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euphoriyoongi · 3 years

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🎨Chapter Seven

Summary:

When you move to Korea for an art program at University, your world completely goes crazy as you meet your new shy roommate, Kim Taehyung, and an irresistible idol singer, Jeon Jungkook.

🎨Pairings: Kim Taehyung x artist! OC (original character) x Jeon Jungkook

🎨Word count: 5.3k

🎨Warnings: none

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Listen to this while you read!

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Taehyung tried to focus as the professor told the class what to do next for their project, but he couldn't seem to grasp it.

He sat staring into space, wondering about the same girl that's been running a marathon through his mind. Why did she have to be with someone else? And why did that someone have to be jungkook?

Why did this bother him? She shouldn't mean anything to him. He hardly knows her.

Even though they've only just met not too long ago, he couldn't help but care for her. It's been nearly a month now since Daphne came to Korea, and also how long he's been fake-dating her for the sake of jungkook. Jungkook, who isn't even dating her. I guess he wasn't completely upset, since he gets to spend time with the girl he dreams about. They have a scheduled date later today.

"Taehyung...did you hear that?" The professor muttered, standing next to him. He was showing Tae what to do with his piece, but Tae heard none of it.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm just not feeling too good." Taehyung apologized. He wasn't lying, his stomach was upset.

The professor's lips curled up in a smile as he looked from Taehyung to his painting.

It was a large scale painting of Daphne, who looked as if she was about to cry, staring at something that wasn't depicted. It was absolutely stunning, and well, the professor felt his emotion from the looks of it. "It looks amazing, Taehyung. I could really feel how much you love this girl."

Tae sighed a bit, looking at the painting. He noticed where his brush strokes went awry and where a slightly messed up with the color of the skin tone. There was a messy blotch on the corner of the canvas, and he also hated the idea that he might truly feel for this girl. "Thank you." Is all he said, and as the professor walked away, Tae put his paintbrush down.

At this moment, he wished that he didn't feel the emotions he put into his artwork.

Daphne sat alone in the dorm room, studying Korean. She just finished her session with Namjoon, and was really starting to get better with speaking the language. Her and Taehyung now converse about art and their favorite things.

But why did she feel something towards him? Was it because they had to act?

She remembered that she had a date with him today. They were supposed to go to the amusement park to see if anyone would recognize them. It has been a while, but Jungkook's fans are crazy and still believe she's with him. Well, they aren't wrong. Maybe she should break it off.

She didn't know what to do. She truly enjoyed Jungkook's company too. Even though Taehyung was okay with all of this, she still felt bad for bringing him into it.

Taehyung seemed to enjoy time with her, though. When she'd smile at him, he'd smile back. When she laughed, he laughed with her. He made her think about what love truly is..what the heart wants rather than the brain.

Maybe she should change up their date tonight. Maybe he deserved some attention just for him. He always talked about going to see the Van Gogh exhibit. When was that again?

As she looked it up online, much to her surprise, it was tonight. She hardly will have any time to get ready. Deciding to call him about it, Daphne prepared what she was going to say. They were able to have some sort of conversation now, and when Daphne couldn't speak Korean, Tae would speak English.

"Hi, Daph." Tae said, sounding like he was smiling. "What's up?"

"I um..it's about our date tonight." She spoke out in Korean. "What time are you free?"

The sound of rustling came about over the phone. "I'm actually free right now, I'm on my way up the elevator of the dorm." He said, parts in English and parts in Korean. She was able to understand, and smiled when he said he was near.

"Ah! Good! As soon as you get here get ready!" She squealed, a bit excited now.

He chuckled at her excitement. "Okay, I'll be right there. Make sure you're dressed this time."

She wasn't able to decipher that statement, but laughed it off. "Okay, see you soon."

As she hung up the phone, she hurriedly ran to her makeup that was sitting on top of her desk. She wanted to look pretty, and didn't really know why. Was it that she felt a bit icky with having a few blemishes? Or was it because she wanted to look good for Taehyung?

Maybe both. But has she ever cared this much when she's with Jungkook? Did she even bag an eyelash if he saw her without makeup? He still thought she was sexy enough to make out with her at any given moment. But why was she wishing that she'd make out with Tae..just once.

As she thought about this, Jungkook thought about the last time he saw Daphne.

It was nearly a week ago. She was on top of him in his bed, clothes off and all sweaty. Her kisses tasted like strawberries and sweat, and he couldn't help but think about how beautiful she looked. Even if it was effortless.

He sat in his home, on the corner of his bed. His eyes wandered around his room where he noticed little pieces of her still astray. Maybe it was the strap if her bra that laid on the floor that he broke off of her. Or the half-full tube of lipgloss that she forgot to take with her.

Maybe it was the shirt that he was wearing. The one he gave to her to walk around in. What was this feeling? He didn't know.

It couldn't be love. Could someone call for another after only a month? Yes. One hundred percent. But was it practical in this situation? No. Jungkook knew he couldn't let himself get fully involved. He had a career to fulfill. And he'd hate to make her suffer through the hatred of his fans.

At this point, was this worth it?

He made himself think that it was. He didn't want to lose daphne, whether it be a physical relationship or not. He did care for her, and definitely wanted her all to himself.

Taehyung made his way up the hallway to their shared room. Even though it's been a month, he still can't get past the fact that his roommate is the literal definition of beauty. He wished that this fake relationship of theirs has one ounce of sincerity. Well, from her. He knew how he felt. But he had no idea about her specific feelings.

As he turned the door handle to walk into the room, he had a sudden thought.

Tonight, on their date, he was going to make it seem real. He hoped that she might catch on, but probably not. She was infatuated with jungkook, and well, who could blame her.

As he opened the door, in his line of vision popped daphne, who stood with a smile on her beautiful face and was dressed in a cute sweater and jeans. "Tae!" She squealed, smiling wide. "Are you ready for our date?"

Scratching his head in confusion, Tae took a step into the room and shut the door behind him. Weren't they just going to an amusement park? What was so special? "Uh..yeah. I'm always happy to go on dates with you, Daphy." He smiled as well, still a bit confused.

As he said this, it nearly made her blush. He had no idea how she was starting to feel for him, but neither did she. Daphne hid her face in her hands for a moment as Tae walked over to his side of the room. His hands seemed to be covered in paint as well as a streak of it on his face that he didn't seem to notice.

Tae turned around to face Daphne. "So, what should I wear?" He asked her, sporting a boyish smile. The paint streak was right next to his lip on his cheek, and it moved as he spoke. It bothered Daphne, and she felt like she needed to wipe it off.

"Wait." She hummed, walking over to him. As she began to get closer and closer, Tae took a step back. She came up too close that what he was used to, and as he was about to ask her what she was doing, her fingers began to softly rub the corner of his lip.

"What are you—." Tae questioned as he stared at the beautiful girl in front of him. He was a bit taller than her, and she had to reach up to reach his lips. He looked down to her, a confused look on his face as her eyes softened. The feeling of her touch sent a shiver down his spine, and especially since she was touching his lips. He wished that she would just touch her lips to his. If she kept her hands on his lips for a second longer, he might have grabbed her and thrown her against the wall and—

"There you go, it's all off." She looked up into his eyes, almost seductively. When he tilted his head in confusion, she explained. "Oh! You had a bit of paint on the corner of your lip." She said, shyly tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear. Did she purposely look sexy while doing that? Was she trying to make him cave?

Taehyung decided to ignore it. Smiling, he thanked her for it. "So, what should I wear?"

Looking at his outfit now, he looked perfect for the occasion. But since this meant so much to him, she thought that maybe she should tell him to dress as nice as he wants. "I think you should wear your favorite outfit." Her lips curled, and her eyes squinted as she chuckled. "Although you look good in anything."

She said that last thing in English, wondering if Tae was able to understand it. He didn't seem to react to it, and nodded to look through his wardrobe. As he decided to pick out what he was wearing, she stood back and admired him. His shoulders weren't too broad, and he was a bit lanky, but damn, was he gorgeous. His brown hair was fluffy today, and it fell past his eyes. She really knew how stunning he was, and often wondered why he hasn't had a girlfriend by now. He did tell her that he's never had anyone for himself. She was the same way. Well, before jungkook. But she still knew the feeling. He wasn't really hers. If they had to act like they weren't together, then they weren't.

As he picked out a sweater from his closet, he began to slide off the shirt he was wearing now, his bare back facing her now. "Tae!" She squeaked, covering her eyes but still having them a bit spread so she could peak.

"What?" He asked, turning towards her. He was absolutely stunning, indeed. His chest was nicely defined, but not too much. He didn't have a complete set of abs, which Daphne preferred anyway. He was a work of art. From the looks of his face to the shape of his body, he could be a sculpture in a museum. No one would look away. "It's not like I haven't seen you. It's only fair, right?" He raised his eyebrows, almost as if he was teasing her.

Daphne slowly took her hands away from her face. He had a point, but he did see more of her..he wasn't about to show her more of him.

He slid on an oversized soft-green sweater and kept his corduroy pants that he had on already. "How do I look?@ he asked in English, a big boxy smile on his face.

Daphne checked the time before she looked at him. They needed to go. Right away. But not before she glanced at him, knowing that he looked handsome.

As if looks could kill, he looked amazing. "You look..." she carried on, unsure of what words she wanted to say. Did she want him to know that she found him sexy? Or did she want this to stay PG? She was meeting jungkook tonight as well. Oh, the heck with it. "You look sexy." She said in English, but the word was nearly the same in Korean. He understood it immediately and a hot blush ran through his cheeks. Trying to ignore the fact that he was blushing, he cleared his throat and decided to change the subject.

"So are you ready?" He asked, hands in his pockets as he swayed a bit nervously. This wasn't their first "date", but every time they go out together it makes him want it to be real. Oh, he wished his feelings weren't real.

"Yes, I can't wait to get there." She smiled at him, and took his hand. "Let's go."

When she grabbed his hand, he felt his heart start to speed up. Damn, why does his body always act up when she's around.

— —

It's been a month since she came to Korea. But it also was a month since she contacted her family.

She did leave on a bad note. Her parents were extremely worried if she even got there alright. But still, they were very upset with the way she got up and left without discussing. Then again, it wasn't their choice in where she went.

Still, though, she should call her parents. She knows this. On their way to the exhibit, she noticed a girl with her parents. The girl couldn't of been any older than fifteen, and her parents had the biggest smiles on their faces as their daughter sat next to them. She remembered how ungrateful she had been at that age. But the girl here looked like she was having the time of her life.

Taehyung sat next to Daphne on the bus. He had noticed her fingers tighten on her pant leg, and a far off look in her eyes. "Daph?" His voice rang deep, causing Daphne to look straight at him. "Are you alright?"

Was she alright? She wasn't sure. So many thoughts were running through her brain right now. What she should be thinking of is this date night. She needed to look like she was happy for this all to still work. She was happy, but something about leaving abruptly started to bother her. Smiling, she nodded. "Yes, I'm okay, Tae." She said to him, which he replied with a small smile.

His hand ached to reach out to where hers was. It was still clenched tightly to her pants, and her knuckles began to soften in color. His hand hesitated above his thigh, desperately ready to touch her. To soothe her. Every muscle in his body was on full alert. Her shoulder was pressed up against him, her thigh as well. He couldn't help but get overwhelmed in her scent of vanilla and mint, and just wanted to feel her skin on his.

Daphne saw Tae's hand hover over his leg. Did he want to hold her hand? She figured that's what he wanted to do, maybe to look like an actual couple and not so awkward. So she softly let go of her grip on her own leg, and reached over to grab his hand, interlacing fingers. Setting their hands down in her lap, she quickly glanced at Tae, a shy look on her face. He looked flustered, and a bit on edge. His brown eyes were looking anywhere but her, and his leg began to voice in anxiousness.

"Maybe I should be asking you if you're okay.." she trailed off, reaching her hand up to tuck a stray hair that laid in the middle of his forehead.

A few people had noticed who they are by now. They definitely looked like a couple, and even some people who had no idea who they were began to smile at them. Ah, young and in love.

Tae let out a small chuckle, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. He was a bit nervous for some reason. Maybe it was because the amusement park was a few bus stops back, and that he wasn't sure where they were going. Or maybe it was the fact that she wasn't following a plan, and was actually doing something for themselves. "Everything's fine, Daphy." He said her nickname that he gave her. He had told her that he calls her that because it reminds him of an American TV show, and he was right with that. The looney tunes were one of her favorites as a child, and it made her realize how much thought Taehyung puts into her.

Did he care for her? Or was this all just an act? But why in the world would he want to act if he had nothing to gain from it?

Daphne almost forgot to pay attention to the stop for the exhibit since she was so caught up with looking at Taehyung. He was breathtaking. Was he always this handsome? Did he always bite the inside of his cheek like that? Did he always make funny faces at things he didn't like?

"This is our stop." She interrupted her own thoughts to say this. Still holding his hand, she stood up and tugged at him. He stood up with her, and let her drag him off the bus to the sidewalk, where a large sign stood about the Van Gogh exhibit. Damn, was that tonight? He really wanted to go to that. But he really didn't feel like going alone. Oh well, he'd prefer to spend his time with Daphne, anyway.

As they walked down the street, Tae couldn't forget that he was holding her hand. He suddenly began to worry if his hand was sweaty or hot, and if she didn't want to hold it still. He was the one who wouldn't let go. But as he tried to tug his hand away, she grasped on tight so he couldn't let go. His eyebrows raised in confusion, but she didn't say anything. They continued to walk down the sidewalk, both of them confused on where they're going.

Daphne memorized the address, and told herself that she might be able to figure it out with signs. Too bad she couldn't read Korean yet, but luckily a sign a few feet away was in English. It read "Van Gogh exhibit here!" In big letters, and she tugged at his hand towards the entrance of the building, hoping Tae didn't get a chance to read the words. Lucky for her, he didn't.

As they entered the building, it was a bit dark. There was a man standing at a table, and Daphne figured it was for the tickets. Online it said that she was able to go without them and to get them here, and she hoped that it wasn't sold out. There was lots of people all around, and she thinks Taehyung might have caught in to where they were.

"Do you need a ticket?" The young man said, his smile wide. He was decently handsome, and definitely seemed to be drawn in by Daphne. "You are very beautiful, has anyone ever told you that?"

Taehyungs grip on her hand tightened, and he stepped closer to her for defense. He knew she was able to handle things herself, but that man must know that she's in a relationship...sort of.

"I'm sorry, I don't speak Korean that well." She stated to him, and the guy looked a bit taken back. "I just need two tickets, please."

Nodding, the man reached to grab two tickets for them. At this point, Tae was too distracted to realize where he was at, and didn't realize it until they walked further into the building and into a stand alone room. The room was dark, but bright colors of Van Gogh's Starry Night cascaded the walls in soft reflections of light. A projector was held above their heads and every inch of the walls were covered in color. Dark blue hues fell over Taehyung as he stepped around the room, letting go of Daphne's hand to walk over to the wall.

He was in awe. How in the world did she know this? How did she know that he wanted to go? Maybe she did, too. Still, at this moment as he just stared at her, a dumbfounded look on his face as shades of yellow hit her features. She was the only art in this room right now. Regardless that Van Gogh dawned the walls of the poorly lit room, she stood there taking in all of the color, and somehow, the brightest color of the painting found her. Almost as if it was shining down on her beauty. She was the reason he was here. She was also the reason why he can't stop smiling.

"Is something wrong?" She asked him, looking from side to side. He was just staring at her now, looking like a lost puppy. He did look happy, but she wasn't sure if this is what he wanted. He did talk about it all the time though. If she didn't take him here, would he have went without her though?

Was there something wrong? No. Definitely not. Maybe? But there was something wrong with how Tae felt in this moment. He wanted to walk over to her and kiss her. He wanted to cradle her face and say thank you for thinking of him. He just wanted her to feel the same way about him and to be honest, this situation made it worse. He had no idea why she took him here when they were supposed to go to an amusement park. What was the purpose of taking him here? Why did she even care? Was it because they were friends?

He still was happy though. She thought about him. She seemed to care how he felt, too. So why was he more upset than excited?

He figured why. But how could he stay upset at the sight of her. She looked worried, maybe it wasn't the reaction she expected. She went out of her way to make him happy today.

So he smiled at her. "Nothings wrong." He said, lying. But she didn't need to know that. She didn't need to know that he had real feelings for her. That she holds a special place in his heart. Every little thing she did would send his heart spiraling, whether it be a frown when she stares at something she dislikes, or how when she walks, her feet drag a tiny bit on the ground. Things that he finds attractive about her shouldn't be. She's a walking museum, and with every look, there's always something new to see.

"Thank you." He said, walked over to her. Taking her hand, he kissed the back of it, noticing a few caddy girls in the corner of the room who were staring. Guessing that he didn't look happy, he turned it around with a smile at the girl of his dreams.

Daphne knew something was wrong. Definitely wrong. He didn't seem as excited as she imagined him to be. She didn't mean to feel upset about it, since he did smile and say thank you, but something definitely felt off.

Taehyung tried to get Daphne to know that he was grateful. He must've looked a bit off. "I'm sorry, Daphy. I really love this. Thank you." He then took the hand that he kissed and held it.

They walked around the building, quietly. Tae did say a few oohs and ah's, but not nearly as much as she imagined. She now realized that she may have made a mistake. Was he uncomfortable? Did she make him uncomfortable?

As they neared the end of the exhibit, Daphne's phone buzzed. Reaching to her back pocket with her free hand, she opened the message that read some explicit words.

Taehyung saw. He saw also saw the previous photo on the texts that showed Jungkook's chest, and immediately looked away after he read the words that he had sent. Well, there goes his night.

Letting go of her hand, she looked at him in confusion. "Oh, I just thought it would be easier to text him back with two hands.." he lied, rubbing a hand against the back of his neck sheepishly. He was disgusted. Upset that he pictured kissing this girl. This girl that has someone else to kiss. And that someone wasn't him, and that's what bothered him.

Daphne had a hard time understanding what he had said, but managed to gather it. She was sure that he saw the words. Well, at least the photo. She forgot that Jungkook had sent it, and impulsively opened the chat. Why would Tae be upset though? Did he possibly have feelings for her?

"I guess I'll get going." He stuttered out, looking anywhere but her eyes. "I have to go watch Sian for Jin." A lie. A complete lie. But he just wanted to get away from all this embarrassment. No matter how he felt for this girl, he knew it would never work. Plus, she lives in a whole mother country. Of course that country is one of the farthest ones from here, too.

"Oh?" Her eyebrows furrowed. "So soon? We're not even through the whole exhibit yet?" It was basically over anyway. She just didn't want him to leave. She was enjoying time with him. Was it because he read her text?

"Yeah, I'm sorry. I'll see you tonight, though." He pushed out a smile, very forced. Giving her a little wave, he turned around to find the exit.

As she stared at his back as he walked away, her heart dropped. Why am I feeling like this? She thought to herself. She had no idea why the fact that he left bothered her. Was it because she was slowly falling for him? She didn't know she was. But the feeling like her heart dropped a thousand floors was enough for her to know that she felt some way for him, whether it be platonic or romantic.

She really didn't want to go home alone.

— —

"He saw what?!" Yuri cried, putting a hand to her forehead. "So you're telling me that Taehyung saw that? Who sent you those things?"

Daphne and Yuri sat in the outside commons of the university, chatting about how awful her date night went yesterday. She still hasn't seen Tae, and thought that maybe he stayed over Joon's last night.

She also didn't tell Yuri that she was "seeing" her brother, but she thinks now is the best time to bring it up. "Well..you remember how I got into that fiasco with your brother a month back?" She shyly said, looking down at her feet.

Yuri took a bite out of her seaweed wrap. "Oh yeah, how could I forget that. Jungkook couldn't stop talking about you."

You put down the sandwich you had in your hands. "He talked about me?" Why would he do that? They aren't together? Who talks about your sex partner?

The way Yuri looked at Daphne was like she already knew. A half smile on her face and her eyebrows raised, she took another bite. "Uh..duh." She winked at Daphne, and reached to take a sip of her drink.

"You know?!" Daphne said in shock, and Yuri smiled deviously. "How'd you know?"

"Oh I knew since the beginning. Jungkook also didn't do well with hiding it?" She said, a little chuckle escaping her lips. "So you guys are like..friends with benefits?" She sipped through her straw.

Daphne didn't know how to react. Yuri obviously didn't look upset, but she was confused as to why she wasn't. "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you sooner, Yuri." She said, her eyes apologetic. "And yeah, just friends with benefits."

Yuri smirked. "I see." She set down her drink and tucked her hair behind her ear. "I guess since we uncovered one of your secrets, I might as well tell you one of mine."

What could it be? Daphne chuckled and picked up her sandwich again. "What's your secret?"

Yuri took one last bite of her seaweed wrap, and once she was done chewing, she opened her mouth to tell her. "I'm seeing someone, too." She smiled, looking around if anyone was listening. "You know Namjoon, right? His roommate." She raised her eyebrows.

Daphne gasped. Jimin?? The boy who was known to be a man whore? Did Yuri know? "You know he's a bit of a—"

"A slut? Hell yeah." She nodded in agreement. "We're also friends with benefits. So we both can keep each other's secret." Yuri winked, and began to pick up her garbage. "I gotta get going. I have class in five."

"Alright." Daphne said, still in shock. They didn't seem like they suited each other. Nevertheless, it wasn't like Jungkook and her suited each other either. Who was she to judge.

They parted their ways, and as Daphne turned around, she bumped into someone.

"Oh I'm sorry I—"

It was Tae. He looked a bit disheveled and worn out. Daphne didn't even realize that he had been sitting in the table behind her the whole time. He had heard everything. He heard that she was in a sexual relationship with jungkook, and it had proved his point. But now that he knew for sure, he was completely upset about it all. But what bothered him more was that he had no reason to be upset. She wasn't his.

"Tae? Are you alright?"

No he wasn't. He also got a call last night about his mother. She was sick again, and back in the hospital. He loved his whole life trying to keep his family together and to pay for all the expenses. But now, how was he supposed to afford school with his mothers hospital bills.

He has never told anyone about his family problems other than Jin. He said a bit to Joon, but never enough for him to know the full story. But he was really upset now, and Daphne's worried look made him want to cave in. Just as she asked him if he was alright, he nearly let a tear fall. But he didn't. Still, this time when she asked him if he was alright, he didn't lie.

"No..no I'm not." He sighed, and crossed the little distance they had between each other.

He grabbed her tightly for a hug, and wrapped his arms around her torso. He held on tightly, gripping at the fabric of her long sleeve tee. It was soft, and slightly stretchy. She smelled like vanilla again, with a hint of a flower smell this time. She was so ethereal to him, and even though he now knows for sure what kind of relationship she's in, it didn't matter right now. All he wanted to do was tell her how he felt. To tell her that he was struggling. He had no idea how he was going to tell her or even if he was, but he couldn't let go of her once she began to hug him back. She comforted him, even if she had no idea what's going on. She was a great friend to him. And he should be grateful for that. At least she was in his life. Even if it wasn't exactly what he wanted.

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prev. // next.

m.list

#bts #bangtan sonyeondan #jeon jungkook #kim taehyung #park jimin #jungkook #bts hoseok #bts joonie #jung hoseok #bts fanfic

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everythingoesnk · 5 years

Text

Once in Rockfield Farm (1/5)

summary; you own Rockfield Farm and your bf Mary Austin asks you if you can help her friends with an enormous favour that will lead to a much bigger unprecedented change into your life. Thanks to a cute guy specifically.

word count; 6 126

disclaimers, PLEASE read them; don’t forget this is fiction. i’m using queen‘s 70s era as a base for the story but it won’t be historically accurate. the song mentioned towards the end of the chapter is from Taylor Swift, i don’t claim those lyrics as mine. sorry in advance if u find a f*cked up grammar mistake or whatever. feedback would mean everything, it’s the first time i’m posting something i’ve written it feels like i’m giving birth looool

warnings; minor violence at some point and mention of abuse

********

Mary didn’t stop until she convinced you to give green light to her proposal.

She called it like that, but it seemed more like an order. Both of you knew she wouldn’t let it pass until you agreed to.

Taken aback, you refused at first.

The idea of four strangers living in your house, coexisting with you in the only safe space you knew, wasn’t appealing whatsoever.

Even though all they needed was a studio to record, they’d have to stay until the album was finished. They could afford to rent a proper one, but Mary made it quite clear that getting out of town was crucial to avoid possible distractions.

You’d been fired from your job because the restaurant bankrupted, so the money they were going to pay for rent was welcomed.

Your grandfather passed Rockfield Farm on to you when he died.

It was a lovely place full of good memories, mainly concerning hours on end together in the studio he built in the attic throughout the years. The relationship you had with him had always been special, but ever since your nana passed away at the age of 70, your bond became stronger.

He also wasn’t there anymore, and you tried not to think too much about it, just were glad that you met someone like him. He was the main reason you loved making music so much.

Sadly, as you grew up, although your talent for writing songs and producing music was undeniable, you realized you needed to be realistic and pursue a more down-to-earth career.

Medicine was another thing you were slightly attracted to, it wasn’t your passion but it would have to do.

The music business was too complex and difficult to get in, and wasting your time wasn’t on your plans. It’s not like you were a prodigy or a diamond in the rough, anyway. That was your honest opinion.

But now and then you’d succumb and compose. It was an effective way to forget about the rest of the world and vent whenever something would make you sad, grumpy, anxious, angry… Rarely did you write about happy feelings.

What’s the fun in claiming how fulfilled you are with your life? Which you weren’t, but still.

Ballads and songs that’d leave you with your heart aching on the floor were your daily bread.

Mary was the only one allowed to hear your little creations. She’d try to get you to show them to the world, to step out of the comfort zone and perform them in public, to rush out of those same four walls.

You were quick to brush her comments off every time, content with her and your dog being the only ones to get to listen to your babies.

“How long they’re going to take?” you asked using a fake uninterested tone, pretending not to care whether they needed weeks, months or a year.

The truth was that you wished for the album to be done quite fast.

“Who knows,” Mary said. “When the album’s finished I’m the first to know, but in the meantime Freddie won’t give me any clues”

You nodded, unsatisfied with the answer.

“Thanks for agreeing to this. I owe you big” her eyes found yours and yours softened.

“If anything it’s them who do, don’t you think?”

Mary grinned and offered to cook something for tonight’s dinner.

She left you alone with your molecular pathology notes resting on your lap.

It was your last year in University, thank the Lord. One last effort and you would be a doctor.

After memorizing various concepts you found yourself staring at the horizon wondering how was Freddie Mercury like.

Obviously because of Mary you sort of formed this idea of him, but hadn’t had a face to face yet. About the other Queen members… yeah, Mary mentioned them sometimes, vaguely: she described John as a nice fella to have around, Brian as the only one with common sense, and last but not least, when it came to Roger’s personality, she told you hesitantly to judge him yourself.

You thanked her when she handed you the pen you forgot inside.

Mary gave you an encouraging smile, placing her hand on your shoulder and squeezing it.

As soon as she turned around to go back inside, you called her name, squinting your eyes to try and get a better sight of the vehicle that kept getting closer to your property.

“What?”

When she spotted the van she sighed happily.

“Finally”

Mary ran to wait for them in the parking area. She was over the moon, clapping and waving effusively to welcome them.

“Are you coming or not?” Mary shouted, gesturing you to go and stand next to her.

You took your time to get up from sitting upon the grass and do just that.

Not a single second since they pulled over went by and Mary was already imprisoning Freddie in her arms.

You chuckled, completely sure he would be dead in a matter of seconds if she wouldn’t loose her grip.

He lovingly wrapped her in his and stroked her hair.

All of a sudden, running from the backyard where he usually played in the mud (this time was no different), your dog appeared on scene. You asked him to remain quiet and by your side, which to your dismay he did not obey.

He went and greeted Queen, who pushed him away with no bad intentions, they just didn’t want to get dirt on their trousers.

John, nevertheless, got on his knees and began patting him. It did not take long for him to regret it when Sherlock seemed to be captivated by his face, licking it non-stop.

You cleared your throat. It would be nice of Mary to introduce you, being the one who organized this whole of a mess in the first place.

Apparently she read your mind. The next thing she did was link arms with you.

“This is (Y/N)” she spoke. “Freddie, come here”

“You have no idea how happy I am to finally meet you”

Freddie gave you two sweet kisses, one on each cheek.

“Same here” you nodded and mirrored his smile when you saw it reached his eyes.

In a heartbeat you were fascinated by him.

There was this intriguing strong aura he projected that made you feel like you were in the presence of someone from the royalty, someone important.

Freddie examined you from head to toe and fell in love immediately with your outfit, a pastel blue dress with tiny sunflowers printed all over it. He did spot your exposed feet and smiled pleasedly at your choice of painting your toenails with the colours of the rainbow.

“Boys, don’t be rude and come say hi” he gestured his bandmates, who were taking a rapid glimpse of their new temporary home, and stepped aside.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Brian”

“Nice to meet you too” you kindly responded, shaking his hand.

“Thank you very much for allowing us to record our album here. If we win a Grammy expect you to be the first one we address in the speech” he joked, face beaming with a heavenly smile.

Damn, you were so soft for him already. And you wanted to touch his curls.

“You’re welcome, Brian”

“Yes, we’re endlessly grateful” another gentle voice joined the conversation.

John stood now in front of you.

“Hi, I’m John Deacon”

“I know” you laughed, tilting your head to the side. “I hope your stay here is… productive”

“I hope so too” he smiled big, and it made your heart melt. He was so cute.

Roger was next.

He was wearing a black leather jacket that fit him like a glove. One silver bracelet hugging his right wrist, matching the necklace around the neck. What caught your attention the most was the glittery rosy shoes, though. He had long blond messy hair (like the others, except the colour part), and prominent sideburns.

They looked ridiculous, you thought, although every second you spent contemplating his face the less they bothered you.

He was gorgeous, what the hell?

You got somehow a little nervous.

“Productive it shall be. I’m Roger” he spoke, referring your words from before. He took your hand and held it to his lips. “We’ve come to the right place, guys. With such a pretty face like hers we’ll never run out of inspiration” he snorted when he heard John face-palming himself.

You raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.

Sure Roger didn’t mean that at all, it was just his constant flirty mood Mary warned you about taking over him, you reasoned.

“Don’t get it started, Rog. We don’t want her to kick us out the very first day” Brian scolded him like a father would his children.

Roger laughed, his silly expression never fading away, and soon he was again observing you.

“I was joking, I’m sorry if it made you uncomfortable,” he said, taking some of the heat out.

“It didn’t,” you said back, confident.

You followed the others when they headed to the house carrying their respective suitcases with Mary as the leader.

Roger was fast to grab his and catch up with you.

“You live alone?”

“I have Sherlock”

He was still in ecstasy, trying to get everyone’s attention.

“That’s it?”

“That’s it” you shrugged. “It’s not as tragic as it sounds. I enjoy my own company”

“Oh. Anyway. This is a farm, right? You do all the, huh… you know, farm work on your own?” he looked around, scanning a bit the surroundings. He pointed with his chin at one big rooster. “The guardian of the house, eh?”

You let out a vague chuckle that made Roger proud, already eager to make you like him.

The reason was obvious: you were so eyecatching he almost tripped when he missed one of Sherlock’s toys on one of the porch steps, too engrossed in how the sun made the freckles in your face stand out.

“My grandfather baptized this piece of land as Rockfield Farm, but it hasn’t been a proper farm for years. Now it’s just… my house”

“You know,” he began, digging deep around his mind to come up with something so the conversation wouldn’t end, “years ago I had this summer job in a much more immense place than this. I had to watch over 200 sheep every day”

“Was it as entertaining as it sounds?”

“Clearly not”

Roger extended his hand to stop the door from closing after John came in. He motioned you to go first and winked, but you didn’t notice the last part, which slightly bothered him.

“(Y/N), this place is precious!” you heard Freddie praise.

Mary interrupted you before you could thank him.

“Then you sure are going to love the studio even more! C’mon”

“How did your grandfather manage to get this studio together? It’s pretty impressive” Brian enthusiastically asked, taking a small sip of tea.

The six of you were now chilling in the living room. It was the perfect time for them to rest since the road trip had been long.

Moments before they finished unpacking and settling down, Mary and you gossiped in the kitchen. She remarked how attentive Roger acted towards you, and asked if you were into him.

“Are you stupid?” you couldn’t believe her. “We’ve known each other for what, ten minutes?”

“I was just wondering whether there was desire at first sight or something”

“Desire at first sight?” you repeated slowly, taking in every word.

“It was a softer way to ask if you’d give him a ride or not” she laughed watching you gesture her to lower it down. “I’m just asking because I can tell he would”

Before answering Brian, you looked over at Roger.

He’d taken off his jacket and was rolling up the sleeves of the white tee he wore underneath.

Your lips parted, finding that mundane action quite amusing and sexy on him.

You looked away, guilt taking over you for having stared too keenly. There was nothing wrong about it, and you couldn’t explain why you felt agitated. Maybe you were self-conscious about whether the others noticed.

Forcing yourself to remember Brian’s words and with a sense of pride, you smirked behind your cup, gazing at the wooden floor.

Your grandfather poured his soul into this studio, which he also referred to as a sanctuary. It made you happy to hear Brian acknowledging its value.

There were several electric and acoustic guitars, a generous collection of microphones your grandmother enjoyed saving, two trumpets, a synthesizer -to which Freddie and Roger scoffed loudly at-, a drumkit, one saxophone, and a bass.

Not to mention the tape machine that still worked perfectly plus the recording booth.

Mary told you that John Reid, who was looking after Queen at the moment, managed to convince the label to provide them with a significant amount of money. You assumed they’d brought enough tapes to record on, therefore yours would remain intact.

“He bought half of the instruments”

“The other half?” John inquired.

“He stole them” you answered, not much of a fan about it.

“Whew!” Roger whistled.

You took a short sip of the tea and turned slightly towards the window, presencing a flash of light.

“A piano?”

Freddie dropped the question with no high hopes.

“Pardon?” you turned your head and looked at him over your shoulder with your body still facing towards the window.

The head movement was so fast that a clip you wore to hold a fraction of hair in place loosened a bit, letting the lock to fell down your face.

Roger stared at you in awe.

The light illuminating the room had a warm cosy tone, which surely helped to make your skin look softer and smooth. He wasn’t aware of the heart eyes he was giving you, but Brian, John and Mary were.

When you batted your lashes, he looked away and saw Brian try and fail to hide a smile when they locked eyes. He’d been caught.

“Do you have a piano?” Freddie questioned again, eyebrows raised a little.

A tiny playful smile made its way to your lips.

“Of course I have a piano” you cockily answered.

When you saw Fred’s satisfied grin appear you instantly knew he liked you as much as you liked him. It wasn’t in the attic; you’d show it to him later.

To be honest, the piano was your favourite instrument to play. So delicate, so powerful and majestic.

“Excuse me for a second” you got up from your seat, everyone confused by your sudden urge to leave, but not alarmed.

That light from before wasn’t a bolt of lightning, you came to realize, it was a car that parked outside.

A little voice popped in your head guessing it could be him, but it couldn’t… right? There were approximately two hours from Cardiff to get there.

It sure was someone lost, or maybe they were stopping by to beg to use your bathroom because they couldn’t hold it in anymore. It wouldn’t be the first time.

“How about we start dinner? I’m starving” Mary added.

Their voices kept getting lower and lower as you crossed the corridor, oblivious to Roger’s eyes following your every move.

You stepped outside and closed the heavy door behind you, but not completely.

The silhouette of the last person you’d want to see in the entire world was leaning against a red car, one you did know very well because you lost your virginity in the backseat. He was humming to a tune you didn’t recognize, head facing downwards.

Picking at the fabric of the sweater you put on to forbid the cool air of the night from touching your skin, you opened your mouth.

“Leonardo!” you whisper shouted.

He definitely heard you, although he turned a deaf ear.

“Leo, what the fuck!”

“You’re a stupid whore”

Shit. He’s drunk? You prayed he wouldn’t make a scene, not now, with Mary and the guys around. The shame to have them complicit of whatever could possibly happen would be unbearable.

“You’re miserable” he went on with his speech, voice thick, which made it difficult for you to understand him.

You called it quits three months ago. Apparently he wasn’t any close to getting over the fact you ended it.

“Leave”

After what felt forever, he abruptly raised his head.

“What?” the expression on his face revealed he wasn’t happy.

What his eyes showed freaked the hell out of you: they revealed an intense desire, either with words or physically, to hurt you. He wasn’t sober, and you were aware that he had struggled with alcoholism when he was a teenager. It was fair to say Leonardo never put a finger on you in that way before, but alcohol was the push he needed to do it and his body was full of it now.

A lump formed in your throat.

“Get out of here”

“I just want to talk” lifting his hands up in an attempt to seem harmless, losing balance doing so, he took a few steps forward trying his best to sound convincing so you wouldn’t move and listen to him.

“I don’t want to hear what you have to say”

“How do you think I felt? Huh? When I saw you making out with that moron? You’re so selfish. A fucking slut, (Y/N). You disgust me”

That was the final straw. You promised you wouldn’t give in and start an argument, but he fucking did have to bring that up. He had the nerve to blame you for moving on and having some fun with a guy a few days ago at a party.

“Are you serious right now, Leo? How dare you?! We’re not together!” funny enough, this time it was you walking up to him not giving a damn anymore about the consequences.

When you raised your fist to punch him, even in his state, he managed to catch your wrist on time.

“How wrong you’ve done me” he hissed, tightening the grip. That’d leave marks for sure.

He pushed you against the car, causing your back to crack roughly. The situation was so tense not even the tears were brave to roll down your face, your vision blurry and unclear.

“Please, Leo!”

Mary’s voice never felt so good in your ears.

You totally forgot about them, that you could’ve screamed for help instead of dealing with Leo on your own, too absorbed in rage to be able to think things through.

“Do something, help her!” she pleaded the boys.

Four arms were fast to catch him and throw him to the ground.

Everything was happening so fast, almost as fast as your crazy heartbeats.

Brian came to you and held you by the shoulders, checking you out entirely, looking for bruises. He was asking repeatedly if you were alright, if that man dared to touch you. You could hear him, but it felt like he were miles away from you, his words echoing in the back of your mind.

Mary grabbed your arm and the two guided you, treating you like you had some kind of disability.

Before letting them drag you inside, you quickly turned your head to see what was going on, and saw a fuming Roger threatening Leo to disappear and never come back.

Freddie and John remained behind him in case he’d lose his temper. They looked at each other in astonishment; it was the first time they saw Roger like that.

“(Y/N)” Mary called you, once in the common room. “Fancy a glass of water?”

“I’ll be right back with it,” Brian said, his long legs taking him to the kitchen.

“Sit down, babe”

“I don’t want to. I’m fine”

She could perfectly see the tension in your shoulders.

“You’re not. But it’s fine, it’ll be fine” she sympathized, caressing your hair.

At this point you were lost for words. You were confused, angry, stunned.

“Here, take it. It’ll do you good, (Y/N). Is there anything else you n—” Brian began, offering you freshwater to maybe comfort you and make the knot you felt in your throat go away.

“For fuck’s sake!” you felt choleric. Maybe you were about to pass out.

Freddie, John and Roger came in and stopped dead in their tracks when they heard you complain.

Brian blinked a few times.

You were desperate for some time alone to process the last couple of minutes, but that wasn’t any excuse for you to take it out on Brian when all he wanted was for you to get better.

“I’m sorry” you lamented, ashamed at your behaviour, and took the glass not looking at anyone in the eye. That’s when you saw you were indeed shaking a little bit.

He smiled comprehensively, not giving too much attention to your outburst.

“Who the fuck was that?” Freddie wondered.

John elbowed him and mouthed “not now”.

“I’m so embarrassed. I’m sorry you had to witness that” you sighed, choking back the agony.

“Don’t apologize. That piece of shit shouldn’t have treated you like that. He looked mad” Freddie condemned.

Another heavy sigh escaped your mouth when you saw everyone staring intently at you, hating the feeling of their unasked pity.

Roger hadn’t said a word. His muscles were tense, mind way too far from the scene recalling something from the past.

It’d been several weeks since Queen came to stay.

To your surprise you had no complaints. They helped you without hesitation with the housework and kept their rooms tidy. More or less. The only thing you could protest about was that after the sessions it seemed like the studio had been the target of a fateful hurricane.

However, they were too cute to stay mad at for more than ten seconds.

Coming out of your shell was easy because of them. It didn’t take you long to feel comfortable enough to show your true self instead of hiding in your room like you did the first three days.

Reading a book easily kept your mind busy, except now; it was unbearably hot outdoors and indoors. Without taking your eyes off the page, you held the Coca-Cola can against your neck seeking a refreshing sensation.

“Mind if I join?”

You lowered the sunglasses until they were fitted a little bit below the bridge of your nose. The sun was hiding behind a cloud now, making it easier to adjust your vision and get it focused on whoever that was.

A shirtless Roger stood before you, with a towel around his neck that he rushed to spread on the hammock next to yours.

His skin glowing due to the sweat made him look rather tempting.

Your brain lent a helping hand forcing you to smile and nod because you wouldn’t, couldn’t do that yourself.

A small grin tugged at his lips when he noticed your eyes on him longer than usual.

“You’re always studying, angel” he pointed out, lying down and crossing his arms above his head.

You let out a loud sigh you’d been holding in, cheeks red at the pet name he chose. Anytime he’d call you something sweet rather than by your name, it was always how you tended to react.

There was no denying that you’d sort of developed a small crush on him.

Nobody could blame you, though; the same thing would happen to any human being with feelings.

He always treated you as one of them, making sure you didn’t feel left out. His sense of humour was similar to yours, and you appreciated it when he included you in their plans even if he knew you were occupied with Uni and probably wouldn’t be able to join.

Also, he was hot as fuck. You swore you’d never seen a man so beautiful in your life so far.

“I have to if I want to pass my exams”

“Sure, but you’re always studying” he emphasized. “It cannot be healthy”

It couldn’t, but everything was so difficult and you were so lost at some points you thought the world as you knew it could end if you took the smallest break.

“(Y/N)”

“Tell me”

“Seeing you stressed out stresses me” he sat straight, took the book from you and shoved it away. “Fuck this. I suggest you have some fun before the pressure ages you”

“And what do you recommend, ay?” you questioned, crossing your arms across your chest.

“We could play Frisbee”

“Frisbee? Really?”

“Why not? I’m sure you’re not that bad” he teased, getting to his feet.

You faked a laugh and stood up.

“Don’t underestimate my skills”

He used his hand to mimic a mouth talking nonsense, and approached the pool since the frisbee was floating in the water. But he stopped when he felt he stepped on something, proceeding to lift his foot to see what it was.

Roger knelt down and picked a piece of paper up, which said in messy handwriting together with scribbles here and there: You tell me ‘bout your past, thinking your future was me.

His brows cocked in surprise and your eyes widened. You grabbed it out of his hand and held it close to your heart reflexively, as if protecting it. It must have flown out from within the pages of the book when he first threw it away.

Roger watched you curiously, crouched down still, as you breathed slow and deep avoiding eye contact. You could feel your face getting hotter.

He got up with an unnoticeable smile.

“That’s yours? It’s decent”

You waited for something to get out of your mouth, but this time your brain didn’t find a way to help you out, speechless at the fact that he liked it.

“Do you have more? I’d love to hear” he continued, glancing at you.

“Oh, n-no” you forced a laughter. “I don’t”

“I’m glad you’re not as bad as a lyricist as you are as a liar”

You gave him a dirty look and the corners of his eyes crinkled at that. He puppy-eyed you.

“Please?”

“No, Roger”

“We don’t protest when you’re in our recording sessions, you could return the favour”

“Excuse me? You’re in my goddamn house. Watch your tone”

He giggled, fascinated by how cute you turned out to be when poked at.

“What do I have to do for you to say yes?”

“Nothing. It’s not happening”

“(Y/N)!” he pleaded. “I want to hear you sing”

You shook your head.

“And I want to own all the dogs on the planet. Guess we’re both stuck”

Roger groaned in defeat and turned around to get his hands on the frisbee.

For some odd reason, it made your heart dance in your chest knowing he was willing to sit down with you and listen.

A sense of enthusiasm and confidence moved you and shockingly enough you found yourself considering the idea.

Roger gave you a quick head nod.

“Ready?”

You didn’t know what the hell you were doing but you whispered a small “okay”. It couldn’t be that bad, right?

“Take a few steps back first, you’re too close”

You pulled a face at him but quickly shook your head.

“I said I’ll do it”

Roger wasn’t getting it.

“Do w—“ he stopped mid-sentence, his sapphire eyes widening in understanding this wasn’t about playing Frisbee anymore. “Yes!” he took you in his arms and spun you around.

Since he was shirtless you could feel how well built he was. Although he wasn’t the most athletic man out there, apparently drumming on and on was enough to keep him fit.

“Rog, Rog! Enough! I’m feeling dizzy”

You were wearing a mini skirt that had a tiny slit on one of the sides. Seeing it rolled itself up a little you adjusted its length, avoiding any extra space to anyone’s imagination. Too late for Roger though.

When satisfied with how your skirt fitted, you looked up and saw a subtle wink roaming his lips.

“I’m ready when you are” he announced, bending over to grab his shirt and put it on.

At first your legs wouldn’t cooperate.

Roger followed you closely.

He saw you toy with your hair, questioning yourself why you agreed to do this when you weren’t a hundred per cent sure about it. He placed his hands on your shoulders and slowly massaged the back of your neck with his thumbs, relieving some of the pressure.

Every single hair of your body stood on ends.

“Don’t be nervous, love. We can drop it whenever you want” he conceded, tossing an arm around your shoulders.

Opening the door to the studio you felt sick, already regretting your decision.

Roger took a sit on the couch, watching you like you were about to do a mind-blowing performance that’d change the meaning of his life forever.

Feeling like a rat in a laboratory with the doctors waiting to see if the experiment was successful or not, you shifted weight from one foot to the other, discomfort intensifying.

The piercing electric blue of his eyes triggered something in you when they met yours. You didn’t know how but it seemed like he was speaking to you through them, encouraging and imploring you to open up to him.

“Take it easy, (Y/N). It’s not a big deal”

“It is for me”

You sank down on one of the chairs next to the control room, poorly trying to hide how intimidated you were.

“You’re singing, then? Or reading the lyrics out loud?”

“Singing” you muttered. God knows if you went downstairs to pick up your notebook you wouldn’t come back.

A very cheeky expression overtook his face.

“Okay, go ahead” he gestured, rubbing his chin.

You clenched your jaw and snapped your eyes shut. It was easier to do it if you weren’t looking. You’d just imagine it was your grandfather in the room with you instead.

“Time won’t fly, it’s like I’m paralyzed by it I’d like to be my old self again But I’m still trying to find it

After plaid shirt days and nights when you made me your own Now you mail back my things and I walk home alone”

Roger’s fingers fidgeted at the sight of you tucking a piece of hair behind your ear, silently wishing it was him doing it.

He saw how your angelic features relaxed along to every word you sang. When it comes to your voice... He had to remind himself he didn’t die nor was leaving a dream, because it felt like he were in the very gates of heaven.

His breathing quickened, well aware he was witnessing something intimate.

Leaning closer, elbows resting on his knees, he allowed your voice to transport him to the place and time you were describing.

“But you keep my old scarf From that very first week 'Cause it reminds you of innocence And it smells like me You can’t get rid of it

'Cause you remember it all too well”

You swallowed before opening your eyes and speaking.

“There’s more but that’s the part I’m most proud of”

Roger’d fallen silent, his brain on fire.

He seemed to be absent, daydreaming probably.

Your heartbeat could make you go deaf any second, partly because you allowed him to have a peek at your heart partly because you were dying to know if he was any positive about it.

“You sounded like an angel” he stated in the softest voice, working on coming back to his senses.

There was nothing you could do apart from blushing and awkwardly shaking your head, yet on the inside you were saturated with a strong feeling that filled you completely: his opinion was relevant to you and the reaction he had was more than enough.

“You’re exaggerating. Thank you though, for your words. You’re very kind” you said, entwining ankles.

“Is it…” Roger was afraid this would ruin the mood. He decided to give it a shot and solve any doubt. More importantly, he wanted to make sure you were alright.

You weren’t stupid and knew where he was going.

“About Leonardo? Yes. Next question” you explained bitterly cutting him off, and pressed your lips together making an effort to not roll your eyes and appear rude.

He did ruin the mood.

Roger felt bad now.

“I’m sorry. Forget it”

“It’s fine” the flat tone you used before switched to a more delicate one.

It was overwhelming that he cared. He didn’t have to but he cared.

“I experienced something similar. I know how fucked up domestic abuse is” Roger confessed, bowing his head.

Wait, what? He what?

“Rog…” you got up and carefully sat next to him.

It shocked you how quick the atmosphere changed.

“It’s nothing, dear, it was a long time ago. She was… she was crazy” he laughed drily and cleared his throat. “You know what I mean”

“I do not. What you saw when Leonardo showed up was a one-time thing. He was drunk and barely himself, but I’m so terribly sorry you had to go through that”

“Ah, good for you then” he tapped you on the knee with a small smile on his face.

It broke your heart. How could anyone be so goddamn evil? You just couldn’t understand why they were people like that out there, willing to harm others deliberately.

Your mind drifted to Leonardo, did he become one of them?

Glancing at Roger, you hesitantly got closer to rest your cheek against his shoulder, letting him know mutely you were there in case he needed to vent more often. You intended to cuddle for just a few seconds before it turned out weird. That was until he wrapped an arm around you to keep you in position.

“Thank you” he whispered.

It sent shivers down your spine hearing for the first time his voice discreetly cracking up. You weren’t entirely sure about what he was thanking you for, though.

Roger didn’t quite understand why such information slipped out his mouth. Maybe he thought it was appropriate to share it since he contemplated you went through the same thing after what he saw. He just wanted to make sure you knew you could count on him as well.

The boys knew about the matter, obviously, but there was this thing about you he hadn’t figured out just yet that pushed him to speak to you about it.

That’s what his mind was saying, his heart on the other hand defended the idea that he felt comfortable with you and that since he presenced the incident with Leonardo he remembered his experience. Hence the fit of anger he had.

The thought alone of that scumbag hurting you made his head collapse. He was very sensitive about the subject.

“Better?” you wondered out loud after a while of snuggling, yet you didn’t move, finding the proximity significantly pleasant.

“Yeah, uh, sorry” he cleared his throat and released you.

“It’s more than okay”

He nodded, not really looking at you yet.

You tried to think of something that could distract him from those undeserved and heartrending memories.

There was no point of comparison to what Roger had struggled with, but every time you argued with Leo during the year your relationship lasted, you were grateful that your friends organized sporadic plans to help you forget about the fights.

You had to do that for Roger. You had to entertain him. To keep his mind occupied.

“Freddie explained to me drums are much more complicated than what they seem”

Roger glanced over the drumkit.

He was suspicious at first about the topic change, and looked at you from the corner of his eye.

“It can be very ambitious if you don’t do try for real, instead of goofing around. There’s too much going on. People believe it’s just hitting the drums and you’re good. Wankers”

It was unmissable how his face lit up, talking about his passion.

Crossing an ankle over your knee, you bent forward to get a better sight of his much more eased features.

“I’m sure it requires a lot of hard work, the coordination on hands and feet and all that stuff. Singing along as well must be tiring”

Roger’s eyes bored into yours, as if studying and reflecting upon your words. A corner of his mouth lifted.

“Yeah,” he replied amused, “physically it can be tough”

He knew what you were doing.

Just when he was about to ask you if you wanted him to teach you some basics, John came flying through the door.

“For God’s sake, there you are. Roger, I need you. Freddie and Brian are arguing again. Help me out spreading some peace before Freddie slaps him”

****

end of part one, lemme know what you think ! ♡

126 notes · View notes

chubberbaria · 5 years

Text

I spent a lot of time on this and it is over 3.5k words long

I hope y’all enjoy this mess.

Sebastian (black butler) x Baria Stone

It had been quite the while since Ciel had hosted his own party. Sebastian thought it must have been Christmas when they had the last, and he believed it was quite in time for this next one. Ciel had explained to him how it was rather exclusive, containing very important Lords from across the British isles. Sebastian wondered if his other parties weren’t as exclusive, but he hadn’t commented.

This party was rather simple in itself, simply a celebration of achievements. At least, that was how it has been explained to the butler. As well as to the extent of wanting to know and care; Sebastian didn’t particularly care for such trivial Human traits as hosting a party.

So far, Sebastian was bustling around. Making sure everything was up to par, especially with those three dolts making a mess every now and then… With a heavy sigh, Sebastian realized he needed time to relax. Something, or someone, to bring him down to unwind.

His eyes glided across the ballroom, there were so many choices. Of course, tonight Sebastian was feeling rather picky… He didn’t feel the need for any of these paunchy, rich, spoiled humans. A soft grumble formed in his throat as he couldn’t seem to find the one that would fulfill the desire to relax in the pit of his stomach.

That’s when he noticed his own Lord talking to someone… interesting.

The young man his Lord spoke with was well kept, his hair looked like it had been combed down for hours. While his eyes filled with a sort of… naive kindness. Sebastian was enthralled, mostly by the fact that someone could have that glitter in their eyes. What struck Sebastian most though, was how feminine their face was. It looked much like a womans, but it wasn’t a mistake that he was a man. Sebastian found it… Rather mysterious.

He had approached the two, a kind smile on his face. He received quite the same look from the stranger as well.

“Ah, “ His own master said, “Sebastian, quite good of you to arrive. This is Lord Baria Stone, his family helps provide buildings for our manufacturing. “ Ciel had explained.

“A pleasure, this is your butler?” Baria asked, his eyes never wavered.

Sebastian bowed, “The head butler of the house, “ He took the Lord’s hand, softly pecking it. “I am at your service.” He said with a slight smirk.

He noted the blush that tinted Baria’s cheeks from the kiss.

Ciel glared a bit at his strange butler, “Don’t be weird Sebastian, especially since this young man will be boarding here.”

“Oh?”

“Yes, I will be. I wish to be more close to Ciel, so planning the buildings for Funtom projects will be easier… This is at least until I find a proper space to live.”

His smile was light , it filled the room and intoxicated Sebastian. He wasn’t sure what it was, but this human was tying him around his finger.

What Sebastian could hope now, was that he would be able to do the same to Baria.

“Sounds wonderful, Shall I address you as Lord Stone… Or Milord?” Sebastian inquired, standing straight and looking down to Baria. He was only taller by no more than an inch, but he let that inch count for everything.

“Well I am certainly not your lord… Lord Stone will suffice.” He said simply, looking at Ciel who seemed annoyed to no end.

Sebastian nodded, than got shooed away by Ciel. He tried to not look disappointed that he couldn’t take the Lord to bed. But he knew, since he would be staying with them, Sebastian would have more than enough opportunities. He wished to seduce him, and that was just what he planned to do.

Sebastian had to admit, having a second Lord in the house was rather strange. He and the other servants were instructed to “treat him as though he were me” by Ciel. Sebastian understood this, but it wouldn’t stop him from trying to seduce this delicious young lord.

This most recent incident involved Sebastian cleaning a spot from Baria’s jacket, His hands were nimble and quick, but he took his time. Just to sort of size up his prey. His eyes never leaving the Lords. His fingers basically caressed the others chest, Sebastian was surprised to find it was soft. Unlike the rest of his body, which was rather lean.

“You’re so messy, My Lord.” He expressed, His voice low and sultry in order to rouse the Lord.

“I apologize Sebastian, where have my manners gone?” He laughed lightly, looking up to the other slightly.

Sebastian paused, his smirk faltered. How dense was this man?

Another incident occurred when Sebastian was speed walking through the halls, He heard Bard had once again obtained his flame thrower. He was simply too tired to deal with this.... Sebastian was hardly paying attention because of this and it caused him to bump, and fall on top of Baria.

His ruby irises met Baria’s shocked Hazel. He paused just a moment, realizing his hands were on the others surprisingly soft chest. His long legs positioned right between Baria’s equally long legs. He lightly tilted his head at the sight, but smiled.

“Terribly sorry Milord.” He expressed, brushing a few stray chestnut strands from Baria’s face. “I heard our cook accidentally set the kitchen on fire, I simply wasn’t looking where I was going.”

Baria swallowed a bit, ‘I should… um, let you get back to that.” he said, more awkward than flustered.

Sebastian tried to not look surprised but he couldn’t help it, What was wrong with this man? He didn’t seem to care for any of his advances at all… He stifled a huff as he stood and helped Baria up. Brushing him off and offering a smile before continuing on his way.

Usually he had any gender of Human simply falling for him, left or right he was always able to seduce them. He simply could not understand what on earth made this one so different. It made him rather frustrated, he would definitely have to let this out onto Bard. Though he liked the cook (sometimes) it did need to happen.

Today, Sebastian was tagging along with Ciel and Baria for a little shopping day. The two Lords were in need of the latest fashions for winter. Much to Sebastian's surprise, Ciel and Baria got along rather well. The older would often give Ciel advice in area’s he got confused socially. While Ciel always offered the other business advice as well. Sebastian deemed it mostly odd due to Baria’s large sense of empathy that Ciel tended to lack.

In any case, Sebastian stood as the two were at the tailor’s. Ciel went first, while Baria deemed to wait for a private session. Baria was looking at what the shop had, he seemed quite interested in the colorful, more frilly outfits.

What Sebastian thought interesting though, was the way Baria kept glancing at this one particular man.

His greedy eyes would momentarily shift from the clothes he would be looking at, to a man being sized. His stomach was very large, it pressed into his oversized waist band. It hung out at least a foot before him. And his face was generously fat and full as well, Baria had blush dusting his cheeks as he watched the woman size him properly.

A rip was heard, the man had torn his trousers bending over.

He saw Baria gasp softly and bite his lip.

Sebastian narrowed his eyes slightly, his brain processing what had just occurred before him. Did Baria… Have a fetish for larger men?.... His lips lightly lifted into a smirk, this was one interesting development to trying to bed this Lord. He never thought of trying to add weight to seduce someone, usually he had to stay trim and toned. But, after trying to get Baria for almost a week now, this was something he was more than willing to do.

Upon returning home, Sebastian found time to go to his room in private. Standing before his bedside table and staring at the mirror rather hesitantly, he couldn’t simply make himself gain weight in no time… that would be rather suspicious after all. He scratched his chin in thought, Human food tasted quite like ashes to him… but perhaps it would be worth it if it were to add some pounds to his frame.

With a slight sigh he made his way to the kitchen, Bard was prodding out was supposedly dinner. Though Sebastian knew he would have to make it himself, no doubt. What Sebastian was looking for here, was leftovers. Anything saved from meals unfinished. Quite surely, he was able to find these.

“ Hey ‘bastian, whatcha doin’?” Bard asked, placing a hand on his hip as he tilted his head at the raiding demon.

Said thief looked over to the other and smiled, “I’m going through the leftovers, throwing out whatever has gone bad. Why don’t you take the evening off? Check on Finny.’ Sebastian insisted, “I’ll take over for now.”

“Wow really? I’ve been meanin’ to do a few things… Thanks ‘Bastian!” Bard grinned as he left the kitchen.

Sebastian waited until he could no longer hear the others footsteps, He sighed softly and looked at the leftover ham that he had pulled out. He set it on the counter carefully before taking a sliced piece, he examined the way the cold meat glistened in the light. It was so curious, yet he pondered how it could be a delicacy.

He took a full bite of it, of course he knew it had no flavour to it. He sighed but swallowed the thing, this was going to be a very daunting task. With out knowing if would even work was risky as well. But all Sebastian could think of was Lord Baria beneath him, his shirt askew, hair a mess, and his eyes misty with the lust only meant for a demon. Perhaps he could even make him gasp the way he did for that overweight man…

This motivation allowed Sebastian to take another bite, just as big as the last. Even though the ham had no flavour in his mouth, he did his best to replace the taste with what he imagined Baria to taste like. The man usually smelled of flowers, this was from the fact he was always in the garden. Sebastian wondered if he would be sweet, maybe even a delicacy. Another bite, another slice of ham to devour.

He allowed his canines to turn to fangs so he could eat the meat faster, What did Baria sound like when in bed? Would he be loud enough for his master to hear? He wondered if Baria was also dominative in bed, or if he would simply submit to Sebastian's will. The mystery was making the man go mad, it was also making him eat much faster.

5 slices of ham, and now Sebastian could feel the tightness in his three layered uniform. His stomach pressed against his collared shirt. The layers made it fairly hard to tell he was bloated though. Thankfully, Sebastian could eat all he wanted. Human food couldn’t sate a demons hunger after all.

He grunted as he ate more and more, indulging in the thought of Baria Stone and pushing to get to a size that would make the Lord flustered. To see his cheeks stark red, to watch him fumble over his words and lust over the demon. Sebastian could feel the tightness increases as the ham finished, and he moved on to whatever else he could find in the ice box.

The leftovers soon decreased, less and less of the turkey from yesterday night, no more of the dessert that left uneaten, absolutely nothing from the cream of corn that was abandoned. Sebastian ate all of it, licking spare crumbs from his gloves as he also began to cook as well.

He let out a faint hiccups now, moving around with a full stomach was trying on his human body. Though he didn’t feel full, it definitely was full. He looked down, the roundness of his stomach was a lot more noticeable now. His buttons seemed a tad more strained, and it definitely had that soft shape to it. Sebastian smiled at the sight, perhaps this would be what Baria would want.

As Sebastian ate and baked, he began to get more bloated. His buttons more strained, and his stomach pushed out even more. He groaned slightly as he found it was actually slowing him down. This foolish flesh vessel… No matter. He would simply make do with what he had. Sebastian belched, covering his mouth in surprise as he had never done anything like that before now.

He felt a tingle down his spine, his Master was growing impatient for the food.

With a slight groan, Sebastian took the food to the dining area. Walking carefully as his balance was now completely off with this huge stomach full of food waddling in front of him. It lightly bounced and wobbled. But was rather stuffed, making the surface taut and hard.

He sighed heavily, after the table was set he called onto dinner for the two Lords. Standing on the right hand side of where Ciel would sit. He watched as they entered, Ciel looked annoyed while Baria smiled as usual.

He also watched as Baria’s eyes widened at the sight of Sebastian.

“It’s about time you got this ready… We’ve been waiting ages!” Ciel snapped, stomping to his spot and sitting. He looked over to Sebastian and frowned, “Have… Have you been eating?” He asked, his finger prodded Sebastian's stomach.

While Ciel examined his now bloated butler, Sebastian watched Baria’s reactions. His cheeks colored a rather pinkish red, his eyes glued to the way Ciel was poking him, and his mouth seeming to be very dry as he was already drinking the water that was offered.

“I was simply clearing out the leftovers My Lord.” Sebastian explained, Ciel gave him a look.

“The- “ Ciel sighed, ‘We will discuss this later, you idiot.” He said, obviously angry because he was hungry.

Sebastian just smirked, he had gotten the reaction he wanted from the dearest Baria. He was flustered by Sebastian. This was the incentive he needed, But he felt that he knew he wasn’t nearly big enough. He would have to get bigger for him.

Sebastians days now were filled with snacks, eating in between tasks, indulging when running errands, all the while Ciel was very confused by what his butler was doing. Sebastian felt excitement rise in his chest as he got bigger, the food he ate added fat to his frame. He felt amusement and joy seeing Baria’s red face as he walked past, his clothes got tighter and tighter by the day. He couldn’t help but feel Baria’s longing gaze on himself.

Sebastian was at a rather hefty size now, he could feel his thighs rub against each other no matter what he did. His stomach would jostle and jiggle with every movement he made, even his chest was pushing into his clothes. He looked a lot like an overstuffed bear, about to burst out his clothes. Ciel had stopped commenting on it a while ago, mostly because he had privately asked Sebastian and since he couldn’t lie to his master he had to explain.

Ciel being the age he was, of course was disgusted and hadn’t wanted to know about this at all. Once he learned he decided to ignore and, chose to forget it to save his friendship with Lord Stone. Sebastian was rather grateful for this, since he didn’t want Ciel to make him stop.

Today was a repeat of another incident, the same one where he fell on top of Baria. But this time Baria was on top of Sebastian, It seemed the Lord wasn’t looking at where he was going as he ran across the foyer. Now he was propped on the butlers stomach, his hands placed on either side of Sebastian's head as his face was buried in his chest. Sebastian could feel the heat emitting off the Lord, as well as a little problem prodding at Sebastians stomach as well.

“S-Sebastian!” he stammered terribly as he lifted his head up, “I-I’m so sorry I… I shouldn’t have been running indoors-”

Sebastian set a finger against the others lips, “No need to apologize… It feels like you’re excited to see me.’ he says amused.

Baria gasped, his mouth left agape as he couldn’t find the words to respond.

“Let me take you to my room.” He whispered softly, picking Baria up easily.

With Baria positioned on his stomach, he easily swept the man away to his chambers. A smirk on his lips as he finally had what he wanted, this man… This man that he had been thirsting for weeks. He was all his, finally. Baria gasped as he was pushed into the bed, his hazel eyes wide and misty, just as Sebastian had envisioned.

“What a sweet face.” He said softly, stroking the Lords cheek. Baria bit his lip, Sebastian was over top of him, his fat stomach brushing against Baria’s flat one. “Glad to see you finally admire me back.” he crooned.

“I-I… You…” his mouth simply stammered, his face was red much like a tomato. Sebastian chuckled at the fact he could barely even speak.

“How adorable.” he mused, sitting up on top of his mate. “What do you think? I feel like I should be bursting out of this outfit quite soon~”

Sebastian arched his back, filling Baria’s view with his fat belly. It pressed against the many layers he wore and he could see the buttons strain awfully, they begged to break off but the pressure wasn’t great enough quite yet.

Baria swallowed around the dryness of his throat, His pants looked rather wet as he shuddered. Moving his hands o actually feel Sebastian.

“Your clothes… their rather constricted…” he said in a hushed tone, his eyes lidded as he looked back up at Sebastian. “You wish to… Burst them off?” he asked.

Sebastian hummed, rubbing his own belly. “If it will make you yell for my name, than whatever you wish, My Lord.’ he husked.

Without a care, Sebastian snapped his fingers. Beside the bed, a cart appeared. Baria looked shocked at the magical act, and then confused at the contraption that was on top of it. The object seemed to be a giant pot with a pump, Baria had no clue what it could be for. Than, realised as he watched Sebastian take the hose and place it into his own maw.

With the flick of a switch, the machine began to whir. Pumping whatever substance was inside into Sebastian, Baria moaned a bit as the effects were felt right away. Sebastian was filling up quickly, becoming heavier on top of Baria. He could feel and watch as his stomach got bigger and bigger with each pump. Each gulp caused his stomach to bob and expand further.

He felt so heavy, and Baria was so wet because of it. His eyes screwed shut and he felt the pleasure just course through him. A moan came out nice and loud as Sebastian's stomach burst from his clothes, the buttons splayed every which way as his belly flowed out and onto Baria, the tip of his lower belly brushing Baria’s cheek.

Baria himself arched his back sweetly, his skin crawled and he was in so much pleasure as the demon got fatter and fatter on top of him.

“G-Gods…. God….” Baria panted as his hands feverishly groped the man, his stomach covered his thighs and bounced before Baria’s eyes. He grunted and struggled to sit up more properly, Sebastia pushed him down though, removing the pump to lay on top of him.

“Is something the matter Kitten?” he husked, his belly pressed into Baria rather harshly, completely crushing him at this point.

“H-Heavy!” He managed, looking at the other, he wrapped his arms around Sebastian. “V-Very heavy…” He murmured.

Sebastian chuckled, pushing up so he could breathe. “Now, Lord Baria, shall I pleasure you?” He asked.

“W-What?... I…” Baria swallowed hard, “N-No I… No I don’t want to.” he said, Sebastian blinked.

He.

He said No?

“Still?!” Sebastian retorted, sounding rather fed up and angry about this. “What have I got to do… It would have been easier to take one of those idiotioc humans rather than you! Why won’t you have sex with me?” He asked, feeling exasperated by this all.

“Ask me to dinner, talk to me… More than just a Lord and a butler.’ Baria said sheepishly, sitting up as Sebastian sat on the other side of the bed, causing it to sink. “I need to know a person before I want to have sex with them.”

Sebastian studied Baria, He of course, being a demon knew that he shouldn’t have an emotional bond with anyone. Could he even *have* an emotional bond? All he knew was the 7 sins that he always craved, he had wanted the pleasure from Baria so desperately. Being rejected again… it was something quite new to him.

Baria looked at him rather confused, but Sebastian sighed, waving his hand across the others face to put him to sleep. He could always find another human, and that would just be what he would have to do at this rate. His eyes wandered back to the sleeping Lords… His eye lashes were very long. His skin like ivory, glistening in the moonlight. He sighed heavily, not understanding his own feelings at all. Sebastian stood, he would begin working this off tomorrow. And perhaps get the idea of being with a human like Baria out of his mind.

(Part 2?? Maybe??????)

#My fics #this is a mess #kill me lmao #its kink but also plot and drama cause thats how it be sometimes

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figchn · 4 years

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CHAPTER 3

Back at Your Own Backyard AGAIN

continued from Chapter 2

It was dusk when Puri woke up. The buzzing of the cicadas outside her window had grown into a chorus, and the light of the late afternoon cast on the room a dull blue glow. An overwhelming sense of melancholy washed over the room, and she found the need to stretch her stiff joints until her toes reached the frayed edges of the straw mat she had been lying on.

Jumping to her feet, she hurried out the backdoor in hopes of catching the last rays of daylight. Puri stood still as her eyes adjusted to the glow of the late sun shining on the distant fields. A deep voice jolted her fully awake.

“Oh, you’ve gotten up.”

Her father Hernando noticed her from a bench under the mango tree where he sat smoking with one leg up. He was a farmer like most men in their town. The hours of labor under the sun showed on the deep tan of his face and the fine lines that already never quite left his face. His eyes drooped around their corners which gave his otherwise tough face a touch of something gentle. Puri thought he looked sadder and darker than usual today.

Still feeling groggy, she could only nod back.

“Are you sure you’re fine? Do you need me to take you to the doctor?”

“No. I’m fine now. I just feel strange waking up at home,” she looked around. “Where’s grandma by the way?”

“She went out to buy some more food after I got home. We weren’t expecting you so early in the week to be honest. And what do you know? You come back here unconscious, wet and muddy. Good thing you didn’t travel home from Manila alone this time and that my mother was home when you arrived.”

Puri almost corrected him but caught her tongue in time. The happenings of that morning still seemed unreal and she was convinced for some moments that she had dreamt it all up.

“Your grandmother told me this expensively dressed fellow brought you in. Say, you haven’t been around strange men in the capital, have you?”, he said slowly.

She remembered Milyong’s lanky figure dressed in his all black outfit that was twenty years out of fashion.

“Oh, that boy! He was just some understudy from mother’s acting troupe.”, said Puri almost too loudly. “She felt bad for not being able to go home with me so she asked him to accompany me.”

She thanked the dark for hiding her face that now felt a little flushed.

“You know how actors are. They’re all a bit ...odd.”

“I can’t argue with that,” he laughed, and then more softly, “How is your mother by the way?”

“She’s doing alright,” Puri found herself lying again.

The truth was she had not seen her mother Pacencia in months. They lived in different districts of the capital which was not all too big of a city but both had been very busy. Puri had focused on her “fashion school” studies near the suburbs where she also boarded while her mother had been living her life in the downtown entertainment district. They had only met during the whole semester once a month at most when pacing would drop by the boarding house and treat Puri to lunch.

Her mother had been the village beauty when she was younger and had basked in the attention of strangers. Her grandmother, a vendor at the local market, saw this as an opportunity and took her mother to the Manila sarsuwela as soon as she had finished elementary school. There, it seemed like her road to stardom was set, in a few years, but then she had Puri with her hometown sweetheart.

Puri’s father thought it would be happily ever after when they married at nineteen, but after a few years, her mother grew restless at home. Despite all the ill-gossip she knew it would bring and did bring her way, her mother returned to the stage. Her father had been against it, at first, but he knew Pacing well, and did not try to stop her especially after her first visit home with one of her bright smiles he had last seen when Puri was born.

Pacencia’s career did not recover from the long absence. Younger talents easily filled the niche etc etc and she found herself taking smaller and smaller roles until she started spending more time backstage where she took interest on and eventually learned makeup. To this craft, she threw herself with much gusto too and she found herself busy again with the rise of bodabil shows. Through all this, she would diligently send part of her salary back home, and eventually, too, the nosy neighbors stopped gossiping about Pacing and started pitying her husband instead who was making less than her.

Puri would often wonder when she was younger how her mother’s life could have been if she hadn’t been conceived so early. On some days, she wished she had at least inherited all her mother’s looks so she could have had a chance at being an actress and fulfilling her dreams by proxy. But Puri’s face, although small like her mother’s, did not have the same dainty features and instead took after the hardness of her father’s.

“Father, are you crying again?”

Puri walked over and sat beside Hernando who put up his forearm clumsily against his face to hide his tears.

“It’s my house and I can do what I want”, he mumbled. “I know she’s busy and I shouldn’t complain but I just miss her so much.”

“And Mother misses you too”

“It’s hard to feel that shes does sometimes when she barely even writes anymore.”

“Oh, Father, don’t say that.” Puri could do nothing but awkwardly pat her father’s back. She did not like to think about it either and put it into words but she felt the same way too more frequently than she would like to admit.

“Looks like life is treating her kindly with the suitcase full of clothes she sent back with you. They all look really expensive.”

She had almost forgotten about the suitcase Faustina had given her. Puri excused herself and ran over to the back of the house where she found the clothes soaking in a basin. Seeing that they had not been muddied at all, she let out a sigh of relief.

After breakfast the next day, Puri set out to hang the clothes right away. There were five Western style dress and two whole sets of terno in all and she could see they were of good quality. Besides the cuts of the dresses which now looked outdated by a few years, one could hardly tell they were hand-me-downs. The colors had not faded at all and Puri suspected they had not been used all that much.

She briefly considered returning them, but thought that returning a gift would probably be seen as rude. They also seemed too small for Faustina who was some inches taller, but then all of them fit her own frame awkwardly, and that, of course, would simply not do. Puri, struck with inspiration, embroiled in her new project and shut herself in the house with her sewing machine for the whole week. By the end of it, the dresses not only fit her perfectly but looked flashier than ever with her added embellishments.

That Sunday, she decided to wear one of her new alterations. The dress was a deep emerald green shade to which she had sewn on some beadwork and a black fringed overskirt she had cut out off one of the other dresses. After brushing off her grandmother’s uninvited comments about her get-up, Puri smiled satisfied at the wardrobe mirror as she watched the dress twirl with her.

The whole family ended up making it to the town church just in time and so had to stay standing at the back. Hernando felt a bit grateful for this because he found the dress a bit too much for Mass like Grandma did even if he would never admit it to his daughter.

When the service was over, Puri stayed by the doorway while her father completed his weekly rosary which Puri could only guess was for her mother’s return home. It was when the crowd exiting the building had thinned out that she spotted the Fajardo siblings leaving the pew that probably bore their family name. Overcome with a sense of guilt over the perfectly good dresses she had cut up and pasted together like a collage, Puri slowly turned her head, and then her body, to face the blank wall behind her. Too late -- Faustina had already caught her eye and she could hear the click-clack of her heels as she headed towards her direction.

Puri trembled in fear.

“Puri, is that you, dear?”, chirped Faustina.

“Unfortunately, yes.”

“And is that ...one of the dresses I gave you the other day?”

Puri turned around to offer her sincerest apologies for butchering them, but was cut off before she could even blurt out a single word.

“What a genius idea! It’s not really something I’d pick out to wear on a Sunday myself but those two dresses together look fabulous. Why, I would’ve never guessed. Say, did you do it yourself?”

“I- yes. And thank you.”

Puri blushed at the compliment.

“Oh fancy meeting you here”

Fabian had suddenly joined them and he looked exactly the same as when she had first seen him-- 70% legs dressed in all white. He smiled at them expectantly.

“So ....is she joining us for lunch at the Tayson house?”, he asked Faustina.

Puri was suddenly reminded of the existence of one Maximiliano Tayson. She still had not thanked him for bringing her in when she had passed out. And it made her curious, if not a little embarrassed, imagining how on earth he managed to do it with his lanky frame and sickly appearance.

“Could you believe Milyong still hasn’t recovered?”, asked Fabian whose permanent smile carried over to his speech.

“You mean he is”, Puri gulped as her mouth went dry, “....sick?”

“Oh, it’s nothing to worry about. That day we asked him to take you home, he caught a simple cold after getting a little, how do you say, wet, in the rain”, said Faustina.

“Yeah, that guy can be really clumsy. We didn’t ask because he gets cranky easily, you would know, but he looked like he slipped into some puddle because he came back with mud all over him. Good thing he was wearing black, eh?”, Fabian chuckled

“Er… yes… that’s what probably happened”, Puri faked a chuckle.

“I have to go now. Have a blessed Sunday ahead. And thank you for the dresses.”

Puri, with her heart dropping and black tassels sashaying, strode out the door of the church where her father, kneeling in one of the back pews, remained contemplating the Third Glorious Mystery.

#IHtBY #unfeatured #story

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echodrops · 6 years

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The Promises I Made (2017-2018)

For the past eleven years, I have spent every New Year’s Eve compiling a list of fifty promises I intend to keep or fulfill over the next twelve months. The results have been truly amazing, and I have kept some promises I never thought I could. This year, for New Year’s, there will be a new set of promises for to me keep, but here are the old ones, for review!

The Promises I Made (2017 edition)

1) I will get a(nother) new job. Or probably just curl up and die. Status: Kept! I got a new job and moved to Texas. 2) I will translate at least one more month’s worth of Regenkatze. Status: Broken. T_T I did a few pages, but I didn’t get far. 3) I will repot all my plants that need repotting. Finally. Status: Kept, amazingly. 4) I will buy actual freakin’ curtains that I like for my house, RAWR. Status: Broken. I bought no curtains this year. D; 5) I will continue to utilize Plant Nanny to track my water intake and keep myself from getting dehydrated. Status: Broken. I was okay at the beginning of the year, but then the usage dwindled. 6) I will complete at least one craft project that requires me to utilize a new skill, like working with a new material. Status: Broken. I didn’t do anything really crafty this year… too busy moving. 7) I will repair the mortar on the fence out front and seal the bricks on the window sills. Status: Broken—ditto the above. Moved out and wasn’t able to really keep any of these promises about my Utah house. 8) I will finish at least 26 books over the course of this year. Status: …I read a lot of fanfiction. A lot. But not too many new published books. Made it to maybe ten counting the readings I had to do for World Lit class but other than that, nothing close to 26. 9) I will trim the grape vine and call the city to see about cleaning out behind the house because the water culvert is flooding into my yard and jeopardizing my garage. Status: Actually kept! It needs to be trimmed again, but yes, I was able to trim it down and keep it from flooding. 10) I will successfully pass Horsemanship II. Status: Kept. 11) I will broaden my music tastes this year by getting into at least three new bands that I have never heard of or in genres that I don’t normally listen to. Status: Kept! I got into a few new K-pop bands and also Spellblast. 12) I will do the laundry at least once every two weeks. I swear it!! Status: Uh… Somewhat kept? At the new house in Texas I have to wear nicer clothes to work so I have to do laundry more often, but I don’t know about at least once every two weeks… 13) I will finish my new Anime Expo costume early and not wait until the last moment! Status: Broken—I didn’t cosplay at all this year. D; 14) I will remove all the rocks from in front of my house because they are hella ugly. Status: Broken; see above about moving out of Utah and no longer being able to work on the Utah house much. 15) I will go to a dentist and get Invisalign or some work done to fix my front left tooth. Status: Broken. I swapped jobs and had to wait for my benefits to restart and then by that time it wasn’t a good time to get dental work done. 16) I will have at least a once weekly “game night” with my roommates. Could be fun. Status: Broken… I think that um… we played a few times. 17) I will replace the battery in my watch, finally. Status: Kept! 18) I will pay off at least half my credit card debt. Important adult thing, yo. Status: Broken, sooooo broken. T_T It just got worse, not better. D; 19) I will learn at least 100 new words in German and document them as I go to keep them fresh in my memory. Status: Broken. I totally forgot that I even made this promise… 20) I will keep up with my new book club as long as it is possible for me to attend (I.e., if I don’t move). Status: Kept. The book club kinda fell apart pretty quick, but I kept up with it until it did. 21) I will be better about walking my dog because I have been slacking lately. Status: Broken, I’m so sorry Kinguin… It’s sooo hot in Texas. 22) I will build a new PC to replace the desktop computer that my dog destroyed. SLFSFJNDFG. Still angry. Status: Broken. Moving sapped all my money away, so I could not afford a new PC. T_T 23) I will get the scratched lenses removed from my glasses and change the prescription on the orange pair of glasses too. Status: Broken. See the above deal with the new benefits not kicking in for 90+ days.

24) Also: I will get my black glasses fixed so that they stop FALLING OFF and flying into the every nearby rock and sharp pointy object… Status: Broken. T_T

25) I will obtain at least one six-star hero in Tales of Link. Don’t look at me like that. Status: Broken—I haven’t played Tales of Link in months. @_@

26) I will design at least ten outfits and post them. (I’m still trying with this one, dammit.) Status: Broken. …I guess I should probably just give up on this one…

27) I will organize my closets, especially the hall closet which looks like a bomb went off. Status: Broken. I moved out of my Utah house which did involve cleaning out the closets, but um… the closets at the new house might be just as bad now…

28) I will actually utilize the stupid Paint Tool Sai that I paid for. At least three fully colored artworks this year. Status: Broken. I was able to draw nothingggg this year. T_T

29) I will level all my battle classes to 70 in Stormblood. Status: Surprisingly broken. I wasn’t able to play much at all after July so my time for leveling just plummeted.

30) I will reach 700 followers on tumblr. You should follow me. I’m only marginally a waste of time and space. Status: Kept! I have 861 followers right now! Thanks everyone for the follows! :D

31) I will learn to make a new (delicious) cocktail or two. Status: Broken. I drank a new delicious cocktail but I didn’t make any myself.

32) I will lose ten pounds. Status: Somewhat kept? I don’t think I made it to a full 10 pounds but I did noticeably lose some weight.

33) I will reach at least 300 species on my birding life list. Status: Kept! I’m at 306 currently, thanks to making to Texas and seeing a bunch of new birdies. 34) I will win NaNoWriMo this year. (But pretend that I didn’t, to not disrupt my blue-purple-blue-purple NaNo site pattern. XDD) Status: Broken. I didn’t even get to like 5,000 words. T_T 35) I will obtain the Astrope mount in FFXIV. Status: HA. I think I’m at like 200/1000 for mentor roulettes. Broken. 36) I will see at least one new bird species in the wild that is not native to the United States. Status: Hmmm, not sure what I was thinking about for this one, but I did not succeed.

37) I will put a storm door on the side door of my house because water is leaking in (due to lack of said screen door) and causing damage! Status: Gonna count this as somewhat kept because I did try to get a storm door installed, but they wanted to charge me $300 just to install the door and I didn’t have the money at the time. But I did fix the gap beneath the door so that it no longer leaks.

38) I will visit Nicaragua. Status: Broken. T_T I had the chance but things were so bad at work I didn’t want to blow my vacation in case I needed it… And I did end up needing it, so things worked out.

39) I will water my plants more consistently and take better care of them—to the point where the one orchid that hasn’t bloomed in years will bloom again! Status: Uh… somewhat kept? Namely, I moved and left my plants in Utah, but they’re being taken care of by others so they’re alive at least still.

40) I will write at least four new chapters of my Voltron fic. Status: Kept!

41) I will get duct work done to bring heat to the downstairs bathroom and side bedroom. Status: Broken… But we did get a bigger heater for the downstairs so at least it was warmer down there this year.

42) I will update my calendar with important dates—holidays, birthdays, etc.—and be productive about sending cards and well-wishes. Status: Uh… broken. I forgot I made this promise too.

43) I will complete my series of posts about Yato/Hiyori. Really. Status: T_______T One day. One day. Broken. 44) I will pamper myself more—spa day at least once a month! Status: Somewhat kept? Maybe like barely kept. I was good at this for the first couple months, but then it tapered off. 45) I will visit my out-of-town friends more often and make better efforts to stay in more frequent contact. Status: I think I’ll mark this as kept. I visited more people this year, anyway, including @rachelwritesstories! 46) I will make sure the lawn stays decently mowed this year instead of being embarrassingly tall and weedy. Status: Hrm… Somewhat broken/somewhat kept? I did move, but apparently the lawn has been at least somewhat consistently mowed since I’ve been gone. 47) I will do some work on my laundry room to make it look less like a dungeon. Status: Broken. The dungeon persists. 48) I will revise TVR, especially the early chapters, and move it to AO3. Status: Broken. I got like maybe 1/3 of the way through revising the first chapter. Um… maybe in time for KH3 or something? :C

49) I will get an electric tree trimmer to make trimming my trees out front much easier. Status: Kept.

50) I will keep these promises. Status: Mostly broken. T_T

Totals Kept promises: 12 Broken promises: 31 Somewhat kept/broken promises: 7

Jesus, I thought I was glad to see the back-side of 2016… 2016 had nothing on the roller coaster of a year that 2017 was. What a literal dumpster fire. While politics and the environment went haywire around me, my job situation grew untenable again (ooh, but hilarious karma—just last month they fired the shitty boss and REHIRED my old awesome boss… Except of course by then I had already, you know, quit and moved across the country to pursue a whole new career field… Well, c’est la vie!) and I ended up packing up everything and completely changing my life once again…

In just the last two years I’ve swapped career fields twice and randomly packed up and moved to Texas of all places. I experienced the drama of prepping for a hurricane and also got to see it snow in Mexico. Life’s weird.

Looking back on these promises, I honestly don’t feel too bad that so many of them were broken this year. I really had no idea what was going to happen in 2017 when I made last year’s promises, and so a lot of the goals ended up not matching up with my reality in the end. At the end of the day though, I feel like I’m in a much better place today than I was at the end of 2016.

I don’t think 2018 is going to be easy, but I do think it is going to be better, and that’s a good feeling to have. Let’s do this! The new set of promises will be up by tomorrow.

#50 promises #new year's resolutions #new year #thank god #good-fuckin-bye 2017 #you will not be missed #IRL stuff

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stillthewordgirl · 7 years

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LOT/CC fic: The Badge

Sara Lance "lifted" a badge off a nameless Time Agent. But...what if it was more than that? Pure CaptainCanary wish fulfillment; you have been warned. Spoilers for the third-season premiere.

Dedicated to the CC fandom; you're awesome, and I love you guys.

Many thanks to @larielromeniel for the beta. Can also be read here at AO3 and here at FF.net.

"He may have left his badge at my place. … All right. Maybe I lifted it off him in the morning."

The closing shift sucks.

And retail sucks, Sara Lance thinks wearily as she walks up the steps to her apartment at 10:19 on a Friday night after a long, long shift of housewares no one needs, annoying customers and clueless coworkers. And this night sucks, and life sucks, and...

And someone's in her apartment.

Sara frowns at the door, where the thread she'd left draped this morning is now missing, trying not to think too much about the rush of pleasure she gets at the notion of a little action of any sort, even if it's just kicking the crap out of an intruder

"OK, asshole," she mutters under her breath, easing open the door and moving warily inside. "You're now a stress-relief toy. You picked the wrong former assassin to mess with today."

She quietly lowers her bag to the floor, then moves across the tiny kitchen, pausing just outside the living room, listening.

She can hear someone breathing. Even, calm breaths, unstressed. Tall, probably a man, just inside and to the left, by the bookcase.

OK, either a true nonprofessional who's unreasonably confident, or someone who wants her to know they're there. For a moment, she wonders about the latter…but anyone she can think of would know better than to not identify themselves. And if they don't, well…she's in a bad mood. They have it coming.

And with that thought, she springs through the doorway.

In seconds, Sara has the intruder on the floor, her knee in the center of his chest, a knife at his throat and it's... it's...

It's Leonard-goddamn-Snart.

Sara backpedals so fast she's across the room before she knows it, her back against the wall, knife still in her hand, staring, speechless and stunned, at the intruder.

Snart cranes his head to look at her from where he's still prone on the carpet.

"Hello, Sara," the dead man says.

"Wha..." She shakes her head, tightening her hand around the knife, feeling it press into her palm. "I'm dreaming."

That actually gets her a faint huff of amusement.

"No. You know, I'm not supposed to be here," he tells her conversationally, rolling smoothly onto his side and propping his head on his arm, still sprawled on her living room floor and looking too damned sexy doing so. "But when have I ever listened to Rip?"

"Rip knows?" She's going to kill him. "Wait a minute. Back up. You're…you."

"He's the one who pulled me out of the timestream." Leonard, eyeing her cautiously, finally sits up in one of those altogether too-smooth motions that are just so…him. "Who else would I be?"

"I…" Sara sits down, hard, on the floor just across from him. "Timestream? The Vanishing Point blew up. You died." She decides, for the moment, to leave the Legion out of it.

"Except I didn't." He gives her a look from beneath those damned eyelashes. "Apparently I was stuck in the timestream. I don't remember anything, though, until Hunter pulled me out when he was setting up his new little playground's system."

She wants to believe. "Prove it."

The smirk says he's unsurprised. He props an elbow on his knee and rest his chin on a fist, regarding her. "Gin," he says after a moment. "Russia. Alexa." A pause. "Hell of a thief."

A sigh escapes her, almost involuntarily. It's him. It's him, and he's back, and …

Rip knew.

"That rat bastard," she says numbly, staring at him. "He didn't tell us."

Snart shrugs, keeping his eyes on hers. "In his defense—and you know Hunter and I don't usually get along—apparently there's something to do with the timeline at play," he drawls. "Said I couldn't go back to Central City or the Waverider. Not yet. Of course, maybe he just wanted me to work for him."

Sara laughs—then realizes he's looking semi-serious.

"You're working for him?" she says incredulously, scooting forward. "At the Time Bureau? You're kidding me." She gives him a once-over. Same all-black outfit, right down to the leather jacket, although…yes, that's a Time Bureau badge hanging from his belt. "You don't match the dress code."

"I was bored." A tiny smile hovers around his mouth. "And I'd say it's more 'working with.' I don't work for anyone but myself."

"Oh, I bet that's going well." How quickly they fall back into the banter…

He shrugs. "It's amusing. They go by the rules there, but I will say ol' Rip, he does appreciate results. So he's willing to let me plan things if I stay out of sight and don't mess up whatever he thinks I'm going to mess up." Another smirk. "The agents, though, they don't like me."

She can't help but smile at the idea of it, but the memory of derision wipes the smile away. "They don't like us either."

There's bitterness in her tone. She knows it; can't help it.

Leonard tilts his head, and she knows he's heard it.

"Yeah, well, I just found out," he says quietly. "They keep me out of the way, and I've been all too busy engaging in … freelance projects…to fight that. Didn't even know they had the Waverider." He shrugs. "I don't think Hunter wanted me to know, probably because he knew I'd do…this."

He waves a hand, encompassing her and the apartment, and Sara finds herself smiling again, sitting there on the floor staring at an impossible crook, even though she's bored out of her mind and hates her job and…

"What," she says, trying for humor again, "visit me?"

Leonard gives her one of those looks again. "Something like," he agrees in a low tone, and suddenly she's remembering all too clearly what'd happened the last time she'd seen this Leonard, and the kiss and "me and you" and…

She could lean right over and kiss him again, she realizes suddenly. And she wants…

But what she wants isn't the only thing that matters.

"Mick needs to know," she says, climbing to her feet abruptly. "He took it hard. When you died…didn't die…you know what I mean. I can call…"

"Don't." Leonard rises to his feet in what she'd almost call a scramble, so much so that he nearly falls- although, catlike, he immediately pretends he'd meant to do that. He takes a step closer as Sara stares at him.

"I shouldn't even be here." He huffs out an impatient breath and glances away, then back. "Not yet. I don't know what I could mess up. But I heard what happened and that Hunter was his rat-bastard self to you and I wanted to...I wanted to..."

"To what?" Sara asks tentatively after he's silent a moment.

After another moment, he seems to make a decision, nodding to himself and then turning the full regard of those blue eyes on her again.

"To see," he says quietly, taking a step closer, "if you wanted to pick up where we left off."

He's close enough now that she can feel the warmth of him, always a surprise for one with such a chilly persona. But he'd abandoned that façade with her long ago, and she can see it now in his eyes, direct and questioning, almost uncertain. She remembers the Vanishing Point, the explosions around them, the adrenaline and the grief when she'd realized what he was doing, the taste of his lips, the tears on her cheeks...

But it's been more than a year. She's a different person. She's not sure how different he is, too.

"Cards and booze?" she asks lightly, turning toward the kitchen. "Bitching about Rip? I could do that. What do you want to drink?"

After a moment, she hears a chuckle behind her, then he follows. "Why not? Whadda you have?"

Not long after, they're sprawled in the living room, Leonard with scotch, Sara with a beer, cards arrayed between them. Sara can feel herself relaxing as they play, tension draining from her shoulders in a way she hasn't felt since she was last on the Waverider. Which is odd, she reflects, taking a sip, but, well, there it is.

"Tell me," she says, studying him. "Tell me about what happened. What you've been doing."

Leonard keeps his eyes on his cards another few moments, then shrugs, discarding one and looking back up at her. "Well. I remember..." His eyes drift to her lips, then away. "...I remember telling the Time Bastards off. Then...boom. Blue light." He shrugs again. "And nothing. Not until I found myself flat on the floor of Hunter's Office-Space-wannabe set up, with Hunter himself lecturing me about...something." He smirks. "I didn't really listen."

Sara snorts. "And when was that?" she asks, discarding a card.

" 'Bout a year ago, for me. I'm told it was more for him and less for you." He sets his cards down and holds up his hands in defense when she starts to retort. "I know. I don't get it either. This timey-wimey stuff gives me a headache."

"Hmmm. And you've actually been working for...with them?" She can't keep the skepticism off her face and he sees it, smirking at her again.

"Let's just say that ol' Rip has a practical side. And I have very useful talents."

"Ah. He wanted you to steal something for him."

Leonard points at her. "Bingo. All that tech, they didn't make it from scratch. It's from all over time and space." The man looks downright smug as Sara shakes her head. "He told me what to get; I made the plans and pulled off the heists. Along with a few other trinkets, of course."

"Of course." Sara stares at him another moment, then glances away.

"You know he was going to fire us?" she asks, looking at her cards. "Did he tell you his little project was going to replace us?"

Leonard's quiet and when she finally looks back up, he gives his head one vehement shake.

"No," he says, so forcefully she can't help but believe it. "I got back from National City in 2166 with a new gadget and found out not only that they'd seen you, but that...that happened." A very...Cold...expression crosses his face as she watches. "We had words."

It's wrong, Sara supposes, but the anger on his face warms her. It's always nice when someone stands up for you.

"Didya punch him for me?" she asks whimsically, taking a drink. "Tell me you did."

He blinks...and the shadow is gone, and the smirk is back. Leonard picks up a card and eyes her. "Nah," he drawls, leaning back against the wall. "But I did ignore him and come here, soon as I'd tracked you down. How'd you get the new identity, anyway?"

"Cisco Ramon." She smiles as he groans. "Come on, you know he does good work."

"I suppose." He lifts an eyebrow at her. "My gun still on the ship?"

The reminder sobers her, reminds her of standing in the cargo bay, staring at the gun in its case after...

"I don't know," she says finally, loathe to tell him what Ray had done. "Mick might have it. But we didn't get much time. It might still be on the ship."

"Hmm." He gives her a considering look. "Gonna take it back?"

"The ship?" Sara blinks at him. "How?"

"Come on." Leonard shakes his head at her mock-disapprovingly. "After everything I've heard about what you did after...after the Vanishing Point?" Another one of those looks through lowered lashes. "Heard you're captain now."

"I was." It's too much, all of a sudden, and Sara throws her cards down, climbing to her feet. "Why're you here, Snart? Really? To rub it in? Why don't you go find Mick and start messing with the Flash again, pick up where you left off?"

Leonard doesn't budge, but continues to watch her.

"Just saying," he says quietly, looking up at her, "the Sara I knew wouldn't have taken that quite so easily."

"Well, maybe I'm not the Sara you knew." Sara tries to stare him down, but finds she can't quite meet his eyes. Instead, she turns away, cursing the fact that her eyes are burning

Behind her, she hears him rise, taking a step or two toward her. Sara folds her arms and takes a deep breath, wanting to tell him to go. And also to tell him to stay. And...

"Sorry," he says after a moment. "Didn't mean to be a jerk again."

The words make her scoff. "Again? Don't you mean 'still?'"

"Still. Again." Another step and he's right behind her. She can feel the warmth again. "Bet you were a much better captain than Hunter."

Sara sighs. "Why're you here, Leonard?" she repeats quietly, turning to face him. "It's good to see you. I'm glad you're alive. But..." She studies his face, the serious expression in those blue eyes, remembering so much about those first five months. "...I don't know if I'm what you're looking for. Not anymore."

The twist of his mouth speaks less of snark, for once, than self-deprecation. "I have a hard time believing would ever be the case," he informs her, then continues before she can respond. "Honestly...I thought maybe you could use...a hell of a thief."

Sara closes her eyes at the words, breathing in the feel of him standing right there, the warmth, the scent of leather and mint, and acknowledges desire.

"You gonna steal a kiss, Leonard?" she whispers, opening her eyes and looking into his.

His mouth twists again. "Actually, I was thinking about helping you steal the Waverider," he admits, but continues before she can draw back. "But..."

And then she's being pulled forward and quite thoroughly kissed by a hell of a thief, and she's kissing him back, and...

And maybe this night doesn't suck quite so much, after all.

In the morning, Sara rises only to cross over to where she'd left her phone and call into work. Her boss isn't amused, but she doesn't particularly care, returning to bed and the arms of a crook who's managed to steal all the covers. Again.

"So, why is it again that you can't let the others know?" she asks, pillowing her head on his outstretched arm and reaching up to trail her fingers down the line of stubble on his jaw. "Because they really should. Especially if we...do what you think we should do...I'd hate having to keep that secret."

Len regards her through his lashes again, a look that makes her want to roll over and kiss the small smirk off his face.

"Hunter seems to think it could jeopardize something in the future. He actually let it slip that I could probably clue you in, just not the others, but seemed to think it was a bad idea." He lets his eyes drift slowly over her, then looks back to her face, smiling. "Maybe 'cause of this."

Sara snorts. "He thought you were gonna get lucky? Really? 'Cause I don't think anyone could have predicted that."

Despite her words, though, she lets a hand drift down his chest, then slightly lower, and his smirk-smile falters, just a little. (Sara's, however, grows.)

"Still," she continues, "since you're here. You might as well…"

He moves quickly, pinning her to the bed as she laughs, and it's really a damned good thing she's called in.

Because she's going to appreciate this, and him, just as long as she can.

Later, late enough that it may or may not be called morning any more, Leonard's in the bathroom when Sara, retrieving her clothing from where it's strewn across the floor, finds his Time Bureau badge lying a few feet away from his jeans, discarded in the doorway to the bedroom.

She picks it up, staring at the logo and the black stripe where it's meant to be scanned, and wonders…

"Maybe you're a hell of a thief too."

Startled—something that doesn't happen very often—Sara drops the badge, glancing up to see Leonard, nothing but a towel around his hips, watching her from the bathroom door.

"Maybe you managed to lift my badge off me," he continues quietly, eyes holding hers. "Maybe I didn't notice until it was too late."

It's unmistakable, what he's suggesting, but…

"I don't know," she says, watching him in return. "Maybe it's best if I don't."

The noise Leonard makes shows just what he thinks of that idea. He crosses to her, stoops to pick up the badge, and holds it out to her again.

"Just in case," he says.

Sara studies him a moment longer…then takes it, their fingers brushing as she does.

"And you?" she asks. "Won't they know?"

That gets her a smirk. "Eh. I'll have an excuse. They don't much expect reliability from the crook." He hesitates just a second, then drops the towel and starts to dress, quickly and efficiently. Sara settles onto the bed to watch, appreciating the view, badge still folded in her fingers.

"How long?" she asks as he pulls his shirt on, and he doesn't pretend not to understand, pausing as he reaches for his jacket.

"Not sure," he says finally. "Hunter seems to think it's not that far away, but he could just be saying that to keep me from telling him to fuck off. Not that I haven't considered doing that anyway, but…" He gives her a small but unmistakable smile. "Let's just say that I'd rather see this future he tells me I'd be jeopardizing."

Sara resists the temptation to ask. Instead, she rises and pads over to him, stopping very near and going up on her toes to kiss him again. Leonard lifts his hands and settles them at her waist, and for a moment, they just stand there, two thieves stealing just a little more time before their paths separate once more.

"But come back one of these days and get me, OK?" he says into her hair, tone at odds with the seriousness of the moment. "I don't know how much longer I can take it."

Sara doesn't bother to argue with his expectation that she'll be leaving. They both know it's true.

"I promise," she says instead, "…crook."

"Thank you…captain."

#captain canary #the badge #sara lance #leonard snart #legends of tomorrow

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jolienjoyswriting · 7 years

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The Wished-For Child, Ch. II

Chapter II of The Wished-For Child, an Essence of Ragnarok story.

So, again, DeviantArt screwed me on that 65KB size limit. But, you know what? When life hands you lemons, you make the most delicious dang lemon mirange ever. And so, the story has officially become split.

Also, just tossing this out there again: This used to be called – and is still the lead-in to – "Lost and Found" and is not a new story.

Word count: 4,637 – Character count: 26,820 Originally written: November 4th, 2015 Revised, retitled, and split: August 1st, 2017

Life goes on for a creator and his creation. Until…

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The next morning, Doctor Lewis was up bright and early. He stumbled out of his room, dressed in pajamas, and made his way into the living room. “Marie…?” he quietly called. “In the kitchen, Doctor!” Marie called back, keeping a quiet tone, herself. As the doctor walked into the kitchen, the smell of eggs and cheese slipped into his nostrils. He’d felt his stomach rumble, then. “Good morning, Marie…” the doctor said as he sat at the kitchen table. “I see you’re already making breakfast…” “I figured I would get an early start so it would be ready for you!” She smiled over her shoulder to the doctor. “I see you’re wearing your maid uniform again…” he murmured. “You know, you don’t have to wear that if you don’t want…” “Oh, I don’t mind it. I know it makes you happy to see me in cute outfits and, honestly? I’m kind of fond of it, myself.” “Oh…” The doctor gave a nod. “Alright.”

“I brought the newspaper in for you,” Marie continued. “I’ve also poured you a glass of milk to go with your steak omelet.” “Steak?” The doctor blinked. “I have steak…?” “It might be a little old. I found it well in the back of your freezer,” she said with a chuckle. “Still, I figured after all the trouble I’d caused yesterday, you deserved something nice.” “Oh. That’s… that’s very thoughtful of you, Marie… Thank– thank you.” “I was created to make you happy, Doctor. I wouldn’t be fulfilling my directives if I did anything else!” The girl giggled a little before flipping and continuing to cook the omelet. After a couple more minutes, she slid it on to a plate with some toast, bringing it to her creator.

“Listen, Marie…” the doctor said, looking up. “About yesterday…” “What about yesterday?” the girl said, brightly smiling as she joined him at the table. The doctor tilted his head. Something seemed odd… “I… really liked how you looked in that other outfit…” he cautiously said. “Me, too!” Marie giggled. “I just wish that lynx hadn’t, though…” “Well… what’s done is done, I guess. Consider it in the past.” “Done-and-done, Doctor!” He felt a little suspicious at her response… Had she forgotten what he’d done – or tried to do – the previous day? Ultimately, he decided not to press her.

“So, Doctor…” the girl said a few moments later. “What’s on the schedule for today?” “I want to work in the lab…” he said. “And, I’d like you to help me.” Marie brightly smiled. “I’d love to!” “Good, good… I… have another outfit for you. For working in the lab…” “Am I going to like it?” “I think you’re going to love it…” The android emitted a gleeful squeal and smiled all the more as Doctor Lewis chuckled to himself… He then finished breakfast and retreated to his bedroom, preparing for the day.

“Greetings, Doctor!” the android cheered as he walked into the lab several minutes later. “Hello, Marie.” Doctor Lewis had his arms behind his back as he walked in. “Are you ready for your lab assistant’s outfit? “Yes, Doctor!” She beamed. “I’m really excited!” “Alright… Close your eyes and hold out your arms.” The chipper girl continued to smile as she did as instructed. A moment later, she felt something fall draped across her arms. She wanted to peek… but, she kept herself in-check, waiting for her creator to tell her… “You can open your eyes, now.” She deeply inhaled, practically tingling with excitement, then did so. When she saw what she was holding, though… she was perplexed.

In her arms was what appeared to be a shiny, full-body suit with a zipper that ran from the neck to the belly. It was roughly the same shade of blue as her hair, though the underarms and leggings seemed to be made of a black, cotton-like fabric. The feet were made of that same material, as well, but had red pieces around the toes, heels, and the hardened soles.

“Do you like it?” the doctor asked. “I… don’t know what to say,” Marie answered honestly, politely smiling. “Really?” Doctor Lewis tilted his head. “I thought you would like it. It offers maximum flexibility. It’s also not real likely to get caught on things since it’s a one-piece uniform.” “That’s… true…” Marie’s smile remained, though she sounded unsure. “Thank you.” “By the way, Marie?” “Yes?” The doctor smiled. “I’m only kidding. You don’t have to wear that.” “You were kidding?” Marie tilted her own head. “Are you sure? Because… I’ll wear it if you want! I’m sure it fits quite well and would work a charm as a work suit.” “Actually, your real outfit is hanging over there on the other side of the workbench.” She blinked before walking over to the workbench, recognizing it as the one where she’d been activated. As she looked around the side, she saw a much different outfit hanging there.

Sitting on a standard, plastic hanger was what looked to be a pair of normal, everyday overalls made of blue denim. On top of that was a simple shirt, green in color. A pair of black work boots sat below the clothes. For some reason… that made the girl far happier. “Oh! Thank you, Doctor!” Marie brightly smiled to the doctor before walking over and hugging him. “I’ll go get changed right away!” With that, she took both outfits and left the room, leaving the doctor to start on whatever project he’d had in mind. A couple of minutes after she’d left, the lab door opened again. “Welcome ba–” The doctor blinked, staring at Marie as she walked up to him. “What?” she asked with a grin. Marie had returned, wearing the overalls and work boots… but, rather than put on the t-shirt, she’d chosen to wear the noticeably skin-tight, full-body suit underneath. “N… nothing,” the doctor said a moment later. “You’re just… full of surprises.” The girl giggled and the doctor chuckled. The two then went to work on his projects. –––––

After the rough start they’d had, Marie and her creator eventually fell into what one might call a routine. Every morning, he would wake up to be greeted by breakfast and a paper, then they’d go about their daily business. Some days, they’d work in the lab, either tinkering with something new or bettering an old project. Some days, Marie focused on housework while the doctor did his thing. And, some days… they did very little. Regardless of what they did or when, one thing was clear: They were becoming more-and-more comfortable with each other… and, the more comfortable the doctor became around his creation, the more freedom he allowed for her. Eventually, he’d lifted the travel restrictions he’d placed on her second day. That allowed her to join him on trips to town – or even go in by herself, should she need something. Of course, unless they were going somewhere fancy, she generally dressed down – usually sticking to her overalls and shirt – to keep from drawing too much attention, again. It was kind of a relief to not have so many eyes on her… though, in some strange way, she felt a little ignored since no one really paid much attention to her. Still, it was for the best, she figured.

All and all, life was really good for the doctor and his creator. He’d gotten his assistant and friend all-in-one and she’d made a good friend, herself. Just like he’d hoped, he had someone to talk about current events with, as well as his projects. Sometimes, they even talked about the future. On that topic, however, Marie only had one thing to say… “I see myself staying by your side for as long as you’ll let it, doctor. You know that!” It was kind of reassuring, hearing that. Even if Marie had wanted to leave the house for personal reasons… she’d be drawn back by her programming and she would never know any better… because, she would never question it. She really was the perfect little servant… Perhaps… too perfect.

“Doctor,” Marie said on a random day, “you should drink less. It can’t be good for you.” “You don’t tell me what to do!” the doctor shouted with a slur. “I’m your creator, not the other way around! I’m gonna tell you want to do!” “I’m just worried about you…” She gave a reassuring smile. “You need to be at your best for the investors next week. Plus, you have that new contract from Calypso Industries. You really shouldn’t be drunk or hung over while you work… That won’t be good for your productivity or your reputation. You know?” “I know, Sarah… I know…” “S… Sarah?” The android blinked. “Who’s Sarah?” “You’re Sarah…” The doctor pointed his flask toward her with a swish. He then paused… “No, you’re not Sarah… Sarah never supported me like you do…” “Is… or was… she a friend of yours?” “Something like that…” She patiently smiled again. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, Doctor…” “Good. I don’t wanna talk about that conniving woman, anyway…” He gave an odd smile to the android. “You’re twelve times the woman Sarah was, Marie. And, you listen…” “Of course I listen!” She smiled again. “Why wouldn’t I?” “Then, listen to this… Direct command: Take off your clothes…”

“I-I’m sorry?” The android blinked again… but, whether by command or because she’d wanted to… she did as instructed, removing every piece of clothing she was wearing. “Direct command… get on the table…” She didn’t like where the doctor was taking things… but, again, she did as instructed. “Direct command…”

The doctor put his flask into his pocket before climbing up on to the table. He shimmied himself up on top of her naked body and gave her neck a couple of kisses… Much to the android’s confusion, however… he collapsed shortly and started to snore. After a moment, she gave a soft sigh before slipping out from under him and putting her clothes back on. The android then picked her creator up and took him to his room, tucking him into his bed and kissing his forehead.

As usual, the doctor tried to refer back to the previous day only for Marie to sidestep him with something else that happened, causing him to drop the topic altogether. And… such was the darker side of their friendship… He’s such a lonely guy… she thought to herself after one such occasion. Maybe I should find a girlfriend for him. I wish I could love him, but… I’m just a robot… He needs someone who will love him back because they want to… not because he tells them to… But, such was their relationship… and had been for almost a year. Some would call it questionable… possibly even abusive… but, Marie remained unwaveringly loyal to him, knowing he never meant any harm.

“Marie?” One day, the android heard her creator call. She stopped cleaning the living room and looked toward the front door. The doctor was standing there, waving her over. “How may I help you, Doctor?” “That shipment of cogs and sprockets arrived…” He angrily looked to one side. “Those idiot beast-men… They were supposed to move the crates into the lab but they just left them outside! Are they too stupid to realize what rain does to untreated metal?!” A crack of thunder punctuated the noise of a solid downpour… but, Marie just smiled. “I can help move them! Let me go get changed and–” “There’s no time for that,” he interrupted. “I don’t know if those crates are waterproof and like I said, water and untreated metal don’t mix.” “Oh… But…” The girl looked to her maid outfit. “My dress…” “I’m pretty sure that’s waterproof. Come on…” The two walked back toward the lab, much to Marie’s chagrin. Her dress was soaking up water like a sponge in the rainy weather, making it darken and lose its bounce…

“Here are the crates, Marie.” The doctor gestured to two large, heavy-looking crates stacked on top of each other. “If you would, please hurry and bring those inside through the cargo door…” “It shouldn’t be a problem, Doctor!” “Great…” The doctor opened the large, sliding door. “I’ll be inside if you need me.” And with that, he walked back inside.

I really wish he’d given me a chance to change into something more appropriate… Marie thought as she grabbed the top crate, hugging it against her frame. That body suit he got for me would be perfect! It really seems water-resistant. She gave a mental shrug as she slowly hauled the crate inside, setting it down on top of a similar-looking crate of parts. A moment later, she walked back outside and, with some difficulty, retrieved the second crate. This one is even heavier than the last! she said, straining a little to keep hold of it. Who knew cogs and sprockets weighed this much? Even slower than before, she trudged herself into the lab’s cargo area. Once again, she decided to stack the crate on top of another, stretching up on her toes to get it properly balanced. Just a little more… she thought, sticking her tongue out and nudging the box. The android moved to one side, trying to get a better grasp… but, as she did… “Whoa!” She’d ended up slipping on some of the water that had dripped off her dress! Before she could right herself, she ended up on her back with a dull thud. Ow… I told him that– oh, no! Somehow, she’d managed to hit the stack on the way down and… the box she was trying to adjust was teetering. “Don’t fall… please don’t fall… please don’t– aiieee!!”

“Marie…?!” A loud crash and a clatter of metal had caught the doctor’s attention. He ran into the cargo area immediately and found a half-broken box laying on top of a pile of cogs. He felt himself anger… only to look on in horror shortly after. Under the pile of cogs, he could see an arm sticking out, draped in powder-blue cloth. “Marie…!” “I’m fine…” a muffled voice called from underneath the crate and junk. “Just tell me one thing, Doctor…” “M… Marie?” “Which way is up?” “Oh, Marie…”

The doctor walked over and began to push parts out of the way, Marie doing much the same from under the pile. Before long, she was unburied from her scrap part prison. However… “What? What is it, Doctor?” Doctor Lewis had gasped, staring at his creation with a look of shock on his face. “I’m alright. See?” She got to her feet and waved her right arm at the doctor. “Um… wait… Why can’t I feel my left arm?” Slowly, she looked to her left. She then gasped when she noticed… “M-my dress!” The doctor blinked. The girl’s dress was indeed torn at the arm, but… “Marie… your… your arm…” “What about my– oh. Ooohh…” The two looked down at the pile of parts. That cloth-covered arm that had been sticking out from before… was still there. And, it was clearly no longer attached to the android.

“Beeeh…!” The doctor looked back to his creation, giving a blink. She was scowling horribly and her eyes were tearing up. “Marie? Are you–” “My… my dress…! My beautiful maid’s dress…! I… I broke it!” Doctor Lewis blinked again as the android started to cry. “I’m so sorry, Doctor Lewis…!! I… I’ll fix it, I promise! Please, don’t be mad or sad! Let me patch up my dress and– oh! Bu-but… let me grab a… a bucket, or a box, and clean up this mess I made, first! A-and then I’ll fix this dress you gave me and–” “Marie!” The doctor grabbed her by the shoulders, giving her a shake. “Stop!” “I’m s-s-sorry, doctor! Please don’t be mad! It was an accident–” “You idiot!” he said, causing her to wince. “I don’t care about the dress or the sprockets! I just care about you!” “W… what?” She blinked her moistened eyes. “M-me? But, I’m fine… aren’t I?” “You’re missing an arm…” the doctor said as he leaned back. “And, you have a massive dent in your cranium… Didn’t you notice?” “What?” She looked to her detached arm again. She then reached up and felt her head. “Why… no. I don’t guess I had. I was just scared about making a mess and ruining my dress…” “That’s not a good sign…” Doctor Lewis crossed his arms. “I made you with some rudimentary pain receptors so you’d be aware of when something was amiss… but, if you didn’t even notice your arm was missing or your head was partly concaved…” “Maybe the dent in my head has something to do with that?” “M-maybe…” The doctor jolted then. “Marie, what’s your energy reading?” “My what? Oh, it’s…” She paused for a moment. “89%. No, 88%. 87%? Wait, now it went to 88% again… No wait, that’s a six… 85%…” “D-direct command!” he sharply exclaimed. “Get to the lab immediately, lay on the main workbench, and initiate a power-down of all functions except for vocal, auditory, and visual functions! End command.” “Should I grab my ar–” “Now!” The girl gave a jolt and did as she was told, running up the ramp and into the main lab. The doctor followed after a minute, carrying the girl’s arm in his hands.

“Doctor Lewis?” the android called. “You’ll be happy to know my power is stable at 77%, now. But, um… I can’t move. I can’t blink, either. I’m not even moving my mouth, I don’t think… But, that’s because of the direct command, right?” “Right,” the doctor said. “Listen… I’m going to power you all the way down, alright?” The girl’s eyes twitched. “Can’t you fix my arm while I watch? I could keep you company and give you someone to talk to!” “Normally, I’d say ‘yes…’ but, if you’re not feeling pain…” He hesitated. “Plus, I want to see if I can fix your head. If not…” “If not?” The girl’s eyes were fixed on her creator’s. “If not…” He looked down. “It’s okay, doctor… Cheerful smile,” she said, emoting what she couldn’t do at the time. “I’m just a robot, after all. If worse came to worse, you could always just make another me!” The doctor paused for several moments, as if pondering her words…

“Direct command, Marie. Full power-down. End command…” “Shutting down.” Marie’s eyes turned blank. A second later, she softly whispered, her voice quieting to near-silence, “See you in a bit…” The doctor set the android’s loose arm on her body before he emitted a long sigh… “With any luck, Marie…” he replied. “With any luck…”

After a few minutes, the doctor had hooked his creation into his mainframe and began running a few tests on her. The first test told him what he already knew – Marie’s left arm was disabled but she was otherwise mostly functional. The second test, however, told him what he’d feared… The concussion had damaged her synthetic nervous system, preventing her from feeling pain. He knew it wouldn’t be an easy fix… but, he could do it. He had to… He couldn’t… wouldn’t disappoint her! She was too important, to him…

The third and fourth tests told him that her programming, memory, and other related data was still perfectly intact and functional. However, as he read those results… he began to think. I wonder if it would be possible to tinker with her parameters while she’s under… The thought was nothing new to him. Though frequently helpful, Marie had grown to become something of a busybody, with him… If he could come up with some sort of secondary directive for her… one that made her less attached at the hip to him… Well, now is as good a time as any, I guess.

And so, the doctor opened her core programming in the mainframe and line-by-line, began to read and examine it, trying to find the ideal place to start and, after what felt much longer than two hours, the doctor had found what he was looking for. Shortly after, he began to modify the code, adding this, removing that, altering bits-and-pieces of the code to his liking. By the time another hour had passed, he’d finally gotten something he could work with.

This is a good start, he thought, but, I should really copy this on to a removable source and run some tests on my small computer. If I mess something up… The doctor looked at the deactivated robot on his workbench. I can’t let that happen. I can’t screw this up. With that thought in mind, he gave the command for his mainframe to begin transferring her code over to his smaller computer. He knew the process would take a while… but, it was worth it to him. Not only because it would get her off his back a little… but, it would give her a little more leeway with her programming, as well.

A loud crack of thunder presented itself, reminding the doctor that the storm was still hovering overhead. Ignoring it, he just shrugged and continued watching data transfer from Marie to his other computer through the mainframe. I’m more than halfway done, he thought. I’m not going to let something like a– Another crack of thunder could be heard, sounding off like a warning to the doctor… I… should stop the transfer, he reconsidered. I can’t afford to lose my work, n– But, before he could finish that thought, one last crack, significantly louder than the first two, nearly deafened the doctor! His entire lab vibrated from the force. But, as startling as that was… nothing was quite a startling as the lights dimming and sparking out.

The doctor blinked as the lights came back on in the lab a minute later. Almost immediately, he looked to the mainframe terminal. No, no… It was in the process of booting back up. No, no, no…! Once it booted, he immediately went into the diagnostics mode. No-no-no-no…! The tests ran one-by-one on Marie and… quickly found his fears confirmed. No! Nooo!!

All testing proved negative. No response from motor systems… no response from the programming or memory… no response from any of her systems. Were she a human being… she’d be considered clinically dead, according to his readout systems.

“No!!” the doctor said, punching his computer and denting the case. “You stupid piece of junk!! Why…? Why…?! Why did this happen?!” He immediately reached for his flask, unscrewing the cap to take a drink. Before he could, though, he found a distraction. “You…!” he growled, glaring up at the ceiling. “This is all your fault! Ivy! Sky! You jealous false gods!! Just because I follow the practices of Ash over you two idiots… you decided to take the one thing that mattered most from me! That’s it, isn’t it… Well, are you happy, now? Huh? Are you?!” There was an unsettling silence… Another moment later, the doctor screamed and hurled his flask into the ceiling, accidentally smashing one of the fluorescent lights.

“Ash…” the doctor said, falling to his knees. “I’m not much of a holy man… but, I promise, if you bring back my creation… bring back my Marie… I’ll do everything within my power to follow your lessons more closely. I’ll stop drinking… I’ll stop using your name in vain… I’ll… I’ll even ease off the furry frea– um… the hybrids your Ivy created. Just please… give me a sign… anything… that my poor, sweet Marie can be returned to me in one piece…” There was no thunder… not even any rain. There was nothing but dead silence as Doctor Lewis waited for a response… But unfortunately for him… he never got one.

Marie was gone.

“This… this isn’t happening…!” The doctor got to his feet and started smashing electronics, throwing spare parts, punching and kicking the mainframe… doing anything he could to ease the pain he was feeling. “There’s… no reason for me to keep inventing if all that work can be erased so easily…” He started to laugh. “All my hard work… all the effort I put into her…” He laughed more, tears streaming down his cheeks. “Gone, literally in a flash of lightning… All because I wanted to make her better…” He lowered his head, putting his bruised and battered hands over his face. “Why do I try? Why bother? What… what do I even make things for…?!”

Another hour passed before the doctor made his way out the cargo door of his lab. He was carrying his android’s lifeless body over one shoulder and a bottle of hard liquor in the other. “I don’t want you around anymore, Marie,” he told the body as he swayed his way toward his truck. “Too many bad memories… Too much hydraulic fluid on my hands, ya know?” Doctor Lewis callously threw her body and detached arm into the back of his pick-up truck and grinned. Though it was raining again, it did little to hide his tears. “I can’t have any trace of my biggest mistake hanging around if I want to get any work done…” he muttered before taking a heavy swig of his drink. “It’s just not done… Have to get rid of those outfits, too… Don’t need people asking questions, heh heh heh… But, first thing’s first…” The intoxicated doctor climbed into the cab of his truck and turned in on. “Let’s get rid of this body!”

Throwing caution to the wind, the doctor backed out of his property and spun around, driving away from the woods and into town. Though he wasn’t speeding, he was certainly driving erratically, quick to pass by traffic and swerving here-and-there as he went. It didn’t help that the rain seemed to be come down harder the closer he got to town… “By Ash…” he hiccuped. “Can’t see a damn thing… Where’re the headlights on this blasted vehicle…” As he fumbled for the headlights, a noise caught his attention. He wasn’t sure, but it sounded like… a horn? A big horn… He looked up just in time to see… “Gaaah-aah!!” The front end of a cargo truck slam into the front of his pickup.

Whether lucky or not, the bigger truck managed to miss hitting him head-on, propelling his vehicle violently through the air instead. As it landed back on the road, it spun counterclockwise on its side several times and caused several vehicles to screech on the wet road to avoid it. When the truck stopped spinning, the doctor climbed out of his vehicle, shouting and yelling various profane words at the cargo driver, convinced he had the right of way. Unfortunately, the truck driver, several witnesses, and most importantly… the police officer who arrested him all disagreed. The accident had made the 5 o’clock news and Doctor Lewis was not only fined by the city for the incident… but, he lost his contract with Calypso Industries. Despite all that, one thing seemed to the purview of everyone involved… –––––

“C… Carlos! Hey, Carlos, get your tail over here! I think you might wanna see this…!”

The gray wolf jogged back to where his feline friend was. He grumbled as he looked to where his friend was pointing… then found himself speechless. Partly obscured by some clinging shrubbery was a face that was all too familiar to him…

“Carlos…?” Dylan looked up at his friend. He looked like he’d seen a ghost… “Dylan… I… it’s her… That’s… that’s…” “Sure looks that way,” the feline commented. “It can’t be, though… can it?” “It has to be…” Carlos said, kneeling down and examining her face. “It’s Ellis.”

#fiction #Essence of Ragnarok #Year 2041 #Year 2042 #Wished-For Child #original characters #Xander Lewis #Marie #slice of life #drama

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