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daydreamerbean · 1 day ago

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hii!! i love the way you write the whc boys so much. can you do something with the eunjang quartet x fem!reader but in a platonic way. like she is there to patch them up and treat them to some food or something after every fight (especially after the last one they had with the union - which she was understandably worried about)

after the storm | eunjang!quartet x fem!reader

summary: after the brutal fight against the union, they show up at her family’s restaurant—bloodied but alive. she worries, she scolds, she patches, she feeds. in between, there's banter, comfort, and something quiet and tender that lingers in the silences.

warnings: [platonic?] canon-typical violence aftermath, light blood/injury description, hurt/comfort .

author's note: this is so wholesome :(( . requests ,,

the familiar scent of frying oil and garlic wafted through the air as she wiped down a table by the window, cloth in one hand, mind far from the rhythms of the restaurant. the neon sign of her family’s fried chicken place buzzed softly behind her, but the usual comfort it brought her felt distant today. she hadn't been able to stop thinking about it—the fight. the one she wasn't supposed to know about, but of course she did. she always did when it came to them.

her hand slowed over the tabletop, worry nesting in her chest. the late afternoon sun spilled golden light through the glass, casting long shadows and warming the wooden floors, but it did little to settle the twist in her stomach. she had checked her phone twice in the last hour, hoping for a message, even just an emoji. nothing.

just as she turned to the next table, she caught a glimpse of movement outside. her breath caught.

the four of them.

yeon sieun, stoic as ever; baku, somehow still smiling even with dried blood on his brow; jung tae, bruised but beaming; and go hyuntak, his arm slung carelessly over sieun’s shoulder, eyes bright with the adrenaline of victory.

she dropped the rag.

"are you serious?!" she half-shouted, half-squeaked, rushing to the front entrance, throwing open the door so fast the bell above it clanged in protest. she stormed outside, arms flying in disbelief.

"what the hell happened to you guys?! look at your faces! jung tae, are you even walking properly?! baku, your lip—! gotak! you're bleeding through your shirt! and sieun—" she stopped at him, heart clenching at the sight of crimson staining his temple. "you too?"

they all looked at her like she was a sight from a better world. baku chuckled, reaching forward to ruffle her hair with a bloodied hand. "missed you too."

she slapped his hand away with a huff, eyes wide with exasperation but soft with relief. "you're all idiots. absolute, complete idiots. come inside before you all faint on the street."

they followed without protest, brushing past the bell once more as she ushered them to the back of the restaurant where it was quieter. her parents peeked in from the kitchen, and she waved quickly. "can you make extra portions? they need food. a lot of it."

"rough day again?" her father asked, already pulling out the pans.

"something like that," she muttered.

she dragged out the first aid kit and moved toward the table where the boys sat—some slouched, some upright, all bruised. gotak was the first she started with, dabbing a cloth gently over his cheek.

"you didn’t even try to block, did you?"

he grinned, his hand naturally resting on her thigh like it always did, no thought to the gesture, and she didn’t mind. "didn’t need to. we won."

"that’s not the point," she said, flicking his forehead.

"ow," he chuckled, his eyes catching hers for just a second longer than usual. her hand lingered a beat longer too, thumb brushing just under his jaw. he didn’t flinch.

she cleared her throat and moved to sieun next. he sat perfectly still, letting her tend to him like he always did. their eyes met—no words exchanged—but he gave the smallest nod. she returned it with a faint smile. he never needed to speak much. he always understood. but something in the way his gaze lingered today made her chest tighten. like he was reading more than he let on.

jung tae winced as she pressed antiseptic onto a scrape on his neck.

"don’t be a baby."

"you’re treating me like one."

"because you are one," she said, patting his cheek. "you’re lucky i don’t swaddle you in bubble wrap."

he flushed, muttering something about being strong as she moved on to baku, who held out his arm with a dramatic sigh.

"you should open a clinic," he teased. "but only for good-looking guys."

she smirked. "so i guess i’ll be closing after today, then."

"ouch. that’s cold."

they bantered easily as she wrapped gauze around his forearm. it was always like this with baku—like talking to a much older friend who still knew how to laugh like a kid. he leaned a bit closer as she tied the final knot in the bandage.

"you’re really good at this, you know?" he said more seriously, his voice low. "you keep everyone stitched up, not just with tape and gauze."

she blinked, taken aback by the sincerity. "you’re just saying that because i’m your free nurse."

"nah. saying it ‘cause it’s true."

food arrived not long after, filling the air with sizzling spices and warmth. plates clinked. drinks poured. for a moment, the chaos of the outside world paused.

gotak’s hand stayed on her thigh as he ate, casual and unthinking, but every so often his pinky tapped against her knee like he wasn’t quite as unaffected as he looked. she leaned slightly into him without thinking. it was just how they were—but tonight, the warmth of him beside her seemed to sink deeper into her skin.

sieun sat across from her, meeting her gaze occasionally with the tiniest of smiles. that was enough. except this time, he didn’t look away as quickly. his eyes lingered. she looked down at her plate, suddenly aware of how warm her ears felt.

jung tae animatedly talked about how he “almost” knocked a guy’s tooth out, while she poked fun at his exaggerated expressions.

"you should’ve seen me! the guy was huge. i mean, hulk huge."

"and you? what, ant-man?" she laughed, nudging his side.

"i’m tall!" he protested.

"you’re adorable."

he groaned, dropping his chopsticks in defeat. "why does everyone call me that?"

"because it’s true," gotak chimed in with a grin, ruffling jung tae’s already messy hair.

and baku, between mouthfuls, reached over to ruffle her hair again.

"you’re good at worrying," he said.

she rolled her eyes, but a smile tugged at her lips. "and you’re good at making me do it."

as the night wore on and the plates grew emptier, the energy shifted into something slower, softer. gotak leaned back, his shoulder brushing hers, and she didn’t move away. when she yawned, he tilted his head toward her.

"tired?"

"a little. long day."

"want me to carry you upstairs?" he teased.

she rolled her eyes but laughed. "you’d trip over the first step."

"still worth the offer."

across the table, sieun watched quietly, fingers tapping against his drink. their eyes met again, and for a heartbeat, everything felt still.

it was nothing. probably nothing.

but maybe it wasn’t.

the table bubbled with quiet laughter again. they were beaten, bruised, borderline limping—but they were together.

and that made everything feel okay again.

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daydreamerbean · 3 days ago

Text

Red Licorice (Scream x Black Reader)

Scream - Soundtrack - Bitter Pill - By The Connells -

“Ah, lemme guess? You wanna play a psycho killer and I play the helpless victim?” Tatum Riley

PT2

“Now now settle down!” Randy spoke over the crowd gaining their attention. “Me and my apprentice have brought enough movies to keep you all entertained for the night!”

(Y/n) snorted on the couch beside Sidney a look of disbelief on her face. “I’m most definitely not an apprentice! More like the right hand man who knows everything!”

The male smirked, “You were the one who questioned the selection I brought.” Emphasizing his point he grabbed the bag spilling out all the movies onto the table.

Sideny looked at the selection, “The Fog, Terror Train, Prom Night-,” She giggled as (Y/n) accidentally got some cupcake icing on her nose before continuing, “How come Jamie Lee Curtis is in all of these movies?”

Randy held up his hands in exasperation, “She's the scream queen.”

“With that set of lungs–she should be.”

The voice behind her made the girl flinch. Turning her head and tilting up she came face to face with Stu already looking down at her. Pursing her lips she assessed the boy in front of her. His eyes were slightly red and puffy around the edges and his face flushed. His shirt was still pristine and unwrinkled, no signs of a struggle or a bit of fun taking place. But yet his eyes–she'd seen that look so many times when they were younger, it was all in the way his smile was forced, eyebrows trying to unravel the expansive trouble on his face, and his temples flexing slightly.

Stu Stu was upset.

‘Are you okay,’ she mouthed up at him with a frown.

The male seemed to flinch slightly at the question, but threw on a softer, more sincere smile this time, moving to give her a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder. One that had her skin get goosebumps from the warmth of his palm, she resisted the urge to relax as he kneaded the thumb into her shoulder.

He didn't answer though, and instead looked back towards the kitchen, frowning. In the archway stood Tatum, her arms crossed before heading back into the kitchen where she seemed to take refuge.

“Let's take a vote!” Randy’s voice bellowed, gaining the two's attention back, “Evil Dead,” He held up the tape. Many hands shot up a good bit and (Y/n) nodded impressed, “How about HellRaisers?” The majority of hands go up, much to her dismay.

“I know you guys are not choosing that one!” She scoffed from the couch.

A random boy in the crowd in black scoffed back “What's wrong with HellRaiser?”

“I'll tell you why,” another boy mumbled to him.

The following crowd began to murmur in disagreement– a clear displeasure that not everyone was on the same page.

Randy frowned at the brown skinned girl, “Now look what you did!” He meant it as a light joke, a slight smile on his face, until his gaze traveled back to Stu behind her and his hand resting on the girl’s shoulder. A frown grew on the male’s face, remembering the conflict the two shared earlier in the day. Randy flinched, seeing cold dead eyes staring right back through him.

Thinking quickly, Randy threw on a fake smile, “Hey host, ya mind grabbin’ me a beer?”

Stu refrained from snarling at him, “What do I look like? Your maid?”

“I can’t leave the people waiting, you did invite me to serve your guests.” He replied smugly, “All I'm asking for is a drink to help our dear guests get situated.”

Noticing the growing tension between the two men, (Y/n) began to get up, “I’ll get it–”

A knock at the door cut the girl off and in walked the woman of her nightmares. An uncharacteristic snarl made its way onto her face.

“Hey, guess who’s here? It’s that bitch from Inside Story,” Stu snickered ruefully, sizing up Gale who dared to enter his home after the stunt she pulled this morning with his precious. “What exactly brings you here?”

“Shit Dewey!” Tatum emerged from the kitchen out of sorts and swaying a bit on her feet, “What is she doing here?”

Dewey eyed his sister’s state before answering carefully, “She’s with me. I just wanted to check on things.”

The deputy knew that it would be risky to bring Weathers into the party, however in some way he thought if she was able to get a few interviews in from some of the teens on how they're feeling she would possibly leave early and wouldn't bother them for the rest of the night.

The guys in the room broke out into whispers and smirked, eyeing Gale like candy. After all, it wasn't like you would be able to see a famous newscaster up close like this everyday. The fame and self awareness of their possibility to be on camera was going faster than the booze they ingested into their stomachs.

(Y/n) glanced at Stu, gasping in surprise to already find the male staring down at her in concern.

“You want me to make her leave? I’ll kick them off the property.”

She opened her mouth to respond only to be cut off by Tatum behind her, “So you did– now leave….and take that media bitch with you that causes nothing but trouble.”

The older Riley was taken back buy the girls tone, “Tatum, you know what ma says about calling people out their name–”

“I'm sorry that I have no sympathy for a woman that dared to publish a dead girl's diary and cause her best friend distress!”

Gale seemed to turn pink at the girl's response, only to become more aware of the teens around her as well. The one thing the reporter didn't like and it was the youth, not because they were all bad of course– it was due to their honesty sometimes and their lack of fear with authority. She would like to think she was like that once upon a time, however, growing up in a small town taught her a thing or two: who to cross and who to keep your mouth shut around. And here she thought the buzzed out teens would be more mindful with their words.

“This must be huge to be on Inside Story,” Joshua muttered to Autumn in the corner.

“Huge,” Gale muttered to herself, reminding herself the reason she came here in the first place. The killer could be in the very house with anyone of them and they have no clue. She turns to eye the bookshelf above the television, she coughs subtly and reaches into her bag turning on the camera.

“Lemme guess you wanna interview us, “A teen said excitedly.

“Sure…interviews,” Randy rolled his eyes, “Let’s pretend to be grief stricken students for an interview and all say really nice things for our friends who were murdered senselessly” He crossed his arms and cut his eyes at the bitchy reporter exasperated. “Also let’s make sure to say how we would’ve accepted our closeted gay friend who was outed by a money hungry reporter.”

“I can cry on cue.” A guy laughs dramatically.

“Maybe later,” She coughs again to gain more attention to her fake discomfort, “Can I trouble you for some water?”

“How about a beer?” Stu snidded, although he didn't want this woman in his home, he didn't want to lose the persona he built around the student body, “Hey Randy–get the lady a beer!”

Randy scoffed, flipping through some of the films Macher already had at home judging his display, “You get it.”

Sidney hovers beside (Y/n) as they stick beside Dewey in the foyer, The girl kept gazing back at Gale, a sickening feeling began to emerge at the bottom of her stomach.

“Have they found my father?” Sidney questioned hopefully.

Dewey gave the girl a sad look and shook his head, feeling the weight press down on him, “Afraid not.”

“Should I be worried?” The girl whispered. It was very strange for Sidney's father to go this long without saying nothing to her in return. A call from any location would suffice. Not to mention the growing bond they formed after her mothers death. It was almost like the man was scared to have her stray too far.

The man pursed his lips together tightly before responding in a white lie, “Not yet.”

Dewey felt horrible lying to the girl, but orders were orders. It was best the girl stay uniformed about her father being a prime suspect

Randy rolled his eyes back in the room and looked back at Tatum who was fuming in the corner, “Hey Tatum, you mind grabbing the beers?”

Tatum frowned, shaking her head, “Are you serious? Who do I look like– the fucking maid?!” Her face grew even more flushed at the proclamation.

The male gave the girl a deadpan look, “Listen you're sitting around doing nothing and know the ins and outs of the house, you know where they are, just grab me one please, it's not like you're gonna disappear on us.”

The girl huffed, rolling her eyes making her way to the kitchen, shoving past couples getting frisky. She roughly grabbed the fridge door staring in a drunken haze, she jolted in remembrance of another fridge in the basement holding the extra drinks.

She stumbled her way through the corridor making way to the basement ignoring the slight thump in another room as she passed. Opening the garage she took notice of the semi lit atmosphere and the creepy vibes from the place, but in theory no one really has a non-creepy basement as she's ever seen one.

She finds a button and hits it expecting the lights to turn on only to have the electric garage door to rise. Wrong switch. She thinks with a huff, hitting it again and watching it close.

Tatum finds another switch overhead, at last a light bulb illuminates the space as best as possible for a two car door garage displaying pockets of shadows along the wall.

Tatum spots the refrigerator against a far wall and heads for it, not seeing the kitchen door, quietly, slowly, closing behind her, sealing her off from the rest of the house. Tatum stumbles to the refrigerator and throws it open. Its light casts a glow across her face displaying the red eyes and puffy face from crying, and the bleak effects of intoxication.

Tatum jumps, spinning around just in time to see a cat escape through a large pet door that's built into the garage door. She smiles at her jumpiness. Gathering as much beer as her hands will carry, she heads back to the kitchen doorway.

At the kitchen door, she juggles the beer, reaching for the knob. It's locked.

“Fuck, that’s great! Just my luck!” Tatum huffed before proceeding to bang on the door once more, “Hello! I know there’s someone in the kitchen to let me back in!”

She sighed hearing nothing but the loud voices on the other side. This night wasn’t her best, first she gets dumped, then was ordered around to get drinks, and now she’s locked out of a party that might be her last in this very home. A home she imagined spending the rest of her days in with the boy hosting it.

Until she grew involved.

A knock in the corner of the room drew her attention to the left, causing her to flinch slightly. An uncomfortable feeling swelled within her chest as she began to look over in the area where the light didn’t reach.

“Hello?” The strawberry blonde called out, “Is someone there?” She walked over slowly, cradling the beer bottles for dear life as if they were her only salvation.

Looking around behind the crate of boxes in the corner she found nothing in sight but a rock out of place. Letting out a frustrated huff she opted to turn around heading back to the garage opener switch she’d seen Stu open many times before.

The garage door began to open with slow creaks, a satisfied smile graced her lips as he headed over only to grow frustrated as the door started to go back down suddenly. Much to her dismay.

Furrowing her brows she turns back to the door, only to grow shocked at the sight of the Ghost Faced Masked man’s hand on the switch staring dead at her. She let out a gasp backing away before giving a playful drunk look in response.

“Really Randy?” Tatum laughed, “Is this your funny idea of a prank tonight? (Y/n) and Sidney are going to be so pissed!”

The killer seemed to freeze at her statement, as if considering her words for a moment before holding the knife to her chest. Shaking his head no. Because this wasn’t Randy. This was the male that was going to draw her last breath for the stunt she pulled upstairs.

The male could barely contain his shaking, the anger that radiated off of him was in waves that the girl couldn’t detect. Her words ringing in the back of his mind of all the horrid things she put his favorite people through the past year leveling up to this moment.

“Ah, lemme guess? You wanna play a psycho killer and I play the helpless victim?” The girl teased playing along with the masked male in front of her.

She received a nod in reply.

“Let me see !” Tatum pouted, turning up her lips to stare into the dead black holes of the mask, “No, please! Don’t kill me Mr. Ghostface! I want to be in the sequel!”

Someone should’ve told Tatum Riley sooner. Wicked little things don’t get a sequel. Nor do they leave flowers on their graves .

The girl frowned as he grabbed her abruptly, causing her to struggle and look at him in confusion. “Wha—cut it Casper that’s a wrap!” The Ghost Face male grip tightened, yanking her towards him abruptly causing her to struggle dropping the beers she worked so hard to fetch for the others. “Randy—what the hell are you doing?!”

The strawberry blonde suddenly gasped, startled as the sharp gleaming knife came into view cutting her off. Her heart thudded in her ears, panic sinking in of the reality at hand.

This wasn’t Randy. He’d never take it this far.

“Yo what the hell–“ The Riley girl cut off with a scream as she felt the blade be dragged down her arm deeply. The cut out fire into her arm causing her to let out a pained shrill. She pushed her attacker off, backing up into the far wall stumbling into the pool chair.

With a grunt, she got up and ran over to the other direction, Ghostface fast on their heels. Grabbing the refrigerator door she opened it slamming it into the male making a comical thud landing him on his back from the unexpected impact.

Just for that alone Billy wanted that bitches guts on display.

Tatum wasted no time to run towards the garage door opener, quickly flipping the switch and turning around to find the killer up and approaching once more. The girl's frustration from the night's events began to rise, her crumbling resolve starting to heighten as he began to grab beer bottle after beer bottle, striking the masked killer in front of her.

“FUCKER!” Tatum growled, landing the first hit to his genitalia, “This is for Sid!” She grabbed another one, lading it to his head, “This is for (N/n)—“

Upon ducking for another bottle,the killer launched himself at the girl, missing by a hair as she ducked in time. In the heat of the moment, Tatum panicked looking towards her only exit in the vast space of the garage.

The doggy door.

Gaining her bearings Tatum raced towards the doggy door, managing to fit a part of her head and right arm through the hole. Her heart began to thud again in her ears, her eyes tearing up as her front torso wasn’t able to fit through the small space. Things began to get worse as she realized she wasn’t able to pull herself out.

No! NO!

The masked killer got up, cocking his head to the side for a moment before stepping up by the steps and hitting the garage door opener once more, causing the door to life with Tatum in it.

“Wait no-“ The girl began to struggle, her legs dangling out of the door as she’s lifted into the air, cocking her eyes up to see the view of the ceiling she would be crushed against. “S-someone! Someone help me! Dewey! Sid!!”

“Stu! (Y/n)!”

The garage door shook with the teen’s weight and her cries and struggle testing its limit. Hoping that by some miracle she’d be heavy enough to drop down.

However for Tatum Riley there was never a sequel for her. There were no miracles for the girl to revel in for she’d done enough. Or maybe she didn’t, after all we all have plans for ourselves futures that we never get to see due to death.

For her, she’d reached her final destination.

Tatum let out a scream right before the sickening crunch was heard of her head connecting with the garage door ceiling, her neck snapping in two at an odd angle. Her arm and legs hung limply through the doggy door, drops of blood leaking to the ground.

Billy stood by the door, behind the mask he held a grime expression: part of satisfaction, and part regret.

Don’t fuck with the ones I love, bitch.

~ ☿ ~

“So let me get this straight,” Gia griped at the officer before her, “You’re keeping me here for ‘protection’ because you have a theory that Neil is behind the murders and that I’m next on the list of victims?”

It’s been three hours since Gia had been pulled away from her shift at work by the sheriff department claiming ‘protection’ was needed.Within the next hour,her things were packed at the office and she was escorted in a police cruiser to the station. The woman wouldn't have minded it as much if her niece was with her in the same room, however–it seemed like no one wanted to tell her where her beloved niece was at the moment.

Exasperated, Gia swiped another sprinkled doughnut from the table provided an hour ago due to her overzealous campaign about her hunger within the first few minutes of arrival. Apparently she couldn't have access to her numerous snacks and the dinner she packed for work due to ‘evidence’.

She called bullshit. She wanted her damn animal crackers.

Cassandra Williams smiled softly at the woman before nodding her head, “Yes ma'am, and it's for the best we hold you here while we come up with a solution to keep you safe in the meantime.”

The older (L/n) huffed, chewing on the last bit of the sticky sweet treat before relaxing back in the chair the best she could, her back was killing her. She winced slightly trying to get comfortable.

Deputy Williams started to get up in concern, only for Gia to hold up a hand allowing them to sit down and get settled once more.

"Why isn't my niece here?” She mutters in concern, “She's the one who has been attacked, and Sidney has been attacked what? Two times now?”

The Deputy nodded in response, “Were on the lookout for (Y/n) dont worry shes in good hands,” The woman pushed her plump lips together before taking in Gias state once more.

The woman was very agitated the last few days seeming to lose sleep, although she doesn't run on coffee thankfully as she's rejected it from officer Montana several times. Backaches seemed to be another issue, the police cruiser the woman even asked to lay down to become even more comfortable in her state of transport.

“I-I would like to ask you a few questions about your…..relationship with Mr. Prescott if you don't mind?”

Gia stilled for a moment before sitting up a bit straighter, “What relationship?”

Cassandra opened her mouth for a moment, closing it before proceeding with caution, “So far we've had a couple of witness statements about the two of you being seen together around town as of late.” The other woman shifted in her seat again, hands instinctively going to her stomach–something the Deputy caught but didnt point it out at the moment.

“We’re just friends,” Gia muttered softly, “Nothing more.”

Cassandra looked through the window of the interrogation room, watching as her fellow officers walked around talking, bags underneath their eyes from the many patrols taking place every hour no matter how long the two hour breaks are to switch teams.

Looking back at the woman in front of her she decided to finally let loose a bit. After all, she knew what it could look like. A black woman officer questioning another woman of color about a potential interracial relationship–with a man whose wife was murdered a year ago from this exact date.

In front of her needed understanding–a friend and colleague. Something that she wasn't sure she even had. It must have been so lonely taking care of (Y/n) all by herself, wondering how she was going to feed her, pick her up from school, work, and make even the slightest time for herself.

When did Gia even have time for love or even the solitude to understand where she was in life?

“Would Neil agree with you-”

“It's Mr. Prescott to you.” Gia’s eyes widened for a second at her own tone, not realizing how hostile she sounded at the moment. It was something she wasn't used to–and very much out of her character. Shame quickly crawled up her spine as her face grew warm in hot embarrassment.

“I-I’m so sorry!” She sputtered out, hot tears clouded her vision as she wrapped her arms around her stomach for comfort, “I would never respond to someone like that-”

“It's honestly alright Miss (L/n). Let's try to take deep breaths-”

“How can I take deep breaths when I don't know who's attacking my niece and I don't know where Neil is?!” Gia stood her heart racing as she looked through the other window facing out into the night sky and lights of Woodsburror. “I raised that girl for god knows how long–and I failed! I failed somewhere to keep her safe like I promised (D/n) and (M/n).”

“There's only so much a girl could do at the time of being twenty seven! I mean my life was just getting started, I got a masters and got a job at the hospital. I moved closer to family here to find a sense of community and not even five months later I had to bury my own brother–”

Cassandra shook her head with a frown, “I’m so sorry love–”

Gia waved her off with a sob, “Being sorry doesn't bring them back for their daughter. I can handle losing my brother–naturally–but murdered! With no leads? And having to tell a little girl that she's slowly comprehending things around her?” The woman rested her head against the cool glass, taking in her own reflection of swollen red eyes, and puffy face. She closed them taking long deep breaths to stay somewhat sane before turning to the other woman.

“You think I'm still doing a bad job don't you? That these mistakes I've made make me a horrible caretaker for her? That my brother is probably turning over in his grave every night as I fail him?!”

Casaandera held her arms out cautiously, her eyes searching for permission. When Gia didn’t shake her head or pull away, only did she wrap the woman up into a warm embrace. The woman gently loosened her embrace after the others shoulders stopped shaking, resting her palms on Gia’s forearms. “You’re not a failure, Gia. Not even close. Look at everything you've held together. You’re raising a whole human being while grieving a family you didn’t even have time to properly mourn.”

“But I’m still messing up,” Gia whispered, her voice hoarse. “I’m not married, and now—” She trailed off, hand instinctively moving to her stomach again. She didn’t finish the sentence, but Cassandra noticed the way her eyes flickered with something deeper. A silent confession.

Cassandra tilted her head. “You’re carrying more than just grief, aren’t you?”

Just like that the walls slowly started to build back up, and Gia didn't reply for a moment, causing the deputy to sigh.

Cassandra leaned forward, her voice low but strong. “It’s the 90s, Gia. And there is nothing wrong with loving who you love. You’re allowed to stumble—you’re still learning, too. Just like (Y/n). You’re both figuring things out, and neither of you have to do it alone.”

Gia blinked through the tears and let out a shaky laugh. “It’s funny. I’m almost thirty six and still feel like I’m twenty-nine sometimes. I thought I had time.”

“You do,” The other hummed, “God really doesn't place an hourglass in front of us when we want him to.”

The older (L/N) laughed softly, not bitter–but not happy either, “He wouldn't answer this sinner.”

Cassanmdra smiled in reassurance, “My father always tells me there's a blessing through verydoor.” She started to help the woman back to her seat at the table for comfort, “Sometimes when we least expect it.”

When Gis started to reach for another doughnut on the table smiling sheepishly, Cassandra finally felt in-tuned to open her mouth once more. Afterall there wasn't a smooth way of asking in this situation.

“By any chance would you possibly be-”

Just then, the door creaked open, breaking the emotional moment.

Officer Montana poked his head in with a clipboard and an unapologetically bored expression. “Sorry to interrupt the kumbaya, but I need a pee sample.”

Gia blinked at him, confused.

Cassandra stood, folding her arms with a glare. “She’s clean of all substances. You know that.”

Montana shrugged. “It’s not for drugs.”

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