#we really are getting our asses handed to us for not having consistent rotation

[reisspieces]

what do we do when we actually have to play in the champions league

[ahsokasleftbicep]

Name and Soul: Chapter 6

It's finally here! I am SO SO sorry for the delay. This weekend has been insane. But anyway, let's go.

@mqgriett @darkangel4121 @thelambandthewolffe @maulscrosshair @trash-dino-5000 @lightning-wolffe @killtherandomness @shadowwing1324 @sydnubabu @lafy-taffy @photowizard17

Crosshair x F! reader

Word Count: 2042

Warnings: SPOILERS for episode 6, Rampart being a *ahem* douchebag, super conflicted Crosshair, internal conflict, Tech being amazing, Wrecker kicking ass, there are a few curse words but nothing too bad, I think

“Y/N… Y/N!” Omega tugs on your hand.

You shake your head and look down at her. “Huh?... What?” The girl points at the makeshift target painted on the far wall.

“Good job, Omega! You’re getting there!” You ruffle her hair and she smiles. “How about you try again?”

Omega nods and readies herself with the Zygerrian bow. You look out the door and tune everything out. After you saw, well thought you saw him, you stood in the middle of the streets until someone bumped your shoulder. It couldn’t have been him. That’s impossible, he would be on Kamino. And he didn’t have any weapons besides his knife, he never brings only one weapon. And his eyes… It had to be him.

You refocus when Omega lets out a frustrated groan.

“But I’ve already hit the target three times.”

Echo rests his hand on her shoulder. “Out of 12. That’s luck, Omega, not skill.”

“He’s right.” You hop off the gambling table and nod at the target. “Soldiers need to be consistent and that comes with time.”

Omega tries again but misses, glaring at the Weequay and Ithorian. “I was doing better until those two showed up.”

Echo glances at you before looking back to Omega. “You have to learn to tune out distractions, which comes with practice.”

“Try again, Omega. You can do it.” You smiled at the girl and winced when she missed again.

“Not exactly a natural, is she.” Cid walks up and nudges Wrecker off of his seat. “Playtime’s over, I got a job for you.”

You all gather around the table, making yourselves comfortable. Omega reaches up to you and you pick her up so she can see.

“I assume you guys know what a tactical droid is?... They were the opera…”

“The operational brains of the Separatist military-” Tech butts in.

“Ba-ba-ba-ba-ba.” This is my briefing, Goggles.”

Tech steps back offended while you and Echo try to muffle your laughter. Tech elbows you with a small smile before refocusing on Cid’s briefing. This is going to be a fun mission.

--

He was tired. God, he was so tired. Crosshair lied on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. Despite his exhaustion, he had been trying to go to sleep for hours.

Why did I run? Why did I leave her there? Why did you go in the first place, you should’ve killed her. I love her. She betrayed the Empire, tried to kill you. I tried to kill her first.

Crosshair sat up from his bed and removed his necklace. He turned the ring over in his hand, looking at the engraving. O'r gai bal runi…

Y/N… I’m sorry. Please, forgive me.

“CT-9904, report to my office immediately.”

….“Yes, sir.”

--

“We’re approaching the decommissioning site. We can land at the dockyard and go in on foot.” Tech turns his head to look back before landing the ship.

You put on your helmet and look down at Omega. “You ready kid?”

“Definitely!” The girl runs ahead before Hunter holds her shoulder. You all crouch behind a wall. You raise your brow at Tech and poke his shoulder.

“What’s with the police droids? Cid never mentioned those.”

The man rolls his eyes and looks at his vambrace. “They operate on a rotating quadrant scan. If we time it correctly, they have a blind spot.”

“That’s our way in then.”

“Precisely.”

When the time is right, you make your way to the site, going up a ladder.

“It’s okay, Wrecker. Don’t look down, just like Skako Minor.” You glance down at the man and he nods.

“You say that like it’s easy, Y/N.”

You all enter the facility and huddle together.

“Wrecker, cover us up top.”

“But being the lookout was Crosshair’s job.”

“That’s why Y/N is going with you.” Hunter nods at you.

“Sounds good to me… C’mon big guy, let's get up there.”

--

This really could be going better. You dodge a few shots from the police droids, firing something back.

“Wrecker, Y/N. Get to the main control panel.” Echo’s voice comes through the comms

You and the man run up but stop when you reach the panel… on the other side of a river of molten droid parts. Lovely. Crosshair would’ve loved this.

“Echo, we can’t reach the platform. Unless you want us to fall into a molten river.”

“It’s the only way to reboot the whole facility. Figure it out!”

Wrecker looks at you, “That’s easy for you to say.” The man paces erratically and grips his head.

“Wrecker, we need to hurry. You can do this.” You stop the man and hold his shoulders. “I’ll cover you.”

The man groans and mumbles to himself.

“Wrecker, what are you waiting for?”

“Wrecker, you need to hurry!” A blaster shot flies over your head, and more police droids surround you both.

Wrecker jumps to a claw and swings to the platform, hitting his head in the process.

“Wrecker! Get the system online, we’re running out of time!” Police droids gather together, converging on your position. The man flips the switch before collapsing.

“Wrecker!” You fire off a few rounds and use the claw to get to the platform. “C’mon Wrecker! We gotta get out of here!”

You grab Wreckers blaster and fire at the closer droids. “Dammit, Wrecker!”

“H-Hunter, Y/N… I’m stuck on the conveyor. I need help.”

“I’m surrounded by police droids and Wrecker is incapacitated at the moment. Hunter?”

“I’ll get Omega. Just get down here as soon as you can.”

You fire off more rounds, then kneel down. “Wrecker… Wrecker! You couldn’t have hit your head that hard. C’mon.” You push his shoulder.

More droids converge and you move around the platform. Wrecker mumbles but you can’t make out anything. Good soldiers follow orders.

--

Good soldiers follow orders. Good soldiers follow orders. Good soldiers...good soldiers.

“CT-9904? A moment?” Rampart approached the grey-haired man, who placed a toothpick between his lips.

“Sir.”

“I believe we have gotten off on the wrong… foot.” Rampart stands, looking out the window. “You see, Private L/N and her skills will be very useful for my current project. I understand that your relationship with the soldier-”

Crosshair shoves the man against the window, holding the sharpened point of his toothpick at Rampart’s neck. “I am holding this right over your carotid artery. If I slip just enough, you will bleed out in minutes, possibly less. Now I don’t know who you think I was to that woman, but if you keep pushing it...” Crosshair presses his toothpick harder. “...then I suggest you watch your back.” Crosshair lets go of his collar and Rampart falls to the floor, gripping his neck. “Oh and Admiral. If you tell anyone about this, I’ll still have enough time to find you.” The sniper narrows his eyes and disappears down the hallway.

--

“Y/N, Wrecker, get down here now!”

“I’m working on it, Echo! Wrecker’s still-”

“We’re on our way.” The man grabs his weapon from you and nudges your shoulder.

“Oh, so glad you could join us! How was your beauty sleep?” You punch his shoulder. “We need to get to the others.”

The man walks up to a chain and crouches down. “You remember that mission on Tatooine?”

“How could I ever forget?” You smile and get up on Wrecker’s shoulders. “Let’s do some damage.”

Wrecker jumps down the chain, the two of you firing off. “Sorry, we took so long!”

“We got tired of you guys having all the fun!” Wrecker lands with you still on his shoulders. You hop off and start covering the rest of the group.

“Y/N!” Omega runs up next to you, a few smudges on her face.

“Omega! You got a little something on your cheek, nothing a rag and water can’t take care of.” You pat her on the head for a moment before returning more fire.

A moment later, old battle droids begin to stand up and fire on the police droids.

“Well, that’s new… I take it, that’s our cue to get the hell out of here.”

Tech runs next to you, “Yes, it is indeed.”

“Good shot, Omega!”

“Thank you! You and Echo were right about those distractions.”

“We’ve dealt with this our whole lives, you learn to forget about them over time.” You kneel behind her and provide cover. “Let’s get going… I’m starving.”

“You and me both!” Wrecker runs past you, knocking the remaining droids to the ground.

--

“Trace, right?”

“Yes! And you’re Y/N.” The girl smiles at you.

You place your hand on her shoulder. “Thank you for going back to Omega.”

“She’s a good kid… And a good shot.” Trace chuckles.

“Well, she’s getting there…”

“Y/N! Let’s go! I thought you were starving!” Omega sticks her head out of the ship, waving her arms.

“Okay, jeez. I’m coming!” You wave to the sisters and run to the ship, sitting in the cockpit. Omega comes up and tugs on your arm. “Y/N… Uhm, can you help me train for a bit?”

“Yeah sure, but no target practice. Let’s do strength instead! Then you need to rest, you’ve had a big day.”

“Okay! Now c’mon let’s go!” The girl grabs your hand and drags you to the back.

--

Crosshair stood in the shower, staring at his necklace. He hadn’t moved in minutes, just letting the water run down his body. He was thinking… about everything. Sleep is unknown to him, his brain won’t shut up. He won’t shut up.

You should’ve gone back for her. You should’ve killed her. I love her. No, you don’t. What do you know...You’re not me. I love Y/N, and I always will, I promised her. Ha, with what? That stupid necklace, that ring? You tried to kill her and you think she still loves you? You betrayed everything you promised. You don’t know Y/N like I do. She knows, they all do. She saw me that day, she knows that I’m still here. And she knows you’re here too. She’s not stupid. Oh, I’m sure. Just shut up and let me sleep, please. Hm, I’ll think about it. No, I don’t think I will.

--

“Y/N? Why are you up?” Tech walks into the cockpit, devoid of his eyewear.

“I- couldn’t sleep. Haven’t been since…”

“Since the day we left Kamino… Am I correct?”

“Yes… It’s so odd. It’s like I can feel him.”

“Crosshair?”

“Yes, it’s like I can feel his presence. Like when someone stands behind you, but you can feel them there before they speak. And I keep thinking I hear him, and I see things. Like nightmares...horrible nightmares.” Tears gather in your eyes and they fall down your cheeks. “I- I must be losing my mind, right?”

Tech places his hand on your shoulder and kneels in front of you. “Y/N, you are most definitely not going crazy. But what you’re experiencing does sound very strange. I know how much this… has affected you and I don’t- I don’t have all the answers. I do wish I did, but circumstances have prevented me from fully dedicating-”

“Tech, you’re rambling again.” You put your hand on his shoulder. “I know you are doing everything you can, and you have a great assistant.”

The man chuckles, “Apologies. Yes, Omega is a very nice assistant. She is quite intelligent.” Tech stands up and yawns, “I believe some sleep is necessary, for both of us.”

“I’ll go in a moment, I promise.”

“Very well, I would hate to drag you back.” Tech nods before heading back to his room.

You turn your head, looking out into hyperspace. Crosshair… I don’t know if you can hear me. I was looking at the stars… I miss you. Maybe you’re looking at the stars too if you can even see them, but I hope you are. They look so pretty tonight.

--

Crosshair turned his head to the window, looking through the clouds of Kamino. He finds a small opening in the clouds, revealing a dark, clear sky above. I found the stars… You’re right. They do look pretty….

I love you, Y/N.

… I love you, Crosshair.

[zaffrenotes]

[TRR x ES] Viewing Party

Book: The Royal Romance & Endless Summer Pairings: Liam x MC (Katrina Bailey), Drake x OC (Alyssa Devereaux), Jake x MC (Laurel) Rating/Warnings: G; mild innuendo Author’s Note: * All main characters belong to Pixelberry, I’m just borrowing them * Katrina Bailey & Laurel are the MCs I use when writing fanfic for TRR and ES, respectively; Alyssa Devereaux belongs to birthday girl @burnsoslow​ * This is my submission for @wackydrabbles​​ Prompt 80: Stop looking at me like that. * Author’s Note 2: * This is a birthday gift for my cheesy, potato loving homegirl Burnsie, who requested her very first Endless Summer/Jake fic, despite having never read any ES fic until now 🙈 for the sole reason being that she and Jake McKenzie are almost birthday twins, and my favorite pilot turns 30 this year. If you’re unfamiliar with canon ES trivia, Jake can hold his breath for 9 minutes, and Estela can hold her breath for an astonishing 14. This isn’t entirely what I had in mind when I set out to write an ES/Jake birthday fic, but I wasn’t about to miss your day because I’ve hit a whole ass writer’s wall, Burnsie! I hope you have an AMAZING day and I’m sending you so many hugs! You’re one of the sweetest ladies here, and I am so very thankful that I can call you a friend 🥰 also my real, real gift to you is coming at a later date, as I still have to work on it 😬 * and yes, that’s DDT in the moodboard - just for Burnsie, again - since I use Barnes as Drake’s FC in my TRR fics, lol * Word Count: 2000 on the dot!

It was nearly 10:00 PM on Friday evening, when Burns arranged things around the comfiest chair in her living room. The rest of her family already retired for the evening, after a small but wonderful birthday celebration in her honor at home. Within easy reach, she’d arranged drinks and snacks next to her laptop - a glass of water, a hot mug of tea, a slice of homemade birthday cake to take care of any sugar cravings, and a small platter of cheese and crackers for something more savory. She grinned softly at the newest addition to her mug collection, watching the steam rise from the contents within. 

The lavender mug arrived in the mail earlier that day from one of her friends, emblazoned with a quote from David Rose. Burns took a sip of the warm beverage before setting it down on the small side table and situated herself in the chair. She flipped open the laptop and pulled up a browser window, smiling at a gift from another friend - there was a sticker next to the trackpad with a drawing of a wedge of Swiss, quoting another memorable line from Schitt’s Creek, reminding her to “fold in the cheese.” Burns glanced to the time on the screen and logged in to her Netflix account, clicking until she arrived at the viewing party, and began typing to join the group chat. 

She was greeted with jubilant messages from Donna, Ella, Brandy, Anitah, and half a dozen other friends, wishing her a happy birthday before the show started. They’d formed an ever-growing viewing party for a new series titled Stranded in the Orchard, which was an odd amalgamation of Survivor and Gilligan’s Island. Taking a cue from reality tv competitions, there were hidden cameras all over the island to monitor everyone and reduce production crew intervention, and in a nod to Hunger Games, there was an omnipresent host that would drop messages to signal when challenges were about to take place. After four episodes, the ladies in the watching party started picking their favorites from the two teams. 

Team Ruby consisted of a group that appeared to have been shipwrecked onto the island. Leo was dubbed The Rogue; his brother Liam was The CEO; Katrina was The Attorney; Alyssa was The Teacher; Drake was The Cowboy; Olivia was The Weapons Expert; Bertrand was The Grump; Madeleine was The Whiner; Maxwell was Bertrand’s brother and The Jester; Hana was The Jill of All Trades. Bertrand and Madeleine had already been voted off when Ruby lost two events. 

Team Catalyst consisted of a group of mostly college students. Jake was The Pilot; Laurel was The Mystery Girl; Sean was The Coach; Michelle was The Doctor, even though she was only pre-med; Craig was The Muscle; Zahra was The Engineer; Aleister was The Slick One; Grace was The Brain; Diego was The Entertainer; Estela was The Huntress. Catalyst lost the last two events, which sent Aleister and Grace packing. 

Everyone settled in to watch the opening credits as they recapped last week’s episode, where Ruby won the immunity challenge and fishing gear by building a makeshift stretcher to rescue and carry Katrina from a jungle crash site to a first aid station on the beach; Catalyst voted Grace out. Burns popped a cheese cube into her mouth as she and her friends watched the two groups deal with day-to-day chores in their respective camps on Day 14 of the show. They chatted about the team members and how much Burns wanted to see Drake take off his shirt to go in the water, despite the knowledge that there were clips of him cuddling with Alyssa; Donna, Ella, and Anitah would keysmash in the group chat any time Liam appeared on the screen, even though he and Katrina were clearly sweet on each other, while Brandy and Alyssa Lauren would ask what was happening or who someone was from the Catalyst team.

—

“Pillows and blankets are nice, but what we could really use is food,” Maxwell said, drawing an octopus in the sand with a piece of driftwood. “I don’t know how much longer I can last on coconuts and rice.” 

“Liam and Drake took the raft out this morning to try fishing with the gear, maybe they’ll get lucky,” Katrina suggested, stirring the pot of rice in the fire. She set the lid on top and stood up from her kimchi squat position, dusting some errant sand off her leg. They both looked out towards the water, as dawn stretched out across the ocean, making out shadowy forms of their friends as they bobbed in the water, just before one of them went under the surface. Behind them, the rest of their friends began to stir awake from the scent of rice cooking. 

Back at the Catalyst camp, Jake sat by the campfire with Estela; they were working on making their own fishing gear from bamboo and camp supplies after losing the previous challenge. Jake fed a length of twine through a handmade fishing pole while Estela sharpened tips on one end of a pile of branches she’d gathered. “Whatcha whittlin’, Katniss?” 

Estela glanced at Jake sideways. “Stakes. Hand over some of that twine, I need it to bind these to make spears.” With a begrudging huff, Jake unfurled the twine and ran it against the edge of the makeshift bench he was sitting on to cut it, before tossing the rest at Estela. 

“How fast can you tie those off? We’re losin’ daylight for a morning catch, if you wanna ride on the raft with me.” 

“Five minutes,” she answered, already working nimbly around a branch to secure the whittled spikes. 

The screen cut back to Ruby’s camp, where Liam and Drake stepped ashore, smiles brighter than the sunrise as Drake held up a fish trap with small rays flapping against one another. 

—

“kjsdhfksjhfksjhfks,” Burns smashed into her keyboard. “Look at my man! With the sea bounty!” 

“mevmnbvmnxb,” Ella smashed back.

“How do you know Drake did all the work? Liam’s just as wet, hahaha,” Donna chortled in response.

—

After killing their catch as humanely as possible - with Alyssa turning her face to Drake’s chest to avoid witnessing it - Leo and Olivia gutted and cleaned the rays before setting them on top of their makeshift grill to cook. Liam and Drake regaled the group with their morning under the water, as they took turns fishing. 

While Team Ruby enjoyed some protein with their rice that morning, members of the Catalyst team glumly spooned rice into their mouths as they sat around the campfire while Jake and Estela dried off; their morning fishing trip had been unsuccessful. 

Later that day, both teams received messages from the host to gather for a reward challenge. Each team made their way to a small lagoon, where they saw a structure floating in the water. A booming voice overhead instructed them to swim out to the structure and await further instructions. Once everyone from both teams had done so, a blue holographic image of the host appeared in the center to explain the rules. “The challenge is simple,” she narrated. “We want to see who can hold their breath the longest. There’s a bar you can use to keep yourself from floating up if you need it. Last one standing earns the prize for the whole team — an overnight trip at the Celestial Hotel, where our rotating film crew goes to rest. You’ll be treated to clean sheets and towels, hot showers, along with a decadent dinner and breakfast menu the next morning, before having to return to your camp.” 

Everyone’s eyes lit up at the incentive of a night away from sleeping on the beach, away from mosquitos, rodents, and the threat of being waterlogged by passing storms. Stomachs gurgled at the thought of hot meals that didn’t consist of rice, and the possibility of cocktails or wine. “Oh, we got this,” Jake murmured quietly to Laurel. “Bet I can hold my breath longer’n any of those Ruby kids.” 

“Is that so?” Leo taunted, overhearing Jake’s comment.

“Just call me Poseidon,” Jake smirked. 

“We’ll see about that,” Leo replied. “You know most of us are from an island, right? We’re basically merpeople.” 

—

“Bets! Bets on who wins this!” Brandy typed into the chat window.

“Sticking with Drake,” Burns typed. “Maybe Hana. She could have another random talent up her sleeve.” 

“My money’s on Liam. Look how broad his chest is,” Anya replied. “He’s got to have massive lungs to match.”

“That makes no sense,” Ella typed, adding a laughing emoji. “But I’m Team Liam anyway.”

“Don’t hate me,” Donna began. “Something tells me Jake isn’t boasting right now.” 

From her screen at home, Alyssa Lauren used Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe to choose Zahra. The rest of the group picked their favorites as the castaways donned goggles and got into the water. 

—

“Ready? Set! Go!” 

Sixteen heads dipped under the water’s surface, with contestants pinching their noses and puffing out their cheeks as an underwater camera filmed them. A handful of them - Olivia, Alyssa, Maxwell, Diego, and Michelle - tapped out under a minute. As the sand settled, thirty seconds passed before Katrina, Laurel, Sean, and Drake headed to the surface. Just after the two minute mark, Hana, Craig, and Zahra gave up, leaving Jake, Liam, Estela, and Leo under the water. 

Jake looked positively peaceful, sandy brown hair swaying with ease in the water. Estela tapped her fingers lightly across the bamboo rod, counting each second as it passed. Liam glanced over to his brother, who’d begun to turn pink. Half a minute later, Leo popped up to the surface, muttering to himself out of frustration. 

Three minutes in, Liam surfaced, gasping for air, leaving Jake and Estela to battle it out between themselves. Even though the hologram host blasted a horn to signal the end of the challenge, neither Catalyst member surfaced. Liam ducked down to check on them, and Jake and Estela both signaled that they were fine. Everyone continued to wait as the pair spent minute after minute under the water.

—

“Seriously? They’re on the same team!” Anitah typed. “They won already!” 

“They’ve been underwater for a scary length of time,” Brandy added. “What are they, Navy SEALs or something?” 

“I think Jake mentioned he was actually in the Navy before,” Alyssa Lauren replied. 

—

A digital clock appeared in the corner of the screen as the two Catalyst members continued to hold their breath underwater. With each passing minute, members from both groups began to worry. After eight minutes passed, the host’s voice rang out, advising them to pull Jake and Estela up from the water to end the challenge. Laurel and Craig ducked down, eventually pulling their teammates up. “Congratulations to The Catalysts!” the host exclaimed. “A boat will be waiting at your camp to take you to the hotel.” 

Laurel swatted Jake’s arm as they made their way to the shore. “What’s wrong with you!? You were underwater for nearly ten minutes! Who does that!?” 

Jake looked over his shoulder to her with a grin, mischievous sparkle in his bright blue eyes. “Ten would be a new record, my best is nine.” He leaned down to whisper in her ear. “Imagine nine uninterrupted minutes of me holding my breath, Princess. My birthday is tomorrow, and I know exactly how I wanna celebrate,” he winked.  

Laurel’s cheeks flushed at the suggestion. “Stop looking at me like that, Top Gun.”

—

That evening at the hotel, after a sumptuous feast of lobster, crab, and an endless supply of beer and wine, the Catalyst members eventually went to bed. Much later into the night, Jake was seen sneaking into Laurel’s room. 

—

“I KNEW IT!” Burns typed. She laughed as her friends typed in responses full of lemon, fire, pepper, and eggplant emojis. She popped another cheese cube into her mouth and smiled, watching the rest of the episode play out.

[stellarrmoon]

Eternally.

"Wanna do something crazy?"

Tags: friends to lovers, fluff, smut, cunnilingus, fellatio, dirty talk, teasing, dom!kuroo, sub!reader, kurooxfemaleoc, virgin!reader

_________

It started out as a couple of friends having a late night drive. With him in the passenger seat and me on the edge of the boot, feeling the wind blow into my face as the driver drove down the empty highway. The radio blasted some 10s hits, making me feel like I was in some sort of coming-of-age movie. I noticed him tapping his finger to the beat of the song and smiled.  

After about 15 minutes of aimless driving we decided to go on a MacDonald's run. At the drive-thru it started getting a little cold and I grabbed a jacket behind the driver's seat, awaiting my fries and McFlurry.

"Hey, y/n, are you sure that'll be enough?"

Kuroo, my long-time friend who didn't even know about my feelings for him, asked me.

"I'll be fine, K." I rolled my eyes, smiling internally because he was worried about me. Our friend, Kenma, paid for us and we drove to the beach, where we made our own little space in the soft sand, and sat over a blanket Kenma had laying in his boot.

As we watched the waves quietly crash into each other, I asked, "Do you guys ever wonder what it's like to fall in love?", when in fact, I knew exactly what it felt like.

They were silent for a while, shoving their burgers down their throats, thinking about the question. Kenma gave a simple "Nope." while Kuroo seemed to be in deep thought about it.

"Yeah, I've wondered about it before." He looked up the stars, the moonlight hitting his face, perfectly highlighting my favourite features about him. "I think being in love is meant to be a process. You get to understand that person like they were you through another lense... someone who gets you without even trying. And the process makes you feel complete. Because no one can go through life alone, so that person completes the journey. It's like, it was just meant to be."

It was silent again. I pondered on his words, surprised that he said exactly what I was thinking. As I was about to say something, Kenma sighed. "Well, things just got deep here and I'm not in the mood to get in my feelings so I take it as a sign that we can leave now." He said as he stood up.

"I kinda wanna stay a bit longer."

Kuroo and I said at the same time. I chuckled silently. Kenma looked at us blankly and I could tell he was annoyed and wanted to get back into his warm bed.

"It's cool, we can uber back to my house and I'll drive her back home tomorrow morning." Kuroo suggested, "Go home, dude."

Kenma smiled with thanks and left us alone, taking the trash with him. Now that it was just two, it seemed a bit more intimate. "Aren't the stars beautiful?" I asked.

He hummed in agreement, "the view's much better from down here."

I looked to my side to see that he'd laid down on his back. One of his hands supported his head and I noticed the goosebumps on his bare arms. "Shit, aren't you cold?"

"Well, you took my jacket so I didn't really have anything to keep warm now, did I?" He smiled at me.

My eyes widened and I looked at the jacket, confirming how familiar it looked and I tried to take it off but his hand stopped me.

"Don't worry about it. Lay down with me, instead."

I complied, staring into the sky and found myself agreeing with him, "The view is much better from down here."

"I dont know why you'd doubt me."

My lips curled up, feeling him roll his eyes. We started talking about nothing and something at the same time. Going on about conspiracy theories and what else could be out in space. He was convinced that there were parallel universes and that in at least one of them, we were in the exact situation as now except he was a girl and I was a guy.

"What the fuck, Kuroo?" I snorted at how he sounded so convinced. Things felt so natural with him. We were almost always laughing and he made me feel like I was invincible.

"Hey," he called me. I turned my head left to face him, "you wanna do something crazy?"

"Always."

With a mischievous grin he suggested, "Let's go ski-"

"-nny dipping." We smiled at each other as I finished his sentance and got up together, stripping down to nothing. I tried not to look at him while I put my dress, panties and his jacket on the blanket while he just tossed his shirt and shorts on the sand. He was faster than me as we ran to the water, me holding my tits so they didnt flail as I got closer and as soon as we entered, I squealed.

It was so cold. I was in the middle on getting into my tippy toes when I felt myself going under the water. That son of a bitch dunked me. As soon as I got up, I saw him trying to swim away but I caught up and gave him a taste of his own medicine. I didn't even think of what would happen when he got back up, which consisted of him getting an eyeful of my naked chest while we stood 5 inches from each other.

He wouldn't stop looking and I couldn't move. His wet hair stuck to his face and I was lost in how beautiful he looked with water dripping down his face. "Um..."

Kuroo seemed to be at a loss for words. Meanwhile I was weighing my options in my head, thinking that this was my chance to get something out of my huge crush. "Fuck it."

With those words, I closed the gap between us; my boobs were flush against his chest and his hands instinctively held my waist. "Y/n..."

I looked at his pink lips and he looked at my plump ones, "Should I do everything for you?"

"Do what?" He said, calmly.

I didnt answer, instead took a leap of faith and planted my mouth on his. He immediately started moving his with mine, his grip on me tightening the more control he took of the kiss.

It's like he was slowly turning aggressive, with the way he placed my arms around his neck and wrapped my legs around his waist. He was enjoying it more than me it seemed, because he suddenly moaned into my mouth. I suddenly pulled away, and laughed but it turned into a purr when he latched his lips onto my neck.

It wasn't long before I felt a rod-like object resting against what would be the space between my ass cheeks if it wasn't so big. I gasped because while I hadn't seen it, I was sure it was his dick. When he dug his nails into my ass, I let out a whimper, involuntarily pulling on his hair and arching my back.

The water around us softly waned around us as we continued making out in the moonlight. He bit my bottom lip before sucking on it, shocking me a bit because of the new experience.

While I had had my first kiss, I was still a inexperience in many ways. The way he held me was new but it was so addicting that I got lost in his arms. I savoured the feeling of him against me, but started feeling feeling the cold a bit more when I realised he was walking us out of the water.

I rested my head on his shoulder as he carried me to our blanket until he finally laid me down. He leaned over me, locking his brown eyes with mine and just staring.

"What?"

"What does this mean?"

I looked away. Even I didn't know.

"Do you have feelings for me?"

Meekly I replied, "Yes."

The song we both recognized as Sweater Weather by The Neighbourhood played in the distance, probably from a pub that was still open at the nearby mall.

"Look at me." I did it without question. My eyes were brimming with tears as I looked at him. "How long?"

"A few months now."

He let out a heavy breath before smiling softly. "Why didn't you just tell me?"

I rolled my eyes, "So you can reject me."

"Except I wouldn't reject you."

Did that mean...

"I like you too, Y/n."

I couldn't really believe what I was hearing, purely because I'd convinced myself that he'd never feel the same way about me emotionally. But right now, I was a puddle down there and I needed to feel something else more. "Can we have this conversation tomorrow?"

I'm sure the list in my eyes was obvious as I trailed them down to finally land on his lower appendage. My eyes nearly fell out of my eyes because I never imagined him to have so much... meat on him. I was still a virgin but something in me yearned for it to be inside me.

Without warning, he started kissing on my body. My neck, my collarbone, my breasts and the area below them. On his journey, he left markers of where he stopped, teasing me every now and then when he'd stay at one place for too long. The biggest torture was when he got to my thighs.

The man kissed up and down my inner thighs, going up one, across my pelvis, to the other, making sure to skip the part I needed to feel his lips most. Whining, I lifted my hips, to which he quickly pushed them down. "Patience, babygirl."

With that, he spent a bit more time on the area close to my vulva. He licked up the line where my thigh met my pelvis and repeated the action on the other side, making me suddenly grab the top of his head. He looked at me with a smile and chuckled at my eagerness.

He ran his index and middle finger softly down my pussy lips, getting a bit of my wetness stuck to him. My pussy noticeably pulsed which seemed to entice him because he licked his lips.

"Please, Kuroo."

With a smirk, he separated my folds and run a finger up my slit, finally getting to my clit. At the first touch, I gasped; the feeling was so different from my own hand. He started rolling the nub around, very slowly which pleased and annoyed me at the same time. He knew what he was doing and he knew it well but it made me needier. When he took his finger away, I started complaining but he shut me up by putting his mouth around it.

"_Oh_ ..." I couldn't stop the soft moan that escaped my lips, not with this man's tongue putting just the right pressure onto my clit.

While he did so, he spread my folds again and teased my entrance, circling it and feeling it pulse against his already sticky fingers. Without wasting another moment, he plunged a finger into me and as he did, lay his tongue flat against my clit. I felt his finger rotate inside me before he curled it and hit my g-spot.

"Ah, fuck." My moans from then on became more frequent, he got more intense with his tongue and fingers and i could tell he enjoyed it. He switched to lapping his tongue on my entrance before inserted it into my heat. I was so wet that I could feel my juices stuck between my ass cheeks, and I was sure they were on his gave too.

"You gonna cum for me, baby girl?" He said against me. I only purred in response.

I kept my hand in his hair as he continued his work, feeling something pull in my lower belly as time went on. As he pumped faster nd sucked at just the right pressure, my back arched fully off the blanket. I threw my head back as I felt it coming.

"Oh my God, Kuroo, please!"

It wasn't too long until I finally came. The feeling washed over me like a tsunami, suddenly feeling a huge release from my pussy as it tightened. While I shook, he held my legs over his shoulder and kept eating me out, letting whatever squeezed out of me, enter his mouth as if it were his last meal.

While he did that, I kept switching between saying his name and cursing until I couldnt formulate coherent words anymore. Once he started to slow down, my high started going away. I calmed down as his head finally emerged from between my thighs and he looked at me with devilish eyes.

His lips glistened with my essence and I took a mental photograph of the picture in front of me. I had never experienced anything like that, not even by my own hand; and it was euphoria.

As soon as he was directly over me, I flipped us over and ran my hand down his torso. He licked his lips as I started marking my territory on his body. His light skin made it easier for me, but I didn't notice just how much I'd bruised him until after a few minutes. I kissed down his body until I got to his (hard) cock.

My heart wanted to jump out of my chest, but my lust calmed my nerves; even though I'd never done this before. On my knees, and back arched, face to crotch with him, I tried to remember all the tips and tricks I'd gotten from my friends who had done this before me and decided to go for it.

Slowly, I licked the underside of his shaft from the base and slid it up to the tip, where I wrapped my lips around it and looked him in the eye as I took in as much of his dick as I could. About 2 inches were left but I wasnt ready to deep throat him yet. Instead, I memorised his expression when I pulled back. As I sucked, his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he took in a deep breath.

I smiled mentally, and let the saliva connecting my lips to his tip drip onto my hand. With all the bravery I could muster, I started jerking him off. My hand moved up and down, barely fitting around his girth, but it didn't matter because I could tell the slippery feeling of my fingers around his saliva-coated penis drove him crazy.

"Stop teasing, y/n." He groaned.

Granting his wish, I started doing the real work - going down on him again and with the few inches outside my mouth, I satisfied with my hands. I couldn't really believe how hard he was in my mouth but when my tongue swirled around him and I felt it twitch, I knew I was doing something right.

"Fuck, I've got the perfect view of you right now." He proceeded to tell me how seeing my ass up and back arched with my head bopping up and down was one of the sexiest things he had ever seen.

With his hand in my hair, he guided my movements until I took a break from blowing him and bit my lip while I used my hands - one playing with his balls and the other moving up and down his shaft. Deciding to tease him again, I circled my thumb around his tip and smiled when he moaned. "Is that so, Daddy?"

"What did I say, y/n?"

I giggled before going back to sucking. I could feel him getting close, with the way he was bucking his hips every now and then. I worked on him for a few more moments until he pulled my head back, just in time for his cum to spurt onto my face.

"Shit."

I slowly opened my eyes, feeling the cum on my nose, cheeks, lips and even some on my eyelashes. He looked worried that he came on my face but I reassured him with a smile and licked his essence off my lips.

While he calmed down, I wiped my face and sat back up. I looked at his dick again and it was still hard. "Wow." I breathed.

"Sorry." He apologised, looking at me thinking deeply. "You're thinking about it..."

I innocently nodded my head, weighing my options. Was I ready to lose my virginity? To him, especially? My gut was telling me that tonight was the night and no one else was better than the boy I felt for.

"We don't hav-"

"Fuck me." I blurted out. "Wait no, I..."

Instead of finishing my sentance, I straddled him, his dick directly against my slit. "Are you sure?"

"I've never been more sure about anything else in my life. I want to do this with you, Kuroo."

He lifted his hips, grinding his shaft against me to signal that he was eager. I took his dick into my hand and lined it up with my wet pussy. My juices basically dripped onto his pelvis as I lowered myself on him. It felt tight with just the tip in; my years of finger-fucking myself couldnt help me now.

One thing that kept me going was his sound of enjoyment as I tried taking more of him in. I did it little by little, going up and down, taking more and more with each subtle bounce. Finally, I had over half of him inside me and it was uncomfortable but the more I moved my hips, the more I was washed over by a wave of pleasure. He, himself gripped my hips to guide me and trusted upward as well.

As he did that, he hit the perfect spot for me to cry our. I started grinding faster, my boobs bouncing in his face, tempting him to take one of my nipples into his mouth and play with the other one with his hand.

"This feels so good, Daddy."

"Does it, princess? My dick's making you feel good?"

"Uh-huh." I threw my head back, my pussy pulsating around his length and my mouth letting out the most lewd sounds.

He played with my clit, adding to the pleasure and earning a single tear running down my face. Pulling my head into his neck, he lowly said, "You look so sexy when you cry for me, baby."

Without warning, I came on him. My body spasmed while he held me and my legs turned to jelly. I couldnt stop saying his name while I went through the phases of pure satisfaction.

He flipped us over and pulled his dick out of me, kissing my mouth to swallow my moans. He didn't wait for me to relax and just started to pound into me. "I love being in this pussy. What do you think, princess? You like the way I'm fucking you? The way I'm hitting every corner of your pussy?"

My legs were suddenly over his shoulders and my Lord, did it feel amazing. It was like he was burying himself deeper into me, and I couldn't complain. It wasnt long before I felt a familiar tightness in my belly. The only difference was that this time, it was like the one day I let out a stream of water-like liquid and wet my sheets.

Impatient, Kuroo bit my neck and demanded me to respond. "Answer me, princess."

"Yes Daddy, I do."

He just kept fucking deeper and better that I had to cum for another time. Except now, he kept thrusting and it triggered me to release the big knot that I was trying to hold in. I guessed that when I came, the tightness of my pussy made his cum inside me too, because he suddenly stopped, letting the ejaculate coming out of me simultaneously spray onto his torso and face.

I squirted. All over him. But I didn't have time to think about it because of how lost I was in pleasure. He had bottomed out by now, just holding me as my legs shook over his shoulders for a few more minutes.

We were both breathing heavily, staring at the stars after he pulled out and lay beside me.

"I..." He started.

"Thank you." I finished.

[thebonggirll]

Chapter 24 - Hosu City

Chapter 23

"Wake up interns! Baiji has called everyone near the Tokyo Bay in 15 minutes!! Finish your breakfast and get ready!! Wear your hero costume!" One of the assistants came to the girls dorm and woke them up. There were only 4 girls who came in as interns, so they had less problem about space than the boys.

"I get the bathroom first!" Y/N screamed and ran in with her hero costume, brush and tooth paste. She heard the annoyed sighs of her roommates outside. After a full day of physical training, all of the interns slept like a log. But unlike the previous day, today they were woken up at 6 am instead. Just two hour difference but no one had any complaints. They didn't want to be woken up at 4 a.m. again as a punishment. They already got a taste of how petty Baiji can be and any kind of argument will just end up with more training.

Oikawa and Y/N became pretty good friends eventhough it was just two days. Oikawa had the kind of an aura that would make anyone feel comfortable. They shared phone numbers and she finally talked to him about the guy who made her blush, because 'he is not from our school anyway, no one will know'. She texted Kyoka and talked about how their training was going on. Ofcourse, their conversation was full of complaints and how the agency just won't leave their ass alone, but it was refreshing to talk freely after hours of training.

When the interns reached to Tokyo Bay, Baiji was standing with a coffee on one hand and she was using her teeth to adjust the gloves of her right hand. Suddenly seeing them, she remembered that she was supposed to be a guidance, and then stood properly - half of her right hand glove dangling down. "Great to see you in your hero costume! Well, I hope you had your breakfast because you're going to be really hungry for lunch."

"Yep, we have something big for us." Oikawa muttered to Y/N.

"How do you know? She didn't say that."

"Well, she never told us that we are going to be tired for the previous trainings. But if she's actually informing us about it, then it probably means that we have to work harder than we did before."

"Today we are going to be concentrating on your quirks. You are going to control your quirks based on when and where you're using it. All of you will be supervised by my assistants ofcourse, but you'll be presented with separate situations. There will be children and crowd present at times, and you have to use your quirk wisely. The villain here are going to be my assistants. They'll train you accordingly and teach you where and what you should work on. I'll surprise you with some obstacles in the last stage, just to test your observational skills." Baiji instructed, "I won't hold back. So be prepared. And those who manage to impress me will have the chance to see my work around today."

Every intern were given separate spaces and positions and every one started their training. Y/N first was asked to control her water properly. First stage was to change the amount and range of water suddenly, without any obstacles and standing on one position. The assistants were making them do everything step-by-step. It was pretty easy when there were no distractions. The second stage though was a bit hard. It was the same as the first, except that they had to control their quirk while moving and jumping around.

Baiji might look lazy and clumsy but she was extremely aware of all the interns and what they needed to work on. Her memory was sharp in this sense. She was the kind who would work hard until she perfected at her task. And that's what she was looking forward to. She never pushed the interns if it became unbearable, but found a seperate way for it to work out. It's not like everyone should follow the same pattern. She believed every intern in her agency was unique in their own sense and just needed to find their own way of getting stronger. In this particular day she was not only in the field, but also advising on the things the interns should work on. She went around every hour giving them reviews.

"Your consistency of exerting water while moving around sucks," Baiji said after an hour passed, "When you'll fight villains, if you waver even for a second, it can prove to be harmful to you and those around you. But at the same time you need to be aware of the surroundings. Trust me you won't even have a clue when I sneak up behind you. Also, I've seen your speed during the festival. Try using your quirk on your legs after the second step, and practice with it. If you can use it perfectly, it'll be a huge benefit for you. And remember, no one knows what you are capable of more than yourself. You know how your quirk works now, so focus on how you can use it and what you can do to pull off new moves."

"Okay ma'am," Y/N said getting ready to train again.

"Oh, and stop calling me ma'am. It feels too weird, so just call me by my name,"

Y/N smiled as her eyes fixated on the assistant in front of him and said, "I won't disappoint you Baiji."

Yes, she was aware of how quickly she gets distracted, but Y/N didn't expect to be slapped with water spray by Baiji 14 times. They weren't even on the 6th stage where Baiji is supposed to test her observational skill.  Her eyes were red and body was aching on moving around too much. It didn't go unnoticed by Oikawa though, who was looking like a mess himself.

They were all given comfortable seats to sit on during their lunch after the kind of training they went through. Y/N's phone rang, indicating a text message.

"Oooh, who's this girl? She's cute," Oikawa said peeking at her phone.

"She's my best friend, and no, I can't fix a date for you because she has someone she likes."

"You can atleast ask her right? She's not taken yet. How can you be even sure she'll say no?"

"Because she denies a lot of how she doesn't like him but I see her actually enjoying more time with him than any other guy around. Even though he's a bit of a perv. Like she actually blushes and stuff."

"As if your choice of that pomeranian is any better. I would've never imagined that you can like someone as aggressive as him."

"You looked him up on internet, didn't you?"

"Well, I was curious!!" Oikawa's eyes darted towards her phone and he said, "Pass me your phone. We should click a selfie! I want to show off that I know Haruto's sister."

"I already have a rumor going on man, don't-"

"Well, then let's click a group picture too!"

After taking the pictures, and sending it to everyone, Oikawa gave her phone back with a smirk on his face.

"What the hell did you do?" Y/N said snatching away the phone from him. She looked at her phone screen and her eyes almost popped off her face. She smacked his back hard and squealed in embarassment.

"What?!" he said rubbing his back, "As if you've the guts to make a move! It's a step forward!"

"Oh and how many relationships did you have sir?!!"

"Plenttyyy!!"

"That's even worse!!"

They bickered for a while and Y/N contemplated if she should just send a message saying "wrong number" or something to Bakugou. But she was curious about his reaction and just decided to wait it out. She can just say it wasn't her later. They don't bring their phones during training anyway.

The training was a bit hard after lunch. Without obstacles, it was easy to control her quirk.When the assistants were acting as villains, she learned faster and better than expected. But ofcourse, the last stage was really hard. Along with the villains, there were people set as civilians now who were in boats, so it was hard to think of a plan out of the blue while she was getting attacked. And this was also when Baiji was going to actually test her.

"Concentrate!" the assistant shouted, "You've hit 3 civilians already! Focus on your surroundings Y/N! You've just got to use your senses better!"

She had to clear her mind first. Her anxiety of getting everything done at the same time was always what got in her way. It wavered her attention a lot. Y/N decided on keeping the villain engaged in some way and use some time to move the civilians to somewhere safe. How and what, she had no idea. Her eyes moved momentarily towards the coast and she remembered what Baiji said. She had to pull off something. Besides, for someone who always had a clumsy image in front of interns, she wanted to know how she handled her work. She focused on some water under the villain's feet while attacking him with her left hand, she created a round ball of water and forced it on the assistant, keeping him trapped in it. Y/N kept the ball of water rotating, while he tried to get out of it. She knew that time was short and within a minute he'll be out. So she used her left hand to control the water, needed to move the civilians away. And–

BAM!

A punch on her guts almost made her lose grip and take her breath away. It was Baiji. Ofcourse. She said, she was going to be harsh. Y/N gained control again, and she was angry on herself for getting hit even after practicing so hard with Oikawa that day. Somehow her anger made her control over the ball of water rotate faster, where the villains wasn't able to get themselves out anymore since the force of water spiraling inside was harsh. Y/N focused on bringing the boat closer near the coast.

SMACK!

She used her feet to block Baiji's attack. Before she could attack again, Y/N used her feet and moved fast towards the coast dragging the boat along. She could've stayed and fought them but safety was the first priority. And when the people finally gave the safe signal to her, she moved away from the coast, the assistant still in her grip. A hand settled on her shoulder and she moved her arm to hit Baiji with her elbow.

"Time's up," Baiji said immediately catching her elbow, "Release my assistant please. He can control water but he can still drown."

"Oh! Sorry!" Y/N said and released her grip on the coast, where the assistant was coughing out and catching his breath.

"I didn't think you'll be able to defend yourself. But good job! You focused on your quirk and made a new move like I said. Focus on control and movements, and you'll get to make more new moves in no time." Baiji patted her shoulder and called everyone to gather round.

"So when are we reaching?" Baiji said, urgency evident on her voice, "The whole city is on fire for fuck's sake! Drive faster!"

"It's spreading, yes, but not the whole city. And please langua–"

"Oh FUCK the language!!!"

"Okay, sorry kids." Baiji's sidekick said looking at the Y/N, Oikawa and another girl from the rear-view mirror, "Just try not to get hurt, okay?"

"We'll definitely try," Y/N said looking at both of them.

"Okay," Baiji said as soon as the car stopped near police vehicles, "Everyone get ready! We received information that strange strong creatures are attacking the city and the heroes are trying their best to keep those in control! Our job is to put off the fire first of all, and then rescue any citizen in trouble. And remember, unless you have no other option left, DO NOT FIGHT WITH THE VILLAINS. Our top priority is rescuing people, got it?!"

"Yes ma'am!!" Everyone said stepped out of the car. The interns took a moment to observe the sight. It was chaos everywhere. And the creatures that they were talking about were actually Nomus - the ones that Y/N encountered with in USJ along with her classmates. It took All Might a lot to beat one of those and now, there were more than one. Clearly, the heroes were struggling to bring them under control.

The sidekick and Baiji separated into two teams along with their assistants.

"I'll take the kids with me!" Baiji said, "Don't worry, I'm pretty sure that they can take care of themselves. I just need one other assistant!"

"I don't think we should take the risk of taking these interns! Unlike previous interns, it's nothing like the other works we've taken them to-"

"Exactly! These interns are different! Heroes are getting stronger and better with each passing year and these interns need first-hand experience too!" Her eyes moved towards Y/N, "And some even do."

"....Okay ma'am," The sidekick said and left along with the assistants.

As Y/N started running behind Baiji, she heard screams and bursts everywhere. She didn't forget about it. Her thoughts were consumed about her friend, "Iida's here. This has to be a coincidence...right? The Hero Killer is not so flashy. Besides, Iida is very intelligent. He wont...come here...just for revenge.."

"..right?"

Chapter 25

SEASON - II

Ignite

MASTERLIST

[queentargary3n]

unfaithful

Summary: Sakura is surprised to see Sasuke is the senior associate of the firm she is supposed to start working for. All of her feelings start to come back 10 years after he abandoned her. Sasuke finds out somethings are truly never behind you, and when he starts falling back in love with her, his past comes to hunt him. Her biggest issue? He is already married

Sasusaku Fanfic AU Lawyers. M

Chapter 4

Sakura knew she shouldn’t have done that. She had punched the lights off the senior attorney of the firm she’d just being hired at. She drove herself home in a trance, completely absorbed in her thoughts. In retrospective, there were many things that she should have maybe done differently, starting with maybe listing Sasuke as a conflict of interest on the NDA human resources made her sign. That could possibly bring her some problems, but it seemed like he was pretending not to know her, and she knew exactly the kind of ex she didn’t want to be.

Damn... and I was so lucky to get hired too. Naruto probably had to pull some strings to get me here. My god! Naruto! What if he tells him! How can I face him now… and what if Sasuke files an assault suit against me!? I could probably hit him back a harassment suit, whatever I’m probably fired, but I mean! The things he said. She thought.

Her mind was going over and over all the possible scenarios her momentary lapse of judgment might have caused. She didn’t even notice, until she got home, that her hand hurt like a mother. It had been such a long time since she had to punch someone, and this was definably going to leave a bruise on her knuckles.

Her phone buzzed in her purse with a text message that read:

Sakura-chan family dinner tomorrow 8pm u in? – Naruto

And she probably shouldn’t. She had already been accused of inappropriate behavior by Sasuke. But she wasn’t about to change how she was with her friend because of some evil-minded jerk. So, before she could give it much thought, she replied:

Sure, I’m in. Can’t wait to meet the baby.

♦

Naruto went into the firm the next day, slightly earlier than normal, and spotted Sasuke laying on the couch of his unusually dark office.

“Hey Teme! Good job on the case! I hear the prosecution is asking for a settlement now… eh? The fuck happened to your face?” he noticed Sasuke’s incredibly swollen cheek with a dark bruise starting to settle under his left eye.  “Mmm… you’re not getting involved with those people again… are you?” he asked while turning on the light switch to seem him better.

“Tch headache! Turn it off!” Sasuke said.

“Did you sleep here? What happened?”

“Why did you hire her?” Sasuke asked, ignoring the previous question. He moved to a seated position still resting his head on the back of the couch.

“Hire who? Sakura-chan? We were best friends in college! She is awesome, isn’t she? I heard she kicked ass in yesterday’s trial!”

“You never mentioned her…”

“Yeah, bit of a sore subject” Said the blond, moving his arm to scratch the back of his head. “I was young and sort of in love with her, she rejected me. She was the one that got me and Hinata together ya know? So, it worked out for the best, but we lost touch after graduation”

“Hn… I thought she just graduated this year, so then you rekindled your relationship behind your wife’s back, asshole”

“What the fuck!” Naruto seriously wanted to punch him for saying things like that, but he controlled himself, noticing the already injured man.

“Are you not? Why did you assign her to my top case? And you’re always touching her and stuff…” Sasuke had to admit, his reasoning sounded weak and silly once he’d voiced it.

“Cuz she is my friend and a medical doctor you idiot! I thought her medical knowledge would be helpful in such a public case like this”

“She’s a doctor?” Sasuke asked in a more relaxed tone. He brought his hand to pinch the bridge of his nose, trying to ease the headache that was worsening by the second.

“Yeah, graduated early and everything, I don’t know why but a few years ago she went back to grad school to study law, but the knowledge is there ya know?”

“And you’re not sleeping together…” the raven-haired man muttered weakly.

“No!” Naruto yelled. “You know I love my wife! Wait… you didn’t tell Sakura-chan that did ya?!” Naruto asked, completely amazed at his friend’s stupidity.

“Ah.” Sasuke answered in confirmation.

“Well that explains the damage” Naruto had the nerve to laugh at him. “Sakura-chan can be really scary as I remember” he shook his head, then rested his hands behind his head. “Ne Teme, you owe Sakura-chan an apology” He completed in a serious tone.

“Ah” and Sasuke knew he did, whatever the case was, he knew he had no right calling her out like that, but in the field of apologizing Sasuke was truly lost. “I’ll figure something out”

“Yeah maybe you can figure something out before family dinner tonight! She’s coming, you guys should too” Naruto said, back to his cheerful self, and gave him a small nudge of encouragement. “Go home for now, I’m sure Sakura-chan can handle the rest of the negotiations”

And for once Sasuke did as he was told. He went back to his apartment, since his headache did not seem to be going away anytime soon. He unlocked the door and walked in, expecting to find the apartment empty.

Karin walked out of the bedroom as soon as he opened the door. “Sasuke? What…” she said confused as to why he’d be home at such hours but noticed his face. “What happened?! Are you okay? Oh my god Sasuke does it hurt!?”

“I’m fine, don’t worry about it” He answered, it was for this same reason he didn’t come home before, Karin tended to make a bigger deal of things than they required, it hadn’t occur to him that the bruise might look worse the next day.

“Tell me what happened! Did Orochimaru…” Karin said, trying to hold back her accumulating tears.

“No” Sasuke replied then sighed. “I… walked into a door” he offered.

Karin gave him an unconvinced looked, and said “Sasuke…”

“I’m fine, really” He said patting her head gently. “I’m just going to rest for a while”

His affectionate actions made her smile. She couldn’t really remember the last time they had contact, and it moved her causing a small flush to spread on her cheeks, before her expression changed into something Sasuke couldn’t make out, confusion, concern, guilt maybe, but he couldn’t dwell on it, since his headache was killing him by that point.

Whatever she seemed to have remembered, made her shake her head to compose herself, she readjusted her glasses and said “I gotta go to the office Sasuke, but I do really…”

“I know you do” He answered before she could finish her sentence. Because whatever was happening between the two, Sasuke knew she cared for him, as he did to her.

Sasuke waited for her to leave and close the door, before walking into the bedroom, his ailment did warrant the use of a bed, so he laid face down into the large bed at the center of the bedroom, he touched the familiar soft sheets they had chosen months before, then wrapped his hand under a pillow to get comfortable.

There, he felt something underneath, then pulled it out to inspect it, and saw a small plastic square turn up.

A condom wrapper.

♦

Family dinner was a regular even at the Uzumaki household. A tradition Naruto kept even after his parents passed. For some time, family dinners consisted only of himself and his godfather, but as an adult, Naruto came to consider a myriad of people family members, and so Friday nights were usually spent, drinking and dinning in the rotating company of whoever was available at that time. This particular dinner’s guest list included Shikamaru and his wife, Sasuke and his wife, if she wanted to show up which she usually didn’t, and Sakura.

“I’m worried about Sakura” said his wife, as she was preparing the food for her soon to be incoming guests, while her husband held their baby. “I don’t want her to feel like the odd one out between a bunch of married couples”

“Don’t worry! She won’t” said Naruto. “It’s not like we’re all going to be talking to our spouses, ignoring the rest of ‘em”

“Still, maybe we should’ve invited someone else. I might be able to talk Neji-niisan into coming last minute, maybe set them up!” Hinata chirped.

“You know Neji doesn’t like you meddling into his ‘love’ life like that” He responded, placing a gently hand on the small of his wife’s back.

“I know, but wouldn’t they look cute together?”  

“Nah I don’t know about that…” Naruto answered, even if his romantic feelings for Sakura were long gone, she always held a soft spot in his heart, and he would always feel protective about her.

“I think someone is here, can you get the door? I’m pretty much done here” Hinata said, a few seconds before there was an actual know on their door.

“Really Hina, I don’t know how you do that…”

Naruto opened the door, to find Sasuke standing outside, his black eye even more prominent than the last time he saw him.

“Tss teme she got you good!” the blond mentioned, as he motioned for his friend to come in. He had been the victim of a few punches by Sakura himself, but he never spotted a black eye like that. “What did you say to her? She must have been pretty angry if she hit you right in the face.”

Sasuke sighed, he almost didn’t show up. He hadn’t figured out what he would say to her. “I sort of… called her a whore…” he muttered, looking down to avoid looking embarrassed.

“Bastard… you really had it coming, you’re lucky I’m holding the baby, or I’d make the other eye match” Naruto threaten.

“How’s he doing by the way” Sasuke said, grabbing the baby’s hand and toying with it, partially trying to change the subject.

“Oh, he’s great, he sleeps through the night now and everything” Naruto answered.

They sat down at the dinner table, with Naruto going on and on about baby Boruto, and how he smiled all the time, and was pretty smart for a 6-month-old baby, and how the transition to food was going smoothly. It wasn’t until 15 minutes into the conversation he noticed Sasuke came alone. “Your wife’s not here?” He asked.

“No, she had to go out or something” Sasuke replied, briefly considering telling Naruto about the condom wrapper he found in their bed. But he decided not to, Naruto’s family dinner was hardly the place to talk about something like that.

Their conversation was interrupted by the arrival of Shikamaru and his wife. Temari, whose name Sasuke always manage to forget for some reason, announced her newly found pregnancy, which engrossed the group in a conversation of parenthood, pregnancy cravings, baby must haves, while Sasuke mostly stayed silent. He held his arms out to borrow baby Boruto from his very talkative father and bounced him up and down from his lap much to the infant’s amusement.

“And you, Sasuke? Have you and Karin thought about having one of your own?” Temari asked him.

Sasuke always imagined himself having a big family of his own, he liked children. But the concept of family seemed to be getting further and further away from him the older he got.  The subject had not even come out with the woman who was now his wife. He always imagined someone else as the mother of his children, it was a goal he had set on his mind: do what he had to do about Orochimaru, his brother, leaving the outlaw world,  then go back to the girl who hunted his dreams since he was a teenager. But that was years ago and leaving left consequences he couldn’t have predicted. So, he buried that thought, underneath responsibilities and duties he had to uphold, and continued to live for years without thinking about the hypothetical cute children with dark hair and green eyes.

“I don’t think Karin w…” he almost responded to the group, interrupted by a knock on the door and the entrance of none other than Sakura, wide eyed and blushing, she seemed surprised he was even there, as she held a bottle of wine and brown gift bag close to her chest.

“Sorry no one answered the door, so I just came in, hope that’s okay” She said, addressing everyone in the dining room, but avoiding Sasuke’s eyes.

“Sure thing! Sakura-chan I’m glad you made it!” Naruto said, standing up and hugging the pinkette.

“Sakura-chan! It’s so good to see you, how long has it been!?” Hinata chirped in higher voice than any of her guest had ever made her do, and wrapped her arms around Sakura and her husband, the three of them locked in an awkward three person embrace.

“Hinata! Too long! You look lovely, motherhood suits you!” Sakura answered, disentangling herself from the hug. “Now where is that cute baby of yours!?”

Naruto scratched his face and turn to look at Sasuke, who was still holding the baby. The sight was endearing for her she had to admit. Sasuke looked down and held the baby in front of his face in offering, still unable to meet her eyes.

Naruto grabbed his son instead and brought him to Sakura’s arms. “This is Boruto” he introduced.

“Naruto! Aw he looks just like you! He is so adorable!” She pressed the baby’s face to her own. “Who knew you had it in you to make something so cute!!”

“Nah, he has my eyes and hair, but the rest is all Hinata ya know?”

“I’m so happy for you two!” Sakura said, wiping a small tear from her eye.

“I’m going to put him down to sleep” Said Hinata, taking her baby back into her arms. “It’s a little late for this little guy, we were waiting so you could meet”

“Sorry I was late, bye Boruto”

“I’m so proud of you, you know? You always wanted a family, and now you have one, it’s just so…” She was unable to continue, if she did, there would have been no stop to her crying, so she composed herself.

“I know Sakura-chan” Naruto answered.

Sasuke thought he couldn’t have been more wrong, after witnessing the whole interaction. It was obvious that they all had some very deep connection, but it was so far from what he had suspected he couldn’t help to feel embarrassed again. Why his mind went for the most impure explanation, he didn’t know.

And so, after introductions, dinner continued without his interference. Old friends catching up, and new acquaintances presented. They continued with drinks after the meal, and after a few glasses, Sasuke stood up and walked to the door.

“Are you leaving Sasuke, you haven’t said anything all night!” Naruto complained.

“No, I’m just going out for a smoke” He responded. He needed some air to clear his thoughts. So many things needed to be fix happened in only a few days, but the only thing he could seem to think of was Sakura. It’s so fucked up. He thought.

His train of thought was interrupted by the appearance of said girl behind him. “Smoking kills you know?” She said to him.

“Ah” he answered in confirmation and took another drag from his cigarette, before putting it down and stepping on it. Sasuke moved to face Sakura, he tried to organize a coherent sentence to word his apology, but she was too distracting. Her red crop top, and high wasted jeans showed a small portion of her waist he couldn’t help but wonder how it would feel under his touch. He ran his hand through his inky locks in exasperation.

“Listen Sasuke… I’m sorry” She said unexpectedly.

“YOU’RE sorry?” he asked. He looked at her, eyebrows raised in confusion.

“Yeah… I shouldn’t have punch you like that; it looks bad. I’m terribly sorry” she bowed a little as she continued. He didn’t even know what to say.

Sakura pulled a small container from a brown bag she was carrying and asked, “May I?”

He questioned her with his eyes. “It’s a pomade I made, it good against bruising, and it has a cooling effect to help with the pain”

He nodded his head yes, so she moved to coat her finger in the ointment and apply it gently to his face. He was, for once, glad because of the bruising, since the heat he felt on his face could only mean he was blushing madly. His heart threatening to beat out of his chest.

“Thank you.” The black-haired man said when she was finished. It felt so good to have her hands on him, he almost complained when she removed her touch. “You don’t have to apologize, it was my fault, I had no right calling you that”

“You’re right” She conceded. “But I’m sorry anyway, it was no excuse to hit you, violence is never the answer”

“Never?” He laughed at that. He could of at several situations where violence is the only answer, and he was sure Naruto would agree. But he didn’t voice his thoughts.

“I still deserved it though”

“Damn right you did” she agreed.  

“I’m sorry” He said. “and I shouldn’t have acted like I didn’t know you either, I just… didn’t know… what to say”

“It’s okay Sasuke-kun… it was a long time ago” The endearing suffix, made him smile, and brought his scrambling thoughts back together. It reminded him of simpler times, when he could act on his feelings.

And right then, he finally figured out, why he’d been so angry at Naruto’s displays of affection towards the pink haired girl. Sasuke knew he was jealous.

______________

Thank you so much for reading this if you still are, smut and infidelity are coming soon I promise. Tell me what you think, constructive criticism is always appreciated. 

[themarchblessing]

4 Blessings A Plenty

SABRINA

Following behind the florists I looked out at the garden spotting three arrangements that really caught my eye. The color coordination and presentation really made my eyes light up. It’s been hours of constant walking for me and I’m reaching my end point. Corey and I have finally gotten our affairs in order to celebrate our vow renewal. We’ve had to postpone this event for a year due to how hectic our life has been. This ceremony is extra special because we’ve been married for four years now, my mother’s cancer is in remission and Ellena is halfway through kindergarten. All in all this year has been so good for our family. We’ve received a platoon of blessings and I’m just grateful to be in such a happy space. 

“What do you envision, Sabrina? This is yours and your husband’s special day and our job is to execute your ideas and visions.” Carmen and Paula opened the floor while I took a good look around. 

“Corey and I both love calla lilies, freesias and orchids. Our daughter’s favorite flower is the orchid and both of our mothers love lilies and freesias. For the arrangements, we want to keep them all very uniform. I’m thinking that table one will have one arrangement of lilies, table two will be an arrangement of freesias, table three will be orchids and so on and so forth. Corey is huge on symmetry like no es gracioso.” I explained. 

Paula jumped in with a great question, “perfect. We can do that. Now do you want a tall, medium or small centerpiece? Do you want the centerpieces to be the staple of the table or the cutlery, tablecloth and name cards?” 

Nibbling on my bottom lip I thought about what would look best. “Damn, I don’t know. I kind of want an eye level, from seat arrangement but I think he may want something a bit larger. Can I take a rain check on that one?” Giggling nervously I threw my hair over my shoulder. 

The ladies agreed jokingly. I wrapped up my meeting with them and began my third appointment with the wedding planner. Corey sent me a text to inform me that he will meet me at the next location for our appointment with the caterers. As I reached the exit I needed to take I felt my head become light and airy. My insides began to rotate and my chest broke out in a serious sweat! I pulled over on the side of the road, pushed the truck in park mode and safely hopped out of my seat. I bolted for the railing throwing up my breakfast while simultaneously clipping my hair back. 

“What the fuck!?” I gasped. “Mm..” My throat feels engulfed in flames, my breasts are aching and I feel like crap. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I stood on the side of the road just staring at the aftermath of what came out of me. “I’m so confused right now.” I groaned. I allowed myself to settle for another five minutes and resumed my drive. 

My phone rang, leaving me to believe Corey is freaking out about where I am. “Hello?” I answered. 

“What happened? I left you like six voicemails Lori, are you okay?” He shot off. 

“Umm..now I am. You won’t believe what just happened to me.” I put my signal on, fighting with the car in front of me to get into the far right lane. 

“Tell me please! You have me over here worried that something happened to you.” He panicked. 

“I threw up on the side of the road. That must have been when you called. I’m sorry.” Taking a deep breath I counted the minutes left until I can rinse my mouth out. 

“You got sick? From what? What did you eat this morning?” He quizzed me. 

Shrugging as if he could see, I turned the air conditioning down a little bit. “I have no clue from what but it’s not from oatmeal and bread. I feel like mierda and now we have to sit through at least a two hour meeting to discuss food. Food is the furthest thing from my mind.” 

“Damn okay. I’m here now so I’ll see you when you get here. I love you and please be safe.” He wished upon me. 

“Always. I love you too.” We ended our call and after another ten minutes of silence I pulled up to the venue. Corey is standing outside looking like he just left a meeting. Parking next to him I pulled out my roadside hygiene kit to take inside with me. Stepping out with my things I met him by the trunk of his car. I can’t kiss him with this taste in my mouth so opted to receive affection instead. 

“How are you feeling? Are you alright?” He inspected me from head to toe knowing I’m just going to laugh at him going overboard. It’s like come on man, I threw up not got into a physical altercation. Still, I appreciate his concern. 

Nodding I slipped my car keys into my purse. “Yeah, I’ll be alright. After I rinse my mouth out and get some water, I should be good until we get home. Ready?” We walked inside hand in hand heading straight for the dining hall. “At least it smells good.” I joked. 

“Right. I’m hungry now. I want samples since Ellena demolished my breakfast with her own. Shit.” He complained. Rubbing his lower back, I walked in first to see the caterers ready to get this meeting started. “You did say noon right?” Corey spoke to them first. 

Our laughter filled the room as we all greeted one another and sat down. “You guys are early which is perfect. How are you both doing?” Max flipped to a new page in his notebook while Vince and Jen handed us three menus. Time to get this meeting tackled so we can get home! 

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

“I have a question to ask you about the centerpieces for the reception.” Brushing through Ellena’s hair I set her brush aside to run the conditioner through her damp curls before it dries. 

Looking up from his laptop Corey returned Izaiah’s notebook and workbook to him. “About the size or the decor altogether?” 

“The latter. The girls asked me what we wanted but I told them I would get back with them after we talked about it. I don’t want to make any final decisions without you..” focusing back on Elle I caught her from falling to the side. Leaning forward to see if she’s asleep I smiled brightly seeing her struggling to keep her eyes open. I turned her around so she could lay on my chest comfortably. My sweet girl is so tired after her event filled day at school. 

“Sleepy mama..” she mumbled softly. She wrapped her arms around my neck, pressing her cheek into my bosom. 

Smiling I cupped one arm under her butt and laid my free palm on her back. “I know babe. You can rest now. The day is over.” Kissing the crown of her hair I outstretched my legs. 

“Let’s go with the medium, eye-level length. Do you want any glass on the table other than the drinking glasses?” I flipped through my pictures going back to my original decor ideas. I shared my ideas with him while Elle fell into a deep slumber, snoring her heart out. We talked about our recent meeting to switch the planners until Corey left the room to put Zay to bed. 

I remained snuggled up with my love bug flipping through my wedding plans album. As soon as Corey re-emerges I need to haul ass to the bathroom. I feel sick again! I had to wait for him to get comfortable before placing Elle in his lap. Racing to the toilet I clutched the countertop, emptying myself clean. 

“Mama is okay, baby.”  I heard Corey soothe Elle who clearly woke up because her position was shifted. 

“Where’s mommy?” Ellena cried. “Does she not feel good?” She cried again. 

“No mamá doesn’t feel good but she’s alright. It’s okay baby, tranquila por favor..” Corey distracted her some kind of way leaving me alone to get this bile out of my system. 

Wiping my tears I stared at the clock on the wall having flashbacks of when I was in denial about being pregnant with Elle. I think we are about to be pregnant with baby number three. It wouldn’t be much of a shock since we have raw sex on a healthy, consistent basis. I haven’t been on birth control since my sophomore year in college and condoms are annoying. Corey’s pull out game is great but with me, that technique is nonexistent. I have no complaints with our reckless sex life or our lack of contraceptive use but facts are facts. 

“Baby..you okay in there?” Corey called on me.

“Yeah, just a minute.” Standing up I flushed and cleaned the toilet. I brushed my teeth and drank some water until I felt the urge to urinate hit me. Ripping the packaging open I took a pregnancy test wanting answers ASAP. Once I finished up I cleaned my hands and set the test aside, heading to set a timer on my phone. “I took a pregnancy test.” I blurred out. 

Corey locked eyes with me in surprise, smiling brighter and brighter as the seconds passed. “Bull..” he grinned. 

“It’s on the sink right now, I swear. I’ve gotten sick twice in one day so I think I made the right move. Why are you smiling so big? Are you happy about this?” I couldn’t resist matching his expression. 

“I am. I don’t have any reason to be scared. Are you?” Corey stretched out, reaching for his phone. 

Pacing the room I dabbled in my feelings, not sure what I feel about possibly being pregnant again. I’m not mad but I will be a little surprised. “I wouldn’t say scared but more so in disbelief. If the test is positive then I know I’ll be happy eventually. It took me a while to accept being pregnant the second time around and I’ll be alright this time.” My timer went off and I froze. “Okay I'm scared now.” Cupping my mouth I stared at him only to blush and grow nervous just seeing him smile. 

“I’ll sit here and wait for you to come out so I don’t make you even more nervous.” He suggested coolly. 

“No, please come with me. I might faint if I go in there alone.” I urged him to check the results with me and he happily complied. With our little girl sound asleep in his arms I have to control myself and not scream. “Ready?” I looked up to find him watching me. 

“Always.” His secure, proud smile eased my nerves about the moment to come. This is another major blessing that is seconds away from being real. He stood by the door while I walked over to the sink. Taking a cautious breather I turned the test over feeling my legs weaken. My eyes filled with tears on cue not able to look him in the eye. “Let me see.” He chuckled. Picking up the test I turned around and showed him up close. “No way..baby number three? This is amazing. We’re gonna have a whole team before we know it.” He teased. 

As much as I’m crying from joy I burst into laughter because he’s so damn silly. “I’m too old for this..” I gasped. “Ay Dios mío this is crazy.” Throwing my arms around him and Elle I kissed her chubby cheek. My gut filled itself with butterflies and my skin broke out in goosebumps over this beautiful news we just received. 

“You’re in great health, the baby will be just fine. I love you and I thank you for being the best mother to our children. Look at me..” he insisted. “You got this, we’ve got this. Everything will be alright. Right?” Nodding in agreement I rubbed his back in circles. “So is this the last one?” 

“Absolutamente. If we were ten years younger then maybe we could try for a fourth but no papa this will be our last. Are you really happy or are you just claiming to be so I don’t freak out right now?” Searching his eyes for the answers I captured his lips needing a little more intimacy. 

“Over the moon. Let me put her to bed, I’ll be right back.” Corey’s exit granted me the space and freedom to let this baby news marinate a little longer. 

Lifting my shirt I squealed at the sight before me. This baby bump is the same size and shape that I had with Elle in the beginning. “Oh wow, deja vu! Welcome home bebecito, we are so happy and blessed to have you.” Clearly just like the last time I’m further along than I expected. Our lives are really about to change for the better yet again. Selfishly I do wish we were ten years younger so we can keep making such beautiful babies. But our life setup is special and near and dear to my heart so I don’t need to complain. Corey returned to join me in the bathroom and just like that a light bulb came on. “Corey..” I said with a deep frown. 

“What is it? Why do you look so sad?” He panicked. 

“We’re going to be sixty years old when this baby turns eighteen! Sixty and eighteen! What the hell are we doing? We’re setting our kids up for failure. I feel selfish now.” This knee jerk reaction to sob washed over me as I envisioned us being legally classified as senior citizens when our youngest child will be graduating from high school. “Corey, this is not fair!” I wept taking a seat on the floor. “This is not fair..” my heart is breaking right now over the reality we’re facing. 

Corey knelt in front of me, seeming to match my sadness to a small degree. “Baby, I understand where you’re coming from. I have been aware of the age gaps between us and the kids this entire time. Does it get to me? Yeah sometimes it does but they’re here and we have to enjoy them while we’re still here.” He preached. 

“Yo se pero..” sniffling and wiping under my eyes I tried pulling myself back together. “Just thinking about our babies being fresh into adulthood and us being at the age where we most older people are grandparents..is crazy. I don’t want the kids to wake up one day and realize we may miss some of the biggest moments of their lives.”

“Come on Lori, you know this is the tough part of being a human. Yes, the reality of our age and having a third baby right now is not ideal but I’m okay with it. For the record, I am not just saying that just because I don’t have to carry this baby either. I’m telling you because you know I’m always here to support you and take on all the stress so you don’t have to. Tell me now if you don’t want to go through with this again. I’m happy with the two babies we have now, truly but I want to know where you stand. This is your body and you have the final say so.” He advised sharply. 

Breaking my moment of wallowing I disagreed to the unspoken offer on the table. “No. I’m not getting rid of our baby. Absolutely not. I’m saddened by my deepest fears but not enough to make such a decision that I have no right to. Not to mention that would drive a wedge between us and I would never want that. God granted us with the ability to reproduce easily, I will not take advantage of it.” Shaking away all thoughts of an abortion I dried my tears and accepted Corey’s assistance in standing. Turning 

around to face the mirror I composed myself entirely to study my body again. 

Corey also set his sights on my torso. As I turned, twisted, flexed and relaxed my core I mentally instructed myself not to lose it again. 

“Last chance Mrs. Howard, do you really want this? Are you okay with being pregnant again for the last time?” Corey stood behind me, reaching for my hands. 

“Yes, I am. I’m sorry for overreacting.” Blending our fingers together I studied his shoulders, feeling my spirit lighten as he shed the tension in his stance. 

“It’s okay, you have every right to express how you feel. I just hope that after today you don’t travel back down this road. This being our last I want you to enjoy this experience to  the full extent if possible.” I know Corey is just coming from a good place with his concerns and I feel bad now for how I reacted. 

Throwing myself into him with a warm hug I laid my head upon his chest. I wandered my hands up to his neck, meddling in his hair. Caressing the area I met his eyes in the mirror. “I want this baby as much as I wanted Izaiah and Elle. The worries about our age gap will forever be a thought in the back of my mind, honey. I’ve spoken on it so it’s not going anywhere. That doesn’t mean I am any less excited. This baby is a blessing and I’m content with it. I promise you have nothing to fear.” I assured him. 

We traveled to bed with our conversation, setting up our schedule for the rest of the week. Secretly I do worry if this pregnancy will be safe for me and for this baby. I’m forty-two years old pregnant with my third child, already a mom to a six and eleven year old. Tomorrow I plan on making an appointment to see my doctor to discuss with her the pros and cons of carrying a baby at my age. There’s no doubt that each child is a gift from God but at what expense?

[excuseme-youpretty]

Pairing: Kim Namjoon / Reader

Side Pairings: None

Rating: Teen

Genre: Fluff

Word Count: 3,748

Warnings: Brief allusions to sex, but nothing too graphic.

Notes: This oneshot was requested by anonymous. They wanted adorable fluffy Namjoon spending a rare day off with his partner. I hope, wherever you are, that you liked it and I’m sorry for the delay ♥ I’ve had a virus that’s been kicking my ass.

Make your own requests: HERE

As you fold your body up on the axis of your hip, rotating in a clean arc to reach across the mattress toward Namjoon's designated patch, you are fully expecting to feel the cool compress of abandonment rippling along your sheets. 

It's always the same, the harsh bite of cold satin which has somehow preserved your boyfriend's silhouette and the residual cling of his cologne; leaving you a little disappointed but nevertheless eager to progress your day until his inevitable return.

Only on this morning it is not a reminiscent frost that you feel, but rather an unmistakable warmth and the soft, shallow breaths which can only belong to one man.

Namjoon wakes you organically, with lips of spun sugar and the barely-there pull of his teeth leaving a curl of calligraphy along the underside of your jaw. He tastes of peppermint and sunrise, pulling you from the remnants of your sleep with a soft exhale of your name.

"Good morning, Princess." He sighs, nuzzling a deliberately soft semi-circle just beneath your ear. "Or should I say 'good afternoon'?'"

The hot midsummer sun bleeds through your aerated curtains like tangerine paint dripping from a saturated canvas. You can hear songbirds twittering enthusiastically just outside your window and the elated laughter of children participating in a rowdy all-bets-off game of kickball in the park across the street. 

Everything is go go go. Nonstop motion. Somehow, the world ticks on in spite of your unorthodox absence.

The crab-shaped clock on the wall indicates that you have missed breakfast. You are close to missing lunch, too.

And you couldn't be more delighted. 

Because with Namjoon, days off are as rare as a rainstorm in the middle of the Sahara; a much-deserved rejuvenation.

"What time is it?" You whisper, your words  coming out all slurred and sleep-blanched. 

Namjoon presses a gentle kiss to the tip of your nose. "Well, let's see… I accrued three missed calls and four text messages before finally deciding to just turn off my phone."

"Ah, so the children are missing your effervescent presence then?"

"It would appear so. As long as we can get through the day without Yoongi-hyung committing mass Fratricide, I'll consider it a victory."

You can't help but to giggle at the notion as unprompted visuals of an unamused Yoongi wrestling with a quartet of multicolor leashes, each one connected to the torso of a hyperactive dongsaeng, and Seokjin's disapproving pursed lips, overwhelm your senses. 

"And in the meantime? You have a whole twenty-four hours before things return to normal. How do you want to spend it?"

Namjoon answers your question with the brush of his lips against your own. He takes his time claiming your mouth, his lips startlingly hot in contrast to his sweet and minty tongue.

Namjoon's fingers weave slanted tendrils down over the bare flesh of your pelvis as soon as you part, summoning a film of goosebumps to the surface of your sun-soaked skin. 

You shudder helplessly as you ride out the residual sensation of such an earth-moving kiss. 

"Mmm… Well, I hope you're happy, Mister. That kiss just wasted a good five minutes of free time."

Your boyfriend's teeth pull a fluorescent pinstripe across his bottom lip, seemingly lighting his way as he begins his slow descent down your exposed stomach and between your thighs as they give without much instruction.

"If you call kissing you until you're weak a 'waste of time' then you're really gonna hate this next part, Princess."

The tip of his nose skims past your naval, crafting a pathway for himself in the stipple of airbrushed freckles which blossom on your skin. And yet, you are quick to catch the nape of his neck with your fingers, maintaining a barely-there hold of his hair to prevent him from creeping any lower.

"Hold up there, Handsome. How about we nail two birds with one stone? There's a hot, soapy untimed shower with your name on it. And I'd be more than willing to help you scrub any… hard to reach places~"

Namjoon tilts his head back inside your loose grasp, the pads of your fingertips pushing through his silvery-blonde strands to rest almost tauntingly against his scalp. He purses his lips in thought.

"Well, I'd be a fool to refuse such a titillating offer." He presses a large open-mouthed kiss to the underside of your naval. "And I'm no fool."

You are plucked from the barely-there drape of your duvet before you can reasonably react, Namjoon's arms imprisoning your midsection and hefting you skyward before carrying you into the cool porcelain of your bathroom.

-

The water which had cascaded down from your shower faucet was luxuriously light, a sprinkling of powdered sugar across your sleep-eased muscles. And yet the petting was nothing short of heavy. 

Namjoon had taken his time working sweet-smelling suds into your skin until you gleamed with sparkling iridescence; scents of lavender and violet mingling with the sharp musk of your boyfriend's shampoo. 

He had kissed you until your lips ached, buttering you up with an overdose of affection even as you stepped out of the shower and into the baked afternoon sunlight.

After a brief rendezvous in your closet, one which had taken longer than necessary to navigate thanks to Namjoon's wandering hands and greedy lips, you both finally settled on outfits which would compliment such a rare day off. 

He now sits across from you, grinning from ear to ear as he indulges himself in a

verifiable cloud of scrambled eggs and generously buttered toast; the first home-cooked meal he has had the pleasure of tasting in far too long. Even Seokjin's schedule has become so saturated that he can no longer find the time to finesse his way around their dormitory kitchen. 

Who would have thought a group of seven growing boys could survive on a consistent diet of frequented takeaway restaurants and prepackaged vending machine snacks?

He always looks so beautiful like this, dressed in nothing but a pair of faded jeans and a simple t-shirt. His hair, still damp from your shared shower and lacking any product, hangs limply around his handsome face in a fashion not too dissimilar from the signature whistle necklace draped across his chest. 

"I swear, babe, this is amazing." Namjoon croons, using a napkin to stipple away the loose crumbs which have gathered in the crevice of his ever-present smile. "What's your secret?"

Pushing your fingertips through the damp sheen of his hair, you take a seat beside him and indulge in a long, contemplative sip of your orange juice.

"A whole lot of love for my boyfriend and an unreasonably long night's sleep."

Namjoon's grin is so vast that his eyes momentarily disappear into little crescents. 

"That's fair."

He wraps an arm securely around your shoulders, tucking you into his hip where he feeds you small prisms of toast and watches as the amaranth horizon dances across your cheekbones.

You feel the cold, wet compress of a soft puppy nose brushing against your calf when RapMon darts wildly between your ankles. He yips musically, vibrating with an overdose of unexpected energy as though he himself had also indulged in a deliciously long slumber and was now reaping the rewards of his pent-up energy. 

Namjoon can't help but to laugh, the sound reverberating in tandem with the small bell looped onto Moni's technicolored collar. 

"I think our Puppy is ready to hit the road. Don't you, Princess?"

"It would certainly appear so."

You watch as Namjoon cross-hatches his thumb across an array of emails on the screen of his business cell phone, organising them into their designated folders, before he opts to switch off the device all together.

Following his lead, you gather up the empty breakfast plates and place them in the sink; deciding rather quickly that all dishwashing tasks are a problem for a future you. You take a bottle of chilled water from the fridge and grab Moni's collapsible bowl as well as his monogrammed leash, clipping it in place upon his collar and earning some gentle puppy-dog kisses in response.

You run your fingers through Moni's soft fur, giving special attention to his pointed ears and muzzle. Placing an affectionate kiss to his snout, you rise to your feet once more and turn towards your boyfriend.

Namjoon rattles his house-keys with a grin.

"Ready to get some sunshine?"

"With you? Always!"

-

The scarlet-hot skyline reflects prettily upon the shimmering silver swingset where you perch, your toes dangling mere millimetres above the dew-slicked grass. Scents of fresh pine and spring flowers permeate the air, as well as the sugary sweetness of cotton candy being spun into cute little beehives by a nearby vendor. 

At the centre of the park, a small group of children are having a competition to see who can blow the largest bubble. Like confetti, the air is full of shiny little bubbles as they rise up to the sky. And darting after them with an open mouth and comically wagging tongue is a soap-spritzed Moni. 

The children shriek with laughter, running around in circles with Moni bouncing merrily behind them. 

Namjoon's fingertips brush over your shoulders as he pushes you gently on the swing. He traces plump cartoon hearts over the nape of your neck, erecting a small film of goosebumps with every stroke. 

"It's such a gorgeous day out." He muses, turning his head to place an unexpected kiss against your forehead.

"Yeah, we really lucked out. Summer sunshine allll day."

"I'd take thunderstorms and heavy rain in a heartbeat as long as I get to spend the day with you, baby."

Ever a poet, Namjoon's words leave your insides tingling akin to sticky sherbet and fizzing pop rocks.  

"Dork~" You chastise in a soft voice full of mirth. 

You can feel his infatuated grin press into the back of your neck, his fingertips twirling around the stray strands of hair which ribbon over your noon-warmed cheeks.

"Only on my days off."

When Namjoon's digits begin to sway across your collarbones, you concertina them gently between your fingertips. You bring his hand to your lips, kissing across his skin with an audible smack. The pad of his thumb skims over your cheekbone as though he were an artist buffing paint across a canvas.

"You're so beautiful, Princess." He muses.

His words take on an illustrative quality; as though he were scribbling his infatuation across clean journal pages. And yet, before you can respond, he's dipping down just out of view to clasp a fistful of lawn.

"What're you doing, Joonie?"

"Just wait and see - It's a surprise."

Behind you, you can feel Namjoon's fingers work with fast needle-sharp precision. The rounded edge of his nail pierces through stem after stem as he braids several dainty daisies together into a makeshift crown. 

"Now, what is it that every princess needs, baby?"

"Her Prince Charming? Or Prince Destroys-Everything-He-Touches, whatever works."

"This is true." Wiping away the residual pollen on the leg of his pants, Namjoon takes a step closer toward you. He carefully places the crown on top of your head. "But she also needs her very own tiara!"

Grinning maniacally, you bring a hand up toward your head to stroke over the small stack of downy-soft petals which frame your forehead. 

"You're so cute, you know that?" You shriek, gasping when Namjoon presses a stream of rapid open-mouthed kisses against your glowing cheek. 

"Yeah, it's a special gift of mine. Come here, gorgeous."

With his hand outstretched in front of you, Namjoon holds his phone poised on both of your grinning faces. He snaps picture after picture, selca after selca, honing in on the kaleidoscopic shimmer of your eyes and the iridescent glow of lip balm which has transferred from your lips onto Namjoon's.

You stay like that for what feels like an eternity; dissolving into a world where your boyfriend's palms leave semi-permanent prints upon your hips from how tightly he embraces you and his laughter resonates deep within the crevices of your soul. 

Namjoon's cellphone feels positively heavy with the weight of all the memories you have captured together. From the soft and tender lip-locks, to the poorly performed rendition of Magic Shop, to the footage you filmed of a hyperactive Moni playfully chasing a butterfly through a cluster of dandelions. 

You have squeezed an entire month's worth of desperately craved affection into a single afternoon. 

-

It is only once the air begins to develop the faintest tickle of frost that you finally decide to depart from the park.

Namjoon's jacket falls around your shoulders like a cloak of denim. His cologne overwhelms your senses, scents of crisp waters and juniper berry, and at your feet walks a very tired but exceptionally happy puppy.

After briefly stopping by your favourite local bookstore to purchase some light reading material, as well as picking up an order of strawberry croissants and freshly brewed coffee from the quaint little patisserie where you and Namjoon had your first date, you finally arrive home. 

You unclasp Moni's leash, prompting him to scurry enthusiastically over toward his pet bed for a well-deserved nap, and retreat back to your own bedroom in order to slip out of your dress and into something more comfortable. 

Namjoon's old sweatpants drape around your hips like an elasticated hula-hoop, just barely held in place by fraying cord and sheer willpower. The sweater you have liberated from the back of your closet was once a Christmas staple before the gaudy crimson bows fell off, leaving a simple doe in its place. There are pinhole sized holes all over the elbow and sleeve, as well as a fraying hem, and yet you always find your greatest comfort when dressed in those faded and pilling fibres.

Once you have changed into your lounge wear, you return back to your living room to find Namjoon staring purse-lipped at the carpet beneath his toes. He has his business cell phone tucked in against his ear.

"So there's no major emergency then, Guk? Because this is supposed to be my day off."

You can just barely make out the airbrushed whistle of Jeongguk's voice tittering apologetically on the other end of the phone. 

"Yes, she's here." Namjoon glances up at you, smiling fondly as you throw yourself down on a nearby couch. "We're about to settle in for the evening actually, so - I… yep, okay. I'll tell her. Mhm. I will. You too, Kookie. Aight, bye."

"That sounded like fun~" You tease, wedging your spine backwards into a mismatched eruption of multicolored pillows. "Are all six members present and accounted for?"

"So far. JK sends his regards."

Rubbing away the small pearls of tension which had accumulated in his temples during the duration of his phone call, Namjoon places his cellphone down on the coffee table. He passes over your coffee order as well as a beautiful ooey-gooey strawberry croissant and folds his large limbs over the criss-cross of your own.

His lips are a scarlet compress of sugar-syrup kisses against your cheek as he presses small puffs of laminated pastry into your open mouth. 

"Now, what are we watching, Princess?"

-

It is surprisingly easy to dissolve into a rarely-negotiated routine with your billion dollar boyfriend. 

With old Friends reruns playing quietly in the background, interrupted only by the occasional snore from Moni as he navigates his way through a puppy dreamland, and the balanced warmth of Namjoon's large fingertips weaving aimless patterns across your scalp, your afternoon bleeds well into the evening before Namjoon's ravenous stomach alerts you to the passage of time.

Your fingertips have been fragranced by the scent of persistently thumbed pages, and you have just reached the point in your novel where the fair maiden must choose between the handsome but tender farm-hand or the rugged but passionate business executive.

You spare a glance toward your own leading man. With his deep-set dimples and a smile which could thaw the Arctic, you conclude that you have your own fairytale ending right in front of your very eyes.

"Hey, seeing as I'm in such a good mood, why don't we start on dinner? We can attempt that spaghetti recipe again!"

You can't help but to tut at the notion. "You mean the spaghetti recipe which nearly burned our entire kitchen down?"

"That was an accident. It could've happened to anyone!"

"You tried to cook the pasta without any water, Namjoon-ah."

"In my defence, I followed the instructions carefully. 'Cook the noodles in a pan.' I did that."

"Oh, they were cooked alright." 

You giggle in response to Namjoon's petulant pout, smothering the blush of his bottom lip in a brief but affectionate kiss. 

"How about instead of turning our kitchen into a living charcoal exhibit we order takeout from that Italian place you love?"

Namjoon's stomach rumbles with ravenous hunger as though in response to your proposal and you can't help but to laugh as you reach for the phone, having already committed your boyfriend's usual order to memory.

-

It is less than an hour later, once your stomachs have been sufficiently plied by copious quantities of rich, herby sauces and ribbons of silken (and most definitely not cremated) pasta, that Namjoon is curling back into your hip with a well-worn notebook in hand. 

You have both settled on a film for the evening, opting to delve headfirst into the technicolor vibrancy of San Fransokyo with Moni settled comfortably upon your lap and the fuzziest blanket imaginable draped around your shoulders. 

Namjoon's breath is deliciously warm where it unfurls across your throat, dripping like molten honey into your collarbones and stippling a light film of goosebumps across your skin. You can't help but to shudder as his lips find your temple, your cheek, flowing freely across the ridge of your jawline until he finally settles against the upturned curl of your lips.

"I love you so much, Princess." He sighs, inundated with adoration for his girl. 

"Not as much as I love you."

As the movie plays quietly in the background Namjoon's fingertips are ever-moving. The light scrape of his pen nib darting across clean paper provides a percussive soundtrack  to Baymax's bumbling antics, the edge of his palm stained by faded charcoal ink from touching the page before his words have sufficiently dried.

Out of the corner of your eye you can just barely make out the curl of Namjoon's haphazardly jotted Hangul, piecing together the sentences he has written in your honor.

'...Your eyes are a sunrise which blanch my skin and leave me burning all night long.'

'... Your smile, sweeter than candy, paints syrup in my veins with every glance.'

'... When you say you love me I can feel it resonate skin-deep, stacking promises like petals in my ribcage.'

Namjoon's lyrics are picturesque and beautiful. Even without the accompaniment of instruments and production you can practically feel a cococonphy of emotional ARMYs singing along passionately to each word; as though wearing your boyfriend's carefully scribed poetry like a badge of honor.

To be the inspiration behind so many awe-inspiring songs, whose lyrics act like a beacon of hope for many individuals scattered throughout the universe, well… it's quite the undertaking. 

Fortunately, Namjoon makes it all worth it. He's handsome and expressive and capable of leading an entire ARMY into a head space of pure gold. 

And as he pulls your body a fraction closer to his own, the tip of his nose nestling against your pulse point to emboss an asymmetric heart on your honeydew skin, you realise you couldn't possibly love him any more.

-

As the credits for Big Hero 6 begin to roll across your television screen, stark and loud and full of celebratory fanfare, Namjoon is quick to locate the television remote underneath his saturated notebook pages in order to hit mute. 

Beside him your eyelids have fallen to a close, lips parted to release several soft snores which fall in almost perfect tandem with Moni's fitful exhales. Your lashes flutter delicately, poured like strips of raven lace across your cheekbones, and your fingers curl instinctively in your lap as you clutch onto whatever adorable projection your mind has chosen to supply.

Placing his notebook and pen aside, Namjoon is careful to shoo RapMon away from your lap so that he does not disturb you. He half-attempts to fold the blanket which had cocooned your shoulders, opting instead to toss it onto the nearby recliner out of harm's way.

Your body is feather-light when he lifts you into his embrace. He is careful to rest your cheek against his chest, hooking your legs over his forearm to make it easier to transport you to the safe haven of your bed. 

After navigating your hallway with a surprising degree of sufficiency, having knocked over little more than a plastic vase containing decorative pebbles and perhaps skewing a photo frame or three, Namjoon carefully places you upon your bed. 

Your mattress seems to eagerly welcome the barely-there compress of your body, your satin sheets lapping up against your limbs like terracotta waves frothing upon the shore.

Once he has dimmed the lights, Namjoon places his cellphone down onto his bedside table and connects his charging cable once he is certain that he has reinstated his god-forsaken alarm.

He kicks off his jeans, opting to remain in his t-shirt and boxers for tonight, and carefully removes his whistle necklace so that he can slide comfortably in bed beside you.

Your perfume lingers upon the collar of his shirt, fragrant and floral and enhanced considerably by the catalyst of Seoul's delicious summertime air. And on his lips burns the faintest smother of the strawberry lip balm you so generously applied after your post-dinner teeth cleaning; the very same lip balm that Namjoon had been so eager to kiss off of you.

In your sleep, you turn comfortably onto your side, bowing your spine backwards until you reach the solidity of your boyfriend's elongated torso. Namjoon is quick to bracket his calf around your ankles, pressing a stream of steady kisses down your jugular and over the swell of your clavicle.

"Sweet dreams, my Princess." He sighs softly. Contentedly. 

His lashes soon begin to droop as though laden with lead, influenced in no small part by an entire day's worth of carefree relaxation and indulging without consequence. 

No meetings. 

No leadership.

No band mates. 

Just his beautiful dog, his beautiful girlfriend and a beautiful twenty four hours.

[cherry-wine-supernova]

Dmitri Island - ch 2

(Moodboard done by the lovely @sandersonosterfield ✨)

A/n: hello everyone!! Here’s the next chapter to this lovely series!!! It’s a bit of a filler, but who doesn’t love a slow burn? 😏🥰 also I apologize for how long this is it’s suuuper long but it’s necessary! Promise 👌🏽

Warnings: just a whole lotta fluff, mutual (but not known) pining, and a twinge of jealousy 😏

✨

[[MORE]]

To say that the next week before the trip flew by was an understatement. It seemed like the work week went with the snap of a finger, and everyone was buzzing about the opportunity to get away. The group chat that consisted of you, Harry, Sam, Tuwaine, Harrison, and Tom had the same several messages on rotation.

How many days do we have left again?

Can’t wait to work on my tan 👌🏽

😎🌊🌴

It was as if every time you heard your phone buzz, the boys were talking about their plans for this island getaway. A lot of it consisted of how they all were going to get laid, which was quite an annoying conversation to be a part of, considering Harry and Tuwaine were egging Tom on finding a fit girl for the week.

Every time you saw the texts transpired about this topic, it made your blood boil. The whole idea of a vacation was to relax, not for hookups. But of course, the boys had other plans, plans of which included bringing Tom in on their shenanigans. You knew that getting this upset over the thought of Tom holding another girl close, hands trailing up and down her body, leaving open-mouthed kisses up and down her body... ugh, it made you positively shudder. Because you so desperately wanted that to be you, but you kept your feelings to yourself.

The day before travel day, everyone agreed staying at Tom and Harrison’s was the best idea. It made it easier for everyone - no one had to wake up super early to commute in that damned London traffic, everyone could ride together, and they had the most rooms out of everyone’s apartments. It was a win-win.

“Do you guys only eat pizza when I’m not here, or do any of you actually cook?” You asked as you opened the door to the boys’ apartment. You walked in and immediately saw three brown pizza boxes on the kitchen counter, two of which had already been emptied prior to your arrival.

“Well, y/n/n, we weren’t gonna actually cook anything the night before we leave for Dmitri Island! That would be silly,” Harrison greeted you, exiting the kitchen whilst polishing off his recent slice.

He walked over to you and leaned in to give you a hug and a messy kiss on your cheek, which made you giggle. “Ugh, Haz, you gave me a greasy pizza kiss! That’s gross!”

“Mhm, that’s what you get for arriving late, love,” Harrison laughed as he kept an arm slung around you.

Harrison and you always had a very brother/sister dynamic right from the get-go. After being introduced to him by Tom, you found out that you both had a lot in common, and even pulled a “Step Brothers” moment. It was like having a younger brother with Harrison. He was a hard-ass and a little shit, but was always such an amazing confidant. He was your go-to guy (if Tom wasn’t around) when it came to anything: work-related problems, friend issues, and even guys. Always playful, always there.

Tom had walked in on you and Harrison greeting one another, and for some reason he felt this heart drop at the sight. You and Harrison were normally affectionate, definitely platonically, but it stirred something inside of him. Seeing you in your work clothes - the way the black and white pea coat was slightly opened to reveal those high-waisted black, tailored dress pants you loved, a tight beige mock neck sweater hugging your curves, black belt with a gold buckle holding it all together - and that damn greasy kiss planted on your cheek made Tom’s jaw tighten. And he had no idea why this was affecting him so much.

Just pull it together, Holland.

“Well, Haz, y/n has a real big girl job that she actually has to commute to. Not like some of us,” Tom teased as he leaned against the doorframe of the kitchen.

Your head snapped around when you heard his voice, and you swore you let out a small gasp. He looked damn good. With his tight black v-neck that nearly skimmed the top of his very lowly-slung light grey joggers, so low that you could nearly see the white band of his Calvin’s peeking out, and his disheveled dark brown curls looking as soft as ever, it was enough to turn you into a pile of mush.

You shook the thoughts that were slowly starting to accumulate out of your head as you broke into a smile. “That’s right, Tommy. I do have a big girl job. We can’t all be actors now.”

“Yes, you know what they say. Those that can’t act land corporate jobs,” Tom teased with a wink, and you felt your knees get a little bit weak at the gesture as you walked over to give him a hug.

You felt his arms snake around your entire body as you reached up to his neck to hug him, his fingers drawing small little circles as you squeezed him tighter. You took in his warm, woodsy scent as he breathed in your woodsy floral notes of your perfume, a smile gracing both of your lips. You two stayed like that for a good five seconds before Harrison coughed. “Alright, you two leave some of the hugging for the rest of us, now.”

You and Tom broke apart quickly, light tinges of pink gracing both of your faces. You rolled your eyes as you messed up Harrison’s hair. “Whatever, div. Now, where am I staying?”

Harry cleared his throat as he turned his head from the couch where he was currently playing his PS4. “Well, y/n/n, we have some bad news...”

“Oh no, what did you divs do now?” You groaned.

“See, here’s the thing: Tom forgot that he was getting the guest room renovated, something about adding a bath or whatever in there, so our spare room is occupied now,” Tuwaine replied as he entered the room, his face turning away to take whatever reaction he was going to get from you.

“Oh my God, Thomas. You forgot about a major renovation happening in your home, right before we’re to go on vacation?” You turned to face Tom, rolling your eyes.

Tom’s face turned a darker shade of pink, rubbing his neck in embarrassment. “Sorry, darling, it’s hard to keep track of what kind of maintenance is needed or scheduled ‘round here.”

You took in his face for a moment, full of remorse and guilt, and you sighed audibly. “It’s alright, Tommy. Just need to figure out where I’m staying, that’s all.”

“Y/n, you’re more than welcome to take one of our rooms if you want,” Sam offered from the sofa, a small smile gracing his freckled face.

“Or, y/n, why don’t you stay in Tom’s room? He has the biggest bed, and we will not allow you to sleep on the couch. That shit is uncomfortable,” Harrison interjected, a sly grin growing on his chiseled face.

Harrison wasn’t a stranger to you and Tom’s obvious pining for each other. You both haven’t admitted yet to him (to which he has no idea why yet), but he knew you both were liking each other more than just best friends. You two were perfect for each other, so it was hard not to ship you both. He knew you two both would end up together one day for a while, he was just waiting for the opportunity to make it happen. And this was a start.

You ignored Harrison’s stare as you looked around the living room. Those couches were only really good for naps, but full on sleep? Nope, definitely not going to be good. “I don’t mind it really, though,” you lied.

“Y/n, that’s ridiculous. You’re getting my room, darling, no excuses,” Tom shook his head, placing his calloused hand on top of your clothed shoulder. You felt his thumb slowly move up and down, and the butterflies from earlier returned in your stomach. You looked up to see his dark brown eyes pleading at you, sparkling under the warm fluorescent lights of his home.

“Fine, only because you’re making me,” you poked his side, causing a mini fit of giggles to escape from his lips.

“Alright it’s suited then. Y/n, you can have the last of the slices of pizza, then we need to be going to sleep, boys and girl. We have an early morning tomorrow,” Tuwaine spoke, and wit that, the boys left to finish their packing, and Harry to his game.

You and Tom still stood in the kitchen as you went to grab a slice of the pepperoni that was left for you. “Mmm, you know, these are not as good as back home, but I’ll take it.”

“Well, y/n, we don’t have New York pizza here in London, darling. It’s just whatever we can find,” Tom chuckled, giving your arm a slight shove.

“Oh well, London can’t have everything now,” you joked, returning the shove back to him.

“Ah, love, we definitely do. It’s just not New York,” Tom quipped, stealing the slice of pizza from your hands as you were about to take another bite.

“Oh, you’re gonna regret that, Holland,” you look at him incredulously as he gives you the most wicked smirk.

Tom hums at your remark. “I would love to see you try, y/l/n.”

Tom’s heart beat is racing with the look you’re giving him. The playfulness behind your frown, the flicker of mischief that flashes across your eyes is enough to send the blood rushing to his head.

Control yourself, Holland.

“Oh just you wait, movie star,” you smirk as you start making a mad dash to Tom’s room, Tom following suit.

After you two nearly chased each other around the apartment, you two were laying at the edge of his California king bed, trying to calm down your ragged breaths from running around. You both were exhausted, but couldn’t move.

“Ugh, I wish someone would just take off my makeup for me, because I’m too damn comfortable right now,” you groaned, rubbing your temples.

“Darling, if you want, I could,” Tom replied, turning his head to face you, those damn dark browns twinkling so brightly.

“Oh, Tom, it’s okay. You do not need to do that, I appreciate it though,” you blushed, sitting up and looking directly at the hardwood floor to cover the heat rising to your face.

“I don’t mind,” Tom assured you, and he walked out of his room for a minute without explanation.

You frowned in confusion at his abrupt movement, when he came back with your sleek, leather suitcase in hand. “Alright, let’s get ready to sleep, y/n/n.”

“Tommy, you really don’t have to do this, you know,” you smiled weakly as you looked between your suitcase and Tom.

“Y/n. Stop being foolish and get your damn makeup wipes out so I can clean your face,” Tom concluded, stretching his hand out.

You rolled your eyes as you opened up your suitcase to find your wipes, handing one to Tom in defeat. He took the wipe from you, and with his other hand, he yanked you off the bed with a chuckle escaping your mouth.

Tom led you to his master bathroom as your pulse began to quicken. Walking into the giant restroom with marble flooring made you realize how intimate this was - Tom was about to take off your makeup. You and Tom were definitely affectionate, maybe more so than you and Harrison, and you definitely had your fair share of cuddle sessions with Tom, but this was a whole new level. And it made you nervous.

“You okay, darling?” Tom turned to look at you as he felt your hand subconsciously squeeze his a little.

“Hmm? Oh yeah, I’m fine. Just thinking about all of the travel we’re to do tomorrow,” you lied as you looked into his coffee-colored eyes. God they were beautiful eyes.

“Oh, y/n/n, it’ll be okay. It’s only a short drive to the ferry, and then before you know it, we will be in paradise, darling,” Tom comforted. “Now, come on, we need to get this shit off of you and our beauty rest.”

You chortled as you hopped onto the black and white marble counter. Once you were settled, Tom stood in front of your legs. He placed his large left hand on your right cheek as he took the wet wipe in his hand and smeared it across your left cheek. His gentle touch was electrifying against your skin. You couldn’t help but close your eyes at the touch.

Tom was doing all he could to be careful not to hurt you. He knew how to take makeup off, he’s done it so many times that it’s almost second nature to him. But it’s you. And even though this is just taking off makeup, he was being as careful and calculated as he could. He subconsciously started running his thumb along your jaw while working on the left side of your face, and for a second the swore he felt you lean in to the touch, but he quickly shook it off with a blush.

Holland, what the hell are you doing??

Tom swapped hands to start on the right side, and he finished before you even knew it. His touches were as light as a feather, and it nearly put you to sleep for a minute.

“Y/n, you’re all done,” Tom whispered as you fluttered your eyes open.

Once you did, you saw how close he was to you. Like it was so close that you could feel his warm breath dance along your lips. So close that you saw the many freckles that were scattered all along his nose, and boy were you tempted to reach out and touch them. You smelled peppermint wafting into your nose as his breaths started slowly to become more ragged. You followed his gaze to your lips, and you felt your face grow hot.

“Thank you,” you stammered, pulling away slightly to hide, yet again, another blush, and exiting the bathroom.

“You’re welcome, love,” Tom breathed, redness encompassing his face.

He followed you back into his room, walking to his chestnut brown drawers to pull out pajamas. Once he found pj’s, he went into his linen closet that was conveniently placed by his bathroom door and reached for a blanket and some extra pillows.

You watched the action in confusion. “Thomas, why are you grabbing those for?”

“Because you’re gonna be sleeping here. I’ll take the couch so you can have room,” Tom explained with a shrug.

“Nonsense, Tommy. You don’t need to do that,” you concluded. “Your bed is legit the size of the Atlantic Ocean, it’ll be okay. Also, it’s not as if we haven’t fallen asleep next to each other before.”

“Yeah, but that’s always when we all have our movie nights,” Tom cautioned, his eyebrows raising curiously. “Are you sure?”

You nodded your head as you took out your pajamas (really, it was just some old jogger sweatpants and one of Tom’s old t-shirts he gave to you a while back) from your own suitcase. “Yes, you idiot, now I’ll go change in the bathroom while you change here, and we can finally get that much needed beauty rest.”

Tom smiled, his face softening at the sound of your words. “Alright, darling. I’ll be here!”

You returned the grin as you shut the bathroom door to change, your stomach nearly dropping at the remark.

Holy shit, you’re about to sleep in the same bed as your best friend... your crush.

Pull it together, y/l/n!

Once you were in pajamas, you swung open the door to see Tom already laying in bed, his phone casting an illumination on his face. He was shirtless, which brought that same heat to your cheeks again, and you saw a peek of his dark grey joggers from under the covers. His hair was much more disheveled than it was when you first arrived, but he still looked ravishing.

Stop lusting over your best friend, y/l/n! Act normal!

Tom felt eyes on him as he looked up to see you staring at him. “Hmm do I have something on my face, darling?”

“Oh, no, sorry,” you mumbled, “just tired is all.”

Tom felt his heart go to mush when you yawned, stretching your arms high above your head. He always thought you were cute when you were sleepy, with you constantly rubbing your eyes, and your hair being slightly messy from you fussing around with it. Whenever you would come over in the evenings after work, you would always get like this, and your cuddliness made Tom’s heart increase in size.

“Come on, love. Let’s get some rest,” Tom beckoned, tapping the left side of the huge bed.

You padded over to the crisp, white bedding and slid in with a sigh. You didn’t realize how tired you were until you sunk yourself deeper into Tom’s sheets, a deep yawn escaping your lips.

You felt Tom shift beside you, and turned to see him looking at you with a puzzled look on his face. “Is that my shirt?”

You looked down at the black scoop neck tee you were wearing with a lazy but embarrassed smile. “Yeah, remember? When I spilled the tomato soup that your mom made all over my white blouse, and you gave me this top so I wouldn’t have red stains all over me?”

Tom laughed loudly at the memory, shaking his head. “Oh yeah. Still can’t believe you managed to dump an entire spoonful of tomato soup onto your shirt while you were serving it for yourself.”

“Oh hush, Holland,” you shoved him in between laughs.

The two of you were so tired at this point, that you both were doubled over in laughter. It took a good five minutes before you finally took control over your breathing, letting out a sigh. Tom followed suit, and looked over at you with the goofiest grin on his face. “Ah, y/n, you’re gonna be the death of me, you know that?”

You turn your body towards him and gave a lazy smile in response. “Yep. And you love it.”

Tom hummed as he arched an eyebrow. “Okay, sure, Jan...”

“Holland, don’t use a meme on me right now,” you chuckled, giving him a light slap on his right shoulder. “Now let’s get some sleep before I pass out right now.”

“Whatever, y/l/n,” Tom teased as he pulled the covers up over his body.

You slid down into the sheets, not really knowing what much to do besides turn on your left side, having the covers tucked under your right arm. This was such a weird feeling. You sleeping in the same bed as Tom. Your best friend. You never thought you would be in this position, and the many times you had dreamed about it, it definitely was not because of the lack of rooms in the home.

“Y/n?” Tom whispered from behind you.

“Yeah, Tommy?” You asked, turning your body to face him.

“Can we... cuddle? I’m really cold right now,” Tom mumbled, heat rising to his cheeks.

You felt your own face grow hot at his words. “You, cold? That’s impossible,” you teased. “But yeah, I don’t mind.”

Tom grinned sleepily at your response as he pulled you close to his body, and you nearly gasped at the abrupt action. You quickly nuzzled into his neck, with your head resting on his chest and his left arm slung around your body. Your right arm was laying across his bare torso, your forearm grazing the sculpted abs that graced his beautiful body. Your legs were intertwined with his so naturally, it was as if it were normal.

“Goodnight, y/n,” Tom yawned, a sleepy smile growing on his face.

“Night, Tommy,” you muttered into his neck, immediately dozing off in Tom’s safe arms.

tag list: @jillanaholland

[prorevenge]

EPIC INTERNET CAFE STORY 1 : READERS DIGEST

Here is another story from my youth, a good 20 or so years ago when I went to university I got a summer job during semesters at a local internet cafe. I've posted other stories under other subs so check them out.

Backstory:

I went to university in a large town, town mind you not a city. Situated in the valley of two rather large hills, either way you walked was uphill at some point.

I had just completed my first year and suffered a bereavement in the family, I lost my sister to cancer and took some time out from studies to gather myself before entering the 2nd year.

Needing money to survive I ended up getting a job at a local internet cafe. Yes this is the time of internet cafes. High speed broadband was super rare in the country.

Domestic broadband was barely reaching 1Mb in speed and this is the time of the infamous NTL acceptable usage policy(an ISP of the time which eventually got brought out by Richard Branson's Virgin)

This internet cafe had a T1 line. It was super-fast and had a special gaming floor usually filled with local children who loved to play CS. Unlimited use per hour paid. The floor was sticky, it smelled of BO and smoke. But it was the best games floor you could imagine. 20 odd high specced computers running lot of multiplayer games from Counterstrike to Red Alert. Heaven for a guy like me.

I started this job as a regular employee, it was just me and the manager. He and I got on really well, we had fun hosting late night and sometimes all-nighter gaming sessions.

Much of the time we would just goof around on the internet and help ourselves to some chocolate bars and these new things call energy drinks. Man those were good.

Business rules allowed us a couple of snacks and drinks during our shifts as long as we didn't take the piss and eat the whole store.

Various things happened here over the time I was employed in this establishment, a lot in a little over 8 months.

This is just one of those stories, it's the main one involving my Start of employment and interaction with the Owner and my ultimate parting with the company.

There is some overlap in the future stories, so you can refer to this when I write them. There will be some timeline post so you can read them in order.

Cast:

Cool Manager: CoolManager

Ass hole manager: ManagerA

Owner: OwnerJ

Owners Sister: SisterO

And Me, dear reader if you don't know who this is then stop reading now.

TL:DR at the end.

Various people come and go as I tell this, I shall just refer to them as and when they arrive.

Part 1: Changing of the guard.

I had been working in the cafe for a couple of months now. Let’s call the shop "Particles"

On this day CoolManager and I worked a full day and were just closing the shop. I went to get the signs from outside the store. One was located right outside the shop and the other 2 were at each end of the alleyway where the store was located. Jeffery, if you are reading this you know who you are.

I bring the signs into the store and CoolManager tells me he has something to tell me. So I sit down and he tells me that he is quitting and has given his 1 months’ notice.

Bummed by this news, I ask why but all he will say is that he wants to move on. Little did I know at the time was that he was suffering abuse from the Owner of the store, OwnerJ, regarding the owners sister. They had been dating, unbeknownst to anyone else and OwnerJ had found out and threatened to fire CoolManager or at least make his life hell as he was very protective over her.

OwnerJ was an ass, he owned 3 stores, called "Particles" , in total and would visit each one on a rotating weekly basis, taking the 4th week each month to go on holiday or some other task.

One of OwnerJ's best "motivational" tactics was to tell the store that he was currently visiting that the other 2 were doing better than this store was. He did that to all 3.

We knew this was a lie as CoolManager had found the performance report one time and saw that our store was consistently the best, we had the largest gaming floor and this attracted a lot of gamers from the Uni and college. The other 2 stores took it in turns to be the worst as their main focus was the cafe aspect which would generate less revenue based on other factors. Not heavy gaming revenue for them. They were more café than internet.

So OwnerJ was making CoolManager's life hell and CoolManager wanted to move on. I could understand that and we had a couple of adventures before he finally left. More on that in another story.

One fateful day I turned up at the store for my shift, I was on later than CoolManager and so he was the one opening up. I walk down the passage to the store and see a long queue of people. It's about 11am and the store opens at 8am, people start complaining at me for the long wait, I ask if CoolManager has not turned up and no one knows where he is.

CoolManager only handed in his notice less than 2 weeks prior, he had another 2 weeks to go so I opened the store, got the customers settled, made a few coffees and gave them to people on the house as an apology, I wouldn't charge them.

I tried to call CoolManager but he wasn't answering his phone. I tried all day to call him but he never answered. I was left to run the store the whole day.

He was supposed to work the split shift, work the morning and then take midday to afternoon off and come back for the evening till close at 8/9pm. So I end up doing the whole day. I log my hours and at the end of the day I close the shop.

When I got home I got a call from SisterO, she apologised for the mess that happened that day and said that CoolManager would not be coming back. I was in charge till they could find a replacement.

I would need to open and close the store each day but she would step in and take the afternoon shift. I was upset that CoolManager would leave me in a position like this but I was also happy as she said I could put it down as overtime. I needed the money, my student loan company had messed me around and I really needed the cash. So I accepted.

Thus began my new appointment to "manager of the store".

Part 2: The devil is in the details.

I worked with SisterO for about a month and a half, she was nice to be around but not as fun as CoolManager. She never mentioned CoolManager, even though I knew those two were still seeing each other, I never brought it up. We took on another member of staff about 5 weeks after I became manager and SisterO stayed for a week more to train them before moving on. each week she got more and more depressed. I later found out OwnerJ had been threatening her with her job and making her life hell as she wouldn't stop seeing CoolManager. he would say he would get the board of directors to fire her and her assets with the company would be forfeit.

So there we are: Me and the new guy, hence forth NewGuy. He doesn't play much part in this but you know there is someone else around now. I'm not a one man band anymore.

The summer is a hot one, and we are very, very busy, new games are coming out and it was my responsibility to ensure we had the correct number of CD's to run them. Licences are a bitch.

OwnerJ had been in the store this week and he tells us that we will soon be getting the new console from Microsoft, the XBOX. Wow, this was a big deal. we had only really been a PC game kind of store, to get something this big would be awesome. New signs had been brought to reflect that we would stock the machine for our gamers to play.

The weeks roll on and so do the questions regarding the Xbox. we had not received a single console, OwnerJ kept telling me that we would get them soon , but non ever materialised.

Our signs outside still advertised them, and I was getting pissed off with the constant customer complaints. So one afternoon I took some black electrical tape and covered over the parts of the signs that had anything Xbox related.

A couple of days pass and I get a call from OwnerJ. he demands that I take off the tape and advertise the Xbox again. I tell him that we are advertising a service we don't have, it's not good and all the complaints are just making the store look bad. He sticks to his guns and tells me to take off the tape. gritting my teeth I agree and he ends the call.

I could not help but think we were breaking the law somehow, we had nothing of the sort in our store, no Xboxes, no games for the Xbox and it had been weeks since we were promised them, all the posters and signage was there with XBOX in big letters. but no XBOX.

So I roll into the store the next day, I’m really tired the long shifts are starting to take their toll on me. I inform NewGuy of the rule and like me he thinks it's crazy. but we do as we are told. It is then that I get an idea in my head, I print out a bunch of "coming soon" signs and stick them over the posters for the Xbox just like a movie theatre would do.

I thought I had solved our issues but no, I get a call from OwnerJ and he tells me to take those down as well. I can't get a break, I had to do something about this... justice had to be served but how....

Part 3: Don't go towards the light T3chn0G1bb0n

Another week rolls by and I host an all-nighter with the local kids, CS and AVP2 (alien vs predator 2) and Unreal Tournament. Much fun was had at this, it was a welcome break from the rest of the time there recently. The only complaint I had is there were a couple of kids who insisted on using their own keyboards and mice. I offered to go get a torch so they could see under the desks to plug them in. It took a little longer to find than normal as the kids had chucked their bags in the cupboard and I could not reach the toolbox without moving them.

I find the torch and walk half way up the stairs to the gaming floor to hear the room in a panic, someone had the bright idea to use a cig lighter to illuminate the underside of the benches to plug in their mouse, not waiting for me to bring the torch.

They allowed people to smoke indoors back in those days. The game floor always stank of stale smoke. The poor air con unit barely coped to purify the air. With all the dust, grime and nicotine stains and cig ash I would regularly keep it going over night and all day to clear out the smell and ash particles, yes this floor got pretty dirty during the week and we only had one cleaner, once a week.

I tried my best but there wasn’t enough time in a day to monitor the store and clean it , it really needed a deep clean and our cleaner did the bare minimum.

Something sweet and sticky that was around suddenly decided to catch fire. Like I said I’m about halfway up the stairs when I see a kid grab the fire extinguisher at the top of the stairs.

My first thought was oh shit fire, but then I realised that the particular fire extinguishers we had in the store were not Co2 but H2O. Fuck, fuck , fuck……

I move at close to the speed of light and grab the fire extinguisher off the kid before he has the chance to pull out the safety pin. Water and electricity don't mix don’t ya know!

I grab the fire blanket off the wall and use that to put out the fire. in hindsight it was not a very big fire but 14 year old kids don't know any better. being only 18 myself this was a shock. I give the kids a bollocking for using a lighter and put the fire extinguisher back on the hook.

We end our gaming session early after a couple more hours, with all the excitement, it has worn us all out. I make a note to call OwnerJ about this issue in the morning and go home.

Much to my surprise the following day OwnerJ is in the store, I had completely forgotten about it being his week in the store as he hadn't turned up recently.

I walk over to OwnerJ and ask him about the fire extinguisher and tell him about the accident that happened the night before. OwnerJ isn't really giving me much attention to my complaint.

I tell him we really should have Co2 and not H2O extinguishers for the exact reason I prevented last night. He scoffs and tells me we don't actually need to have them as the store is exempt from needing extinguishers. I thought to myself that this can't be true, surely there is one thing to have no fire extinguishers as you are exempt, but another to have the complete incorrect ones for the business purposes. I offer to remove them and put them in the cupboard for staff only use and explained to him that a customer was the one who grabbed the water extinguisher and could have gotten electrocuted with its use. Again he scoffs and tells me to not touch them, we are exempt from needing them so they can stay.

I was livid at this, no concern what so ever for the customer or my safety. this didn't sit well with me at all. I was determined to do some research into this as it couldn’t possibly be true.

A plan began to formulate in my head....

Part 4: Bay leafs

Two days later, I am sitting at home as it's my day off, A sunny Saturday and NewGuy is taking the shift for the day. I needed some R&R, working 7 days a week was hard.

My phone rings. it's NewGuy.

"Umm", he says, "You need to get here now, there are 3 big fuck off bailiffs here demanding to see OwnerJ and they won't leave. I cannot reach OwnerJ on his phone and they are making all these threats about taking stuff away. customers are leaving the store over it."

I tell him to lock up the gaming floor and any other door and hide the keys, the less they can access the better. I make it down to the store like a student who ate a vindaloo the night before and now needs the toilet. Gasping for breath I enter into the store and ask WTH is going on.

“We want to see OwnerJ”, they keep telling me. And I keep telling them “he isn't here”.

The bailiffs disappear outside when their phone rings. OwnerJ had returned their call and they spend the next 20 minutes on the phone to him. He must have been in his car when he called them back as he appeared at the front door some 20 minutes later hence.

Hushed mutterings and waving of arms are all that can be seen and heard from where NewGuy and I are standing, behind the staff counter looking out the window.

Then suddenly it all stopped and the bailiffs left. OwnerJ came into the store and said that they had gone and we were to tidy up and open the store again. The bailiffs had begun to take things when they were taking inventory, not caring where they put stuff when they moved it.

I asked OwnerJ what had happened only to have him respond with , "mind your own business", ooooh you are going to meet my wrath soon OwnerJ.....

OwnerJ leaves and NewGuy and I do as we are told, does not take long for the store to open up. I reminded myself that I would get the last laugh, I should just wait and bide my time for the right moment to spring the trap...

I found out that OwnerJ had not been paying the council his business rates and taxes for months, he had been going on all these holidays with the money that should have been spent on council tax and rates.

The council were in the final stages of court proceedings and if nothing was done that day, we would have had the store stripped of goods to pay off the debt. not good.

Couple of hours later when the store is open, a few kids had heard of the events from earlier on and were making a lot of fuss out on the shop floor trying to ask me questions.

I take them out the back with NewGuy and explain what was going on and how OwnerJ had screwed the pooch with the council. I apologised to NewGuy for the horrible experience, those bailiffs were really rude and they were very intimidating, I told NewGuy he could go home early and I would finish up. I was upset at OwnerJ, not only had he not apologised for what had happened he was just out right rude and there was not even an excuse from him. I was not happy with OwnerJ and I expressed that fully in front of NewGuy my thoughts on the matter. I thought being outside in the alley was safe to speak.....

Out of the corner of my eye I see a lady get up out of her seat and leave the store... I rush after her as she has not paid, but I fail to catch her. Who was she? I would find out a few weeks later.

Part 5: Out with the old in with the new.

It wasn't long after the incident with the bailiffs that things began to change. I was hard at work trying to find any legislation on the regulations for our store. those fire extinguishers were on my mind all the time. Hitting brick wall after brick wall, back then government and local council websites were short and very brief, not much more than a geocities style website. good old web rings.

OwnerJ walks into the store and introduces a guy who was going to be the new manager, this is our ManagerA ladies and gents. He was tall , skinny and had a crew cut hair style.

I move out of my chair to shake this guy’s hand and welcome him, he was cold and uninterested, and I had a weird vibe about him, couldn't place my finger on what it was at the time.

Demotivated at the loss of my role as manager , I knew deep down it wouldn't last. I was due to go back to University in a couple of months so I could not maintain the position for ever.

ManagerA and I never seemed to get on, there was no chemistry between us, he just wanted to do his job and go home. for the most part he was ok but this was about to change.

One day, one of the computers failed, hdd failure or something, it was constantly crashing. I was diagnosing the problem when ManagerA asks me what is wrong.

“It's being Ghey” (read: gay) I said.

Now at this time gay in our kid slang "gay" didn't refer to anyone of the homosexual persuasion but rather it was more akin to "lame". times were changing and to use this word in a derogatory sense was quickly becoming wrong speak then but it wasn't fully mainstream yet. Now whilst I don't condone homophobic slurs, it wasn't the same back then, language was changing and I would not intentionally use a slur like that, and today I refrain from it totally. But back then, it was common slang, it was acceptable and we didn't mean anything bad to those of the homosexual persuasion by using it. Just as Gay originally was synonymous with "good, happy", the kid thing of using opposites to mean something was common, like wicked to mean great etc. A friend had dodged a bullet recently from a GM in an online game recently where he said "gay" in voice chat, he received a complaint followed by a temp ban, it could have gone worse if it was 2019

ManagerA flipped his lid, "what did you say?".

Remembering this with some rapid thinking, the word "Ghey" could be just another play on words. quickly reacting…

"Ghey, I said the pc is being Ghey, G H E Y, it's not doing what it's supposed to do"

This got the side eye from ManagerA at me, daggers pointing in my direction. I technically had not done anything wrong. he just misheard me, /click. And thus began the quick and sudden downfall of our relationship. He changed into the ass hole manager of this story. Turns out he was gay. He was keeping it hidden in case of any trouble, it was a student town, but being out and gay was still quite unheard of back then. Many encounters following this, saved for another story.

Later that week I was due to host another all night gaming session, it was a tournament I had been planning for a while when ManagerA tells me that he will be hosting the tournament. I said I was actually going to compete and that I would want to host it. he said no and that I was “not going to host it let alone compete on company time”. He would run the store and stay down stairs surfing the web etc. whilst it went on.

Bullshitting liar he was. I found out that he took part in the tournament and was not downstairs once ever during that night. mother fucker screwed me over. his smug face will forever be etched into my mind.

I never spoke a word to him about it. To this day I hate his guts for it. He wasn't going to be the target for my revenge but I would make sure he suffered in the fallout.....

Part 6: the end of an era

I turn up for my shift, it's mid-week, and a busy one, kids will be going back to school soon so things should quieten down. I would be due to go back to uni for the 2nd year come end of October and I had just celebrated my birthday. I had booked the day off and had a great time at Pizza Hut. Refreshed I walk into the store. I greet Manager A and get to work.

ManagerA is sitting at the customer side of the store browsing the web. When someone piques my interest, there’s a tall bald guy, built like a brick shit house sitting at another desk deep in thought staring at his screen. He’s new it’s normally the usual regulars about this time of day.

I had been drafting my resignation recently and was going to give my 1 months’ notice in the next couple of days, so I sat at the staff computer and began to finish up its final details. I printed out the document when the Big Bald Brick Shit House Guy, got up and requested ManagerA meet him outside for a chat. I shrugged and gathered my recently printed document.

ManagerA walks back into the store and says to me, "hey T3chn0G1bb0n, ummm, I don't know how to say this but, you're fired, gather your things and leave"

Quicker than I’ve ever reacted before, I reach for my paperwork and hand it to him, to this day I don't know why I reacted this way, instinct I assume, and I gave ManagerA my resignation.

"you can't fire me, I quit" I say.

Puzzled, ManagerA looks at me, looks at my paperwork for a while and slumps back on his heels. I grab my bag and leave. In my letter of resignation I had spilled the beans on everything, all the shitty things that went on whilst I was there that I have not detailed in this story and how I was treated. I had enough evidence to shut the business down for all the dodgy practices and the health and safety violations. My time spent researching had paid off.

I get a call from ManagerA a couple of days later, inviting me for an exit interview and to pick up my last pay cheque. I'm intrigued because I was expecting my cheque in the mail like all the others.

I turn up at the store, expecting it to be packed with customers, but no, it was empty. ManagerA gestures for me to follow him up to the gaming floor.

Who should be sitting there but none other than Big Bald Brick Shit House Guy. What was he doing here? Remember the woman who ran out when I was in the alleyway talking to NewGuy and the kids? She was OwnerJ's wife! She had heard my rant to NewGuy about the time with the bailiffs and had blabbed to OwnerJ about it. Without any more proof than her words they would have to have taken time to gather evidence to fire me, Bringing in ManagerA was a stop gap to make sure the place didn't fall apart in my wake. And the Ghey remark was at the top of the list of reasons for my dismissal. How petty.

Big Bald Brick Shit House Guy and ManagerA grill me for an hour, in my naivety I stayed and listened to it all, but I know now I should have left there and then. They referred to my letter and how they had evidence that I was behind the dodgy practices as I was the manager at the time. Telling me they had cctv evidence. Knowing enough even back then that they were bluffing I called their bluff. They backed down. They didn’t have any cctv and they knew I knew. I'm not sure what the real purpose of the meeting was but they were very nervous, angry nervous, you could tell the anger was a cover.

In the end they let me go, with a veiled threat of court action if I pursued any complaint against them on the things I listed in my resignation letter. Telling me they would bankrupt me in court as they had more money than I did and it would take me everything I had to defend myself.

As it happened, my plan was already coming to fruition. I had been meeting with CoolManager, remember him? Since the incident regarding the fire extinguishers. I found out he had left early due to getting in a punch up with OwnerJ the day before mentioned earlier in this story. He had to lay low for a while.

He had let me in on some regulation that did stipulate the store required fire extinguishers, and not just any fire extinguishers, but specifically CO2 because we had so much electrical equipment they had to be the correct type to deal with the very incident with the lighter on that games night.

I had reported the company to the council around the time after the bailiff visit. An investigation had then been triggered and they had started to investigate the other stores before mine.

They had found several health code violations in the stores for food safety, the stores had very bad hygiene and it was found that a few cases of food poisoning of customers had come from those stores. Although they had not been subject to the fire extinguisher problem, they had the correct ones, our store definitely had the wrong ones per some regulation I forget. They already had concerns over the store following the problems with the council tax and rates. but this was the icing on the cake and they used their full powers to……..

My store was shut down for 2 months whilst they brought it up to code. They had electricians in who found many code violations with the wiring. they found small burns in the cables under the desks, kids had been using lighters all the time to light up the area to see, even from before I started working there, and that the fire I experienced was not the first in the place.

Long ago fire engines had to be called out after a kid did exactly the same with me , and the games room was apparently damaged by the resulting fire, blackened with smoke, it was repainted to all black and blinds were put up to cover the burns on the walls etc. I never noticed the smoke smell because of the cig smell.

All the desks had to be ripped out and replaced with fire resistant wood. they were originally some form of chipboard which was a major fire hazard because of the glue they used.

It cost OwnerJ a small fortune in repairs. On top of that OwnerJ was slapped with a very hefty fine by the council, they had to let NewGuy and ManagerA go (told you ManagerA I would get the last laugh!). But I feel sorry for NewGuy and when I saw him I apologised when he told me all the details I now provide to you dear reader.

SisterO cut ties with OwnerJ, she had sold her shares of the company to Big Bald Brick Shit House Guy and had married CoolManager. They moved out of the town to start a new life. Explains why Big Bald Brick Shit House Guy suddenly came on the scene.

I ended up completing my 2nd year of Uni but suffered a mental break down due to the death of my sister the year before which caused me to leave and move back home. I had buried myself into this job the right after her death to block out the anguish and grief I felt.

But on this day , I was the one who triumphed.

Fuck you OwnerJ. Fuck you Big Bald Brick Shit House Guy, fuck you ManagerA and fuck you Particles.

TL:DR, just read the story, it’s great.

T3chn0G1bb0n

(source) story by (/u/T3chn0G1bb0n)

[theofficefantasyfootball]

WEEK 2 - Wrap Up

Love Hurts!

Well guys.  This week in our league the #1 and #2 draft picks went down.  Saquon Barkley is out for the season and McCaffrey is out 4-6 weeks (which really means 8 weeks)  And even then we all know he won’t really be the same CMC - he’s damaged goods.  Guys like Scott and Brett are probably in a real sad place right now.  Dealing with the loss of their most beloved players and also dealing with a loss for the week.  It’s a lot to take in so if you have time to reach out and let them know you are thinking of them I know that they will appreciate it.  Hang in there guys - there are only 11 more week until playoffs and I believe you will be able to find great replacements for these players that consistently put up 20-30 points each week!

BOOMER SOONER vs TREE HUGGER

I didn’t think we would be here, I really didn’t.  I am just being honest.  Stu Jones is 2-0.  He took down Scott Krippayne (Tree Huggers)  this week - who as mentioned above lost Barkley early in the game and also was without Kittle this week.  Rough, rough, rough. 

Stu sat Edelman, Fournette and Goff but it didn’t matter -  because he was still able to put up 114 points to give him the win. 

Listen, it’s early...and this week proved to all of us that you never know what is around the corner for your star players and you have to accept that.  But, Stu being undefeated has given me some pause - I mean, can he keep it up when he faces the FUNK GUY in week 3?  Scott, I am sure you don’t care about 1 stupid loss...plus your Seahawks took care of business - you will be fine right?   There’s always a silver lining - remember that!

LONG LEFT BALLERS vs FUNK GUY

Wow!  What a...battle these two had...huh!?!?!  Talk about a disappointing day for Bebo to put up 139.44 points and lose?  Right?  Yikes!  Dana, who earlier this week was texting me that his team sucks - managed to put up nearly 170 points to take down Bebo and become the champion of this match up.  Just a rock hard win for Dana.  Highlights?  You want highlights?  Sure - how about Aaron Jones with 46, Mahomes with 31, Mike Evans with 21 and Jonnu Smith with 20.  Pretty damn good.  Bebo, sorry man...that’s a tough loss.   All you can do is make adjustments, keep working it and move on from this rough start.  Bebo moved to 0-2 and Dana to 1-1.  Great win Dana.

MR. AWESOME vs TuPADRE

Everyone knows that Andy and Gabe are the best of friends so fantasy footaball is not really a competition thing between the two of them.  I know in my heart that is the case, especially with Gabe recovering in the hospital still - but I have to admit that I have been secretly hoping that Gabe will pull out a few wins these first few weeks just so when he is able to re-engage he isn’t totally out  for the season.  But, TuPadre - just like Brett Rutledge last week - went a head and took advantage of the match up and grabbed a win. 

In all seriousness - I want to let everyone know that Gabe continues to improve.  It is going to be a long process but we are all hoping he will return fully and remind us all why he is named Mr. Awesome. 

Gully moves to 1-1...Gabe to 0-2 but I feel a win coming on when he faces the Moose in week 3.

U SUCK vs TRADE WITH ME

What a crazy wonderful surprise to beat Brett Rutledge in week 2!  I have to be honest - knowing that I was going up against Tom Brady, (I was sure would be out to prove something after losing in week 1), CMC, Kelce and kind of expecting Adrian Peterson to get more than he actually did...I thought it was going to be a blood bath.  Especially after Elliott and Dak started out with a pair of fumbles to send me into negative digits right away...but it all worked out in the end.  I had a good Dallas Cowboys offensive attack as they spent the entire game trying to come back from the dead and a few 58 yard kicks from Butker and that’s all it really took!  Thanks Brett for not ruining my Sunday and allowing me to get a win!  Sorry about CMC.  He was solid and even played through the hurt for me last week but it just must not be your year.  At least you have a lot of RB’s on your bench to rotate in!

LANAKILA vs BACKDOOR BANDITS

Ole Kyle had a little hiccup this week in his quest to win another championship.  I guess what I am trying to say as nice as I can is that the backdoor bandits took one up the ass.  He lost. 

Kyle has been playing a lot of golf lately....he is even building a small compound on a swanky golf course in Little Rock.  This gif reminded me of him this week....so close to pulling it off and then just like that - it’s all over. 

Lanakila needed a win.  Sure, we can all say things like, “it’s a long season” or “it’s early, so much can happen” but no one wants to be without a win.  And Cliff is now 1-1 and primed to keep moving up.  Both of these guys escaped the week without any major injuries or players out for the season...so expect them both to keep competitive in the next few weeks.

MOOSE ON THE LOOSE vs HOWARD

If there is anything i know about the Moose it’s how he loves to have his games come down to Monday Night.  He LOVES the excitement.   And heading into this one - Rob was up 5 points and all left to play were Josh Jacobs (Moose) and Jared Cook  (Howard). 

Overall the game was a good one - with the Saints taking an early lead and the Raiders coming back to tie at the half.  Then in the 3rd quarter the Raiders took a big lead.  Rob held the lead but every now and then the Moose would be in position to take over the lead...like Jacobs trying 3 times on the 1 and not getting in...stuff like that. 

With 5 min left the Moose was still down 3.62 points.  When they Raiders got the ball back - they were just trying to kill clock so they were running it with Jacobs.  Mitch was desperately texting me “FEED HIM!!!” but after the possession leading into the two kin warning he was still down 1.92 and they were now handing off to Booker and Richard.  I just envision Mitch going crazy!  Why not Jacobs he was probably saying....

I heard nothing from Rob.  He’s a 3 time champion...he knows what he’s doing...steady, solid...sure of himself. 

As the clock worked it’s way to 1:07 the Raiders lined up for a field goal to try and close out the game - from 54 yards - it was good!  No way the Raiders need to take the field again - so Josh Jacobs night is over...and so is the Moose.

Good win Howard.  Man you are good at this fantasy football thing!

SURVIVOR

Everyone moves on...couple of close games with the Titans and the Chiefs but everyone that was still alive - will get another chance in week 3.

HIGH POINT WINNER

So, this weeks high point winner is Dana Cappillino with 169.38 points.  A few of you made female option suggestions for the High Point Image Prize and Dana suggested ju Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman).  I am not going to constantly go with suggestions but I looked over his suggestion and from my research it looks like Gal is an athlete after all so she does qualify.  I do take this seriously and will not allow non-athletic women into the club.  Congrats Dana.  $20 win...and Gal Gadot

[c-j-writes]

Fictober 2019

Prompt #2 “Follow me, I know the area.” 

[Untitled Gay Mess]

Rating: T

Warnings/Tags: Will involve drug abuse in later chapters

Chapter Two

The huge modern style house loomed in front of me. It never failed to remind me of some castle. All the houses around this town seemed to resemble some kind of elaborate statement of wealth. Teenagers seeped out of every open space of this one. They sat on the porch, leaned out of windows and scattered themselves around the front lawn. And that’s just the view walking up. 

Once I passed the threshold, a wave of Axe scented testosterone hit me. The strong scent almost choked me, making my eyes water the smallest bit. I hoped with every part of me that college guys next year would have the mental capacity to better judge how much of that shit they actually need to spray. 

A few guys from the baseball team waved to me and nodded. I greeted them back and scanned the entryway for any sign of Sophie. Knowing her, she’d probably be near the booze, so I pushed my way through the crowded house in the direction of the kitchen. A scrawny kid from the JV soccer team stepped right in front of me on my way. He stood there and smiled as if we were friends. 

“Hey, Andy, how’s it going?” His eyebrows did this thing where they lifted after every word he said. It was weird and kind of creepy if I’m being honest. 

“Out of my way, Kid,” I reply, pushing him gently enough to move him without causing a scene. Behind me, I heard a roar of laughter kick up, but I kept moving toward the kitchen. More people greeted me and I split my reactions between nodding back and simply ignoring them. 

When I finally made it to the kitchen, there was some kind of drinking game going on. Two football players were standing across the center island from each other and downing shots. Neither looked in great shape, but they were both powering through. The entertainment caught my attention for a few minutes until one of them took off running for the nearest toilet to hurl in and I remembered that I was supposed to be finding someone. 

“Hey, yo, Andy!” I turned around at my name, finding one of my newer teammates, Tanya, struggling to make her way through the crowd towards me. The kitchen was slowly dissipating after the enticing game ended and everyone refilled whatever they’d been drinking, so by the time Tanya reached me it was fairly empty and quieter than the surrounding rooms.

“Hey, T, what’s up?” I smiled, reaching my hand towards her to slap palms. 

“This place is crazy, I thought it would be a little more chilled out since the school year just started, but it’s intense.” The redhead glanced out of the entryway to the living room that was connected and her eyes widened in exasperation. I followed her gaze and took in the number of teenagers around me. 

“Eh,” I commented, shrugging my shoulders, “I’ve seen worse crowds to be honest.” Though it has been a while since I’d been to a party this big, the last one was probably at the end of last school year. Thinking back, I’m surprised that I can’t remember Tanya being there. She’d joined the team halfway through last season coming from another school, but she got on quickly with the whole team. There was no reason she wouldn’t have been invited. Especially given that it was basically a goodbye party for all of the seniors leaving for colleges. “Weren’t you at the grad party that Matt threw last year?” 

“Who?” she asked. 

“Matt, from the guy’s team? He threw a grad party for the seniors last year.” She looked around the ceiling as if the answer she was looking for was up there somewhere. I turned towards the counter that held all the alcohol while she thought about it, pouring myself a healthy mix of vodka and Coke. 

“Yeah, no, I didn’t go to any parties last year.” My eyes probably bulged out a bit at that.

“What? None? I would’ve definitely invited you if I’d known that, damn, I’m sorry.” I didn’t know why no one would’ve invited her, she never had any issues with anyone and she was one of the best players on our team. I took a sip of my concoction, feeling it burn its way down my throat.

“I got invites, I just never went. Parties aren’t really my thing.” She lifted herself up onto the kitchen island. I stared at her for a bit too long, trying to figure out how she could fit so well with the team and have parties not be her thing. It was like a tradition for our team to party together, we even rotated whose house we went to after every game. 

“But we threw tons of parties during the season, you didn’t go to any of them?” I knew T was fairly quiet, more so than the rest of the team, but I would’ve noticed if someone was consistently absent like that.

“Those get-togethers after games? Yeah, I went to those, but I never went to the ones with more people than just the team.” She lifted her knees up so she could rest her chin on them. I never noticed how shy she was, she was always so bubbly at practice. I brushed a few flyaways out of my face just as someone slapped me on the back.

Kyle, the guy whose house we’re in, comes up beside me with a grin and dilated pupils. “Dude, Andy, what’s up? I haven’t seen you like all summer,” I said, trying to smack my palm but missing my hand entirely. Leave it to Kyle to get plastered at his own party. 

“Yeah, I was busy, what’s new,” I replied, leaning my back against the island next to T and taking another sip of my drink. 

“Hey, your friend upstairs was looking for you, by the way.” He could’ve meant anyone, but the statement did spur me into remembering that I was supposed to be finding Sophie, not chatting with Tanya. 

“Shit, right, Soph,” I muttered. “I’ll see you later, T.” I swept out of the room, trying not to slosh my drink too much as I bounded up the stairwell. Kyle didn’t mention where upstairs she’d be, but I could safely assume it was probably the upstairs lounge. I’d been to enough of his parties to know my way around. 

There were fewer people upstairs, so making my way down the hall was a lot easier than getting around downstairs had been. The lounge materialized beside me and I glanced in, searching the room for the blonde head I'd been looking for. Before I found her, half the room burst into happy squeals.

"Andy!" I barely had time to register my teammates' faces before three of them had crushed me in a hug. "Where have you been?" Laughter bubbled out of me as I nearly lost my footing. 

"Calm down, I was just downstairs," I replied. The girls slowly let go of me, all talking animatedly about some drinking games they were winning. "Hey, have you seen Soph?" I cut them off. Brittany, the tallest of the three, pointed to the far corner of the room. I glanced over and found my blonde sitting on a couch with some other figure I didn't recognize. There were too many bodies in between us to see a clear face.  "Thanks." Absently, I pushed through the group, who simply started chatting with each other. 

There were more people in this one room than I'd found in the entire upstairs area so far, so stumbling through them was a chore. Especially with some of my teammates stopping to greet me every few seconds. I lost part of my drink to some guy's shirt, but he didn't even glance back at the incident. Finally, I reached the corner that Soph was residing in and grinned as she leaped up at me. 

"Ands, what took you so long!" Soph cried, basically hanging off of me. My hands found her shoulders and pushed her up to face me. Her eyes were bloodshot like she'd been crying, but her smile was as bright as ever. 

"Hey, are you okay?" I asked, trying to move my head to continue facing hers as she looked around the room. She was way past drunk. "Soph, how much have you had to drink?"

"I haven't had that much!" She stepped backward and fell back down onto the couch. I rolled my eyes, I didn't sign up to drag her ass home from the first party of the year. She started laughing to herself and the person beside her rested a hand on her shoulder. That's when I took the time to notice who it was that was sitting there. 

"You have got to be kidding me," I muttered. Mack looked up at me, her eyes burned into me like they always do.

"Hey, Andrea," she replied, slightly less cheerful than she usually is. 

"Andy," I grumbled. She glanced down toward Soph before looking back at me.

"I found her up here playing some stupid game, she kept tripping, I didn't want her to hurt herself, so I sat her down." I scoffed. 

"What are you even doing here? Who would invite you to a party?" As far as I knew, she didn't know anyone in the school, much less the crowd that she knows I'm a part of. 

"I came with a friend, but I kind of lost track of her when I bumped into this one." Sophie rolled her eyes and looked at me, or somewhere near my left shoulder, but I assumed she was trying to look at me. 

"Come on, I'm fine," she interjected. She tried to reach out and pat me on the leg in reassurance, nearly toppling over in the process. Mackenzie put a hand on her shoulder to steady her and glanced back up at me. 

"Andrea, she's acting like she's on something." My gaze turned to Mackenzie then. 

"She wouldn't do that," I snapped. As concerned as I was for Soph, I knew her better than Mackenzie. Hell, I didn't even know Mackenzie was aware of her existence. I knew my friend and I knew she wouldn't be stupid enough to get caught up in that kind of shit. She has college to think about, the same as me. At my tone, Mackenzie seemed to back down a bit, looking at her feet before continuing. 

"Andrea, I'm just trying to help." She glanced back up, her amber eyes conveying more emotion than I had in me. I sighed. It felt like a small failure to give in, but I couldn't deny that she was right. What mattered right now was Sophie, not me and my issues. 

"Fine, thanks." I kneeled in front of the blonde, taking her hands in mine to get her attention. "Hey, Soph, I'm going to get you home, alright?" She groaned her argument, but I started pulling her out of the seat anyway. 

 "Here let me help you." Mackenzie scooped up Sophie into her arms effortlessly.

“I don’t need your help,” I tried to argue. But, as always, Mackenzie didn’t take no for an answer.

“I wasn’t really asking.” Sophie giggled at her response. 

“Yeah, well, neither was I.” Mackenzie stopped on her way to the door after my words sunk in. She turned to look at me and leaned forward.

“Look, I don’t want to fight with you,” she whispered, trying not to let Sophie hear her. “Can we just focus on getting your friend out of here right now?" With a quick glare, I nodded. "Okay, now where am I going? This house is like a maze."

"Just follow me, I know the area," I commented, leading Mack toward the stairs. When I reached the last step, I felt a hand on my shoulder. Upon further investigation, the appendage belonged to Trenton, some friend of Derrick’s that Sophie had wanted to set me up with. He looked rather concerned when he saw Sophie in Mackenzie’s arms.

“Hey, Andy, what happened to her?” He asked. His hands fidgeted as if he wanted to help but didn’t know exactly how.

I didn’t know how to respond. Sophie wouldn’t want me to tell everyone that she got completely wasted, she’d want to be able to preserve her pride as much as possible. But when Derrick walked up beside Trenton, I flipped shit. “And where the hell have you been? You’re supposed to look after her when you take her to these parties!” The tall blond looked dumbfounded. I shouldn’t have expected anything else, he’s an idiot. Sophie could never see through the mask of popularity, but I could. 

“She tells me all the time not to,” he replied, trying to laugh it off. “You know, she thinks she’s a big girl, can handle herself.” I wanted nothing more than to deck the asshole right there, but before I could, someone beat me to it. Mackenzie. Her fist plowed into his cheek like a bullet. 

I looked behind me to find Sophie having been laid down on a couch nearby. Mackenzie walked back to her after punching Derrick in the jaw. She picked her up and continued out of the house as if nothing had happened. The entire room was silent, Derrick was nursing his jaw, too drunk to really react, and Trenton was just quietly watching to see what I was going to do. I tried to stutter out an explanation, but couldn’t get anything out. When my words failed me, I decided on simply following Mackenzie. 

I had to jog through the house to catch up to her. “What was that?” I asked when she was right in front of me again. She gave me a fleeting look over her shoulder, still making her way through the crowd of people in the living room.

“He deserved it,” she replied. We reached the front door and she moved to the side for me to open it. I wanted to ask her more questions, but it was late and Sophie was what mattered right now. So, I opened the door. Mackenzie walked out and quickly scanned the cars in the yard before turning to me. “Please tell me you’ve gotten your license by now.” 

My stomach dropped as I realized what she meant. I had to take Soph home and I, being an idiot, rode my skateboard over here. I looked over at the porch to our left, noticing my skateboard resting against the side of the house. Mackenzie sighed.

“Okay, you’re not going to like this proposition, but I drove my friend here,” she said, looking me straight in the eyes like she always did, making me feel like she saw right through me. “My Subaru is over there.” She gestured with her head to the driveway, where I noticed her bright blue car. “I can drive the two of you home if you need.” 

My mouth twisted around itself while my mind spun around everything I wanted to say. I wanted to say that I didn’t need her help, that I didn’t need her, that she could go fuck herself. But none of that was true. And none of it would help Sophie. “Fine,” I replied. It was quiet, barely audible. But Mackenzie heard it and nodded. She carried Soph over to the vehicle and set her into the backseat. I picked up my skateboard, feeling the dread setting into my stomach. 

“Where am I going?” Mackenzie asked once I stepped down into the car. I looked back at Soph, she was nearly unconscious. My father would have a fit if he saw her like this, it was better to just sneak her back into her own home.

“Denham Street, last house on the left before it turns into Richmond.” Mackenzie nodded as she turned the car on, revving the engine louder than was probably necessary. She barely checked her mirrors before she was backed out and taking off from the lit up house.

The car hummed quietly as Mackenzie drove down the road, towards the main street. Glancing behind me, I found that Sophie was fast asleep. Snoring lightly into the seat cushion underneath her head. That left Mackenzie and I. Silently driving through town. 

I tried to keep my attention on the road or my phone or the hem of my shirt. Anything to keep us from having to talk. And then—

"So, how have you been?" 

If only it were possible to just pretend I hadn't heard her. But it was too silent otherwise for that. "I'm fine," I replied, keeping my eyes forward. Not letting myself look at her. Why did she have to sound so fucking genuine? God, she was making me wish she'd just put on her stupid shit-eating grin and crack a joke. 

"I think that's the least aggressive thing you've said to me all day." She chuckled as she said that. That stupid chuckle that takes up half her face. I didn't even have to look at her to know that.

"Don't get used to it." Another chuckle. Why was she so amused at my bad attitude? 

"Of course not, I know better." I almost said, 'do you', but I figured that would just engage her more. She was getting more and more infuriating, so any reaction would just build my own frustration either way. She had been right at the house, I didn't want to pick a fight. Not tonight. Not in this situation. 

Instead, I stared out the window. Focusing on the blurred trees and houses that we passed, not on the brunette beside me. God, the drive to Sophie's house had never seemed longer. Closing my eyes, I tried to lean my head against the window and pretend I was anywhere else. I breathed in through my nose, calming my mind from wherever it was trying to run off to. As if the universe didn't care how much I wanted to ignore the situation, my lungs filled with the smell of cedarwood and pine needles. She could get an air freshener that’s not as strong or something, so it wouldn't invade my senses. But the smell immediately brought my mind crashing down to last summer. To the countless hours that I spent sitting here while she drove us wherever we were going at the time. 

We worked together. She had just moved to town and was the new face that stuck in my head for the few hours that I didn’t spend with her at work or on the beach or in this damn car. She didn’t know anyone else in town and I just wanted a summer where I didn’t have to be the person everyone knew. It worked out perfectly. Until I realized she’d be going to the same school as me in the fall. And it suddenly got harder to keep my old life from messing up the one I created on the side. 

We turned onto Sophie’s street and before I could think better of it, I glanced over at Mack. Her hair was messy but pulled back into a short ponytail. I hadn’t noticed the eye makeup she was wearing until just then. It was weird, seeing her with makeup but even more weird that I didn’t even notice. Of course, I try not to look at her face all that much. My eyes dipped farther down and I watched her lips mouth the words to the song that played softly in the speakers. My face heated up when she tilted her head and caught me staring. My head snapped to face in front of me and suddenly I needed to get out of that car. 

Thankfully, she just pulled up to Soph’s house. I slammed the car door open and nearly fell out of it, catching the door handle before I made a complete fool of myself. The fresh air hit my face and I breathed in the safe, non-scented aroma of freshly cut lawns. While I was calming myself, Mack had already gotten Sophie out of the car and lead her up the driveway a bit. 

“Here, I’ll take her,” I whispered, jogging to catch up to the two. I grabbed ahold of Soph’s free arm and turned towards the side of the house. We’d have to sneak in through her window. The blonde slumped on top of me, giggling slightly but fairly close to being dead weight.

“Want me to wait for you? I can give you a ride home?” Mack tilted her head, smiling just enough to make my gut feel like lead. Being in that car was already enough to make me think of things I was really trying to push out of my mind. But getting a ride home would be too much. That would be too similar to the nights she drove me home from work. I couldn’t deal with that. 

“No,” I said a bit too fast. I cleared my throat and looked at the house instead of her annoying face. “No, I’ll just stay here.” I don’t know if she nodded or just turned around, but I heard her shoes tap against the ground as she left. I couldn’t make myself move until her car started again and I heard the engine fade into the distance. With a deep breath, I pulled Sophie, who had basically fallen asleep on my shoulder, towards her window.

[rainbows-fanfics]

My New Reason (Chapter 7)

Chapter 1 |   Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 |  Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 8

Summary: Louis is falling for someone he really shouldn’t be, and the same is happening to Clementine.  Lousentine/Clouis

Clementine's P.O.V. "Shit." The words left his lips seconds before the arrow passed the wall and landed somewhere outside of the school. I noticed the way he grimaced before he ever shot it. It was starting to get painful watching Louis attempt to hit the target on the tree. It was even worse listening to him swear himself out after every attempt, grabbing the arrows with more exertion than usual. After watching the 18th arrow land nowhere near the target, I decided to join him. He saw me as he was removing one of them from the tree, shredding some of the bark off as he obtained one that landed just below the board. I offered him a smile of hope, noticing he looked defeated more than usual. "I think that's the closest one you've managed." I pointed out. "Here to make fun of me already?" His tone was playful as usual, but I could still sense he was exhausted just from his posture. I quipped along anyway, hoping to do the same thing he did for me and make light of the situation at hand. "Well, Prince Charming, I think we had 24 arrows before your session today." I glanced over to the wall. "I wonder where the other 6 went?" "They were stabbed into my heart relentlessly and have refused to budge since," He placed his hand over his chest dramatically. "Your words - they're but salt in my wounds." I rolled my eyes. He was just hiding his embarrassment. I had to admit one thing: he was still pretty damn cute. He took my silence as a cue to finish picking up the rest of the arrows. I helped by gathering the few that landed to the side and brought them to him promptly. "If you want," I started, watching carefully as he grabbed them from my hand. "I can help you." "And give you a chance to make fun of my amazing archery skills?" I put my hand on my hip and grinned. "If I wanted to make fun of you, I would've done it the first time I saw you miss the target, you know." "Good point." He offered me the bow by bending down and extending his other arm out, as if he was giving me a gift from the Gods. "Oh, teach me, wise one." Physically fighting the blush that threatened to spread to my face, I took it from his hands right away. Holding the bow, even though I had done so many times now, gave me a certain guilt I could never overcome. I tried to remember how Marlon looked wielding this thing - perfect precision, stance, and everything. He was a damn good shot, after all. I nudged Louis so he was aligned with the target. "Because I care about you and don't want to hurt your feelings, I'll be brief."

"When are you not?" "Your stance keeps shifting every time you shoot an arrow. You need to know where to place your feet, otherwise you won't be balanced." I stood the way I usually did whenever I practiced archery. "Try standing like this." He copied me. Almost perfectly. His foot was misaligned only slightly, and with a gentle nudge from my boot, I got it into position. "Good. Stay here." I grabbed a pair of long sticks I found nearby and placed them below Louis in a t-position. He watched me with a dumbfounded expression, and I half expected him to make some stupid comment, but to my surprise, he remained completely silent. Which was good because I didn't have the time to deal with his nonsense right now. "These are so you know you're consistent. This stick is pointed at the target...your foot should follow that direction, and the other needs to stay on the end right there." "Sounds easy enough." He chimed. I gave him a look and handed him the bow. He took it and I supplied him with an arrow. I watched as he placed it and looked at me for confirmation. I studied his form and noticed something right away. "Your elbow." I tapped it with my hand. "You need to rotate it up and down while you're shooting the arrow. So your body will be properly aligned." He hesitated. "Uh..." "Here." I went forward and properly rotated it. He didn't squirm or make any motion of protest, which was good. The last thing I wanted was for him to end up with a bruised elbow. As soon as he was properly aligned, I gave him my satisfaction through a smile. "There. And your hook is perfect, by the way. You know where to put your fingers." "That's the one thing Marlon taught me," He stated proudly. "But your anchor point is shit." "Damn! I don't even know what that means, but it still hurts." "Don't worry, a lot of people get this wrong." I went on my tiptoes so I could reach his face. "Because you're taller than me, you should probably anchor it below your chin. Keep it that way every time you shoot the arrow, so they'll go in the same direction." I moved the bowstring so it rested just underneath his chin. My fingers barely scraped his cheek as I did this, and for some reason, I had the urge to caress it again. I don't know what suddenly enthralled me about his freckled face or how smooth his skin felt, but I had problems withdrawing myself from him as I took a step back. "G-Go for it." He gave me a look, but shrugged it off as he aimed at the target. He did just as I told him to - kept his stance, used his anchor point, and aimed carefully. He released the string and shot the arrow, which landed, shockingly, on the target. It wasn't perfect, but it was an improvement. His whole face lit up, a lot like A.J.'s did when he first heard him play piano. "Holy shit!" I crossed my arms teasingly. "Yeah...you'd have earned a bronze." He looked back at me, jaw opening and closing in awe at what I just said. I could feel my cheeks warm at that look, and finished my thought with difficulty. "Well, you know, that could've been a lucky shot." "Au contraire--" He shot another arrow, keeping everything consistent, and managed to hit the bull's-eye effortlessly. Even my jaw dropped in utter astonishment. This suddenly coming from same guy who couldn't even hit a tree a few minutes ago? "--I just learned from the best." I regained myself and crossed my arms again, tauntingly taking a step forward. "-And what would you have said if you missed?" "Don't care. I just wanted to see your smile." Oh, my god... He winked at me and turned back, practicing his shots. They were much better than last time. Now I could hear them actually hitting the wood. I watched Louis train with admiration. It's the same pride I felt when I first taught A.J. how to shoot a gun, the same warm feeling my chest the moment I saw him hit the target... I didn't want to distract him, so I remained quiet. It was only when he started to screw up that I had to speak up. He missed 4 arrows in a row, compared to the now-10 that were situated on the board. I gave him a look as I went to his side, putting my hand on my hip in disappointment. "What happened? You were doing pretty good." He slumped his shoulders in defeat and looked at me with troubled eyes. "I don't know...I just feel so distracted all of a sudden." "With what?" I asked. "You." I cocked an eyebrow. "What? Do you need me to step back?" "No, it's just--" He bit his lip and looked back at the target. "I keep getting the urge to look at you. I just wanted to make sure you were still watching, but now I realize..." He shot another arrow and successfully got some of the bark off of the tree, but landed in the bushes somewhere instead. He looked back at me frowning, somehow looking completely heartbroken. It tugged at my heart. I hadn't seen him so disappointed before...As I opened my mouth to comfort him, assure him that he'd get it right next time, his next words swept me off my feet. "You're just so gorgeous, I can't take my eyes off of you." Then, he grinned. Cheekily. Any ounce of pity I felt for him vanished as I hit the side of his arm. I did it gently, but I still wanted him to know that pissed me off. Why the hell was he playing with my feelings now, of all times? "Louis! You ass! I thought there was something wrong!" "There is!" He held his arms up and I stopped. "You need to stop distracting me with your good looks, Clem! I can't afford anymore distractions!" I rolled my eyes and gave up, clenching my jaw. The only way to get back at him was to play along, I guess. "I've just decided: your bronze medal is revoked. Now you got 4th place." "Technically, I wasn't competing for anything. I already got you." He flashed his smile again. "And, c'mon, let's be honest, a gold medal would look like a piece of dirt next to you." "Louis..." "Okay, okay, I'll stop..." He took a deep breath. "Seriously, though. Thanks for that. I needed it a lot, I'm guessing." He glanced back at the target. He looked proud with what he had accomplished. I was proud, too. "Who taught you archery, anyway?" He suddenly asked. "'Cause, like, I have NEVER seen you miss. Or if were you just born a natural badass, I'd totally believe it." "Little bit of both." I grinned. "It's important for survival. You learn what works and what doesn't. But I've had help from people. Learned what they did wrong so I could do it right." "I guess you had a refresher after watching me, huh?" I let myself to laugh. "Yeah...that's exactly why I helped you. Because it would suck if my boyfriend doesn't know how to shoot a bow and arrow." "Hey, I know how to shoot. I just wasn't doing it very well." I closed my eyes and tittered. It was difficult to keep a straight face around him, sometimes. I was relieved he learned something from our lesson. Hopefully he'll put it to use someday, just like I did saving him from those raiders...And as a plus, the target practices weren't so bad. I was still up-to-date with my aim, but Louis was great company. Well, maybe that was an understatement... I noticed he was packing up the equipment and briskly headed over to his side. I still had some things on my mind; questions that came from teaching him all of this. It was important for me to know, at least. "Can you shoot a gun?" My question must've been too forward. He flinched at the word, probably because of the memory associated with it...I held my breath as he shriveled his eyebrows. I could tell what the answer was. Everyone had the same hesitation. But he responded anyway. "Me? No. Not exactly a...'gun' guy." "Why?" "I'm up for killing walkers, but a hit to the head is all it takes, most of the time." I suddenly pictured him clubbing walkers with chairles. "Plus, there weren't any guns around for us to use. If there had been, the adults must've took them when they left." "So you're saying you've never shot a gun?" "No." I looked at the ground in thought. I've been so used to seeing everyone here using different weapons; knives, bows & arrows, chair legs...It occurred to me that there must've been no adults around to teach them. It made sense. All they really had to worry about were the walkers - beyond Marlon's secret deals - so using anything else was all they needed. I let out a slight hum as I tapped my fingers on the sleeve of my jacket. "Would you like to learn?" I offered. I noticed he tensed and uncrossed my arms. "Not now, but in the future..." He clenched his teeth and sucked the air. "I...don't know. The only gun we have here is, well, yours. Or, um, A.J.'s." I opened my mouth to inquire why that was an issue, but shut it instantly. That was A.J.'s gun now, and he used it to kill Louis' best friend. I could understand why he wouldn't want to learn with that gun. But it was the only one we'd have for a long time. And I'd seriously prefer it if Louis learned...for the sake of my life, A.J.'s, and his. "I know it's hard, to use something like that after...what happened." I took a shaky breath. I hoped this wouldn't upset him. "But when it comes down to your own life, or someone's you care about, you don't really have a choice." He didn't say anything. I mentally panicked. "Don't you, though?" He said slowly. "It's one thing to aim it at rotting walker guts, but when you're pointing it at someone who's pleading for their life, then it's another. Isn't it?" "Louis, I promised not to lie to you. So trust me on this...there are people who don't deserve that choice. There are horrible people out there that will make the same decision without any consequence. People like Lily. And if you don't save yourself from them, then they will take your life. No hesitation." I drew my gaze back at him slowly. "-How will you keep the ones you love around if you aren't willing to protect them?" ... "...Fuck, Clementine." Without a word, his arm came around me and he moved me closer to him. I rested my head on him and closed my eyes, listening to his heartbeat. It was faster than it usually was. That was probably my fault - inflicting something so serious like this onto him. I didn't mean to bring up Marlon in any way. "You know, I was expecting a simple archery lesson, not something that'll give me an existential crisis." "I'm serious. If you ever want to shoot a gun, I can-" "You will, you will." He assured me and sighed. "I just...need some more time before I can hold, you know, that." "I understand. In the meantime, we can practice with these bows and arrows. It'll probably help with your aim, anyway." I pulled back just in time to see him giving me a thankful smile. I could see him switch into his normal 'Louis' mode, the smile growing on his face faster than I could react. "C'mon, my aim is totally not the problem. You just have an incurable disease of being so beautiful, that it's so strong it's distracts me. That's the only logical explanation as to why I am missing these targets." "Okay, come on, archery-know-it-all. Let's head back inside." "I think you mispronounced 'love of your life'." "No, I didn't."

[babblingblondegenius]

Future Ficlet: All You Need is Love...and Coffee

Wow, tonight’s episode was brutal.  Between the painful Olicity separation in present time and the lack of Olicity in the dark future of the flash-forwards, we aren’t seeing any of the happy right now.  There seems to be no hope. Our heroes’ sacrifices were all in vain.  Basically, everything sucks.

As kismet would have it, a couple of weeks ago, I shared a fun little head canon with @allimariexf and @hope-for-olicity and they both encouraged me to ‘write the thing.’  I’ve had a terrible case of writer’s block for quite some time (meaning I have a gazillion story ideas and a ton of WIPs that are unfinished).  I expected this one to end up dormant in my drafts as well.  But after tonight’s episode, I felt the need to finish it because we (and Olicity, of course) deserve a little hope and happy.  Set two years in the future, the premise of this little fluffy ficlet is that Felicity needs an assistant but she has particular criteria ;)  

This should have been the easy part.  

After months of enticing investors, obtaining the proper licenses and permits, all the legal mumbo jumbo, and locating the perfect office space, hiring an executive assistant is going to be the breaking point where she finally loses her sanity.  

Which completely defeats the purpose of trying to find someone to help her in the first place.

She has been doing fine on her own, thriving actually, since she decided it was time to recommence building a tech company from the ground up, sans Curtis this time.   This venture, for better or worse, will be all hers.  Her vision.  Her name. Her legacy.

Despite her initial apprehension at that thought, she has a clarity and confidence in her mission and goals that has propelled her forward at a pace she couldn’t have imagined.  So far, choosing which of her many prototypes she wanted to launch first has been her biggest challenge.

Until now.  

She had narrowed down the stack of over 100 applications to the eight most qualified for the position, and began the interview process at 7:00 this morning.  

The first one had been punctual, neat, and lacking any sort of personality whatsoever.  

The second one arrived twenty minutes late and then interrupted Felicity mid-interview to take a non-emergency personal call on her cell phone.

The third one tapped her super long artificial nails on the edge of Felicity’s desk the entire time and included ‘loud typer’ when asked how her current co-workers would describe her.

The fourth one was a chaotic whirlwind who overshared details of his personal life on every single question.

Maybe he just had too much caffeine in his system. Or maybe she doesn’t have enough.

Coffee.  She needs coffee.  Her next interviewee isn’t scheduled to come in for another hour, so she takes the reprieve to just lay her head down on her desk for a moment in order to gather up the energy she needs to make the trek down the block for her caffeine fix.

“One vanilla soy latte, extra sugar, extra cinnamon, extra whip cream.”  

Oh yes.  That’s exactly what she wants.  Why she is thinking it in Oliver’s voice, she doesn’t know.  Her coffee daydream is so vivid, she can even smell the soothing notes of vanilla with hints of sweet cinnamon spice wafting through the air. Mmmmmmmm.

“Felicity….honey, are you okay?”  Oliver’s voice again.  She slowly lifts her head and sees her husband standing on the other side of her desk, holding a large cup emblazoned with the logo of her favorite java joint and her name scrawled across it in black marker.

“I am now,” she practically purrs as he hands over her treasured treat.  After taking a deep inhale and a long swallow, she blissfully smiles at him.  “It’s perfect.  You’re perfect.”  Suddenly jumping up out of her chair, she shares the revelation brought on by the jolt of caffeine in her system. “Oh!  I have a great idea!  You should apply to be my EA.”  

Oliver chuffs out a laugh.  “Because I brought you coffee?  Your standards must be pretty low.”  

“Worried you couldn’t cut it, Mr. Queen?” she asks, arching an eyebrow in challenge.

“I think my time served as Mayor proves otherwise,” he retorts with an air of gravitas but mimics her gesture, silently letting her know that he enjoys her teasing him and is willing to play along.  

She shakes her head.  “Nope, not helpful.  You couldn’t even get me a break on my taxes when you were the mayor.  What are your current qualifications?”

He ponders the inquiry for a moment before responding proudly, “I’m the head chef at Chez Queen.”

She rolls her eyes at Oliver’s corny moniker for their kitchen but gives him an encouraging smile.  “Oh yeah, I’ve eaten there a few times.  The food is magnificent.  But do you have any business experience?”

His expression goes from proud to smug.  “As a matter of fact, I do.  I was formerly the CEO of Queen Consolidated.”

She takes another swig of coffee and checks an incoming text on her cell phone before reminding him, “I happen to have first-hand knowledge you wouldn’t have made it a week without your super smart and highly efficient EA.”   

“That’s true,” he concedes with a grin, “though on the downside, she only brought me coffee one time.  One”, he repeats, taking her coffee and phone and setting them off to the side. Placing his palms flat on the edge of her desk, he leans in closer, a visible twinkle in his vivid blue eyes.   “I think she actually broke our coffeemaker.  Violently,” he teases in a conspiratorial whisper.

Mirroring her husband, she leans in over the desk until their noses are almost touching.  “A little violence doesn’t scare you, does it, Mr. Queen?”  She allows her gaze to run down the length of his torso, visibly appreciating the definition of his biceps that his jacket cannot conceal. “You look like you could handle yourself just fine.”

“I like to stay in shape.”  He feigns modesty but she knows her husband and can recognize that look in his eyes. “Some cardio, free weights, martial arts, salmon ladder…”

“That’s so hot” she blurts out, temporarily slipping out of character as her brain produces an amazing visual of sweaty and shirtless Oliver making his way up the salmon ladder.  Will there ever be a day when that doesn’t turn her on?  Probably not, and judging from the self-satisfied smirk on his face, he mentioned it on purpose just to get that very reaction out of her.   Determined to get back on track, she rephrases, “I mean, that sounds interesting.”  She decides a change of topic would be helpful to give her an advantage in their little game.  “Computer skills?”

She immediately regrets that question when Oliver gives her a feral smile that makes her weak in the knees.  Lowering his voice to the same octave he uses when he is dressed in green leather, he divulges, “I’ve hacked a federal prison network.”

Guh, game over.  In all her years with Oliver, that is the sexiest thing he has ever said. She quickly makes her way around the desk and invades his personal space. “Seems like you’re a man of many talents,” she coos appreciatively, latching onto his arm and nuzzling her face into the sleeve of his jacket to breathe in the scent that is uniquely Oliver.

“My wife taught me a thing or two,” he boasts, turning so they are face-to-face and he can wrap his arms around her.  

Her hands instinctively move from his arm to his chest, resting over his heart.  “She must be an amazing woman.”

Oliver nods in agreement, his nose nuzzling hers. “She is.  She’s the best.”

“I know you’re just saying that to get husband points and its working,” she acknowledges affectionately, her hand caressing the stubble on his jaw.   He tilts his head into her palm like a contented cat and she takes the opportunity to kiss him like she wanted to since she saw him in front of her desk, whether it was five minutes ago with coffee or nine years ago with a bullet-ridden laptop.  

Oliver moans and deepens the kiss, the fervent strokes of his tongue making her long for more.  “Okay, you’re hired,” she pants, breaking the kiss when her need for air temporarily overcomes her need for Oliver.  “Smoak Tech is a start-up so your health care package consists of me patching you up if you are injured and I’m sure we can work out some type of compensation for your time and skills,” provocatively shifting her body against his and feeling his obvious interest through his jeans and her skirt.  Two soft kisses and one firm rotation of his hips later, she is internally debating the sturdiness of her desk and whether they have time for her to show him exactly what she means by ‘compensation’ before her next appointment shows up.

“That’s a very tempting offer, Ms. Smoak” he murmurs into her hair as his hand travels down her back and immediately finds its usual place on the curve of her shapely ass, pulling her impossibly closer, “but I’m afraid my current employer really needs me right now and I just can’t bear to leave her,” his free hand gesturing to the stroller where their daughter slumbers peacefully.

Felicity sighs, pure happiness filling her heart and clearing her mind as she rests her head on her husband’s chest to gaze lovingly at the chubby-cheeked, perfect amalgamation of her and Oliver they brought into the world just four short months ago.   “Sounds like she has you wrapped around her little finger.”  

Oliver rests his chin on the top of her head and she can hear the love and contentment in his voice when he whispers in her hair, “From the very first moment I met her.  She takes after her mother that way.”

A/N:  Thank you for reading!  I hope this helped to soothe the sting of all the angst.  Queen family feels FTW.  William was not in this fic because at that time of day, he should be in school and also I didn’t want to traumatize him any further with Olicity’s blatant flirty flirt.  The poor kid has seen enough already lol.  

Huge thanks and virtual hugs to @allimariexf and @hope-for-olicity for all the fun conversations and being all around wonderful :)

Oliver’s ‘current employer’ ;)

[comebeonetwothree]

Blog #7: Polar Opposites

7/6/2021

From San Francisco to camping in the Folsom Prison woods, we got the best and worst of both worlds.

Driving into San Francisco, we took the coast up from LA. It was an indescribable experience; making you feel things, you never thought an inanimate object could make you feel.  

Upon arrival, we were hit with the lovely smell of old urine and human feces. Not dog shit… human shit.

Our hostel was located in downtown San Francisco, which is a very sketchy area. It was so sketchy, we were warned by cops themselves to not park anywhere but a secured garage because with our out-of-state plates. It would be almost inevitable that our car would get broken into.

Johnny Cash would have approved of our campground for the weekend, it overlooked Folsom Lake, home to fish, boats and possibly a dead runaway body from the prison.

Our location for the fourth of July couldn’t have been more ideal, minus the fact they were in a massive drought, so fireworks were not allowed anywhere. It was a quiet fourth, but thankfully we only drove through one wildfire on our way out of town.

More of our college friends came out to represent. Our buddies Kyle and Noah were driving out to their new jobs in San Diego and made an appearance at our campground for the weekend.

A day trip to Lake Tahoe was all fun and games until a storm cloud rolled in and almost took us with it.

Who

Who popped the floats…

More friends!! Surprisingly enough we have seen a good amount of college friends throughout this trip. It gives me hopes of seeing them all later in life.

Noah and Kyle are our friends from Oneonta. They were driving cross country with San Diego as their final destination.

They both got jobs working at a horse race, videotaping the events. They seemed super stoked to be living out there until September. Congrats guys! Best of luck!

It really is so nice to have familiar faces on the trip, its always a blast meeting new people, but something about meeting up with a homie in the middle of California for the fourth of July, just hits different.

It was a blast having them around.

At the Walmart near our campground, we were fucking around in the parking lot (as per usually) and I was playing on Noah’s skateboard. Yanno doing tricks and shit;) To my surprise the people shacking up in their car next to us brought out two ripsticks and tried to go trick for trick with me.

They seemed to be struggling, so friendly Kyle helped them out and taught them the ways of a ripstick. About one minute after, they offered us the ripsticks and got extremely heated over not being able to get up on it still.

In their defense, they were probably not sober considering the many needles surrounding their van in the parking lot.

Ripsticking is not for everyone kids. Remember, don’t shoot up and drive anything with wheels because it can cause more damage to your cell-less brain.

What

What is jumping in the water…

Driving up the Pacific Coast, the views were unbeatable, especially when you catch a glimpse of a whale jumping as you are stopped at a stop sign.

As soon as I saw the flop, I knew it was a whale. I pulled a quick left and drove down to see the water. There was the most spectacular view of cliffs dropping  into the ocean, and sure enough we saw even more whales.

I had never seen a whale before, but in my mind I kept thinking, people really pay to see these creatures, and I got lucky enough to see it from the road.

The number of whales jumping and blowing water was insane, one of the locals we talked to said this almost never happens, they were migrating from up North. What a coincidence.

San Francisco was good for two things, the street art, and the food. I mean they have REALLY good food.

After finding the hidden gems of the city, including some local parks and some mural ally art, we hit up a really authentic Chinese place my uncle recommended.

When you walk in this place you can already tell it’s going to slap.

The best part: you don’t order your own food. It sounds horrible if you have trust issues, but it really was the best way to eat at a place this authentic.

We just told our waitress our food restrictions and she handled the rest.

My gawddd I cannot begin to describe this food. It was just so fresh, and the presentation was spectacular.

10/10 recommend the House of Nanking.

Where

Where can I submerge my body in water…

San Francisco is known for its petty crime rates, so many cops just give you heads ups that your car will most likely get broken into.

The homelessness was just as bad as Los Angeles. About every other sidewalk had tents pitched up and needles all over.

One perk of having face masks still handy is it helps with the smells of the cities. In this case, it helped mask the smells of old urine, and human shit.

I never actually thought about the difference between dog shit and human shit, but after seeing a human shit on the sidewalk, I can now see the difference. Size and smell may vary.

Besides these sights, San Francisco was not all that bad, it had its perks. Including: its well-maintained parks that overlook the city.

The whole city is built on high hills, so the architecture is very unique and fills the landscape well.

Lake Tahoe was a day trip we all took from our campground in Folsom. It was a beautiful day outside, we were going to rent some paddleboards and chill on the water all day.

Just our luck, they ran out of paddleboards, however it worked out for the best since we ended up leaving the area abruptly.

Parking a car anywhere in California is like winning the lottery. There is simply too many people and not enough spots, and/or the spots are too sketchy to park in.

We drove around for an hour trying to find a spot to park. After finding a spot in a residential area, we walked about 20 minutes to the beach.

The spot we found was super isolated and we basically had an island to ourselves.

We did have to walk through a small river of muck to get there, but totally worth it.

About two hours into being there a massive storm cloud rolled in out of nowhere!  

We were just going to wait it out on our island because we could see the cloud wasn’t too long. But then we had a freaky thing happen.

All our hair started standing up as if we had just got off a trampoline. The static was insane, full pieces of hair were just standing straight up.

That’s when Maya proceeded to inform us that this was a sign that we are going to get electrocuted.

She was right! So, we quickly hurried off our island through the water to get to our car. Luckily no one was electrocuted, but it would have been a cool story to tell and id get some pretty cool scars to go along with it.

Back at Folsom Lake, we had our campground set up perfectly, with arguable the best spot on the campsite.

We got to see some amazing sunsets and were able to walk down to the water.

Prior to arriving, we picked up some cheap floats for the lake. We were able to float around all day long.

And only one of them popped after a day, considering we got them for $5!

I also got to break out my new fishing pole, finally! Too bad the fish weren't biting, I was hoping for a good ass dinner.

When

When can we leave…

Having the constant fear your car will most definitely get broken into and there is nothing you can do about it is quite exhausting. Therefore, when it was time to hit the countryside, I was READY.

Simply having out of state plates on your car is, “asking for it�� when it comes to car thefts.

That first night sleeping in the city, it was a constant sound of car alarms going off, not very reassuring that our car was being held safe.

Thankfully we drove out of that city with our car intact.

When we got to Folsom, we set up our tents and hit the lake where we sat in that water for HOURS until it was dark and the air had cooled down.

The heatwaves have been hitting hard inland and we got to experience it first-hand. It was nearly impossible to be out of the water for longer than 20 minutes.

On the fourth, we exited the water once, to make dinner of course. We cooked up burgers, dogs and pasta salad.

It was so brutally hot we just cooked the food and ran right back into the water.

What a day

Why

Why can’t we help everyone…

Like Los Angeles, there is an abundance of homelessness in the city of San Francisco. It is so sad to see the system had failed them.

The community these people have created though is kind of sustainably wonderful, to see the silver lining.

Yes, these people are severely addicted to drugs, and they can’t help their addiction. That is something that takes over one’s life, leaving a battle between themselves.

The community they build is together, there is never just one man lying on the side of the road drugged out, it’s a street filled with tents and old furniture, giving these people neighbors and maybe even friends, or enemies we don’t judge.

Seeing the overpopulation of homelessness makes me wonder who or what wronged. How did they end up here and do they want to be here?

How

How much longer…

We have only two weeks left on this life changing trip. How did time go so fast? Who the fuck knows.

The remainder of the trip is going to be long stretches of driving to get home. We successfully completed a 16-hour trip yesterday, and will be embarking on a lovely 10-hour trip tomorrow morning. 

The rotation of driving is nice. Splitting these drives between three people is not too bad, especially when your views consist of national forest and ocean drives.

[mysterywriterworld]

Me? Handsome?

           The wind was roaring at an increased sustained level. It created ghostly screeches as it blew through the legs of the normally unmanned installation (NUI), best known as a 'toadstool' platform, located three miles directly south of Lafayette, Louisiana in the vast waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Gaston Chaisson was paying no mind to the wind as he was absorbed in doing his frequent routine maintenance inside the covered tin hut. He was diligently servicing the umbilical cable that was attached to a satellite platform that operated in conjunction with Gulflexa, a deep-well permanent platform owned and operated by Gulf Flexible Annex. Gaston was a member of the maintenance crew on the Gulflexa mother platform. He uses a medium-sized ten man crew boat to travel between the mother platform, its satellite and the toadstool that he was servicing. His crew boat was tethered to one of the steel legs of the toadstool, secured with a cable that was locked to an O ring on the leg. He opened the door of the small tin hut cable cover to discover the wind had increased considerably from the time he climbed up the ladder to the tin shack. He listened closely to the screeching as it whistled loudly under him. He frowned, knowing his decent to the heavily rocking boat was going to be a nail biter. Following company rules, before he moved, he latched the safety hooks of his leather tool belt to the pipes at each side of the ladder, took a deep breath and began the climb down.

           He stopped on the last rung, actually a small steel landing where he could stand and board the boat. He stood, still attached to the pipes, fighting the wind and now the icy cold whitecaps blowing over his legs on the small platform as he stared at the taut, straining tether. The boat was being pulled backwards and was brutally rocking over the waves the wind created. He was  wondering if he had the strength to pull the boat close enough to the ladder to safely board the boat once his safety hooks were removed from the pipes. He was facing one of those life and death iffy situations one occasionally faces. He looked down and saw that his gloves were now wet, the leather slick, and when he pulled on the boat tether, his grip kept sliding away. The question now became: should he violate company policy and try it with his bare hands. He shook his head and said to himself: Gaston, you're not a loony Cajun like some of your friends. That tether cable will rip your bare hands apart and hurt you more than the company disciplinary action if it found out.

           He grasped the sides of the ladder, put his hands on the upper rung and climbed back to the larger platform. It was hard to stand without support. He wrapped one arm around one of the stand pipes and surveyed the skies around him. He saw no breaks in the clouds that would give him hope. He returned to the tin hut, took his mobile short-wave radio and called the mother platform. He reported his decision and the chief of maintenance congratulated him on making a sound analysis of his situation. Gaston would spend the night inside the hut, safe from the elements, but destined to be hungry. He had left his lunch pail on the crew boat.

           He had difficulty sleeping because when the rain started, the noise on the tin hut was worse than baseball-sized hail on a car in the middle of June. Even ear sound protectors wouldn't have been any help it was so loud and consistent. Nearing four that morning, the rain had subsided; Gaston peeked out the door and realized that the wind had eased also. He flipped the switch on his flashlight, left the hut and attached himself to the ladder. At the bottom, he easily pulled the boat close enough to safely step aboard. He started the engine and backed away from the legs. He put it in forward, opened his lunch pail and instantly devoured the contents, including two bananas. The coffee was no longer hot, but yet warm enough to fight off the early morning chill of the mist hanging low over the calmer Gulf waters. In forty minutes, Gaston was in his bed on the mother platform, pleased that the adversity he challenged didn't leave him in worse shape than it did.

           One week later, Gaston stepped into his boat, secured his suitcase, and left to service the satellite platform. When his servicing job was complete, it was time for Gaston's rotation, hence the suitcase. Gaston worked a schedule of six weeks on, six weeks off. His crew boat would be turned over to Jules Babineaux, his rotation partner His service job took less than an hour, so he was back in the boat with the destination of Blanche Bay and through the bay to Franklin where he would turn the boat over to Babineaux. Gaston was age forty-three, never married, well below average in looks, but a hard worker that lived alone in the old, run-down family home in Jeanerette. He never saw the need to spend his earnings to live elsewhere because he was there only part of the year. He told his sisters, both who lived in Lafayette, if his job ever changed, he would tear down the old house and build a new one under the moss-hung trees. They thought his idea was a good one under the circumstances. Argument settled.

           If Gaston had any vices they were limited and unknown to his associates and sisters. However, the one habit he was known to have was his love for alcohol, always bourbon. Never on the rigs, only when he was ashore. He usually spent very little time at his home in Jeanerette. He could most often be found haunting the Cafe La Boue Bug in Beaux Bridge where many of his friends lived nearby. He would sit with them and let off the built-up steam of the rigs when they were ashore. His attempts to connect with women were an abject failure. The lowliest of the lowly rejected Gaston, calling him Frankenstein without the makeup. Even the desperate, seedy whores on Bourbon Street in New Orleans accepted him with anguish and trepidation, fearing that he was a monster ready to crush them. Many were surprised by his demeanor and afterwards, most called him a true gentleman, a great lay, a man who showed them respect, was never rough or rude, and left them with generous tips. They would welcome him back if he was in town and looking for a good time and he always was at some point when he was ashore.

           The Saturday before the end of his six week home stand found him in Breaux Bridge with one of his fellow company employees, but Eloi Prevost worked a different rig. They were in the Cafe La Boue Bug where a casino was attached to a large truck stop service station. Gaston had his familiar bourbon and branch in his ham-sized hand when the door opened and two women truckers looked around, one pointed, and they headed for the ladies locker room. Gaston watched them go by his table, turned his head and watched the tight fitting jeans covering their butts go around the corner. Gaston's friend slapped his hand and said, "Chaisson, get your eyes back in your head and listen to what I was saying." Gaston smiled at him and said, "I had a better subject for my attention. When you start to look like the ass on the one in the blue Moosehead tee then you'll have my undivided attention, Prevost. Continue your story."

           The two women came out, went to the bar and ordered. While their sub sandwiches were being prepared, they brought their beers to a table across the aisle from Gaston and Eloi. They pulled the chairs toward the back of the table so that they could watch the slot machine feeders with an unimpeded direct view. Prevost, a married man, ignored the truckers, but Gaston still had his eye on blue tee shirt and could see her in his line of vision. He became aware of her glancing at him between sips of her beer. Their food was delivered along with a fresh beer and Gaston, never staring, was fully aware of every bite that blue tee took from the sandwich. When their plates were empty, blue tee opened a trucker's wallet, removed a bill, went to the jukebox, inserted the bill and punched two numbers. Gaston knew the songs were a half-dollar each so he knew she fed it a dollar. The first song, a lively Cajun zydeco favorite, began playing. Blue tee turned and danced her way back to the table, took a sip of beer and danced her way to Gaston's side, leaned over to his ear and whispered, "I know you've been watching me. If you're interested, dance with me."

           Gaston smiled, pushed his chair back, pulled her to his lap and whispered, "I certainly am interested, my name is Gaston. What do I call you?"

           "Andy. It's really Andrea but since I drive a big rig, everyone thought Andy would be more appropriate. So, call me Andy, Gaston. Let's dance handsome."

           He led her to the floor and they danced to the Cajun songs she had selected. When the music ended, he held her hand and went to the bar, ordered her another beer, one for her friend, one for Eloi and another bourbon of his own. He touched his bourbon glass to her beer bottle and softly said, "Andy, no one ever called me handsome. Thank you for being the first." She laughed, hugged him and as she started back to her table, turned and said, "Thanks for the dance and the beer, Gaston. I need to go get my shower and head to the confines of my sleeper cab."

           When she had finished speaking, he waved her back and put his arm around her shoulder, pulled her close and said, "You sounded as if you're tired of the showers in truck stops and sleeper cabs. Are you?"

           "Gaston, I've been on the road now for nine days. I abhor truck stop showers. My sleeper isn't bad, but here in the south it gets damned hot inside, even at night."

           "I see. And I understand. I work in the Gulf on a rig and we have the same problem at times although luckily our quarters are air-conditioned. What would you say if I offered you a full bathroom, a queen-sized bed, and a full breakfast in the morning?"

           "I'd say you were a man looking for a horny girl for the night. I'd also say, I think you've found one."

           "My truck is the white Dodge Ram parked nearest to Pump Ten. Get your clothes and essentials and meet me there in ten minutes. Just throw your stuff in the bed. It's clean. How about your friend? What will she do?"

           "No problem with Mazie. She's leaving. She had her rest period starting at noon today, so she can drive again at eleven. She's heading to Jacksonville where I just came from." He left her walking toward Mazie when he went to tell Eloi he was leaving. Eloi was ready to go home anyway and he told Gaston goodbye and wished him luck.

           One the way to Jeanerette, she told him she was from Hardin, Montana, east of Billings on Interstate 90. The company she drove for was in Billings and she had been a driver for six years. She had been married once, he ran off with the neighbor's wife her first year on the job and she had no time for romance with the job she had as a long-haul driver. She bragged that her company was noted for the numbers of women drivers it had on the road. She let him know that the southern route was the most profitable and that as the economy improved, more of the women drivers would be stopping in Breaux Bridge. He asked, why Breaux Bridge and she said the company had a national contract with the truck stop for servicing its trucks

           He told her that the house wasn't much to crow about but was clean, comfortable, and paid for which made it Paradise for him. He parked behind the house, they entered through the kitchen and as he had said, it was clean, neat and with older farm houses, extremely large. He led her upstairs to the guest room on the left, flipped on the light and she sighed longingly, saying, "That bed is the most inviting thing I've seen in a month, Gaston. You're a jewel for offering it to me." He shyly grinned, kissed her cheek and showed her the bathroom with both a tub and shower. Another long sigh from down deep in her gut. He left her in the doorway, saying, "I'll get you another beer while you get ready for a bath or a shower, your option."

           He came running back up the stairs, handed her a beer and a glass, turned and said, "I'll be in the kitchen. Call when you're finished."

           Andy took her sweet time. She was enjoying the luxury of soaking in a tub instead of being crammed in a small fiberglass shower stall in a truck stop. When the water became so cool she was shivering, she took one of the extra large towels from the rack, wrapped it around her and went to the top of the stairs. She yelled, "Come on up, Gaston. Time to show me your stuff." When he entered the bedroom, she had dropped the towel on the floor and was in the center of the bed naked. He stopped in his tracks. He eyed her from the doorway and was stunned by her nice, round firm body with matching breasts. She waved him over, teasing, "Don't be bashful, come on over and sample the merchandise."

           The time for him to be fully stripped of his clothes was a new record for him. He jumped in the bed with her, sidled up close and kissed her. That was the signal for her and she made the most of it for the next thirty minutes or so. When both were sated, she whispered in his ear, "How about another beer, Gaston?" He nodded; still naked; he ran to the kitchen, took another beer from the fridge, popped the lid and hustled back to the stairs. She had wrapped another dry towel back around her for the warmth and was at the top of the stairs smiling when he hit the top step. He handed her the beer, she thanked him and took a sip. She touched his face and said, "You're such a nice, gentle man, Gaston.  A good lover and very generous. It's such a shame that.you're so damned ugly. Ugly enough to turn ones stomach if they didn't grit their teeth like I had to do."

           He was taken aback by her words. When he caught the breath she had knocked out of him with her words, he spit harshly at her, "But, Andy.You said I was handsome and I told you that you were the first to ever say that."

           "Gaston, Gaston! That was a come on from a horny old truck driver. It turned out great, much better than I expected and I do appreciate all you've done. But go look in the mirror. God, you're so damned ugly it's almost a sin God created you."

           Gaston turned, his face an inflamed red when he said, "You god damned whore. You took advantage of me by lying! I hate that and you'll pay dearly!" She became frightened by his outburst. She stepped back two steps away from his anger but to no avail. He swung his huge fist, drove it into her nose, knocking her backwards down the stairs. The beer bottle flew over her head, hit a picture of his mother on the stairwell wall, it fell braking the glass. Her towel fell on the steps as she went feet over head backwards down the stairs, the glass cutting her back and arms. When her head hit the third step down, her neck snapped loudly. So loudly it broke the eerie silence in the quiet house jarring him to move down the stairs toward her. When she hit the bottom landing, her arms splayed over her head, her legs covering the last two steps, blood slightly oozing from the cuts, she was already dead from the broken neck. Gaston bent over her, loudly yelling, "Andy! Andy! I didn't mean to do knock you down the stairs. Please wake up." He had tears flowing from his cheek and dropping on her face as he held it in his huge palms.

           Realizing she was dead, he stood to pick her up and move her to the dining room table, but when he stood, a glass shard from the picture frame glass went farther into the arch of his right foot causing him to fall to the floor in excruciatiating pain. He held the foot in the air and could see the end of the shard tilting toward his left. He took hold with two fingers, began to pull but it cracked and the broken end was all he could remove. He stood on his left foot, pulled himself up the stairs by using the banister and then used the wall to reach the bedroom. He sat on the bed and began to dress, leaving his foot without socks or shoes. Using the same technique on the return trip down the stairs, he made his way to the kitchen, opened the pantry door and took his mother's old wooden rubber-tipped cane, using it to get to the truck.

           At the emergency room, the doctor on duty told him that he would call for help because the glass was embedded so deep that he needed a surgeon to remove it. He gave Gaston a shot near the glass entry to ease the pain. Two hours later, Gaston left the hospital on crutches with a pocket full of pain killers. The surgeon told him after the glass was removed and the wound stitched that he had one of the deepest embedment's he had ever seen and then asked how it had happened.  Gaston told him he was running down the steps and didn't know a picture had broken when he put his full weight on the foot where the shard stood waiting. The surgeon shook his head, patted his knee and said, "Keep the wound clean, Gaston. You don't want an infection to flare up."

             He sat quietly in his truck thinking. He knew from what the doctor told him that within two hours, even with the pain pills, he would be having intense localized pain again. He had to act before it put him down for the day. He started the engine, looked at the blood covered floorboard and pedals before he pulled out and awkwardly, slowly, drove home with his left foot. He stood on his crutches looking at the body of Andy. He was hit the fact that he knew her first name, but not her last name. He looked at the blood route on the stairs and his lips parted in a small grin when he began the implementation of his plan. The foot cut was the perfect cover for her blood. He would have no fear of any questions about the blood. He was holding the reason in the air under him. He turned and saw the trail of his dripped blood leading to the kitchen, the pantry, and out the door. It would also be on the porch and in the truck. The bonus to the blood was the large amount of fresh blood, now clotting, that was on the floor leading to the bedroom where he put on his clothes. He leaned against the banister baluster and listed what he needed to do to erase Andy from his association after the cafe incident with her. He would have to change the bed, he would need to move the body, he needed to destroy her clothing, he had to get rid of the beer bottles and wash the glass she had used. The towels needed washing to remove any DNA evidence. A large order for a lone one-footed individual to handle, but time was on his side. None of those were an immediate need and he could easily handle the washing, making the bed, washing dishes and burning the clothes with his regular burning barrel trash.

           He pushed away from the baluster and struggled his way up the stairs, avoiding the glass and clotted blood. With the bathroom cleansed, an easy job, he made the bed, gathered the towels and threw them over the banister to the floor below to be washed. He put the empty beer bottles in his pockets, washed the glass in his bathroom and left it on the sink stand. He found it testy going down on the crutches and he knew it would take practice before his fear ebbed.

           At the time he began to feel twinges of pain in the center of his foot, he was nearly finished. He searched her jeans pockets, took her wallet and looked at her CDL license picture. He became emotional while reading her license and felt the blurring of his eyes as the water of tears gathered at the lower rim. Her name was Andrea Morgan Weatheral of 986 2nd Street West, Hardin, Montana. She had pictures of a smiling young woman holding a toddler of about age two. Gaston was hit hard when he realized the picture must be her daughter and grandson. The tears broke the rim and flowed down his cheek. He was undecided if he should anonymously mail her wallet and a note to the address on her license. After thinking a little more about that act, he shook his head and discarded it. Too easy to track to Louisiana and back to me. It would go in the burn barrel with her clothes. Her truck keys would be dumped in the center of Blanche Bay when he left for the rig.

           By the time he hobbled to the daybed in the sewing room, he was left with only lighting the trash barrel and moving the body. Those items could wait. He swallowed two of the pain pills, lifted his bandaged foot to the bed, grimaced and then emitted a low groan as it hit the mattress. He stretched out, shook off his left shoe, dropping it on the floor, closed his eyes, groaned again and didn't wake until well after dark. He put his right hand over the end of the daybed, turned on the light, grabbed his crutches and stood, left foot in the air, pain still coursing through the wound and around the stitches. He tottered on the crutches through the house and to the utility room. He took a thirty-three gallon black bag from the box, braced the freezer door open and began throwing packaged fish and shrimp in the bag. Two bags later, he removed the shelves, storage boxes and sat them atop the freezer. Now that it was empty, he closed the door, dragged the bags to the back porch and left them near the steps. Back inside the house, he stood over Andy's body and studied how he could best get her to the utility room since he wasn't able to carry her.

           He felt he could think better with a little bourbon in him. Tottering back to the kitchen, he poured about two fingers of the brown bourbon in the short glass, took a bottle of cold water from the fridge and topped the bourbon with a splash of the iced water. He sat in a chair; right foot extended as far as possible, and sipped the bourbon while he did deep thinking about Andy's body and the distance to the utility room. He was only dreaming of a second drink when an idea flashed through his mind. Rope. I need a rope. I can tie the rope under her arms, wrap it around my waist and drag her to the freezer. Her blood is clotted so it shouldn't be a problem. He pictured his route and planned to walk where her body wouldn't smear his drippings. He grinned to himself as he became thankful that he had stayed to the left on the way to the truck. That gave him a relatively clear path to drag her body. If his were smeared, that would raise questions .should the authorities ever learn of our leaving the truck stop together. He smiled again when he had thought of how fortunately it was that he parked near Pump Ten because that parking area has no surveillance cameras.

           He did celebrate his thoughts with a second drink, unaware that two drinks combined with the pain pills were about to put him under for nearly fourteen hours.

           His eyes opened at seven-twenty Monday morning. The taste in his mouth was worse than the odor of the fish and shrimp on the porch that the wind was blowing back through the aging sills and cracks in the house. He made a quick decision to place the burning barrel at the top of his project list. He put coffee on to brew, opened the door and the stench blasted him fully in the face. He gagged at the reeking stink. He took the bag of clothes, his lighter and hobbled to the barrel, dropped the clothes out of the bag, spread lighter fluid on them and lit the clothes. While they gathered the flames, he went to the porch and began dragging the fish bags to the barrel. He took papers from the shed and added them to the flames until the fire was shooting out of the barrel above his head. It took him almost an hour before he dropped the last package on top of the gathering ashes He broke the beer bottles and dropped them into the recycle can. He was already worn down and the day was just starting. He found an old clothesline rope, stuck it in the vee of the left crutch and went inside to begin the process of moving Andy to the freezer.

           He cleaned the coffee pot after emptying the carafe into his work vacuum. He sat down to rest and to lift his leg as instructed while he drank his first cup of the boiling coffee. Hunger pains hadn't arrived yet so he discounted eating until Andy was safely inside the freezer. He dropped his foot, yelped lightly as he rose from the chair. He went to Andy, dropped the rope above her head, stood on his left foot and used the left crutch to hoist her left arm upwards. He grabbed her hand, lifted the body and used the crutch tip to push the rope under her. He repeated that action on her right side. Using his left crutch, he lifted the rope to his hands, went below her head, straddled her body, wriggled and pulled the rope until it was under her arms. He flipped the rope over her breasts with the crutch tip, and used the tip to move it to his hand. It was working like a charm. He made a slip knot in the rope, pulled it tight under her arms and stepped over her head, wrapped the rope around his waist, tied it well and tested his strength using the crutches. One step and she slid easily. Second step and she slid easily. He nodded to no one and began the single step movements until she was at the entrance of the utility room.

           He rested against the wall knowing he needed to keep her tied in order for him to successfully stuff her in the freezer. Finally he opened the door, used the rope to lift her to where he could get his hands under her arms and using the wall, he lifted upwards, turned her and sat her butt on the freezer bottom. He pushed her back against the left wall, turned her legs and lifted, bending them at the knees to crunch them through the door and against the right wall. When she was inside, he struggled to get her lower legs up the wall and over her head. He was worn out when he backed against the wall and looked at the U-shaped body now fully ensconced inside the freezer. He stepped forward and put her hands on her abdomen, stepped back, closed the door, locked it, pocketed the key and smiling to himself, went back for his second cup of coffee and maybe something to eat.

           The clock was nearing five when he trudged to the truck, got in and left for Breaux Bridge. When he walked inside the casino on crutches, Eloi jumped up, ran across the room and shouted, "My God, Gaston. What it is you did to yourself?' Come sit and tell me about it." Well, by the time they were at the table, three others had joined and were sympathizing with Gaston. Eloi spoke up and pleaded, "Tell us how you ended up on crutches." They were gathered to the side of his chair and anxious to hear his story.

           Gaston displaying a sad serious face began to tell them, "You remember that picture of mama on the stair wall? Sometime during the late evening, it fell and the glass broke.  I thought the noise was someone trying to break in so I grab my gun, jump from bed and run down the stairs. I stepped on a glass shard and rammed it all the way through my arch and into the bone. I had a hard time getting to the hospital. A surgeon, you know, at the Jeanerette Emergency Room had to do surgery to get it out. You should see the floor of my truck with all the stinky blood."

           They all ughed and touched his back. At hearing the story, Louis LeBlanc spoke up and said, "Give me your keys, Gaston. I'll get Joe to steam clean it while you're eating. Hey, someone get Gaston something to eat."

           In about ten minutes, Gaston had a steak, baked potato, hush puppies and fried okra in front of him. He smiled and said, "Thanks, boys. It's nice to know there's a helping hand when you need one." After their beers were gone, everyone except Eloi sauntered away to refresh their drinks and to pursue different stories. Watching Gaston eat, Eloi asked, "How about the house, Gaston? You can't clean it with only one foot. What if Cecilia and I drop by and scrub away the blood? We can do it in the morning before lunch."

           "Okay, but only if you let me buy us all lunch at Mulate's. Crawfish are in season and they have the best."

           "Oh, yeah, and you know how we love them crawfish. Mulate's it is. Ten okay with you?"

           "That's a perfect time. These pain killers knock me out like your favorite, Rocky Marciano would." Eloi laughed and slapped the table twice shaking the pill bottle until it rolled over and rolled toward Eloi. He sat it back up, read the label and said, "Those are powerful pills, Gaston. Do you need help getting back home?"

           Gaston shook his head and responded, "I'm getting the hang of left footed driving and the good thing about it is, with the pills, I can't speed so I won't get any more tickets." Eloi laughed, slapped the table once and Gaston grabbed the pills before they turned over again.

           Gaston opened the door when Eloi and Cecelia were still getting out of the truck. Eloi carried a gallon jug of bleach and a scrubbing broom. Cecelia had a mop, a bottle of Pine Sol, and a jug of detergent. Gaston led them to the stairwell and they stopped, wide-eyed and said, "Jesus Christ, Gaston, you lost a lot of blood. It's a wonder you didn't pass out."

           Gaston grinned waved his head from side to side and said, "I didn't tell you that part. The surgeon orders a pint of blood but specified it had to be from a bourbon drinker to have any effect on me." Cecelia laughed loudly in the quiet room and Eloi, being a little slower, joined in when he caught Gaston's joke.

           Cecelia filled a bucket about half full, added about a pint of the pure bleach, took the scrub broom and began at the foot of the stairs. She turned and ordered Gaston to go sit in the living room and wait. He turned the TV set on and watched an old John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara movie on the Movie channel while she and Eloi scrubbed and mopped the blood away. At twelve-twenty she stepped to the doorway and said, "Come look, Gaston"

           He hobbled to the stairs and was amazed at the great job they had done at removing all evidence of the blood. He smiled, congratulated them and then said, "What's the charge to have you do the rest of the old floor to make it match the clean part." He laughed and said, "Just kidding. It looks great and I owe you more than just crawfish."

           Cecelia stepped forward, picked up the empty bucket and said, "You don't even owe us that much, Gaston. What we did is what friends do for each other. Maybe one day you can repay it with something similar for us." Now go back to the movie while we finish."

           They drove away after lunch. The doctor's office called at three and reminded him of the check-up the next day at ten. He showed a little early. The nurse put him in an examination room and removed the bandage. She ahhed and said, "It looks good. No infection, no swelling around the stitches. Doctor Landry will be here in a minute." She left him on the table with his foot sticking out the end of the table. Landry walked in, shook his hand and asked, "How's the pain now?" He lifted his leg and was closely eyeing the wound.

           He shook his head and answered, "Very little. I didn't have to take a pain pill last night. Do you think I'll be able to go back to the rig come Sunday?"

           Landry touched the wound with two fingers pushed down lightly and asked, "Any pain when I push?"

           He shook no. He pushed harder; Gaston screwed his mouth up and said, "That did hurt a little." He dropped his foot and said, "Come in on Friday and we'll see if you can walk on it. What do you do on the rig, Gaston/"

           "I'm maintenance. I don't do any drilling, pipe pulling or physical labor. I maintain the rotary engines, the umbilical cables and such." Landry nodded, turned and before he opened the door, said, "I'll see you Friday. Stay put. The nurse will redress the foot."

           She came back in, began opening drawers and gathering the necessary materials. She took a swab, cleaned the wound, put a salve on it, a white gauze pad on it and taped it. She looked at her work, then at him and said, "Minimal coverage this time. Keep it clean. Don't walk on the foot until after you see the doctor on Friday." She handed him the crutches and left him to leave on his own.

           Back in the truck, Gaston drove to the first grocery store he came across on Highway 90, and now with a smaller bandage, no pain and more experience with the crutches, went in the store, to the liquor department and asked the clerk for two 1.75 Liter bottles of Evan Williams bourbon. The clerk checked him out, bagged the bottles separately and then called for assistance. A young man, about seventeen or so came to assist with the bottles. He carried the two bags and walked beside Gaston and when Gaston opened the passenger side door, he carefully put the bags on the passenger side floor. Gaston tipped him two dollars, went around the truck where the young man had run to open the door for him, climbed in the seat and stowed the crutches behind him. The young man waved as Gaston, using his left foot, slowly drove away.

           He pointed his truck north and drove to the truck stop in Beaux Bridge; He pulled sideways in front of the service bay, honked and yelled, "Tell Joe to come out. I need to see him." He moved up enough to clear the entrance and waited. Joe came to his side of the truck wiping his hands with a red towel. Gaston stuck his hand out to shake, but Joe held his greasy hands up and said, "You don't want this on your hands or steering wheel. What's up, Gaston?"

           "I just left the doctor with good news about my foot, so I came to give you a little something for the cleaning you gave my floorboard.  Come to the other side, Joe, and open the door."

           Joe opened the door, Gaston said, "Take one of the bags. I know it'll please you."

           Joe peeked inside, looked up and said, "You didn't have to do this, Gaston. We're friends and help each other out. Remember when you fixed my broken air- conditioner?  You wouldn't let me pay you but now you pay me?"

           "Joe, you didn't have stinky blood all over your air-conditioner like my floorboard did. It was a different kind of help you did. Just enjoy the bourbon."

           "Oh, I will, believe me I will. Thanks Gaston." Joe backed away from the truck, shut the door and waited until Gaston was back on the street to Interstate 10. He went across the lot and locked the bottle inside his utility tool box attached to the bed of his pick-up. He smiled on the walk back to work.

           Gaston drove to the rear of his house. He eased out of the truck, went to the back and opened the doors to the cap. He dropped the tailgate, backed his truck as near to the porch edge as he could, got out and eyed the height of the gate as compared to the edge of his porch. With just an eyeing, he decided the tailgate would not be more than two inches below the porch level. Nodding to himself, he put the tailgate up, closed the doors, locked the truck and went inside the house.

           He had to assume that he would be cleared to go back to work which meant he had to order his supply delivery to be safe. He took his normal list, added the necessary changes in bandages, antiseptic, and tape. He used the house phone and called the grocer. He told him he wanted the same order as always, but he had to add a few items. Once that was done, he prepared his lunch. After eating, he took his two pills, stretched out on the daybed and drifted off to a more comfortable sleep because he could now turn on his side with no pain or concern over the foot.

           He was awakened by bells. In his pill-induced sleep stupor it took a while for him to realize it was the phone ringing. It was a consistent non-stop ringing. When he picked up it was Eloi, so excited that Gaston could hardly understand the rapidly shouted Cajun words. Finally, he said, "Eloi, slow down and calmly tell me what you just tried to tell me."

           It wasn't Eloi this time, it was Cecelia speaking. She calmly told him, "The police just left here Gaston. They told us that a driver hasn't moved the truck in nearly a week. The company hasn't heard from her and she can't be found. She and another driver named Mazie were in the cafe on Saturday night when you and Eloi were there. This is to warn you that you'll be questioned by the police about her. Everyone who was there is being asked what they know if anything." Gaston thanked her for the warning, put the phone down and scoured the house once more to be certain there was nothing that could connect him to Andy. He breathed a sigh of relief when he felt that he was clear.

           The State troopers arrived just before six. Gaston let them in, acted as if he had no knowledge of why they might be there and sat in the living room facing the two of them. When they brought up Andrea Weatheral, Gaston looked blank and asked, "Who is Andrea Weatheral? I don't think I know anyone with that name."

           The lead Trooper then said, "Gaston, she was known as Andy. We understand she asked you to dance Saturday night."          

           "Oh, yeah! Blue tee shirt. I didn't know her name. We danced to a couple of Cajun tunes; I bought her and her friend a beer afterwards. I was with Eloi Prevost. Have you talked to Eloi?"

           They ignored his question and asked, "What happened after you danced with her?"

           "Well, I bought the beers, she told me she had to go shower and get her required rest time in before she could continue her trip. She said that her friend was leaving at eleven because her rest time had ended. I went back to Eloi, told him I was heading home. He said that Cecilia wanted him home also, so we left at the same time. I was parked over by pump Ten, so I jumped in the truck and came here."

           "What happened later?"

           "Around midnight I'm guessing, I heard glass breaking and thought someone was trying to burglarize me. I jumped from bed and ran down the steps. When I hit the bottom I fell on my ass because I had a severe pain in my right foot. I looked at the foot and saw a large shard of glass in the arch. I struggled back up the stairs to get dressed and saw what made the noise. My mama's old picture fell from the stairway wall and broke.  I stepped on the glass.  After I dressed, I finally made my way to the ER at the hospital."

           He held his foot out for them to see the bandages on the foot. He said, "I saw doctor Landry this morning and they changed the dressing. He said I may be able to go back to my rig Sunday."

           "Doctor Landry treated you at the hospital and has the records?"

           "He was the first who saw me. He had to call a surgeon to remove the glass it was embedded so deep. All the way to the bone."

           "Who was the surgeon, Gaston?"

           "The new one, Remy Dufour. He's good."

           They stood and the lead trooper calmly said, "Show us the stairwell."

           Gaston grabbed his crutches, led them to the stairwell and pointed to the cleaner space on the wall where the nail was still hanging, slanted downward. They looked at the cleaner spots on the floor and stairs, turned and looked at the clean trail out the door. One trooper went up the stairs, eyed the nail closely, went to the top and followed the trail to the bedroom. He saw the bed made up, the room neat, decided the bed hadn't been slept in and came back down stairs. He didn't follow the trail out the door. He stopped at the pantry door and opened it, looked inside and closed it. He talked with his partner in private for a few seconds, came back and said, "Who cleaned the floor for you?"

           Gaston smiled and said, "My friend Eloi and his wife Cecilia volunteered to clean up my mess. Joe Boudreaux at the truck stop in Breaux Bridge steamed the blood from my truck floorboard. It's nice when friends help when you can't do things yourself."

           "One more question Gaston. Why is there a larger clean spot in front of the pantry door?"

           "I was hobbling on one foot because the glass was sticking out. I got in the pantry and found my mama's old cane to use. It didn't help all that much, but it did help a lot with driving the truck left footed. It's still in the truck if you want to see it." The trooper shook his head and started back to the living room. Gaston followed but they didn't sit. The lead trooper turned, said, "If you're released for work, we may have to call you back if the evidence changes." They opened the door, nosily plodded across the rickety pine wood porch and drove away in their shiny, clean State Police SUV.

           Gaston went directly to the kitchen, poured double bourbon, added water and sat in the nearest chair. His heart rate was slowing, his nerves lost the edgy feel, and the bourbon soothed his fear. It seems that he passed the smell test.

           The lead trooper, driving toward the hospital ER entrance, was telling his partner, "All the stories jibe, the parts fall in place. I am feeling more like our first take on the missing driver. Another long-haul trucker abducted her. Someday a body will be found on the route of a long-haul and it'll be her. It happens, Luke, just like I told you when we arrived at the truck stop. That was what my gut was telling me. Women long-hauls are always in danger. They're targets because of their bodies." In less than ten minutes they left the ER, walked back to the SUV, having been given verifying data that confirmed Gaston's version of his Saturday night. But Gaston didn't know that yet.

           Gaston tested the foot. He could walk without pain so long as he didn't try to hurry which put more weight on the foot. If he can convince Landry that he can work without damaging the foot, he should be cleared to leave Sunday. Thursday afternoon, after having lunch with Eloi, he entered the kitchen, leaned the crutches in the corner behind the door and spent the rest of the day, with no shoes, walking on the foot. Friday morning, he put on his best sneakers, the New Balance with arch support, and went to his appointment with Landry walking without crutches.       The nurse smiled when she saw him, checked his blood pressure and asked him to remove the shoe and sock. She checked the stitches and saw only a few dark spots remaining of the self dissolving thread. The wound had healed perfectly; his walking had done no damage. She tickled the bottom of his foot causing him to jerk, smiled and said, "All looks great to me but that's the doctors decision. He'll be in shortly. Keep the foot uncovered."

           Landry tested the wound, put pressure up and down the scar area and said, "You're good, Gaston. We're finished. You can return to work immediately."

           Gaston nodded, shook his hand and said, "Thanks for the good work. I hope you never have to do it again." Landry grinned and kidded, "But if you're not clumsy again, how do I make a living Gaston? Incidentally you provided a little excitement when the two State troopers showed up. But they were satisfied when I gave them the records." Once again Gaston was left to make his own way out. However, this time he was elated to be leaving on his own.

           When he was at his home desk, he used his company provided short-wave radio to call Babineaux on the rig. When Jules answered, Gaston told him that he would be at the dock at ten Sunday morning ready to load his supplies.  They talked for a few minutes about the mother rig and the two satellites. Jules assured him he had encountered no problems while Gaston was ashore. When they hung up, he called the grocer and cancelled the medical supplies he had ordered. He verified that the delivery van would be at the dock at nine-thirty. He spent the balance of the afternoon packing his suitcase with the clothes he had laundered and had ready for the return trip.

           At seven, he left for Breaux Bridge. Eloi and the others were straggling in and all stopped at the table to satisfy their curiosity about Gaston's return to work. Gaston found himself at the table with four bourbons that were bought by his pals. It was nearly eight when Eloi came in, looked around and saw him at the table. Eloi sat, pulled the chair up closer and leaned forward, asking, "Everything went okay with the cops?"

           Gaston nodded as he answered, "They looked around, wanted to know who cleaned the floor. I told them you and Cecilia and Joe did the truck. That was about all."

           "What about the foot? What did the doctor say" Eloi shot across the table to him.

           "Clean bill. I leave for the rig Sunday."

           "That's when I leave also. I hop the copter at nine in Lafayette. Before we get away for another six weeks, if you don't mind, tell me what happened between you and blue shirt Saturday night."

           "No, man, I don't mind. She blew me off. Told me she had to get her mandatory rest to be able to leave the next morning. When she went out the door, she went to her rig and then to the showers. I never saw her again."

           "Yeah, that's what I told the cops that probably happened. I knew when you came back to the table and she left, it wasn't a connect. Damn shame about her though. Another trucker told me that in the last five years they've lost two women drivers that way. Some of those drivers have to be son-of-a-bitches about women drivers."

           "It's way too bad about her. Even though I didn't know her name, she seemed to be a very nice lady. Remember, she called my ugly ass handsome. No one else has ever said that to me," and he laughed hard. Eloi was uncomfortable about his reference to being ugly but he joined the laughter to be sociable with his friend.

           Gaston finished the second bourbon, picked up another and said, "I won't be here tomorrow night. I have to pack and be ready to meet my supply truck before I take the boat from Jules. Just wanted you to know in advance."

           "Well, that makes me feel better because Cecelia insists that I go with her to her sister's for a birthday party in Church Point. I'll be able to make her happy about her sister for a change."

           Eloi had eaten at home. Gaston was getting hungry so he ordered the Friday special. They drank while he ate and the talk was about what they would be doing on the rigs for the next six weeks. At ten, Eloi stood, said, "Want another bourbon? Gaston shook his head and then Eloi stuck t his hand out to shake and said, "See ya' in six, buddy. Have a safe time out there ya; hear." Gaston shook it and said, "Same to you. Tell Cecilia I send her my best."

           Gaston slept late Saturday morning. Sleeping late wasn't one of the luxuries of working the rig. After he ate and drank a pot of Cajun coffee, he loaded his suitcase in the truck, spread a canvas tarp over the bed, backed the truck to where it was barely touching the edge of the porch about two inches or so from the top. Down was better than up. He went to his storage shed, took out his wheelbarrow and took it in the kitchen with him. He propped the screen door open with a flower pot and went to the freezer. He retrieved the key from his pocket, opened the door and stared at the frost covered naked body of Andy. She was frozen in the U configuration which would make it easier to fit the wheelbarrow. He put on his gloves, took her right arm and began the struggle of removing the frozen body from the freezer. Being frozen made it much easier than when he had put her in limber in that position. When he had her turned, he lifted her by her butt and put her on her right side in the wheelbarrow.

           He pushed the body through the door, across the porch and into to covered bed of his truck. He raised the handles, she slid to the bed and he backed out with the wheelbarrow. He went back in the truck, pulled the tarp tightly over her and stuffed the ends under her body to secure them. He raised the tailgate, closed the door on the cap and took the wheelbarrow back to the shed. He pulled the truck forward and parked it under the moss-covered oak where the shade would protect it from the searing afternoon heat, but would thaw the body to make it pliable once more.

           Back in the shed, Gaston filled the lawn mower with gas and wheeled it to the front yard. He went to the kitchen and brought two large bottles of iced water and sat them on the porch. He spent the rest of the afternoon mowing and trimming the yard. For the next six weeks, a professional service would do the yard twice.

           After he had showered, he ordered a delivery pizza from Domino's. When it arrived, he sat on the front porch, rocked and ate the pizza while downing two cokes. When the sun started down over the trees at the end of his land, he went in, poured bourbon and turned the news to the local station in Lafayette. He was sipping his bourbon when his attention became riveted to a female reporter standing in front of the truck stop. He turned the volume up and was hearing her say. "State Police spokesperson Sarah Vadrine has said that investigators now believe that the missing trucker, Andrea Weatheral, was the victim of another long-haul trucker. Any local suspects have been cleared of all questions of Weatheral. Station KVOL has learned of other missing women truckers under similar circumstances. Stay tuned to KVOL for further developments when they become available."  

           Gaston sat back with his drink at his smiling lips. He felt the best he had since just minutes before he hit Andy in the nose. Until she called him ugly, he had been on cloud nine with hopes of her being more than just a one night stand. He felt bad that she had paid the price for turning nasty on him, but he also felt she deserved the punch, however not her death.

           He slept with an easy mind. He rose at six, had his breakfast, dressed and left for Franklin at eight. He stopped and bought four dozen of assorted doughnuts for the guys on the rig. He went to the grocer and bought four pounds of chili meat. He arrived at the Blanche Bay dock some fifteen minutes early. He sat in the truck and ate one of the doughnuts while drinking a cap full of his vacuum coffee. He heard the soothing familiar humming sound of his crew boat coming up toward the dock. He stepped from the truck, walked to the piling tie-off point ready to catch the rope when Jules threw it. He smiled at Jules who was waving at him. He wrapped the rope around the tie-off and took Jules suitcase, sat it on the pier and then pulled Jules up by the hand. He shook the hand in his hand and Jules slapped him on the back. He asked Gaston if anything exciting had happened and Gaston shook his head as he said, "Same old stuff, Jules. A dead Jeanerette and a few drinks in Breaux Bridge with Eloi and the guys. At least the work on the rigs gets exciting at times." Jules nodded and said, "That it does, Gaston. That it does. I heard about you being trapped on the toadstool. Better you than me, "and he laughed as he picked up his suitcase and headed for his truck.

           Gaston loaded the supplies that the delivery van had deposited for him. He waited for another ten minutes to make certain that Jules wasn't coming back. He went to the truck, backed it to the pier, opened the cap, lowered the tailgate and drug Andy and the tarp to edge.  He rolled her off the back off the truck and watched the tarp open when it hit the bottom of the boat. He stood looking at the display of her nude body. He loaded the doughnuts, his suitcase and the chili meat. He re-parked under the carport, left the truck, unwound the tie rope, threw it aboard and jumped in the boat. The engine was running so he put it in gear, turned the wheel to his right and glided into Blanche Bay. Once he was out of sight of land, he took Andy's keys from his pocket and heaved them into the deep water of Blanche Bay.

           He sat his GPS for the toadstool, not the mother rig. When he slowed to tether the boat, he opened the chili meat and dropped it overboard near the small metal platform. By the time he had tethered the boat, the water was roiling with an eating frenzy over the chili meat. He lifted Andy's body, rolled her head over the side of the boat. He kissed her cheek, lifted her legs and let her gently slide into the roiling water. He sat sideways on the railing and watched as the fish devoured her until little but bone was showing. He unhooked the tether and headed for the mother rig.

             Seven weeks later he and Eloi sat at their table in the cafe. Gaston was sipping his bourbon when the door opened and a blue tee shirt entered the door, stopped and searched for the ladies lockers. Gaston punched Eloi as she began walking toward them. When she passed, Gaston turned his head and watched her tight jean-covered ass go by, turned to Eloi and said, "Do you think blue shirt would like to dance, Eloi? Maybe she'll ask me."

 The End