#... actually both would be funny because I want to see nancy's reaction to all of this

[texasdreamer01]

#his family ABSOLUTELY think ronon is his boyfriend too kfhlkahgd (x)

The hits keep coming "Outcast"

[balkanradfem]

So I wrote about my fun with fall chores, but left out another important aspect of my life; losing my mind without laptop or internet. Even though I'm usually not online a lot, I would at least have all my nancy drew games, stardew valley, and a whole lot of podcasts and audiobooks to listen to at my disposal. Now, nothing.

I had a song stuck in my head and couldn't listen to it. It was devastating. Then I remembered, my ancient little phone actually could function as a radio, if I put headphones in. And the song I wanted, sometimes played on the radio. So off I went to listen to the radio!

Radio music is awful and horrible. I fail to understand how anyone can listen to so many aggressively heterosexual songs. I was dying by the time Chappell Roan came on. At one point, I kid you not, Blurred lines played! I yelled and shut down the radio and then continued yelling. In 2024???

It took me a day to realize that my phone actually had a record button. Which meant I could record music and then just have it permanently saved on it. I was both delighted and hit with nostalgia. I haven't pirated a song by recording it from the radio in 20 years. I remember doing it on my cassette player as a kid! And now my phone had the pre-installed ancient piracy tool. They used to make such good stuff.

I had to listen to radio for 2 days to get my two lesbian songs and to finally get the song stuck in my head (it was Too Sweet. I'm basic shut up). I made a playlist and called it gay and was finally free from the radio. Even though wanting to listen to a song and then waiting for 2 days for it to come on on the radio is such a pre-internet struggle, the joy when it finally came on was incredible. I was squealing jumping woooing laughing. It was almost like a quest in a video game; the more effort it takes, the stronger the satisfaction. 

I realized how isolated and small I felt without the internet, just listening to the radio. Every person I know here is heterosexual, and I found myself cut off from community, it became difficult to feel normal. Listening to a lesbian song on the radio was all I had; I knew other gay people were listening, it was a joint activity. I wasn't all alone.

I sometimes wonder if the straight people are hearing it and if they understand what its about. I remember when 'Take me to church' played in the car, I would scan everyone's faces carefully, to see if they understood, if they agreed, if they knew that was anti homophobia playing on the radio. But there was never a reaction. I would then remember that most people here don't speak english, and even if they understood a few words, they don't bother to understand a song from the radio. It's fully possible they're listening 'Hot to go' imagining its a heterosexual song, regardless of how funny that is. Imagine a woman writing a song to get a guy to sleep with her. In what world. 

Looking back, most of my internet endeavors were about finding gay stuff online, first it was gay anime, then fanfiction, and then I got drawn to tumblr in the era where gayness was celebrated and strongly encouraged. I felt safe here! And that was all before I even knew I was a lesbian. And now I wonder, is it endlessly painful and unsurvivable to be a lone gay person without any community? If I waited two days next to a radio to get a gay song, if I used any access to information just to find the writings and media made by gay people, it must be vital like the air to me. When I'm here I feel normal only because I'm exposed to the thoughts and feelings of other gay people, and I know you're reading mine. Without you I'd be lost.

[booksandabeer]

Last trailer you saw: Materialists. I was—am still (?)—looking forward to this, but uhm...look, I don't think anyone in this particular corner of tumblr would enjoy hearing my honest thoughts about it, so I'll politely remain silent. //

i am actually very interested in hearing your thoughts about it!

from the trailer it looks like a standard romcom with a love triangle, which i’m not really into. the last movie from the director also featured a love triangle and while i haven’t watched it yet, it’s supposedly very very good and heartfelt. so i’m holding out hope that materialists has a new take on the genre

Hi Stranger,

I have to say I was very amused by the response my one slightly salty sentence provoked. You are by no means the only person who commented, sent an ask, or dm'ed me. You're all very, very nosy people! ;D

I was…perplexed by this trailer and the reactions to it. I was and still am looking forward to the movie because I very much enjoyed Celine Song’s Past Lives, so it brings me no joy to say that I found this trailer really disappointing in multiple ways. I’ll put this under a keep reading because I also have no desire to rain on anybody’s parade. If you liked the trailer, then I’m genuinely happy for you and hope the movie will be everything you want it to be, but if you don’t want me to harsh your buzz, maybe just keep scrolling.

So, by popular demand, here we go:

First of all, let me preface this by saying that—obviously—I have not seen this movie and so everything I’m about to say is based on the impression I got from a two-minute trailer, which may very well have been edited in a deliberately misleading way (GOD I hope so) to disguise what will ultimately be a much more interesting and unconventional plot than what we got to see so far.

But. Taking the trailer as is… Well. While watching it, I basically went through five stages of What The Fuck.

Excitement.

Let me repeat: I loved Past Lives, so I was very happy to hear that not only was Celine Song teaming up with A24 again, but that it would be a romantic comedy?drama?dramedy? starring Pedro Pascal and Chris Evans—two actors I have a lot of affection for. I will honestly admit that the Dakota Johnson casting put a bit of a damper on my excitement because I simply cannot with the dead-eyed, apathetic (non-)energy she brings to everything, which I believe is supposed to tell us that she’s one of them laid-back cool girls (or in a less generous interpretation: hiding a complete lack of talent to actually emote), but to me only reads as heavily sedated and bored. Still, I was very hopeful that this could be a good film—great even! Celine! A24! Pedro! Chris! Shot on location in NYC! Produced by the legendary Christine Vachon! What could possibly go wrong?                                

2. Amusement.

Well. within the first ten seconds we get confirmation that, no, Dakota Johnson really cannot act her way out of a paper bag. The line delivery, the body language—the way she speaks and moves in that very first scene, it’s like she’s never seen a human being before. I’m sorry, but it’s beyond wooden. It’s just…really bad acting. But since this was exactly what I expected I was honestly more amused than annoyed. The other thing that made me literally cackle? The way they tried to Just Some Guy-ify Chris Evans is so half-assed, it winds up being funny again. I realize that meeting someone who is just a regular dude but still looks Like That is part of the whole fantasy here, but come on. Put a little effort in. Just because you put him in some loose clothes and give him an unfortunate hairstyle doesn’t change the fact that he still looks like Chris Evans—a very attractive man who clearly works out at least six times a week.

3. Confusion

Okay, confession time: The traditional Nancy Myers (and to a lesser extent Nora Ephron) style romcom—both aesthetically, tonally, and narratively—is not a genre of film that I particularly vibe with. The sets, the characters, the romances—it’s all very beige. That's not to say that I find myself incapable of objectively appreciating well-made examples of these types of productions. But this? It looks, not ugly exactly, but very generic and therefore very unappealing. Which is funny, because everything here is so obviously a Myers/Ephron pastiche and yet it comes across as wholly uninspired. My hope is that this is intentional, at least to a certain extent, and that Song will do something more interesting with this White Rich People aesthetic, that goes beyond simple imitation and cinematic nostalgia.

4. Disbelief.

Speaking of imitation. With every second of this trailer I could feel my face fall a little more and my shoulders rise up around my ears higher and higher because I could not believe what was unfolding before my eyes. I still don’t truly believe that Song is going to give us a what this trailer heavily suggests—an incredibly stale, formulaic rom com in which “the girl” gets swept off her feet by the charming, sophisticated rich guy, who tempts her with a life of luxury before she inevitably ends up with the poor, but kind-hearted (ex-boy)friend from her past, who has nothing to offer her but himself and his pure, undistracted, bordering-on-worship kind of love. (Also, his abs of steel for which he never has to work out or keep a strict diet, of course.)

Deep sigh. Again, I do so fervently hope that Song will deliver something much more original and subversive. Not to speculate about her artistic interests and preferences and how they are or aren’t rooted in or a reflection of her private life and her marriage, but I think it is valid to point out that both she and her husband Justin Kuritzke are (screen)writers who have repeatedly explored non-monogamous/poly-adjacent relationships in their work—specifically triads (Past Lives, Challengers, Materialists, hell even Kuritzke’s play The Sensuality Party is about curiously evenly divided group sex between three men and three women). So, I guess, what I’m hoping for here is that this will end with either no coupling up at all or a throupling up—one that is explicitly* shown as such on screen and not just coyly hinted at.

*which does not necessarily mean sexually explicit, although I do kind of wonder where exactly they will earn that R rating. Well, I guess they could just say ‘fuck’ a bunch of times.

5. Rage

And so finally, we come to the part that nearly gave me a rage stroke. That line. Yes, that one. The one that made so many people lose their minds over how beautiful and romantic it supposedly is.

When I see your face. I see wrinkles and children that look like you.

Ok. I’ll rip the band-aid right off and say that I cannot possibly overstate just how much I hate that line. I can feel the bile rising in my stomach just thinking about it. It’s both enraging and entirely laughable.

Enraging, because tying a woman’s desirability and suitability, both as a romantic heroine in the overall narrative and as a life partner within the movie's fictional universe, to her willingness and ability to become a mother—and specifically and explicitly a biological mother—drives me up the fucking wall. I realize that this reaction is naturally informed by my own complicated feelings about gendered expectations around motherhood and the physical requirements that society at large deems a necessary measure for the "correct" pursuit and performance of womanhood, but this made me so angry. I do not find that line beautiful or sweet or romantic. I find it offensively regressive and stunningly anti-feminist. It’s fucking Barbie all over again. I understand this is an out-of-context line from a trailer, who knows how it’s going to be used in the movie, but even more than the line itself I was absolutely appalled by the near unanimously positive, almost rapturous response to it.

The line is laughable, because “I see wrinkles” doesn’t really land when spoken to an actress who even at 35 has a face that has clearly gone through at least a few rounds of botox and fillers. This is not a judgement on Johnson, she can do whatever the hell she wants with her face, but we don’t have pretend to not see the very obvious either.

To essentially say “I can’t wait to see you grow old” to someone who is actively, visibly fighting any physical signs of aging is absurd and robs the line of any meaningful impact it might’ve had.  

Related to this: The joke at the end of the trailer at the expense of the middle-aged guy who claims to want to date more “grown-up” women but balks at the thought of anyone over thirty, would be way funnier—or funny at all—if it didn’t rely on the baffled reaction of a main character whose own love interests are and/or look noticeably older than her. Now I personally don’t give a fuck about age gap discourse in fiction or IRL—adult people can date/fuck/marry whoever they want; it’s really none of my business—but if you insist on making wry jokes about pathetically oblivious men exclusively going for much younger women while simultaneously having not one but two older men fall in love with a younger woman, then the whole thing immediately becomes a toothless, maybe even hypocritical endeavor, but definitely not a smart and witty commentary on the sexism of dating culture.  

--

As I said, this is all based on two heavily edited together minutes that may well turn out to be deliberately misleading, and the final movie will be completely different in tone, style and message. But judging by the trailer alone, I can only hope that it will be much smarter than what's presented here, or fear that it will be even dumber than I thought possible.

[carolperkinsexgirlfriend]

4, 15, 22 please

4. How many WIPs do you have right now?

Oh jeez. Okay, so I’ve got two for The Untamed, two for Naruto, one for The Penumbra Podcast, one for Sweet Home. I’m not going into detail on those because you guys don’t care. And also, “in progress” is generous for them, since I haven’t worked on any for well over a year. I’ll go into more detail about the uhhh, nine Stranger Things Ones?? -Steddie Upside-Down AU - this is almost done!!! So close! I’ve also partially written four smaller fics from other people’s pov’s, so those could be argued as separate! But I didn’t count them that way lol. -Platonic Stobin Mind-Reading AU - this one!!! I’ve been thinking of it <3 the name says it all. The Russians gave them mind-reading powers, but only for each other. I have no plans at all for this fic. I just want hijinks and mostly fun. -Aro4Aro Stancy AU - this one’s almost exclusively just for me <3 and the premise is, wouldn’t it be both funny and tragic if two aro people were dating each other, had never heard the word “Aromantic before” and couldn’t figure out why they were so fucking weird about each other once they broke up? -Christmas - I’m going to be honest, this was supposed to be posted LAST christmas, but it’s a character study on Nancy, Jonathan, and Steve’s relationship with each other post Stancy break-up, and the weird in-between world where you’ve fought monsters together, faced traumas together, and also hurt each other irreparably <3 Or, it’s about their reactions to Christmas lights! -The Crash Bang Incident - Max crashes the car into Eddie’s van on the way to the tunnels in season 2 with Steve passed out in the back seat. Enough said.  -There There - Steve goes back in time, but Robin DOESN’T. He has a mental breakdown about this and makes it Robin’s problem, whether she likes it or not.  -The Red Strings of Crazy - character study of Robin just sort of, spiraling about trying to figure out what the hell is going on with Steve Harrington post his introduction to the Upside Down. She admits to being virtually Obsessed with him in season 3, so I totally think she has a murder board and stalks him about it because come on. She WOULD.  -Carol/Nancy - this is just porn…..I’ll probably never post it because I’ve never written porn. But! Carol sees Jonathan’s creeper photos of Nancy, and feels a certain way about them.  -Stobin Body-Swapping AU - this has no actual words of the fic written, but I’ve got like thousands of words of contradicting world-building. Pretty much, something happens in the future that kicks them back into the past in each other’s bodies. But not at the same time??? So Robin in Steve’s body will go confront Robin in Robin’s body, and she’ll be like, dingus…is that you??? And no, it’s past Robin. And Steve does the same thing. And they completely fuck up the timeline, because by the time they GET to the inciting incident in the present, Steve and Robin have both thought the other was crazy for YEARS because of all the yelling and accusations. This one may never get written, or if it does, I might say fuck the logistics and just go for the vibes because I cannot figure it out. 

15. How do you come up with titles for your fics/chapters? 

Almost always, I start with a theme that’s prevalent in the work. For example, for the Steddie Upside-Down AU, I was ruminating on survival, and hope through adversary. Usually, I spin through my mental rolodex of poetry/songs, find one that fits both thematically and has something I like as a title (either in the lyrics/verses or the title of the work). In this case, it was “A Litany For Survival” by Lorde which is an excellent poem. I think used lines from the poem as chapter titles. This doesn’t always work, but it’s my favorite method! One of my other favorite titles I’ve found this way is an unpublished au where the main character can see ghosts, which I titled “with feet that make no sound,” from the poem “Haunted Houses” by Longfellow. Sometimes, a title just comes to me without this method, but creating chapter/fic titles is like my least favorite part, so this is the go-to method. 

22. Do you know how your fic will end before you start writing?

Sometimes, but rarely! I know how the Aro4Aro Stancy AU is going to end. The Steddie Upside-Down AU was entirely a wild card. Often, when I’m writing, I’m telling the story to myself at the same time as I’m telling it to any readers. So, if something wild happens, we’re experiencing it together!

[smalltownrobin]

I do get agreeing to disagree, but there is still some things here I want to dispute, aside from just saying it's reaching or jumping through hoops to conclude.

By your logic, Vickie did laugh at Robin's joke. Vickie said she thought Tammy sounded like Kermit, then Robin said she thought it was Miss Piggy, and then Vickie laughed. That was Robin's own take on the muppet joke, and that is what made Vickie laugh.

I'm also going to play the audhd card here, when Vickie answers Robin with "no" at her perceived prompt to continue a conversation, I don't think that's her shutting her out. She answered her question truthfully, interpreting it the way exactly the way it was worded. Robin asked if she was asking her a question, and Vickie wasn't, so she told her so, maybe not even realising her answering as such would embarrass Robin. Disaster audhd coded sapphics are just going to act like that, it was very unlikely a move out of disinterest on Vickie's part. Robin most likely didn't even mean it to prompt a conversation, she just lost sense of what she was saying out of panic. Neither of them choosing to keep whispering in this moment doesn't indicate a lack of interest or trouble between them.

The thing with Vickie in warzone I really do think is up to her being underdeveloped and not given any more time to indicate her growing feelings and probable sexuality crisis. I guess it really is up to interpretation, but her face and actions to me in that moment just read so much like she's conflicted, pushing away the picture perfect relationship she has, because she's having thoughts she maybe doesn't quite understand, or maybe even doesn't want. She has the perfect loving boyfriend, but she can't stop thinking about that girl from band, who is suddenly right over there staring at her. She's suddenly confronted with it when she's in a situation she thinks she should be happy in. Her reaction just feels too dark for it to be something simpler.

Steve licking his lips also to me just appears like he's in thought, wondering how to react in the face of his best friend seeing her crush is taken (and seemingly straight) when he convinced her she liked her. He's bad at comforting people, he was with Nancy in s2, here he hesitates to even touch Robin's shoulder to comfort her. None of it seems at all selfish, or anything to do with a connection between him and Vickie.

Again with Vickie at the relief centre, it really does seem more simple to read it as her looking at everyone she's supposed to be here to help. She feels bad she's prioritising her own "dumb" love life problems when there's real issues going on around them. This is exactly what Robin does, too, telling Steve she doesn't care about Vickie having a bf when they have to save the world. They both feel there's more pressing issues to deal with, but can't help the pull of thinking about their love life. Whether this comes up again in s5 with them or not, we'll see.

The thing about the Maya interview... that is constantly misinterpreted. It's from a video interview, not a written one. Quotes are pulled and twisted and written in such a way that screws her meaning (she actually didn't even say the part about the pb&j interpretation, that was whatever reporter wrote this up). They always do it to her, and she's stated multiple times how much she hates it.

In my interpretation, when Maya said she felt mixed (all the way back in mid 2023 btw, before she'd gotten all the s5 scripts), it was to do with what people would focus on with Robin's character. She values Robin's friendship with Steve because she values family and friendship in her own life. She doesn't want Robin having a gf to be the centre of her character because Robin is so much more than a lesbian in a relationship. She's intelligent, she's funny, she's a good friend, she is more than just her sexuality, but the first question she was asked about s5 long before filming even started was about her having a gf.

(she also always gives the vibe she hates questions about Nancy always being about the love triangle, even she gets those questions as well as Natalia, and has made it clear she thinks Nancy is so much more than which boy she chooses)

(she then answered no to both Steve and Jonathan but I couldn't get the cc ugh)

Basically, at least in my interpretation based on how I believe I know her, Maya wants female characters to be more than just romantic interests, sapphic or not. She wasn't at all hinting at any sort of alternative interpretation of rovickie, and has even since filming started said that she is rooting for them.

A lot of the stuff about misleading and upturned interpretations barely makes sense to me, I will be honest, but I do think that that isn't the case every single time, and we shouldn't expect it to be. Some things are face value, and some things aren't, I think it depends on how easy the subversions are to spot. This feels too hard for it to be intentional.

Steve being in their only three scenes to me just feels like they need to drop him in as the supportive bestie because sapphics getting a scene on their own would either be missed or taken badly by general audiences. They need Steve to do stuff so they can clap and cheer, because he's their golden boy. He isn't even relevant in the pb&j scene (at least by the common interpretation), but they stick his face at the end just because "look he's a supportive bestie and supportive ally, don't we all love him, look at that smile, our bestest babysitter". It's not plot relevance, it's for the vibes.

(minor s5 spoiler hint) Steve is also seemingly separated from Robin and Vickie for some time in s5, so him being in every scene of theirs won't last.

I think I went on longer than I intended to about some points, but some things I really wanted to explain properly, and apparently the way I do that is a lot of words. Again, subverting the expectation with Vickie would be malicious queerbaiting, one I don't believe they would be able to get their actors involved in, particularly Amybeth, who is proudly bisexual and advocates for queer and trans rights and representation. We also just get so little about them anyway, so if the queerbaiting was intentional, they'd give us more to make it more convincing.

Vickie is straight

... and she has a crush on Steve

I know how controversial it is to state such an opinion given how Vickie seems to be one of the few characters in the show who actually seem queer. Yet if we are being honest she has never expressed any direct or indirect signs of actually being in love with Robin. It's Robin who is incredibly biased as she has a crush on Vickie and Steve who is trying to be supportive of Robin who gave us this assumption.

This whole thing is not as bad as it seems though. I can promise you this. So if you still care let me explain to you why I think Vickie is straight and has a crush on Steve.

Part 1: The Muppet joke

While still in the car with Steve in early S4 Robin gets reminded of her own advise: Just be true to yourself and stop pretending to be someone you're not. We need to keep this in mind as she is soon shown to not follow said advise.

When Steve reminds Robin at the basketball game that Tammy Thompson does sound like a Muppet she agrees with him. Vickie overhears this and in turn agrees with Robin.

The joke however doesn't originate from Robin. She just repeated what Steve told her before. Therefore the joke that made Vickie laugh comes from Steve. Or in other words: It was Steve who made Vickie laugh and not Robin.

We even get conformation of this a bit later in episode 2 when Steve admits and agrees out loud that it was his joke that made Vickie laugh.

Robin wasn't entirely herself.

While everyone is looking straight ahead it's Vickie who makes a point not to look in Robins direction after Robin is embarrassed of herself. There is distance between them.

Part 2: Vickie and Robin (and Steve) meet at the Weapon Store

It's Robin who notices Vickie first in the weapon store which is followed by Steve looking at her as he knows she has a crush on Vickie which is then followed by both of them looking sad as Vickies boyfriend enters the scene.

Robin is obviously sad because her crush has a boyfriend while Steve is just sad for his friend.

This shot is often brought up to proof that Robin is standing between Vickie and Dan as it's believed that her crush on Vickie is reciprocated but I don't think this is what it means exactly. It's Robins POV and she believes her feelings to Vickie are reciprocated so she sees herself as standing in between them.

But is it true? Let's look at what Vickie sees next.

Vickie notices the both of them and while Robin is just staring at her Steve is licking his lips. Then Robin turns around and leaves while Steve is still looking at Vickie and Dan and then smiles awkwardly at them.

So Steve is licking his lips and then smiles at Vickie and Dan. What message would Vickie receive here? My guess would be 1) Steve and Robin are close and 2) Steve might like Vickie as well.

This however is the last look we get of Steve in this scene. It's his back while he is still looking after Robin. So whatever made him lick his lips and smile is no longer of interest to him the moment Robin leaves. I think this means that he is Robins friend first and foremost. He is not romantically interested in Vickie and doesn't reciprocate her feelings at all.

Robin is gone and Steve has turned his back on Vickie but her gaze still lingers. Maybe her feelings towards her own boyfriend aren't as sincere as it seems and everything considered I think it's fair to ask who this is truly about? Robin or Steve? Is she saying the truth when she makes it about Robin who she did meet in band or is she using Robin as a shield as she doesn't want to admit to her boyfriend that she has a crush on another man aka Steve?

In the end she looks back towards her boyfriend and then again to the place where Robin and Steve just were. Is he perhaps still standing there?

Then we get a scene transition to Nancy holding a very long gun. It's not subtle at all.

Part 3: Providing Food for the Suffering

There is light behind Robin which can indicate that she is the one who is most sincere in this scene. This makes sense as it is true that Robin has a crush on Vickie.

It's Vickie who gives her the information that Dan is no longer her boyfriend but from the scene in the weapon store she also knows that Robin and Steve are close. So everything she says to Robin is likely to reach Steve as well which means that Robin could be the one to tell Steve that Vickie is single again and therefore available to him.

First notice how Vickie wears spiral earrings. This is very interesting to me as it's triangle imagery that is used to indicate queerness in the show. So here we have the supposed love interest of one of the only confirmed queer characters in the show not wearing triangle imagery when it really matters. Why? Because she is straight.

Vickie also mentions how she rambles about her boyfriend when there are people out there suffering at which point in time she looks up and slightly to her right. Later when the scene transitions from Robin and Vickie to Steve we also get him at a alight angle which to me indicates that Vickie was looking at him as she was lifting her head.

It's Steve who Vickie perceives as the one suffering and who she wants to provide with food. Or to put it a bit differently: It's Steve she has a crush on and who she wants to be with and support.

Steve on the other hand is also smiling and looking at Robin and Vickie. He is happy for the both of them as everything seems to be working out for Robin and Vickie which could not be further from the truth. He's also shaking his head just slightly. Most likely because he thinks a certain assumption he's made just an episode earlier turned out to be wrong.

That assumption about Vickie pausing Fast Times at 53:05 however might be true after all. Steve is just misreading the signs Robin and Vickie are giving off at the gym.

Tbc in a reblog because I almost hit image limit. Look here.

[thestobingirlie]

Ohhhh my god thank u for saying what ive been thinking for so long about ronance and also how steve would feel about it every word so true....

1. Even if she did have any feelings for nancy WHAT kind of best friend would get with the first person their bestie had ever fallen in love with who fucked up their heart to the extent that it was still impacting them years later

2. WHY would robin see nancy as a potential good romantic partner after hearing about what she acted like from steve...like i love nancy but she needs to spend some time single and also in therapy before shes ready to be with someone actually i think

3. Also just people trying to point to evidence of vibes between them in the show canon itself I always see all their interactions as robin being intimidated by nancy and nancy actually being kinda rude to robin until she does/says something helpful???

4. On the side of steve's reaction imo he would be completely justified in freaking out - both due to him feeling betrayed by robin and also probably worries about her getting her heart broken?? Especially because in a lot of the get together fics i've scrolled past it seems like a lot of the plots involve robin actively lying to and hiding her feelings and subsequent actions from steve? Also just the general characterisation of steve in these kind of fics as a dumb little puppy that robin and nancy laugh at together

Sorry for long ask this has been building up for quite some time in my brain and seeing your opinion just brought it all bubbling out lol.....could probably get death threats if i talked about this to the wrong fan like at a certain point ppl just need to chill (i say at the end of this massive ask ahaha)

thank you, i will always be willing to shit talk ships i don’t like lmao

anyway. i’ll go through point by point!

1- totally agree, like come one. bro code. no dating your best friends ex, especially when it ended with your best friend getting his heart broken. you’d just have to be the worst friend and least empathetic person in existence.

2- yeah, considering we see robin and steve talk a lot about their love lives, we can assume she knows most of what went down between them, so i honestly can’t imagine robin being able to see nancy in that way. and i totally agree! nancy needs to be single for a while before diving into yet another relationship. honestly my dream ending for nancy is her being single and working through her trauma.

3- i also can’t really see it in the show. like most of their scenes nancy just looks kinda pissed of at robin, and robin is trying desperately to figure out where she went wrong. it just doesn’t seem like a good dynamic.

4- and yeah, i think steve would react badly for two reasons. the first is him feeling betrayed by robin, that robin would date nancy when she was his first love and his heart was so badly broken, we’re still seeing it effect him. and the second is that he would be worried for robin. he knows robin is anxious about how she rambles and acts, and he knows nancy, and i think he would know that nancy wouldn’t have much patience for it. and i do think that he would be worried about robin getting her best broken too. and i hate any fics where the basis is people make fun of steve together, and steve’s best friend and his ex that broke his heart teaming up to call him an idiot would honestly drive me into a frothing at the mouth rage, which is why i don’t read those fics! lol

never apologise for a long ask! they’re always fun to answer, and yeah, there are definitely ships that people want everyone to like. i remember i made this post that was vaguely critical of jancy, and someone sent me this long ask in all caps locks about why i was wrong, it was pretty funny tbh

[rossmccallsqueen]

HC - telling Steve you’re pregnant (Steve Harrington x fem!reader)

(This is definitely going to have a part 2 and be a series 👀)

You remembered from your second date with Steve that he had always wanted to be a dad

He told you he imagined himself with a huge family or as he put it “six little nuggets”

When he introduced you to Nancy she told you about how Steve always took care of the kids and then you met Steve’s “kids”

You couldn’t imagine your life without all of them, and now there would be an actual mini-Steve

A lil human that’s half you and half Steve 🥺

The doctor had confirmed it for you when you realized you were late, you and Steve weren’t exactly careful but you always said if it happened it happened

He was ready for it, and so were you

You were about 8 weeks so it was still very early, but you were so excited to see Steve with your baby

When you got home Steve was already cooking dinner while wearing his “Worlds Best Dad” apron on it that Dustin had gotten him for Christmas

If only he knew what you were gonna tell him 🥺

“Hey babe! How was your appointment?” He kissed your cheek, still stirring whatever he had going on the stove

“It was great, clean bill of health!” You didn’t want to tell him just yet

Steve had made your favorite for dinner, and he asked about the rest of your day while he finished

You asked about his day when you started eating, and he was telling you about how Dustin was going to come over tomorrow to play video games

Dustin had whatever the newest console was, and Steve was very excited it was so cute to see him like that

After dinner you decided to watch a movie in bed together, you both finally had the day off the next day so what time you went to bed didn’t matter

Which was good news because you really wanted to tell Steve

“The kids are lucky to have you Steve.” You told him, in the middle of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

“That’s out of nowhere, is everything okay? Is the world going to end again? I’ll go call Nancy she’ll know what to do-“ you kissed him to cut him off

“Steve!”

“Yes?”

“Everything’s fine!” You told him, feeling him relax back into the pillows

“Then why are the kids lucky to have me? What’s going on?”

He sat up so he could look at you while you were leaned back on the pillows

Steve had a very concerned look on his face which you thought was kinda funny but you also couldn’t blame him after everything he had been through

“What if…I told you that you that we’ll have one of our own..?” You bit your lip, a little scared of his reaction

“Are you serious?”

You nodded, smiling because it looked like he was

“You’re completely serious like you aren’t kidding?”

“No I’m not kidding Steve! You’re gonna be a dad! Biologically anyway” 😂 Steve, a dad of 8

“That’s the best thing I’ve ever heard! We have to go look at RV’s tomorrow, and I’ve got to call Robin and Dustin and-“

You kissed him and he held your face in his hands, pulling apart to rest his forehead on yours

“I love you” He whispered

“We love you too” 🥺

“it’s too early to tell people though, we need to wait a few weeks to make sure everything is okay. Okay? Can you wait that long?” You smiled

“I don’t know, it’ll be tough. Dustin might ask questions when he sees the RV”

“Steve we do not need an RV before we even have the baby or do the nursery.” You felt his hand brush over your belly and stay there. You had a feeling it would be there all night

“The nursery!!” You watched as Steve’s eyes lit up, and the rest of the night was spent talking about what you wanted the nursery to look like and what you liked for names

Steve was firmly on naming the baby after Robin or Dustin. And you listened to him try and make the case of how Dustin could also be a girls name 😂 (you still weren’t convinced) but you managed to at least agree to Dustin has a middle name

You fell asleep with the movie on, listening to Steve talk about all the things he wanted to do when the baby came and it was your version of heaven

When you woke up in the middle of the night and the tv still on, you looked and noticed Steve’s hand exactly where you thought it would be: already protecting your belly 🥺

Stranger Things Taglist: @barnesplots @warmommy @vintagemol @tvserie-s-world @sugartin @beautifulrunawaymodelwombat

Let me know if you wanna be added to my stranger things taglist or any of my other lists! 💕

Masterlist Masterpost

[riansdiary]

Rian's Movie Review/Reaction

Hello and Welcome to my first movie review/reaction/commentary! This is really special since this one is my favorite movie right now. Let's start, shall we? 🥳

This is my movie review for Enola Holmes 2!!!

Wow, I don't even know how to start but it's still fresh in my mind so hopefully I remember everything I need to talk about. If not then I will watch again as I write this!

First off, I really love this movie and I cried a lot during and after the movie. I was in tears, actual falling tears as I finished it. It was so inspiring and empowering for me. I wanted to be like Enola Holmes. Someone who's very intelligent, has great deductions and most of all, she has such a fun and exuberant personality! She's also really inspiring and someone I aspire to be like. Currently finding my own Lord Tewkesbury right now 😆 I just loved their relationship since the first one!

As someone who grew up reading and watching mystery and detective stuff, this was perfect for me because I love Sherlock Holmes, Enola Holmes, Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, you name it. It is my favorite genre, that's true. I just love a good book or movie that can make me think or test my brain or solve problems, cases and puzzles. I love those type of things so yes I do play those kind of games too. I've played the Nancy Drew ones before and loved it so much. If you're curious on what I'm playing right now, I did just play Hardy Boys: Treasure on the Tracks which is an NDS game. I played it on my phone because I have an emulator for it. I know I'm going on a tangent here but I just wanted to share that.

Let's start!

I'm gonna do them in bullet points so it's easier to read and more organized.

Enola was at first overshadowed by her brother but we know that since her brother is none other than Sherlock Holmes but she definitely is very much like him in terms of intellect. She is quite as intelligent and as observant as he is. They both have amazing deductions. However, she wasn't even respected when clients were coming in. They were like, "You're a girl!" and I said in my mind, "So what? So you think just because she's a girl, she can't be intelligent? As intelligent as her brother?"

Can we talk about the whole thing about Enola breaking the fourth wall and looking/talking to the camera? I liked this because I felt like I was with her during the whole movie. It was so much fun and so funny at times! This was so good and I also liked it from the first movie. This is so unique and so immersive for the viewers! During the movie when she talks to the camera, I kind of answered or talked to Enola in my mind because it was fun to do that. I was just being myself and having fun watching it!

Bessie is so freaking cute! I had to talk about her!

When I knew that Sarah Chapman had red hair, I kept that in my mind like the other clues so when I saw Cecily, I immediately knew or rather felt that it was her. She's so pretty! A perfect casting for Lily Potter I would say!

Enola carrying her brother to his room was cute and funny! He was always telling her that she should probably write what he said and that was adorable because he was giving her tips and somehow teaching her what he knows as a private detective himself.

Can we talk about the outfits!!! Oh my God Enola and everyone looks so amazing in their outfits! Loved the ball dress and her blue one! Those are probably my favorite ones!

Louis looking like a whole prince again and he looks great with his new hairstyle! I see him as more of a little brother thing not a crush but doesn't he look like a prince? He just has such a prince face! Do you get what I'm saying? Like he looks a total prince and he also could play a live action Disney prince!

Henry Cavill as Sherlock is just perfect!

Enola always waiting for/watching Tewkesbury on his way to the Lords! That's so sweet! It was so funny when she was defending herself from the viewers saying that she only comes there when there's a need for it, that was cute af! Also when she asked us if he's looking back I said in my mind to answer her, "Yes he is! Girl, he's so looking back you just didn't see!" That was so much fun to watch!

When she was solving the secret message in the letter, I was so excited! I love those kinds of scenes! God when she squealed after solving it and there was a woman with a baby, that was so funny! I love those moments when she squeals, it's just so cute!

When Enola was made a suspect for the murder of Mae, Oh my God! I mean it makes sense why they would think it's her but I expected something better from Lestrade but I guess it's because she wanted to keep the evidence she found that's why she kicked Grail and ran for it. Can I just say that I hate him? I hate Grail so much!

That whole scene of Sherlock hiding his sister behind his case board from Lestrade! That was iconic! Loved that part a lot!

I love how Sherlock walks into a place that the police are investigating and just goes in like, "Don't be ridiculous." That was so Sherlock!

Millie looks so good with the simple but beautiful makeup she was wearing on the ball scene!

The aesthetics! I loved how everything looked! The outfits, the cinematography, the little animations and the places that I saw in the movie! It was so pleasing to the eyes!

That scene with Mira Troy was wonderful! I liked her! At this point, I didn't know she was Moriarty yet but we have a female Moriarty! That's awesome!

Can we just talk about Millie using the fan? She was so funny and adorable on that scene! When she accidentally given some type of fan message to the guy, that was the funniest scene for me! Loved when she said, "Help." to the camera! It was even more funny when she was shooing the guy with her fan!

Gosh that smile on Enola's face when she saw Tewkesbury! So cute! As usual, he's interested about the plants! That's our boy! He was so cute when he was smelling the plant!

That whole dance scene was so perfect! So romantic and majestic! I love them together! They're so cute! Did I say that I love that already? Good! Just making sure bcs I loved it so much! Finally some Holmesbury moments after the ending of the first movie!

Enola angry eating getting jealous when Tewkesbury was talking to the other ladies! That was really cute!

Them getting jealous bcs of William and Cecily is just so adorable! That scene with Tewkesbury entering the room instead of William was so good! I loved how you can see that they're jealous! Enola thinking he would like Cecily and Tewkesbury's reaction about Enola waiting for William was fantastic!

The scene when Enola got caught by the police was so annoying. I hated it. Poor Enola who went to prison and immediately was almost hanged Oh God! It was horrible! You know what other scene I hated? Yes! That scene when the police took her out of the ball and people were judging her and laughing! That was the worst. Just know I'm talking about this as my reaction to the scene and more about how I feel about what happened on that scene.

Grail, Grail, Grail. I hated him so much! That scene with him in the prison? He's so horrible. The way he used phosphorus dust to put Enola's fingerprints on the knife? I really hate him for doing that.

Another thing I want to say, I also felt like kicking something when Sherlock was talking to Grail about Enola. I felt soooo much relief when Sherlock kicked that thing in front of the police station/prison.

Sherlock going to Edith for help was a good scene! I liked their dynamics! It was really nice to watch.

Aww Eudoria and Edith coming to rescue Enola was so amazing! It was such a great scene when they were escaping and taking Enola with them. Fighting Grail and his minions! They deserved that yeah! Such iconic scenes! The fight scene was really good! When Grail was hitting or slapping Enola, I fudging (just keeping it nice and swearless just in case someone young is reading!) hated him for that! Enola saw her mother again yay! That was such a beautiful scene when she went like "Tis' I!" and they hugged! Loved that!

Eudoria with her explosives! What a great scene! When she finally uses the dangerous explosives, loved it especially when she told Enola that it was the dangerous one. Eudoria whistling while they ran away from it was such a nice touch!

Gosh that blue outfit that Enola wore after the fight with the ribbon on her hair was just absolutely perfect!

Her last scene with her mother and Edith was just a little sad but it was beautiful! Loved when she hugged both of them and winked at her mother!

When Enola was finding out that there was something off about the match factory, the matches and Typhus, I really loved finding that out too because I had a feeling that it was because of the phosphorus. Loved that whole scene when she was realizing that Sarah, Mae and William were testing the red and white powder on the plants. The white one was killing the plants and the insects. Even the rat. That means that the girls were dying because of that new thing that the factory was using that makes the white matches. I meant cheaper phosphorous.

The outfit that Louis had on when Enola went to him because she needs his help, he looks so good! Other than that, his house! It's so beautiful with plants and probably flowers wow! Enola hiding there with a leaf covering her face was funny! Also her getting jealous because Cecily went there to see him aww!

Tewkesbury just going off and confessing while Enola was realizing that Cecily was Sarah! He meant to say he has no eyes for anyone but you! That's just what I said in my mind that whole scene!

Can I just say that one of my favorite scenes would definitely be the one where as I said Tewkesbury was busy trying to confess his feelings and Enola realizing that Sarah is Cecily and then she walked out and Tewkesbury came after her and that whole scene was *chef's kiss*! Finally they admitted their feelings for each other! I literally cried because I loved that and I just feel like their relationship is just so lovely, beautiful and wholesome! That's the kind of love I want for myself. Pure love. Don't worry though! I might have two candidates who's like Tewkesbury! 😍 I'm sorry I don't know why I'm talking about my love life here! 😆

I think you can guess when I started crying other than the Eudoria and Edith saying goodbye to Enola part. Yes, when they said "I love you" to each other! That was really sweet and I've been waiting for that since the first movie! The fan language omg! When we finally knew what that meant, it was really special!

Another one of my favorite scenes was when Enola was going in the match factory and Sherlock was also there! My favorite part was when they both said, "You." Henry Cavill really looks great with that Sherlock hair! He looks so dashing with the outfit and everything! Their cases were connected! Loved that we can see the Holmes siblings work together on a case. Hi Mycroft, still haven't forgiven him for the things he said or things he had done to Enola but would have loved to see how his relationship with Enola changed.

Oh William. Really hoped he didn't die because I liked him with Sarah.

Tewkesbury entering complaining to Enola while the siblings were investigating was another one of my favorite parts.

Enola gesturing to the body of William to Tewkesbury and his reaction was kinda cute tbh!

The whole scene of Enola and Tewkesbury in the cab was one of my favorites as well! I loved when she was teaching him to fight and then the long awaited kiss scene! 😱

I was so sad when the time came that they had to tell Sarah that William is dead.

Can I tell you how angry I was when Grail entered with a knife on Bessie? Ugh!!! I hate him! God and he shot our Sherlock? Hated him and I'm saying it again. That last fight scene? Wow that was epic! Tewkesbury fighting with that sword or cutlass whatever it is! Ugh Grail hitting Enola was annoying! Gosh when we all thought Enola was stabbed by Grail? First, I thought she was wearing another corset like last time but then we found out that it was Mae's retractable one!

I am so f-ing done with Grail! He just hit Enola with that anchor thing! F him honestly!!! And Tewkesbury nooo! He was so hurt from that fight just like Sherlock and Enola.

Grail thought he already won the fight. Ha! I really loved it when Enola, Sherlock and Tewkesbury defeated their enemies finally! Sherlock and Tewkes were concerned about her because of Grail ofc. That hug of Enola and Tewkesbury made me so happy! Loved Sarah hugging Bessie too and that little nod of Sherlock to Enola was so endearing to me. I think it means "You alright?"or " Are you okay?". She answered with a nod back to him. That was such a cute little moment between the siblings.

Henry Cavill's voice as Sherlock is so satisfying and soothing or relaxing to hear. I don't know it's like Asmr to me!

The revelation of Mira Troy as Moriarty, Oh my God! So good! At first, I was confused because I didn't know Moriarty was gonna be in this movie. I was actually surprised but I was so happy to know that they decided on a female Moriarty. That was a nice touch! I love how they made her be Moriarty and be the one stealing money because it's empowering to women I guess? Like they thought she was not capable of such thing and they were proven wrong. The lesson from that is that we shouldn't underestimate girls, women and people. I just hated that William was killed because of her or Grail. I liked it when I found out that she was stealing from someone bad and corrupt like those people at Lyon matches. When she said that she had twice the mind of everyone there, Sherlock and Enola shared this look of disapproval or it's like she said something crazy! I kinda reacted like that honestly for the Holmes siblings and me since I get really pissed off when someone underestimates or judges my intelligence so yeah I kind of had the same look on my face.

I scoffed for Sherlock, Enola and for me when Mira Troy said that! I was like, "Excuse me? How dare you?"

There is one thing I liked about what she said, it's when she talked about women and what they were told not to do in that era. Sharon Duncan-Brewster and her amazing delivery of her lines!!! Also her outfit wow!

When McIntyre (thank God his name is in my keyboard's suggested words!) burned the evidence that Sarah, Mae and William worked hard for. F him too!

Let's talk about Enola, Sarah and Bessie telling all the girls in the match factory the truth. I really liked it especially when Enola was being really sassy to that man. Sarah's speech was special but I'm just annoyed at that man telling the girls that it's not worth it or whatever bs he was saying that convinced them to stay. Like what's worth it in that dangerous factory when they can find safer jobs than that? Did he mean that working in that factory with the dangerous phosphorus was not worth it to quit because of the money they get paid from making those damn matches? Hated him because he's convincing them to stay and die! He also said to the girls that they should think of their families. More like you think about the families of these girls! They're gonna die in that factory! Another thing that he said was that it was not worth the risk. So them continuing to work in that dangerous factory is worth the risk? No it's not!

Bessie starting to stomp to encourage everyone to quit was amazing to watch!

I started crying again when I saw that whole revolution scene! It was very touching to watch. Especially when I found out at the end of the movie that it was a real thing that happened in history.

Eudoria and Edith watching Enola, Bessie and Sarah lead the revolution was really sweet to add in. I loved that they were watching over her.

Yes! Enola has her own private detective office now! That's also in Edith's place! Loved that! Tewkesbury putting McIntyre in jail! Yeah!!! Also when Tewkesbury raised his eyebrows at him, that was so good! I was so proud of our Tewkesbury!!! He's so handsome at that part too!

Can I just say how much I loved the part when Sherlock offered to be a private detective duo with his sister aww!!! Holmes and Holmes would've been amazing but we do have Watson! That was so cute when they had that whole sibling moment! It was very touching for me too. Loved when he said that they should check up on each other! He must be so proud of her!

That blue capelet/capelet dress Millie wore for that scene is just divine! I actually want it! I want to buy something like that! Also the cute Enola holding on Tewkesbury's arm aww so adorable and that was one of my favorite parts too! The whole part when they were walking out of Edith's place leaving Sherlock, just so perfect and really cute!

I do love Sherlock being friends with Edith. Mira Troy has escaped! Hoping there's a third movie!

I just really enjoyed that last scene of Enola and Tewkesbury walking together!

Thanks for reading my movie review or reaction for Enola Holmes 2!!! I would rate this 10 out of 10 for me! I loved it and I would probably watch it again and again like the first movie!

Love, Rian 💋

[wheeier]

no taking back

summary: it was only fun and games. but steve had other plans.

warnings: modern au, tooth-rotting fluff i guess, little but of swearing

+ olivia rodrigo’s sour album (stream besties), the movie tangled at the end because it just radiates as a comfort movie

yes a modern au !!! i just saw this on tiktok (the sour part, but the rest was my idea!) and thought it was so cute so it gave me an idea to make it as a fic, enjoy !!!

steve harrington x fem!reader

olivia rodrigo’s new album just released and you were thrilled to listen to it and stream it the whole day.

when you finally got to listen to it, you asked your friends—robin, nancy, and the party, if they listened to it and which ones were their favorites.

robin told you that her top three were hope ur ok, jealousy, jealousy, and brutal.

nancy said she really loved favorite crime.

max said hers was also brutal.

el told you that she played good 4 u and traitor on repeat that hopper had to go into her room to turn it down.

when mike comes over to the cabin he can assure that el does indeed play them on repeat and get pissy about it (but he secretly loves the album, but he wouldn’t let her or anyone know that).

and lastly lucas and dustin are fans of deja vu and 1 step forward 3 steps back. max even told you that they would sing the bridge of deja vu on the top of their lungs.

you slightly laughed at the memory of them telling you about it.

however, there’s one more person that you haven’t talked to about it yet.

steve.

your smile faltered and faded when he came across in your mind.

your feelings for him had deepened over the time and listening to the sour album made it feel like you two had broken up, which in fact, is not true because you were never together in the first place.

suddenly, an idea popped in your head. instead of being sad about steve, you thought about texting him, although it’s almost 1AM, you knew he’d still be up.

Sailor Man

You: hey

You: u up?

Sailor Man: duh

Sailor Man: this has been our nightly routine u always bother me when i’m about to go to sleep

You: fuck off

You: don’t pretend that you’re not binge watching outer banks until 4am

Sailor Man: i’m not?!?

You: yeah right

You: anyways

You: can u do me a favor

Sailor Man: will i get free pizza afterwards

You: no

Sailor Man: k

You: what the fuck

You: fine

Sailor Man: hehe

Sailor Man: what’s the favor ;)

You: dont get me started with that winky face i swear ure so dead when i see you at the wheeler’s house tomorrow

You: have you listened to olivia rodrigo’s new album

Sailor Man: ohh the bitter album?

You: ITS SOUR DUMBASS

Sailor Man: I DONT KNOW?!?

You: I CANT DO THIS HJAGSK

Sailor Man: shut up

Sailor Man: i’ve heard some of the songs but i haven’t fully listened to them

Sailor Man: why

You: can you like

You: ask me to be ur girlfriend then break up with me right after so i can experience and actually feel the whole sour album

Sailor Man: what

You: just do it !!

Sailor Man: you’re so funny (y/n/n)

Sailor Man: okay

Sailor Man: will you be my girlfriend?

You: yes !!!

You: ...

You: hello

You: dont tell me u fell asleep

Sailor Man: i’m not doing the last part you might as well forget about it

You: wjat

Sailor Man: :D

You: wtf

You: okay steve cut it out i’m not doing this anymore u’re not funny

Sailor Man: nope

Sailor Man: go to sleep we’re dating now that’s how this works

Sailor Man: okay i dont know if you’re still reading this now and i am terrified to say this to you in person like TERRIFIED. might piss my pants if i did. so (y/n/n), my favorite dumbass, my favorite person to talk to at night even if it interrupts my binge watching marathon, you make me so happy to the point that even when i sleep you’re still in my dreams. i like you. i have like the biggest fattest crush on you. and thank you for doing that sour album thing or whatever, because of that i get to finally ask you out

you rolled on your back after you read the message, facing the ceiling as your mind processed what just happened. was he playing with you? was he actually serious about asking you out?

Incoming video call...

Sailor Man

you took a deep breath before tapping the green button and placing it back down on the bed.

“hey,” you can tell that he was tired based on his voice. “can you show your face, please? i miss you.”

ignoring the butterflies in your stomach, you hesitantly lifted the phone and shifted your position to lay on your side. “hey.”

“hey yourself.” steve grins. that stupid grin that makes your stomach turn, that grin you always want to see everyday.

“what’s..up?” you avoided looking at him and started to admire your surroundings and the posters placed on your wall. this was the only time you were glad you weren’t with him in person.

“i just wanted to see if you’re okay.” of course he will ask that. he's steve. he cares about other more than himself.

“i am, thanks.” you showed a smile that doesn't reach your ears and steve knew something was bothering you. “hey, look. i'm sorry about my confession- if it made you uncomfortable i'm sorry-”

“no,” you cut him off, looking back at his face on the screen. “i’m fine, really. you don't have to apologize. i was just, surprised.”

there was silence between the two of you for a few seconds, before you spoke again. “did you mean it?” you voice was only above whisper but steve managed to hear them. “of course,” he answered almost too quick, without any hesitation. “i've been trying to find the perfect opportunity and had been asking god for signs because i can't make a move myself-”

“asking god?” you chuckled and steve smiled hearing them, glad that he somehow lightened the mood. “well, more like begging.” he continues and you giggled.

once your laughter died you both fell into silence again. you still couldn’t believe that out of a fun joke, it would turn into a whole another situation. “so, um.. just so you know, i’m not mad, or upset, or anything. i really was just surprised. it felt like a dream because i didn’t know that you like me back and all i did was just supposed to be a fun joke but—”

“hold on, back?”

“what?”

“like you back. you said i like you back.” steve sat up on his bed and fixed his hair as his eyes widened. “i did...” you said slowly, not catching up.

“does that mean you..”

then it hit you. “oh, right. yeah. i- i like you..too.” you waited for his reaction and once you saw him smile you couldn’t stop yourself from doing the same.

“i knew it. and well, i guess that confirms it. we’re dating now. no taking back.” he smirks then laughs when your rolled your eyes. “don’t flatter yourself, harrington. i did not say shit.” you pointed your index finger on the screen, barely containing your giggles.

“based on your beautiful smile i think you don’t need to say it. i like you, and you like me. we’re dating.” steve gives you a teasing smile. you tried keeping your serious face but it won’t last longer so you finally smiled again. “alright, fine. no taking backs. we’re dating.” you said then laughed as he whisper-yelled ‘yes!’ while fist pumping the air.

he soon joined your laughter and you stayed like that until your jaw was pretty much in pain because of your smiles. when it was all quiet again, you both just admired each other’s presence through the screens of your phones. “i wish i was there with you.” he mumbles. “yeah, me too.” you hugged your cold pillow beside you, closing your eyes for a moment and imagining it as steve.

“are your parents home?”

you snorted at his random question. “i’m actually alone right now, they’re out because dad got promoted at his work so he and mom and i think a few friends went out to celebrate. they should be home by an hour or two. why?”

“nothing.” was all he said before hanging up. you were left confused but then he’s your best friend after all, so you knew right then and there that he’ll do something stupid. after you turned your phone off you suddenly felt watching a movie so you went to the kitchen to make some popcorn.

when it was finished and had been put in a bowl, that’s when you heard your doorbell rang—in a pattern which you recognize, and only one person does that.

you let out a quiet laugh when you realized who it was and set the bowl on the counter before opening the door.

“hi!” steve greeted you with a smile. “uh, hi?” you laughed nervously and stepped aside for him to go in. “i smell popcorn, are we having a movie night?” he says as he steps inside and shrugged off his jacket. “actually yeah, i’m planning on watching—”

“tangled.” he finishes off, you subconsciously smiled upon hearing your favorite movie. “how’d you know?”

steve snatches a few popcorns from the bowl as you both arrived in the kitchen. “(y/n), you have watched that movie 7 times this week and always gush to me about it.”

“well, you’re the only one that is around my age that i can talk to with that movie. robin and nancy aren’t that into it.” you replied, grabbing the bowl and making your way back to your bedroom, steve following your heels. “and you think i’m the best option to talk to about that?” he asks, plopping down on your bed and resting his back on the headboard.

“you’re not complaining.” you shrugged as you grabbed your laptop and sat beside steve.

“yeah, probably because i like you.” it came out of his mouth casually. you froze in place and felt your cheeks heat up, finally nodding your head slowly, “..probably.” as you typed in the movie in your laptop you felt steve scoot closer, making your breath hitch.

you were both in a comfortable silence while watching the movie, except for a few jokes and comments that steve makes and him explaining how similar he was to flynn rider.

“you know, since i’m eugene, you could be rapunzel.” he suddenly says. you eyes were still on the screen but your eyebrows furrowed. “why? i’m nothing like her.”

finally looking at steve, you almost screamed how he was already looking at you. “oh, you are so rapunzel. you may not have the longest hair in the world, but you are pretty much similar.” he replies, smiling and not taking his eyes off of you.

you paused the movie and shifted your body towards him, intrigued by his explaination. “how so?”

“well, first off,” steve starts, resting his hands on the soft mattress. “you’re both sweet, you’re both a huge ray of sunshine, have gorgeous eyes and smile, and eugene is head over heels over you — and since he doesn’t exist in real life, i’d like to be the substitute.” he finished with a confident smile.

after about three seconds, you burst out of laughter. you laughed. as much as he loves the sound of your laugh, he can’t help but pout. “(y/n), i’m trying to be sweet here!”

“i’m sorry!- it’s just- i can’t help but laugh at your flirting.” you managed to say between your laughs. you know he’s kidding but he looked at you like he was offended.

your laughter died down and held steve’s face. “it’s cute, sorry.” you mumble with a little laugh. when he finally smiled you turned to your laptop and continued the movie.

steve gazes at you for a few more seconds before watching the movie with you again. “thank you.” you whisper, glancing at him.

“you’re very much welcome, my rapunzel.” he says smiling before he slides a bit down on the bed so his head could reach your shoulder and rests it there.

you giggled as you heard him whisper,

“thank you, olivia rodrigo.”

[yurtletheturtlehenderson]

COSMIC - S1:E2; Chapter Two, The Weirdo On Maple Street - [Pt. 2]

A Will Byers x Male!Reader Series

𝘠/𝘯, 𝘓𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘴, 𝘋𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘔𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘰𝘥𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘩𝘦'𝘴 𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯.

|| 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫'𝐬 𝐏𝐎𝐕 ||

Lucas, Dustin and I take our seats once we get to class.

"Oh, that can't be good." I sigh, gesturing to Mike's empty seat.

"Yeah, he's never this late," Dustin added.

"I'm telling you, his stupid plan failed," Lucas stated.

"I thought you liked his plan?"

"Yeah, but obviously it's stupid, or he'd be here."

"If his mom found out a girl spent the night—" Dustin began.

"He's in deep shit right about now."

Dustin shifted in his seat, and leaned forward, whispering loud enough for us to hear. "Hey, what if she slept naked?"

"Ugh!" My face screws into a sour, disgusted look aimed at my brother, unintentionally speaking at the same time as Lucas. "Why would she do that, Dustin?"

"Oh, my God, she didn't."

"Oh, if Mrs. Wheeler tells our parents..."

The thought of Mom finding out was enough to elicit an anxious groan from me, and I let my forehead fall against desk where I buried my face.

"No way. Mike would never rat us out."

I hesitantly looked up, making eye contact with Lucas. He gave me a reassuring smile, knowing I worry easily.

"I don't know." Dustin said warily.

"All that matters is, after school, the freak will be back in the loony bin, and we can focus on what really matters, finding Will." I frown at his specific choice of words for El, thinking back on how scared she seemed last night. I desperately want to say something, but decided against it, not wanting to get in a fight. Fighting won't get us any closer to finding Will.

|| 𝟑𝐫𝐝 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐎𝐕 ||

Mike Wheeler rides his bike down the small slope of grass towards his front yard. When El refused to let Mike's mom know she was there, Mike had no choice but to resort to plan b. He had led his mom to believe that he had ridden to school when in reality he had stopped around the corner until both his parents were gone.

When he got to the driveway, he dismounted his bike and led it into the garage, however something caught his eye. He stared in awe as the once withered and frankly the most miserable looking plant he had ever seen in his life, was now a beautiful lush green and stood as tall his knees. 'How had Y/n done it?'

It took a solid moment for Mike to gather his thoughts and focus on the task at hand. He parked his bike and made his way inside.

⊹ ⊹ ⊹

"You want anything to drink?" Mike decided to take advantage of the empty house so that he could show El around. "We have OJ, skim milk... What else? Um, we have..."

Mike trailed off when he saw that El was more fascinated with the things in his living room, mostly his TV set.

"Oh, this is my living room. It's mostly just for watching TV."

El lightly traced her fingers around the frame of the TV as she examined it.

"Nice, right? It's a 22-inch.

That's, like, ten times bigger than Dustin's."

El turned her head and said quietly.

"Y/n."

"Well, yeah of course. Y/n too."

"Y/n. Brother?" She asked, making sure she remembered correctly.

"Yeah!" Mike smiled, then lightly shrugged. "Well, technically adopted. But yeah, they're still brothers."

El's brows furrowed in confusion.

"Ad-adopted?"

"Yeah, um, it means that he came from different parents. Mrs. Henderson adopted him because his parents were unable to take care of him. It's funny actually, Y/n is from Hawkins. Or at least that's where they found him. They didn't used to live in Hawkins; I don't know much about it cause Dustin was so young he doesn't remember any of it, but I think him and his mom were visiting family here and they just... found him, I think? I'm pretty sure that's why they moved here, or something."

El seemed to understand as she thought about it. She then turned to look at the all the pictures on top of the fireplace. She slowly walks to the fireplace and steps up onto the brick platform. She gazes at all the family photos. Particularly, the photo beside the one of Mike; of a smiling girl, a little older than herself, with long brown hair and a pink sweater.

She smiles longingly and speaks in a soft voice. "Pretty."

"I guess." Mike's face is contorted in confusion and a little in disgust.

"That's my sister Nancy. And that's baby Holly." He said as she moved to the slightly larger photo of a young baby. She then moved along to a photo with Mike, Nancy, and Holly, along with two other people she didn't recognize.

"And those are my parents. What are your parents like?" As usual, El says nothing and she steps down from the fireplace and walks up to a large green chair.

"Do they live close?" Mike continued. He notices El run her hand along the top of the plush green chair. "That's our La-Z-Boy. It's where my dad sleeps. You can try it if you want." He offers. El looked up at him, intrigued. "Yeah." He assured her, with a warm smile on his face. She cautiously sits down as Mike kneels down beside the chair. "It's fun!"

She looked to Mike, wondering what he is up to.

"Just trust me, okay?" She gives a quick nod, and braces herself, not knowing what to expect. She is taken aback by the sudden collapse of the chair, she is now laying down and the chair is rocking back and forth. She lets out a gasp, and then a nervous chuckle.

"See? Fun, right?"

With one hand on the back of the chair, and the other on the front, he brings the chair back into its default position. "Now you try."

With a small smile on her face, and feeling more confident she leans over the side and pulls the handle, letting her entire body go flying backward into a slow rock. Mike and El both look at each other and laugh gleefully.

⊹ ⊹ ⊹

Some random rock song on the radio that Jonathan barely recognized came to an end as Jonathan Byers drove to his dad's house. His eyes darted to the radio unit in his car for a moment as his heart fell when the familiar sound of "Should I Stay or Should I Go" rang throughout the car.

- 𝗙𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗛𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗞 -

"Darlin', you got to let me know"

Jonathan is sat on the edge of the bed next to his younger brother Will. The two of them are in Will's room, bobbing their heads along to 'Should I Stay or Should I Go' by The Clash.

"Should I stay or should I go?"

"You like it?" Jonathan had to raise his voice so he could be heard over the loud song. Will looks to his older brother and grins.

"Yeah, it's cool!"

"All right, you can keep the mix if you want."

"Really?"

"Yeah, really. All the best stuff's on there. Joy Division, Bowie, Television, The Smith's... It'll totally change your life."

"Yeah, totally," Will says with a smile. However, the smile is quick to leave when the two boys hear their mother yelling on the phone.

"Where the hell are you, Lonnie?"

Will slowly turns his head to the door, listening to his mother yell at his absent father.

"I don't want to hear it. I don't want to hear it." Jonathan mimics his brother's actions and looks to the door. Finally, he gets up and walks towards the door.

"This is ridiculous! I'm so sick of your excuses.

"One day is fine and next is black"

Before Jonathan sits down, he lowers the volume on the stereo.

"He's not coming, is he?"

"Do you even like baseball?" Jonathan asks softly.

"No, but... I don't know." He shrugs sadly. "It's fun to go with him sometimes."

"Come on. Has he ever done anything with you that you actually like? You know, like the arcade or something?"

Will shrugs his shoulders weakly. "I don't know."

"No, all right? He hasn't. He's trying to force you to like normal things. And you shouldn't like things because people tell you you're supposed to. Okay?"

Will only looks down at his feet sadly.

"Especially not him."

Will silently nods his head in understanding.

Jonathan decided to change the subject.

"But you like The Clash? For real?"

Will nods his head eagerly with a smile. "For real. Definitely."

"So... is Y/n a fan of The Clash?" Jonathan asks, genuinely curious.

A faint blush dusts Will's cheeks as he looks down at his hands. "Um, yeah, I think so."

"Maybe you should show this to him. I bet he'll like it."

"Maybe. You think?"

"Yeah, from what I know, he has great taste. He's pretty cool."

A loving smile spreads across Will's face. "Yeah, he is pretty cool."

There's a small pause filled only with the now dulled melody of drums and guitar drifting through the air. They had talked about it before, but only vaguely, never fully addressing it and it dawned on Jonathan that there was probably still loads of fear for Will because of it. He looks down at his brother who he loved more than anything and sent him an encouraging, honest smile.

"Will, you guys are best friends. You two are just too close to ruin the friendship. Why don't you think about asking him to the arcade or something? Just the two of you, maybe come back here for some mac and cheese or something if that'd make you feel safer, and you could " he shrugs. "let him know how you feel?"

Will looked up at his brother, shocked. But his body was flushed with relief, he could feel the air in the room hitting his sweaty and clammey skin giving him chills. Not quite knowing how to handle his brothers reaction, his eyes simply fall to his hands where they fidgeting in his lap.

"But what if that does ruin the friendship? What if he doesn't feel the same way, and decides to stop hanging out with me. Or if someone finds out- I just- I just can't. I'm not ready."

"That's okay. All I'm saying is, he is way too nice to be the kind of person who would do that. And you are way too important to him. And hey, if you ever do feel ready, or you guys do go out in the future..." Jonathan trails off, sensing the awkwardness creep up. He chuckles and looks back to his brother.

"All I'm trying to say is, I'm here for you. Always."

Will smiles gratefully and Jonathan leans forward to the volume back up.

"Should I stay or should I go? So you gotta let me know, should I stay or should I go?"

- 𝗘𝗡𝗗 𝗢𝗙 𝗙𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗛𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗞 -

[detective-giggles]

Proposal Prep

5 times Carlos asks for permission to marry TK and the time he finally asks TK.

My second Tarlos fic, in a convenient 5+1 format!

Thank you to the wonderful Sarah for the beta, and thank you to Jae and Rae for cheerleading this fic (when I was starting and when I switched courses halfway through!)

Word count: 3264

***

1. Judd + Grace

“Are you sure I can’t help with anything?” Grace offered, watching intently as Carlos added the finishing touches to their dinner.

Carlos looked up owlishly. “No, it’s okay, thanks.  Actually, it’s all ready. If you guys want to have a seat, I’ll finish bringing it all over.” He slipped on an oven mitt and paused, watching as Judd pulled out the chair for Grace and kissed her softly on the cheek before taking his own seat next to his wife.

“We waitin’ on TK?” Judd asked, noticing the table was missing a setting.

“Uh, no. He’s on shift until tomorrow morning.” Carlos forced a smile as he placed the serving platter in the middle of the table.  He was nervous, although he knew that was ridiculous. He’d been hanging out with the 126 since he and TK became a couple, and everyone had always supported their relationship. “But I wanted to talk to you guys about TK. About us.” He added, dishing up a large serving on each plate in lieu of making eye contact with his guests.

Grace took a small sip of her wine and exchanged glances with her husband. “So you thought you’d wine and dine the old married couple for relationship advice?”

Carlos’ eyes widened. “What? No! Of course not! I don’t need- I mean, we’re good. TK and I, we’re really good.” He took a large drink from his own glass before continuing. “In fact, I’m going to ask TK to marry me?”

He watched as Judd attempted to look surprised and Grace, usually always composed, let out the tiniest squeal.

“You done?” Judd huffed a laugh at his wife’s reaction and shook his head, turning back towards Carlos. “Well, are you askin’ us? Or tellin’ us?” he asked, sounding unimpressed.

“Judd!” Grace chastised.

“What? I ain’t said nothin’.”

“Um, asking,” Carlos piped up. He hesitated when both sets of eyes turned towards him and Grace cocked her head to the side. “Officially. I know I could just ask Owen, but that doesn’t seem right. You guys are all family.”

Judd nodded slowly, and Carlos let out a sigh of relief when a large grin spread across Judd’s face. “Hell yes! You two are always acting like lovesick fools. It’s about damn time!”

“Thanks, Judd.”

“Oh, on one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“You don’t ask me to be in it.”

Carlos and Grace laughed. “I think we can honor that,” Carlos promised. “But I will need your help if you’re up for it. I want to talk to Tommy and Nancy tomorrow morning. And obviously I’ll need someone to distract TK.”

“Hmmm. I’ll think of something.”

2. Tommy + Nancy

“Hey, Carlos.” Tommy smiled warmly as Carlos slipped into the fire station.  He had a drink carrier in one hand, and he gave a small wave with the other.

“Carlos!” Nancy popped her head out of the ambulance, her hands full of supplies. “You just missed your boy. Judd just pulled him out of here!” 

“Yeah, that was intentional.” Carlos explained as he held the carrier out in offering. Tommy and Nancy each eagerly grabbed a cup and Carlos took the remaining cup and tossed the carrier in the bin.

“Okay, what’s going on, Reyes?” Tommy asked, sipping at the warm coffee. “This looks like a bribe.”

“I would just like to make it clear, that I’m okay with a caffeine-filled bribe. Especially at the end of a 24-hour shift.” Nancy piped up.

“Can we all talk? Maybe somewhere a little more discreet than your office?” Carlos tucked his hand into the pocket of his jeans and looked around furtively.

“Sure.” Tommy’s face turned from amusement to concern. She led the way upstairs, to the bunkroom the paramedics used on their overnights. It was smaller than the one on the firefighter side, but it was cozier. (Not that Carlos had snuck in there a time or two with TK or anything.)

Tommy and Nancy dropped into a bunk and Carlos slowly sat onto the one across from them.

“What’s up?” Nancy asked, eyeing Carlos carefully.

“So, TK and I have been together for a while and things are… well, kind of amazing. I still don’t know how we were lucky enough to find each other but I am so grateful for every day we have had together, and I want to make sure that we have many more of them.” Carlos looked around and then leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees. “Tommy, Nancy… I want to ask TK to marry me. And I want to know that you guys would be okay with it.”

“Carlos…”

“I know I don’t have to ask, but if I’m going to do this, I want to do it right. And you guys are family.”

“Dude, you can’t make me ugly cry this early in the morning! That’s like, the sweetest thing.”

“So they’re happy tears?”

Nancy wrinkled her nose and sniffled before nodding. “Can I give you a hug?” Carlos nodded and Nancy joined him on the bunk, wrapping her arms around him.  “I’m going to speak for us both,” Nancy began, “You have been so good for TK. He’s so…happy. When he’s with you, he knows he’s safe. We know he’s safe.”

“You know, Austin really isn’t that dangerous of a town.” Carlos chuckled softly at his lame joke.

“You know what she means. We know you’re not going to break his heart.” Tommy smiled.

Carlos took a moment to look both women in the eye. “I won’t. I promise.”

3. Gwyn

“Gwyneth Morgan speaking.”

Carlos took a deep breath, “Hey! Gwyn!  It’s Carlos.”

“Carlos?”

“Yes. Carlos… Reyes… Um, TK’s Carlos.”

He heard Gwyn’s flustered chuckle and a screech- courtesy of TK’s baby brother. Carlos winced, he had forgotten about the baby- and the slight time difference. “Right, Carlos! I’m sorry, it’s bedtime and a zoo around here.” There was a slight pause and a sigh. “What happened? Who’s hurt?”

“What? No! No, no. Everyone’s fine! TK and Owen are both- I’m sorry, Gwyn, I didn’t mean to worry you. They’re both fine.” Carlos groaned softly when he remembered part of the reason he had met Gwyn was after TK had been seriously injured. Admittedly, it was weird to be contacted out of the blue by your son’s boyfriend, he didn’t blame her for being worried.

“Good. I’m glad to hear that.”

Carlos paused and the awkward silence made his stomach flip. “So, I wanted to talk to you about something.” He stood, pacing back and forth in his living room.

“Okay…”

“You know, you’ve raised a good son. TK is smart, he’s funny, he has a gentle soul. He’s amazing. I honestly thought someone like TK only existed in my dreams.  Now that I have him, I know I don’t want to let him go.  Gwyn, I want to ask TK to marry me, and I want your blessing.”

“Oh… That is not what I was expecting. I, uh, have you talked to Owen yet?”

“No, not yet. I will, I just haven’t had the chance.”

Gwyn sighed. “Look, Carlos. I like you; I really do.  I have seen you two together, and I think you’re good for him.  You’re a good influence on my son. He has grown up a lot since he’s been in Austin, and I know that at least some of that is because of you.”

“But?”

“I just- he’s my son and I love him more than anything. Even when he makes it difficult. I need to know that you’ll do the same. You say you love him when he’s at his best. But I need to know you’ll love him at his worst.”

“Gwyn, I promise. TK is important to me, and so is his sobriety.  I will continue to support him in any way that I can. I believe in him. And I don’t want him to fall- but I assure you, if he does, I will always be there to catch him.”

“I know you will. And yes, Carlos, I would be honored to have you as a son-in-law.”

4. Marjan, Paul, & Mateo

“Alright! Here you go.” Carlos set a tray full of tacos on the table in front of the remaining members of TK’s firefam.  He wasn’t as nervous as he had been before talking with Judd and Grace, but Mateo was eyeing him suspiciously and that was putting him a little on edge.

Everyone grabbed a taco and ate in silence for a minute. Everyone except for Mateo, that is.

“Ohhh, these are delicious!” Paul grabbed another taco. “You’re not eating?” he nudged Mateo.

“This is weird. Why are we here?” Mateo asked, crossing his arms, “and where’s TK?”

“We can have lunch with our friend, Mateo, it’s okay.” Marjan paused and set her taco back onto her plate. “But it is a little weird. You two are usually joined at the hip. What’s going on?”

“I wanted to talk to you guys. About me,” he shrugged, “and TK.

“I knew it. There’s something going on. You’ve been acting weird.” Mateo accused.

“I have not!”

“You have been acting a little weird.” Paul confirmed.

“You’re breaking up, aren’t you?”

“What? No! Mateo, we’re not breaking up.”

“Yes. This is exactly what happens when parents get divorced, and then the kids have to decide who they’re gonna live with and who they’re gonna spend holidays with.” Mateo crossed his arms and leaned on the table. “Well, I’m sorry Carlos, but TK is like a brother to me. If you dump him, you’re gonna lose us all. Right, guys?”

Marjan sighed and wrinkled her nose. “Are you done?” she asked Mateo. Turning to Carlos she shrugged, “But he has a point.”

“No! That’s not- I didn’t bring you here for that, I swear!” Carlos looked at each of them in turn and he had to bite back a smile. As obnoxious as this was becoming, it made his heart happy to hear how fiercely they were willing to protect TK. He glanced back at Paul.  Paul hadn’t taken his eyes off Carlos, watching his reactions very carefully.

“They’re not breaking up.” Paul piped up.

“Thank you!”

“They’re getting married!” He added slowly.

Carlos nodded. “I’ve known you for years and it’s still creepy when you do that.”

“What? You proposed and didn’t tell us?” Marjan pouted.

“No! Not yet! But that’s why I brought you here. To tell you. Well, to ask you. TK is your family, you all just proved it. So, I’m asking your permission to ask TK to marry me.”

Paul cocked his head to the side. “Huh. I didn’t see that coming.”

“Oooh something you couldn’t predict?” Marjan teased before turning back to Carlos.  “You’re really asking us?”

“I am.”

“Hmmm.”

“Hmmm? What kind of answer is that?” Paul asked. “You know what? Yes. Carlos, yes. What you two share is beautiful and I, for one, can not stand between that.”

“Thanks, Paul.” They both looked at Marjan and Mateo expectantly.

After a few long moments, Marjan let out a whoop. “Carlos, Paul’s right, we can’t say no.  We’ve seen you two together and you two are already way too much like a married couple. Just make it official, please.”

“Thanks, Marj. Mateo? Thoughts?”

“Yeah, that’d be cool, I guess.”

“Way to sound excited.” Marjan gave him a little nudge. “What’s up?”

“Are you guys gonna have kids and forget about us?”

“What kind of question is that?” Paul rolled his eyes.

“No. I mean, yes, we’ve talked about kids, Mateo. But it’s not something we’d do right away. And we’ll still be around to hang out with you guys. We won’t abandon the 126.”

 “Promise?”

“I promise.”

Mateo nodded. “Alright. Go ahead.”

5. Owen

“Hey, Carlos! Come in. You didn’t have to knock, you used to live here. Don’t you still have a key?” Owen said as he pulled open the door and then stepped aside, closing the door once Carlos had moved past him.

“Oh, yeah, I didn’t think about it.”

“Well, come on. Do you want something to drink?” Carlos followed Owen to the kitchen and leaned heavily against the counter.

“No, thanks, Owen. I don’t want to take up too much of your time, but I just wanted to talk to you.”

“Sure, Carlos. Have a seat. Is everything okay?”

Carlos nodded as he dropped into the chair opposite of Owen. “Yes. Everything’s fine. I don’t want to take up too much of your time, I know you have a shift in a bit, so I’m just going to get to the point.  I’d like to ask your permission to ask TK to marry me.”

“You know, I remember the day TK brought his ex, Alex, home.”

“Sir?” Carlos had heard a few Alex stories, all from TK’s point of view, but he was morbidly curious what the elder Strand thought of TK’s ex.

“We had dinner, takeout from somewhere. Alex was nice, polite. It was relatively un-remarkable.  So he leaves, and TK asks me what I think.”

“You didn’t like him?”

“I didn’t.” Owen confirmed. “Anyway, TK asks what I think, and I tell him.  I tell him that I don’t think Alex is right for him, and honestly, I think he knows it too.  I also tell him that when he finds the right person, he’s gonna know it and he’s not gonna care what I think.”

Carlos nodded slowly. He felt like he knew where Owen’s story was going to go, but really wished Owen would put him out of his misery.

“So, we move here and fast forward to a year or so ago. You two had only been official for a few weeks. It was the night you joined us for dinner at the firehouse before your shift.  TK walks you out and he comes back into the kitchen, and I tell him that I like you. I think you’re a good fit.  And TK, he gives me this shit-eating grin and tells me he’s glad I like you but that he doesn’t care what I think.”

Carlos laughed. “Yeah, that sounds about right.”

“Carlos, he is so happy when he’s with you. I see the way he lights up when you walk into a room. This move to Austin has been healing for him, and I know you’re a large part of that.  I just want what’s best for him, and I’ve seen you enough to know, that’s you.”

“Gwyn pretty much said the same thing.”

“It’s true. But you knew I was going to say yes, right?”

Carlos chuckled, “I had assumed that, yes. But it’s still nice to hear.  Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Just promise me you two won’t go elope or anything like that. TK’s mother will kill me if she doesn’t get to watch her son get married.”

“I cannot promise that. But no matter where or when, I promise that you and Gwyn will both be invited.”

“Good enough. Thank you, Carlos.”

+1 TK

Carlos hummed to himself as he checked the food he had in the oven. TK would be home any minute and tonight was the night. It had been a week since he’d talked with Owen and the firefam was getting impatient. He fielded at least one text from Nancy every shift after TK would show up sans ring, sometimes Paul and Marjan would join in. Grace had taken over as unofficial wedding planner and occasionally sent him color schemes and venue ideas- and he didn’t know how long he could keep hiding his messages from TK.

His phone beeped and he glanced at it, groaning a little when he saw Nancy’s name flash on the screen.  “Tonight, Nance, I promise! I’m doing it tonight!”

“Um, hey listen, so TK’s okay- he’s fine! But we’re at Austin General.”

Carlos paused and he realized his hands were shaking slightly as he reached out to turn the oven off.  “So when you say fine…”

“He’s fine, I promise! I’m certain he’s going to need a few stitches, but really, on the scale of TK’s injuries, this is nothing to worry about.” Nancy tried to explain. “He’s asking for you.”

“I’m on my way” he promised. Carlos grabbed his keys and headed out the door.

***

“Hey, baby.” Carlos paused at the foot of TK’s bed. His boyfriend looked fine.  There weren’t any obvious injuries, but the fact they hadn’t released him was still causing Carlos a little anxiety.

“I’ll leave you two alone.” Nancy stood and gave TK’s arm a little squeeze. She paused as she passed by Carlos. “I think the tie’s a little much,” she whispered, giving the offending silk a playful tug.

“Go on, get out of here.” Carlos made his way to the seat Nancy had vacated.   “Hey, you okay?” Carlos gently smoothed TK’s hair back and kissed the top of his head.

“Yeah.” TK gestured to his leg. “It’s just a few stitches, nothing to worry about. They’re just keeping me overnight to monitor for infection. Um, why are you all dressed up?” TK chewed on his bottom lip. “Did you have something planned?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah. I didn’t change after Nancy called me. I just came straight here.”

“I’m sorry. I told her to tell you I was fine and not to worry.”

“She did. And I worried anyway.”

TK chuckled, “Carlos, I-”

“TK, the thought of losing you makes me crazy.”

“Ohhh, babe. I’m not going anywhere. I promise.” TK reached out and gently caressed Carlos’ cheek. “Which, I know that would sound a lot more comforting if I wasn’t currently in a hospital bed.” Carlos caught TK’s hand and turned his head, pressing a kiss to his palm.

“No, I know. I just- I guess what I was saying is…” Carlos paused, wondering how actually crazy he was to still be considering proposing under the circumstances.  “Marry me, TK, please?”

TK gave Carlos a puzzled look. “Is that really what you were going to do tonight? This isn’t some knee-jerk reaction to this?” he gestured vaguely around the hospital room.

Carlos swallowed hard and nodded, pulling the small, velvet box from his pocket.  “I’ve been planning for weeks. I asked your dad. And Gwyn. And, um, everyone else.”

“Everyone?”

“Judd, Grace, Tommy, Nancy, Paul, Mateo, Marjan… The whole crew.”

“You really did all that for me?” TK’s eyes lit up.

“Yes, and they all said yes faster than you are.  Also, I think Grace has already started making plans, so she’s going to kill you if you don’t say yes.”

“Carlos! Of course the answer is yes!” Carlos leaned in and wrapped his arms around TK, giving him a tight squeeze. TK tipped his head up for a kiss and Carlos obliged, keeping it short and sweet, considering their current location.  Carlos plucked the ring out of the box and slipped it onto his fiancé’s finger.

TK shifted to the side and patted the bed next to him.

“No, TK.”

TK looked up at Carlos, his eyes wide and innocent as he tapped the bed again. “Come sit.”

“You’re gonna get me kicked out of the hospital.” Carlos mumbled as he sat on the edge of the bed. “And then you’ll have to spend your first night engaged alone.” Carlos toed off his shoes and settled himself on the bed, carefully, and TK tucked himself into Carlos’ side.

“Even if we have to spend tonight apart, we’ll have plenty more nights together.”

“A lifetime of them.” Carlos promised.

 **

A/N: This is actually the longest fic I’ve ever written. Random: The bit with Owen is based on a true conversation my husband had with his dad right after he started dating me.

[sunrisefairy]

Last chances

Pairing: George Weasley x reader Warning: Alcohol, swearing, angst (but worth it i promise) Summary: Y/N is getting married. To someone that isn’t George. 

A/N: this was written for @inglourious-imagines​​ 1K writing challenge (i just realised i didnt tell you before hand what prompts i was gonna do so i hope thats okay) based off the prompts ‘you need to leave’ and ‘d-did you just k-kiss me?’

Taglist: @hufflepuff5972​ @inglourious-imagines​ @klausdatprettyboi​ @georgeweasleyswhre​ @horrorxweasley​ @amourtentiaa​ send me an ask if you would like to be added

———————————————————————————————————

George felt all the air being sucked out of his lungs as he read over the golden cursive words printed onto the crisp white paper. He could feel Fred’s pitiful stare burning holes into the side of his head, but he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the paper in his grasp. George’s brain was overflowing with thoughts, but his head was empty at the same time, as if every time he reached out his thoughts were dissolving into liquid and slipping through his fingers.

By the time George managed to make eye contact with Fred, his eyes were red and burning with tears, the only thought he could wrap his fingers around was the one which was destroying him the most, “she’s getting married?”

~~~

The sun was beating down harshly making the sand feel like tiny grains of lava, but George didn’t care. It was the middle of summer and the Weasley family had invited the Y/L/N’s to the beach. John and Nancy Y/L/N had been very good friends with Molly and Arthur Weasley for many years having met during high school. But soon after graduation John and Nancy got married and decided to travel the world which they had done for a few years before having their daughter Y/N. They moved around a lot while Y/N was a baby, still wanting to explore and see what the world had to offer. But now, Y/N was 7 and they decided it would do her and themselves some good to settle down somewhere, plant some roots so to speak. Which is how they ended back in the small town John and Nancy grew up in, the one where the Weasleys were still living.

Giving that it was summer, and the weather was reaching high temperatures the Weasley family decided to spend the day at the beach so the children could kill some energy and excitedly invited their old friends, John and Nancy to catch up.

George was particularly thrilled not only because he loved days at the beach playing with his siblings and making sandcastles just to pretend he was a giant and stomp on them, but he couldn’t wait to meet Y/N. His parents had told him and Fred that Y/N was their age and although Fred wasn’t very interested in playing with a girl and would much rather prank Ron, George had a good feeling about Y/N.

George had just finished constructing a sandcastle he named ‘Castle Weasley’ and was about to jump on it when his mum calls for him. He drags his bare feet through the hot sand over to his parents who are chatting with 2 people he doesn’t recognise.

“Fred, George this is John and Nancy, and this is their little girl Y/N.” Molly gestures to the timid girl hiding behind her mum’s leg.

Reluctantly Y/N moves from her previous hiding spot and stares doe eyes up at the twins in front of her. George’s mouth is dry and his palms are clammy, but he doesn’t think it’s from the blistering heat. George Weasley is staring at the most beautiful girl he’s ever seen.

~~~

It’s been 3 weeks since Y/N’s wedding invitation arrived in the mail and George had shoved it under a pile of bills he was also planning to ignore. Although he doesn’t need to see the invitations to remember the words which were written on the paper ‘kindly join us for the wedding of Y/N L/N and William Chapman. Saturday the seventeenth of April at 11 o’clock.’

It was the 10th of April today, just 7 days till Y/N’s wedding. George felt bile rising in the back of his throat every time he thinks about Y/N marrying someone which wasn’t himself. George has had a crush on the girl ever since he first met her that day on the beach. Back then he only ever saw it as a silly little crush which he hoped he’d eventually get over. But years went on and his crush only grew and grew until it was suffocating. When they reached high school, George planned to tell Y/N about his feelings but chickened out each time, scared of ruining their friendship.

To be honest George always felt (maybe he just hoped) that him and Y/N were meant for each other and sooner or later they’d be together. He held tightly onto this when Y/N started dating William. George was optimistic that William and Y/N’s relationship wasn’t serious and eventually they’d break up and George could finally confess his feelings. All of that went down the drain the second George open up that stupid envelope.

“I ran into Y/N today. At the store,” Fred says carefully trying to gage his brother’s reaction to her name. George just offers a grunt in response, eye staring blankly at the tv in front of him. “she asked about you, wants to know if you’re going to the wedding since she hasn’t heard anything from you.”

George doesn’t reply. Fred just sighs, ”c’mon mate. You’re really not going to go? It’s Y/N we’re talking about here. She’s your best mate.”

George racks his ringers through his already messy hair, squeezing his eyes closed. “That’s exactly why I can’t go. It’s Y/N. How can I sit there and watch Y/N marry some other guy and pretend I’m okay with it?” George feels tears threatening to fall down his cheeks, it’s a wonder he has any tears left to cry.

Fred moves closer to George on the couch, wrapping his arm around his twin who chokes out a sob, “I know buddy, I know it fucking hurts.”

~~~

Since graduating high school George and Y/N made it tradition to catch up once a week if not more so they wouldn’t lose touch. But their newfound busy lives with university and work meant they hadn’t seen each other for a month. They finally found a day that they were both free and decided to meet up for coffee. George had paid for Y/N’s latte while she found them a table by the window. He set their drinks down admiring how beautiful Y/N looked, she was practically glowing.

“So, Y/N what’s new with you? I feel like it’s been forever since I’ve seen you,” George takes a long sip of his coffee.

George knows Y/N must have some important news for him, judging solely off the smile that she’s failing to conceal. “Well, if you must know. I met someone.”

The colour drains from George’s face and he coughs trying to regain his composure. “Like a boy?”

“Yes a boy silly, his name is William and I met him at the library. It was actually really funny I was turning down one of the aisles and he” George drowns out Y/N’s voice, he can hear his heart thumping in his chest, threatening to jump out.

George knows, he knows it’s his own fault for not telling Y/N how he feels sooner. He knows he doesn’t have anyone else to blame but himself, but it doesn’t make this hurt any less. Sweet, kind Y/N, who had gently cradled George’s heart unknowingly since they were 7, has squeezed it between her slender fingers like a stress ball.

“George?” Y/N words break him from his trance.

“That sounds amazing Y/N, I’m really happy for you.”

~~~

It’s Monday and Y/N has been trying to contact George for days with no luck. She ran into Fred last Saturday who said George has just been super busy with work, she didn’t believe it one bit, she needed to find out why George has been ignoring her.

She pushes the store door open and the bell above chimes announcing her arrival.

“Sorry we’re closed for the day!” a voice travels through the store before it’s owner exits the storeroom to see who the culprit is, who clearly cannot read the ‘closed’ sign hanging on the door.

George’s eyes land on Y/N who is standing by the front door unmoving and twiddling with her fingers, playing with an engagement ring that seems out of place on her left hand. “What are you doing here?”

Y/N steps closer, not noticing the way George takes a small step back, “I feel like I haven’t seen you in forever.”

George doesn’t speak, he’s certain that his voice would be unsteady if he did. Y/N hates the silence, so speaks again, “I’m getting married you know, on Saturday.”

George sucks in a breath, turning his back to fix one of the displays. “Yeah, congratulations,” he mumbles.

“I didn’t know if you got the invitation or not, kind of expected you to call.” Y/N shoves her hands into the pockets of her jeans, moving so she is standing beside George who is avoiding her gaze. “What’s the matter Georgie?”

George shakes his head, “kind of fast isn’t it? Why the rush to get married to that twat?”

Y/N rolls her eyes, ever since George met William, he made it very clear he didn’t like the bloke. “George stop it. He proposed and I said yes. We figured why wait to start our lives together, y’know? So on Saturday I thought that-“

“-I’m not going.” George’s words felt like a hot knife to Y/N’s chest. When George finally mets her gaze he continues, “I’m not going to the wedding Y/N.”

“Why?”

“Because! Because William is a prick and doesn’t deserve you. I can’t sit there and watch you marry some idiot.” George knows his voice is getting louder and that his hands are flailing around but he doesn’t care. “He’s an absolute tosser! You deserve better than William.” You deserve me.

“William has done nothing but love me, George.” The thought of George not being there at her wedding breaks her heart. George was her best friend; how could she not have her best friend at the wedding. “Are you really not going to be there for me?” Y/N’s voice is quiet and timid.

It shatters George to see her so upset and the next words almost kill him.

“No, I won’t be there.”

~~~

Click.

Click.

Click.

“Okay mum that’s enough photos now!” Y/N giggles trying to hide her face behind her hands.

“Just one more please! George put your arm around her this time.” Nancy says holding the camera up to her face.

George wraps his arm around Y/N waist pulling her closer to him very aware of the way Y/N leans into his side. It’s the night on the school dance and somehow he had gathered enough courage to ask Y/N to go with him, she agreed of course and now they were standing out the front of Y/N’s house in front of the rose bushes while Y/N and George’s parents took photos.

“Okay now one with the four of you together,” Molly says pushing Fred and his date over to the rose bush. The four of them stood together smiling at all the flashing cameras which almost blinded them.

Molly wipes a tear that slips down her cheek, she always got emotional during things like this, “I cannot believe my little babies are growing up. 16 and going to a school dance with their gorgeous dates.”

“Right mum that’s enough, we’re gonna be late,” George groans although he didn’t mind having his arm around Y/N’s middle.

Molly nods agreeing, “right fine! Don’t want to keep you from your dance, have fun!”

Arthur drops the 4 of them off at the school hall reminding them he’d be back at 12 to pick them up.

All 4 of them spend most of the night dancing together and laughing at Fred’s questionable dance moves. Soon the upbeat song comes to an end and a much slowly one started playing. Immediately Fred extends a hand to his date, “m’lady. Care to dance?”

George turns his body to face Y/N who is gazing up at his tall frame, he gulps “Y/N do you wanna dance with me?”

The smile that spreads across her face could light up the room, “yes please.”

For the remainder of the night George and Y/N sway slowly to the music, Y/N moves closer to George until her head is resting against his chest and his arms find their place on her hips.

Y/N can hear George humming to the music above her and she smiles giving his shoulders a small squeeze, then whispers so quietly she’s worried George doesn’t hear her. “I hope we are always best friends Georgie.”

“I promise we will be love.”

~~~

Friday night and George hasn’t spoken to Y/N since she visited the shop. He’s ignored her phone calls and text messages; she came into the shop again on Wednesday, but George locked himself in the backroom telling Fred he had to do stocktake.

George could feel himself falling apart, Y/N was upset with him, Fred was annoyed at his childish behaviour. George felt himself fall deeper and deeper as his heartache and sorrow grew stronger every time he remembered Y/N’s engagement. The only thing which seems to numb his feelings was the alcohol.

At this point George wasn’t sure how much he had had to drink, but the buzz running through his system was better than the bitterness he was feeling before. It had just hit 11:30pm at night and he had finished the last of the tequila from the bottle. With no alcohol to distract his brain his eyes drift over the numerous photo frames he has hanging on the living room wall. His eyes stop at one photo in particular, it’s of him and Y/N from the day at the beach when they were 7. Despite it being the first time the two had met, they looked like they’d known each other since birth. Y/N had been very shy when she was introduced to the twins, but George quickly made her feel comfortable and the day was spent with lots of laughter and smiles. In the photo George and Y/N are stood side by side on the sand, grinning up at the camera. They had just made a huge sandcastle village and were very proud to show off their creation. George’s eyes wander down the photograph to their hands which are tightly intertwined. He bites his lip before stumbling out the front door.

~~~

“Do you ever think about getting married Georgie?” Y/N questions, she’s lying beside George outside on the grass, staring up at the clouds moving above them. They did this a lot, gazing at the sky trying to find the funniest shapes in the clouds.

George is only 12 but he knows exactly who he wants to marry, not that he will admit that.

“No, not really.” George tries not to freak out when he feels Y/N’s hand intertwine with his own, “do you?”

Y/N nods, “yep, I want to marry someone who is funny and will let me eat ice cream for dinner.” She giggles and it makes George’s heart soar, it the 5 years of knowing Y/N it had quickly become George’s favourite sound.

He turns his head to face Y/N, she’s still looking up at the sky, there’s a faint smile on her lips.

“I’m funny.” George isn’t sure what he’s insinuating.

Y/N turns to face him, “you are. Would you let me eat ice cream for dinner?” he nods eagerly.

Y/N purses her lips before smiling, “well then Georgie, maybe I’ll marry you.”

George can only hope that’s true.

~~~

George’s fist hammers against the wooden door. It knows it late and there’s a chance William will answer instead of Y/N but in this moment he doesn’t care. “C’mon Y/N open up! It’s me George.”

The door swings open and Y/N is standing on the other side in a fluffy dressing gown wrapped snuggly around her body rubbing her eyes. “George what the hell are you doing here?” There’s a trace of annoying on her voice, mostly because he’d woken her up but also because she’s been trying to talk to him all week and he decides to show up at her house at midnight the night before her wedding.

“I-um,” George stammers, his words getting stuck in this throat. He has spent practically his whole life wanting to tell Y/N he loves her but never being able to find the words, this time was no exception. So, in George’s alcohol fuelled mind he decides if he can’t use words then actions are the next best thing.

Y/N is staring blanking at the redhead on her porch, eager to know the reason why he’s standing in front of her after ignoring her all week. George timidly steps closer towards Y/N before resting his hands on her cheeks and pressing their lips together roughly.

Y/N is stood frozen on the spot until her hands reach up to rest on George’s chest. She can taste the strong alcohol on Georges mouth, and she’s pulled back to reality and pushing him away. “D-did you just k-kiss me?”

George nods.

Y/N is filled with anger and it starts to bubble up inside of her. “What the fuck George? You’ve been ignoring me all week not answering my calls or texts and-and then you just come here drunk and do that? You can’t come here the night before my wedding and kiss me. It’s not fair!”

George’s shoulders slump, “I’m sorry, I just had to say- that I…” he pauses again, his eyes scanning over Y/N’s face hoping somehow she’s learnt how to mind read.

“What? You had to say what George?” Y/N is aware that she’s yelling but she can’t bring herself to care.

“That I love you.”

Y/N doesn’t speak her brain is running a hundred miles a minute. The silence is unpleasant and unbearable, George looking into Y/N’s eyes trying to read her expression.

“You need to leave,” Y/N utters, her face unmoving.

It’s like George’s feet are glued to the ground, he’s brain is screaming at him to move but he can’t.

“You need to leave George.” Y/N’s voice is firmer this time, “I’m getting married tomorrow and you need to leave right now.”

~~~

George Weasley is an idiot. No, he’s more than an idiot, George Weasley is a dickhead, plain and simple.

He hadn’t been able to fall asleep when he got home, he kept replaying the night over and over. Every time he closed his eyes, he was met with Y/N staring back at him. Except she’s staring with so much disgust it makes George feel sick, he can still hear Y/N’s voice telling him to leave. George Weasley not only managed to lose the life of his life in one night but also his best friend. He feels like a dickhead.

George glances over at the clock next to his bed. 10:30 am. Y/N is getting married in 30 minutes. His chest pains, he thinks he might throw up.

George staggers out of bed and towards the kitchen, he needs water. His journey is interrupted by a harsh knock from the front door. He sighs, he knew Fred would come around to try and convince him to go to the wedding. George figures he couldn’t go to the wedding even if he wanted to, sure that his invitation was no longer valid after last night.

“Fred, seriously I’m not going,” George flings open the door and he almost passes out.

Y/N was standing there looking like an angel, he thinks maybe he died from alcohol poisoning and was actually in heaven. Y/N’s hair was laying loosely across her shoulders, she was wearing a breathtaking white gown which hugged her body perfectly.

George mouth is gaping open his voice coming out breathless and in a whisper, “what-what are you doing here?” He’s half expecting Y/N to slap him across the face for his antics last night.

“I couldn’t do it,” Y/N also whispers, as if this is a secret conversation, only meant for the two of them.

“Why?” George squeaks.

“Because I love you.”

Y/N steps closer and drapes her arms around George’s neck pulling him closer so their foreheads are resting against each other.

As soon as she woke up this morning Y/N felt ill. It wasn’t until she was standing in her wedding dress by the church did she realise why she felt sick. It was because the man that was waiting for her inside the church wasn’t George. Her mum sensed her daughters doubts and offered a comforting hand on her shoulder, “darling, you tell me right now if you want out. I’ll get a car, I’ll sort out this whole thing, you won’t have to worry about a thing.”

Without thinking Y/N had responded, “I want out mum.” That lead to Y/N zooming away in her dad’s car straight for George’s place.

Y/N gazes into George’s warm and gentle eyes, she felt home, “I love you even though you’re an idiot who waited to tell me you loved me till the night before my wedding to someone else.”

George chuckles, “yeah I guess I am but I’m your idiot.”

[derekmorganscrocs]

Pictures: Ace x Reader

Pairing: Drew!Reader x Ace (Nancy Drew CW)

Word Count: 7, 632 words

Request for @ateliefloresdaprimavera

Summary: When Carson asks reader for an old photo, her and Ace go through their photos and reminisce on their years of memories. From how they met, to their first kiss, to when they moved in together, the pair enjoy remembering their past and talk about the future.

Notes: Reader is Nancy’s older sister and a nurse student. None of the timelines really add up, so just don’t think about that too much lol. This is my first request, so I hope I did alright! It took so long and I got majorly carried away (7k words whoop whoop!), but I’m so happy with it and I hope you enjoy!! Flashbacks are in italics!

You walk into the apartment you and Ace share, throwing your keys onto the little table in the entryway and placing your bag on the ground. It’s been a long day, and you really just want to see your boyfriend. A smile appears on your face as you breathe in the smell of your favourite dinner cooking and savour the sound of Ace humming along to some Bon Jovi song he and his dad listened to when Ace was a little kid.

A small laugh escapes your lips, and you make your way into the kitchen. Ace must not have heard you come in, because he jumps when you wrap your arms around his waist. He realizes it’s you by the old bracelet on your wrist, an old woven strip of leather that his dad gave you the  Christmas after you guys got together. It’s one of your most prized possessions. He turns, staying in your grip, and smiles down at you. 

“Hey,” he says softly, lifting your chin with his finger. Ace leans in and plants a sweet kiss against your lips. You smile into the kiss, and when he pulls away you lean your head against his chest. He wraps his arms snugly around your shoulders, and you melt into his embrace. 

“Today was like a thousand years long,” you groan, your voice muffled by his chest. “And its only like six o’clock!” Your comment makes him let out a small laugh and the sound makes you smile. It’s been all of a minute, and Ace is already turning your day around. Though that’s been his specialty for a long time. 

“Well, once we eat I thought we could go through old polaroids. Mr. D wants a copy of the one from Halloween two years ago.” Ace glances down at you, but you keep your face smushed against him. 

“Sounds great.” The sound is still muffled, but he can hear that you’re more than happy with the idea. He laughs slightly, he’s always found your exhausted antics funny. You tilt your face slightly, glancing at the food on the stove. 

Ace follows your gaze, reaching to stir the pasta so it won’t burn to the pot. Your eyes catch on his arm. The way he’s stretching is really just defining every single muscle. He’s concentrated on the food, trying to focus enough that he won’t mess up using a single hand. When he’s really focused, he bites his lip slightly, and he’s really focused right now. And if you weren’t so tired, oh boy-

“Hey, it’s done!” He’s still clueless. You’ve been dating for six years and sometimes he still doesn’t notice the way you just stare blankly for a minute, imagining his hands roaming your body or his lips pressed against yours as he- “Let’s eat on the couch, we can start looking at pictures now.”

“Okay.” You finally move out of his grip, feeling a lot less warm and fuzzy without his arm around you. “Hey, do we have a printed version of the one Nancy took the day we met?”

“I think so, they’re sorted by date, right?” 

“Yes. I still love your mom for that, by the way.” You grin at him, turning and heading toward the couch. He chuckles before following, and the two of you sit and eat, flipping through an album first. 

The album is older pictures, from before you met, but it’s so fun to look through. Little BoyScout Ace is such an adorable image, it never fails to make you laugh and make him blush. And your younger self playing doctor has the same effect, with reversed reactions of course. It only takes a little bit to finish dinner, and Ace returns the dishes to the kitchen to leave table space for photos. He comes back, this time sitting closer. You curl up against his side, and he drapes an arm over you. 

“Can we look through all of our pictures?”

“I was gonna ask the same thing,” he chuckles, picking up a smaller album. You recognize it right away, it’s the one from your first year of high school. When you started taking polaroids. It’s been a fascination of yours forever, and cameras have always been an interesting hobby for you. 

The first picture is actually of the school, and you notice the former Mr. G standing in the corner, looking shady as hell. That’s from the beginning of the year, when you and your sister, Nancy, got roped into the mysterious locker thief at school. 

The next is the ‘crime scene’ photos you took. They’re no professional photos, but they’re decent. Ace looks them over and gives you an impressed smirk. You chuckle and flip to the next photo. You and Ace in the back of a cop car. 

You pressed tape over the powder that Nancy had spread over the teacher’s desk, praying that some clear fingerprints will show up. The desk was cleaned only a few minutes before the theft, which meant that the fingerprints should be visible. 

A cough in the hallway tore you from your thoughts. You and your sister glance up, caught in the act. Fearing detention, the pair of you decided to hide behind the door and make a break for it once the teachers were inside of the room. Solid plan, if they were teachers. 

Instead, you were met with two very strong, very angry looking men, who were glaring at you and Nancy. In the heat of the moment, the two of you made a wordless decision to split up, and ran off in opposite directions. Dashing through the school, Thief One got on your heels, you had known that your only sanctuary would be the old janitor’s closet. 

It was easy to miss. Tucked just around a corner, outside the gym and hidden because of the angle of the wall, Thief One would totally not notice it if he didn’t know about it. And if he did know about it, you just hoped he would believe the stories about it being haunted. Which, in hindsight, were probably true. 

It came down to a split second decision, and you went for the closet. Choosing to go for the supply closet, willing to risk ghosts over crazy thieves who want your head on a stick, you flung the door open...

...And ran right into a mildly familiar fluffy-haired boy. Apologizing profusely at a whisper, you’d closed the door behind you and shushed him. The closet was smaller than you had remembered, and Ace basically had you pinned to the door. Holding a finger to your lips with a pleading look in your eye, you waited for the footsteps. 

They came soon enough, pounding on the floor by the door as he rushed past. You could hear the man open the back door, which was his fatal mistake. Never open the door. Security systems exist. The alarm started blaring, which meant that the cops got called. You let out a sigh of relief, tilting your head back against the door. 

“What’s going on?” Ace had watched your expression relax, and he’d noted how breathless you were when you burst in. He was impressed, to say the least, and really curious. 

“Tell you later,” you whispered hurriedly, bringing a hand to his mouth. “Don’t let him hear us.” Chest still rising and falling rapidly, you try and catch your breath. Ace nods and you remove your hand, focusing on your breathing. 

A few more silent minutes had passed and then the cops had arrested the man outside your closet. You and Ace had come out quietly, seeing Nancy with Chief McGinnis, and two officers watching the two men you and Nancy had accidentally caught. 

After seating you in the police car, shouting at Carson for letting you break into the school, McGinnis had to decide what to do. He ended up dragging you, Nancy, and Ace to the station, only to later send Ace home. Nancy got front seat privileges because she had more of an explanation than you. Which resulted in your dad snapping a picture of you and Ace in the backseat. 

Ace got sent home as soon as you all got to the station, but his interest had been piqued. 

“I remember that. You busted into that supply closet and nearly killed me with the door.”

“It’s not like I meant to, I was being chased by a criminal!” You give him a gentle smack on the back of the head, laughing. “And if I remember correctly, you were still flirting with me for weeks after that.”

“Well that was just uncalled for.” He pretends to be offended, which makes both of you laugh again. “But yes, when you broke into that closet, it was game over. No one else was ever going to compare to you.”

Your face burns at the compliment, and you try and hide your smile. A soft giggle escapes your lips despite your efforts to stop it, and Ace lifts your chin. 

“I mean it. You’re something else, Y/n Drew.” He glances down, distracted by a picture from May of your second year of high school. That’s when you and Ace first got together. It’s a picture of you and him, sitting on the hill out behind the school. 

It was over when Ace had taken his first look at you. He fell hard and he fell fast. He was so painfully obvious about it too. Not that it bugged you, ever since he’d had you pinned against that door, all you could think about were his piercing blue eyes and his sly smirk. The two of you started hanging out more, and the rest is history. 

By the end of your sophomore year, you were dating Ace. Not to mention head over heels for him. Same went for him about you. You guys were inseparable. Are inseparable. 

On the hill, you took out the camera. Ace grinned, knowing exactly what he should do. You flip the camera, pointing it to capture you and Ace, caught completely off guard when he kissed you. The timer ended and it snapped the photo, but you were too wrapped up in the moment to realize. 

You put the camera down and leaned in more, fully embracing the moment. Ace was, and still is, everything you could ask for. When the pair of you had pulled back, it was pretty clear that no one else would ever stand a chance. 

Both of you smile at each other, and you kiss Ace softly. Smiling happily, he  pulls back, still holding the album in his hand. He flips a few pages, and there’s a picture of when you went to prom. You’re sitting next to your mom, Ace standing behind you. Despite the sadness in the air, everyone was smiling. It brings tears to your eyes, and Ace glances over to see if you’re okay.

“I, uh, I forgot we had this one,” you whisper. He pulls you closer, and you lean against him for a second, remembering the night. 

After pictures, you and Ace had separated from Nancy. She wasn’t your biggest fan anymore, and she had never really gotten along with Ace in high school. Something about weed and the fact that he almost went to prison, who knows. Columbia was her priority. 

You and Ace had only spent a little while in the gym, you bailed about two hours in. The room was hot and sweaty, and you and Ace had other plans anyway. The plan was to make a quick stop at home and pick up some cash and a phone charger, then take off for a date night. If you guys had time, you’d pop back into prom for a while. 

When you got home, your mother was dying. Ace was there for you and your dad, and your mom, in a way. She saw him protecting you and Carson, and you know how much peace of mind that must’ve given her. She slipped away, and you sobbed into Ace’s arms. 

“Did I ever thank you? For... For that night?” You look up at Ace, wiping away a tear. 

“Thank me? Why would you thank me?”

“You were there for me.”

“I’d be there for you no matter what. No thanks necessary,” he says softly, brushing another teardrop off your cheek. 

“Well, thank you, Ace. For everything ever. Because I love you.”

“I love you.” He shifts slightly, rolling you over him. You laugh at the sudden movement, and before you can truly process, you’re snuggled against his side, both of you laying comfortably on the couch. 

He picks up the album again, flipping to the last photo. This one is beautiful. It’s yours and Ace’s hands, fingers interlocked. You can see the edge of the bluffs in the background, and the clouds lining the sky are a mix of deep and light greys. 

Neither of you say anything yet, both of you are wrapped up in remembering the moment. 

A few months into your senior year (Ace’s gap year), there was a rough patch. Ace had gotten this idea, that he was dragging you down. You were this perfect girl, Y/n Drew. Your father, Carson, the top lawyer in the district, and Kate has been just about the kindest woman in Horseshoe Bay. Not to mention that your sister was (is) some crime fighting genius. And when you had decided to be a nurse? He’d realized he was right. 

The rift had started, and you felt it. The idea of losing him scared you shitless, so you sat him down to talk about it. It was a nice moment actually, walking up the path to the bluffs. Literally all you did was remind him that he was good enough. That he’s some techno genius and that you weren’t going anywhere far, not with your Dad and Nancy in the place that they were. Not with the loss of your mom. Besides, you never wanted to leave Horseshoe Bay. The hospital needed more nurses. So it’s not like you’re gonna leave him, and it’s not like you think he’s not a good guy. Man, the look on his face when the words-

“I’m not going anywhere. I love you, Ace. Forever.” 

-had come out of your mouth were priceless. That night stays one of your most cherished memories. The night you and Ace dished it all out at sunset on the bluffs. You reminded him that he was good enough and that you needed him. He reminded you that he had your back. 

Each of you reminded the other that you loved them. That’s why that night is so important. 

“I remember that. I can’t believe I ever thought I was dragging you down.”

“Me neither. Honestly, you make everything so much better, all the time.” You shift your gaze to his face, smiling slightly. He smiles too, how could he not? “Ace, I need you to know how much you mean to me.”

“I know. You mean so much to me, too,” he whispers. You feel his grip on you tighten slightly, making you realize he’s nervous. 

“Why are you nervous?”

“I’m not.”

“Tell.”

He knows what that means. It was established a long time ago. Both of you know what a ‘tell’ is, mystery solving is common for you, so knowing when someone is lying is important. You and Ace say ‘tell’ whenever it’s obvious the truth is being avoided. 

“You’re not breaking up with me, are you?”

“You’re dumb,” you laugh. “Obviously not.”

“Thank god,” he sighs in relief. 

“I’ve thought about how to say this a lot and I really don’t want to freak you out, but the idea of seeing someone else makes me sick. I love you Ace, and I don’t see myself loving anyone else like this.”

“The idea of losing you hurts me more than anything else I can think of,” he replies. “You and me, that’s what makes all of this worth it.”

The room falls silent for a second, and you trace circles against his chest with your finger. He rubs your arm with his thumb, hand splayed over your upper arm, still from before. 

Ace shifts slightly, moving the album onto the table, but something falls from it. An extra photo. From when you moved in together. 

You and Ace moved in together after your first year of college. It was funny, finding an apartment between Horseshoe bay and your new school was so easy. No one else wanted to live in the middle, but it’s perfect for you. Ace could go to the Claw, you could go to school. 

“Ace, is this for real?” 

You’d looked around in awe. All of your belongings were in your new home, the one you shared with Ace. It was perfect. You wouldn’t change a thing. 

“This is for real,” he reassured you. 

The pair of you had spent the night organizing your cupboards and shelves, a task most people would call tedious, yet for the pair of you it had been one of the best nights ever. 

Now it’s your last year of college, and so much as the thought of losing Ace makes you sick to your stomach. He’s perfect. He’s the sunshine on your cloudy days, the left to your right, the anchor of your ship, the rock to your roll. The two of you have become two halves of a whole. You’re his and he’s yours, and neither of you want it any other way. 

Ace laughs, pulling you back to reality and away from your thoughts. He holds up a picture from after your first week of school. You’re absolutely knocked out on the couch, exhausted from school. 

You’d lived with Ace for two months. And it was fantastic. Your decision to be a nurse was finalized when you lost your mom, and the idea of staying nearby stemmed from the state of your family. Nancy’s downward spiral and your father drifting were signs for you to stay close. 

So you did. You went to (and still do go to) the university one town over from Horseshoe Bay, and your apartment is right smack in the middle. Ace could still get to the Claw, major props to the reliable Florence for that, and you could still get to school. 

It was perfect. Studying to be a nurse was exhausting, and trying to protect your sister was so hard. She never wanted any help, she was so focused on pushing everyone away. It was hard, but Ace was there for you. As he always was (and is). 

When you woke up the next morning, you were in your bed, snuggled up with Ace. Honestly, if you hadn’t already known he was the one, you did then. He’s caring and sweet, funny too. Not to mention he’s super attractive. 

And that year was one of the best you’d ever had. It had been relatively uneventful, aside from finally reconnecting with your father. And any day you spent with Ace, those were always an adventure. But it was amazing. And that was the year you and Ace really locked in your future together. 

Late night talks, dinner dates, lazy Sundays, even the silly arguments. All of it was irreplaceable. 

You smile at the thought, and Ace holds up the picture you’ve been searching for. Two Halloweens ago. You almost wonder why your dad, Carson, wants it, but when you really look at the photo, you know. You and Ace look so happy in your stupid costumes. 

“Tell me the two of you aren’t dressed up as those kids from that stupid fairy cartoon.”

“Why would we tell you that, George? We clearly are.” 

The pair of you had laughed. You had thought the pink hat on Ace’s head and your outfit made it obvious. Bess, on the other hand, was loving the outfits. The lot of you were hanging around in the Claw, waiting for Nick to show up so you could head to the party. The joys of carpooling. 

“Are you dressed as Timmy Turner?” Nick had walked through the door wearing a really fancy looking suit, and come over to join the group. 

An interesting combo: Ace and Y/n as Timmy and Trixie from the Fairly Odd Parents, Nancy as Sherlock Holmes, as usual, George as herself- which she was calling Kim Possible (but you all knew she just threw on a close enough outfit because didn’t really want to dress up), Bess as Cher from Clueless, and Nick as a magician. So yeah. Wacko. But now that Nick had shown, you could head out to the real party. 

“Hey, hold on!” You held up your camera that you’d been keeping in Ace’s car (Florence). “Come on guys, pictures before we go!”

You set up the timer and took a few different group shots, then decided to head out. You handed the camera to Nancy, who had a purse on her. Little did you know that she had taken a snapshot of you and Ace talking. 

The party was crazy fun, aside from a guest appearance from some girl with a surprisingly realistic sea ghost costume. No one ever really talked about that again, for some reason.

When you headed out, you and Ace had decided to spend the night in your childhood home. The drive was just too long for that night, since it was already so late. When you and Ace had curled up on the couch, Nancy handed you the photo.

It was perfect. You and Ace laughing about having the same favourite cartoon, your expressions were pure joy. 

“Are you really the kids from that stupid fairy show?!” You make fun of George’s comment. “Coming from the one who didn’t dress up,” you finish with a laugh. Ace laughs with you, shifting slightly so he can glance at your face. It’s a little awkward because of the way you’re laying, but cute nonetheless. 

“That night was crazy. Do you think sea-ghost-girl was Dead Lucy?”

“I never thought about it.” Your eyes widen, and you pause.  “You think?”

“Nah,” both of you say with a laugh, brushing off the idea. You sit up, setting the Halloween photo aside. 

“We’ll make a copy for Mr. D, yeah?” Ace props himself up on his elbows, half sitting up. He fully enjoys the view of you, fully immersed in looking over these photos. You’re so entranced with the memories that it’s like your in another world. He sits up all the way, pushing back your hair. 

“I’m sure my dad would love copies of all of these,” you say softly, eyes settling on some old photos of you and your mom, Nancy and your mom, or even you and Ace with mom. “Oh- Maybe not this one!” You laugh as you slip a more scandalous photo out of the album, handing it to Ace. 

He blushes profusely, running his hand through his hair with a chuckle. 

“Oh god!” Ace looks down quickly, probably imagining your dad seeing. “If he saw this he would kill me!” Both of you laugh, glancing at each other. 

Ace planted a kiss at the base of your neck, and you laughed as you tried to finish writing the answer to a question on your notes. 

“Ace,” you mumbled. He didn’t respond, he was wrapped up in the moment. You took his chin, pulling his face so that his eyes meet yours. “Can I finish this sheet?”

“No.”

He gave you that look, and you gave in instantly. 

“I mean, I don’t have class tomorrow.” You glanced at him, and he was smiling like an idiot. Without a second thought, you grabbed the camera off the coffee table and snap a photo of his stupid grin. Both of you laughed as the flash illuminated his face, and you went to put the camera down.

“Nah,” Ace had whispered softly, leaning in. “Bring it.”

Then he swung you into his arms and carried you toward your bedroom. 

When you manage to compose yourself and bring your thoughts to the present moment, you can feel the heat of your face. You just hope Ace doesn’t pick up on it, because he’ll tease you about this for days. 

“Hey, you better keep that somewhere that no one will see,” you laugh. 

“Oh I fully intend on doing that.” He tucks the small photo into the chest pocket of his shirt, giving it a pat once it’s hidden in the fabric. “Hey, it’s not that late yet. We may as well drive in tonight and hand deliver the photos.”

“That sounds so good,” you say with a smile, looking over at Ace. “We’ve still got like two hours of daylight left. Plus we could maybe stop at our spot for sunset. We haven’t done that in a while.”

“We should, it’s been like six months since we spent sunset on the bluffs.” He gazes over at you, watching as you stack up the photos. You glance over and he pretends he wasn’t just staring at you. Obviously you know he was, but you think it’s adorable that he still has his shy moments. 

“Can I drive?”

“No. You can take a nap in the front seat, because I know you’re tired.” He kisses your cheek, standing in front of you. 

“You just don’t want me to drive Florence,” you laugh. 

“Not true.”

“Is too!”

“Nah-uh.”

“Yuh-huh.”

“No-“ he cuts himself off by kissing you. You kiss back, of course. You weren’t seriously arguing with him, just playing. “You’re telling me you don’t want a nap?” He pulls back slightly, looking into your eyes. 

“Oh I definitely want a nap. I’m just being funny,” you tease. 

“Alright then, you’re hilarious.” He rolls his eyes playfully, and you pretend to be hurt by his faux-annoyance. “You wanna head out now?” He takes your hand, dragging you off the couch. You stand in front of him, glancing up slightly. 

“Yeah. Let’s go.”

After you get changed and Ace puts away the dishes, the pair of you make your way to the car- sorry, Florence, and put the box of photos in the backseat. Before long, you’re on the road, Ace’s playlist drifting through the speakers of the car. You try to stay awake, but you’re just so tired. As absurd as it sounds, you fall asleep to an AC/DC song that he likes. 

Ace wakes you up nearly an hour later, and as you wake up you realize where you are. 

“Dad’s place?”

“Yeah. I made a stop and copied the photos in town so you could sleep,” he tells you quickly. “Come on, he doesn’t know we’re here. I want to surprise him.”

It doesn’t take you long to fully wake up. There’s a sort of salty smell to the air, the water of the bay blowing in on the wind. It’s the energy of Horseshoe Bay that you’ve missed so dearly, and it has you awake in an instant. You stretch, looking around quickly. Nothing on the street has changed since you left, and that’s comforting. Ace leads the way, envelope full of the copies in his hand. 

The door is opened before you even reach the stairs. Carson Drew stands in the doorway, a bright smile written on his face. 

“What are you guys doing here?! I thought you were busy until the end of the month!” 

“We had some spare time tonight and our weekend plans fell through,” Ace says happily, walking up the stairs. You follow, only a step behind. “It’s great to see you, Mr. D!” 

Your father has the pair of you wrapped in a warm embrace before you can even greet him. He’s overjoyed that you’re home, especially with how busy your life has been lately. He’s happy that you’re taking a weekend off. 

“Hey dad,” you say softly. He lets you go, and Ace steps back so that you can enter the house first. “It’s good to be back.” You walk through the doorway, Ace and your dad following. 

In the house, you give your dad a proper hug before you spot your sister, Nancy, on the couch. Ace and your dad start talking behind you when you’ve let go of him, and you head into the living room. 

“Hey, Red.” You use your old nickname for your red-haired sister, a smile tugging at your lips. 

Nancy’s head jerks up at the sound of your voice. A grin spreads over her face and she removes her headphones. Standing quickly, she yanks you into a hug. 

“You’re back?!”

“Yeah. Weekend off,” you explain, hugging your sister tightly. It’s nice to actually hug her again. 

The last few times you were in Horseshoe Bay she was off trying to find some missing jewellery, or solve some sort of embezzlement mystery? You don’t really remember. Ever since things have been good with you and Nancy again, she’s been busy. Not that you’re complaining, you’re just glad she’s back to liking you. 

“Hey, what’s Ace got?” She glances over at the kitchen and you remove yourself from her embrace to follow her gaze. 

“The picture dad asked for. And some extras.”

“Right. Did you guys bring the Christmas one? Dad was looking for a duplicate of it the other day.” Nancy looks at you, watching you admiring Ace. 

“Uh, I think we keep the Christmas ones separate, we didn’t look at them today. Which one was he looking for?”

You glance over at Nancy, and she picks up her phone, flipping it over. There’s a Polaroid in her case. You can see because she has a clear case, the picture sits sandwiched between the phone and the plastic of the case. 

This photo is of you, Ace, Carson, and Nancy on Christmas. The four of you are standing in the front yard, which is covered in snow. Everyone’s bundled up and there’s a bunch of sleds around Ace. 

“Come on, please?!”

“Y/n, we’ll be late,” your dad chuckled, walking over to where you want everyone standing despite his remark. He never seriously objected to photos anyway. He likes having keepsakes. 

“Aw, come on Mr. D, we’ll add you to our Christmas card!”

“Ace, we don’t even have a Christmas card!” You set up the camera against the fence, laughing at your boyfriend as you set a timer. You turned, taking in the scene for a split second before you rushed to join them. 

Carson stood with an arm around Nancy, and Ace was beside them, four sleds leaning against him. You chuckled slightly, jogging over to join them. You’d have called it running, but the snow slows you down. You threw your arms around Ace, laughing as he dropped the sleds to catch you. The camera clicked, and everyone was smiling. 

When you fetched the camera, you ended up with a beautiful photo of you and Ace laughing with sleds on the ground in front of you, and Carson and Nancy laughing at you, leaning against each other. It was perfect. It was your family. 

Sledding at the local park is an annual tradition in Horseshoe Bay. There’s even a race on the 23rd, two days before Christmas. That’s where you were headed. 

The four of you were walking, the hill was attached to a park not far away from your Dad’s house. Ace and your dad were talking about your dad’s work, Ace always was genuinely interested in the whole lawyer thing. You’d just been watching contently, glad that Ace got along with Carson. 

“Y/n,” Nancy said quietly, bringing your attention to her. 

“Yeah?”

“I know you’ve only been out of our house for like a year, but I had a lot of time to think.”

“That’s never good,” you tease. She rolls her eyes but continues. 

“When mom died, I pushed you away. I forgot you were losing someone too, and I was horrible to you and dad. I’m sorry.”

“Nance, you never have to apologize to me. I’m your big sister. I’m here to protect you and forgive you no matter what. It was rough for all of us. I understand why you felt like that.”

“You’re not mad?”

“Nope. Of course not. I’m your sister. We’re good. We’ll always be good.”

“Thanks, Y/n.” 

“Love you, crapface.”

“Love you too.”

Nancy pretended to be exasperated with the nickname, but you both knew how happy she was that you weren’t upset. She’d let you back in, and you’d taken the opening that was offered. That Christmas was the first one since your mom died that you and Nancy were fully on good terms. 

“You still have that one?” You look at your sister, who nods. She doesn’t say anything, just watches your face. When she notices that you’re still thinking, she speaks up. 

“I, uh, keep it in my phone case so that I can have you and dad close. Whenever I’m stuck on a case, I ask what you’d tell me to do. It always helps.”

“Of course it helps, I am a genius, after all.”

“Shut up!” Nancy gently punches your arm. The two of you laugh, sitting on the couch to catch up. 

After maybe an hour of everyone talking and catching up, Ace stands. You check the time, realizing it’s eight o’clock. The sun is setting. 

“Oh, sorry guys. We actually have one more thing we need to do,” you tell your dad and sister, standing to join Ace. 

“We’ll be back before too long,” Ace reassures them, taking your hand. 

You find it odd that Ace is reassuring them, given that he seems nervous today. Especially right now. You shrug it off as stress, deciding to just enjoy the night. You can ask about it tomorrow. You almost don’t notice the nervous glance Ace throws at your dad before you go out the door. You still do notice, but choose to ignore that too. You will have a nice sunset date at the bluffs, and that’s that.

Apparently, you’re actually going to have a windy sunset date at the bluffs. It’s still beautiful, and the sunset is the clearest sky you’ve seen from the bluffs in years. It’s just a little windy. 

“Hey, smile.” Ace pulls his phone from his pocket and snaps a photo of you, smiling cheekily. You reach over and knock the hood off his head. He pretends to be offended as he sits back and scoots close to you. “You cold?” Ace puts an arm around you, feeling goosebumps on your skin from the wind. 

“It’s not that bad, just the wind.”

He doesn’t really listen though, he takes off his jacket and drapes it over you. Not that you’d complain. The dark jacket is comfortable and warm, and smells like Ace’s cologne. 

“You know, one of the things I love about you is that you’re an awful liar.” Ace watches as you slide your arms into the jacket. 

“Oh really? What about that time I lied us out of getting arrested?”

“Okay, That was different. And we were just breaking and entering. They weren’t actually gonna hold us.”

“Fair enough,” you say with a laugh. 

“Another thing I love about you is that you care about everyone. And you’re not selfish.”

“Neither are you.” You look over at him nervously, wondering why he’s telling you this. Your vision is slightly spotty from staring at the sunset, and you have to blink a few times to make sure you’re seeing correctly. 

Ace is kneeling beside you, in his hands. A gorgeous ring fills the spot in the velvet box, but honestly, that’s almost the last thing you care about right now. 

“Oh,” you gasp, genuinely so shocked that this is happening. Yeah, you and Ace have been together for years, but for some reason you’re still surprised. 

“Y/n Drew, you are the bravest, kindest, smartest, coolest, funniest, cutest person I know. You’re beautiful beyond words and I love everything about you. I love how you take pictures of everything, I love the way you see the world. I love that even after a long day you still come home happy.” Ace takes your hand in one of his, and you scoot closer. 

“Ace,” you whisper, a smile spreading on your face. 

“I love that whenever anyone mentions love I think of you and me. Y/n, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?”

“Yes!” You launch yourself into his arms, kissing him passionately as the mist of the bay blows against your faces. 

When you pull away, he slides the ring onto your finger, before kissing you again. The pair of you watch the rest of the sunset, wrapped in each other’s arms. 

You were so glad to finish your third year of university. The stress was over and you could finally hang out in Horseshoe Bay for the summer. 

The first night you and Ace arrived was spent with your friends, and part of the night with your dad, telling him about everything that had happened in the last couple weeks of the school year. 

The second night was you and Ace on the bluffs, watching the sunset. The mist was blowing in slightly, dampening your faces. It was welcome though, the day had been so hot and you were both sweating.

As the night went on, the wind picked up slightly, leaving you shivering. Ace had of course offered up his jacket, and you ended up wrapped up in it. The pair of you watched the sunset together, like you had so many times before, snuggled up against each other. 

You take out your phone as it starts to really get dark and you turn on the flashlight. When you swipe back to the home screen, you see the photo of yours and Ace’s hands, intertwined with the cliff and sunset in the background. The photo from the moment you were just thinking of. 

“What are you smiling at?”

“My screen.”

“Should we head back? Everyone’s gonna go crazy.”

“Sounds fun,” you chuckle. “Ace. I love you.”

“I love you.” He kisses you for possibly the millionth time today (not that you mind), and helps you to your feet. 

“Hold on,” you tell him, pulling up the camera on your phone. You take his hand and replicate the pose on your lock screen, taking a photo with the flash on. 

Instead of the sunset, the night sky is in the background, but it’s just as beautiful. There are so many stars visible that it looks like the sky is glittering, and the flash makes the ring sparkle. You smile at the picture, more than happy with the results. More than happy with everything. You’ve got Ace, your family, your friends, and you’re well on your way to graduating nursing school. 

Soon enough you’re back in Florence, headed back to your childhood home. Your favourite song is playing over the radio and you and Ace are singing obnoxiously loudly and horribly. But it’s amazing. The pair of you have never been happier. 

When you get back to the house, you and Ace walk in the door, met with your sister and dad in the living room. Nancy and Carson watch you intently, and you extend your hand. 

“Did you do it?! You did it!” Your dad pulls you into a crushing hug, before doing the same to Ace. Your sister makes her way over, smiling widely. She glances proudly at Ace before taking your hand to admire the ring. 

“I thought he’d chicken out,” she laughs. “I’m impressed.” She pulls you into another hug, and you savour the embrace. It’s a feeling you’ve missed, the true warmth and happiness that you’re feeling right now. It’s good to have Nancy back. 

The night progresses, and Ace drags you all to the Claw so he can show off to his friends. And so everyone can celebrate. You suppose they’re your friends too, but they’re closer with him.

“Hey! They’re here guys!” Nick turns to the door as you and Ace walk in, and you see George and Bess standing at the bar. They smile when you come in, deciding to come over when you stop to visit with Nick. 

It’s hugs all around, even from George. It’s been a while, so even though she hates to admit it: she missed you. Bess is more than happy to admit she’s been missing you, and she nearly breaks a rib (your rib) when she hugs you. Nick’s hug is soft but secure, and when it’s Ace’s turn to embrace Nick, Nick goes for the bro hug. Ace isn’t having that and engulfs him in a full on bear hug, which results in laughter from everyone else. 

It’s good to really see everyone again. Time really gets away from you with school, so it’s hard to get out to Horseshoe Bay. But when you manage to get out here, it’s always great. 

The door swings open suddenly, getting everyone’s attention and in walk Ace’s parents. Your heart swells at the sight of Ace’s mom and Thom. They come over to where you sit and you embrace each of them before they take a seat. 

“I felt like it was only fitting to announce it here because so many of our best nights were here.” Ace takes your hand, pulling you against him and showing off the ring. 

“We’re getting married!” You grin widely, watching as everyone except Carson freaks out. He pretends to be surprised and he’s clearly truly happy, but it’s so obvious that he already knew. 

“Oh my god! We need to celebrate, let me go see if we have any good food!” Bess takes off, headed to the storeroom. 

“I’m gonna make sure she doesn’t break anything. It’s been awhile since she waitressed.” George heads the same way as Bess, and you turn back to your remaining family and friends. 

Ace’s mom is ecstatic and crushes you into a hug, sobbing about how happy you’re making her son. How you’re soulmates. Thom also hugs you, but he’s more gentle. Like he’s afraid to break you. He’s in disbelief, he didn’t think Ace would ask you so soon. 

“Welcome to the family,” he signs. You smile, nodding gratefully. Gently taking Ace’s hand, you move it away from yours. 

“Thank you, Thom,” you sign back, “I’m honoured.”

If Thom wasn’t crying before, he sure is now. Last he saw, your ASL was a work in progress... but like before it was really a work. It was rough. Baby steps. You’ve been practicing though, and Ace is mind blown. 

“When did you learn that?”

“I’ve been practicing.”

Ace watches you in awe for a second as you smile at his parents again. Thom pulls you in for another embrace, teary eyed. You chuckle gently, tears welling in your own eyes, before pulling away from Ace’s dad.  You look over to your dad and Nancy, who are smiling like idiots. Not that your face is any different. 

“Okay, bad news, there’s no good food.” Bess returns, George in tow. 

“Good news, we found a groupon for The Bay Bakery.” George holds up the ticket, displaying the bakery’s logo. 

“Sounds good,” Ace agrees with a laugh. 

“You kids have fun,” Carson says. “We’ll sit this one out.” He gestures to himself and Ace’s parents, a smile still on his face. Your dad pats your back slightly and you smile at him. 

“You sure?”

“Yeah.”

That’s that. You and Ace lead the group out the door, and the four remaining pile into their vehicles. It’s all smiles and laughter and it’s decided that you’ll all meet there in a bit. You and Ace climb into his car, sitting in a happy silence for a second. 

“Ace, there’s one more person I want to tell.”

Next thing you know, you’re kneeling in front of a slab of rock. Katherine Drew is carved gracefully into the stone. Ace kneels beside you, putting an arm over your shoulder. It’s peaceful. Chilling, but peaceful. Not what you expected, especially since it’s dark out. 

“Hey mom,” you whisper. “I, uh, still don’t know if you can hear me or not.” You pause, letting out a small chuckle and trying to blink away the tears brimming your eyes. “I mean at this point you’d think I’d stop leading with that. But nope. Old habits I guess.”

You pause, glancing up at Ace. He cups your face in his hand, brushing away a tear with his thumb. 

“Keep going, I’m sure she’ll want to hear.” He gives you a reassuring smile and presses a soft kiss to your temple. 

“Mom, Ace proposed to me. We’re going to get married.” It’s odd not hearing a response, but you put your hand against the stone for a second as if it will connect you to her energy once again. Strangely enough, it comforts you. “I miss you, mom.”

“I miss you too, Mrs. D,” Ace adds softly. You let out a small laugh at the nickname, leaning against Ace.

“I’ll visit again soon mom, okay? We’re going to go celebrate right now. I just wanted to tell you first.” You feel a little silly, explaining yourself to a rock, but you know that if your mom is out there somehow, if she could hear anything, this is where she’d hear it. 

A short drive later, you’re reconnected with Bess, Nick, George, and Nancy. They’ve already collected some delicious looking snacks and taken a seat on the patio. The employees inside are cleaning up for closing, and the patio is softly lit up by the fairy lights around the patio. 

You and Ace sit, joining them in their conversation. You laugh and sit back, a smile burned onto your lips. You’ve got your friends, your family, your Ace. You’re well on your way to finishing school. You’re ready to marry Ace and you’re more than happy. Everything is perfect. 

Life is good.

Tags: @ananad1 @remmysrecs @bookish-bucky @sahi-raa @peakyrogers

[siriuslyblackblog]

Professor 》Remus Lupin (18+)

《 (3) 》

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Remus Lupin had just finished eating the third chocolate that day. It was evening already and he had ruined his supper. He wasn't feeling hungry, so he stayed in the classroom and waited for the student to arrive. Nancy's words had left him speechless. No girl had ever told him things like that. Remus thought it was funny at first, but when he caught himself thinking about those words, he quickly shook his head and stood up. He found an occupation, but his mind didn't cooperate. It's been so long since the last time he just looked at a girl in a different way. The fire in his heart he had for Nymphadora Tonks was slowly dying out. He did miss her, but if she came back this moment, he wasn't sure if he would want a relationship with her. It just wasn't the same.

He heard shuffling, then doors being opened. The redhead entered the classroom, dressed more inappropriate than in morning classes. He wasn't even sure that was possible. Merlin, he wasn't sure how Filch didn't notice. Not only him, but anyone.

"Good evening, professor," she greeted.

Her professor sighed, then placed another stack of books on one of the front desks. Remus already knew that she was going to be a tough one and he was already tired. Perhaps he should keep eating chocolate until he gets chubby so no girl approaches him? As much as he missed someone, he had to be focused on being a good professor this year. The rest will easily come. Although, he wasn't stupid. He knew what he looked like and he noticed all the attention he got from female students. Many seventh years purposely started getting in trouble just to get detention with me. Unfortunate for them, all of them mostly suffered detention from their House Heads.

"These books need to be checked and sorted alphabetically, Miss Pennington."

"Of course, professor."

Nancy pulled out her wand and got ready to cast a spell. Just as she opened her mouth, the stern voice of her professor interrupted her.

"No magic, " he said.

The redhead frowned first, then calmly put her wand back in her pocket. She adjusted the skirt so that a bit of her thighs were visible. The cold air hit her skin and made her shiver a bit, but she collected herself and put on the best smile she could.

"As you wish, professor."

Remus left the girl to do her task and went back to his place. While grading the tasks he had given the sixth years, he noticed one was missing. He counted the papers again, but couldn't get the number he needed. Then, he remembered. The girl which left the class almost in tears. The man furrowed his eyebrows, remembering her red face. He hated when people were sad. He knew how awful it is to hold back tears in a room full of people and he didn't want anyone to feel like that. He let her leave the class so she could let it all out in peace. Still, he wondered what caused that reaction.

"Miss Pennington?" He called out, abandoning the papers on his desk.

The girl turned around, waiting for the next words. Remus stopped for a moment, thinking if it was a right thing to ask about a student. Asking about someone's wellbeing isn't wrong, right?

"The girl from this morning. Miss-?"

"Periculum. Roseanne Periculum."

"Right, Miss Periculum. Is she feeling better?"

Nancy shrugged, then went back to arranging the books. Remus frowned, dissatisfied with the answer. This girl was supposed to be a good friend of Miss Periculum, yet all she had was shrugging? It must be terrible not having anyone to ask about your problems. He was lucky to have amazing friends with him during his bad times. He missed them.

"Do you happen to know the reason behind her behaviour today?"

Nancy rolled her eyes, annoyed with the attention professor Lupin was giving to a person that wasn't even in the room. She felt a bit guilty for not asking Rose about her problem, but at the end of the day, she didn't ask anyone. Rose shouldn't be feeling left out. Whatever it was, she'll get through it. Everything comes and goes, nothing stays.

"No, professor."

༻❁༺

The week passed by rather quickly and Rose was soon getting Coco off of her so she could get ready. Nancy was still asleep. She had decided last night that she wasn't in the mood for classes, so she'll pretend to be sick. Dell was already dressed and sat patiently on her bed, waiting for Rose. Rose didn't really despise Dell like she did everyone else. The blonde haired girl was funny and interesting to be around. Maybe it was because of her relationship with Fred Weasley, but who knows. Maybe Rose finally liked someone who wasn't a Weasley. Speaking of Weasleys, they bombarded her with questions the next day she showed up at Transfiguration. Rose didn't want to explain that her insecurity kicked in, so she said the one thing girls always complained about: period. The boys quickly shut up, not asking her any more questions.

Next to Dell laid the fourth roommate. Priya Patil was the older sister of Padma and Parvati Patil. It was interesting how the initials of all three were P. P. Just like Dell, Rose also didn't mind Priya. She minded her best friend, Elisaveta Yakusheva. Her father played a big role in almost everything, just like Mr Malfoy. Elisaveta - or Lisa, like Priya and her close friends call her - is almost as popular as Nancy. Of course, Nancy's red curls and green eyes won over Lisa's blonde straight hair and blue eyes. Nancy was also a million times nicer, as unbelievable as it sounds. Priya was stuck between the two girls. She loved both of her best friends, but most of the time she faced the problem of choosing sides. In those moments, Rose was happy to have less than five friends.

This morning, Dell noticed that the brown haired girl had gotten up earlier and was spending a big amount of time in front of the mirror. She also noticed a chocolate peeking from her bag. Little did she know that it was a creation of the Weasleys. Rose was supposed to hand the chocolate to the new professor today. She wasn't sure what it was supposed to do. Fred didn't want to tell her and George only laughed whenever she asked.

"Rosie, I feel like I'm watching Nancy. What's going on with you?"

"What do you mean?"

"You don't wear your skirt that way. And you've been trying to fix your hair for hours now. Is there something I don't know?"

It was true. The skirt was placed higher on her waist, revealing her knees and a bit of thighs. She had seen professor Lupin only during meals, but he was so far away to see her. Today she will finally see him again. She couldn't wait to hear his voice and look at him properly this time. Tired of her shuffling, Dell stood up to help her roommate. She cast a spell to fix the mess on her head. Soft brown waves replaced split ends and tangled strands. It has been so long since her hair looked like that. The last time she put effort in her looks was when she was in love with Oliver Wood.

Rose split up with her roommate and entered the classroom alone. The twins were in their seats, both of them sending a mischievous smile her way. She wished she knew what the chocolate actually was.

"Why a chocolate? What if he thinks I'm trying to flirt with him?"

George laughed at her words, then took the chocolate from her. He admired it as if he wasn't the one who made it. "Our professor has a sweet tooth, love. He won't be thinking about you when he sees it."

Needless to say, the girl was disappointed. That's honestly what she wanted. Him to see her, to think about her. One thought led to another and she found herself thinking about what happened that Monday in detention. Nancy came back looking like a mess, her lipstick a bit smeared on her bottom lip. She was jealous. So jealous that she could feel her head burning. Her thoughts were interrupted when George touched her leg with his under the desk. The professor entered the classroom with a good morning, then sat down. Rose crossed her legs, feeling a bit of fear because of the way she wore her uniform. Maybe she could let her tongue loose too and earn herself a detention with him. Just maybe...

After giving everyone a task, Remus remembered the girl and allowed himself to glance at her. She had her head down, her hair slowly getting puffy again. She seemed fine today and it made him feel better. He didn't like to see his students come to class in pain or anything like that. The girl then raised her head, looking directly into his eyes. Her eyes widened, surprised that the professor was already looking at her. Her head was soon in the previous position, her face now hidden with hair. Just as Remus wanted to go back to the lesson, he noticed something. He noticed how Rose was uncomfortably shifting under the desk. Then, he noticed her bare thighs. She had her legs crossed, her hands fixing the skirt every few moments. The redhead next to her shot her a few confused looks. She didn't look like that last Monday. She looked like a mess back then. Remus also couldn't help but notice that one white lock of hair and her plump bottom lip. She was a refreshing sight. Of course, all girls in Hogwarts were stunning, but they all looked the same. Roseanne didn't have long skinny legs and long nails. She also didn't have lots of makeup on her face. Remus wasn't sure when was makeup even allowed. He remembered how his friend once got in trouble for putting on lip gloss. A bright red lipstick? Merlin, what else will he see in this school?

Rose felt her cheeks burning as she felt professor Lupin's eyes on her. Finally, she thought. But she also felt disappointed. Did she really have to dress up that way to get noticed? What kind of a man is he? Rose also wondered if she really wanted to get close to a man like that. A man who only noticed her after she changed her appearance and copied the style of other girls. They always tell you to be yourself and be unique, but then you get excluded for being too different. It's hard to live, really.

The first class came to an end and everyone was too busy gathering their belongings to hear professor's words. Rose managed to write down the task he gave them for the next class, then gathered her own things. George playfully pulled her sleeve, then nodded towards the chocolate in her bag.

"Do I have to?"

"What are you scared of, Rosie?"

"I just don't want to get in trouble."

But she did want to get in trouble. A trouble called professor Remus Lupin. She glanced at the chocolate, then her professor. He was busy taking off his jacket and collecting his books.

"Since when?" George asked, surprised with the sudden change in his crush's behaviour.

Rose bit her bottom lip, thinking about the situation. The classroom was almost empty, a few students still pushing each other to get out. George pinched her cheek, then kissed her head. She despised contact of any kind, but head kisses and cheek pinching from the twins were different. She would occasionally hit their shoulder, acting like she hated it. The redhead was the last to exit the classroom, leaving Rose alone with the professor. He had gotten up and was arranging the books on the shelf. His jacket was placed on his chair and he only wore the white shirt. Rose couldn't help but notice his back muscles through his shirt. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, revealing the veins on his arms. The brown haired girl stood behind him with the chocolate in her hands, lost in the way his fingers went through the pages and the way his back muscles moved. She didn't even notice her jaw slowly dropping as the man set the books back in place and stretched. Rose wasn't sure he was aware that she's still there.

Remus turned around, running his fingers through his hair and letting out a sigh. He finally had some free time. Enough to eat one chocolate bar. Maybe two. The man stopped in his tracks when he noticed a girl standing in front of him. Her mouth was slightly opened, her cheeks pink and her chest slowly rising and falling. He wasn't stupid. He was aware of his looks. He just didn't think it was worth that much attention. There were men who looked far better than him. Then why did all the girls still go after him?

"Miss Periculum," he greeted, putting his hands behind his back.

The girl closed her mouth and gulped, then looked down. The chocolate seemed like a normal one you could buy at Hogsmeade, but Merlin knew what it actually was. She noticed professor Lupin eyeing the chocolate, making her more nervous than she already was.

"Oh, before you say anything..."

The man walked over to his desk, picking up a few papers and looking at them. Rose watched as his fingers moved, her eyes following the veins all the way up his arms. She could feel her cheeks heating up again, her mind creating pictures she would've loved to see happen in reality.

"...because you left the classroom last Monday, you missed a task I need to grade. I hope you understand that you can't be the only one without a grade."

The brown haired girl nodded, mimicking the previous action of her professor by putting her hands behind her back. "When will I do it, professor?"

Remus mentally slapped himself. The way his student called him professor made his mind go crazy. She had a quiet, silky voice and he just wished to hear it one more time. So he asked, "Sorry?"

"When will I do the task, professor?"

Rose repeated the sentence a bit louder and Remus had to use all his strength so he wouldn't smile with satisfaction. He needed to see her again as soon as possible and as often as possible. Her voice was addicting. He would do anything to hear her call him again. Remus also wondered what his real name would sound on her lips. He dared to wonder what it sounded like in more than just a normal way. The man turned around towards his desk, going through the papers to hide his heavy breathing. He did feel disappointed in himself. How dare he think about a student that way? But he still couldn't help himself and say:

"Tonight, Miss Periculum."

[stevesharrlngtons]

it’s just what you do.

roman godfrey x reader

summary: “my problem is that if you bring anymore whores around and it’ll start to feel like a brothel in here. and i am far too young to be a madam.”

word count: 6.0k

a/n: if you’ve read some of my st stories, you know i have a little bit of a love for bratty, bitchy readers lol so here ya go! a bratty bitchy reader in the hg universe! (though the reader is pretty tame for what i usually write for a bitchy!reader) i hope you enjoy, and if you do let me know in some feedback (:

You padded down cold stairs in bare feet, yawning as you did. You could already hear Roman and Peter talking quietly at the breakfast bar over cold cereal and sleep graveled voices as you reached the bottom landing. You stretched your arms above your head with a resounding squeak that announced your entrance.

As you push away unruly strands of hair from your face, you rub your cheek, still sheet streaked and warm to the touch.

“G’morin’ (Y/N).” Peter greeted through a mouth full of milk soaked Sugar Crisp.

“Morning, love.” You replied, placing your hands on his bare shoulders and pressing a chaste kiss to the crown of his head.

You let your hands linger on his skin a moment longer before you stepped around him and to the pantry.

“Good morning,” Roman called after you as he watched appreciatively as the hem of your short negligee dusted the tops of your thighs.

You acknowledged him with a hum, but gave him no further greeting. No good morning, no kiss, no smile. Just a hum as you rummaged around searching for your box of oatmeal.

Roman hadn’t come to bed until just before dawn the previous night, only furthering the animosity you felt for him. The new, deep and unrelenting displeasure you held for him now that he had let another woman into your home.

“What? Peter gets a fucking endearment and I don’t get anything?” Roman griped. His voice grated on your ear drums and his angry breathing only served to churn your disdain for him.

You kept mute, clenching your teeth as you gathered a bowl and some milk to make your morning oats.

You pictured turning around to spit in his face, and how it would feel to watch his reaction as your saliva splattered his skin. You’d then tell him to go fuck himself, maybe break a glass while you were at it, anything to get his attention. Or maybe you’d go hop on Peter’s lap, place his hands on your bare thighs and stick your tongue down his throat. That was probably better than any tantrum you could throw. Your boyfriend was nothing if not possessive of what he deemed as his. You fell under that laundry list of Roman’s possessions, though you were unsure if you were soon to be erased and replaced with five new letters.

Because it had been a little over a week since Annie had taken residence in the second guest bedroom. A fucking week of seeing her and Roman eye fuck each other and share whispered conversations. A week of her connecting with Roman on a level you couldn’t understand, of being a part of schemes, of helping him and Peter (something you were never allowed to do) and talking about Nadia. You’re fucking daughter. You swore the next time her mouth began to form the syllables to the child’s name, you were going to strangle her to death. Upir or not, you were sure your pure maternal rage would be no match for her.

And, it had been a goddamn week of you sulking and pouting and seething without Roman taking even the slightest notice, or if he did, not caring a bit. That, more than anything else, is what was truly making you irate.

“(Y/N)? What the hell?” Roman cursed again as you slammed dishes around in cabinets.

Before he could say anything else, another pair of footsteps sounded on the stairs.

“Good morning!” Came her happy french lit as she bounded toward the three of you.

You didn’t acknowledge her presence, simply continued on with your oatmeal.

“I still haven’t gotten over the water pressure here. It’s so wonderful,” Annie says, and you’re sure Roman is half hard at her stupid compliment.

You still haven’t looked at her, but you’re picturing her with damp hair and ruddy cheeks from the hot water. Her face smooth and freckled with youth. Her damp hair turning her already light sleepwear see through and sticky.

“I’m glad you’re enjoying it,” Roman chimes and your neck prickles with anger.

The ice he was treading on with you was growing thinner and thinner by the moment. Melting under your fiery ire for his behavior. When he finally fell through, you hoped he’d drown.

“What are you planning on doing today? Do you have work?” Annie asks.

“I do, but do you need me for something?”

You scoff much louder than you had anticipated and you can feel three pairs of eyes on your back. You square your shoulders and turn toward the group, but don’t look at any of them. The stupid Hardy Boys with their brand new Nancy Drew, resigning you to be the villain, you supposed.

You walk around the breakfast bar with purpose, turning your body obnoxiously to avoid touching Annie as you pass. You weren’t close to her as she leaned against the counter, but you wanted her to know just how much you loathed her. So much so, that the idea of touching you made you recoil.

“Uhm, no. I was just making conversation.” She replied, her voice wavering after your subtle outburst.

You held back a pleased expression as you went to the couch, sitting at the farthest corner from the kitchen and taking the throw blanket from the back and wrapping yourself in it. You took your first bite of oatmeal and clinked the spoon loudly back in the bowl in protest.

“Is everything alright, (Y/N)?” You hated how your name sounded so melodic coming off her tongue, “Are you feeling alright?”

You don’t reply, just continued to eat your breakfast, looking straight ahead. The tension was palpable in the room as Annie shifted her feet and waited for your response. You wish she would pick up on your clear animosity toward her and quit trying to engage with you. Her efforts were admirable, you’d admit, but with the way she looked at Roman, and the way she spoke to him, there was absolutely no way she could possibly expect you to indulge her.

You could feel Roman’s glare on you, his green eyes burning holes through the knit throw to sear your skin with displeasure. Peter was still turned toward the island, shoulders tense with discomfort at the scene you were creating. You almost felt sorry for him, it wasn’t his fault Roman was being an oblivious asshole (and that you were retaliating the way you were). He didn’t deserve to be caught in the awkward crossfire. Maybe you would sneak him into a corner and feel him up for a bit? He did deserve some pleasure for living with Roman’s pain (and hey, if it made Roman jealous in the process, that would just be a bonas of your good deed).

Soon, Annie recovered from your echoing silence and moved back to talking with Roman and Peter. You could see her out of the corner of your eye, sleep shorts hanging low on her hips and flimsy white t-shirt you had imagined, dipping down from her relaxed stance, giving both men a perfect view down her top. You didn’t have to be looking at Roman to know he was stealing glances.

You stayed on the couch, trying to eat your breakfast, but the oats were soggy and not as good as when Roman made them with cinnamon and maple sugar. You toyed with the beige mush until Roman announced he was off to The Tower. He gathered his jacket and briefcase before saying goodbye to Peter and Annie.

“I’m leaving,” Roman called over to you.

You kept your vow of silence and pretended to be interested in the curdling food before you.

“Jesus fucking-- fine! Goodbye.” He spat, irritated.

You continued to fold your oatmeal around your bowl until the front door slammed shut and Annie spoke after a moment's pause.

“I think I’ll be off, too. I have some errands to run.” Biding you both a quick adui before she exited the kitchen for the stairs.

You huffed to yourself. She could only stand to be around you and Peter when Roman was in attendance.

“I feel like I’m in a high school cafeteria and Annie just took your seat next to Roman.” Peter joked, having heard your annoyed sound.

“Well, she should know I always have an assigned seat next to him,” You said, setting your bowl on the coffee table and crossing your arms.

“Oh my God, (Y/N)! Do you hear yourself?”

“I do, and I know I sound childish but I’ve lost the will to care.”

You hear Peter sigh, then the sound of him getting up from his stool to come sit next to you.

“What’s next? Are you going to spread a rumor about her to make Roman think she’s icky?”

“Like anything I said could make him stop mooning over her,” You reply with disdain.

“He loves you, you know that. He’ll ask you to prom, buy you the most valentines and all that shit.”

“He has a funny way of showing it.” You pout with a furrow of your brows.

“Have you considered just telling him how you feel about Annie staying here?” Peter asked.

“If he can’t figure out on his own why I’m so angry, it’s not my problem.”

“Do you really think that’s fair?”

“No,” You tighten your arms across your chest, “But it’s not my fault that your gender has no emotional intelligence or inference skills.”

Peter chuckles, “All the more reason to just come out and tell Roman how you’re feeling.”

You roll your eyes and give him a half hearted glare, “Don’t you have a job to be getting too?”

“Yes, but I want to make sure you at least mull over my option first.” He nudges you gently with his knee

You give a small pause before a small smirk breaks out over your lips, “I was actually thinking about making out with you to make him jealous. Would you be willing?”

Peter claps his hands down on his thighs and pushes up from the couch, “And with that, suddenly I’m late.”

“Oh c’mon!” You giggle and get up to follow him, “Not even a little peck? Just put your hand on my ass!”

“I would rather keep all my limbs attached, thank you very much.” Peter says as he trouts up the stairs.

“You’ll like it!” You call up after him with a laugh.

“That was never in question, sweetheart! I just like my head on my shoulder and not on Roman’s mantle.”

“It’s my mantle, too.” You mutter, going up the stairs after him and heading to the master bedroom in hopes of avoiding Annie before she left for the day.

You had taken an angry nap until noon and then went downstairs to your office to get some work done. It was during this time that Jane, Roman’s new housekeeper after Anna, informed you there were some nice cuts of meat that would be going bad soon, and if you’d like it for dinner that evening.

“That sounds wonderful, Jane. Thank you.” You replied, peering at her over your computer screen.

“Would you like to ask Mr. Godfrey if he would like steak for this evening? Or if another night would be better?” Roman was known to work late, so this question wasn’t unreasonable to ask.

“I’d call him and ask, but unfortunately I am about to hop on a conference call and don’t have a spare minute. Would you mind calling to ask?” You asked in your sweetest voice.

“Of course, Ms. (Y/L/N).” Anna gave you a smile before she parted from the room.

You sighed, and went back to your riveting game of solitaire.

That night with burgundy stained lips, you sat at the head of your long dining table waiting for Roman to return for work. The beautiful reclaimed wood table that you had excitedly picked out at an estate sale that you had seen Annie sitting on just two days before. Swinging her legs like a child and eating a peach while letting Roman ogle her as the juice dripped down her flawless skin. You had slammed the front door so hard that the frame shook.

As you guzzled down your third glass of Merlot, Peter kicked your foot. A silent plea to slow down, so this evening didn’t explode with your loose lipped temper. But, you paid him no mind. You mostly just thought about how much you hated Annie for making you hate her. Hate her, and Roman. Because, really, you weren’t one of those women who stewed in jealousy or was in a constant fear of their partner cheating. Maybe that was because Roman had always been clear in his devotions to you. Sure, his eyes would wander when an attractive woman passed, but you knew he never acted on it. You had a trust in him that had never wavered until now.

You didn’t want to be one of those women who hated other women or demonized them for having your boyfriend’s attention. You didn’t want to be the girlfriend that men could point at and make stereotypical remarks about your possessiveness and label you “crazy” because of your actions in this scenario behind the three of you… but you were near the end of your rope and the woman had barely been staying with you two weeks. You were starting to question that unmoving trust you placed in Roman and it made you sick. All you could hope was that you were wrong… or at least that Peter would have told you if something happened between Annie and Roman by now.

Half way through your fourth glass, the front door sounded open and in sauntered Roman, with Annie in tow.

“Nice of you both to join us,” Peter teased, though you saw a split second of panic cross his features. You knew he didn’t want to play into your paranoia and had just done so unwillingly.

“Oh yes, we just happened to run into each other in the driveway,” Annie said, throwing a beaming grin over her shoulder at Roman who offered her a smile.

“How coincidental,” You offered over the rim of your glass. 

Everyone in the room darted their gaze to you, clearly surprised that you had decided to end your silent streak.

“Yes, I suppose it was.” Annie replies, her smile still intact, “Now what’s all this then?”

“Jane noticed some food that was going to go bad in the fridge and offered to make a nice meal for us.” You said evenly.

You remembered when us just meant you and Roman.

“How thoughtful,” Annie said, looking to Jane who thanked her quietly.

“Ms. (Y/L/N) was a great help with it as well,” Jane said, opening another bottle of wine as you had almost polished off the one she had originally opened for the evening.

Ms. (Y/L/N). Not Mrs. Godfrey. You were easy to be rid of, exiled at a moments notice.

Jane was been modest. You had sat with her while she cooked and idly chatted, handing her utensils and chopping up garlic, but nothing else. You were sure she was trying to get Roman to take notice of your efforts, which you thought was sweet. You hadn’t come out and explicitly talked about your problems with Roman to Jane, you were sure she had figured it out on her own.

See that Roman? Your housekeeper knows more about what’s wrong than you do!

“Well, thank you, (Y/N). It looks wonderful.” Annie said.

You might have even thanked her through gritted teeth, had Roman not just pulled out a seat for her and gently pushed it back in. Instead, you settled back into your discontented humming and poured what was left of the original bottle of wine into your glass.

Peter could sense your inebriation level bordering on dangerous, so he quickly raised a glass in distraction.

“Let’s make a toast! We don’t get to have such a fancy dinner this often, y’know?” He smiled through his unease, and if you weren’t almost five glasses deep you might have even caught the desperate looks he was throwing you.

The please-for-the-love-of-god-don’t-start-a-fight-with-me-here looks.

“Well, how about to (Y/N) and Jane? For making this feast?” Annie offered, raising her glass to match Peter’s.

“Yes,” Roman said, his voice tight, “To (Y/N). And Jane of course.”

His eyes bore into you, both of you on opposing heads of the table. He raised his wine in the air like he was challenging you to a game you weren’t sure the rules of. You had never felt so uncomfortable in his presence ever before, and suddenly the idea that something was really wrong between the two of you seemed more plausible.

You raise your glass to your honor, but don't cheer’s anyone, just simply place the glass back to your lips.

Everyone then went around dishing out food on their plates and passing bowls to each other. Annie was always sure to pass to Roman first and he was always the first to offer her what he was holding. You felt like you and Peter were intruders on the romantic dinner that you had cooked for them (well, helped cook).

“Oh, I have some of Pryce’s plasma left in the fridge, do you want any?” Roman offered to Annie as she took a dish of mashed potatoes from him.

“If you wouldn’t mind. Thank you,” She accepted his offer so meek and polite you almost gagged.

Maybe this was meant to be? She was the perfect little wife for Roman after all. Sweet, attentive, was just subversive enough to seem interesting, an upir. The latter was likely the best contender for why Roman would be kicking you to the curb soon. It made sense, they were the same and she was new. And don’t all men want some new pussy after a while? You were no stranger to Roman’s reputation, and you had been reminded by many a peer of his serial adultery in the past… you had just hoped he’d outgrown it when he fell in love with you.

Roman came back with the plasma and leaned over Annie’s shoulder to fill her glass. You heard her take a sharp intake of breath at his closeness and watched as she glanced up at his face, which was mere inches from her own.

You ground your knife hard into the porcelain of your plate, and the sound broke her from her Godfrey trance. You pretend nothing happened and put a green bean in your mouth.  

You tuned out the table’s conversations about their days and recent events, feeling isolated and somber. The wine was no doubt contributing to your sadness, but the residual feelings of neglect and rejection were getting to you. Because if Roman really cared, wouldn’t he have pulled you aside by now and just asked you if you were alright? Why you had been avoiding him, why you wouldn’t kiss him goodnight or good morning? Or did he just truly not care at all? Had you been replaced so easily?

You continued to sulk and play over a fictional break up in your head when a topic caught your attention.

“Any news on Nadia?” Annie asked as she swallowed a piece of bread.

Not the baby. Not your baby. Not the child. But Nadia. This woman who was trying to usurp your place in Roman’s life while you were still very present, had just again spoken your daughter's name. Like she had the fucking right.

Before Roman could answer, you pushed up from your seat, again causing all eyes to attach to you. You walked over to the fridge and obtained an old bottle of steak sauce (that you didn’t even want, you were just angry) and returned back to the table with a scowl.

And it seemed this most recent outburst was Roman’s tipping point.

“What the fuck is up with you?” He bellowed, throwing his hand in the air with similar fervor.

“Nothing.” You replied with a snap.

“Sure as shit fooled me! Because you’ve been acting like a fucking brat for the past week. So, why don’t you share with the class what’s on your mind, hmm?” Roman leaned back in his seat and dramatically gestured for you to speak.

“You wanna know my problem, Roman?” You bit out.

Peter was likely already planning his escape.

“That’s what I said.”

“My problem is that if you bring one more whore into this house, it’s gonna start to feel like a brothel. And I am far too young to be a madam.”

And there it was. Grievances were now aired, and unfortunately in front of your two house guests.

Roman’s jaw tensed and flexed as he stared you down, “Peter. Annie. Would you excuse us?”

Both stood without any more prompting and scurried to the stairwell as you and Roman continued to glare at each other in silence. When you heard the twin sounds of doors shutting, Roman finally spoke.

“So you’ve been a fucking nightmare because Annie is staying here? Are you kidding?” He scoffed.

“Don’t belittle me,” You ran a hand through your hair and looked away from his piercing gaze.

“What? Like you just did to Annie?” He motioned to where she had sat.

“Oh,” You mock, “Roman, her knight in shining armour. I’m sure it’s hard to save her when you’re up on your high horse.”

“What are you even talking about?”

“I’m talking about this fucking obsession you have with this woman! This obsession your culviating right under my nose and in my home.”

“Are you fucking serious?” He spits.

“Yes, I am. And don’t play so god damn naive. If the roles were reversed, you would have thrown a fit by now! Fuck, a fit! Fuck any amount of tantrums I could even begin to think of throwing! You would have murdered someone by now.” You seethed.

Roman looked at you with a bewildered expression, his eyes bugging and his mouth agape, stuttering for words, “So, you’ve really just been jealous? Fucking Christ!”

“Like you wouldn’t be if the tables were turned.”

“Fuck off about if the tables were turned. We’re talking about you, not me.”

“No! We are talking about you, Roman. This is just as much about you as it is me.” You shout, “And it has everything to do with the tables being turned. Because if I invited a man to stay in this house -- our house -- and all he ever did was fawn over me and I batted my eyelashes at him and giggled at everything he said while in nothing but a towel you would give yourself an aneurysm.”

“Stop changing the subject,” Roman snarled.

“Can you tell me with absolute and utter certainty that if I offered some guy a room, then spent all my time with him, had little inside jokes with him and touched him, you wouldn’t be angry?”

Roman doesn’t respond, just resets his jaw.

“So, if this man told me how beautiful I was, flirted with me and would never shut up about how similar we were, you wouldn’t be mad?” Roman just clenched.

“What if you started to suspect that I was fucking him, huh? What if you started to think about him inside me? Kissing me? Making me cum? Making me--”

Roman’s fist connecting with the tabletop cut you off.

“Enough! You win, OK? I would hate it, alright? I’d fucking kill him.”

“Thank you! That’s all I wanted. I just wanted you to see my side of this fucking story. Why I have been so mad.” You deflate against your chair, though you know this fight is far from over.

“And you didn’t just tell me, why?” Roman inquires.

“Because you should have known! I know that sounds ridiculous and I can see you rolling your eyes, but you should have known that I was upset and asked me what was wrong.” You said, tears bubbling up, causing your throat to constrict.

“I did ask you! I asked you this morning.”

“Yeah, in front of fucking Peter. Like I was going to tell you then… and you didn’t even mean it when you asked. If I would have told you, you would’ve just yelled at me and made me seem like I was crazy. I wasn’t going to open up to you when I already thought you thought I was being stupid.”

“You thought that I thought? Jesus… I have no idea what you want from me…” Roman sighs, reaching around the back of his chair to retrieve his cigarettes from his jacket pocket.

“I want you to hear me when I say that having Annie here, a woman who so clearly wants to fuck you, bothers me. A woman who you are clearly attracted to, a woman who is clearly attracted to you. It hurts me that you’re letting her stay here, especially when you didn’t even ask me if she could.” You were barely holding off the overflow of tears from your eyes at this point and you knew the second you started to cry this would all be over. Because you would start to blubber and Roman would get irritated that you couldn’t get a word out.

“Let me get this straight: I’m attracted to Annie, she’s attracted to me? So I’m going to have sex with her? And what? Leave you? Is that right?” Roman puffs around his cigarette, the condescension in his tone unbearable.

And your dam broke, the tears threatening to breach your lash line were flowing freely now. Why Roman wasn’t able to just see that something was hurting you and help change, was beyond you. You decided right then and there that you refused to let him have the satisfaction of watching you cry. You were done, for an unforeseeable amount of time.

“You’re so fucking mean.”

You sucked your teeth loudly before pushing up from your seat and heading for the front door.

“C’mon, what are you doing now?” Roman groaned, turning to watch you leave over his shoulder.

“I’m done. I’m going to Destiny’s.” You said curtly, taking your purse and keys from the hook in the entryway.

“No, you’re not.”

“Yes I am. I’m done, Roman.” You slung your purse of your shoulder and clutched your keys tight.

“What for tonight or forever?” He asked like he was calling your bluff.

“If you can’t understand why I am so hurt, then I don’t know. Maybe forever.”

“Hey, woah, what?” Roman’s voice was startled as he got up from his seat and rushed to the door, “No, you aren’t leaving. This conversation isn’t over.”

He planted a large hand on the door handle, preventing you from opening it. You could feel his hulking figure behind you and you wanted to shrink under his size, but stayed strong.

“Roman, move your hand.”

“You’re not fucking leaving. Let’s just talk this out, OK?” He bargained.

You tried to pry Roman’s long fingers from the handle, but even with all your might working to untangle their hold, he was just too strong.

“I’ll listen, OK? I’m sorry, just let’s talk. Let’s talk about this.” His knuckles were turning white below you. You could see his bones threatening to break the surface of his reddening skin.

“Are you going to listen to me, or just dismiss and make fun of me? Because if you do Roman, I’ll just go out the back door.”

“I will. Promise.” He sounded sincere. Maybe now that he knew you were serious, he was more receptive to what you had to say.

You turned to press your back to the door and look up at him. The fear on his face was surprising to you. You hadn’t expected him to be so scared at the prospect of your leaving, he sure hadn’t cared that you were around since Annie arrived.

“I’m mad at you.” You stated frankly.

“Yeah, I caught that.” He sighs.

“I don’t like how you act around Annie. It’s disrespectful to me. I’m not a woman who cares when you look, but when you start to flirt and threaten to touch? I’m done, Roman. I’m not kidding.” You raised your eyebrows as Roman listened intently.

“I never touched.” He swore.

“Yes, but you’ve flirted and “innocently” touched. Flirted, touched and now you are starting to look at her like you looked at me.”

“I have never looked at her the way I look at you.”

You scoffed, then pantomimed his love lorn expression for him, clasping your hands over your heart theatrically.

He just rolled his eyes, “I’ve never looked at Annie like that.”

“Trust me, you have.” You say, ducking under his outstretched arm to walk back to the kitchen.

“Baby…”

“Don’t baby me, I’m still pissed.” You started to gather the abandoned plates to put in the sink for Jane.

“Then what can I do, huh? How do we work this out?” He asks, running a hand through his hair.

“Let me just ask you something,” You abruptly turn from the sink to face him, “Do you want to fuck her?”

Roman sucks in a deep intake of breath and opens his mouth, but closes it just as quickly.

Your tears threaten once more. You already knew his answer was yes, though all but hearing him say it was worse.

“Ok, let me ask you something else. Have you slept with her?”

“No! Absolutely not, baby. Never.” Roman said, taking a step toward you.

“And why should I believe you when I know that you want to have sex with her? Hm?” You crossed your arms.

“Because you know I love you. Because you know that I can’t even stomach the idea of my life without you,” Roman says, his tone frighteningly serious.

You look at him for a long moment, his eyes pleading for you to speak while you collected what you wanted to say next.

“Do you want to leave me for her?” You finally said, trying your best to sound collected.

“Baby, hey--”

“No, just listen Roman,” You took a breath, “Because, you know, if you wanna be with her, be with her. Just do it. Don’t string me along because you’re scared of losing more people. Because I get it, I mean I do. She’s an upir, you’re an upir... You have shared experience and she can teach you about what you are and just… Roman if you leave me just don’t be a pussy and cheat on me. Just break up with me.”

Roman looked at you bewildered and once again stammered for his words. For a moment, you were planning on looking at the price of U-Hauls; on how long you could stay with Destiny before you were intruding; if you would stay in Hemlock Grove because it was less expensive or just go straight to shopping for places in Philly?

But Roman doesn’t sigh and tell you it’s over. He doesn’t let you down easy or even scream and stomp his feet.

He just says:

“I love you more than I have loved anyone in my entire life. Family, friends, whatever. It doesn’t matter because you win. You always win. I’m not breaking up with you, alright? Jesus fucking Christ, nothing sounds worse to me than that.” Roman takes a long stride toward you to look soulfully into your eyes.

“Yeah, I think Annie’s hot and yes, she’s an upir. So fucking what? I’m not going to leave you because of that! I could give a shit about either of those things when you’re right under my nose.”

Your pick at your nail polish as you listen to him, feeling embarrassed. But Roman doesn’t let you wallow as he tilts you by the chin to look at him.  

“I should’ve asked you if she could stay, I’ll admit that. I shouldn’t have been so chummy with her, either. And yeah, I probably should’ve just asked you why you were being so fucking moody. But you should have told me what was wrong without pouting.”

“I just wanted you to come to me and ask… for some reason I convinced myself if you asked me what was wrong, it was a sign that you still loved me.” Saying it out loud made your face heat uncomfortably.

“I love you, but that has to be the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.” Roman chuckles.

“Don’t be rude,” You huff, pushing him gently by the shoulder, “Letting another random woman stay here was the real stupid thing.”

“How about we call it a draw?”

“I think I can handle that…”

“Ok, then it’s a deal. I’m sorry, you’re sorry, it’s all good.” Roman pinches your chin lightly to hold your face in place to place a soft kiss to your lips.

You hadn’t kissed him in days, and the feeling made you whimper.

“Is there anything else you need to get off your chest crazy lady?” Roman asks, his breath dusting your mouth with a smirk on his face.

You push him again, with more strength this time.

“I don’t like when Annie mentions Nadia. She is our daughter and hearing that woman say her name makes me go into like, hyper lioness mode and all I think about is punching her.”

Roman’s eyes widened.

“I do not need another woman sticking her nose in our business with our daughter. May I remind you that’s how we got into this whole mess in the first place?”

Roman sucks in a deep breath through his nose, “That’s fair.”

“I already miss her, I don’t need some woman who’s trying to hop on my boyfriend’s cock talking about her.” You were starting to get angry again.

And fucking Roman, he just smiles.

“Hearing you call her our daughter, calling me your boyfriend, all while being on a little jealous rampage? I gotta admit baby, it’s got me hard as a rock.”

“It always comes back to your weird primal possession,” You roll your eyes.

“Eh, you knew that from the beginning.” He shrugs.

“You’re still not totally forgiven, y’know?”

“Yeah? And what do I have to do to get out of the dog house, baby?” His smile turns devious.

“I want Annie out of this house,” You began.

“Done.” Roman cups your face as he started to walk you back toward the counter.

“I don’t want you seeing her without someone else present, or without telling me first. Not because I don’t trust you, but because--”

“--You don’t trust her. Got it,” Roman says, firmly pressing your lower back to the marble slab now.

“You know I have an intuition about these things,” You purse your lips in a pout as Roman begins to trail kisses across your jaw, “You should really be thanking me. I just know Annie’s going to turn out to be bad news. I have a feeling.”

He laughs, “Is there anything else, baby?”

“Yes…” You pause, “I want an inground pool. You promised me one when we moved in and the plans keep getting pushed back. I want to go swimming.”

“I’ll get the plans drawn up tomorrow,” He sucks on your pulse point.

“And you have to buy me as many bikinis as I want, designer ones, and I don’t want to hear one peep out of you about the price.” You crane your neck to give him more access to continue his sweet assault on your skin.  

“I’ll leave you with my credit card so you can order as many as you want.”

Roman moves from your neck to look down at you, his cocky persona flickering for a moment so you can see the sweet eyes of a lovesick boy hoping for forgiveness.

“Like I don’t already know the number,” You smile, letting him know that it had been granted.

He groaned, “You’re going to be the death of me.”

“I love you, too.” And you reached up to kiss him fiercely.

i hope you enjoyed! this was fun to write, i love writing a moody!reader lol. if you did enjoy, let me know with a comment or reblog (: ‘til next time, ily! *lets hope third times the charm and this ends up in the tags lol

[dreamylyfe-x]

We won't get anything more than 11x12, so there's no point in foreshadowing anything, but I do feel like the writer did want us to think Ian would be open to cheating. And I feel like it was done maliciously on her part, since from what I heard she had beef with the fandom in the past, and it's the second time she showed Ian openly flirting with a guy behind Mickey's back, and then going back to him to act like a good husband.

I never speculate on what the writers think based on what they write, you know? I’ve been (extremely minorly) on the receiving side of that and didn’t enjoy it. I do tend to suspect the writers don’t pay a ton of attention to the fandom in general, though. I think we’re kinda like gnats to them. We might impact their social media behaviour. We probably don’t impact how they do their job. 

I do know a little bit about this particular writer, entirely outside of Shameless because I used to pay a lot of attention to Hollywood and when I Googled her I instantly remembered her from an early-oughts box office drama. I had seen her profiled in Premiere Magazine because she’d written a movie, The Sweetest Thing, that was expected to be this huge breakthrough because it was a girl-centric gross-out comedy. Instead, it was a huge bomb. It was kinda trying to be Girl’s Trip but over a decade before Girl’s Trip. For some reason this profile always stuck in my head -- as did that movie’s epic failure. IMDB suggests it was not great for her career. 

Anyway--these scripts go through a lot of hands before they get on our screen (as do movie scripts) but that’s always informed her “brand” for me. My gut reaction here is that Nancy Pimental writes broad comedy and she finds moments of sexual awkwardness (including being caught talking about someone’s abs) funny. And so does Wells, because he left that in the script. 

Is the other time she wrote Ian flirting the whole thing with the guy in the HoS episode? In both cases I don’t see indication that there’s ever going to be follow through. I’ll confess here -- I’m not much of a flirt. It’s not something that’s in my arsenal. But some people are and they have to navigate the way they use it as social currency once they are in a relationship. Maybe that’s how she sees Ian. In this case, any flirting was accidental. The only situation I truly regard as cheating, where Ian is concerned, is when he fully left Trevor for Mickey -- something he felt bad about, tried to talk to Trevor about, then immediately confessed to once he came back from the trip. For a Gallagher, I actually think Ian takes fidelity fairly seriously. I also think we have a lot of indication that he and Mickey have exceptionally good sex together. And, with one notable exception, they have pretty great communication around that sex. This is personal bias, but I think the best sex involves trust over all other things. Mickey and Ian know each other very well and really understand what they want from each there physically, and trust each other with their bodies in really intimate ways. It would take a lot more than a couple of moments of noticing that other people look good for me to believe that Ian is going to step outside of the relationship he’s fought so hard for and that he finds so satisfying, both emotionally and physically. 

But. For the sake of argument, let’s say it’s all deeply malicious and put in to upset the fans. It’s still only one person’s take. How many people have written these characters over the years? How much material do we have to cull our interpretations from? Small moments like this are just that -- small moments. They’re a drop in the bucket of ten years of Gallavich material. Personally, I think Ian is a pretty good husband. But more importantly, he’s trying to be a better one.