#and I think Basil deserves both a second chance and to get to be actually upset about that betrayal

[ajstudio]

Dang!

Sooo I wrote a…weird little thing, a certain comic by @mayhemchicken-artblog got my creative juices percolating and under the press of staying up far too late for several days this came to fruition, enjoy!

The Eye of the Beholder

[drprettyboyspence]

A Perfect Date

Dr. Spencer Reid/reader 

Summary: Part 2 to Beach Day. Spencer and Y/n go on their first date and it could not go any better. Spencer doesn’t believe in relationships working out, except maybe with Y/n...

words: 2.2k 

warnings: sooo much fluff, they kiss? (i don’t think that needs a warning but it’s there just in case!), no others to my knowledge! 

a/n: I wanted to write a part 2 to beach day because I felt the relationship in it was super cute and their first date deserved to be written! Hope you enjoy! :) 

Spencer Reid finds himself staring into his bedroom mirror, straightening his crooked tie for what seems like the fifth time in the last few minutes. He’s dressed in basically his work clothes, a dark blue shirt with a purple tie and dress pants. He can’t remember the last time he’s been on a date, especially on a date with a girl he cares so much about, a girl he might be falling in love with. Finally having straightened his tie to the highest level of perfection possible, he moves on to his hair, oh god, his unruly hair. He knows he could spend hours like this, nitpicking his appearance until he feels himself going crazy. Miraculously, the email account JJ had forced him to create alerts him to the time. Seeing the 6:04 blinking back at him from his phone sends a surge of panic through an already anxious Spencer, suddenly scared he will be late to dinner with the most special girl in the world. It’s been over a month since this date had been first brought up, the team having been called away on multiple cases. Spencer grabs a light coat from his closet, the cool September air unpredictable at this time of night. He grabs his signature book bag and hurries out the door of his apartment building, waving quickly to his elderly neighbor before briskly descending the stairs. He prays the subway isn’t late and for once in his life the gods of transportation grant his wish, he walks into the restaurant at 6:28, hopefully before his guest. 

“Table for two, last name Reid” Spencer says to the hostess. 

“Okay Mr. Reid, you’re the first to arrive, would you like to be seated?” Spencer nods and follows the hostess to a rather private table towards the back of the restaurant. “Is this okay?” The hostess asks.

“It’s perfect, thank you so much.” Spencer says before the hostess walks away, leaving Spencer alone with his anxious excitement once again. Spencer has barely sat down and started looking at the menu when he hears, 

“Spence, hi! Sorry I’m a little bit late, the subway wasn’t on my side tonight.” Y/n’s soft voice says. 

“Oh no worries, Y/n, you look amazing.” Spencer says, looking at Y/n but trying hard not to stare at the strapless dress she is wearing tonight. He’s never seen her dressed like this before, she looks gorgeous. He pulls Y/n into a hug to greet her, honestly not sure what the appropriate first date greeting is, despite having read dozens of dating books. He then pulls out the chair opposite to his own and allows Y/n to sit down, noticing the blush already on her cheeks. 

“Thanks Spence, you’re such a gentleman.” Y/n says sweetly, moving her chair closer to the table as Spencer returns to his own seat. “So have you been here before?” Y/n asks, having never been to this restaurant that happens to be closer to Spencer’s apartment. 

“Um no I haven’t, JJ actually recommended it to me, she and Will come here for their date nights often, so I figured we could try it out.” Y/n is about to reply when they are interrupted by their middle-aged waitress. 

“Hello, my name is Susan and I’ll be your waitress this evening. Can I get you two some drinks or do you need a few minutes.”

“Uh, what wine do you recommend this evening?” Spencer asks. 

“The pinot noir we have is quite a lovely red, not too pricey either if that’s something you’re thinking about.” Spencer glances at Y/n and she nods her head, assuring him that she’s fine with that choice. 

“Alright we’ll take two glasses of the pinot noir, thank you very much.” 

“Good choice, I’ll be back soon to take your orders after you have a chance to look at the menu.” 

“Wow Spence, I didn’t know you were such a wine connoisseur!” Y/n says teasingly, she actually doesn't think she’s seen Spencer drink on more than two occasions. 

“Is that sarcasm I hear in your voice my dear Y/n?” Spencer teases back, “for the record though, pasta night at Rossi’s is to thank for my very limited knowledge of wine. What are you in the mood for tonight?” 

“Besides you, you mean?” 

“Uh- uh I m-meant for dinner, but um-”

“Spence, I’m just teasing you, I’ve been looking at the menu and I must say this pasta dish is calling my name, the one with basil and vodka sauce? Looks delicious.” Spencer tries to calmly take deep breaths and tone down the flaming of his cheeks from Y/n’s blatant teasing, calm down Spence, this is Y/n. 

“Oh yes that does look delicious, I’m thinking about getting steak with mashed potatoes and green beans.” Soon the waitress returns with the wine and they place their orders. Spencer and Y/n lift their wine glasses. 

“To us Y/n, and to the future, whatever it will bring.” Spence says as a cheers before they clink their glasses and drink. 

“Why am I not surprised Rossi knows what good wine is” Y/n jokes, the wine being delicious, even for someone like her and Spencer who don’t drink often.

“Well, he’s Italian, and Italian wine has been produced for over 4,000 years, Italy being considered the perfect climate for viticulture.” Spencer replies back, making Y/n giggle. A light conversation grows between the two of them as they wait for their food to arrive. “Have you read any good books recently Spence?” Y/n asks, always enjoying discussing reading with Spencer, his whole face lights up when he begins to talk about books. 

“Actually yes! I’ve been reading this book about the fundamentals of calculus, it’s so fascinating, did you know that the word calculus comes from latin meaning small stone, because it represents understanding a topic by looking at small pieces, as differential calculus cuts things into small pieces while integral calc- I’m sorry Y/n you probably don’t care very much about this, I tend to ramble.” Y/n’s face falls as she hears Spencer doubting himself, she reaches out to lightly grab his hand from across the table. 

“Spencer, don’t ever feel like that, I love hearing you talk about your passions, even if I can’t say I understand all the intricacies of calculus. Besides, I think your “rambling” is rather adorable, don’t ever change that about yourself Spencer, don’t change anything.” Y/n notices the way the rest of the team playfully teases Spencer about his tendencies to ramble, and she knows it’s all good-natured and loving, but she can’t help but see the negative effects sometimes, she wants him to embrace the more quirky sides of his personality.  Spencer feels himself tearing up just the slightest bit, his heart warming at the words of the girl in front of him, the girl who sees him more clearly than almost anyone he knows.

“Y/n, that is so sweet, thank you so much, please feel the same way when you’re with me, never censor yourself, you’re perfect Y/n.” They look at each other sweetly for no longer than 30 seconds, but it honestly could have been hours, both of them in almost a trance together, feeling as if they are the only two people in the room. 

“Here are your meals, enjoy and let me know if you need anything!” Susan arrives with their food and interrupts their romantic moment. Spencer secretly feels grateful as he was about to start crying or blurt out the three letter phrase that it is most definitely too early to say to Y/n, despite how true it may be. 

Their food is delicious, this restaurant having been a very good recommendation from JJ after all. They talk throughout dinner and it’s so effortless. Usually in situations like this when Spencer finds himself far away from work, he feels anxious to check his phone for new messages, new cases from Hotch, but tonight, all he wants to do is shut his phone off and live in the moment with Y/n, possibly forever. Sadly, that is not a luxury two FBI agents get, so Spencer prays they can enjoy one perfect evening without interruption. They don’t just talk about Spencer, they talk about Y/n, her past and her family, where she grew up, they talk about their favorite books and tv shows, and some of their plans for the future. When the last bites have been taken, Susan comes back to retrieve their plates. 

“Well it looks like you two enjoyed your meals, can I get dessert for you tonight?” 

“Um, I don’t know, probably no-”

“We’ll have two orders of ice cream tonight, thank you.” Spencer says. He knows it isn’t appropriate to order for his date, but he wants to remind Y/n of their day at the beach, and honestly he just wants to eat some ice cream. 

“Thank you Spence, I didn’t want to be rude by ordering dessert.” Y/n replies, Spencer relieved he had made the correct decision by ordering the ice cream for both of them. The ice cream is delicious, Spencer must admit it’s not as good as that ice cream at the beach, but maybe nothing will ever be as good as that in Spencer’s mind, the moment he realized he was falling in love with Y/n. “I gotta say Spencer, as good as this ice cream is, it’s no match for the ice cream from that tiny stand at the beach that night.” 

“I couldn’t agree more Y/n” Spencer says, Y/n having just read his mind. As it happened at the beach, the ice cream is gone too soon and Susan brings the check, Spencer quickly grabbing it before Y/n tries to grab it as well. 

“I’m paying tonight Y/n, you can pay next time if you want to, but I want to treat you.” Spencer reassures Y/n, seeing her blush when he implies that there will be a second date. Of course there will be a second date Spencer thinks, this had been the most perfect date of his entire life. They stand up and walk out together, Spencer linking his arm with Y/n’s. The subway station is a few blocks away and Y/n shivers in the chilly night air. “Are you cold Y/n?” Spencer asks, shrugging his jacket off before slipping it over Y/n’s shoulders, ignoring her words of defiance. “Nonsense sweetheart, I’m wearing a long sleeve dress shirt, you’re wearing a strapless dress, you can wear my jacket.” Y/n gives in and they walk the few blocks to the station, taking in the beautiful evening together. When they come to the steps down to the station, they are going opposite ways towards each of their respective homes, so they must say goodbye, to both of their dismay. 

“I had an amazing time tonight Spencer, thank you so much. I hope to do this again very soon.” Y/n starts, gazing up at Spencer.

“I had a perfect night with you Y/n, if you would allow me the honor of taking you out on another date, it would be my absolute pleasure. Now, may I kiss you Y/n?” Spencer seems to hold his breath as he sees Y/n slightly taken aback by his question. She nods though and smiles at him.

“I would love that Spencer…” She says quietly, prompting Spencer to lightly grab her chin and tilt her lips up to his own, connecting them softly. The feeling of Y/n’s lips on his own might be the most perfect feeling that Spencer has ever experienced in his 30+ years of life. The kiss ends too soon and they both giggle at the blushes covering each other’s cheeks. 

“Goodnight Y/n, please text me when you get home.” Spencer says before tearing himself away from her, feeling as if he’ll never let go if he doesn’t leave now. 

“Wait Spencer! Your jacket!” Y/n calls after him, moving to take the jacket off her shoulders. 

“You can give it back to me the next time I see you, it looks better on you anyway.” Spencer says sweetly before watching Y/n walk down the stairs to the subway. Spencer is in a trance on his journey home, not believing his life could be this good, no way Y/n allowed him to kiss her, he kissed Y/n! Spencer doesn't know how to dance and has never danced in his entire life, but he feels he could dance in the middle of the street right now. He’s getting out of the shower when he gets the text he had been anticipating from Y/n, assuring him that she’d made it home safely. Spencer feels this is the start of something amazing. He’s often terrified by constant statistics of relationship failure in the United States but despite every thing he knows, Spencer Reid opts to choose real life over statistics. He believes him and Y/n aren’t just another statistic, and besides, now that he’s got Y/n, he can’t imagine ever letting her go.

[carolbivers]

"I'm so fucking happy you're okay meuf!!" Jo says as she arrives with Max and Sekou at the hippodrome. She jumps up and hugs Lola, clinging on to her for way to long. For the past hour it was just lola, Elliot and the gang there, preparing everything for the movie showing, but now other people had started to show up, including the girl gang, some of elliot's college friends (Elliot actually had friends! Lola never doubted it. How could he not?) and, of course, lamif.

Lola was very happy to see the three of them and she couldn't stop smiling. After Jo finally let go she spotted Elliot and jumped on to him as well, as Max smiled at Lola shyly and gave her a warm hug. "It's so good to see you", he said. "I really hope you're doing better". Lola smiled and they let go and she gave him a smile as it was Sekou's turn for a hug. Jo let go of Elliot and started blabbing about him and his movie and that Friday and how excited she was to work with him, without noticing behind her that Arthur, Basile and Yann were staring at this weird girl that was obviously obsessed with Elliot, while Lucas was standing next to them laughing and exchanging looks with Elliot, who was laughing too.

"What the fuck is happening, man?" Yann asked Lucas and the other too looked at him, waiting for an answer.

"Elliot has a fan!" Lucas said happily. "She's a friend of Lola's. I think they met threw the urbex thing".

"Oh, that's right!" Bas said. "Daphne told me something about that too! So she's a friend of Maya as well?"

"Wait.. Who is Maya? What is the urbex thing?" Asked a very confused Arthur. "Gosh, I feel like I've missed everything because of the fucking bac!"

They laughed. "It's okay man! It's all over now and we get to chill." said Yann and put an arm around Lucas and Arthur that were sitting next to him on each side.

"Exactly! And now, that you're gonna be an amazing and brilliant graphic designer, everything will be amazing and we'll never miss a thing again!" Baz said and hugged Arthur.

Elliot walked towards the gang with Jo still babbling walking behind him and Max, Sekou and Lola, laughing while following them.

"So!" said Elliot, excited. "Max, Sekou, Jo, this is Yann, Arthur, Baz, and Lucas, my boyfriend. Guys, these are the kids that helped me with the filming-"

Elliot wasnt able to finish his sentence as Jo's screaming interrupted him.

"LUCAS!!" she screamed and jumped on him, hugging him very tight. "You have no idea how much I've heard about you!! You're, like, a legend! I was really jealous of you in the beginning, but after Elliott's stories I love you!" she said and continued talking while the rest of them laughed. Baz got up and looked at Sekou and Max, with his weird fake strict look.

" So, mecs! You are friends of Lola, right?" he said, as the other two nodded. "Well, you know who I am, right?" he asked, and they shook their heads. "What??" he said, disappointed. "Well, I'm like, Lola's official older brother. I'm dating her sister, you see. Ah, look there", he pointed, " the beautiful one with the long, blonde hair. So, if you ever mess with Lola.." he looked at them seriously, "I probably can't take you, let's be real, but look at my gang over here, we are ninjas and we'll find you!! Check de gang, mecs!" He said and the gang ignored him. Lola laughed and she though Basil's and Jo would be so much fun as friends. " Thanks, big bro" she said jokingly and Baz looked at her with so much love in his eyes that he immediately needed a hug, even though he waited for Lola to nod a yes. They hugged tightly, and when they let go Basile almost had literal tears in his eyes.

After that, Lola let the gang and la mif mix and walked towards her sister, who was chatting with her friends.

"Salut!" Lola said. "How are you girls?"

"oh, meuf, we were just talking about how Manon and Charles broke up!" Emma said.

"Emma! You can't tell this to everyone! It literally just happened!" Alexia said.

"it's okay, it's okay!" Manon interrupted. "It was a long time coming. Like, a long,long time. I tried to ignore all the shitty things that he said or did, because I was so in love with him. But in the end, it wasn't worth it. The love faded away and his true colours were just more and more obvious. And I completely lost sight of who I am all this time. He literally stands for everything I hate. I thought that I was in the wrong for so long, that I had my standards too high, but I just couldn't do it anymore. So I'm actually really relieved, and really happy". She smiled.

"that's great, Manon." Emma said. "I mean, sad, but great. You should just be happy.

"Yeah! And if he doesn't make you happy, then fuck him! I never liked him anyway", Imane said.

"Anyway, can we talk about you trip to Morocco?' said Manon to Imane. "Are you excited?"

"So excited! I can't wait" Imane said and smiled at Sofianne who was looking at her from a few meters away.

"Can we also talk about Alexia?" Daphne said. "Our brilliant, multi talented girl! Lola, did you know she is taking a gap year, travelling the world, because the girl is too good at too many things to decide right now what she wants to do?"

Alexia smiled and blushed a little. "Oh, stop it!"

"No, girl, that's really cool!" Lola said. "Are you traveling alone?"

"Yeah, mostly. I just really need to see other cultures and places, meet new people, you know? Get inspired. Emma, who is also kinda lost, though in a different way, is gonna come to a couple of places with me, and these other ones are gonna visit some times, and Arthur will probably come to a place or to at some point. He also wants to travel."

"oh, Arthur? Didn't you guys use to date?" Lola asked.

Alexia smiled. "Yes, and it ended in a disaster. Honestly, I'll always love him, you know? Even if it is just as a friend. But who knows? Maybe everyone deserves a second chance. But also, how cool would it be if I got myself an international girlfriend?" The girls laughed and Daphne pulled Lola aside to talk.

"How are you doing today?" she asked Lola.

"Better", she replied. "Taking it slow, you know? I actually cannot wait to meet my new therapist, which is weird for me. But I think I'm ready. Ready to talk. Ready to take all the help I can get."

Daphne smiled. "I'm really proud of you, Lola."

"that's bullshit. You have nothing to be proud. All I have done so far is create problems. With you, with Maya, with Lucas, with Elliot.. I literally run away, like, a few days ago".

"Yeah, but did you see anyone mad at you? Nobody is mad at you, Lola. Sure, you have done some things that weren't great. But youve apologised and we understand. It's okay. We're all here for you. You know I'm not perfect either. But as long as you're staying strong, I'll stay strong."

"You are the strongest person I've ever met".

"I'm not that strong. But having you helps a lot. And I also wanted to tell you something else. I finally went to the therapist."

"That's great! That's amazing! Daphne, I'm so happy for you."

"thanks. It was hard, I'm not going to lie. But I had to. I've been avoiding this for way too long. And just having Basile cook for me is not enough", she said and laughed. Lola looked at her lovingly and she hugged her tight. "I love you", she whispered.

"I love you too, Lola" Daphne whispered back.

That's when Daphne spotted Maya coming through in crowd and let go of Lola. Lola followed Daphne's eyes and she saw Maya. Her heart started beating a little faster and her face was covered in a smile she couldn't hide.

"Go to her", said Daphne.

Lola smiled at her sister and walked towards her girlfriend.

"Salut!" said Maya, smiling.

"Thanks for coming", said Lola, and she wrapped her hands behind Maya's neck, kissing her.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world!" Maya said smiling, after they let go. "Your cinematic debut! You're gonna be a huge star one day!"

Lola laughed and kept looking at her.

"Listen, Maya. I know we didn't get to talk that much the other day because you were working, but I just want you to know that I don't want you to ever be with me because you feel sorry for me or whatever. And also I just want you to know that I know that I've hurt you, and I'm really, really sorry for everything. But I'm trying, and I'm gonna try even harder to be better, to do better. But I'm not always going to be perfect. There's probably gonna be times that I slip up, and that I fuck up, and I'm gonna be shit again and I could hurt you again. It's never my intention to do so, but I don't know if I can always control it. So I want to apologise in advance, and I just want to say that, if you can't stay with me during the bad times, it's totally understandable! But maybe we shouldn't do this at all, then".

Maya looked lovingly at Lola, the girl she had a crush on the fucking day she first met her. She smiled.

"You know, mon amour, I know some things about these stuff. I understand. And even if I don't understand everything, I would love for you to explain things for me, only if you want. And I've fucked up too, I shouldn't have ghosted you, I shouldn't have been with Char and I shouldn't have left that day you broke up with me since you clearly weren't okay. And I'm not with you because I feel sorry for you! I'm with you because I'm in love with you. Fuck, I'm crazy for you. I fell in love with you the second I saw you walking down those stairs that day we met, and I just kept falling more and more ever since. And I promise, I'm not gonna leave you when things go wrong. I swear. No matter how bad they get. Unless you,like, cheat on me or something". She laughed.

Lola laughed too. "You don't have to worry about that. I could never even look at anybody else when I'm with you".

They both smiled at each other.

"So we're good?"asked Maya.

"Yes. We're good" Lola said and Maya hugged her.

Elliot and Lucas where looking at the girls from a distance, smiling. Elliot was feeling so unbelievably proud.

"Did you do this? Did you get them back together?" Lucas asked.

"No! No no no" Elliot answered. "Okay, maybe I helped a little" he continued, smiling happily.

Lucas smiled and stepped on his tiptoes to wrap his arms around Elliots neck and kiss him on the cheek.

"You know, I'm really proud of you", he said.

Elliot blushed. "Oh, come on! What did I do?'

"Are you serious? You wrote a movie, you filmed it, you directed it, you star in it, you have your first ever official showing tonight! As if that's not enought for me to be proud of?"

"Okay, I guess that's true", he answered smiling. Then his smile got smaller. "But I disappointed you last week".

Lucas stopped smiling as well. "I'm not disappointed, my love. You could never disappoint me. I knew from the beginning that things like that could happen. And you didn't do anything that bad! I'm not disappointed in you. I'm not mad at you. I was just, really, really worried. And scared. But it turned out that you were okay, so I'm okay. Do I wish you wouldn't have gotten drunk? Of course. Do I wish you hadn't attack that security guy? Of course. Do I wish you would have called me before everything happened so I would at least have known about it? Also of course. But it happened. I was just mad at Lola, but I'm not anymore. She apologized and she knows she shouldn't have treated you that way. And she was in a really bad place. But she also can't be held responsible for your actions, only for hers. And you are the one that should or should not be mad at her."

Elliot sighed. "Well, I'm still sorry, Lucas. I hate worrying you, especially in the middle of your bac. And it's not all her fault. I was just insecure and she stepped on those insecurities. It just... sucks to be different sometimes, you know? It sucks to feel like people expect me to fuck up, all the time. It sucks to feel like I'm nothing more than my mental illness, you know?"

Lucas took his hand. "You know that I don't see you that way, right? You are not your mental illness to me, Elliot."

"I know, and I'm sorry that I doubted you in that moment. I'm really lucky that I have you in my life" he said and Lucas smiled and kissed him.

"I'm also and yet again really sorry that I didn't tell you about urbex earlier" Elliot mumbled after the kiss.

Lucas laughed. "Okay, I was mad about that. But Im over it know. Just, don't lie to me again, like, ever. Okay?"

"I promise", Elliot replied, and they kissed again.

Everyone was dancing and talking and laughing and Elliot was so happy when he saw Idriss and his friends walk in. They hugged and laughed and chatted. Everyone greeted them and Imane and Lucas found themselves alone together.

"So, is everything well?" Imane asked.

Lucas sighed. "Yes, now, everything is fine. Finally. Chill. No bac, no more angsty best friends losing their hearing and cheating on their girlfriends, no more boyfriend getting drunk with a 16 year old. Hopefully they learned their lesson and will both get better."

Imane smiled. Lucas turned to her.

"What about you, miss future-doctor? Going to fucking Morocco with your habibi, then what? You'll start med school, you'll get married? How is everything going for you?"

Imane laughed. "Well, I can't complain. The bac was very difficult, let's be real. But now I'm really excited", she said, while staring at Sofianne who was chatting with Idriss and Elliot.

Lucas looked at them too. Then he looked at imane. "Who would have thought, right? The gay guy and the Muslim girl, best friends, while dating a non Muslim guy and his best friend".

"We are not best friends!" Imane answered while laughing.

"Fuck that! You are definitely my number one girl best friend" Lucas said.

"Okay, okay. If it's like that, then you're my number one boy best friend too."

They smiled at each other and they heard Elliot yelling "Okay, everyone! Movie is starting! Take a seat!"

Everyone sat in front of the screen. Daphne next to basile, holding hands. Next to them was Sofianne with Imane, then Yann next to his girl best friend, Emma, then Alexia and Arthur, and then Mika and Camille who had also showed up for the film, next to them Noee with her new girlfriend. They were both friends with Arthur and Alexia. Lucas and Elliot where sitting next to the projector, Elliot being extremely nervous but Lucas holding his hand, trying to calm him down. The la mif guys were really excited to see what they had created, but they were also really excited to see Lola and Maya together for the first time. They were teasing them lovingly and they were all grinning. Lola had now rested her head on Maya's shoulder, while Maya was excited to watch her girlfriend in the big screen.

All of the grew were kind of sad and melancholic, thinking about this being one of the last times they'd all be together. But they were all really excited about the future and the new adventures it held for them.

[carryonmybloodylovelies]

A Lively Game

hi hi! this is for the carry on quarantine round robin that the super cool and very gucci @xivz put together and i really really appreciate it because signing up for this literally forced me to get some writing done and it was actually FUN to write so thank youuuuu. 

rating: M (there’s a LOT of swearing … you’ll see ;))

word count: 1,500+

prompt: ‘Board Game’

read here on ao3!!

***

“Shepard! Penny! C’mere for a sec,” Simon yelled from the living room.

Shepard paused the show on his phone and poked his head out from the kitchen. “Sup?”

Penny’s door then swung open and she, too, poked her head out. “Yeah?”

“I’m bored as shit and Baz isn’t paying attention to me so let’s play a game or something!” 

Shepard grabbed the chips he had been snacking on off the counter and headed into the living room, nodding. “Yeah, sounds good. What are our options?”

Penny came up behind Shepard and snatched the chips away from him before flopping down in the plush armchair next to the couch. “The games are in there,” Penny pointed, “but Simon puts them away so horribly that they’ll probably all fall out and attack you the second you try to open it. Be warned, Shepard.” 

Simon tried to defend himself but Penny just looked at him. His mouth snapped close. Shepard smiled as he crouched down and opened the small cabinet that was underneath the coffee table in the living room, snorting when he saw how unorganized and crammed together the games were.

They were going on week three of the ‘Stay at Home’ quarantine crisis and even with four young adults stuffed into an apartment really only meant for two, they were trying to make the best of it. Penny and Baz still had online assignments for their uni classes and Simon was working through recipes for culinary school, which resulted in a lot of weird but strangely tasty meals, all things considered. Shepard was supposed to be on his way home to Omaha but with all the corona-craziness and risk of infection, he really didn’t want to get on an international flight and chance bringing anything back to his parents. So. 

“Uh let’s see, you guys have Jenga, Battleship–”

Simon yawned, “Ehh I’m too lazy to set up the tower and I want all four of us to play so Battleship’s a no.”

Simon was hanging upside down, legs bent over the top of the couch, trying to bother Baz who was sitting cross-legged on the floor next to him. Simon poked Baz’s cheek with his tongue and snickered when Baz made a face and distractedly tried to push the other boy away, continuing to type on his laptop.

Shepard kept reading off games, “Scrabble, Twister–”

“Yes! Twister!” said Simon excitedly, a huge grin on his bright red face as he sat up and immediately tried to shake the dizziness away. 

And at the exact same time Penny shuddered and said, “No, absolutely not,” looking thoroughly grossed out. 

Shepard’s interest was piqued. There had to be a story there. 

“Why no Twister?” Shepard asked, looking from Penny to Simon.

Without looking up from his laptop, Baz snorted. 

Penny glared at Baz, who still wasn’t paying attention, and then at Simon who was now perched on the arm of the couch with his arms crossed, pouting. 

Penny directed her gaze back to Shepard, glasses glinting in the afternoon light. “Well, Shepard,” she said, matter-of-factly, “in the past three times I have allowed Twister to be played in this flat, our friends Simon and Basil here take it upon themselves to play seriously until one or both of them are in a very compromising position and then they immediately give up and get halfway to shagging on the bloody Twister mat.”

Shepard burst out laughing and then slapped a hand to his mouth, trying and failing to muffle the sound as Penny narrowed her eyes irritatedly. 

“It’s not funny, Shepard! This is a communal living space that needs to be respected and not defiled when those two horny arseholes decide to make a bloody children’s game extremely inappropriate!”

Shepard was still laughing as he looked over at Simon who was scowling at Penny, flushed red in embarrassment. Baz appeared more or less unaffected as he continued to work but with most of his hair pulled into a messy bun atop his head, Shepard could see the tips of his ears had gone pink. 

“Come on, Pennyyyyyy,” Simon whined with pleading eyes, “We haven’t played in forever and now Shepard’s here so we can play even rounds! And I promise me ‘nd Baz will keep our hands to ourselves this time, right Baz?” Simon nudged Baz’s shoulder with his foot and looked at him expectantly. 

Baz finally looked up from his laptop, met his boyfriend’s stare, and then raised his eyebrows doubtfully, as if to say yeah right.  

Simon made an indignant sound and pushed Baz again with his foot but Baz just shook his head and went back to his assignment. “I’m staying out of this.”

Penny scoffed and pointed an accusatory finger, “You’re 50% of the problem, Basil, you can’t just ‘stay out of it’.”

Baz smirked at his screen, grey eyes bright with amusement. He knocked his elbow against Simon’s calf. “Bunce doesn’t seem to be budging on this one, Snow. Best to drop it.” 

Simon huffed and let himself fall onto the couch with a wumph. His face was squished in the cushions so his words came out muffled. “Ugh, fine. Whatever. We’ll play something else.” 

Baz clicked a few things on his laptop, closed it, and set it down on top of the coffee table. 

“Prat,” Baz said fondly before grabbing Simon’s leg and yanking, hard. Simon yelped and fell off the couch, landing in Baz’s open arms. Simon adjusted himself so he was sitting upright in Baz’s lap, mumbled something about ‘stupid vampire strength’, and then happily slid his arms around Baz’s neck. 

Baz kissed a curl on Simon’s forehead and then loudly addressed the room, “If Bunce says no to Twister with her and Shep, then I suppose Simon and I will have to play Twister later tonight, in our room, when everyone’s trying to sleep.” 

Simon scolded Baz while failing to keep a cheeky smile off his face, Penny made puking noises, and Shepard laughed so hard that he started choking on the chip he was eating. 

“Ugh,” Penny groaned, burying her hands in her purple hair, “you two are disgusting. And you’re killing Shepard, so I really hope you’re proud of yourselves. Both of your game choosing privileges have been revoked.” 

Simon turned and looked at Penny with wide eyes, “What? How is that fair? Baz said it, not me.”

Penny just sighed. “Remember when I said that Baz was 50% of the problem? Guess who’s the other 50%?”

“… I don’t want to guess.”

“Exactly.”

Shepard clumsily sat down on the floor and managed to swallow the chip that almost sent him to a premature grave. He wheezed, “So who’s picking the game then?”

“You pick something, Shepard,” Penny replied, exasperated. “Something that’ll give me the chance to make these barmy gits wish they had never disgraced my poor Twister mat.” 

Shepard pushed up his glasses and grinned. “I know the perfect game.”

***

“Change it to green, change it to green, change it to gr– AW FUCK YOU AND YOUR BLOODY FUCKING MOTHER THAT WAS STINKING BOLLOCKS!”

“Did-did you just reverse my bloody fucking reverse? Penny, what the fuck is WRONG with you?”

“Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you, fuck you, fuck you, fuck you, fuck you, and uh, FUCK YOU.”

“Oh you wanna skip my turn? I KNOW WHERE YOU SLEEP, BUCKO.”

“DUDE, WHAT THE ACTUAL CLOWN ASS FUCKERY WAS THAT? I ONLY HAD ONE CARD 

LEFT, JESUS CHRIST.”

“No, no, no, no, NO I WILL NOT DRAW 4 BLEEDING CARDS IN MY OWN HOME, YOU MANKY MUPPET.”

“I hate you, Shepard. No, I really do.” 

“Merlin’s shit-stained arsehole, how could you change it to blue? How could you? What did I ever do to deserve this level of hatred and betrayal from the man I LOVE?”

“Simon, I am terribly sorry to inform you that you will not be living past the age of 22.”

“YES I KNOW IT’S MY TURN; I’M DRAWING BECAUSE I DON’T HAVE ANY YELLOW CARDS YOU DISGUSTING RAT WANKER.”

“That was absolute piss. PISS, BASILTON.”

“Shit. Fuck. Bitch.” 

“THAT’S IT; I’M KICKING YOU OUT. GO BACK TO THE UNITED STATES OF FUCKING AMERICA FOR ALL I CARE.” 

“I’m going to murder you with your favorite kitchen knife. YOU THINK I WOULDN’T SIMON SNOW? SKIP MY TURN AGAIN, I DARE YOU.” 

“That was a bitch move.”

“Keep it red, keep it red, oh for the love of Crowley keep– OI YOU LOOKING FOR A FUCKING FIGHT? STAND UP AND FIGHT ME AND I’LL PUT YOUR ARSE RIGHT BACK ON THE GROUND, YA BARMY FUCK.”

“Penelope–and please know I mean this with absolute full offense–fuck you.” 

“TYRANNUS BASILTON GRIMM PITCH IF YOU PUT DOWN ANOTHER DRAW FOUR I’M BREAKING UP WITH YOU.”

“You. Are. A. HUGE. Prick.”

“BRO, YOU DID NOT JUST–OH MY FUCKING GOD BRO YOU DID NOT JUST HIT ME WITH A DRAW TWO I–”

“Morgana’s gigantic fucking TITS I WILL END YOUR ENTIRE BLOODLINE.”

“Oh I am SO breaking up with you.”

“SON OF A WEASEL FUCKER.”

It was a very lively game of Uno, to say the least.

***

i can confidently say from experience that uno games with friends DO get that crazy … especially considering those four have all been stuck in an apartment together for almost three weeks … there would definitely be blood. also i thought that it would be more fun to just get the profanity-laced dialogue rather than a play-by-play of the game so!! hope it was fun to read! <3

@bazypitchandsimonsnow was super supportive, as always, (love ya theo) and i definitely couldn’t have done it without @lifeasafail encouraging and comforting my anxious dumbass. she even SANG to me while i was editing omfg i love her so much. 

[spidermecc]

Unintentional love (Elu fake dating AU) Ch. 5 - Not so brave

Chapter 5 is up, it was an absolute bitch to write, but I actually think it turned out pretty good. I appreciate all the messages, feedback and comments I get, and it literally keeps me going and gives me motivation, so please feel free to send me some of that! Find it on AO3 here.

The next two days went by too slow. It was like time had decided to be a bitch and drag everything out as much as possible. Even the nights were slow. Sleeping was hard and all Lucas could do was stare at the ceiling or look through Instagram and Facebook for the hundredth time, going through the same boring posts from the same boring people.

All he wanted to do was talk to Eliott. There was something about the boy, who sat alone at the library drawing raccoons like an actual dork, that made Lucas’ heart flutter. He wasn’t like anyone he’d ever met. He was sweet and beautiful but also the but also the cheekiest guy Lucas had ever met. Just thinking of their conversations and their bantering back and forth, made him blush and bury his face in the covers. Fuck, when did he get so whipped for a guy he barely knew, and definitely didn’t stand a chance with?

It was just past 1am Tuesday night when he heard his phone buzz.

@curtisno1: Hey, remember me?

To be honest, Lucas didn’t remember much from Friday, but he remembered the basics. He’d screwed up by getting drunk and accidentally telling some stranger, Curtis, that his relationship with Eliott was fake. Lucas sighed as he typed in a reply.

@lucallemant: How could I forget, you almost poisoned me with all those shots!

If Lucas was being honest, he found it pretty weird that this guy was texting him in the middle of the night. But still, he was curious. As far as he remembered, the guy knew Idris and apparently Eliott as well. So what if Lucas wanted to get some intel on Eliott, after all, he was his pretend boyfriend, right?

@curtisno1: Haha, sorry about that, how was I supposed to know you’re such a lightweight?

Damn this guy had no chill huh? Lucas puffed, offended. He definitely wasn’t a lightweight, but beer, weed and shots were bound to be a really shitty combination, right?

@lucallemant: Rude..

@curtisno1: Sorry haha. So you’re still up for that date you promised me?

Shit, it all came back now. He’d said yes to a date with this guy. But to be fair, Lucas had been pretty sure that the guy was just fucking around, he hadn’t actually thought that he would follow up. What was he supposed to say now? He couldn’t just go on a date with some random guy, when everyone thought he was dating Eliott. Curtis was cute and all but, Lucas had no real interest in going out with him. He was too busy dreaming about Eliott twenty-four-seven.  

@lucallemant: Uhm, not sure, I mean everyone thinks I’m dating Eliott, so that would be pretty weird, you know?

Smooth Lucas, see? This way, he wasn’t flat out rejecting Curtis, and going back on their deal, but he was still finding a way to get out of it. He could be really smart when he wanted to. He almost patted himself on the shoulder, when his phone buzzed again.

@curtisno1: That’s cool, I’ll just wait until your little show is over, I don’t mind!  Just let me know, yeah?

Fuck, okay so maybe he wasn’t as smooth as he’d thought he was. And what was he supposed to answer, other than..

@lucallemant: Sure   __

“What are you guys doing later, wanna hang out and play some FIFA?” Yann asked, shoveling an obscure looking rice dish into his mouth.

It was finally Wednesday, and Lucas had been a shell of himself all day. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so excited, yet nervous, at the same time. He and Eliott had agreed to meet up at Eliott’s place around 4pm, giving Lucas time to go home and take a shower after school.

“I can’t today, I’m hanging out with Eliott” he said, poking his rice dish. The cafeteria food had always grossed him out. They always mixed the weirdest ingredients. Today’s dish was actually rice with pear, mint and cinnamon. Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to mix rice and cinnamon unless they were making rice pudding?

“Really?!” Arthur beamed, looking at Lucas like a proud mother hen. “You could invite him as well? It would give us a chance to get to know him better, we didn’t talk that much on Friday” he continued, looking expectantly at Lucas. Lucas looked over at Yann and Basile, who were both nodding their heads like crazy. Even though Lucas had been looking forward to spending time alone with Eliott, he couldn’t get himself to say no to them, he already felt terrible for lying, so his conscience got the better of him.

“Yeah sure, I’ll ask him” he said, trying not to sound as disappointed as he felt, while pulling out his phone.

Lucas: Hey, is it cool if we hang out with the boys later instead of going to yours? They’re really keen on getting to know you some more.

Eliott: Oh, yeah sure! Just text me the time and place.

Lucas sighed as he put his phone back in his pocket “he’s game. We’ll be there”.

“Cool” Yann exclaimed “meet up at my place at 4pm?”

“Sure” he answered, grabbing his tray, with his untouched lunch “see you then”. __

“Hey Eliott, Lucas never told us when you guys met” Arthur said out of the blue, looking curiously at both of them.

They’d arrived at Yann’s half an hour ago, playing video games and chatting, Eliott immediately getting comfortable with the guys, joking and talking, while collectively kicking their asses in FIFA, which made Lucas crack a secret smile. Yann was probably the worst loser Lucas knew, but he didn’t seem to mind that much when he was losing to Eliott. The Eliott effect, Lucas thought for the second time this week. He’d retrieved himself to the corner, mainly observing the guys and Eliott interacting, not having exchanged more than a quick greeting with him, which the boys hadn’t seemed to notice.

Shit, Lucas hadn’t thought of this. What was their cover story? He couldn’t tell them that they’d met at the foyer meeting, because as far as he remembered, he’d told that guys that he’d seen him a few times before that Friday. But Lucas didn’t have time to start spiraling and panicking for long, because Eliott answered quickly, without hesitation.

“I actually saw Lucas on the very first day of school” he said, locking eyes with a shook Lucas “I just didn’t have the guts to speak to him before a while ago”.

Okay so Lucas had already established that Eliott was a pretty good actor, but this? This was just too fast, too well-thought out, to be a lie right? Could it be true that Eliott had seen him on his first day? If so, that must mean that he’d noticed Lucas, really noticed him. Just like Lucas had noticed Eliott at that foyer meeting. His heart was racing, and he was pretty sure he was blushing down to his toes. The thought of Eliott seeing him on his first day, made him shiver. The belief that maybe, just maybe, Eliott had also felt what Lucas had felt when he first saw him, that undeniable attraction, unable to look away, made his heart race as well as scaring the shit out of him. As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t get himself to look at Eliott’s. He was a coward, so what of it?

“Holy shit, really?” Arthur said, putting down his controller and focusing completely on Eliott now, “that’s so fucking romantic dude”.

Eliott shrugged, giving Arthur a shy smile.

“It’s what our Lulu deserves” Yann chimed in, looking fondly at Eliott, then Lucas, who was still looking anywhere but at Eliott.

“But Lucas, you didn’t see Eliott back then did you? You never mentioned anything?” Basile asked, looking utterly confused.

“No, I didn’t” Lucas muttered, scared that if attempted to say more, butterflies would start swarming from his stomach and out of his mouth.

“But I saw him.. I only saw him actually” Eliott finished, still not taking his eyes off Lucas, whose continuous blush hadn’t gone unnoticed.

“Putain, I hope I meet someone like you some day” Arthur said, looking absolutely in awe of Eliott.

Be brave, Lucas thought to himself as he forced his gaze to catch Eliott’s, and what he met almost gave him a heart attack. Eliott’s eyes had darkened, he was staring so intensely at Lucas, that he was scared he might disappear underneath his gaze. He wasn’t sure what his eyes were trying to convey; lust, admiration, love?... Okay he really needed to snap out of it, this wasn’t happening, Eliott was just making up some shit to help out Lucas, yet again, just like he had done at that bus stop. Eliott was quick on his feet, that’s all it was.

“Anyways, are you ready for me to kick your ass Arthur” Lucas said reaching for the controller, desperate to get away from Eliott’s haunting gaze. ____

“Okay Eliott, hear me out here” Basile said suddenly, forcing Eliott out of his staring competition with Lucas. It was like they had a silent agreement to stare at each other all night, without ever talking. Not that they got the chance, with the boys constantly asking him personal questions from what his favorite color was (which was blue, Lucas noted) to what kind of hair products he used. They’d been eating pizza and playing videogames for almost two hours now. Lucas didn’t understand how none of them seemed to get tired of playing the same game over and over again, they were all, Eliott included, like fucking machines, taking turns at playing, only stopping to take a bite of their slices.

“Mhm” Eliott said absently, still locking eyes with Lucas.

“What if, I told people that you and I used to date? Like, that we got real freaky, you know? That would score me so many points with the ladies, I’m fucking sure of it” Basile continued, looking very pleased with his newly found idea.

Lucas snapped his head up. That sounded dangerously close to what he was currently doing, lying about being with Eliott.

“Don’t be a fucking dumbass Basile, just each your pizza and shut up” he said, trying to end this conversation before Basile began escalating, as he usually did when he had a dumb idea.

Eliott chuckled as he took another bite of his pizza, finally tearing his eyes away from Lucas, “you know I’d totally let you man, but then you’d have to explain how Lucas stole your ex-boyfriend, and I think it would get pretty messy, yeah?”

“Shit you’re right, I didn’t think of that. You’re so smart man” he replied, patting Eliott on the head as if he was a small child.

“Basile stop touching his fucking hair with your greasy fingers” Lucas all but yelled at Basile, getting riled up. This wasn’t how this night was supposed to go. He was supposed to be alone with Eliott, he was supposed to be the one asking him what his favorite colour was.

Lucas couldn’t wait to leave. Being in Yann’s apartment with his best friends and his fake boyfriend was proving to be too much for him. One minute he wanted to come clean and tell the guys that it was all fake and how sorry he was, the next he wanted to kiss Eliott, you know, just to make it more believable, nothing else. Also he desperately needed to go home and process what Eliott had said earlier, his last two brain cells were really working on overdrive here.

“Geez, calm down pissy pants. I won’t steal your man, don’t worry” Basile cried out, pulling his hand away from Eliott, who didn’t seem to mind, but was now watching Lucas closely, having noticed the shift in Lucas’ mood. Eliott wasn’t the only one who’d noticed.

“As if that would ever happen Basile, keep dreaming” Yann said, trying to lighten the mood. “Hey Lucas, we’re out of beers, maybe you and Eliott could go down to the supermarket to buy some?” he said, trying, and succeeding in being a fucking amazing friend as usual. He must have thought that Lucas was on edge because he wanted to be alone with Eliott, which, yeah he did, but that wasn’t the only reason.

“Oh could you get me one of those dark root beers, please” Arthur looked at Lucas with his adorable puppy eyes, which he knew Lucas wouldn’t be able to resist.

“They’re so fucking expensive, why have you got to be so extra” Lucas said, as he got up, and winked at Arthur whom returned the wink with his signature smile, which meant he knew he’d already persuaded him. ___

As Eliott and Lucas walked towards the supermarket, Lucas finally said “so the guys seem to like you.. a lot”, trying not to sound bitter.

He was really happy that Eliott got along with the guys, they were practically like family to him. But he didn’t quite know how to deal with it when they inevitably found out the truth, that not only Lucas, but Eliott as well, had been lying to them. It would break their hearts; they had really taken a liking to Eliott.

“Yeah they’re really great” Eliott said, not sounding all that excited as he pulled a leaf from a near-by bush and began to tear it apart, scattering the pieces on the ground.

“I think they’re having fun, how about you?” Lucas continued, not sure of what to say.

“Yeah it’s fine” Eliott answered, focusing very hard on the leaf in his hand.

“You don’t like the boys?” Lucas asked nervously. Was he starting to have second thoughts about their arrangement? Was the lying getting to him as well? Lucas was spiraling again, but not for long, as Eliott reigned him back in.

“No no! It’s not that! They’re great” he answered frantically.

“Then what?”

“Honestly?” he asked, looking at Lucas for the first time since they’d left the apartment.

“Yeah, honestly”

“I was uh- I was just.. you know-  looking forward to spending time with you… alone” he trailed off, not leaving Lucas’ gaze.

Lucas was pretty sure his heart had stopped beating a while ago, and he had died and gone to heaven. Eliott wanting to spend time with him alone? Sounded fake, but okay. Was that really why he’d been so weird with Lucas all day? Because he was disappointed that they weren’t spending time alone? Lucas felt like tap dancing, singing and burying himself underground at the same time, all of his emotions rushing to the surface, threatening to overflow. Not knowing what to say, scared that he might say or do something he’d regret if he kept looking at Eliott, he turned around on his heels and started walking in the other direction.

“Where are you going?” Eliott asked confused “the supermarket is that way” he said pointing at the opposite direction of where Lucas was heading.  

“I know where the supermarket is” he said rolling his eyes “but we’re not going there” a smile forming on his lips.

Eliott’s lips curled into a smile as he started following Lucas.

After walking for fifteen minutes they arrived at a park. Lucas sat down on one of the swings, gesturing Eliott to sit down on the other one. He knew this park like the back of his hand. How many times had he sat on this exact swing? There was no use in trying to count it, it had been his refugee for years, as long as he could remember.

“This is my favorite place in the city you know?” Lucas said, a smile forming on his lips.

“Yeah?” the taller one answered, willing Lucas to continue.

“Yeah.. I used to come here when I was younger. Whenever my parents were arguing, which was a lot towards the end, I’d come here, sit on this swing and imagine what the Lucas’ in parallel universes were doing in that exact moment. I’d make up so many stories in my head”. He started blushing. He’d never told anyone that before, he’d never brought anyone to this place, his safe place, before. But something about Eliott, his honesty and genuineness made Lucas want to share this place, share a piece of himself with him.

“Parallel universes?” Eliott asked, lifting his eyebrow with a coy smile.

“Yeah” Lucas said, a blush beginning to spread “whenever I have a choice to make, I always imagine that the other Lucas’ in parallel universes made other choices” he continues, looking at Eliott, who nods as an encouragement for Lucas to proceed. “That way, I get less anxious of whether or not I’ve made the right choice, because even if I didn’t make the right choice, there are other Lucas’ that did.”

They sat in silence for what might have been seconds, minutes or hours, Lucas wasn’t quite sure. Eliott looked lost deep in thought, and it felt like Lucas was intruding on a very private moment, when he finally said “what do you think?” desperate to know what Eliott thought of his theory.

The parallel universes had been a part of Lucas’ life ever since he could remember, he never shared it with anyone, afraid they might laugh or brush it off, but something about the earnesty of Eliott made him say things he’d never thought he’d share with anyone.

“So, do you think that there are any of the Lucas’ and Eliotts in the parallel universe, that are in a real relationship right now?” Eliott asked with a curious look, as if he hadn’t just stopped Lucas’ heart mid-sentence.

“I-uhm.. uh- maybe” Lucas stammered, shook by Eliott’s blunt question. Eliott chuckled at Lucas obvious discomfort, as he got up and positioned behind him, gently nudging the swing Lucas was sat on.

Lucas had probably sat in this exact spot a hundred times. Sometimes he would just sit there for hours, not moving, other times he’d swing a little bit and try to enjoy it. But in all honestly he felt more alone when he was actually swinging, than when he just sat there, not moving. There was something too miserable about swinging on your own in an empty park.

Eliott started to pick up the pace and was now full on pushing Lucas’ swing, making him go higher and higher, the wind catching his hair, and a giant smile forming on his lips. It felt so intimate.. So natural. Lucas started laughing for real now, as Eliott was pushing him, making the swing go really high “I hope you’re not afraid of heights” the taller one almost yelled, the laugh evident in his voice.

Lucas turned his head and yelled back, mid-air, “Me afraid? Pas peur”.  He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so alive, so free. No worries, no nothing, just the wind in his hair and Eliott, it was absolute bliss.

Finally, Eliott grabbed the handles of the swing and brought it to a holt, still hovering over Lucas, pressing his chest to the shorter boy’s back. “Pas peur?” Eliott whispered, he was so close to Lucas right now. He was painfully aware of Eliott’s heartbeat, thudding on his back, and it felt like his entire body was about to catch fire.

“Pas peur” Lucas whispered, closing his eyes, glad that Eliott couldn’t see his face.

Eliott chuckled, still holding the handles, still standing behind Lucas. Even though Lucas couldn’t actually see Eliott’s face, his smile had burned itself into his memory, he imagined what Eliott looked like right now, beautiful as always, he thought to himself.

Pas peur, Lucas thought to himself as he mustered up the courage to ask the question he’d been dying to ask all night.

“Did you mean what you said earlier” he finally asked nervously, fiddling with the sleeve of his jacket, thanking the Gods that he had his back to Eliott.

“What did I say?” Eliott answered, well-aware of what Lucas was talking about, but unable to stop himself from torturing Lucas a little bit.

“About uhm- seeing me.. on the first day?” he could still feel Eliott’s presence behind him and instead of making his head spin as it had been doing up until now, it made him feel weirdly grounded, like his simple presence and touch was all it took for Lucas to be brave.

“You don’t get it, do you Lucas?” Eliott sighed, the frustration in his voice painfully evident.

“Get what?” he asked genuinely puzzled.

Eliott didn’t answer him right away. He slowly started pulling Lucas closer by the handles of the swing, Lucas hadn’t thought it was possible to get closer than they already were. Suddenly he felt the taller boy’s chin resting on top of his head. Lucas was pretty sure that if Eliott hadn’t been standing behind him, he’d have fallen off the swing, given that his entire body felt like jell-o at the moment. He could feel the boy’s breath on his head, causing his hair to move slightly every time Eliott exhaled.

But he was brave, Eliott made him brave. So he slowly, but surely tipped his head backwards until it was resting on Eliott’s chest. To any outsider they must have looked like two people madly in love. He felt Eliott’s body starting to relax, digging his chin deeper into Lucas’ scalp. Their bodies were melting together, they weren’t Eliott and Lucas anymore, they were one.

Lucas could feel Eliott’s heartbeat racing. He was glad that he wasn’t the only one whose heart had decided to say fuck it at just go rouge. The moment was so tender, like nothing Lucas had ever experienced before. For a moment, he let himself believe that his feelings, which he couldn’t deny anymore, were reciprocated. This thing with Eliott didn’t feel platonic anymore. This position they were in right now, wasn’t just two boys helping each other out, right? He couldn’t be imagining all of this could he? Gosh, his brain was going a hundred miles per hour, one thought replaced by a new one, every second, waiting for Eliott to say something.

“I don’t want-“ Eliott finally began, as he was interrupted by Lucas phone ringing. The volume was turned up so high that it startled both of them, making Lucas jump and crash his head up, smashing Eliott’s jaw shut. The sound was inhuman, and Lucas momentarily thought he’d actually fucking broken the boy’s jaw. He got up quickly and turned around, facing him.

“Shit, are you okay? Fuck I didn’t mean to do that” he said frantically, searching Eliott’s eyes for any indication of how badly he was injured. His head hurt a bit from the collision with Eliott’s chin, but he didn’t care.

Eliott simply stroked his chin a bit and grinned “it’s fine Lucas, I’m fine”, but by the looks of his face he wasn’t completely fine, Lucas thought.

“You should probably get that” he gestured towards the phone in Lucas’ pocket where the Peaky Blinders theme song, which he’d thought was a great idea to have as a ringtone at the time, was still playing. Now that song would forever be ruined for him, damn, thanks universe.  

“Right” he muttered as he dug out his phone from his pocket.

“Dude where the fuck are you? It’s like Sahara here, we need fluids, and by fluids I mean beer” Basile was crying into the phone.

Fuck, Lucas had completely forgotten that they were supposed to go to the supermarket. He noticed that the sun was beginning to set. How long had they been at the park? It had only felt like minutes, but he was pretty sure it had been a lot longer than that, judging from Basile’s tone.

“Yeah uhm, the supermarket next to Yann was closed so we had to go to the next one” he said, surprised by his ability to make that up on the spot, “we’ll be back in twenty minutes” he finished as he hung up and looked up at Eliott, who was still standing in the same spot as before.

“So.. uh- we should- uhm, we should probably go” Lucas said unwillingly, hoping that his disappointment wasn’t too evident.

“Right” Eliott said, a tiny smile playing on his lips, as he started walking, motioning for Lucas to join him.

Lucas was itching to hear what Eliott had been about to say before they were interrupted by Basile, but the moment had passed, and he wasn’t that brave, that he was going to ask again. Pas peur my ass, he thought as he followed Eliott out of the park.

[alt-ernativewonderland]

Make You Smile

Harrison Osterfield x Reader One Shot

Warnings: Swearing + An abundance of Fluff and Banter + Secondhand embarrassment perhaps? Probably some very shitty writing?

It was a lazy fall Sunday afternoon, soon to be evening and because it had looked rather dreary outside this morning (not very unusual for London, of course) you and your housemate Tom had decided to stay in and play Mario Kart all morning in your Pj's feasting on Jaffa cakes and day old pizza.

However by the time noon had just about rolled around your partner in crime (or Mario Kart more accurately speaking) had received an urgent call from his agent requesting his presence immediately for a last minute rescheduled call back for a new film he had been in the process or auditioning for.

Tom felt a little bad leaving you during your Mario marathon so around 15 minutes after he had left, a knock at the door and a familiar hoodie clad face had popped in moments later, seating himself down next to you, taking up a controller for himself.  

Tom's best friend. The gorgeous Harrison. Who you may or may not be a little helplessly in love with. Those damned eyes. Could you be blamed? Tom of course suspected something straight off and had been trying to get you to admit it ever since, giving you shit about it every. Single. Day.

"Alright? Tom called, told me you might need a friend he'd said, making himself comfortable and switching Tom's Mario Character for his choice Luigi instead.

This is how it had started out. Now? Now it was all out war.

"You better watch out princess look who's catching up" Harrison taunts.

"Good come a little closer so you can taste this banana i'm about to throw at your stupid green hat"

You fire back aiming the fruit behind you. It hits him dead on sending his cart spinning off the to side of the track, he yells out an obscenity in protest.

"You're in first now but don't get too comfortable you're about to get wrecked with blue shells just wait." He laughs managing to speed back into third place rather quickly.

"Meh me meung meh meh" You mimic back under your breath.

Suddenly the grin etched on your face is wiped clean when your screen goes black from the predicted blue shell.

"NoOoOo you fuck- stupid- fucking- shhhghaarrghh!!!!!!"

"Language, darling Peach that's not very royal of you" He chuckles.

"Shut it you, I can still win this, if you stop trying to distract me with your stupid retorts"

"If you can't bant and play at the same time what even is the point? Also careful what you say there peachy look who's in first" Harrison says grinning while poking a finger at your side.  

"Well then who has to watch out for blue shells now huh!" You think up (a little weakly) tingling from the ticklish contact.

You didn't have any blue shells or any sort of random items actually so you decided to play a little dirty instead, palming his face and shoving him off to the side effectively tipping him over, off the lounge and onto the carpeted floor.  

"Oi that's cheating you can't do that!"

"All's fair in Mario kart and war my friend" You say as you race toward the finish line, crossing it seconds later.

Immediately you leap from the couch jumping up and down like a little kid on Christmas morning.

"YEEESSS I am the queen of Mario Kart in your FACE Osterfield!" You cackle delightedly down at his hunched over form as he still sits upon the floor, dejected puppy dog expression and all.

Your cheeks are a little warm from all the excitement. And perhaps his adorably put out expression.

"You're princess Peach not queen Peach and whatever you cheated AND anyway we were playing on 150cc that's too fast it wasn't a fair game!"

"Oooooh that's right blame the speed and my genius tactics for your epic 5th loss in a row! Or is it 6th now? I've honestly lost count" You tease him, still giggling a little, sitting back down on the lounge for the next round.

"I'll show you a genius tactic!"

Suddenly he launches himself towards you from the floor, sprawling himself on your lap and tickling mercilessly at your sides.

"Stop! Stop! Please - oh my god Harrison, Harrison please stop I can't - stop - I cant breathe!" You scream at the top of your lungs gasping, laughing uncontrollably at his preferred method of payback.

"This - is what you get - when you play dirty and cheat - to - win!" He says a little out of breath from the effort of holding you down and dodging your pathetic attempts of attack and defence.

"Okay okay okay I'm sorry, I'm sorry please just please okay-"

"Have you had enough yet?"

"YES Harrison PLEASE stop it oh my god" You beg, giggling uncontrollably still.

"What was that? I couldn't quite hear you love"

You could just hear the smirk in his voice, your sight of him effectively lost from the tears of laughter streaming down your face"

"I'M SORRY for shoving you okay truce truce, I surrender! I'm going to die, seriously!"

He laughs a little through tears of his own as he replies "I don't think it's actually possible to die from being tickled but I think you've learned your lesson."

He let's up on the tickling as you clutch your sides protectively, trying to get your breath back.

Although after peaking your eyes open a little, any chance of this is immediately tossed out of the window as you take in his disheveled appearance.

He was wearing that classic angel faced smile that instantly turned into a devilish grin when his starry eyes met your tear filled ones. His sandy blonde curls were sticking up in all directions and his cheeks were flushed from all the exertion. He was absolutely stunning.

Suddenly you both became very aware of the position you were in. He was still sitting firmly in your lap, hands resting gently on the skin of your exposed stomach where your shirt had ridden up a little in all the commotion.

Harrison bit his lip a little as he took you in. You desperately wondered what he could be thinking as your breath hitched a little at the quick flash of his tongue darting over soft pink lips.

The sound of shoes shuffling at the doormat shattered the tense atmosphere, the squeak of the old front door swinging open had you both scrambling to opposite sides of the lounge seconds after. Tom came rushing in to the  room.

"Y/n, Y/N! You would not believe - my agent Karen, and-" He stopped as he took in the scene in front of him

"What's...going on here? Harrison I thought you'd have left by now by now mate you do realise it's almost six, yeah?" Tom grinned at the two of you, shooting a knowing look your way.

"We were - we were just playing Mario Kart...still" He cleared his throat a little, reaching for a discarded controller and clutching it upside down in his haste.

"Right-o then if you say so." Tom scoffed, taking the spot on the lounge between Harrison and yourself and winking at your eye roll of a response.

"Are you sure H because you look a little winded there and your face is-" Tom started up again.

"What were you saying about your agent Karen? Thomas?" You piped up, noticing Harrison's embarrassment and glaring at the doe eyed boy beside you.

"Oh yeah! She managed to convince the casting agents to give me a second shot at callbacks because I missed mine from that nasty flu Harrison gave me and the director was so impressed with my 3rd audition that he invited us all out to lunch to get to know ME better because he really wants me to be chosen for the part! He thinks I was born to play Spider man can you believe?"

"No way man! That's incredible!" Harrison exclaimed high fiving his best friend and giving him a few congratulatory pats on the arm.

"I'm so proud of you Tom, honestly, you've worked so hard and you truly deserve this so much! You've been dreaming about this role since we were kids" Your face lights up and you offer a genuinely proud smile toward your best friend of 10 years reaching for a warm hug.

"Thanks guys, I really appreciate it. He mumbles back a little sheepishly into the crook of your neck.

"Well then, I guess this calls for a bit a celebration right? What's say I make some of my world class pasta for dinner tonight?" Harrison stands from the lounge, stretching languidly and heading towards the doorway to put his shoes on.

"Anybody need anything from the shops?"

"I'm good thanks" You reply back, rising from the lounge yourself to stretch.

You don't notice Harrison pausing in tying his shoelaces as you do so, fixated on your movements. Tom raising his eyebrows at him suggestively, then rolling them soon afterwards when his friend is brought out of his daze by his voice.

"Grab me a cornetto would you mate?" He grins, eyes twinkling at his friends dopey expression, reaching for his wallet.

"Nah mate don't even think about it, dinner and desserts on me; So parsley and basil for the pasta, cornetto for Tom aaaand Oreos for Y/n,"

He flips his hoodie up as he prepares to head out into the evening fall breeze.

"Hey I never said I wanted Oreos!" You call out to him, confused.

"Well yeah but I know you want them and even if you say you don't you'll change your mind, like always." He grins knowingly at your squinted eyes and crossed arms.

He heads out and its quiet for a moment, Mario Kart music still playing distantly on the TV.

"So" Tom's accusatory tone follows.

"What." You reply absently still facing the front door.

"What happened while I was out charming my future production team?" He picks up Harrison's discarded controller and flicks the character back over to Mario.

"Erm. Nothing. What? Nothing we were literally playing Mario Kart until you got back that's it." You respond hastily, plonking yourself back down on the lounge, grabbing the other controller and starting a new game.

"Are you sure about that? Because it kind of seemed like I walked in on something a little more than that." He smirked, instantly making it into first place with ease.  

"I really have no clue what you could possibly mean." You bite your lip thinking back to just a few moments ago when Harrison had had you practically pinned beneath him, his face flushed and breathless.

"Oh come off it you've been completely infatuated with him for like 6 years now don't even TRY to deny it Y/n." He chuckles shoving playfully at your shoulder trying to distract you from the game but the conversation in itself was distracting enough.

"You know I can here sounds coming from that frog mouth of yours Holland, but all they're saying is 'I'm gonna lose spectacularly'" You shove back, deflecting the attention back to the game at hand, aiming a red shell his way.

He swerves just in time and dodges it

"Damn your expert reflexes" You mumble, not 100 percent paying attention to the game in the first place anyway.

Too preoccupied by memories wayward curls over starry blue eyes and soft smiles.

"I prefer Spidey senses"

"Calm down you dork you haven't got the part quite yet"

"Just you wait when I do and I start getting more and more followers on Instagram I'm going to post it all over my story for my 1 million followers to see; 'Y/N LOVES HARRSION OSTERF-'" Suddenly he has a face full of pillow as you prepare to throw another.

"Shut UP Thomas! Oh my god like you would even GET a million followers in the first place you fucking div" You don't even throw the next pillow at him this time, electing to just pummel him with it for a while until you hear a muffled "Okay okay I'll stop I'll stop I'm sorry don't kill me" As he continues laughing, running his fingers through his frazzled hair the game effectively forgotten.

You sigh as you give up your pillow attack, placing the pillow behind you and resting your head against it with a deep defeated sigh.

You sit in comfortable silence for a moment, both listening to the ever playing Mario Kart theme and taking note of the sudden rainfall that must have just started to during your miniature conflict.

"Okay but I'd just like to reminisce something to you for a moment here." Tom speaks up after the pause in commotion. "Remember when we were kids, and I brought H to your birthday party so you could meet him and I got you that new Sims 2 Pets game?"

"Yeah...?" Suspicious eyes peered over at the boy, wondering where on earth he was going with this.

"Not two weeks after that you'd already made sim versions of the two of you and were planning the wedding, which from the screenshots I vacantly remember browsing through looked to be a beautiful ceremony I might add." He snickered, already scooting away from you and grabbing a nearby pillow off the loveseat, bracing for another attack.

"I'm going to murder you in your sleep tonight, and might III add that I was like eleven when that happened! And I made you too!" You threw the pillow you'd been resting your head on in his direction regardless of his makeshift pillow shield, groaning at the memory and covering your now very warm cheeks.

"I WAS THE DOG YOU GUYS ADOPTED AFTER YOU'D MOVED IN TOGETHER!" His exasperated tone turning into gasps of laughter when he saw your grin peaking out from behind embarrassed hands.

"At least you were a golden retriever puppy! That's a super cute dog! I could have made you as a hairless cat with huge disfigured eyes or something equally strange and disturbing."

"Something equally strange and disturbing is the title of yours and Osterfield's Sims 2 honeymoon sex tape." He clapped back, already on his feet and sprinting off towards the kitchen.

"I hate you!" You called out to him getting to your feet and following the object of said hatred to make yourself some tea.

"You only hate the fact that I right." He taunted back sticking his tongue out at your less than impressed expression at his childish antics.

"Alright fine maybe I did have a sort of small crush or something when we were younger but it's in the past!" You give in finally, absently fiddling with the tab of the tea bag in your Pusheen cat mug.   "Besides he never liked me back anyway." You mumbled the last sentence a little under your breath, concentrating on making the baggy bob up and down repeatedly in the steaming water.

"That's not true!" Tom blurted out, smacking a hand over his lips a moment later silently cursing his big mouth.

This was a secret Harrison swore him never to tell, he'd even pinkie promised.

Even if it was a secret from six years ago.

He couldn't help it though, after all this time you finally had said it clear as day, right in front of him!

"What do you mean it's not true? Thomas what aren't you telling me?"

You look up at his sudden admission, squinting your eyes to gauge his current demeanour as your heart rate inexplicably picked up. You watch as he shuffles nervously scratching at the back of his neck, not looking at you and busying himself with his own mug of tea.

"I mean, I'm just saying there was that one time you got really sick during the summer holidays before high school started and he brought Monty around to cheer you up."

"Oh I remember that! He said puppies could help cure anything so he stayed as long as he could to make sure I'd get the full effect even though I couldn't leave my bed." You smiled fondly at the memory, and how Harrison had also brought over your favourite chocolate chip cookies to double the efforts in making you feel better.

"Also when you lost your ring that day we played football in the park and he REFUSED to leave until it was found even after the sun had set and he only had his shitty phone screen light."

You shifted the heart shaped signet ring on your finger, remembering when Harrison's meticulous search had paid off almost 2 hours after you had initially lost the gold band and how Tom had made some cheesy remark when Harrison slipped it back onto your finger.

You were so delighted he'd found it that in your overwhelming excitement you'd thrown your arms around his neck in a tight hug and placed a kiss on his cheek, both of your faces tinted pink the whole walk home afterwards.

"Thanks by the way he would not shut up about that damned kiss for two months afterwards!" He chuckled, noticing your faint blush reappearing at the memory.

There was a pause as you collected your thoughts, sipping your tea silently while processing the memories and trying to connect any dots you may have missed from the past that may or may not be JUST In history, but perhaps also in the present.

"You know he only pretends to be bad at Mario Kart so he can watch you get all giddy and excited at beating him." Tom adds after a while, biting his lip after perhaps spilling a little too much information.

It was one thing to let slip that Harrison liked you years ago but it was another to hint at the fact that he possibly still did, and didn't want you to know about it.

"Okay that’s not true I'm great at Mario Kart!" You roll your eyes scoffing at his accusation.

"You suck at Mario Kart, why do you think I always beat you? And where do you think I learned all my skills from hm?" He raised his eyebrows at you, smirking at your slightly bewildered expression at all these new developments.

You didn't get a chance to rebut his claim because just as you opened your mouth footsteps came in quick succession up the front steps and the door swung open to reveal a very heavily rain soaked Harrison, shaking out his dripping wet curls in dog like fashion after slipping of his hood.

"Man it's raining cats and dogs out there!" He chimed in a faux American accent, slipping off his shoes and setting the groceries down on the kitchen counter.

"Just my luck, started up right as I stepped out of the shop." He continued when neither of you said anything at his return glancing between the two of you still standing a little ways from each other in the kitchen, your cheeks still tinged pink.

He pulled the uncomfortable hoodie from over his head, the t-shirt underneath sticking to it also and being pulled off with it letting out a sigh as he balled up the wet garments in his hand, still not entirely sure about the strange atmosphere he'd entered into.

"Have I missed something?" He questioned with a raised brow when STILL neither of you said anything and all you could do was fixate on the little droplets of water dripping periodically from Harrison's curls, making their way through the crevices of his glorious torso.

Tom snickered at your lingering gaze shaking his head as he finished off the last of his tea.

Harrison set his wet clothes down on the dining table and crossed his arms over his chest, eyes still shifting between the two of you curiously.

"Do you let me win at Mario kart?!" You blurted out when the silence started getting a little too thick.

"Really? That's the thing you choose to address first?" Tom laughed, rinsing his panda mug and shuffling past the two daft idiots standing in the kitchen staring at each other.

"What are you on about?" Harrison's perplexed tone answered back, glancing back at Tom's retreating form.

"Listen mate, this day has been a long time coming and you KNOW I suck at keeping secrets but might I just say I think I did a pretty good job considering I didn't breathe a word for six bloody years!"  

Tom grabbed a towel from the linen cupboard and darted into the bathroom, head re-emerging a moment later from behind the door frame with a: "You'll thank me later for my big mouth!"  

The water from the shower started up a moment after Tom closed the door and suddenly it was just you and a very shirtless Harrison left standing a little awkwardly together in the small kitchen area.

It felt even smaller when we was stood there looking like THAT.

Harrison's eyes met yours for a beat but you looked away, concentrating once more on the wayward water droplets traversing his skin, unable to look him in the eye.

"What's going on?" He murmured softly, trying to decide whether he should move towards you or keep his place in the door-frame.

"Tom, erm - Tom said, that you let me win at Mario Kart all the time and that you suck on purpose." You replied in a small voice, finally peering up at him through your lashes.

"I - I mean...maybe a little bit, sometimes?" He stuttered out, running a hand through the loose curls fallen on his forehead and biting his lip a little, bashful.

He was making it really difficult for you not to just kiss him right then and there.

"What else were you discussing before I interrupted? What did he mean by 'This has been a long time coming'?"

"Did you want some tea? You look awfully cold you should probably change into some dryer clothes." You grabbed Harrison's Avengers mug from the top cupboard and made your way back over to the kettle trying in vain to distract the confused object of your affections.

"No no no no no come on Y/n don't try to change the subject." He moved towards you, switching the kettle back off before it could make too much noise, taking a seat on the counter to face you, waiting patiently.

"Would you at least put a shirt on you're making ME cold just looking at you." You hug your arms around your middle, feeling self conscious and picking at stray pills of your jumper.

"Why am I distracting you?" He chuckled, throwing a cheeky wink your way and sitting up straight, tensing his muscles.

He was just joking but he couldn't help notice the slight tinge of colour gracing your cheek and the way your teeth gnawed unforgiving on your bottom lip.

This isn't fair. He should be the one feeling self conscious or a little nervous being half dressed and what not in front of you like this.

"Tom thinks - he told me that you used to like me." You let out, finally setting your eyes to his and not looking away. There. That should make him squirm a little, hopefully.

Harrison's face flushed as he was the one to avert his eyes this time, the back of his neck suddenly feeling very warm despite the cool raindrops still gracing his skin.

"You never said anything." You continued, carefully observing his now shifting form.

"Yeah well I - erm, I just always thought you might have seen me as a sort of brother you know, you - being friends with Tom first and all I didn't want to get in the way or make anything awkward."

"A brother?! God no Harrison I never ever thought of you that way Tom's always been like a big brother to me but y-you were the -"

"- The what?" He looked up hopefully, the crease in his brow still evident.

"The...’Cute best friend’?" You finished in a small voice, turning away to rinse your mug and making a beeline for the doorway, heading to the living room to tidy up all the stray pillows off the floor.

Harrison's face lit up into a huge shit eating grin heart beating wildly as he hopped off the counter, heading over to where you were very obviously pretending he wasn't an arms length away from you.

"Am I still?" He teased, taking a pillow from your hand and holding it up high out if your reach.

"Hm?" You offer in lieu of a response, playing dumb and reaching for the pillow but stumbling a little on your tip toes.

You swallow audibly after your hand pressed into his chest accidentally as he looks down at you catching your lower back to steady you.

"Am I still the ‘cute best friend’?" He whispers, grinning down at your shy form and tilting your chin up to look you in the eye.

"Cute...and....impossibly annoying." You finish, making a grab for the pillow after his hand had fallen a little in his distraction.

Suddenly you walloped him in the face with it laughing at his gobsmacked expression, trying to distract your thumping heart and nerves.

Harrison wasn't having it though so he grabbed the wet ball of clothes off the dining table from earlier and slowly crept towards you as you waited for the inevitable

"Don't you dare!" You pointed a finger at him menacingly with nowhere to escape to.

He captured you in a tight hug wrapping the wet hoodie around your frame and laughing gleefully at your yelps and small slaps of protest.

Resistance was futile though so you gave up with a sigh and rested your head against his chest listening to his heart rate pick up a little bit before he said his next words.

"You were the cute best friend for me too." He admitted, glancing down to your lips mere centimetres away.

"Am I still?" You mimicked his words from earlier unable to stop the corners of your mouth pulling into a wide smile.

He didn't answer, instead leaning down to press a swift kiss to you lips after you sucked in a quick breath.

"Does that answer your question?" He murmured, his eyes twinkling and a very pleased expression gracing his soft features.

"Hmm I'm not sure perhaps you should try-"

He cut off your witty remark, capturing your lips once more and this time you melted into the kiss all banter quickly vanishing from your thoughts as you reached up to play with his still wet curls, feeling the hoodie slip from his grip onto the floor so he could press you closer.

God you had waited far too long to do this you thought as he swiped his tongue along your lower lip, allowing the kiss to turn deeper.

You moaned a little as his tongue swiped over your own, the hand that wasn't toying with his damp locks tracing the definition of his toned stomach, fanning the fire that had started long go inside your chest.

"Still distracting you?" He murmured as he pulled away, his lips still brushing against your own as he spoke and a devilish smirk forming as his own hand found its way atop yours, pressing into his stomach.

"You're always distracting me." You continue pressing soft kisses to his lips unable to stop now that you knew what they felt like against your own.

"Is that so?" He chuckled, his hand on your back slipping underneath your jumper to feel the warmth of the skin beneath.

You sighed as you felt his fingers press firmly into you, his hand moving from the skin of your back to your hip as he continued to kiss you like his life depended on it.

A small gasp and a soft ‘ugh‘ fell from his lips as you raked your fingernails down his chest reveling in the feeling of being completely wrapped up in him.

The sound of a throat clearing somewhere in the distance brought you both out of your haze, bursting the bubble that had formed around you both.

You pulled away from each other at the noise and turned your heads toward the bathroom door, where Tom stood in clean pyjamas, toweling off his damp curls and giving you both the biggest self satisfied smirk you had ever seen on his boyish features.

"Oh man this is like the Sims 2 Pets all over again." Tom laughed, directing his shit eating grin to you as you buried your blushing face into Harrison's still gloriously bare chest.

Harrison sent a questioning look to Tom and then back down to you, confused as ever but laughing none the less at your sudden embarrassment, pressing his lips to your forehead then your warm cheek and finally back down to your lips, not a care in the world that Tom was now in the room.

"You're welcome!" Tom muttered under his breath, shaking his head at the admittedly adorable pair of divs in front of him.

Author’s Notes:

So there you go! Wow this is I think the first piece of writing i’ve actually started and compelted in literal years and I can’t believe it’s fanfiction between a real person and the reader but i’m gonna take it cause i’m a little proud of myself right now for accomplishing this one small thing. Anywho I hope you enjoyed this drabble turned very long One Shot and if i tagged you it’s ‘cause you liked or reblogged my original post/sneak preview of this fic! :)

@sleepwalkingdragon @hollandfieldluv @miraculousparker @would-you-tell-me-who-you-are @imwearingtomholland @soloriormora @kindbearqueen @claredolphinbear24 @ducky2542 @creativexdreamer @nachochitz @letstravelsunshine @the-divine-fxminine

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17 Tips For Starting Your Own Herb Garden@|how to start your own herb garden@|https://ift.tt/3tw5vd9

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But it also doesn’t leave none. Your apartment probably (hopefully) has a fire escape, a balcony, or a patio. And that means you’ve got a little chunk of outdoor space that you can use to set up a kitchen garden of your very own.

Growing your own herbs is especially great because they don’t take much space and a little will go a long way in food. Also great: You don’t have to buy a huge bunch of parsley for a single recipe and then let the rest rot in the fridge. Instead, you can snip off just as much as you need at a time.

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Here’s what you need to know to get started:

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To be clear, storing items on a fire escape IS against fire code (at least in New York City), and for a reason — if you can’t actually walk on it or access the stairs/ladder, it’s not a very effective “escape.”

That said, if you’re careful to leave a clear, walkable path that will let someone access both the window and the ladder, you should still have space for a few pots that can really brighten up your life every day there isn’t a fire (which will hopefully be all of them).

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Even if you’re careful about making your fire escape garden safe, you may still get in hot water with your landlord or the relevant authorities if it’s easily visible to people on the street. And your little herb friends deserve a safe space! So, basically, don’t be stupid. If the fire escape isn’t behind your building or is too small to safely fill with pots, think about some other apartment-friendly gardening options instead.

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You need to know how much sun your plants will get, and how much they need. Most vegetables will do best in full sun (six-plus hours), but some greens and herbs are happy with less. On a fire escape, surrounding buildings or trees could block sun for part of the day, so check to make sure you hit the minimum for the type of plants you want (you can get that info from the little markers in their pots or from Google) before you buy seedlings.

To figure out how many hours you get, just keep an eye on the spot where your containers will be and make a note of when direct sunlight begins in the morning and ends in the evening. Or you can buy a little sun calculator to work it out for you.

Also keep in mind that the amount and direction of sun will change throughout the summer, so be prepared to move plants around for maximum ray catching if needed.

The timing of when you plant will vary depending on where you live. Basically, you can get started as soon as you’re sure temperatures won’t dip below freezing again. But don’t worry about missing some magical deadline; you can also continue planting things throughout the spring and summer. When you’re ready, here are the basic essentials you’ll need:

1. POTS: The size can vary depending on what you’re growing, but you want to make sure there’s enough depth for the plants’ roots to fully develop. You’ll probably want something at least 8″ in diameter; it’s better to overestimate how much space you’ll need than underestimate. Here are some general guidelines for picking the right pot size and material.

2. POTTING SOIL: You want a potting mix that’s formulated for containers, not anything that says “garden soil.” Use this calculator to figure out how many bags of soil you’ll need based on the dimensions of your containers.

3. PLANTS: Farmers’ markets are a great local source for herb and vegetable seedlings in the spring. Hardware and garden stores should have a decent selection as well.

A few other things that are nice to have, but not necessary: A trowel (for moving dirt around), a watering can (though you can also just use a large pitcher), and fertilizer to use once your plants are established (see item #14 in this post for more info).

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No matter what you’re growing, you should probably buy them as seedlings, not seeds. Yes, sprouting tiny baby plants from seeds can be magical and miraculous and all that jazz. But honestly, it’s not worth your time when you’ve got a small space and a relatively short growing season. Instead, buy established toddler herbs and vegetables at a farmer’s market or a nursery. You’ll get edible results much sooner and they’ll be less likely to die in infancy.

Basil is the herb that everyone loves and that loves everyone. It’s a very enthusiastic grower that smells and tastes great. It’s also helpful for gardeners without a lot of experience because basil will let you know right away if you’re not watering enough — by looking sad and wilty — but perks back up again after a good shower.

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Always cut off the top of a basil plant instead of snipping leaves from the bottom or side of the main steam. If you take those lower leaves, you’ll just damage the plant’s solar power source, and make it grow tall and spindly instead of branching.

Don’t take off much more than a third of the plant’s height, and cut right above a spot where you see new little leaves sprouting from the stem. Those will go on to grow two new branches where you just had one stem before, which means a bushier, more compact plant.

You should also aim to trim before any flowers bloom. They may be pretty, but they’re essentially the plant’s way of saying, “I’m quitting my job in order to have babies.” You want the plant to keep doing its job, i.e., producing nice, big leaves that you can turn into pesto, so snip the tops off as soon as you see buds.

Give it a try it next time you have a few leftover sprigs. Once it has roots an inch or two long, you can just tuck it into a pot and let it rip.

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Greens like spinach, lettuce, and arugula work basically the same way as herbs: You can buy them as seedlings, plant them, and they’ll keep throwing up new leaves that you can harvest repeatedly. These grow quickly and get started right away, so you can have salad in the spring and early summer while you wait for other veggies like tomatoes to get rolling.

In the mid or late summer (or whenever your first round of greens stop producing new leaves), you can replace them with cold-weather-friendly greens like chard and kale, which will keep on going well into the fall.

Fresh chives (above) are the kind of thing you might not buy, but will sprinkle on basically everything you cook if they happen to be growing right outside the window. They also bloom with pretty purple flowers!

Scallions are easy to grow in small containers, and you can get them started just by going to the grocery store and picking a bunch that have healthy-looking white roots on the end of the bulb (instructions here). Then you can harvest the green tops throughout the summer and leave the bulbs to keep producing.

Even after you close up shop on the fire escape for winter, you can keep scallions going with just a cup of water.

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Chances are you’re not going to have enough space to grow something like zucchini, so stick with veggies that aren’t heavy and can do well in relatively small containers. Just keep an eye on tomato and bean plants — which can get very tall very quickly — and tie them to a stake or railing if they’re getting out of hand.

Mint — particularly peppermint — is INSANE. It’s actually an unstoppable alien plant that will spread its runners and roots like nobody’s business; I once discovered my mint plant literally trying to sneak out of its pot and off the back of a second-story fire escape.

So mint should probably have a pot all to itself, or else it’ll just strangle anything else in there. It’ll also be less leggy and more bushy if you’re not shy about trimming and using it. This yummy maple-mint iced tea is a great way to go through bunches of it.

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Exotic stuff like “pineapple” mint and lemon verbena might seem appealing when you’re at the garden store, but you should pay attention to what you actually eat and cook with, and grow accordingly. Love salsa? Plant tomatoes, hot peppers, and cilantro.

You can also get fancy with “companion planting” certain things close to each other, which may help control pests.

Happy roots with room to grow mean happy plants with plenty of leaves down the line. You might be tempted to cram as many seedlings as you can into pots to get the most out of your real estate, but if they’re crowded they won’t produce as much, and then you’ll both be sad. Leave several inches between plants (here’s a helpful, more detailed discussion) and don’t put more than a few into one pot.

Also make sure that, if you’re combining multiple types of herbs in one pot, they all have about the same sun and water requirements.

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Herbs are delicate critters and need a little more babysitting than most houseplants. Remember that a fire escape made out of black metal is going to get really hot, and your pots probably aren’t that big; both contribute to the soil drying out faster. You can slow down the drying process a little bit by covering the soil with a layer of mulch, but you’ll still want to check it about every other day (or every day during hot weather).

To check, poke your finger into the pot, and if the dirt is dry an inch below the surface, it’s time to water. That said, you don’t want to drown the plants, so just water until the soil is damp all the way through, not soaking wet. And if your pots don’t have much in the way of drainage holes, err on the side of watering less, more often.

You want to be sure that the pots don’t just hold onto water and turn into root-rotting swamps. The easiest, most important thing to do is buy pots that have at least a few good-sized drainage holes in the bottom (though you may want to set them over a tray so you don’t end up dripping mud onto your downstairs neighbor’s head).

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Keep in mind that putting chunky material like rocks or pot shards in the bottom of a container is kind of a myth and won’t actually increase drainage. The most important thing is using potting soil (not just dirt from the ground) that has little granules of perlite and other minerals that keep it from getting water-logged.

If you want to try a level 2.0 project, it’s actually pretty simple to build cool self-watering bucket containers with cheap recycled materials.

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You might think that dirt is just dirt, and any dirt will do. Wrong!

Start your plants in new potting soil (the kind that comes in a bag at the garden store) or, if you’re reusing old soil, remove any dead roots and mix in some compost or fertilizer. Then give things a little boost as needed throughout the season. You can use water-soluble chemical fertilizers about every two weeks, or try organic alternatives like coffee grounds, seaweed, or “liquid fish.”

Why? If you want your plants to keep producing throughout the summer, it’s important that the soil they’re growing in is aerated enough to let oxygen through and provides enough nutrients. When you’re watering small containers frequently (which you should), you end up flushing out the nutrients in potting soil to begin with.

Squirrels suck. They just do. They will dig up an entire three-foot-long container, CONVINCED that it’s full of buried acorn treasure (it isn’t! I checked!) and not give a shit that they just destroyed your lovingly tended micro-farm in the process.

If you’re having problems, you can try your luck with any number of possible solutions: bloodmeal fertilizer, plastic mesh or chicken wire, cayenne pepper, or even good old-fashioned rocks. I confess that my weird DIY method of weaving a deterrent latticework out of bamboo kabob skewers only…kinda sorta works. But I’m not giving up yet.

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You can troubleshoot a lot of common problems, like yellow leaves (which might mean too much water or not enough nitrogen). If you really think a plant is beyond repair, do a thorough inspection and give it a little time before you hold a funeral.

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My setup last summer (IDK what’s happening with that tragic dill, sorry).

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source https://livingcorner.com.au/17-tips-for-starting-your-own-herb-gardenhow-to-start-your-own-herb-gardenhttps-img-buzzfeed-com-buzzfeed-static-static-2015-12-28-18-campaign_images-webdr09-17-tips-for-starting-your-own-h/

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Wednesday Roundup 13.9.2017

Well, it’s obviously Sunday and not Wednesday but I finally got the Roundup out. My apologies if anyone was anxiously awaiting my Roundup this week but due to both the huge number of comics I had to go through and the fact that I had a lot going on this past week in my personal life, including two seven hour car drives, this was a bit difficult to fit into the schedule.

But I managed and late is still better than never so let’s get into how the second week of September’s comic yield treated us!

Marvel’s All-New Wolverine, Marvel’s Defenders, DC’s Detective Comics, Marvel’s Elektra Vol. 1, DC’s Harley Quinn and Batman, Marvel’s Immortal Iron Fists, Marvel’s Runaways, DC’s Titans, IDW’s Transformers: Lost Light, DC’s Wonder Woman

DC’s All-New Wolverine (2015-present) #24 Tom Taylor, Leonard Kirk, Michael Garland, Erick Arciniega

I love this comic so much that I’m certain that me even talking about another issue in one of these Roundups probably sounds hilariously repetitive at this point, but I just so love this book, and even my disinterest in comic space operas didn’t take away from the amazingness of this book because Taylor understands how to make a comic compelling.

Story: We come to the end of the contagion/space opera storyline with the emphasis that this book works best with, which is the unendingly positive relationship between Laura and Gabby. Laura’s attachment to Gabby and their belief in each other is unlike anything we’ve ever seen for Laura’s character before and it just never stops amazing me. They are the defining part of this book and, more importantly, they are the defining part of each other’s overarching character arcs -- Gabby teaching Laura to take care of herself (literally and metaphorically), Laura giving Gabby the encouragement and support she never had herself. There was no other way this book could have ended but with these two proving to beat the odds again, and that makes the resolution feel deserved, as well as how the healing factor they both share has been a driving part of this storyline to begin with. 

Art: Kirk does solid work throughout this issue, particularly with the expressionism you see in Laura’s face throughout, and I really liked the alien designs. But that all being said there was some off model panels and the such which is just to be expected from working on a monthly comic. It still is very good art and the colors helped make each change of scenery. 

Characters & Dialogue: Of course I covered our titular Wolverines, but it needs to be said that I actually really appreciate Jonathan unexpectedly beginning to speak English? Because that’s hysterical but it also fits, and I love that he still spoke with perspective of a Wolverine. I also thought Taylor did a good job with the voices of the Guardians, too, 

Marvel’s Defenders (2017-present) #5 Brian Michael Bendis, David Marquez, Justin Ponsor

*long heralding breath* So just one week after my epic Bendis rant, I.. reveal that I’m also following his run on the current Defenders. Which... I mean in my defense, if I want to keep up with just about anything going on at Marvel that isn’t the crapshow that is Secret Empire, I have to concede to the fact that Bendis is still the writer on half of those books too. Which... I mean if you’re like me and you have that super complicated relationship I have with BMB then you understand why this is both a necessity and a blow to your standards. I know, I know. I’m disappointed in myself, too.

Story: As much as I really could have done without the cliffhanger on this issue, this continues to be one of the comics that Bendis really manages to perform at his best on, and arguably that’s because he’s invested so much time and work over his career into developing most of these characters -- particularly Jessica, Luke, and Daredevil. 

The pacing has remained on top, Frank Castle’s actually respected as a character but also portrayed as incredibly dangerous to everyone involved, and the humor has been true to the characters and situation. All of which is very commendable... if not .... a bit annoying and repetitive at times. Like yes, Marvel stupidly retconned that Matt had a public identity because they can’t commit to anything that disrupts the status quo. It doesn’t make it less annoying that half the dialogue involving him is lampshading everyone not knowing his identity. 

There’s also the patented Bendis rhetorical advice where you have two or more panels of the exact same panel for ~dramatic pauses~ which I think only long time Bendis readers have burned into their alert systems. But overall, when Bendis is good he nails it. 

Art: Marquez and Ponsor are honestly some of the best talent in the industry right now and I like that they don’t just sit back on their laurels but adapt their styles just enough to match the tone of every book. It gives the Marvel universe a consistency without sacrificing the individuality of books. And it really makes a difference on this title, I feel. 

Characters & Dialogue: There’s the punchy dialogue you expect from Bendis writing but like I said, you can definitely tell where his investment for character lies. Which... makes it conspicuous when his writing for Luke always tends to be a bit worthy of criticism. But this villain Diamondback? gahhhhhhhhhh I legitimately cringe at some points. like nooooo let’s not. 

DC’s Detective Comics (2016-present) #964 James Tynion IV, Christopher Sebela, Carmen Camero, Ulises Arrelo

I have such a love-hate relationship with this comic, I swear. There’s probably not a single comic I cheer on more and want to be at its very best but there’s also no other comic that receives my critical ire the way ‘Tec does. Is it all fair? Eh. Arguable. Is it all with love? Also arguable. We’ll see where that takes us for this particular issue.

Story: Look, it’s as obvious as can be at this point that no one’s as critical and just simply not on board for a Clayface redemption storyline than I am. I don’t want it at all. I was never on board with it. Never will be. And... in that way it felt like Detective Comics was actually addressing me and readers like me through this issue. The entire plot with Clayface is ... questionable at best to begin with, but to have one of his victims fully lay it out for him and us just how there’s so little he could ever do to undo the clock for himself or others. And he proves that even more by how poorly he reacts to this news and blows his second chance over it just... feels deserved after SO LONG of them just ignoring it. 

And then they had it tie into Cass’ character arc in the end by her deciding that she and Basil are the same. And they’re not!!! They’re just not. It’s amazing that it can feel like such a slap in the face. Especially when this is such.... a B-story and yet it got the cover? Sure. Whatever.

In any case, the main story is Steph, Leslie, and Harper all apparently drinking the kool-aid that Anarky is giving them. And then Bruce coming and subtly pushing Steph out of her moments of happiness, even if it’s for the right reason and I’m just here wondering “uh. Tim’s back next issue why is this not resolved yet?” These issues would have worked so much better if Steph’s story was not taken away from by constantly giving Clayface’s story panel time that should have just been kept on Steph. She deserved more development before Tim got back, and her arc should be more satisfying by now. 

Also. When is Detective Comics going to bother to actually have, you know, detective stories? Mysteries? Ever? no? great.

Art: The art rotation on this book is always great, even when it’s not my favorite artists it’s still just beyond fantastic and some of the best getting published at DC right now. Which makes you wonder how they manage it with a bimonthly title like ‘Tec. It’s good, and even its splash pages are easy to read and follow which is such a relief these days. 

Characters & Dialogue: I feel like the characterizations and development was the weakest it’s been in ‘Tec for a while, especially since it’s usually the high point of the comic. This time around, though, there’s just too much that feels unresolved and unsatisfying. Like.... why didn’t Bruce go after Steph and make sure she knew that Tim was alive? At the very least. 

And again I feel like this comes down to the fact that Steph’s time was split on the page with Clayface’s even though their storylines didn’t intersect thematically or literally! And it’s ridiculous considering we just came off of several issues where Azrael’s arc got center stage and even though there was a B story (CONCERNING CLAYFACE AGAIN) there was a majority of time spent with Jean Paul and his perspective. 

Marvel’s Elektra: Always Bet On Red (2017)  Matt Owens, Juann Cabal, Antonio Fabela

If there are two characters at Marvel who I have a more complicated relationship with than Arcade and Elektra... Well, honestly, it’s just probably because I haven’t read enough of the characters that would meet that criteria for me. Elektra, on paper, is the type of female antiheroine/villain that really truly love, with plenty of pathos but also a lack of only being an antiheroine through redemption or changing her methods. A Bad Woman who is allowed to be a Bad Woman. Arcade is a character whose general MO and abilities are a cross of three of my favorite villains in general -- the Riddler, Toyman, and Calculator -- and has been the villain for a few stories I greatly love. But I don’t love them because...  Well, it feels like most of the time writers don’t know what to do with Elektra because they only know how to make female villains likable by either giving them a redemption arc or by making them a love interest -- things that either would not stick for her established character or would make her tied to Daredevil inseperably. ANd Arcade has been given Joker-levels of mass murdering -- especially of children in the Marvel Universe -- to the point that it’s hard for me to really enjoy his presence on its face anymore.

So. That leaves the question of how this story works for me as a whole with quite a steep slope to get up on its own.

Story: For being about two characters who I have, at the very least, very high apprehensions about, this story managed to be fascinating, compelling, and altogether rather satisfying in the use of both Elektra and Arcade for what they can contribute to a narrative. The stakes were high throughout, especially once Elektra was trapped within the Murder World, but it all benefited from her unique perspective and the general unpredictability that Arcade brings to any story as a villain. 

The back drop of Las Vegas for the adventure, too, was a stroke of some brilliance because the characters both fit there and clashed for the parts of the “mythology” of the city, as it were, that they represented. 

Still it was far from perfect, and while I’m obviously no huge defender of Arcade or a fan by any means, the weak point here was actually the side characters, especially on the “first level” of the game that Elektra encountered or how disposable the majority of her opponents and teammates were. The stakes were high for Elektra to survive, certainly, but it clashed with her new code of ethics -- of taking life to save life -- to have her not even familiarize herself enough with the people on her own team to take their deaths to heart. Which is why the “next” level where she had to race the clock and save her newfound friend more engaging than the Saw-like devastation we saw on display when she had a larger group who were all taken out one by one. Mostly without reaction from Elektra herself.

And if this team were mostly not fighters and not compelling, then what attracted Arcade to them enough to put them in Murder World? Did he think that feeling responsible for them would weigh Elektra down enough to make the competition more even? Obviously not since he went through the trouble of kidnapping the only person in the city that Elektra had remotely bothered to make a human relationship with. So the entire “first level” was just very confused in my book. I would have either had Elektra working with a small group who all died immediately, or have been the only one in the initial level to make it seem like Arcade took her as a serious enough threat and thus sicked an entire group against her. Either of those would have made the story more compelling. 

Art: The art is amazingly beautiful and consistent throughout the trade. This really does prove the point that I and so many other comic readers and reviewers have been making a while now with a consistent art team truly enhances the visual and narrative cohesion of a story and can make a much tighter and easier to follow along with. And here it not only works but it provides for some truly beautifully done and well controlled action sequences that remind me of straight back to the Dylan Horrocks run of Batgirl (2000-2006)

I also want to shout out to the shear inventiveness that was allowed for by the environment of Murder World. Like in the panels I posted here for example, the meging of this house comic style with retro gaming honestly worked so much in the favor of this comic it’s unreal. I really enjoyed it

Characters & Dialogue: While Arcade is... well, what I expect from Arcade these days, xnd honestly that’s more than I can ask for at this point because.. Agin, literal mass murderer. But Elektra really does come off the bst here (as she should in her own title). Still very much the antiheroine, Elektra for once is given a lot of motivation that centers -- albeit subtly -- on the ideas and pressures of unity in womanhood and the protectiveness she can grow toward other women. It’s the deaths of a shipment of entrapped, trafficked women that set Elektra off on this quest of self discovery, and it’s the protection and comforting of a woman she befriends in Las Vegas that prompts her motivations within this particular story. And honestly? It really works for me. She has always been a character most defined by the loyalties she holds, and they have never been many. But it’s nice to see her even reluctantly discovering herself through these non-romantic relationships with other women for once. It was really enjoyable and, like I said, subtle. 

DC’s Harley Quinn and Batman (2017) #3 Ty Templeton, Luciano Vecchio

Hm. I won’t be going into this subject in the bulk of the main review due to how I section things out and because I’m not going to completely judge this story before it’s completed, but I feel like here’s as good of a place as any to discuss the issues of queerbaiting. I have very complicated feelings about Ivy and Harley as a couple. I enjoy their dynamic, I enjoy the ship, and I want it to be canon and receive plenty of focus more than almost anything else to do with the two characters. But I can’t be joyful when it’s dangled in front of me -- especially in scenes like the one above, because it is such a queerbaiting classic to use these two or to, at the very least, have the question the creative teams behind them because a good percentage of the time it’s fetishizing a flf relationship for the sexual gratification of men without ever committing to actually canonizing a sapphic relationship. And I’m one lesbian who’s pretty damn tired about it honestly. And that’s what this issue felt like to me -- queerbait by hinting and innuend os for the relationship between Harley and Ivy when being blatant in allowing Harley to hit on Nightwing and Catwoman to hit on Batman in the scene right before this. 

And now I have to be even more on guard for this comic to follow the plot of the animated movie and be worried that this all is just setup for a pointless and literally out of nowhere sex scene between Harley and Dick. Great.

Story: Much the same here, though I have to admit that the turn of pace right at the end by having Harley realize her status as seen among the rest of Gotham’s crime community is that of “Queen Hench” and thus declaring that she was going to take charge and no longer play second banana was a great moment. Especially since Ivy is strangely cold and dismissive of Harley in this story, compared to usual at least. It must have something to do with our weird mystery man. Or the writers just deciding that we’re now going to write Harley and Ivy’s relationship with the exact same tones and beats that they did for the Joker and Harley despite FINALLY canonically having Harley call his abuse of her what it was. And the scenes with Bruce and Dick I’m... just of two minds about, I don’t love or hate them. They seem to be there for comedic relief B story to Harley’s main story which is... hilarious in a meta sense but, hey, it gets me more puns. 

Just don’t let it all be setup for whoopee with Dick and Harley. For the love of god PLEASE.

Art: Wow holy crap. Every complaint I made about the previous issues is addressed and fixed. The lineart’s crisp, the coloring is bright and variable, the characters don’t go off model nearly as much, and it’s still very much that identifiable DCAU style but also has that mark of belonging to its artist. Who is not Rick Burchett anymore. Maybe every couple of issues we’re going to get a trade off, but I have to say, for my personal tastes this was a stunningly crisp evolution of the art for the story and I appreciated it almost immediately. 

Characters & Dialogue: Harley is great as always, and I liked Selina’s characterization and the details put forward about how she’s actually on parole and whatnot. but I’m still not sold on Ivy’s characterization here. After all she’s the one who went to Harley and saved her, not the other way around. So why is she suddenly being so weird and mysterious. 

The only other major characters are Bruce and Dick and... it’s just weird. There’s this disconnect with their personalities where I feel like this would make a lot more sense if Dick was in the Robin suit. I mean, why not? He was older and more mature in the Robin years of the DCAU anyway, he had this same rapport with Bruce. He didn’t have this kind of relationship with Bruce in his Nightwing years of the DCAU. So I’m just confused all over. I’m sure it’s just because the movie did it this way which probably means sex which probably means you’re going to be getting a lot of screaming and angry keyboard smashing from me in the future *le sigh*

Marvel’s Immortal Iron Fists (2017) #4 (of 6) Kaare Andrews, Afu Chan, Shelly Chen

Will I ever stop enjoying this comic to the utmost extreme in spite of all my Danny Rand reservations and general apprehension with the whole Iron Fist concept? It’s still questionable, but not in this issue at least because I still love the heck out of Pei, Danny, and general ridiculous adventures of middle school and Kung Fu. 

Story: Pei’s still trying to find her spot among cliques and within the realm itself, with Danny in her life, and with her destiny as the future Iron Fist. And she also won the dance queen because she beat up the people that were going to cheat for her nemesis. And I love it. I love all of it. But I most of all love that Pei’s perspective is not admonished or treated as childish by the narrative, even when she’s not being the most reasonable. Danny and the scroll storyline also got more concentration mostly because we’re narrowing in on the Big Bad and only have two issues left. So it was all pretty positive. Especially since the end brought both storylines together at long last.

Art: It’s precious still and fits with Pei’s story perfectly. But there were plenty of panels where this same style’s take on Danny was... gruesomely ugly and terrifying. I can’t tell if that’s a a bug or a feature. 

Characters & Dialogue: Pei and Danny are as great as always, but I really want to thank this comic for having a children’s, all-ages story which prominently features an undeniable queer romance featuring kids. It’s so refreshing and lovingly done that it genuinely warmed my heart. Much like the short film “In a Heartbeat” we need more unsexualized queer romances for younger children to attach to. I’m glad to see it here. 

Marvel’s Runaways (2017-present) #1 Rainbow Rowell, Kris Anka, Matthew Wilson

This is incredibly exciting, because I actually never read Runaways while it was being published in any of the previous iterations, but thanks to the recommendations of close friends, I started and finished reading the previous volumes in time to get excited for the comic’s return here under a promising new team and fantastic, beautiful art. 

Story: Being the first issue, this is a lot of set up, especially with Nico’s circumstances since the previous series and the team’s apparent breakup. I love that the scars are deep but the comic goes out of its way to be inviting to old and new readers alike in introducing Nico, her powers, their limitations, and the Gert and Chase and their relationship as well as their relevance to the team. I’m very curious about all the set up -- especially how the current storyline seems to be setting up that Nico’s running out of spells with the Staff of One and it’s a legitimate problem that will be needing address. Hopefully the story won’t drop it where it is. 

Art: Wow I was really wowed with just how beautiful the art was in this comic. Kris Anka hadn’t been on my radar before this but they definitely are now. The character models were great, the apartment felt lived in and fully thought out, and everyone in general just seems to have properly aged and their current iterations are exactly how you would imagine they would be from the previous volumes.

Characters & Dialogue: We haven’t rejoined the entire cast of the Runaways just yet, but the work with Nico who was central to this issue was phenomenal set up and really appreciated. Chase is as obsessed with saving Gert as ever, and the love between him and Gert seems to have been where the previous left off. I liked the ingenuity that was on display from all the characters and the genuine love and concern they obviously had for each other. Just great all around. 

DC’s Titans (2016-present) #15 Dan Abnett, Brett Booth, Norm Rapmund, Andrew Dalhouse

Everyone else learns that Dick was the traitor and Titans manages to actually subvert everyone’s expectations. In all honesty, I’ve been blown away by how surprisingly good this comic has continued to be despite everything that should have been working against it. 

Story: Like I mentioned above, Dick being the traitor was completely subverted by having Roy immediately discover it and the rest of the team ready to take him on as a result, only for Dick to prove that he was thinking ahead and using his position to undermine the HIVE, unlike in previous New Titans stories where Dick was under the control of Brother Blood or others. And I like that as tested as the relationships feel like they are at the moment, there is a real sense that the team’s built on something stronger and more durable. And I like that Mal and Gnarrk’s storyline is getting more prominent in the story as well. And I would say that this is going to prove that they’re stretching the current storyline out just a bit too much... except for that ending. The idea of Wally actually having a heart attack has completely changed the story for me because this feels like an actual game changer. 

Art: Once again I’m in the position of not knowing really what to say about Brett Booth’s art for the comic that I haven’t already. He’s surprised me with his character art lately, but I still get extremely annoyed with the over use of slanted and action-styled panel layouts that really don’t match what’s going on in the story or the art. Dynamic panels just don’t fit pages of dialogue in between action set pieces and that’s all I have really to add. It’s good! The layouts could be better, but the art itself is just fine.

Characters & Dialogue: The relationships and characterizations are so closely tied to the narrative of Titans -- like my favorite team books usually are -- that going over the story beats tends to cover the characters and dialogue. That being said, because there are so many characters and so much change going on that it’s hard to say who has the most impact on this particular issue, and I’d argue that it’s going to prove that Titans is a book that might be better read arc to arc rather than issue to issue so that the overall feel of whose story this is would be more apparent. 

IDW’s Transformers: Lost Light (2016-present) #9 James Roberts, Priscilla Tramontano, Joana Lafuente

It’s strange only be subscribed to one Transformers comic at a time right now, but as much as I miss TAAO even now, I’m greatly excited by how much Lost Light seems to be JRo and the team getting back to that amazing stride they had prior to Season 2 of MTMTE, and of course by that I mean that this single issue managed to bring me so much emotion and end me on both a positive note, fridge horror, and complete heartbreak all at once. 

Story: There was a small part of me that wanted to see the return of Skids, but I honestly feel like Lost Light maintained a good and consistent idea by not bringing him back and instead focusing on the relationships of the cast that are still available. This really was a two-issue storyline and it utilized every moment of it as well as every unique opportunity afforded by being about Transformers to begin with -- revival after death is possible, removing someone’s memories or emotions is possible, altering the factitious part of what someone is is a horrifyingly real possibility as easy as deleting a computer file -- an entire friendship, an entire love, gone in a moment. And of course there was so much emotion to gt through for our conclusion -- love, grief, friendship, betrayal, selfishness, selflessness, humor, and ultimately a supremely foreboding sense of what’s to come from the Lost Light’s adventures to come given that ominous conclusion. 

Art: Priscilla Tramontano is just... genuinely one of the best artists to work with Transformers and I’m so grateful to have her on Lost Light right now because it definitely helped ease some of that disappointment I’ve had with TAAO ending. Her art is gorgeous, her coloring is fantastic, and the expressions that are under her control are just fantastic start to finish. I liked how diferent everyone’s build looked even without color corrodination. Though, I will say, the brighter and shinier art did have some odds with Roberts’ patented darker elements in the storylinethat I think a change in coloring style may have helped at different points

Characters & Dialogue: I would argue that when it comes to characterization and when it comes to dialogue in the medium, there’s probably no one in comics more clever and ore fascinating than James Roberts. Every bit of dialogue is important, every change in tone is purposeful, and so much is fit into every issue it’s hard to not be starstruck. If there are readers who are not as invested in Nautica, Velocity, Anode, and Lug, I could see how these two issues may have been disappointing, but for me personally I liked narrowing down on our already lessened cast to get more ideas about their personalities and personal arcs. 

DC’s Wonder Woman (2016-present) #30 Shea Fontana, David Messina, Romulo Fajardo Jr.

I am honestly kind of in shock that.... DC is ending Shea Fontana’s run after only three months. Like, finding out about her being replaced by James Robinson of all people... and that he is starting off the bat with an arc centered around Diana’s new brother has almost eclipsed what should be my summation of this Wonder Woman run. So I’ll give a shout out to Fontana now. 

She had a nearly impossible task of taking over for Greg Rucka hot off of one of his best received and most acclaimed comic runs in years and she managed to rise to the occasion with an emphasis on Diana’s character, her relationships with the modern world, and her love for people but also her defiance of allowing her abilities to be misused by the wrong people, so she’s powerful and she’s in control of her autonomy. I greatly enjoyed her storyline and really appreciated her voice being added to Diana’s history. 

Story: We come to the end of “Heart of an Amazon”. It felt like a very quick wrap up of her storyline and I hope she wasn’t cut short on a run she thought would be longer, but the inspiration and the seriousness of Diana’s impact on the world around her was at the forefront with a healthy amount of good points for Steve and Etta in the climax. I wish we had more time to fully understand what parts of the government were a part of this plot against her, but it seems like that’s a line that will be dropped now, unfortunately. 

Art: The art has been somewhat inconsistent with Fontana’s run, but Messina is probably my favorite of the rotation. He has powerful anatomy for almost all the characters but especially with Diana, and her height was always emphasized. The colors were also really great for contrast and much appreciated. 

Characters & Dialogue: I went over this for the most part, but the best part of this storyline was Fontana really understanding the difficulties of Diana’s relationships with her loved ones in the modern world -- her protectiveness, but also the loneliness she feels being alone, and fears being left by others’ mortality. And I felt this had a decent resolution to that point that I really appreciated by letting Diana not necessarily be saved by Steve and Etta but her being reminded of how much they are there to take care of her, too. I really loved that emphasis and it made the ending feel that much better as a result. 

There were a lot of fantastic comics in this Roundup, but it’s hard to understate what an absolute home run, straight over the fences, that Runaways ended up being this week. It’s a shockingly great start to a series I’m now enthusiastically looking forward to. There is a lot of love that’s obviously there for the original Vaughn run and what it managed to do, but this comic also showed no fear in confronting many of the aspects of the series before it that could be more criticized and could use greater address. I have a lot of high expectations after this issue and I hope it can maintain its momentum. 

I am in a bit of a financial crunch for a multitude of reasons, not the least of which being the medical bills I’m paying for my dog, Eve, who experienced a catastrophic dog fight and underwent surgery recently.

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[lessthanmacyalexis]

Think I Believe Me|| Macy Alexis

Macy couldn’t remember ever being this happy. She was’t sure she ever had been. Her little family was perfect. Julia Blake was perfect, and she had never loved anyone as much as she loved her daughter. Knew she’d take a bullet for her without a second thought. And seeing Julia’s face light up as soon as they get home because she gets to see her best friend again made every mess her pets made worth it. Sophia and Rhys were nearby and the three were closer than ever. She’d run into Killian making her way to the school’s mixing studios, and Blake was back now. It was more people than she thought she’d ever have in her life again. Macy had her family. And she was happy. 

It felt selfish to want more. She would pray, and spend so long thanking God for everything she had, for however long she had them for. Macy wasn’t sure how long this would actually last. Julia might grow up to hate her for making sure she had sole custody after Ty had gone MIA without missing a beat.  And holding onto people wasn’t exactly her strong suit. Tortured herself reminding herself of every relationship she’d lost, figured out a way to place the blame on herself. She had been the one to talk about coming out, it wasn’t any surprise Sarah pinned everything on her.  And Macy had been the one to cave and get a girlfriend knowing how her mother felt about queer people, she really brought everything that had happened with her family on herself. Should have known better than to get attached to Basil, the first time they had met he ditched her for a quick fuck. And she’d been the one to invite Ty to experiment with her,  it made more sense for him to focus on the family he could have with Brandon than Julia.  Gabriel always talked like it was the last time she’d see him, Macy should have known that one time it’d be true. For almost everyone she’d lost, it was on her and her alone.

But then there were the people who she’d convinced herself were going to be around. August had made her feel warm. Their back and forth flirting was new. Different than the one and done flirting she had gotten used to. And she didn’t know how but she knew she wanted more. Thought there was a chance at something. And then Keagan came along and the dynamic shifted. She’d be lying if she said she wasn’t upset about it. Or that she hadn’t been more than a little harsh towards him. But August didn’t just up and leave. There was nothing he wanted from her, he was just her friend. For whatever reason. And he wasn’t her first friend but it was the first friendship she’d felt secure in since well before middle school. And he got along with her brother, he was Family. Losing touch slowly was worse than everyone who left abruptly. Macy didn’t know how to fix it. And then he was gone. 

There were other people that came in and out, and they felt like potential. Like maybe there’d be somebody who stick around. Met a girl named Laiken and felt like a teenager in love again, but it’d didn’t pan out. Still, it felt like there was hope. That didn’t last as long as she wanted it to. Her hope turned to berating herself for believing that there would be someone who wanted to take on the package deal she’d become. After all, she hadn’t gone on an honest to god date since Sarah.  Maybe Sarah was her one big romance. The thought made her sick. Sarah Watcher couldn’t be the love of her life. Over and done before she even hit twenty. And then she met Dustin. And that was indisputably her fault. They had agreed to stay casual. He wasn’t looking for a relationship. She knew that. But the more time she spent with him, the less casual she felt. So she cut it off. Macy had been the one to leave.Tried to keep her distance. She wasn’t exactly great at it, but eventually it clicked and she

She’d almost left everyone first. Had spent so much time convincing herself they’d be better off. Her doctors diagnosed her with severe postpartum, but she survived. And getting better was a long fucking road. Macy still had her days. Sometimes they were more like weeks, but she was doing her best to stop from spiraling again. Let her family know when it was going wrong. Asked for help when she needed it. Coming to Lakewood was a fresh start. She still had her family, Rhys and Sophia were living in California and had both come out, their mother was, well, their mother, but their family had surprised Macy and welcomed their sexuality as part of them. She managed to get a job at a label that was paying for her to finish her masters, so she wasn’t stressed about being able to afford anything Julia needed. Running into Killian had been a surprise, and the fact that she very well could end up having his class in her last year was a little laughable, but it was still amazing to see a friendly face.  Blake had been one of the only people she’d been in constant touch with, so she’d known about everything that had happened before running into him. And she meddled just a little bit, knowing if it were her daughter, she’d want both parents at least to attempt co-existing in her life. Plus, she had been talking about Blake coming to California anyways. Not to say it didn’t throw her a bit when he just showed up. But things didn’t seem too on edge for that long. 

Macy Alexis was happy. She was surrounded by people she loved and those that loved her, and had a healthy beautiful baby girl.  That was a blessing. She couldn’t ask God for more. And she felt bad for wanting more. Knew that she should be able to be single and be fine with it. But she wasn’t. Macy wanted to find someone that fit in with her family, wanted to be in love. Wanted to believe it was possible, not just to almost be with someone, but to honest to god be with someone. Someone that wanted to be with her. Not near flirting, not ditching her for someone better, not casual.  And she felt horrible about it. How she could have everything that she did and still want more, it was barely five years ago that she had nobody.  There was love in her life. More love than she had ever thought she was deserving of. Than she thought was possible for her. How she had it in her to want more was horrible. So she refused to ask God. To acknowledge that she really did want a relationship.  If it was in the plan for her, romantic love would come. If not, she couldn’t complain. Maybe Sarah had been her soulmate, and their breakup was punishment for sin. God only knows how much sin Macy had committed since she was 16. As she came back to God over the years, finding the balance between hating him for taking away everything and unyielding worship for giving her anything, she had gained more love in her life. And that should be enough for her.  So it would be, no matter what she wanted. And she’d be happy.