didn't really want to jumble it around. Especially since I had no clue how to solve it. Anyways, my mom saw me just kind of moving things back and forth, and she took it and she said "That's not how you do it" Then she faced away from me I couldn't even see what she was doing to then do that backwards. She scrambled it all up and handed back to me and said "Here, now solve it." Except no one in my family is good a rubix cube so it has remained unsolved to this day. Thanks mom.