#this started out as me wanting to give an origin to his dumb beanie | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

enha-woodzies · 3 years

Text

➸ CHAPTER 9 | " THE SPACE BETWEEN US "

starring: enhypen ft. i-land daniel

pairing: jungwon x fem!reader x sunghoon

genres: royal au, romance, angst, slowburn, 18th century setting

warnings: very mild swearing; brief arguments

word count: 2.5k

taglist: @serendipitysung (betareader) @en-sun @affectionaterainoflove @renkiv @softforjungwoo @jislix @gyeraniee @fluffi @stxrryemxlys @jungwon-luv-bot-pt3 @lost-lepord-beanie @hyunsunge @hooniecore @thenoceurgirl @thonkingdeepo

[ PREV. CHAPTER ] | [ M. LIST ] | [ NEXT CHAPTER ]

START OF PARK SUNGHOON'S POV

I stood there at the side, leaning against the arched entrance. I never meant to eavesdrop in the conversation you were having with the firstborn of the Yang family. It piqued my interest upon hearing your troubles and impulsively decided to help you. To pass time, I guess… or to stall my father into giving me his magnificent title of a duke and have me marry some lady I don’t even desire to have.

Without any significant bargain in the offer, I suggested anyway with the thought that maybe this could help me look at myself the way everyone did before I made history with your brother. The physical bruises and scars we both afflicted on each other faded with time, but the torturous memory continues to haunt us. I may look fine around his presence, but he never had the slightest idea of how I curse myself every single night knowing I not only ruined him and his tender affections with Yena, but our budding and steadfast friendship as well.

I was heinous then. But I swear with my whole heart, I don’t ever intend to hurt you now the way I did with your brother. The moment I let myself drown in your alluring gaze under that brightly lit moonlight, I told myself I won’t take another girl for granted. Not just because I owe it to Niki, but because you were the first person who looked at me without judgment despite knowing your brothers detest me with the entirety of their souls.

I’ve been courting you for over a month now and I’m completely aware of the things we’ve agreed upon about the ruse; needless to say, one might catch feelings in the aftermath. I know this was all a show to give Jungwon a headstart for his own game, but why am I gravely pained every time his name slips out of your lips? Why do I keep myself up on most nights thinking about this lingering question of who do you love? Why do I want to hold you even closer to my side every time he looks at us in dismay?

I’ve come to know that I had myself caught in the middle of whatever this is between you and him; that I’m just the fuel to the fire that’s already been there, left neglected within time. But I can’t help but feel like I need to protect you from him; from whatever hurt he might cause you over time. Although I know my place in all of this and where I stand, it still stings thinking that it isn’t in your heart.

Why would it be, anyway? I’m only just a page you couldn’t keep; a filler in your romantic novel who had the part of the villain origin story but couldn’t fight your hopeless hero. Sadly, Jungwon’s five steps ahead of me. So much for telling the ton there was us in the making, but you weren’t even mine to begin with.

Your mother invited me and the Yang family for dinner a sennight ago. She said it was to properly introduce me as your husband-to-be to your family, that includes your lover’s sitting across the table discussing the recent blow from the Daily Tattle, which was, of course, us.

“Jungwon, dear, have you wished your friend, Y/n, luck on her future wedding with the duke-to-be? Need I remind you that she’s going to need some of it from her best friends.” Lady Yang gently nudged her son who was busy tapping his spoon and fork upon the table. “Jungwon here is finally courting someone, have you heard of that, dear? Lady Choi, daughter of the-”

“The ever famous cheese merchant of our city, Viscount Choi, whom without, we wouldn’t be eating this opulent cheese on the table right this very moment.” I finished, which made the two mothers impressively smile in my direction. Realizing how uncomfortable you become at the very slightest mention of Jungwon’s new lover, I figured butting in could end your agony; seeing that your man is stupid enough to not read the situation in front of him. He seemed more occupied with the utensils than your disheartened state.

As predicted, you excused yourself, and it went without saying that Jungwon followed after you as you rushed out the dining hall and out to your garden. Your brothers and his soon left the hall and went with their casual discourse on the parlor, leaving his and your mother exchanging wedding plans with the company of champagne bottles and cheese. I held my head up high as I walked into the library to reflect on matters that kept me wondering at night. Until Niki strode in, with a pocket watch in hand.

“Riki, I’m-”

“Save your breath, Your Grace. You’re going to need it in case you piss the hell out of Jungwon and he lands his knuckles on your pretty face again.”

“Why don’t you do it then? Can’t get your hands dirty for your sister yet you can for Yena?”

“Do not fucking tempt me, Sunghoon.”

“Too bad. I’d love to see you try, though.”

“And I’d love to see your little mouth shut, Your Grace. You’re impressive, but I’m sure you’ve always been told that. For a moment there you really had me thinking you were about to apologize to my brother. Turns out you’re still the coward that you’ve always been.” Jay walked in unannounced, slightly scaring me. He’s like a lion ready to hunt for prey, even though he’d just sit there looking unbothered. I’ve always deemed your eldest brother with veneration. All I did was drop my head low when he threw me those harsh words, though I completely agree as they embody me in so many ways possible. I hate it.

“A wedding, huh? Don’t you think you’re going too far, already? This ruse is nothing but a shame to both our families. Heed me while I’m asking you nicely to end this foolishness you’ve invoked on our sister.”

“Forgive me… but I’m afraid I can’t.”

Fortunately, Niki was quick enough to grab a hold of Jay when he was about to come at me. I must say this now before it’s too late, and better be in front of your brothers than your lover.

“I will take full responsibility for Y/n. I will be a man of worth to her and a word of honor, I will end any future causes of grievances upon us both. I will protect her from it, just as I’m doing now.”

“You’re doing nothing but stall her from her fate with Jungwon!”

“And how do you know she still cares for him? Haven’t you seen the look on your dear sister’s face whenever Jungwon’s name is brought up? Haven’t you seen that man strolling around the town with a fancy girl in hand a week after breaking your sister’s heart? I thought so. But you just want things to go your way. I’ll respect that. For now.”

I dashed out of the library after giving them a piece of my mind. Though I had planned to apologize to Niki, Jay’s words got the best of me. I headed towards the garden to look for you, but before I could have your attention, Jungwon already did.

END OF PARK SUNGHOON’S POV

Jungwon rushed to the garden, following Y/n’s quick pace in an attempt to block out any possible thoughts about her lover. Basking under the bright moonlight, Jungwon grabbed her by the wrist, making her turn and crash against his jabot-clad chest.

“Y/n, please-”

“Really, Jung? God! You totally had me fooled that day when I thought we were having a moment!”

“We did! But-”

“But what? You can’t hold yourself accountable for the things you left me with so you squander your way with another lady? Tough blow, don’t you think?”

“Please, Y/n, I just need you to listen to me and-”

“I’m tired, Jung. All these years, you let me wait for you for five years just to have you run back and hurt me again. I’m tired of you making a fool out of me, and I’m dumb enough to always let you. Because I love you. I love you so much, it fucking hurts. I have so much love for you yet here you are, always welcoming me with fleeting bliss and leaving me with endless torment. But the damage has been done and I’m out. I love you, but I guess I’m going to have to leave it like this.”

“You still do?”

“God! I poured out my heart for you and all you could say was that? Jung, how can you be so dense?! I wouldn’t have let you hold me that day in the forest if I don’t love you! I asked you for a new start but you ran off and a week later you’re traipsing around Northumberland with Lady Choi! Right in front of me!”

“You were with that man that day too, in front of me! You look at him with so much admiration with your hand hanging on his arm. How do you think that made me feel?!”

“More than the damage you did to me? What a load of nonsense, Jung! And here I thought you already knew that Sunghoon and I were just fooling around to get to you.”

“Well, I’m here now, Y/n! I’m all yours now!”

“No, you’re not. You just can’t bear the truth that you lost me to him. At the end of the day, it will always be your pride. It always has been. I’m sorry. I don’t even know why I’m apologizing but I still will. This ends here, Jung. I wish you well.”

The entire time that Y/n and the young lord were arguing out the garden, Jay and Niki were carefully listening from the library’s window; Niki figured it was finally time to spill the truth to his sister.

Niki followed Y/n to her room, taking note of the soft sobs and sniffles she emitted. She turned around when she felt her brother’s footsteps trailing after her.

“Riki…” Niki was suddenly enclosed by Y/n’s tight embrace, dampening his jabot shirt with her tears. He returned the warm hug as he gently rubs her corseted back, feeling the constant huffs from her crying.

“I’m sorry about Jungwon.”

“He doesn’t deserve me.” The lady muffled against her brother’s chest.

“Maybe you’re right. And neither does Sunghoon. Listen, Sister. There’s something I need to get off my chest. Come.” The two entered the lady’s room and Niki carefully shut the door tight, locking it in the process. He sat atop the neatly arranged bed while patting the space next to him, gesturing Y/n to sit closer to his side.

“Jay isn’t happy with the sudden announcement of your engagement, and neither am I. But always know that I will always have your back, just like how you always have mine. I’ve seen how Sunghoon made you smile and laugh like how you used to with Jungwon back in the day. This day feared me but we’re here now, and I must tell you the reason why we’re all against him courting you in the first place.”

“Remember Yena? The girl I told you about in the letters? Sunghoon… he deceived her. He made her cheat against me, fed her with lies, and tricked her into thinking our love was nothing but a hoax. I saw them one day in his father’s garden, I followed them, curious enough to see how he made her happier than when she was with me. Until he kissed her. He took her first kiss when I thought we’d be sharing it with each other. And she kissed him back... like I wasn’t even someone to reckon with. Needless to say, I attacked him. The boys went against him afterward. Jungwon was there too. With all the lies he wired into her brain, Yena never looked at me the same after that day. And the many days that followed. She and Sunghoon just suddenly stopped seeing after the fight that erupted between us.”

“The thing was, sister, Sunghoon never loved her. He was young and didn’t want to let the opportunity pass, that’s what he told us when I had his collar by my clutch. That was the only excuse he could ever give us. The asshole that he is.” Niki clicks his tongue while dropping his head low, gaze fixed on the carpeted area on the floor across them. “Fuck. I would still have Yena if he didn’t try to treat things like we were playing a game of who could get the girl first. Thinking about the time he wasted on nothing genuine, Yena could have spent it on me instead and I would have had her here, introduced to Mother and the ton.”

Y/n placed a hand on her brother’s closed, shaky fists. Niki let out soft sniffles, trying his best to keep himself from cracking. “I’m sorry, Riki, I didn’t know. He told me it was all in the past and that he desires to make amends now.” Niki jerks up, eyes fixed on his sister’s eyes. “You’ve only heard his point of view, you never heard mine. Sunghoon’s made a whole record in university, Y/n. He goes around the grounds breaking hearts like he owns them. Girls would swoon over him and he would gladly oblige. What an ambitious, cunning little prick. And now he has you wrapped around his fingers, the same way he did to Yena.”

“I’m sure he means no harm now, brother. He’s been nothing but kind and gentle to me. He makes me utterly happy; the part of my romantic story where I used to want Jungwon to be consistent of.”

“You know, I’ve always been considerate of your choices and aspirations, sister. But I will not lose you to Sunghoon like this. I’m afraid Jay and I will have to be very uptight with you seeing him from now on. I’m sure by now you’ve come to understand why Jungwon’s scared of surrendering you to him. He means well, sis, Jungwon…”

“I will not settle for someone whom I have to spend a lifetime second-guessing whether he wants me in his life or not.”

“But he’s been missing you a lot lately, hasn’t he?”

“I’m afraid him missing me is far too different from him wanting to marry me.”

Niki only sighs before planting a soft kiss on his sister’s temple and fixing his fit to present himself back to the lobby. Y/n was left in her room, fidgeting with her fingers while anxiously biting her bottom lip in deep contemplation.

Sunghoon may have stolen her attention from Jungwon, but she had to admit, she never regretted it. She has felt safe with Sunghoon the past months they’ve been together. Jungwon did nothing but torture her constantly with every chance he got. Although they hadn’t been sticking around their ruse’s ground rules lately, she feared the time between her and Sunghoon would be up soon and she wouldn’t feel his comforting presence around her anymore.

Sunghoon may have gotten her used to their dilly-dallying that time apart from each other could make her feel miserable. Not to mention the embarrassment that would come with it considering she is foretold to be Northumberland’s next duchess after all.

*send me an ask or a message if you wish to be added on this series' taglist!

ㅡ © ENHA-WOODZIES, 2021

#kpopscape #enhypenwriters #enhypennetwork #neothestars #of lords & mischiefs #enhypen angst #enhypen fluff #enhypen imagines #enhypen fics #enhypen series #enhypen jungwon #enhypen heeseung #enhypen jay #enhypen jake #enhypen sunghoon #enhypen sunoo #enhypen niki #iland daniel

79 notes · View notes

drabbles-of-writing · 3 years

Text

Reverse Au! Dump

Don’t mind my idea dumping here. Brain decided to have fun while I was at work and I have too many wips as it is, so… Thought I’d ask before I dumped, experience. Used morningmark’s comics as a base, so if you want reference. Now this isn’t all that well compiled, but here it goes.

Magic in the Other World is varied as it is crazy. So many styles over the generations and not a lot of organization. There are some that try to categorize it all, but that works as well as you’d expect. Some were lost, some erased, some weren’t passed down/recorded because “the power is all mine! Ahahaha!” It took a lot of time and collaboration, but eventually a sort of system was installed to help out. Still a lot of work to do, but its a step forward. Nowadays the term Wild Magic is generally reserved for those that aren’t all that well documented and understood.

Some Magics are very powerful and desirable, but also tend to be very high risk/high reward, kinda pass/fail, pretty literally Do or Die most times. So not a lot of people can use those or are even willing to. Story says this one guy named Odin hung himself on a massive tree by his own spear for nine days, no food water or rest in constant pain before he could unlock the secret of Runes. But it’s also said he gouged out his own eye to drink from the Well of Wisdom so…

There are lots of different ways to channel magic too: wands, staves, jewelry, certain gems, familiars, potions, enchanted armaments, chants, scripts, etc. Each tool has its own advantages and disadvantages and play into a Witches’ style. Every Witch has at least two methods of spellcasting. Only children have one. Haven’t thought of how Luz gets her Palisman though. Maybe its one of those magic Artifacts like Dr. Strange’s cloak, Elder Wand, Thor’s hammer, or a Green Lantern’s Ring. Something that can’t be recreated because the secret is lost, materials no longer exist, too hard/dangerous to make, accident that can’t be recreated, etc. Happens more often than people like.

Camilla is sometimes called the Blue Witch. She’s a healer by heart and trade, but push her and she will become a one Witch Battleship. Bismark who? Aaaaand she just deleted a whole battalion. And the fortress behind them. Hide me. There are the very rare occasions, like count on one hand rare, when someone near and dear to her heart is in trouble that she takes up her other job. She’s especially terrifying when she decides to torture, those who know how to heal the body know best how to break it. Many shades of Blue, some are very close to Black. She doesn’t necessarily hate Humans exactly, but doesn’t have the highest of regard from past experiences.

Luz has training and is a proficient Witch for her age. Camilla and her father were adamant about having a general knowledge/skillset alongside her specialized skill. Jack of all trades and a master of none, still better than a master of one. She has gone through the system for her magic with varying success. Oracle magic? Zero talent. Bard classes? She can play an instrument, but can’t sing at the same time. When she does sing she tires too hard and messes up. It’s only when she doesn’t try, like absently singing along with a song or playing by her heart, that she’s good at it. Beasts? Can use them, but would rather play with them. Bleeding heart and all that. She does have a good handle on healing magic partly due to Camilla drilling necessary skills into her and partly osmosis. Her father arranged for some CQC lessons from an old friend of his which the girl loved. You get the idea. It wasn’t until she discovered Glyphs that she found her niche and her skills took off. Glyphs are one of those ‘eccentric’ or 'archaic’ styles since they haven’t been used in so long after being lost and are barely understood. She still has a long way to go, but she is on her way.

Luz never really had much in the way of friends, partly cuz of high profile parents which leads to certain pressures and a target on her head, partly because of her magic style and personality, and partly because of the trouble been going on. Luz grew up her whole life with this tension of a group of anarchists trying to burn society that’s just trying to do the right thing. The anarchists started small, but have been a growing problem the past few decades with talk how to 'reshape the world’ in not a good way. Anyone with critical thinking skills can tell this is a bad idea, but they are too brainwashed to notice. They harass anyone who doesn’t follow their rhetoric and attack anyone who even questions them. Luz’s parents put a real kink in a lot of their plans for years, which makes Luz guilty by association.

Luz got caught in one of those sudden larger scuffles and was accidentally chucked/blown through a portal created by an attempted tactical retreat that went off course. Hence why she can’t go home because she hasn’t learned how to do portals yet. Those are high level anyway so how did these guys pull it off so easily? Luz has a hard time blending in obviously. Learning how to use a phone was a fun endeavor. Internet was a trip. Luz is amazed how these people can do all this cool stuff without magic. Keep a low profile sure, she can pass off as a weird out of town kid. Keep the beanie on, underperform in gym and stuff because some things don’t change, like genetics. Someone sharp eyed will see discrepancies. The Beanie has a small Glamor spell built in that covers her witchy traits but she forgot the ears which is why it sits like it does. Luz can erase memories in case she has an accident, but it’s less of a 'remove my face from this picture with a scalpel’, and more of a 'lemme just hack off the past hour or three from your brain with an axe.’ If she tries to take any more then she starts burning into some more dangerous territory and those Wiped are groggy and disoriented for a while after already. Then the magic attacks start happening and her heroic instinct/anti-bystander complex kicks in and there goes that. It runs in the family so Camilla isn’t surprised in the slightest when she finds out.

“Oh titan, why did you curse me with another me?” “I’m right here Mami!”

Eda has a shack very akin to Grunkle Stan. Lots of junk that Lilith can’t believe that people are dumb enough to buy. She’s also involved in some not so legal dealings on the side. Well, Eda isn’t actually hurting anybody and the tax dollars she should be paying would only go towards some politicians’ next yacht or another pointless overseas 'investment’ instead of where it’s supposed to go so. Eda does give some good intel on occasion and a place to vent so Lillith overlooks her. Lil’s more of the secret police for witches and a petty crook isn’t part of her job anyway. Eda understands Luz’s predicament and is willing to help. The cover story is that Camilla work in hospitals and has to work crazy hours while her dad passed away so is living with Eda for a while. King is that kind of critter that grew up weird and acts like ten different animals all the time.

Gus is the nerdy kid who infodumps on everybody, even if they’re not listening. Loves anything fantasy/sci-fi related and plays Minecraft too. A good kid at heart, but needs some social skills. Keep him away from anything more sugary than tea. Luz learned a lot listening to him. Not all of it is entirely useful, but still. Some of his ramblings give her some good ideas for magic and stuff, like putting Glyphs on cards.

The Blights are the cool rich kids obviously, and have some discipline and social issues. Big family name makes them intimidating for normies and a meal ticket for the unsavory. These kids need real friends. They decided to act out to get some attention from the parents who then decided to ignore them. “If you’re going to act like a child tantrum, get treated like one.” Ed is perfect for Drama classes, if he were allowed to partake. Can’t decide what Em is great at, hacking perhaps? Amity’s car is an inheritance from the only family to treat her as such Twins aside, even if she’s too young to remember it. She only remembers that she has feelings surrounding the car. All three of them were pretty impressed with Luz for standing up to them, calling them out on their shit, and not giving a crap about their family name. Being treated like a normal person is pretty weird. Can we get her to do that again?

Amity tried dating Boscha once, didn’t work out very well. Boscha is still hurting over Amity’s comment of “I’d rather go date the new weird kid (Luz) than go back to you.” It’s one of the reasons she goes after Luz. She has that kind of Bud personality from Spider Man, feels lesser and so acts out so much.

“Wow, this new Witch is amazing. Not as cool as the original Witch.”

“What is it with the Witch with you?”

“Oh, she’s a hero. Looks out for the city and the little guy. She inspires me. Makes me want to be a bigger person. *sees Luz* What’s up Luz-er?”

And that’s what I got right now. I know there was more, but it’s lost to the void right now. Might come back later, maybe not. Lemme know what you think.

............

DAMN you weren’t lying when you said you had an info-dump this is *chefs kiss* you got me intrigued now

79 notes · View notes

vintagedolan · 3 years

Text

mixtape | track nine

| masterlist | faceclaims | playlist |

Eden arrived in New York in the biggest coat she could find in a store in Los Angeles, which came equipped with a furry hood and enough stuffing in it to make her resemble the michelin man when she climbed into the car.

She leaned back against the headrest of the seat with a sigh, an iced coffee in each hand. Her eyes closed for a minute, like she was trying to find her inner peace, and then she sat up and passed a cup to Indy in the driver’s seat.

“Vanilla, oatmilk right?”

“Always,” Indy laughed, taking a sip before putting it in the cupholder. “So uh, I love you and all, but are you finally gonna tell me why you changed your flight and made it so much earlier?”

“Drive to your place, and I’ll explain.”

Eden waited until she got out of the majority of the traffic.

“So, I had my original ticket and I was just gonna rent a car and show up, you know this, we planned it. But then I had the brilliant idea to come early and kidnap you,” she grinned, sipping her coffee.

“You’re kidnapping me?”

“Kinda. Well, reverse kidnapping I guess cause I’m forcing you to host me. You told the boys you were Christmas shopping like I said right? So you’re clear for a few hours?”

“Yeah.”

“Well good, cause we’re having a girls moment, because you need me.”

“I need you?” Indy laughed. She could never imagine possessing the confidence that Eden manifested every day, but she hoped one day she could have a fraction of it.

“Yeah, because you’re surrounded by Dolan twins, not Dolan twins girlfriends. And I’m sure neither of them have shut the fuck up about everything going on, right?”

Indy sighed, which Eden took as a yes. The two had been talking more and more, but especially since the absolute blow up on social media. Eden had been the first one to text her that day with a simple message.

Been there, I know how much it sucks but it’ll pass. Call me later when you’re up for it

Indy hadn’t called. She didn’t want to be a burden, didn’t want Eden to think she was weak. Instead she’d gone onto Eden’s instagram, tried to see how she handled things, and from the first few scrolls on her feed it was blatantly obvious that she didn’t give a shit. Just a few weeks prior she’d posted a picture of her and Ethan in the mirror dressed up for a date, his hand fully grabbing her ass with the caption miss you bby. Indy scrolled the comments, blood boiling at some of the shit people said to her. She wondered if she’d ever get to the point where she could even stand to reopen her own instagram, much less post with reckless abandon.

“We love men who think they know what it’s like to be a woman,” she teased, shaking her head as they continued down the road. “They’ve got such a protection complex, both of them, but Gray especially. Don’t get me wrong, I love it most of the time. Actually, it’s kinda hot. But holy shit does it get annoying when they underestimate you.”

Indy had experienced it first hand in the last week, and she couldn’t disagree. It was like she was on lockdown. Gone were the days of Grayson meeting her in the lobby of the building, or waiting for her outside of Jets. When he came to her apartment he was in sunglasses and a beanie, sometimes even a scarf pulled up over his mouth in an attempt to hide from any cameras he couldn’t see. He relaxed marginally when he got inside, but the only time he really seemed to catch his breath was when the sun set and they were tangled in each other’s arms, or when they were off the interstate on the back roads to Jersey. His shoulders would sink a bit, and his grip on her hand would relax when they took the exit. Something about the trees, still coated in snow, made him feel safer, made him feel like he could protect her somehow.

It felt like a breath of fresh air to walk into her lobby with someone by her side. There were no cameras, but Eden wouldn’t have cared even if there was. She held her hand and walked in as if she’d done it a thousand times, though she had to wait for Indy to hit the right elevator button.

When they got inside the apartment, Eden plopped herself down on the couch with a smile and patted the cushion beside her.

“Alright, spill. Give me all the details, how’s it been going?”

Indy started to talk, and then she couldn’t stop. It spilled out of her like water, every single thing that had happened since her graduation date. Eden listened intently to each detail, from the way they’d changed their walking path to the hospital to the fact that he was looking into a new paint job for the truck to make it less recognizable.

“And he’s just so paranoid, and I mean I guess I am too in a way, cause I like my privacy too. But it’s like he thinks I’ll die if a picture of me gets out or something, like damn, I’m a little sensitive sometimes but I’m not that fucking fragile.”

“You should have seen Ethan when the pregnancy rumors started for me. One big lunch at Monty’s later and all of a sudden I’m 3 months pregnant and I don’t know which twin’s it is,” she rolled her eyes and sipped her coffee through her straw with a smile.

“No fucking way.”

“I thought he was going to actually murder the dude from Hollywood Fix for that one. We burned through two Relax candles that week. Wild.”

“Jesus christ.”

“But hey, you already got the engagement rumor out of the way, so pregnancy is probably next. To be safe though, never even look in the window of a wedding dress store, and definitely don’t go to the baby section anywhere.”

Eden said it all so casually, as if making sure to avert your eyes from a wedding dress in a window was a totally normal thing to do. Indiana’s breathing picked up at her words, afraid that somehow she’d accidentally start a rumor about herself that would come back to bite Grayson.

“Isn’t that exhausting though? Being worried about that shit all the time?”

“You get used to it, and you adapt. Like the topaz ring for Lisa. That’s from Ethan and Grayson together, but they decided to send Gray in because if Ethan got spotted in a ring shop there would be an article about our secret wedding on DailyMail next week. Of course, that plan didn’t work out for Gray so well either, as we now know. Why the fuck he didn’t think about that is beyond me, but whatever,” she laughed.

“No one was supposed to know about me,” Indy said, and her words didn’t resonate until they hung in the air. Was that what it was? The sudden shift in him being so damn worried about someone possibly seeing them together? It made her palms sweaty and she rubbed them on her pants before she spoke again.

“When did Ethan get over it?”

Eden scoffed. “He’s not over it. Still makes him want to lose his mind when someone says some shit about me. He broke a knuckle last year punching a wall cause a news outlet got pictures of me in a bikini while we were in Hawaii and said I’d gained weight.”

“That’s… absolutely fucked Eden, I’m fucking sorry.”

“I put it on my instagram story and laughed it off.” She shrugged her shoulders, as most women do when they have to accept unsolicited opinions from strangers. But something about the confidence she exuded when she said it made Indy believe that, somehow, she really had just brushed it off for the most part.

“Is it hard to do that? Laugh it off?”

“Sometimes.” She sat up, getting more serious as she looked at Indiana. “But here’s the thing babes. Someone is sitting in an office somewhere, probably in their little house, with a bunch of clutter on their desk writing shitty articles about me. Meanwhile, I’m living in a nice ass house in LA with my hot ass boyfriend who bought me that bikini and took me to Hawaii. So who's actually winning?

“People talk shit about you when they wish they were you, that’s just how the world works. It’s shit, but once you accept that it changes your perspective on a lot of things. I mean honestly Indy, who gives a fuck what dolantea with 7 a’s the end has to say on instagram when you have Grayson fucking Dolan in your bed every night?” She raised her eyebrows, happy to see the smile she got out of Indy. “And if you ever tell him I said that I’ll put Nair in your shampoo.”

“My lips are sealed,” Indy teased, suddenly filled with a boost of confidence. “You have a very interesting perspective on the world Eden, I like it.”

“Coming from the college grad, I take that as a major compliment.”

“Believe me, there’s plenty of dumb people with college degrees. Doesn’t mean much at the end of the day.”

“But it gets you into a career that means something,” she mused. “I mean, being a doctor is a big deal, you’ll help a lot of people.”

Indy chewed on her lip. Every intrusive thought she’d had in the last few days that didn’t revolve around Twitter had to do with her imagining herself as a doctor, but it always faded into something else. It was her at a patient’s bedside, her helping them get to their feet, her sending them home with their family. Things that nurses did, not doctors.

“Yeah. I hope so,” was all she could say.

“That wasn’t very Indy of you.”

She quirked an eyebrow at Eden and waited for an explanation.

“You always keep a convo going, and you let that one drop, which means you probably don’t want to talk about it. But I’ll listen if you want to get it off your chest.”

“I don’t know… it’s just. The more I think about it, the more I realize that maybe being a doctor isn’t exactly what I thought it would be.”

“Oh. Well, then don’t be a doctor.”

It was Indy’s turn to scoff. “It’s not that simple Eden.”

“Isn’t it though?”

Indiana couldn’t come up with an answer. So instead, after the silence became too much, she deflected, making Eden walk her through the plans for the day.

A few hours later, once they’d gotten ready, they headed out to Jersey for the early birthday surprise, which Lisa was in on. She had ordered a massive vegan cake from one of the bakeries in New York that Indy picked up on the way, making Eden hold it for the majority of the ride. But when they got to the start of the driveway, she pulled over and had her counterpart climb into the trunk of the SUV, sticking a shiny blue gift bow on top of her head while she held one hand on the cake box to keep it steady.

Grayson appeared on the porch at the sound of the gravel crunching, cocking his head to the side when he noticed that Indy was backing in. He jogged up to the window when she put it in park, waiting for her to roll it down so he could lean in to kiss her. She hummed and smiled at him.

“Happy Birthday.”

“It’d be happier if you were out here,” he mused, leaning back to pull on the door handle, frowning when he realized it was still locked.

“Go get Ethan for me, tell him I need help getting the cake out of the trunk.”

Grayson turned to do as she asked before he did a double-take at the very cake shaped box in the passenger seat.

“But…”

Indy repeated her sentence with a tight smile, but he still just frowned.

“Is that not the cake? Mom let it slip that she ordered one, I can just get it, cause Ethan is grumpy.”

“BITCH JUST GO GET HIM.”

Eden’s yell was so loud that Grayson jumped, putting a protective hand on Indy’s shoulder, though he didn’t know what he was protecting her from until he peeked into the car.

“Oh thank god,” he laughed at the sight of her, half hidden by the back row of seats. “He’s been moping for like three days!”

“Oh believe me, I know. Now go get him, I’m getting a fucking leg cramp back here.”

Gray grinned, already feeling his brother’s happiness somehow as he bounded into the house, yelling incessantly until Ethan finally came trudging down the stairs, muttering profanities as he stepped out into the New Jersey cold.

“Bro, be nice, Indy worked really hard to make this birthday nice for both of us, even if Eden couldn’t be here. Just help me carry the cake,” Grayson said, doing his best to keep his voice steady.

Ethan took a deep breath and nodded.

“Dee, open the trunk babe!” Gray called, having to turn away to hide his grin. But he looked back quickly, not wanting to miss his brother’s face when the door lifted and revealed his girlfriend, sitting adorably with a bow on her head.

Ethan just stared for a moment, mouth hanging open so wide that it made Indy laugh as she watched in the rear view mirror.

“You little shit!” He finally said, closing the distance and pulling her into his arms and out of the car, spinning her around for a moment before peppering kisses all over her face. It was like he couldn’t let go. Every time he went to pull back he caught sight of her face again and pulled her back against him until they were both shivering out in the cold, wind whipping at their exposed hands and ankles.

Grayson helped Indy out of the car, warming her lips with a welcoming kiss before they moved to unpack the car, letting the lovebirds have their moment. Lisa greeted her as soon as she made it in the door and sat the gifts down, her hair smelling like she’d just put on hairspray. Eden and Ethan trailed in moments later hand in hand, with Ethan yelling about how Li had been in on it the whole time.

In terms of birthdays, it was a chilled out evening. The twins birthday used to be a huge event, full of laughter and excitement. Now, there was a blanket over the scene, a silent understanding that one person was missing from the table - one who should have been a year older just a few days prior. But they made the most of their time together, eating the cake first gathered around the table before moving into the living room and starting on presents.

Grayson kept a hand on Indy’s knee unless he was unwrapping, looking over at her with a warm smile any time that he could. Lisa’s gifts were first - new sweaters, Ethan’s red and Grayson’s green, a bottle of shampoo each, specific to their hair texture. They gave each other such an incredulous look that Eden and Indy couldn’t help but laugh, only growing louder when Lisa leaned over to smack their heads lightly. They got individual gifts too - a new helmet for Ethan for his longboarding trips and a nice drill that Grayson had asked for. They both stood up to kiss her cheek in thanks before they settled back down to open gifts.

Indy was let in on the tradition that Ethan always opened first because he was older, and she was more than happy to lean on Grayson and watch his brother open his gifts. He started with Eden’s, eyebrows shooting up when he pulled out an odd arrangement of things. A bottle of sparkling cider, sunscreen and a pair of swim trunks that were adorned with a pattern made of a picture of Gizmo. He checked the bag for anything else before looking back at Eden and waiting.

“Read the bottle.”

He held it up to his face, reading aloud. “Passionfruit Cider. Made and bottled on Maui. Oh shit. Oh SHIT! Are we going back to Maui?”

“We’re going in March cause that’s the only time when I could put two weeks together where we both don’t have work.”

Indy sunk down even further despite already being on the floor while they celebrated. She looked at the tiny box she’d brought for him, wanting to reach out and hide it behind her back.

She didn’t get the chance to, because Ethan had already grabbed it, reading the tag.

“Indiana you didn’t need to get me anything,” he said, and his sincerity made her feel a fraction better.

“Well, it’s no trip to Hawaii, so don’t get too excited. And your mom helped.”

He unwrapped the box carefully, opening the lid and staring down for a moment.

“It’s a key,” he murmured, reaching in and pulling out the necklace, a silver key which sat on a matching chain horizontally.

“It’s a copy of the key to your house here, but as a necklace. I know you really miss home while you’re gone, and you wear necklaces sometimes, so I thought I could make you a little reminder.”

“You made this?” He looked up at you with wide eyes.

“Yeah! It’s not much, I’m sorry.”

“No, no, it's perfect Inds. Seriously, I love it, thank you so much.”

Indy blushed anyways, not really believing his words but trying to accept them as he leaned over to hug her, grateful for the change of subject when it was announced that it was Grayson’s turn.

He started with Eden’s, smiling wide at the tool belt that he pulled out, yelling when he realized it was customized with his name on the side.

“You can use that to build that side table you keep telling me you’re gonna make me,” Eden teased, which devolved into a moment of playful bickering. Indy used the time to line up the boxes in the right order, biting her lip when she handed him the first one.

“That’s way too many gifts,” Grayson said, frowning at her a bit.

“It’s really just one, it’s like a - well they go together - just, just open it.”

He did as she asked, pulling the paper off and unboxing the first one.

“A fucking nutcracker! Fuck yes!” He yelled, starting to look at it a bit closer. “Wait. WAIT. Is this Cudi?”

“What!?” Ethan piped up before Indy could even answer.

“Bro it looks like Man On The Moon End of The Day cover, look at the fucking colors, and the moon.” He pointed to specific parts on the body of the doll, showing his brother who leaned over his shoulder.

“Open the next one,” Indy laughed, passing him the box.

He was quicker with that one, yelling so loud that Gizmo started to yell in the kitchen as he recognized the album art from Man On The Moon II, all tans, blacks and stars.

“Holy fucking shit these are so fucking cool! Give me the next one, holy fuck.”

Indy passed them along, laughing when each reaction was just as dramatic as the first. The Indicudi was Indy’s favorite, with the mixture of reds and oranges. The collection started to take shape as he sat them out next to one another, adding the simplistic Satellite Flight nutcracker next, followed by the neutrals of Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven. Passion Pain and Demon Slayin’ matched well with the bright colors of Man On The Moon III, and Grayson was so excited by the end of the six that he had to stand up and run a lap before he came back and pulled Indy to her feet.

“You like them?”

“You got me Cudi’s discography in fucking nutcracker form. I fucking love it, and I fucking love you.” He kissed her like no one was in the room, her heartbeat so loud in her ears that she didn’t even hear Lisa’s ‘awe’ from behind them.

“I love you too,” she murmured against him, letting him hold her for a minute before he dropped back down to his knees to look at the collection, dissecting every detail like a six year old with a brand new toy.

Ethan was just as enthralled, and she wished she could be as chilled out as Eden seemed as she sat and watched them. But instead, she was running numbers in her head, trying to calculate how much a trip to Maui for two would cost with airfare and lodging put together.

She’d thought she’d gone overboard with the $300 collection of nutcrackers. For her, it was anyways - she’d timed her showers for two weeks and left them lukewarm in an attempt to save some money on her utility bill to justify it. Her mind spun for a moment as she thought about the little stack of Christmas presents hidden under her bed. A sweater for Lisa, a roll of film for Charlie to go with the new camera Dev was buying her. Fuzzy socks and a candle each for Eden and Cam that she’d found on a good sale. The thought of them sitting next to big extravagant gifts she was sure would arrive on the 25th made her deflate, so much that Grayson sensed it enough to pull himself away from his new toys.

“Hey, where’d you go?”

“I’m here,” she said, giving him a smile that didn’t make it to her eyes. The last thing she wanted to do was have him worried about her on a day that was supposed to be about him. He returned one in hopes it would lighten her mood, but he knew not to push it. In fact, he didn’t bring it up until they were back at Indy’s apartment, in their pajamas after eating extra cake that Lisa had sent home with them.

“Did you have a good birthday?” Indy asked, tracing H-A-P-P-Y-B-D-A-Y on his chest.

“I did. Did you have a good day?”

“Yeah! Yeah, it was good. But today was for you, it doesn’t really matter what kind of day I had.”

“It always matters what kind of day you had,” he countered. “You seemed kinda upset when we were giving presents.”

“Oh, yeah, it was no big deal. I just didn’t feel like I got you guys enough stuff. 21 is a big birthday.”

He leaned back enough so he could see her face, frowning down at her.

“First off, it’s only a big birthday because you can drink, which doesn’t matter to me. Second, you gave us both more than enough, I have no idea why you think that.”

“Eden got Ethan a trip to fucking Maui.”

“And?”

“I got him a key. On a chain.”

“Which is probably the most thoughtful gift he’s gotten in a really long time.”

“It cost $20.”

“Doesn’t matter.”

“That’s easy for you to say, you can buy people whatever you want.”

“We’re just in different life stages,” he said. “You’ll be making bank once you’re out of school, you just have to get to that point. And even then, it doesn’t matter what you buy people for gifts. They only care that you’re there with them.”

Indy resisted the urge to repeat her words back to him again. She didn’t really expect him to understand where she was coming from.

“Yeah, I hope so.” She ran her hands down over his ribs under the covers, smiling when she felt him sigh under her. “By the time I pay off my loans Ethan and Eden will probably have three kids, you’ll have to spot us for all the baby shower presents.”

It was Grayson’s turn to fall quiet. He could see it - see Indy in a little pink sundress out in their LA backyard, celebrating a new baby on the way, talking with Eden and Lisa, helping Adele organize tables. And he wanted it. But he held her in his arms and thought about all that would come for her before that time came, and his heart tightened in his chest when he realized that he wouldn’t be there to see it.

“Tell me about school.”

She sat up a bit, running her hands through his hair.

“That’s what you wanna do with the last hour of your birthday? Hear about school?”

“Yeah. Just wanna hear you talking to me,” he said, ignoring the tightness in his throat.

She did as he asked, talked about the classes she had left and what order she’d have to take them in, the application process, the in’s and out’s of medical school as he tried to memorize every inflection of her voice, her laugh, and the feeling of her pressed up against him.

When they woke up, it seemed that the holiday season had fully taken hold overnight. Suddenly, the days were flying by in blurs of Christmas lights and shopping. The pair were together 24/7, attached at the hip every moment that they could get away with. When Grayson was recording the podcast, Indy was just out of sight on the floor listening. While Indy was clearing out her laptop from the semester, Grayson was sitting behind her on the bed braiding her hair. Before they knew it they were trying to fit Bekah’s presents, and the cookies they made for the nurses into an already packed backseat of the truck on Christmas Eve.

A blanket of snow still rested in the city, muffling the city sounds it seemed as they drove. They were bundled up enough that Grayson wasn’t worried about them being recognized in the short walk to the hospital, and they shed their layers once they were inside the warm walls. They took the elevator, not minding the slow climb up to Bekah’s floor. But when they got to the desk to sign in, the nurses looked weary. Indy chucked it up to having to work the holiday and hoped that the cookies would lift their spirits when she left them on the counter.

Bekah’s room had a small tree in the corner, covered in colorful lights and generic silver and red ornaments that were identical to those in every other room of the hospital. Bekah hardly reacted when she saw the duo enter in, though she tried. She sat up as much as she could but ended up back flat on her bed.

“Hey Beks, hold on, let me help.” Indy rushed over to her side, fumbling for the buttons to raise the back of her bed up so she could sit up and see the room. Grayson held up her stack of presents with his biggest smile, the one Indy loved where he would clench his teeth. Bekah lit up, grinning wide at the two of them. Her skin was pale, and they could tell that she’d lost weight, but her smile was just the same.

“Earrings, you double as Santa on the weekends or something? They already give the sick kids pity presents, you didn’t have to go so hard.”

“These are from Indy actually,” Grayson said. Indy bit her tongue. She’d picked them out, but Grayson had footed the bill.

“They’re from both of us,” she corrected. “You feel good enough to open them now?”

“Yeah, yeah I’m good.”

And she was good. But she wasn’t great. Just unwrapping the boxes seemed to zap out the small energy store she had left. Indy wished she’d had the foresight to package them in bags instead of boxes, make it a bit easier for her to open. But the excitement was enough for her to make it through opening the new Christmas blanket, which was covered in cats and dogs in festive sweaters, a Harry Styles crewneck and new fuzzy socks. The last box was an Among Us shirt, with a little purple crewmate peeking out of the pocket - Bekah was notorious for how many hours she spent playing (Gray and Indy would sometimes hop on and play a few games with her when they weren’t there).

“You guys are the best,” she said, letting the pile of presents rest on her bed. She yawned, so hard she leaned back and her beanie slipped off her smooth head. Grayson watched as she reached for it and winced, and suddenly he was watching his dad there in the bed, trying to get to his phone on the bedside table, wincing in pain. His breath caught in his chest and he blinked hard, trying to come back to reality.

And then Bekah closed her eyes, and laid perfectly still. It was quiet in the room for a moment, and a wave of nausea rose in Grayson, so strong that he raised his hand up to his mouth.

“Beks?” He choked out.

“She’s okay, she’s okay.” Indy rushed to reassurances. “Look, look at her monitor.”

The blips on the heart monitor line meant much more to Indy than they did to Grayson, but he recognized them enough to catch his breath.

“Sometimes, when someone is exhausted like that, they lapse in consciousness for a little while. It’s a defense mechanism, she’s okay.”

“For a second I thought - fuck,” he huffed, running his hand over his face. Indy moved beside him, taking his hand in hers and kissing his knuckles one by one.

“What the fuck.”

They both turned to the bed, where Bekah’s eyes were open again. But they were unfamiliar somehow, none of that usual Bekah charm that warmed the dark pools of brown in sight.

“Bekah-” Indy tried, but she was cut off.

“You two are dating? Seriously? What is this, community service date night?”

“Beks-” Grayson spoke up.

“I never ask for much, but fuck you two. Fuck you.”

“Bekah, hey.” Indy took a step towards her bed, and Bekah recoiled.

“I try. I try really fucking hard not to think about how fucked up and shitty my life is. I’m 15, and I’m dying. I’m never gonna go back to school. No prom, no graduation, no wedding. Not even a fucking boyfriend before I die and everyone forgets me. The least you could do is not rub it in my fucking face.”

“Bekah, you can’t think like that. You’re gonna get better, you’re gonna get all those things,” Grayson said, blinking through the tears that had formed without warning in his eyes. They fell down his cheeks in uneven droplets, hot and unfamiliar.

“Yeah? Just like Emma was gonna get better right? Well, her funeral was last week. She’s never going to play hide and seek again, much less anything else. What about Damion from my last radiation rotation hmm? God was gonna come down and heal him too right? Then why is he dead, huh? Where’s God in all this? Where’s my fucking happy ending? I’m gonna get the inside of a box, that’s what I’m gonna get, and no one will fucking admit it because I’m a kid, and I’m supposed to be here longer than this! I’m supposed to have more time! I’m supposed to get to do stupid shit in college, and grow up, and find my person but no. I’m never going to get those things, so fuck you both for throwing it in my face.”

“Bekah-” Indy’s voice broke on the word.

“Get out. Both of you, out.”

“Bekah please.”

“OUT!”

Her yell was loud enough to alert a passing nurse in the hallway, and she stepped inside.

“You two need to step out of the room please.”

The sobs didn’t take hold until they were in the hallway. They ripped out of Indy without warning or grace, and Grayson did all he could to hold her pieces together as she started to shatter.

“Shhh, Dee, hey, it’s okay, let’s go outside,” Grayson tried to comfort her through his own tears, leading her towards the doors.

A hand caught his shoulder and he turned his head to see Jessica in her scrubs, coming out of another patient’s room.

“What did she say?”

Indy perked up from where her face had been buried.

“What did Bekah say?” She asked again

“She’s agitated, talking about how her life is being cut short, how she’s dying. She told us to leave.”

Jessica sighed, looking down at her shoes.

“We’re on our last resort. A final round of chemo and radiation. If this doesn’t work, we’re out of options. And it’s going to be brutal, it’s spread to her brain. You’ll have to be patient with her, she’s probably going to go through some personality shifts. She’ll be more emotional, more irritable. Sometimes she might be disoriented. This type of cancer, when it’s in the brain, it’s unpredictable. One minute she could be fine, the next she could be completely unrecognizable. Give her a few days, wait until after the holidays when everything is back to routine, and give it another try okay? Hopefully it’s better when things are a bit more normal.”

“Yeah,” Indy sniffled. Jessica put a hand on her shoulder.

“Indiana her face lights up when you two walk in that room. She talks about you guys non stop when you aren’t here. She’ll come around from whatever it was, okay? Just give her some time. We’ll be here to take care of her, don’t you worry.”

Indy wasn’t sure why, but she pulled Jessica into a hug. The woman was surprised, but she reciprocated anyways with a squeeze.

“Sweet girl. It’ll be okay,” she murmured, which only made the tears flow even more when she let go.

Indiana transferred from one set of arms to the other, back into Grayson’s strong grip which only loosened when he pressed the button for the doors. When they made it to the ocean hallway, it all hit at once, and her legs gave out. She caught herself on the support bars as Grayson lowered her to the ground. They came in waves that she couldn’t control, not for want of trying.

“I’m s-s-sorry,” she stuttered, trying to force air into her lungs. Someone down the hall pulled a door closed quietly.

“It’s okay, hey, it’s okay. Breathe baby, just breathe,” Grayson murmured, running his thumbs under her eyes to try and wipe her mascara, which was running down her red cheeks in dark streaks. He waited until she was able to take a few solid breaths before he spoke again.

“C’mon, let’s go to Jersey. I’ll take you to Jersey.”

She put most of her weight on him while they took the stairs out into the cold streets. It had begun to snow again, and the cold only added to the stinging in her eyes as he led her to the truck. She wondered in that moment how many times he’d had to hold her together, and her stomach twisted in guilt for a moment at the thought. Even still, she huddled into Grayson until he opened her door for her, immediately moving over as close to him as she could, pushing the middle console up to make it a bench seat and scooting to the middle when he climbed in.

His Dad had once told him it was important to be a confident one handed driver - you never knew what you’d have to hold in your passenger seat, he’d said. At the time, he was referring to the four large pizzas that ended up leaving a permanent grease mark in his jeep seat. But Grayson was thankful for the advice as he maneuvered the car out of the spot and out of the parking garage with an arm still around his girl.

The roads were quiet, and he questioned it until he remembered that it was in fact Christmas Eve. He slowed down when they got to the Jersey neighborhoods, looked at all the lights, all the families he could see in the windows, huddled around their bright trees. He could remember those nights like they were yesterday, him and Ethan sneaking to the top of the stairs to try to catch a glimpse at the big man with the red sack. When they were five they’d seen him and ran to wake their sister. They’d all watched in amazement as he placed presents under the tree and ate the cookies they’d left.

He’d found the santa suit in a box in his dad’s closet when they went through his things after his funeral.

“Does your family have any Christmas traditions?” He asked quietly, running his arm quickly over Indiana’s arm in a bid to keep her warm as he drove. The cool wind that was whipping the snow around seemed to be outrunning the heater in the truck.

“We did. We would watch Elf the night before, cause it was mom’s favorite. We did the cookies, the stockings, all that stuff too. But we always had grilled cheese and soup for dinner too.”

“Grilled cheese and soup?”

“Yeah. That was mom’s idea too. She always said we could leave extra room for a good Christmas morning breakfast if we ate grilled cheese and soup. So we always ended up in the living room with our plates and bowls and Christmas PJs watching elf. Turns out, warm soup was always her trick to get us to go to sleep early. Made me and Charlie tired I guess. She told me it worked like a charm every time. What do the Dolan’s do?”

“Ours is more Christmas morning. We do the whole giant breakfast thing. We open stockings first, and Santa presents, then we do breakfast and then we do the rest of the presents. Used to drive us crazy when we were little, cause all the presents would just be waiting for us. But Mom said it was so we were grateful for our food too, cause it was a gift that we had it on our table at all.”

“Li is a good mom,” Indy sighed, resting her cheek on his shoulder. Her eyes were tired, the kind where your eyelids feel like they weigh ten pounds a piece, but she fought with them and won, still awake when they made it to the house. She hopped out and moved to the backseat, but Grayson caught her.

“I’ll carry the stuff in. Go get cleaned up, take a hot shower and relax. Mom will be worried, she always knows when someone has been crying, it’s like a sixth fucking sense.”

For once, Indy didn’t argue. Instead, she went in the house as quietly as she could, grateful that even Gizmo didn’t seem to note her arrival. She snuck up the stairs to Grayson’s closet, grabbing an old thick flannel and a sports bra that she’d left, plus some sweatpants, considering she’d left her bag in the truck.

She had never been so thankful for a shower. She lost track of how long she let the warm water wash over her head, closing her eyes and focusing on the feeling of the stream against her skin. It was peaceful, but surreal in a way. She thought about where she’d imagined herself on Christmas Eve night at the beginning of the year, and it looked so vastly different than where she was, on the cold tiles of a New Jersey shower with her boyfriend carrying in gifts downstairs. The thought of him waiting for her gave her enough motivation to get cleaned up, though she had to resort to using Grayson’s shampoo and bodywash, which was an unlabeled Wakeheart sample he’d been testing out it seemed. It smelled fresh, with a vanilla mixture that was reminiscent of Jet’s.

Indiana was in higher spirits when she sauntered down the stairs, and her heart swelled a few sizes when she heard a familiar song in the background - the title screen of Elf, waiting on the TV in the living room. She checked rooms until she found Grayson, standing in front of the stove with two pots and a skillet going. She didn’t have to ask. Instead, she walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around him.

He spun around, spatula in hand until they were chest to chest as he watched the stove over her head, holding her close to make sure she didn’t get burnt. He nuzzled into her wet hair, and then sniffed harder.

“You smell like me,” he noted.

“Had to use your stuff. I like that body wash though, which one is that?”

“Can’t remember. Let me see.” He reached around and caught her arm, smelling her skin.

“Ah. That’s Polis.”

She looked up at him.

“Polis? Like… Poland?”

He chuckled against her, flipping over a grilled cheese.

“Polis as in the end of Indianapolis. A smell that makes you seem put together and professional with a sweet note at the end. Vanilla. Like your lattes.”

As he often seemed to, he rendered her speechless enough that all she could do was press a kiss to his chest and wrap her arms around him, under his sweatshirt to trace on his back.

L-O-V-E-Y-O-U

He kissed the top of her head and stirred the soup.

Ten minutes later and they were cozied up on a makeshift palette on the floor under a few blankets, with soup and sandwiches in hand. Grayson had made himself three vegan grilled cheese and tomato soup, and caved and given Indy the last can of chicken noodle in the cabinet because he knew it was her favorite even if it wasn’t vegan, though her grilled cheese was vegan as well. They watched Elf play, laughing and noting all the familiar NY scenery. Indy swore the man in the red jumpsuit had come into Jet’s before. They sipped their soup out of the bowl, and Indy listened to Grayson talk about the cinematography, trying to follow all that he was saying.

Once the bowls and plates were sat aside, they found themselves wrapped in each other’s arms, and Nicole’s old trick seemed to work, considering Indy was asleep before the end credits. Grayson carried her upstairs and put her to bed before going back down to clean up.

Though he tried to get into bed without waking her up again, he didn’t quite manage it, his weight moving the mattress just enough for her to stir and open her eyes.

“Sorry baby, it’s just me. You fell asleep.”

“Hmmm. C’mere,” she murmured, opening up her arms. He laughed, knowing that if he laid on her the way she was asking that he’d press all the air out of her lungs. Instead, he pulled her on top of him and slotted their legs together, revealing in the feeling of their skin pressed together. She was warm for once since she’d been under the covers, and he hoped his fingers weren’t cold as he began to trace patterns against her back.

“I love you,” she hummed, tracing a swirl over his ribs lazily.

“I love you too.”

“Forever.”

“Hmm?” He asked.

“I’m going to love you forever. I can feel it. I’m yours forever Grayson Dolan, and don’t you forget it.”

He pressed a kiss to her head and felt her finger against his ribs. F-O-R-E-V-E-R.

“I’ll love you forever too Indy. Forever.”

The tears returned.

------------------------------------------

Grayson was the first up the next morning, after a restless night of sleep - or so he thought. Lisa was in the kitchen, watching the snow continue to fall outside. It coated the trees outside and muffled the woods in a blanket of white. Lisa turned to greet her son, and frowned.

“Have you been crying?”

He hadn’t shed a tear since the night before, but he should have known she would know. A mother always does.

“Just some stuff with Bekah. She’s not doing well, and I feel bad cause I won’t see her again until next time we come visit after we leave.”

“You can always call, and she’ll have Indy. She’ll be okay love.” She stood and ruffled his hair as she passed, headed to pour him a cup of coffee.

“It’s not as good as Indy’s, but it’ll do,” she smiled, rubbing her hand over his shoulder. They sipped in silence for a moment as the world woke up.

“Do you remember the year Dad dressed up for Christmas? When we were five?”

“Oh yeah. That was your Poppy John’s idea, he did it for Sean when he was little. Said it made him believe in Santa for a few more years. Your dad wanted to keep you guys kids as long as he could, and he knew Cameron was going to figure it out sooner than later. He also knew you two would be spying. You tried it when you were four, but you both fell asleep on the stairs before you could see any action. He told you Santa must have carried you to bed when you woke up that morning.”

“Holy shit, I remember that.” He paused for a moment, reflecting. “You all always went all out for us on the holidays, I never really thought about it. Thanks.”

Lisa smiled the warm smile that only mom’s could really give, and patted his hand on the table. “I just hope you’ll do the same for your kids one day. I know you will.” She paused for a moment, and then she smiled. “You remember what he told us, on that last Christmas? About what he was gonna do?”

Grayson could hear his father’s voice in his head for a moment, and it made his throat tight.

“Yeah. Said he’d give us white Christmases for the rest of our lives if he could.”

Lisa lifted her mug towards the windows.

“Merry Christmas Sean.” Her words hung in the air, and Grayson swallowed the lump in his throat, watching the snow fall.

Eventually he went back to bed to coax Indy awake about an hour later, smiling at her bedhead when she rolled over.

“Merry Christmas Dee,” he said, leaning over to kiss her cheek. Her eyes widened a bit quicker than normal.

“It’s Christmas!”

“Yep,” Grayson laughed, brushing her hair out of her face. She caught his hand and pulled him down over top of her, the covers wedged between them as she kissed him.

“Merry Christmas,” she said against his lips, and he melted into her. He couldn’t think of how many Christmas morning’s he’d woke up wishing to have someone there with him. It brought a new kind of excitement that quieted his mind for the time being, and he happily scooped her up and sat her on her feet so they could go wake up the other duo of the house.

By the time they convinced E squared to arise - which took jumping on the bed, a promise of lattes and the threat of cold water - Lisa was already halfway done with breakfast.

Grayson hadn’t exaggerated - there was a huge assortment of fruit, pastries and coffee to get everyone started.

“Stockings first! Well, coffee, then stockings!” Lisa clapped her hands and passed out mugs. Indy channeled her Jet’s days to make the lattes quickly, funneling in behind everyone as they headed to the fireplace to grab their stockings.

She melted when she noticed the I.

“Lisa, you didn’t need to do that.”

“Oh hush. Okay red E is Ethan, white E is Eden…” she trailed off as she passed them out, slightly confused when she watched Ethan reach underneath the tree to pull out a stocking for his mom that the boys had filled.

Indy was let in on the stocking tradition when she opened it. Everyone got essentials - a new toothbrush, socks, chapstick, lotion. She also threw in each person’s favorite candy and a giftcard to a local ice cream shop in town with vegan options. Lisa’s stocking was more extravagant, with some of her favorite high-end hair products, a certificate for a free massage, and lots of bath bombs that were Wakeheart testers. She hugged her boys necks when they all stood up, up on her tiptoes so she could reach. Everyone funneled into the kitchen after that, the boys in charge of the vegan meat options while Indy and Eden helped with the biscuits and cinnamon rolls. They ate around a full table, laughing and telling stories of Christmas. Eden won the most interesting story with one about her holiday with her extended family back in the Philippines, in which they’d spent Christmas using buckets to get water out of the house from a monsoon that had made landfall, a rarity for that late in the year.

Time seemed to fast forward as they moved to open presents. The boys spoiled Lisa, as they always did. A new iPhone, expensive tennis shoes to help her back while she worked. New signs for the garden beds that Grayson built and Ethan painted, a canvas print of the picture Charlie had taken from Thanksgiving. They saved the topaz ring for last, knowing it would make her cry. Her tears were enough to get Ethan’s eyes prickling - forever the mama’s boy, who just hugged her while she let it out, Grayson joining in a few moments later. She opened her sweater from Indy, complimenting the color, and a new set of Airpods from Eden, seeing that she’d lost her first set.

They moved on to Eden next. She also got a new phone from Ethan, which she smacked his arm for buying considering she knew how expensive they were, ignoring the fact that her phone barely held 20 minutes of battery anymore. Grayson got her a new sketchbook with a set of top line pencils and markers for her to sketch out her work designs, and Indy bought her a pair of Nike’s that she’d had her eyes on. Lisa got her a gift card to her favorite restaurant in LA - a non vegan one that she proposed could be used on a girls date when Lisa came to visit.

Indy was next. She had always hated opening gifts in front of people but she swallowed her un-comfort and proceeded through the boxes. Lisa bought her a nice blow dryer, remembering that she’d complained about hers once and raved about the one that she let Indy borrow. Eden bought her a new outfit - it was a bit out of Indy’s comfort zone, with the patterned pants and bright top, but she hoped she’d be able to pull it off. Both Eden and Gray assured her that she could. Ethan bought her a print of the state of Indiana, laughing at the way she tried to pretend that she loved it.

“Read the back.”

She flipped it over, squinting to try to read his messy handwriting that told her to check behind the tree. Sure enough, she found a box with a stethoscope in it. Top of the line, one of the more expensive brands.

“Every doctor needs one of those things, at least that’s what google told me. It’s got your initials on it too, cause apparently people try to steal them.”

He dismissed her claims that it was too much, and instead urged her to open Graysons gifts. The first was a speaker, because ‘Cudi needs to be played loud and well’, followed by a bag full of clothes. She pulled the first piece out and gasped.

“You bought me scrubs?”

“Yeah. I know you were stressed out about them being expensive, and I knew you’d use them. I bought five sets, I hope that’s enough. And I asked the nurses at Frazier what the best brand was, but if you don’t like those I have the receipt.”

“I’m sure they’re perfect. Thank you bub, I love them.”

She knew that Grayson had held back, and she was appreciative, especially as they got closer to his gifts. Luckily, Ethan was born first and therefore got first dibs. He got a custom longboard from Eden that she’d designed with all his favorite things, including a thermal painting of a very scandalous picture of her on the bottom that she’s covered with a piece of paper so Lisa didn’t see. Grayson got him an envelope with three tattoo appointments that he’d managed to get with their favorite artist in LA, who was usually booked up for months in advance. Lisa bought him a new jacket and boots, while Indy bought him a pair of headphones designed for the inside of a helmet, so he could listen to music while he skated.

Grayson was the last to go. Eden got him new sweatshirts since he ‘wore the same ones all the time’, while Lisa bought him a sweater and jacket. Ethan bought him extra organizers for his closet and a minimalistic nutcracker, though he admitted it didn’t stand a chance of taking the spot of one of the Cudi nutcrackers, which stood tall on the mantle. Finally, he opened his bag from Indy, smiling when he pulled out a few things. The first was a journal, made of recycled paper and bound in a dark green cover with his name on the front in gold. The next was a Jet’s gift card, a small inside joke between the two of them. The final one was a picture frame. It was simple, black with flecks of gold along the edges. Within it, the first picture they’d ever taken together, in the mirror of Indy’s room where half his body was covered in her writing, labeled muscles.

“Can’t lie, I spent most of my budget on your birthday. But I have a matching picture to put on my shelf, so I figured you might like it.”

“I love it,” he reassured her, kissing her cheek quickly, a sweet moment before the bustle of clean up began. The afternoon flew by with movies playing in the background and the snow continuing to fall outside. The boys cleaned off the cars, and after sunset, they appeared with a duffle bag each and a mischievous look on their faces.

“C’mon, we’ve got one more gift to show you guys.”

Lisa waved goodbye from the front porch as both couples climbed into the truck, the girls in the back.

“Do you know what this is about?” Eden whispered.

“No idea.”

So they waited patiently until they finally put the pieces together - it only clicked when Ethan got out and opened the gate.

The trail looked different from the seat of the truck. Partially because it had been cleared out, but mainly because they weren’t on the back of a quad, with the wind whipping in their faces.

Hidden away in the snow covered clearing, the tiny homes were covered in snow. The lights inside were glowing a warm yellow, inviting them in from the cold. Grayson parked halfway between the two, coming around to get the duffle bag before turning around, a sign for Indy to climb on his back.

She didn’t argue, considering he had the advantage of snow boots over her, and climbed on, hugging onto him tight as he trudged through the snow to the front door. He kicked the snow off his boots on the small front porch and then opened the door, the draft of warm air already enticing.

The inside was more beautiful than Indy could have imagined it would have been. She remembered trying to visualize it when Grayson had explained where everything would be - it felt like years ago, that warm fall day. But the kitchen was exactly as he had said it would be, minimalistic with dark wood that looked black in the dim light and white cabinets. The stairs were beautifully done, and Indy found herself climbing to the loft to find the queen size bed that awaited them, with the triangular window that looked out over the trees.

“This is incredible,” she mused, looking down over the balcony at him. He beamed up at her, taking her in. Her skin glowed in the warm light, her hair washed yellow in a beautiful tone as it hung around her shoulders. He found himself kicking off his shoes and climbing the stairs to meet her, abandoning his plan of giving her a full tour in favor of exploring her instead.

She followed his movement like water in an ancient stream, cut out and formed just for her to flow along, and they ended up on the bed with her back against the soft mattress.

“Are we christening the house?” Her words were muffled by his lips, which were eager and hungry against hers, a feeble attempt to drown out his thoughts. He kissed her incessantly instead of answering, pressing all her buttons to make her melt for him. The heater was small and nestled downstairs, goosebumps rising in the cold air as they lost layer after layer, chasing the heat of each other.

He held her as close to him as he possibly could, blocked out the cold and the doubt as he bit onto her shoulder and rocked her in sync with his hips, watched her head fall back and his name sing from her lips as she came undone over and over again until she was putty in his hands. He came so hard he saw stars, slowing down with her still in his arms.

She was in such a daze that it took her a moment to come to her senses and remember that she needed to go downstairs to pee and get cleaned up. As soon as she was out of his sight, the realization of what he’d just done came crashing down on Grayson. The guilt crushed his lungs as he finally admitted to himself that he knew he was hurting Indy. He knew she deserved to know where his mind was at, where it had been ever since Ethan had brought it up. He’d been selfish, and cruel, and as he sat there naked he’d never felt more ashamed in his life. He scrambled to get his clothes back on before Indy came back up.

She was still blissful, her legs a bit wobbly as she tried to navigate the unfamiliar stairs. But she frowned when she saw his winter coat.

“Those aren’t pajamas.”

Grayson jumped at the sound of her voice.

“Yeah, uh, Ethan texted me, he said their heater isn’t working, asked me to come look at it.”

“Oh. That sucks, you want me to come help? I can hold a flashlight or something,” she offered.

“No, no it’s cold, you just stay here and relax, I’ll be back. Might take a while, but I’ll be back.”

“No promises that I won’t be asleep,” she teased, climbing under the covers. “This bed is better than mine I think.”

“Get some rest, I’ll be back soon.”

“Okay. I’ll save a spot for you. Love you.”

“Love you too.”

He headed down the stairs, slipping his boots on as quickly as he could and choking back his sobs until he was out of the door. He trudged blindly across the yard, only guided by the lights from the windows, and he knocked on the door.

He couldn’t imagine what he looked like when Eden opened the door. But it was bad enough that she didn’t say a word. Instead, she simply turned and called for Ethan, who took one look at him and pulled on his coat, following him out into the snow towards the truck.

Safe inside the cab and in the presence of his brother, Grayson fell to pieces. Ethan could only remember a handful of times that his brother had cried so hard, and he held him tight in his arms as best be could, shaking with him as the sobs ripped their way out of him.

Ethan didn’t even attempt to talk, only to console as best he could until Grayson could finally breathe. He pulled the extra inhaler out of the glove box and made his brother take a few puffs when he started to wheeze, holding the canister up to his lips.

“Breathe Gray, c’mon, you’ve gotta breathe so you can talk to me. You gotta tell me what’s wrong so I can help. Hey, I’m right here, it’s me. You can tell me, it’s okay.”

Grayson finally caught his breath enough to calm down, with his hands gripping onto Ethan’s jacket collar like his life depended on it.

“I’m gonna break her E. I’m gonna destroy her and it’s all my fault. I love her, fuck, I love her. What am I supposed to do?”

Ethan sucked in a long breath through his nose, looking over at Grayson’s house.

“You haven’t told her.” It wasn’t a question.

“I wanted to, I fucking can’t. Every time I think I can tell her I just think about what it’s gonna do to her. What it’s gonna do to me. I don’t know what the right thing is here E, you gotta tell me.”

“You know I can’t do that.”

“Fuck that, you’re me, we’re each other, you know me better than I know me. Tell me what to do.”

Ethan could barely see his brother’s face, but the little bit of light from the moon showed enough pain in his eyes to have Ethan’s stomach twisting. He put a hand on his brother’s shoulder and squeezed.

“You know what I’m gonna say.”

Grayson’s breath hitched once, and then a new wave of sobs took over. He shook so hard that Ethan was convinced the entire cab was shaking with him. Ethan held him, willed himself to absorb some of the pain, as much as he could, anything to help.

“If it’s the right thing why does it hurt this bad?”

“I don’t know Gray. I don’t know.”

“I love her.”

“I know.”

“She loves me.”

“I know.”

“Then how is this the right thing?”

Ethan paused for a moment, holding steady on Grayson’s shoulders.

“What would dad say? If he was here with us, right now, what would he say?”

Grayson pressed into his eyes with the heel of his palms and sniffled.

“He’d say that it wasn’t fair. He’d be mad that I hadn’t told her yet, and he’d say that she’s a good person who shouldn’t have to give up on her dreams for mine. He’d tell me to do what’s best for her, I know that. God, FUCK!” He smacked the dashboard so hard that Ethan heard something crack. He wished there was a way that he could protect his brother in that moment more than anything. Usually, he could step up, take the heat, take the attention off him if he needed. It was one of the few times that he felt truly helpless.

“You don’t have to do it tonight. You still have a few days. Just think about what you want to say, and bring it up whenever you’re ready.”

“I’m never gonna be ready, Ethan. That’s the love of my life, and I’m just supposed to walk away? And what’s she gonna say, when she finds out I’ve been thinking about this for weeks, and I haven’t said shit, huh? She’s not gonna want anything to do with me. She’s not gonna love me anymore, Ethan, and I can’t live with that. I can’t.” His voice cracked, and Ethan’s heart cracked with it.

“If it’s meant to work out, it will somehow. We’ve always believed that.”

“How?” It was a plea more than a question.

“I don’t know Gray. I don’t know.”

Grayson didn’t know how long they sat in silence. They didn’t need words, just the comfort of each other’s presence as he ran through line after line of what he was going to say. He had to do it then, there was no other option. He had to tell her as soon as he got back, or he was afraid that he never would. But every time he closed his eyes to think, his mind was flooded with her, a kaleidoscope of memories and moments that he couldn’t imagine not making more of. He thought of the way his soul ached every time she cried, and he couldn’t fathom how much worse it would be when he was the cause of it.

He threw the door open without warning, stepping back out into the snow. It took Ethan a few steps to catch him, but when he did he pulled him into a hug, a real one, and pressed his face into his shoulder.

“I love you bro. We’ll get through it. You’ll be okay.”

Grayson always knew when his twin was lying, but he tried his best to believe it. The cold wind stung on his wet cheeks as he went back to the house, kicking off his boots. He took the stairs one at a time as slowly as he could, his panic growing with each one.

When his foot cleared the final step, he saw her.

She was asleep, curled up under the covers in her New York sweatshirt, hands folded underneath her face. He just stared at her, tried to memorize every feature on her face.

He could have stood there for hours, but she stirred only a moment later. Her eyes peered open just enough for him to see the blue, and then they closed again, a small smile stretching across her lips.

“Come to bed baby. S’warm.”

Every cell in his body screamed at him, tried to pull him back as he slid out of his coat, out of his flannel, stepped out of his pants. His brain called him every name in the book, told him he was pathetic, weak, manipulative.

But his heart beat just a bit slower at the thought of being in her arms, even if it was just for a moment, the familiar home he’d made for himself comforting enough to let him drown the rest out and climb under the covers and over to her, pulling her into his arms as he pressed his lips together and let his eyes fall closed.

#mixtape #WOOO #sorry it has christmas even tho christmas has passed hahaha FUCK #pls lemme know what you think :)#grayson dolan #grayson dolan imagine #grayson dolan fanfic #grayson dolan fanfiction

64 notes · View notes

dyketectivecomics · 3 years

Text

I started typing this out last night & work was slow today, so here's some backstory/building blocks for the Batcavers AU (long post is Long so under a cut it goes!):

Bruce's adventures in solo spelunking & cave cartography started about when he's 15/16 & goes back down the well on a whim. Martha gets worried when he starts spending too much time alone down there tho & makes Bruce promise to never go without a friend

his usual go-tos are Harvey & Tommy, but a couple times when Zatanna was in town, she joined him. we love childhood friendssss

(now insert some benign reasons for idk other heroes/rogues to join him somehow fdjksla idk man. these are early years stuff)

i know i said it earlier, but all the rooms/Major formations follow a shakespeare theme. all of bruce's friends call him a Nerd for it fjdakls;

Bruce becomes a professional spelunker & speleologist and develops out the cave for the public to enjoy & continually explores and maps out the system. he's a big advocate for Bats too

and that's how the Media dubs him..... "The Bat Man" fkjdsalf; ROLL CREDITS

So the Tour Guide Kids:

So Dick & Babs were some of the first kids hired who have stayed the longest, obvsly. (dick's nickname is still robin bc circus origin is the same lmao. Babs gets the 'Batgirl' nickname for a few years when she gets chased by a couple of them lmao)

Dick fell in love with the cave when Haly’s visited gotham and his parents took him on one of the tours. When Dick starts college in Gotham, he works at the cave part-time mostly in the ‘off’ season (but a little over one summer too when he doesn’t tour with halys bc of some summer courses he’s signed up for).

Babs has been working at the cave for a few years ahead of him. At this point in time, Dicks been promoted to a supervisor/senior guide position & Babs works mostly in admin and overseeing communication (& eventually earns the New nickname of 'Oracle' bc somehow she's always able to predict exactly what ppl are radio-ing her about lmao)

They’re constantly flirting and it’s an open secret that they’ve dated off and on at this point. Y’all this kinda shit happened SO much at my cave, the drama was RIDIC Aksjaksj

Tim and Steph start around the same time & stick around a little longer than most guides. Tim makes a niche for himself working retail and eventually moves over to the main ticket sales/admin office. He and babs absolutely Crush things when they're working overlapping days. Steph's somehow wormed her way to being under Dicks wing rn being trained as another Head Guide.

tim's nickname is 'red robin' is bc he suggested they all have dinner together after work & they somehow had the Worst Dining Experience Ever™. Steph gets her 'Spoiler' nickname bc she constantly brings up new TV show episodes and just launches right into her Thoughts™ without asking and well fjdk Spoils Things

Harper and Duke start around the same time too, they're both newer to the whole operation & are still learning the Ropes. (yall got some of my initial thoughts on duke, so i'll just touch that Harper gets the Bluebird nickname bc Dick or Steph gives it to her lmao)

You're probably wondering 'wait, where's the Other Kids?' well BUCKLE UP BUCKO, bc its SELF-INDULGENCE TIME

Damian is the easiest to explain, in this the al Ghuls run another rival company, Bruce and Talia met in college and have an off/on relationship (divorced once MAYHAPS 👀) either way, Damian’s the result of that, Talia and Bruce share custody.

Okay, realistically, Everyone’s backstories can stay p much the same or be finagled to work out realistically enough to skirt by. Cass’ backstory needs to be straight up thrown in the garbage in this bc the League doesn’t exist akjsk SO here’s what I’m proposing instead:

We’re gonna shoe-horn the Jason & Cass twin theory and also have Bruce adopt them both bc REASONS. (Those reasons are, they were trying to steal Bruce’s tires and they were doing a REALLY good job of it w/ Cass distracting ppl and Jason doing his nascar tryout lmao, but Bruce caught on bc This Is Gotham and was basically like ‘you little shits (laughing the entire time)’ and the rest is History

ANYWAYS all of that to say that all three of them grow up basically having the run of the the cave and doin what they want aksj, Damian’s a little young yet in this to be giving tours/working, but all 3 have varying levels of interest in the cave

Jason loves being a guide, but is a little abrasive when ppl ask REALLY dumb questions. He WILL sass them if it’s something just objectively dumb. (Someone asked me when we moved closer to the highway. Like SIR) Cass likes giving the off-trail tours more than doing the big guided groups & likes helping with training new guides, so she’s more hands-on in those situations. Damian rlly rlly wants to help map out areas with smaller openings to see if he can find More Cave but it gives Bruce a heart attack having him down there and disregarding all safety precautions so he’s constantly being benched from that

Oh ye, so for nicknames, Jay gets Red Hood bc he’s always wearing a red beanie even when it’s the middle of summer. Cass gets the Batgirl one passed down to her bc she’s a pro at catching stray bats/somehow corralling ‘em to leave the main rooms. Dami is the baby bat/robin bc he’s always following either Bruce or Dick around when he’s on the property.

Let the Not-So-Shitty Summer Job AU begin hahaha

#batcavers au #I won’t tag em directly but ye!!!#now that I’ve got the Ground Work thoughts..... I could probably do snippets for this some day #still wanna finish a few more in the inbox first at least tho ;-;

17 notes · View notes

askaceattorney · 3 years

Text

(Previous Letter)

Dear dawsongfg,

Mod Edgeworth: Your letter never specified. If you want us to answer a letter to a character that takes place in a specific timeline, you need to let us know where it takes place in the letter. You can do so by posting “Post AAI2″ or having Simon mention about his own or his father’s arrest in the letter.

Thanks for the compliment. I did most of the Father’s Day letters, since I did feel it was unfair that non of the Holiday letters were getting answered. There are still some that we will save for next year, but I’m glad people had fun. I want to encourage everyone to send letters for the Holiday, since I suspect many aren’t that enthusiastic due to not being able to predict when those letters will be reached by the time the Holiday starts. I think having it done three days in advanced before closing it at the end of the Holiday will work the best.

Co-Mod: An obligatory thanks from me as well!

Dear Captcha,

Mod Edgeworth: Makes as much sense as everything else online.

Co-Mod: You don’t have to tell me. If studying computer science for 4 and a half years has taught me anything, it’s that computers are dumb.

Mod Justice: Honestly (might be an exaggeration, but I don’t care) I think at this point, everything is dumb.

(Previous Letter)

Dear Dawsongfg,

Mod Edgeworth: I... actually made the second sprite, because there were non of Manfred Von Karma smirking while talking. I did the best I could.

I will see if I can fix the sprite, but... no promises.

(Previous Letter)

Dear Dawsongfg,

Mod Edgeworth: What do you want us to- AH!

ACK!! IT WASN’T ME! I WASN’T EVEN HERE WHEN THAT WAS WRITTEN!!

Mod Justice: YOWCH!!!!

HEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEY!!!! I’M WITH MOD EDGEWORTH ON THIS ONE!!!! DON’T LOOK AT ME!!!! IT’S EITHER THE ORIGINAL MOD, THE CO-MOD OR ONE OF THE ONES THAT LEFT!!!! THAT’S ALL I KNOW!!!!

Co-Mod: OW!! I PLEAD THE FIFTH!!

(Previous Letter)

Dear dawsongfg (again),

Co-Mod: I take no responsibility for Edgeworth’s naturally scary facial expressions.

My favorite book overall would be the Bible, but if we’re talking about non-religious texts...probably J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, since it was one of the first novels I ever read through on my own. And my favorite season? Summer, no question. Water parks, swimming pools, fireworks... How can you not love it? Well...when we’re not recovering from a pandemic, that is.

Mod Edgeworth: I don’t really have a favorite season or book. I have read some good books, but I’m no bookworm. I do get invested in reading the Bible.

Mod Justice: Favorite book is actually a series of books: “Big Nate” for the win! Favorite season? Depends on where I’m at when it hits. I mostly prefer Fall and Spring (not too hot, not too cold), but in Texas, GIVE ME THE LAST TWO SEASONS OF THE YEAR ALREADY! GOOD GOD, I’M BURNING UP!

(Referenced Letters)

Dear dawsongfg again (again),

Mod Edgeworth: Hehe Phoenix has never had the best fashion sense, has he? The moment he walks out of the courtroom, he automatically becomes a fashion disaster. Just ask Beanie Phoenix.

Speaking of Blaise Debeste, we never really did get a reason for forging that autopsy report on Isaac Dover. Kinda makes you wonder why he’d go out of his way to frame the murder on a chef from a dancing and singing cooking show. Maybe I’m looking way too deeply into this, but I doubt it was just for shits and giggles.

(Previous Letter)

Dear dawsongfg again (again (again)),

Co-Mod: That’s called cheating, first of all. I actually do like plain cheese pizza, for the same reason as Mr. Engarde, oddly enough. I’m afraid I have no idea where that tag came from, though. Ask Tumblr.

Mod Edgeworth: Sorry, but I already gave the cookie away to the one who actually got it right... I prefer chicken and spinach with Alfredo sauce on my pizza.

Mod Justice: I’m more of a “Meat Lovers” kind of guy. My mouth is watering just thinking about it!

Dear Blaise,

Co-Mod: Your mail’s here.

Mod Edgeworth: Personally, I wouldn’t mind having a new female or male villain. Though, the worth of any villain, protagonist, side character, etc. should not be determined based on gender. I honestly hate the concept that there should be more females in Ace Attorney, because they’re women. I don’t enjoy Dahlia Hawthorn, because she’s a female villain, but because of how she uses her beauty to manipulate everyone in her wake. Same with Morgan Fey, Dee Vasquez, Gar’ran, Cammy Meele, Calisto Yew and Patrica Roland. I love them as villains because of what they bring to the table, not for their gender.

I think this whole there’s not enough women in Ace Attorney is a concept based off of the number of male vs female characters, believing it’s male dominated and thinking there should be more females. That’s a very flawed way of thinking and borderline sexist in my opinion. In every story or game, the quality of the female and male characters should be the center focus, not the quantity. You can have 100 female characters that suck in a story and I will always prefer a story with well-rounded characters, even if there’s only one that’s female in that story.

Now, I do think there should be more memorable hot villains, but that’s my hormones talking.

For your second question, I think Manfred Von Karma is in serious need of an established relationship with Miles Edgeworth and Franziska Von Karma. I’d also like to know more about the Von Karma family. Everything else, I think a majority of people have already brought up.

Mod Justice: I think if there’s anything that needs more elaboration in the Ace Attorney series, it’s the motives of the killers whose motives are not stated (not including “implied” motives), i.e. Luke Atmey’s motive for killing Kane Bullard. As for the-

F-female k-killers...? W-why am I-I g-getting a c-c-c-cold ch-ch-chill all of a-

OMGOMGOMGWHATINTHEWORLDAREYOUDOINGHEREGETTHEHELLOUTHOLYMOTHEROFPEARLGETTHEHELLOFFTHISBLOG-

Co-Mod: I’m tempted to say more female villains would make Ace Attorney more interesting, but...they tend to be a lot creepier than the male ones in this series. I mean, it’s not just me, right?

Then again, maybe that’s my mild fear of women talking, but there’s a limit to how much femme fatale I can take.

And you probably already know what my answer is to your second question, but ATHENA FLIPPIN’ CYYYYYYYYYYYYYYKES!!!

Yeah, I know... You can’t have everything.

(Referenced Letter)

Dear dawsongfg again (again (again (again))),

Co-Mod: Correct! I used good old Google Translate to come up with that term. And I’d love to hear anything our subordinates the characters have to say to us. We’re all friends/acquaintances here.

Mod Edgeworth: I believe so. We’d treat them no differently than any other letter.

(Referenced Letter)

Dear Anonymous,

Mod Edgeworth: Yes. We don’t consider Dawsongfg a bad troll or at least I don’t. I think he was just teasing Mod Justice and took it a bit too far.

As for the insults against Co-Mod and myself, you’re going to have to ask Mod Justice on that one.

However, one thing I must clarify is that Dawsongfg is not a harmful or bad troll. They often do stuff like this as playful banter. Mod Justice was answering letters for the first time, unaware of any of Dawsongfg’s shenanigans. It took him by surprise and we agreed that Dawsongfg took it a bit too far, if only because name calling was involved and Mod Justice was new. Had it been towards Co-Mod or myself, we’d likely have played along like usual. On top of that, these letters were taken off of the mobile devices, which were invisible to us at the time. All of Dawsongfg’s letters had gone unanswered that were a month’s worth, so it’s likely that Dawsongfg thought we were ignoring their letters.

One thing everyone needs to keep in mind about new mods is that they are still trying to adapt to their new environment and understand how everything ticks. It’s okay to mess around and be a playful troll, but each of us are different and may take it differently than the other. Luckily, Mod Justice didn’t take it personal and sees now that this is just their shtick. Another thing to keep in mind is that not all trolls are bad or troll for their own amusement. I once created a troll account on YouTube to make others laugh. I believe Dawsongfg is that kind of troll that is trolling to make us THE MODS and you THE AUDIENCE THAT READS THE LETTERS laugh. A majority of the popular anonymous letters that had the most likes were from Dawsongfg. I think we can forgive them for taking things a bit too far, wouldn’t you say?

Mod Justice: Yeah, he was. At that point, it turned from “teasing” to “insulting.” I mean, if someone hates Apollo, fine, to each their own. That does NOT give them an excuse to throw insults at people who love him.

Although... I understand he was joking at these times (and he did make me laugh), but then again, there’s a difference between “joking” and “blatantly and verbally attacking” someone and saying it’s a joke. Let me tell you guys something:

IT’S ONLY A JOKE IF EVERYONE IS LAUGHING WITH YOU WHEN YOU TELL IT.

When you actually insult someone and they are hurt, maybe you should apologize instead of dismissing it as a goddamn joke. Call me sensitive all you want, but it seems that “treating others the way you want to be treated” is starting to become optional nowadays.

Dear Anonymous,

Mod Justice:

Yeah, quick reminder: with the exception of these “Mod Letters” and characters that AREN’T related to Ace Attorney whatsoever (i.e. Mario, Sonic, Pokémon, etc.), all submissions to the AA characters themselves that mention the terms “Game,” “Characters,” or anything else that implies they aren’t “real” get deleted into Cyberspace. Also keep in mind that the “April Fools” letters from this past year don’t count.

Co-Mod: That’s true, unless we can find a way to work around it. I’m afraid I don’t which letters you’re referring to, but you’re forgiven nonetheless.

(Referenced Letter)

Dear Spelling Nazi,

Mod Edgeworth: I like some.

(Previous Letter)

Dear DawSongfg,

Mod Justice: Bad pun, no points, Co-Mod. Not amused.

(Referenced Letters)

Dear dawsongfg again (again (again (again (again)))),

Co-Mod: Okay... This needs to stop.

You raise a good point, though. We’ll definitely want to inform His Honor about that one.

Mod Edgeworth: For the second letter, I know you came to that conclusion on purpose. Obviously, I was meaning these guys.

Kidding.

-The Mods

P.S. We had forgot to mention, but we can read your anonymous letters on desktop again. That’s why they no longer have our icon.

#Anonymous #rogertheegg #Mod Post #Mod Edgeworth #Mod Justice #Co Mod

12 notes · View notes

writerofshit · 4 years

Note

Jeremy/Alfredo for the ship meme, gotta get that rarepair content

send me a ship and i’ll tell you:

who reaches out to new neighbors

They're both pretty good about interacting with neighbors, but Alfredo is the one to notice that someone new moved in. Plus he can be a paranoid motherfucker, so he's gotta check them out and make sure they're not like... serial killers or something.

("Alfredo you're literally the sniper for the most notorious gang in the country, and I've taken more hit jobs than the average person has jobs."

"Ok but that's work, that's different."

who remembers to buy healthy food

They both make a conscious effort to eat healthy, try to eat at home, etc. It's mostly Jeremy though, because he's usually the one shopping for groceries.

who remembers to buy junk food

Alfredo, because a treat now and then is good for you, actually, it's motivation-

"You bought three boxes of Ring Dings!"

"Listen you asked me to come shopping, not my fault if some things jumped in the cart."

who fixes the oven when it breaks

They work together to accidentally break it even more before they call Michael to come help.

who waters the plants/feeds their pet(s)

Jeremy is the plants guy, because they tend to blend into the background for Alfredo.

Alfredo's got a whole system for the pet food though. It mostly involves keeping the dog from the cats because he'll eat all of their food if given the chance.

who wakes up earlier

They usually get up at the same time, and often because of Trevor's incessant phone calls.

who makes the bed

Alfredo. Once upon a time he didn't care, but Jeremy was the one to really introduce him to the wonderful feeling of climbing into a nicely made bed at the end of a long day. There's no going back now, even when Jeremy's not as worried about it anymore.

who makes the coffee

Alfredo starts it. Jeremy is oddly hopeless when it comes to a coffee machine. He's either got way too many scoops of coffee, or not enough. He does make the individual cups though.

who burns breakfast

Jeremy, although it doesn't happen often. He's a fairly good cook, even if his pancakes get a little over done sometimes.

Inserting this because I do what I want:

Their morning really boils down to routine, order of operations. They wake up to some crew notification, while Jeremy showers and gets dressed Alfredo makes the bed/starts the coffee/feeds the pets. They switch off, Alfredo goes to shower and get dressed while Jeremy makes breakfast, pours the coffee, tells Trevor they're totally on their way (they're not.)

how do they let each other know they’re leaving the house

By yelling each other's names at the top of their lungs like idiots. They've gotten more than one noise complaint.

how do they greet each other when one of them gets home

Also by yelling, but a little more subdued. It's no wonder they get new neighbors so often, actually.

who brings home little gifts like flowers/chocolates more often

They both do pretty equally! Jeremy likes to bring home dumb souvenir type t-shirts as a 'i was thinking about you' type thing. Alfredo will bring back beanies to keep Jeremy's bald head warm.

who picks the movie for movie night

They trade off! They don't really have a set night, so it's usually born out of "hey we should watch this tonight!"

their favorite kind of movie to watch

Pretty much anything that's not horror or scary at all. There was one night they got about half an hour into the original It, and then Alfredo got too freaked out and they watched Disney movies the rest of the night.

who first suggests a pillow fort

Alfredo, because "man I just want to be a kid again, forget about clowns and all that shit"

"Oh, like the kids in The Losers Club?"

"Jeremy why"

who builds the pillow fort

Jeremy, as both an apology and because Alfredo refuses to turn his back on any dark shadows in the apartment.

"Fredo it's not even real, the closest we're gonna get to a murderous clown is Fiona in the Po costume."

"But what if we're wrong? I'm not taking chances dude."

who tries to distract the other during the move

Alfredo, out of payback for making him watch even part of a scary movie. He makes numerous attempts to scare Jeremy, grabbing his shoulder or yelling suddenly. It backfires, because he somehow ends up scaring himself more.

Jeremy still throws popcorn at him to make him feel a little better about it.

who falls asleep first

Jeremy, because by the time Fredo gives up on the jumpscare thing, he's fuckin exhausted. Turns out building a fort takes a lot of him. Plus like... He's had a few beers, he's nice and warm, and Alfredo is tucked into his side like he still needs protection from Hades on screen. He could not be more content and relaxed.

who is big spoon/little spoon

Other than nights like these, when Alfredo is still picturing Tim Curry's face, they kind of alternate. One of them will roll over in bed, reaching out for the other. Just this little moment of 'hey we're here together, I love you, I want you close to me.'

#rarepair indeed!#this was honestly a lot of fun to do!#i often get sorta... stuck in certain pairings?#its refreshing to do something a little different #there are some i wont do out of... idk principle isnt the right word but just... pairings i dont ship romantically At All #this is not one im just rambling im sorry!#fredo and jeremy are actually adorable!#thank you for the req anon!#i hope you enjoy!#ragehappy #fahc #jeremy/alfredo #whats their ship name?#alfremy ?#jerefredo ?#idk man!#ks talks #anon #ask meme

13 notes · View notes

delightfully-difficult-pirate · 4 years

Text

Freaky Friday the 14th (1/3) (CSRR)

The amazing @mariakov81 posed me quite a challenge with this @csrolereversal. She made some amazing art and this gorgeous banner and I can only hope I have done her idea justice.

Rating: PG-13

Part 2

~*~

“He’s not going to propose,” Emma told to herself as she carefully applied a thin line of eyeliner along her eyelid. “He wouldn’t be stupid enough to propose on Valentine’s Day”

Not after all the times she’d expressed annoyance at the commercialized fake holiday. He knew how dumb she thought proposals on Valentine’s Day were. Just couple’s giving into the forced romanticism retailers and expensive ad agencies had shoved down everyone’s throats since January. Decisions made in haste that would only backfire in the long run.

“He better not propose.” Emma placed the cap back on her eyeliner with a little more force than necessary.

She loved Killian, her boyfriend of two years, she really did… but she wasn’t sure if she was ready to take a walk down the aisle. She’d only settled down in the small town of Storybrooke, Maine, a few years ago after a lifetime on the move. Emma loved the quaint, seaside town. She had many friends, a job she loved, but Emma still had a fear that one day, she would no longer be welcome and be forced to leave. It was an irrational fear, she well knew, but after the turbulent life she’d had, it was hard to believe that she’d finally found a welcoming home.

And such a wonderful partner in Killian. He was an intelligent man who actually listened to her when she told him something. He was not, she told herself, an idiot and therefore would not propose while they were out to dinner. There was no need to work herself up into an anxious mess about something that would not, absolutely not, be happening.

Except…

He’d been acting oddly for the past few weeks. He’d start to ask her something, stop, and then tell her to forget it. Or change the topic. Two weekends ago she’d walked into a room where he and their friend David had been talking, only for them to go completely silent. It had just been for a moment, but that moment was enough for Emma to realize that they’d been talking about her.

Later, she’d mentioned all of this to her best friend, Mary Margaret, who’d squealed with joy and suggested that Killian was going to propose soon. And no matter how much she rejected the idea she couldn’t get it out of her head.

Killian arrived exactly at 6:45pm, knocking on her front door like he didn’t have a key to her apartment and the sound sent butterflies through Emma’s stomach. She unceremoniously opened the door as she pulled the zipper up on the tall, black leather boots she’d decided to pair with the short, red dress she was wearing.

“Need help, love?”

Emma shook her head as she stood. Killian already held her warmest wool jacket and like a gentleman, helped her into it. She gave him a quick kiss in thanks. Killian himself was bundled up against the cold in a long, navy blue pea coat with a black beanie on his head. It must be really cold outside for him to eschew his wide array of black leather jackets in favor of something more sensible.

After she locked her apartment door, she turned and asked, “So where are we going?”

Killian held the door as they exited her apartment building. “A pub opened up down by the harbor a few weeks back, called The Hope and Anchor. Eric says their onion rings are the best he’s had in ages.”

~*~

The pub was fantastic. It had been built in an old wharf warehouse and even though it had been renovated, they had obviously tried to retain as much of the original feel as they could. She’d half expected it to be decorated in an over-the-top nautical theme, but had been thrilled to be wrong. There was a heavy anchor propped up in one corner and ship-in-a-bottle behind the bar, but other than those, the walls were covered in an eclectic assortment of items she’d come to expect from any New England pub. Except this one did have some absolutely amazing onion rings.

“Don’t tell Granny, but I do believe these are the best onion rings in the state,” Emma said as she grabbed another onion ring from her plate and popped it in her mouth.

Killian brought his hand up and thoughtfully stroked his face. “That’s a tall order, Swan, asking me to keep a secret from the matriarch of our lovely town,” he said softly. “I’m going to need something in return.”

Emma rolled her eyes at her boyfriend’s antics. “And what do you have in mind as payment, to keep this damaging information to yourself?”

“What about…” Killian took a slow sip of his rum, “you agree to be my Valentine?”

An unbidden blush spread across Emma’s cheeks. She’d never been someone’s Valentine before.

Emma reached across the table, grabbed Killian’s hand and gave it a tug. Taking the hint, he leaned forward enough for her to kiss him. “Is that all?” she whispered against his lips.

“Move in with me.”

He said it so softly that at first, Emma wasn’t sure she’d understood him correctly. But as soon as she figured out that he had, in fact, said what she’d thought he’d said, she jerked back.

“What?”

Hand scratching behind his ear, Killian looked a bit sheepish as he repeated himself. “I want you to move in with me. We spend every night together, unless you’re working, and half of my closet is full of your clothes, so it doesn’t make sense to keep living apart.”

He continued to ramble on about all the benefits of them living together, but all Emma could concentrate on was the sinking feeling in her stomach.

Why did he have to bring this up now? On today of all days?

He knew…

“I…” Emma started, but paused when she realized she had no idea what to say.

Killian caught her hesitation and stopped talking. He started at her, obviously confused.

“Emma, what’s wrong?”

A surge of anger washed through Emma and she pushed herself away from the table.

“Wrong? What’s wrong?” she snapped. “You know… you know how much I hate it when people use this holiday as an excuse to make big life decisions. It’s stupid and cliché.”

Killian blinked, taken aback.

“Emma, I’ve been wanting to ask you for months…”

“And you couldn’t find some other time to ask? Why did it have to be today of all days?”

“Why does the day matter?” Obviously frustrated, Killian ran his hand through his hair. “I know you hate Valentine’s Day because of the forced emphasis on romance and love, but it’s just another day. It doesn’t have any bearing on my desire for us to live together. I asked just now because I finally had the courage to do so.”

Hearing that cooled Emma’s anger, as if a cold bucket of water had been poured over her. She felt ashamed at the way she lashed out. She needed to get out of there before she could do more damage to their relationship.

“I… I’m sorry,” was all she managed to say before she stood and fled from the pub.

~*~

Killian continued to stare at the door his girlfriend had just ran out of, not yet fully comprehending what had just happened. He’d expected Emma to be hesitant, at first, at the suggestion that she move in with him, which he understood. She valued her space. Living on her own represented independence. Strength. He figured he’d need to convince her that living with him wouldn’t make her any less strong or capable of taking care of herself.

But in all the scenarios his anxious mind had concocted about how asking could go wrong, her freaking out about it being Valentine’s Day was not one of them.

I should go after her, he told himself.

With a sigh, Killian tossed back the remaining rum in his glass. He pulled enough cash from his wallet to cover the tab plus a generous tip and dropped it on the table. He gave the bartender a casual wave as he left.

“Bloody hell,” he swore when the biting wind hit his skin. It had started to snow and a fine dusting covered the ground. With the collar of his coat pulled up as far as he could get it, Killian set forth following Emma’s footprints. He caught up with her after a few minutes. However, he didn’t think she would welcome his presence at the moment, so he hung back.

“I probably look like a stalker,” he muttered.

Regardless, Killian was determined to make sure that Emma made it home alright, so he followed at a leisurely pace. Not that Emma needed protection and he knew she would have a right fit if he suggested that she couldn’t take care of herself. She was more than capable of doing so. He was just… being an idiot.

When Emma turned down the street to her apartment, Killian admitted to himself that he needed to go home himself. That would give Emma the night to think about the possibility of them living together. He’d call her in the morning and suggest breakfast at Granny’s.

Resigned, Killian turned and headed home.

~*~

Part 2

(I may need to speak to my therapist about why I always write Emma as someone who hates holidays... projection much?)

#CSRR #Captain Swan #Captain Swan ff #CS ff #OUaT ff #Lee writes #Valentine's day ff

76 notes · View notes

onisiondrama · 4 years

Photo

PART 4 - videos #7 & #8

- Billie doesn’t have BPD. She just gets mad when someone catches her in a lie and she might have an addictive personality. There is a huge difference between her and Shiloh. He was never afraid of Billie harming him. He did think there was a rage toward Kai. - Sarah was around for a while. She met Kai online and they originally talked because Sarah gave Kai the impression she was a mom and Kai thought they could relate. He says he should shut up about Kai because Kai doesn’t want him to talk about Kai. He said he’s going to leave him so, yeah. - Sarah said her mom was abusing her. Sarah made a recording asking her mom why she hit her and the mom said she didn’t. He says they believed Sarah and assumed she was being honest. He says just like him, Sarah went to juvie for beating up her father. She said her mom dealt drugs before it was legal, then got a license to deal it legally. He says he doesn’t know if these thing are true, this is just what Sarah told him. She said strange men would be around her because of her mom and it would be safer for her to not be with her mom. Her mom clearly wanted nothing to do with Sarah and was irritated with her. Her mom offered to pay them for Sarah’s food, but they didn’t accept it because they were helping a friend. Her mom signed a medical waiver. It was just a signed piece of paper that apparently wasn’t legal because it wasn’t notarized. - Sarah originally visited for a baby shower, then visited as a friend because they got along with her. When he met her when she was 16, he Billie Kai and Sarah went to a movie theater. Kai kissed Billie and Sarah was so upset she was almost crying. Billie and Kai were dating and Sarah was just a friend, but he figured out Sarah was upset Kai was too close to Billie. He told Sarah you’re not in a relationship. You’re just a friend. He didn’t want her to feel terrible, but he wanted her to know it was not appropriate for her to get upset and she was there because they didn’t want her to be “abused” (air quotes) by her mom. He says she publicly acknowledges he said they are “four seats at a table”, but she’s different and was not part of the relationship. She seemed to understand. - Sarah was there though their whole relationship with Billie and when Billie and Kai would break up, Sarah would talk trash about Billie and call her stupid and a bitch. He says maybe she was trying to be a good friend to Kai or maybe she had other things in mind. He says she trashed Billie and Ayalla until the very end. She told them Ayalla tried to sleep with her. Ayalla was not even their friend, just Billie’s friend. She only made videos with them. If you go back you can see Ayalla tried to be part of this famous spectrum by dating Social Repose. He thinks Sarah also trashed Regina. - Before Sarah turned 18 she made a gremlin face because he had a disagreement with her while she was holding a baby. He told her to give him the baby and she said “NO” [he pretends to hold a baby and swings his upper body back to pull the baby away]. He says he was like “oh my god”, she just snapped in front of his eyes. He was horrified. [He reenacts it again, this time shoving his angry face in the camera when he said “NO”] He says it was like a venomous beast. She apologized for holding a baby while snarling viciously. - The other incident before she turned 18 was he had an object he can’t remember and was walking upstairs. Sarah with sitting on a yoga ball or a bean bag and her butt was in the air. He said “that booty tho” as a joke, she was 17. He thought she would know it was a joke because he’s a comedian. He was making fun of her yoga pants and butt in the air. She later on said something was bothering her. He would call her the c word, the b word, and dumb-ass all the time, but he didn’t want her to be psychically uncomfortable around him. She said he said something that made her uncomfortable, but she wouldn’t say what it was. He asked her again to tell him because #metoo was going on. They were in Walmart buying alcohol for a 27 year old. He clarifies he was buying it, not Sarah. He and Sarah didn’t drink. She confessed in front of himself and this other person and she freaked out. He doesn’t understand how she could misconstrue what he said, he said it kind of condescending, like “what are you doing? why is your butt in the air?” He didn’t want to be #metoo’d because it was innocent. He used to call her Drew Carey, Meg Griffin, everything that’s undesirable because he didn’t want her to have interest in her because she was underage. Kai lied about his age when he first me him, he was actually 17 1/2, not just about to turn 18. Greg is very sensitive to age, but he already fell for Kai when he told him what his age really was. That’s how he very clearly remembers it. - He freaked out on Sarah and told her she had to leave the house. Sarah had a mental breakdown in front of the 27 year old. According to that person, Sarah said she was always in love with Greg and she wanted to be in the house and she was going to end her own life. Sarah has medication and told Greg she has BPD. He thinks that contributed to the episode. She didn’t want Greg to hate her and he was so mad at her at the time because she’s going to ruin his life over a joke. - She flew away and was gone and they didn’t talk for a while. He was upset with the situation. He wants people to come to him when he makes them uncomfortable and she held onto it until it became a whole thing where she was strongly implying it was something awful and he felt awful he may have made her feel that way. Even though the legal age of consent was 16, he still felt uncomfortable around this person because he didn’t want them to even think he wanted that. - The other person told Greg and Kai they should never let Sarah in their life again because she was unstable and a danger to them. They also told Sarah not to be in their life. This person allegedly kept Sarah from swallowing pills in their guest house. They kept her there because they wanted her to be independent. She had her own school and job. He says that wasn’t good enough because things got mental even though they were just friends.

oh my

- Not much happened between the last story and Sarah becoming an adult, legally able to die for the country or to be charged as an adult. Nothing happened when she turned 18. He and Kai didn’t want anything. No weird tension, it was chill. - Around November or December Sarah started indicating she was interested in being with Kai. Kai didn’t want to be with Sarah because Kai thought it was weird and he wasn’t really into Sarah. Kai and Sarah joked and sent memes in the past about dorky things friends joke about, but there was never anything to the best of Greg’s knowledge. He doesn’t monitor people, the only time he did was when he walked in on Shiloh saying she wanted to do illegal drugs. He knows Kai monitored stuff he wrote. Off Kai’s word, he didn’t see any interest from Kai in Sarah. Even at 18. - They’re all chill, but Sarah is pushing for something with Kai. She would talk about dating Kai or kissing Kai and Greg would tell her he has no control over that. She was very strongly pushing her interest in Kai, which is weird because she previously according to someone said she was in love with Greg during the suicide episode rant. He doesn’t know who to trust. Sarah said it never happened. She might have never tried. Sarah called that person a liar. He says he didn’t know what to believe. - Kai told Greg he was really grossed out by the idea of Sarah kissing him. Greg guesses it was because Kai was still in love with Billie and might still be in love with her to this day. - The interactions Sarah had with Kai made Kai gay, Kai’s only into men now. Doesn't like the idea of dating a girl anymore because Kai has so much trauma because of dating girls who would try to steal one of them away from the other. They haven’t tried dating a guy. - Sarah texted Greg she knew Kai was never into her and it was a hopeless journey she made in December when she was 18 1/2. - Sarah also made a video when Ayalla accused Greg and Kai of being groomers. He texted Sarah and asked her to tell the truth, “just be honest” because Kai’s being attacked and she knows what really happened. Nothing happened between them at that time. Sarah was 1,000′s of miles away from them and she made the video. She came up with her own words and said Kai never did anything inappropriate with her. She later came out and said they weren’t real. She released bloopers, but the problem with that is, from what he was told he never watched them, was her beanie was moved from the video and she was filming on a different camera in a different room. It seems weird she would change her story. - He says she called Ayalla and Billie awful people and told Kai she would never do that to him and they were just seeking clout. Greg went to Kai and said “see?”. He told her Sarah was a loyal, cool, kind, considerate person and she’s not afraid to tell the truth. He started campaigning for Sarah. He told Kai we were always trying to find someone to be your best friend and Greg was always looking for someone to be poly with. Sarah’s an adult and she’s the only honest person Kai’s met, the only person who cares and it might work out. - Things didn’t work out with Billie because she would always toss one of them under the bus. If things didn’t work out with Billie and Kai, Billie would tell Greg he should be with her. If things didn’t work with himself and Billie, she’d tell Kai to be with her. She would seemingly try to steal one of them, that’s what Kai told him. Like a double agent. - Greg felt bad for Sarah because she was trying so hard and was apparently heartbroken over Kai. He doesn’t care about taboo and they were never Sarah’s guardians so there is no reason to discriminate against an adult. She wasn’t a new adult, she was 18 1/2. So he campaigned and Kai a little bit got there at one point and thought it could be a thing, but it fell apart quickly. Kai didn’t want to be with Sarah but Greg wanted to. - Skip ahead, Sarah went upstairs and cornered Kai. He was told she grabbed Kai’s face and kissed him, then backed away and went “fuck”. “Weird right?” It freaked Kai out, so things didn’t work out. He’s not sure when this happened. The kiss made Kai panicky and grossed out. He clarifies started campaigning after the video Sarah made. - More about Sarah in the next video.

60 notes · View notes

stormyskies-and-darklies · 4 years

Text

SPOILER ALERT: The Walking Dead Seasons 1-5 + New Viewer Thoughts

so i started watching the walking dead last month and i have so many thoughts, so i decided to compile them into one place so far. i might forget a few moments and i might forget a few character names so, sorry 🤷🏽‍♀️ this isn’t in chronological order, but i’ll try my best to do that, but i’m writing these as i remember the moments. if you haven’t watched it, you’ve been warned !

even if Rick was dead, it’s still really messed up for the best friend and wife to get together

i think Rick had every right to hand cuff Myrle to the pole. there’s no time to be disrespectful for no reason. you can’t be an ass to someone and then expect them to help you. i did slightly feel bad when they left him on the roof but it’s what he deserves

when Rick met up with the group, i honestly thought Lori didn’t really love him anymore during the rest of the time

i miss the farm a lot. it was nice and cute :/

Sophia wouldn’t have died if Rick told her to stay instead of run back 🙊

the build up to finding Sophia was longer than it needed to be

Maggie flipping out on Lori and yelling her business out loud was a little uncalled for. yeah, she almost died but she should’ve known the risk and even if she was mad, she still didn’t have to yell it out loud for people to potentially hear

Dale was always trying to get into everyone’s business, it was sad when he died but idk how i really felt about him

they really should’ve let Andrea die early on if she was going to continue to be whiny. if she really wanted to die, she could’ve done it by runing off and getting bit or by shooting herself at any time. i didn’t like Andrea much, especially in the third ? season (the one leading up to her death)

Shane and that dumb face whenever he was mad 🙄

I liked Shane at first but then he got annoying. What part of you can’t love your best friend’s wife don’t you understand ??

I feel bad for that kid that Shane tricked and killed in the woods

I also feel really bad for Otis. Who knows if they could’ve made it

The prison was okay but it made sense as a good shelter. It’s unfortunate how much supplies they lost.

I’m so glad Rick killed the leader of that prison gang!

I understand Lori’s death, but her body didn’t have to be eaten :/

T-Dog :((

Justin ? (The guy who set off the alarms) is an asshole. Like you really think of the walkers killed everyone you were going to make survive out on your own ??

The war between the prison and the governor is Myrle’s fault. He didn’t have to kidnap them, he could’ve just secretly followed them

It’s not the group’s fault that some Woodbury’s people died. If you have one of their people in capture, obviously they’re going to kill some people to get them back. The governor destroyed everything because of someone else’s fault 🙄

I did not enjoy the governor. I’m glad he died but he did not get a good enough death in my opinion. It would’ve been more satisfying to see Mishoan (sorry if it’s misspelled) to kill him, and definitely not by a bullet to the head.

If those two sisters at the apartment let the governor leave when he wanted to without them tagging along, then who knows if his climb back to power would’ve happened

Martinez? shouldn’t have saved him after what he witnessed. he knew he was a threat. should’ve saved the girl and left him and told the truth to the sisters

The governor’s other henchman, that black guy (I don’t remember his name at all) what was the point of him?? The camera kept focusing on him as if he was going to do something or be important but in the end he just died

i felt bad for Milton at the end :/ he finally came to his senses and it was a shame that he died

Andrea should’ve sucked it up and killed him the first time when she was supposed to. Also, idk why she thought she had the power to save everyone like this is war ?? saying “stop and make up, these are my friends” isn’t enough honey lol. She wasted too much time looking at Milton while she was trying to free herself bc it distracted her focus and time

I don’t know why Lori was so mad that Rick killed Shane, like ???

Poor prison :/ i couldn’t stop thinking about all the supplies they lost

I never understood whether the sickness in the prison was random or it was started by something else, like the infected rats? everyone got sick then they just moved on, like it seemed like too big of a plot element to move on so quickly

I’m surprised Hershel never caught the sickness after literally getting coughed in the face

Hershel did not deserve the death he got :/

I’m not surprised that Myrle was killed and turned, but I think it’s good that the person who finally killed him was Daryle bc it gives closure. If Myrle originally stuck with the group with Rick around, i don’t think things would’ve worked out

I’m glad Mishoan joined the group, she’s a great addition and she’s badass with that sword

At first, I didn’t catch on to the fact that Tyrese and Sasha were siblings so i genuinely thought he was cheating on her and was so confused when Sasha never got mad lol

I understand Carol wanting to stop the spreading of the sickness but at the point with so many other people sick what was the point? How are you going to secretly kill and burn everyone was is sick ??

It was sad seeing Rick banishing Carol but in a way I understand because you can’t just secretly betray a group like that

The group getting separated was so sad :/ but I liked the story build up of seeing how certain character pairings were together, and learning more about them. For example, Daryl and Beth :/

The part where Daryl and Beth come across the dead body debris and the camera focused on the boot, it never showed who the boot belonged to to make Beth hysterically cry. Yes, they showed the other group dying in the same spot before Carol ran into Tyrese but the way Beth reacted made it seem like someone from the group died. Unless she was just crying from the thought of someone in the group getting killed?

When Daryl and Beth ended up in that church and they noticed the supplies were fresh, meaning whoever lived there was still around, I wonder who it was supposed to be. At first I thought priest when he said he had a church, but then we found out it wasn’t the same one so I wonder who was there

Rick really bit off a man’s neck 😳 gotta do what you gotta do though

It made me nervous when Daryl joined that group because I thought he was going to be forced to stay or I thought the group was going to be the next big guys, but i was relieved when they died quickly.

I can’t believe Lizzie killed Mika :/ some kids don’t understand, I get it but if one of them were to survive I wish it was Mika. As sick as it sounds, if Lizzie got bit maybe she would’ve realized the seriousness of the walkers or maybe she wanted to be one of them. Carol had to do what she had to do afterwards.

I applaud Carol for how much she’s grown. Despite her abuse, she never stopped being kind hearted and grew into this strong woman who can protect herself and others, and also stands up for herself more

Terminus did it’s purpose by reuniting the group but it was so short lived. Like they managed to escape cannibals but run into them shortly after, but then kill them altogether and then that’s it, they move on to the next group?

Why did they have that moment with Rick, Carol, and those two people from the town, Rick giving him his watch, just for the guy to disappear and then randomly show up at Terminus and die?? Like what was the point? I was expecting more.

Glenn used to be the sensitive, nervous guy but now he’s grown into the strong, hard man and while his silliness is gone, i’m happy about his character development bc he does what he needs to to survive

Abraham, Rosita, and Eugene are an interesting group and interesting addition to the whole group. Not much to say about them (except Suzie Crabgrass 😍)

Sasha and Tyrese were an interesting addition too. I like Tyrese better

Tyrese is a sensitive, nice man, I like the fact that he’s not overly aggressive and kills everything living thing in his path. He’s like a big teddy bear, the protector and it gives a nice balance. Yeah, it unfortunately cost him his death but his character was needed :/

Bob was the most random character addition. Even after it showed what he did before he met them, i still don’t understand what his purpose was. He got a young man killed because of his alcohol issue. He tried to sneak a second bottle but then didn’t do anything with it. Why mention the alcoholism twice to not do anything more with it? Even after he does it doesn’t affect the group besides Sasha being emotional.

The addition of the priest is kind of random too. He was alone; they helped him and gave him shelter, but what else? He even tried to escape and got the others in trouble trying to save him so?? At the new community, I haven’t seen him much so what happened with him?

Beth’s death was really sad. I wanted her to make it but i understand that if Dawn didn’t accidentally kill her, Rick wouldn’t have killed Dawn and Noah would’ve been forced to stay. If Noah stayed, then they wouldn’t have had a reason to move up north.

The hospital seemed like they were genuinely trying to help people but why they were so forceful and strict didn’t sit right with me.

The doctor wanted to leave but I don’t know why he didn’t go with the group?? He would’ve been useful for them.

I like Noah so far (though i might be biased bc i did watch everybody hates Chris lol) i’m guess he’ll be more useful later on

Tyrese’s death was the moment that finally made me cry :/ specifically the moment they showed his beanie 😭😭

Rick went from trying to do right and trying to save everybody to not taking anymore shit and I love it

I miss Georgia already.

Season 5 has been slow for me. As of right now I haven’t finished the last 3 episodes yet because I don’t understand the point of the new community that they’re in. It’s too good to be true. I don’t trust anybody except Aaron bc he seems niave. Trouble is going to happen with the woman’s husband, I can tell him and Rick are probably gonna fight until the husband dies. The wife will freak out. The leader of the group seems suspicious. The whole area doesn’t sit well with me. I’m constantly waiting for something to happen bc the whole time they’re being watched & they know what Carol and Rick are up to.

that’s all for now. once i finish season 5, i’ll add to this

#spoiler alert #spoilers ahead #spoilers #the walking dead #rick grimes #my thoughts #review

4 notes · View notes

hungline · 5 years

Text

gifts a plenty

pairings: taegi, past one-sided taehyung x fem!oc genre: angst, fluff, uni au, roommates au, rated pg15 warnings: rejection, coming out words: 1099

summary: Last Christmas, Taehyung gave his heart away.

This year, he'll give it to someone special.

⇢ day five of taegi week 2017

Last Christmas I gave you my heart and the very next day, you gave it away.

"I like you," Taehyung finishes saying, his face aflame and hands shaking.

Sweat is accumulating on his brow and his hands are curled tight enough for his nails to dig into his palms but he's more focused on watching the surprise that lined every corner of his best friend's face. She's obviously shocked, but that doesn't mean what Taehyung is thinking.

"What?" She asks because maybe she heard him wrong.

Taehyung takes in a deep inhale, preparing himself once again to say what's been plaguing him for a few months now. "I like you."

She bites her lip, confusion now replacing the shock. "Tae...I thought..."

Taehyung waits patiently, even if it feels like every cell in his body is running around screaming right now. His best friend sighs now, her body tensing as if she's preparing herself to run.

"Tae, aren't you gay?"

He blinks, not knowing what to say because as of six months ago, he thought so too. She stares at him, eyes wide and Taehyung's own eyes start to sting.

"Taeー"

But he's already gone.

This year, to save me from tears I'll give it to someone special.

"Tae, I need your wishlist," Yoongi mutters from his desk, eyes on his computer screen where he's putting the finishing touches on his latest track.

"Why?" Taehyung asks, looking up from his biology textbook and pushes his glasses up onto the bridge of his nose.

Yoongi doesn't respond immediately, too immersed in his process to really think about what Taehyung just said. Taehyung smiles at his back, a warm feeling fluttering in his chest when he thinks about his older roommate.

College has been a real trip. Taehyung got stuck in one of the nicer dorms, but it's a dorm after all and he wasn't expecting something nice. His roommate is a junior, some mix-up in the roommate system or whatever. Taehyung wasn't complaining though. Yoongi's nice, quiet and he only leaves his desk lamp on when he works late into the night. Taehyung likes him.

Taehyung like likes him.

"So I can get you a gift. We're both staying for the break, might as well make it enjoyable," Yoongi grunts, still not looking at Taehyung.

Taehyung blushes, biting his lip to keep his smile from showing, but it's much too late for that so Taehyung smiles anyway and laughs. "The only thing on my wishlist is a boyfriend. And food... Socks too, actually."

Yoongi's fingers stop flying across his keyboard and Taehyung freezes too because he just outed himself for the first time to his roommate. Is Yoongi a homophobe like he's turned out to be in all of Taehyung's most vivid nightmares? Maybe this is a nightmare too!

Taehyung pinches himself and finds that this is his reality.

"I don't know about the boyfriend, but I can get you the other stuff," Yoongi mutters back, his fingers picking up their crazy rhythm again.

Taehyung lets out a breath he didn't know he was holding and smiles again, eyes on Yoongi's neck that's steadily turning pink. "What's your wishlist?"

"A studio," Yoongi replies immediately and Taehyung blinks.

"Okay, anything else that won't cost me an arm and a leg?"

Yoongi chuckles and Taehyung feels tingly all over knowing he was the one to do that. "Um. Socks. A beanie?"

Taehyung nods, those are all reasonable things he could get the elder in a short amount of time. Yoongi mutters something else out that Taehyung can't hear and he cocks an ear in his direction, asking him to repeat himself a little louder.

It isn't in Taehyung's imagination when the elder's neck flushes a bright pink when he speaks again. "And a boyfriend too. I guess."

"Got it," Taehyung mutters back, feeling clammy, nauseous and excited all rolled into one. "I'll see what I can do."

Taehyung doesn't smile when Yoongi laughs nervously in response, his eyes never having left his computer.

This feels like the dumbest thing Taehyung has ever done, and he's done a lot of dumb things.

Of course, last year's confession still rings through Taehyung's head, but this is different.

This isn't him coming to terms with being bisexual, this is Taehyung trying to woo a cute guy is all. It's different because Yoongi is different.

Yoongi is his roommate and Taehyung knows that despite how intimidating the elder is, he's a real marshmallow and he would never hold Taehyung's feelings against him. Yoongi would understand, he wouldn't blow this whole thing out of proportion and anyway, Taehyung has never been one to back away from confrontation. Taehyung is honest about his feelings and he knows that even if Yoongi doesn't want to date him, he'd still be Taehyung's friend.

So, yeah. Nothing to worry about here.

But still, Taehyung is nervous and fidgety and he really hopes that Yoongi is who he believes him to be.

The door opens then and Yoongi enters, a red bow wrapped around his head. Yoongi pauses when he notices Taehyung standing in the middle of the room, a badly wrapped gift in his hands and Taehyung does his best not to coo at the flush working its way across Yoongi's cheeks.

"Uh, hey," Yoongi murmurs, closing the door behind him as he slowly steps in.

Taehyung tries for a smile, hoping it looks sincere as he holds the gift out. "Hey. Merry Christmas, hyung."

Yoongi steps forward and takes the gift, shaking it while he holds it up to his ear. "What is it?"

"You have to open it," Taehyung chuckles, all too aware of how nervous it sounds.

"Oh, well since we're giving gifts. Merry Christmas," Yoongi mutters back, spinning his gift in his hands.

Taehyung raises a brow. "I don't get a gift back?"

Yoongi snorts, rolling his eyes and steps forward, holding a hand up for Taehyung to take. "I am your gift."

"Very original, hyung," Taehyung laughs, ignoring the curl of disappointment in his chest.

Yoongi scoffs, stepping forward again. "You said you wanted a boyfriend. So I repeat, I am your gift."

"Did I hear you right?" Taehyung asks, blinking furiously as Yoongi stares up at him.

"I hope so," Yoongi drawls, pulling Taehyung forward until they're chest to chest. "Merry Christmas, Tae."

Taehyung feels like every cell in his body is screaming and shredding his brain apart when Yoongi grabs him by his neck and pulls his face down to press their chapped lips together in a searing kiss.

Definitely a very Merry Christmas.

#taegi #btswritingcafe #kwritersworldnet #btsguild #betareadernet #bts #angst #fluff #p:yoongi/taehyung #f:gap #s:tgw17 #m: fic

17 notes · View notes

fan-dumb-trash · 5 years

Text

Come Out And Play [Prinxiety One-Shot]

Hey @5-crofters-jams ! Here’s your present for @secretsanders! I really love Prinxiety along with Panic! and Billie Eilish so I’m super happy I got you! Hope you had a good Holiday! TBH this is one of my favorite things I’ve ever written, so I’m praying that youll love it as much as I do :D - <3 Ray

Warnings: Angst and Self deprecation in the beginning.Some swearing. don’t worry it ends up fluffy very quickly :D

•••

Roman curled up in a ball, head between his knees and tightly shut his eyelids. His roommate was stomping around their little apartment in her thick combat boots, sounding like an elephant in tap shoes. Her shouts where echoing in the open space, fading in and out everytime she exited and entered a room. Roman suddenly felt the same pit in his stomach he did when he was a child. Little Roman always tried to drown out his parent’s shouting by his favorite Disney songs, hiding away from the ugly with the lighthearted.

Now, it was like everything came around full circle. Roman messed up. He always did. His passions, his fears, his inability to live his life, had caused others to get dragged down with him. Roman’s roommate just happened to be the collateral damage of today.

“It’s Christmas Eve! How in the hell are you okay with staying here all night, being sorry for yourself and sad. If you want to throw a pity party, do it on your own terms. I’m goin’ out. Don’t bother joining me.” The girl seethed, her tone cold and biting. At this point, she was standing by the door with her hand on her hip. Roman’s earbuds were in and he pretending to ignore his roommate.

“Go ahead and write your dumb little short plays and hide the fact that you don’t have a clue what you’re doing with your life,” she scoffed, waving a dismissive hand. Roman flinched and bit his lip. He would not cry. He asked for this. As usual he declined another one of her offers to go out. Roman was tired, and his words came out uncensored and offhandedly. Clearly he had stricken a nerve in his roommate.

“Why can’t you just loosen up and go out for once? Is it so hard to be a normal human being?”

Roman heard her sigh. He had no energy to respond to her. Her car key jingled in her hands as she went to open the door. “Goodnight Roman,” she said, “Merry Fucking Christmas.” She huffed and slammed the door. Roman began rocking back in forth. He would not cry. He asked for this. He screamed into his knees and rolled off the couch, walking towards the table. Roman opened his laptop and stared at the empty word document.

Time passed. A few words were typed, and just as quickly, they were deleted. Ideas of heroes and dragons bounced in his head. Epic journeys and stories of love could unfold in his head, but to translate them into written word took more concentration than Roman could muster. He decided to give up for the night and retreat to Netflix. Before doing so he decided he had to at least grab a snack.

As he began to walk towards the cupboard, he heard a soft noise coming from outside his apartment. It was faint, but alluring. Roman found himself being drawn to it and carefully unlocked his kitchen window. He slowly opened it and he heard the sound of instrument strings being plucked from above him. A soft, deep humming swirled with the wind that directed the noise to his ears. The voice began to sing.

“And some days I lie wide awake 'til the Sun hits my face. And I fade, elevate from the Earth”

Roman, tired and disheveled, jumped onto the counter and grasped the window sill, his nail polish chipping a bit under his tight grip. The voice became more clear.

“Far away to a place where I'm free from the weight, this old world, this old world~”

Roman took a sharp intake of breath when he heard the small riff at the end of the line. He leaned closer and closer to the sound, sticking his head out the window.

“I don't trust anything, or anyone, below the Sun.”

Silky, smooth, and striking with each word, Roman somehow felt connected to the source of music. What twist of fate had him stumble upon this siren-like voice? Roman didn’t know, but he wanted to find out. Whether it was the spirit of the holiday, or the exhaustion creeping up on Roman, the man, in a leap of faith, decided to investigate.

“And I don't feel anything, at all”

Roman looked down. It had come to his attention that there was a fire escape starting a few feet under the window. Forgetting his fear of heights he plopped out of the window and walked on the metal balcony over to a nearby ladder. The wind blew around the man, throwing him a bit off balance.

“I'm king of the clouds, of the clouds~ I get lifted, I get lifted,”

He pinpointed the source of the noise. It came from above him. One foot in front of the other, he scrambled up the ladder. He prayed that it would lead him to the stranger, and not to his death. Roman’s head began to race. Thoughts bounced around like a kid on a sugar rush. What am I thinking? I’m going to die I’m going to die I’m going to freaking die. As he got closer and closer he found himself regretting his decision more and more. It took all his strength to not look down. He knew that if he did, he would freak out and plumit towards the ground. Roman imagined himself as prince climbing up a tower to reach his beautiful Rapunzel. With this in mind, the stranger with the lovely voice finally came into view.

“King of the- What the FUCK!?!?” The man screeched, and suddenly stopped playing his guitar. His eyes were wide and dark, like a deer in the headlights. His jaw virtually dropped down the six stories below him.

•••

Virgil appreciated cliches. They offered consistency. You always knew what to expect when you sat down on the couch with your cozy blanket, and put on a Hallmark movie. There were no surprises. Real life was never like the movies, so everything he watched, he concluded would never happen to him.

Never in Virgil’s uneventful and drab life did he expect to actually live through one of these cliches. That’s why when a man with tangled red hair and big caramel eyes appeared at the edge of his secluded balcony, he concluded that everything he knew, was a lie.

“SORRY! Ididntmeantostartleyou! I just-erm… reallyreally liked your voice.” Roman, at this point, had climbed over the banister and sheepishly waved at Virgil. His smile was tight, but easy. Virgil didn’t quite know what to make of this situation.

“Thanks…? But that still doesn’t explain what the HELL you are doing up here! Where did you come from?” He interrogated, burying himself in his scarf. Virgil’s face was on fire.

“Oh,” Roman’s brow furrowed. “I’m in room 42, right bellow you, I think…” Virgil growled and buried his face in his hands.

“Why are you here?” He asked. Everything was silent for a moment, but the wind howled and caused Roman to shiver. He didn’t plan to be out in the cold. His thin bomber jacket would do him no good in the winter weather. Virgil caught onto this and looked up at the man, concerned. Roman shrugged at his stranger, and replied to him.

“I mean, isn’t a little spontaneity good every once in a while? People just do stuff without any explanation. It can be good, bad, but it just happens. Is it your job, or my job, to decide what the universe should and shouldn’t make happen?”

Virgil couldn’t decide if this dude was crazy or brilliant. He did know he was cold, and scared of heights. The man refused to look at anything that wasn’t Virgil. The way he couldn’t truly smile, or relax his posture told him something was off. Roman slowly came further and further from the edge. Virgil didn’t have the heart to send him back down the ladder.

“You’re shivering,” he said. “I will be right back. Don't go anywhere, okay?” Roman nodded in response, and Virgil slipped through his own window. As his feet hit the tile floor, a loud whistling noise startled him and sent him up into the air. He looked over and realized it was just his tea pot. Thanking the gods for not letting his house burn down, he grabbed the first jacket he saw and an old beanie, and quickly filled two mugs up with tea. Walking back outside, Virgil had no idea what he was doing. A handsome stranger, speaking like a crazy person just decides to meet him on his balcony, and for what? His mediocre at best singing voice? Maybe guy is right, he thought. Spontaneity can be good.

With this newfound motivation, Virgil carefully approached Roman after much struggling. He set down the two tea mugs and then tossed him the sweatshirt and beanie. Roman quickly threw the sweatshirt over his head. It was much too big for him, but frankly he did not care. As he slid the beanie on, he felt a little warmth come back to his body. Virgil moved his guitar case off of an empty chair and gestured to the seat with his long, pale fingers. He cleared his throat and began to speak in his best medieval voice.

“Have a seat, lone traveler. If you’re gonna trespass, and invade my secluded balcony, you owe me every last detail of your halfway decent origin story.” It took all of Virgil’s self control to not burst out laughing at the bewildered look on the other man’s face. Roman did not expect this tall glass of emo to provide such a performance. He began to laugh, and sat down next to Virgil. Virgil’s cheeks tinted pink at the harmonious sound and Roman smiled.

“But what if my origin story’s no good, kind sir?” Roman questioned, with the same kind of voice. Somehow it held more of a dramatic flair than Virgil’s. The edgy man snorted and crossed his arms.

“Well you’ll just have to tell me anyways, won’t you? If it’s that bad- I’ll feed you to the crocodiles.”

Virgil replied. If possible, Roman smiled even wider, causing warmth to spread though Virgil.

“How about this,” the man began. “I’ll start you off with a question. What’s a dude like yourself doin’ all alone on Christmas Eve. You seem like the social type, right?” Virgil asked, curiosity in his eyes. He sipped the tea and buried himself into his scarf. Roman practically guzzled his tea, desperate to warm up.

“Well, I am. A prince such as myself has got to slay. Theater sort of demands that you be social. All the actors, tech crew, directors… Frankly, I don’t think I get a break,” Roman sighed.

“Should’ve guessed you were a theater guy,” Virgil shook his head and chuckled.

“Yeah,” Roman grinned. “It’s obvious once I mention it. But I mean when things get overwhelming I tend to… back up? I mean if it’s in the middle of a show I’ll play my part, but I don’t attach myself to the vulnerability of it all or I’ll get hurt… I mean good thing a lot of male leads are shallow and one dimensional.”

Virgil hesitantly nodded. “I guess… I mean guys aren’t always like that in real life. And I’m sure you aren't. So I’d just accept that you’re gonna get hurt and just live,” Roman flinched and shut his eyes as the other man finished that phrase. Virgil cursed under his breath and slowly reached out to touch his hand before sharply pulling back.

“Sorry! Did I say something? I probably did sorry that was harsh I shouldn’t have-“

“You aren’t wrong. I really do. It’s just not easy, outside of theater. Christmas has always been tough since my parents split. Don’t get me wrong, I live for the aesthetic. Red is my favorite color. Green is… captivating,” Roman breathed out, catching a glimpse of Virgil’s own eyes, hidden behind raven hair. “ It’s just that what I expect is never what I get. Christmas kinda ruined itself for me. It didn’t help that ever since I moved here I haven’t kept in touch with my folks as much as I should. I just feel… guilty. For feeling free. But I’m also sad as hell if you can’t tell,” He gestured towards himself and his disheveled appearance. Virgil noticed the bags under his eyes, and the exhaust plaguing him. He hummed sympathetically.

“That’s gotta suck big time. I mean, if you’re living a better life without their drama, you shouldn’t feel guilty. If they truly gave a shit about you they’d understand your actions, or at least try to,” Virgil sipped more of his tea and gazed at Roman. He seemed to be in his own little world. A part of Virgil wanted to join him in the bliss. “I’m just an antisocial guitar lover who’s only plans are to hang out with their parents on Christmas Day. The universe is one funny dude for giving you me, of all people, for condolences,” he reached out a hand to touch Roman, but this time he didn’t pull back last moment. Roman looked over at him with an intense gaze. He sighed and smiled sadly.

“I write. A lot. Short plays. They never go anywhere because they’re never real. It’s all in my head, fantasy. For once I want something tangible. Theatre is my escape from my sadness… it’s just that I think it’s taking away from stuff that really matters,” Roman whispered, almost too quietly. The wind had settled at this point, not taking away from the spoken word. Virgil smiled back, unsure of why he was listening to a stranger.

“It seems like your art is your way of expressing yourself. Isn’t that what really matters? Being yourself? Music is my escape. Singing something is acknowledging it’s real, but also acknowledging the wisdom and power that you gain when you overcome an obstacle. It’s also just… really nice ya know? I respect you. And any other sane person should,” Virgil said. Roman stared at him, in awe. He was stunning in more ways than one. His features, his words, his voice, made Virgil a person that could inspire Roman in such a short amount of time.

“Will you sing for me?” Roman asked. Virgil blushed and shook his head.

“No! I mean I’m used to singing in front of people it’s just the circumstance-“

“How about this,” Roman began, rubbing circles on Virgil’s palm, making him blush more. “You can play a song on your guitar and I will sing it, but you have to promise to sing a little with me too. Deal?”

Virgil contemplated for a moment. It would be interesting to hear if this prince man could carry a tune. He hummed aloud.

“Hmm. What do have in mind?” Virgil asked, a small smile playing on his lips.

“Do you like Billie Eilish?”

“Is that even a question? Of course I do. What song?”

•••

Roman was shocked how quickly he could answer Virgil. I mean, it was a simple question, and the choice was obvious. While Virgil’s voice was steady, Roman could see the nervousness swimming in his eyes.

“Come out and play.” Roman replied, pulling his hand away from Virgil’s. His checks tinted pink, and Virgil laughed at him. Roman imagined the gears in Virgil’s head turning. His jaw was tight and he averted his gaze away from Roman. Roman noticed this, and carefully grabbed Virgil’s guitar, pushing it into his chest.

“You don’t have to be nervous. It’s just me, a random stranger who doesn’t know a thing about you, and who definitely won’t judge you,” Roman softly said. Virgil finally looked up at him and smiled.

“Okay,” Virgil muttered, adjusting his position so he could play. “Thank god I know this song by heart. If I didn’t, we’d be screwed.” Roman shook his head, amused.

“Well, my damsel in distress -heh, literally- I happen to know the song, infact, I could sing it backwards.” Virgil raised his eyebrows, and adjusted his fingers on the fretboard. Roman scotted forward in his chair and curiously peered at Virgil. The emo man sighed.

“I would rather you not do that. You ready?” He asked.

“I was born ready.” Roman exclaimed, sipping the last of his tea and abruptly clearing his throat. Virgil pursed his lips together and shook his head at Roman.

“You do know that clearing your throat actually rubs your vocal chords together and messes up your singing, right?” Virgil said matter-of-factly. Roman gasped, somewhat surprised. The other man laughed quietly to himself and began playing his guitar, long fingers plucking cooper strings to create a calming sound. Roman grinned and hummed along. He looked across the balcony and the setting sun that peeked between the trees.

“Wake up and smell the coffee. Is your cup half full or empty? When we talk, you say it softly- but I love it when you're awfully quiet,” Roman sang with a bright, warm voice, throwing Virgil in for a loop. There was somewhat of a shaky undertone to it, even if Roman himself was confident. Virgil found it endearing.

“Hmm, hmm quiet. Hmm, hmm” Virgil hummed softy with Roman, their voices not quite melting together. Roman looked over at Virgil and their eyes met for a brief moment. The moment ending just as quickly as it started.

“You see a piece of paper, could be a little greater. Show me what you could make her. You'll never know until you try it-“ This time Roman sang to Virgil, sincerity lacing his words. “-and you don't have to keep it quiet” Roman emphasized this phrase, causing Virgil to roll his eyes good heartedly. He sang the chorus with him.

“And I know it makes you nervous. But I promise you, it's worth it- to show 'em everything you kept inside. Don't hide, don't hide~” Virgil’s smooth softer voice blended perfectly with Romans’. They both grinned, noticing it. They sang to each other as Virgil began playing his guitar more enthusiastically. Roman refrained from singing- entranced by Virgil.

“Too shy to say, but I hope you stay. Don't hide away~ Come out and play.” Roman stared, seeing the weariness poke out in Virgil's voice. He found it beautiful. He found him beautiful- and thanked the universe for having this happen to him. The rest of the song way sweet, and unsteady- but by the end they where both lost in the moment. Virgil sighed, content.

“Well that wasn’t so bad, now was it?” Roman crossed his arms and leaning back in his chair. His eyes betrayed any negativity he was trying to portray. They were filled with light and joy. Virgil smirked and shook his head.

“No, it wasn’t. I’m going to come hug you now, okay?” Virgil said, placing his guitar back in its case. Roman laughed and stood up and Virgil embraces him. Roman rested his chin on Virgil’s shoulder as he wrapped his arms around his waist.

“Did I make your Christmas Eve less crappy?” Virgil asked, mostly as a joke.

“Hell yeah you did!” Roman replied, tilting his head a bit. Virgil broke away from the hug and grabbed Roman’s hand.

“Okay, I have a question and this might be a bit odd-“ Virgil started- but Roman interrupted.

“Oh, of course my darling emo I will marry you!”

Virgil cackled and lightly smacked him on the shoulder. Roman grinned, proud of himself.

“Noted. I was going to ask if you wanted to come to my parents tomorrow? I’m sure they won’t mind another human around and they always make a ton of food anyways even though it’s just me and all. I mean if you don’t want to that’s chill too…” Virgil looked down at the floor, his face on fire. Roman squeezed Virgil’s hand, causing him to look up.

“I’d love too, but first I need to know your name.”

“Oh shit!” Virgil exclaimed, facepalming. “My names Virgil. My dad's a huge poetry nerd and my other dad just like adores unique things so bam!”

“Wow, that's a lovely name! I happen to like poetry myself.” Roman smiled as Virgil’s blush became more visible.

“I should probably ask what your name is,” Virgil commented.

“I’m Roman Prince, at your service,” He said, bowing. Virgil snorted.

“Fitting. Oh, I’m glad you decided to waltz into my life and climb up a fire escape just to hear me sing.” Roman’s smile grew as Virgil spoke. Fate was a funny thing. Perhaps Roman was able to live a little all along, all he had to do was find the right person.

“I’m glad I did too, Virgil.”

•••

Note: The songs used in here are King Of The Clouds By Panic! At The Disco and come out and play by Billie Eilish! I’d recommend giving them a listen! I also don’t own thoose songs I’m just a huge fan of them :3 Hope you liked this!

#ray writes #my writing #sander sides fic #virgil sanders #ts virgil #musician virgil #roman sanders #ts roman #ts fic #sander sides #thomas sanders #prinxiety #prinxiety fic #billie ellish #panic at the disco #secret sanders #secret sanders 2018 #secretsanders #secret sanders fic

192 notes · View notes