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youngerdrgrey · 3 years

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I know you (even if you don’t want me to) // a Batwoman fic, chapter 6

about: After finding out Batwoman’s identity, Sophie tries to trap Ryan with her newfound knowledge. If she’s going to be on the outside, she might as well have some fun – and maybe fall in love along the way. #WildMoore

CHAPTER SIX (even if you’re changing): As Ryan's recovery period continues, she grapples with the one thing more terrifying than a flame-throwing False Face member: her own abandonment issues and insecurities. Thankfully, she doesn't have to handle this alone. + read on ao3 previously: read chapter one, chapter two, chapter three, chapter four + chapter five (mini recap on AO3’s notes)

notes: *sigh*a month since our last update. Thank you all so much for your patience and continued enthusiasm. This is a very long chapter, and I highly recommend reading on AO3. feel free to loop back and reply/reblog/etc. those mean the world to me. so do comments on ao3.

+ This chapter has a few references to Dance Academy, which you can read about here or watch on Apple TV. (It used to be on both Netflix and Amazon Prime. I feel betrayed that it isn’t anymore.) Shout out to Australian teen ballerinas who want to fly.

Sophie smacks her lips together as she wakes up. Without the glow of the TV, the bedroom’s dark. It takes a few blinks for her eyes to adjust enough to see Ryan lying down on the other side of the bed.

Ryan’s clearly a side sleeper. She has to sleep on her back to keep her leg up, but she’s twisted onto her side as much as possible. It makes Sophie’s back ache just looking at her. Her full lips are slightly parted. The light ebb of her breathing is the only sound in the room. She looks a lot more peaceful than Sophie usually does.

Between Sophie’s time in the military and her job as a Crow, she goes through cycles of sleep patterns. Sometimes she’s fine, and other times, she can’t seem to settle her restless body. Each sound jolts her, and vivid playback gives way to nightmares more often than she’d ever admit. Sophie still locks up in her sleep sometimes with her muscles tense and primed to go. But Ryan seems to handle the stress and violence well. Is it because of her time at Blackgate?

Ryan wouldn’t tell her, even if Sophie did work up the courage to ask. Sophie should move though. Get up before Ryan wakes up and finds Sophie watching her sleep.

Sophie’s careful not to shift the bed as she slips off. Ryan’s nose scrunches, then relaxes, as she settles back down. Sophie grabs her phone and softly creeps out of the room.

A soft murmur of voices drifts from the living room. Sophie’s heart rate spikes at the sound. Her Point Rock trauma response kicks in. The back of her head aches with the echo of everyone knows, everyone hates you, you’ve ruined your life. She runs her nails along her scalp to soothe herself.

Mary and Luke talk on the couch. They both perk up as Sophie comes in. Mary, specifically, turns a shit eating grin Sophie’s way. Sophie’s instinctive panic gives way to a much more terrifying response: embarrassment, like she’s been caught doing a walk of shame.

But friends can sleep in the same room. No need for shame. No need to feel like she’s getting away with something. Sophie forces a casual tone.

She asks, “Hey guys, how long have you been back?”

Mary hums. “An hour or two? I thought about waking you up, but you two looked so cozy in there. Didn’t they, Luke?”

Sophie talks before he can. “You did tell me to get comfortable.”

“Mmhm, just surprised you listened is all. I thought after last night…” Mary leans into the back of the couch to get closer to where Sophie stands behind it. Mary drops her voice to a whisper. “You know, in the alley.”

With the heat of the club around them and Ryan’s hand in hers, yes, Sophie knows. She blinks away the memory. Avoids looking at Luke who is doing his best to stare directly down at the couch rather than get involved.

Sophie asks, “You thought what, Mary?” That Sophie would try to finish what they’d almost started? Or that Sophie would keep her distance?

Mary splits a loaded look with Luke. Her half questions while his half definitely disapproves. Have they been talking about her?

Luke answers for them both. “Mary thought nothing. We’re happy to see you and Ryan getting along.”

Mary rolls her eyes and picks up Sophie’s jacket from the couch. She hands it to Sophie, who tucks it over her arm rather than put it on. “Hmm. Don’t you normally have that buttoned higher?”

Luke’s eyes jump to the buttons on Sophie’s uniform top. Sophie normally has one or two undone, but yes, she’d popped an extra one before coming into the loft.

Sophie had retouched her lipstick too. It doesn’t mean anything. She can look nice without doing it for Ryan. Besides, she’s new to being out. Of course she’d want some attention from the only other queer woman in her life. But there’s a difference between wanting attention from a clearly jealous friend and actually hooking up with someone.

Mary’s cheeks raise the way they do when she’s trying to seem nonchalant. “You know, just an observation. I know that Ryan’s, like, not necessarily your type.”

Sophie’s eyebrows skyrocket at the assumption. “Excuse me?”

Mary tries to pick her words carefully. “Kate, Tyler, Julia, even that one girl from the bar.... I kind of assumed that you were into more….” Mary looks to Luke for help.

Luke honestly supplies the word. “White?”

Mary’s whole face erupts with dissatisfaction. “Luke!” Sophie gapes at him.

Luke doubles down. “You have a type! Tall, intense, white women with secrets.”

He has her there. Tyler hadn’t been intense, but after Kate, Sophie went against type a bit. Ryan’s as far from that as Sophie could get. She concedes, “Well, Ryan’s one for three.”

Luke nods. “Exactly the point.”

Mary takes a few steps towards the front door and pauses, like something’s just occurred to her. “Honestly Ryan’s more available than the girls you tend to go for. Both Batwomen included.”

Sophie technically hasn’t gone for Batwoman 2.0. Every joke she’s made has been for Ryan. Well, not for Ryan. To bother Ryan. To get under Ryan’s skin and get her to finally stop treating Sophie like the enemy. But Sophie can’t say that to Mary. Mary’s got an expectant, hopeful gleam in her eye. Meanwhile, Sophie will be lucky if Ryan doesn’t pretend this whole night was a fever dream. Ryan acts like every move forward is onto a trap door.

As an ache sets in, Sophie heads for the door too. “Good night, Mary,” she says as she passes where Mary paused in the hallway. She glances back, and Luke waves his goodbye to her. Mary falls into step behind Sophie.

“You can come back, you know. She’ll be out for two weeks.” Mary stresses the length of time. Sophie does not need this information.

Sophie unzips her boots to slip her feet inside. Ryan doesn’t want to know Sophie. She doesn’t want to be friends, or partners, or anything else. She doesn’t even want to try.

Though, she did promise that Sophie would fly again. She did invite Sophie to sit on her bed. She did say that she wanted Sophie, and then Sophie walked away.

The Crow sighs. “Trust me, she’ll be fine on her own. Talk to you later.” The door shuts behind her.

Ryan wakes up at the thud of the door. Her eyes fly open, straining in the dark for some kind of answer. Sophie’s gone, and the first thing Ryan feels is disappointment. Then disappointment at being disappointed. Then her very full bladder screams at her. She calls out.

“Help! Sophie?”

Mary’s familiar stomps answer Ryan’s call. Ryan does her best not to deflate when Mary’s the one who walks into her room.

Mary must still see it. She looks painfully apologetic. “She just left. I’ve got you though.”

Good. That’s better anyway. If Sophie were still here, they would’ve ended up watching more of Dance Academy. The cheesy show’s not really the sort of prestige television that Ryan wants to be known for. It’s a bunch of Australian teens figuring themselves out at a ballet academy. Ryan had started watching it years ago after a student put her on. It’s silly, but if Sophie ever wants to know what it could’ve been like to follow that dream of flying, it’s a good look.

Sophie had watched with a rapt focus and a little smile tucked in the corner of her mouth. Ryan had to close her eyes to stop herself from watching Sophie get swept up in it. Then, with her eyes closed and Sophie’s raspy laugh filling the room, sleep had come sooner than it normally does. It had stayed longer too.

Mary helps Ryan up. “I didn’t think I’d be out that long. We had to push up some doctors’ start dates. I guess False Face is still trying to master Snake Bite. Their latest batch sent a dozen patients to the clinic today.”

Ryan groans. “Didn’t they watch Ang and Ocean make it?”

Mary leads the way to the bathroom. “Apparently not close enough. Their formula’s off, and the numbers aren’t adding up with how many people we know are using it. There’s a tsunami on the horizon, if they don’t get this stuff right.”

Mary lets Ryan go once they step in. Ryan leans herself against the bathroom counter. Her tone stays playful, but her eyes sink at the realization.

“Guess you can’t babysit me then, huh?”

Ryan’s had sprains before. Back when she was doubling and tripling up on martial arts courses, she messed up all kinds of stuff. She used to just push through and get used to the pain of limping around, or taking it easy. The only reason she even agreed to relax this time is because Mary promised Ryan wouldn’t have to do it alone.

Mary sighs, confirming exactly what Ryan expects. “You don’t have to be babysat. It’s a sprain, so you can technically use the crutches to try and keep the weight off of it, and ice it when you can.”

Ryan narrows her eyes. “Then go tell Luke to slap a logo on some crutches. I’m not being sidelined for nothing.”

“Not for nothing!” Mary squeaks. “A sprain is still bad, Ryan, and if you go out there running and leaping off buildings — which we both know you will — then you might actually break it. Ryan can move around, but Batwoman needs to stay in the cave. Unless you want to be in a Batboot trying to adjust for the extra weight.”

Ryan groans. “What am I supposed to do around here, Mary?”

Mary shrugs. “I don’t know. Watch TV. Play games. Just enjoy your mini stay-cation.” Trapped in the loft, all by herself. Ryan must look as grumpy as she feels because Mary clears her throat and suggests, “You know, you could probably use this time for a more hands-off Bat-mission.”

“Like…?”

“Like a super sleuth, reconnaissance mission to find out more about our unofficial fourth Bat Team member.”

Ryan must be hearing this wrong. “You want me to spy on Sophie?”

“I want you to stop getting hurt. If spying on Sophie and learning more about her helps you do that, then more power to you.” Mary steps back into Ryan’s room. “Either you learn something that makes working with her even easier, or you find out that she is exactly who you’ve always assumed she is. It’s a win-win, don’t you think?”

Ryan does not need to know anything else about Sophie. She closes the door on Mary and that train of thought. It’s two weeks. She can keep herself entertained.

Ryan makes it through day one of being alone without incident. She watches her shows, orders takeout that Taylor (her favorite employee and the only one she’d trust to come into the loft) brings up to her, and does a face mask that leaves her skin absolutely glowing.

On day two, she organizes the magazines under their coffee table. She replants one of her plant babies and checks her email twice. Mary comes home before ten, but she falls asleep the moment that she sits down on the couch with Ryan. Zero company, just a faint scent of hospital and a murmured apology for not bringing home anything to eat.

On day three, Ryan tries to go downstairs, but Taylor glares at her from the bottom of the stairs and threatens to send up one of their most annoying coworkers if Ryan won’t stay up there.

Ryan ends up putting in her headphones just to drown out the sound of the bar. Everybody else gets to have a life and have fun. She has a space that she’s tried to make a bit more her own. There’s a picture of her high school graduation on the wall in her room. She got rid of some of the upscale art that Kate had around the place. An entire corner of the living room is her mini-green house.

Sometimes, though, with the noise cancellation on and her blankets weighing down on her, it still feels like all of this is somebody else’s. Like the real Ryan Wilder still lives in a van with only her plant mama for company. Like all of the progress of the last few months will disappear just like her friends have this week.

A rational part of her brain tries to remind her that her friends have jobs. Jobs that she normally works alongside them. Jobs that she put in jeopardy because she got so upset over what Sophie freaking Moore said on a rooftop. Then the spiral takes over that maybe Sophie’s somewhere laughing about this with them.

The girls at the group homes used to mock everything she and Angelique did. First they called them conjoined twins, or Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum. After she and Ang got caught kissing, though, suddenly all the jokes were about their relationship. About the fact that they were so desperate for anyone to love them that they took the first shitty option available. They’d say that Angelique only saved Ryan because no one else would open the window for her. They’d say somebody like Ryan could never keep Angelique around. That she needed to try harder and do better, or she’d lose her little girlfriend too.

And Ryan knows that she’s too old to still hear those same voices in her head. She’s a great person with friends who love her, and Angelique literally almost died to keep Ryan safe. She doesn’t need to prove anything to anyone. She’s fine.

But she has to turn the music up loud as hell to drown them out.

On day four, the restlessness really sets in. She calls Imani, but the activist is out of town visiting family. In turn, Ryan convinces Jordan that they should do an in-person, dance committee meeting at the loft. Jordan’s running late, so Ryan flips on the radio to listen to whatever bullshit Vesper Fairchild has to say.

“Welcome to my new section: ‘Where in the world is Batwoman?’”

Ryan flops down onto the couch. “Stuck in the house. Next question.”

Vesper starts the section by literally listing every missed cry for help. She talks about the petty crimes and violent crimes and even a moment where two False Face members apparently bragged to someone about shooting Batwoman with a flamethrower.

Ryan snaps, “We get it,” and Vesper gives that signature sarcastic chuckle into the mic.

Vesper says, “It’s been four days without a Bat sighting. The signal stayed on for six hours last night. What’d you do, BW? Take a vacation?”

Ryan huffs. Vesper goes on to say, “The last time Batwoman left, we got a new one. What model do we get this time?”

The joke chafes at Ryan. Bright side: at least people are looking for her this time. Not like the last time she went missing. There are no jelly beans, none of Candy Lady’s grotesque smile. No barred window, no prison jumpsuit, no waiting for Angelique for eighteen months at Blackgate, no van, no Mama Cora —

Her chest feels tight. She tries to slow her breathing. Gulps around whatever’s lodging in her throat. “Okay, enough of that.” She clicks off the radio and grabs her phone.

Ryan to Luke (11:30) Can you shut off the signal next time? No need to have people waiting outside.

He doesn’t respond. Maybe she should call him. They could figure out something. Let the people know that she’s not going anywhere. They can’t just trade her in. They can’t forget about her.

Ryan to Luke and Mary (11:33) How bad would an Out of Office be? Slap it on the signal — “Gone fishing.”

But Black Mask would take the opportunity to do even more damage. The Crows can’t keep up with False Face. GCPD isn’t even trying. What if the people do want another Batwoman? Then what will Ryan have? Will she still stay with Mary, or will the next one move in? What about Sophie? Will she just move on too?

Her phone jumps in her hands.

Crowphie to Ryan (11:46) https://www.amazon.com/Rhode-Island-Novelty-Shark-Pinchers/dp/B004K75EPA/ref=sr_1_10?dchild=1&keywords=shark+grabber&qid=1625581430&sr=8-10

In case you’re still having trouble getting around…

Ryan clicks the link to find a shark pincher. A laugh rips out of her.

Ryan to Crowphie (11:47) You couldn’t find one a bit more my style?

Crowphie to Ryan (11:49) You don’t like sharks? They have little alligators and robot claws too. (11:50) I know it’s not plaid but….

Ryan laughs again. She leans back into the couch.

Ryan to Crowphie (11:51) I don’t *only* wear plaid.

Crowphie to Ryan (11:52) They don’t come in crop top either. (11:52) And before you say it, no they don’t come in Crow or with wings or in a white supremacist fashion

Ryan knows Sophie must be rolling her eyes. The good-natured one, though, like she knows that Ryan’s right but can’t admit it unless she says it sarcastically. Speaking of Crows —

Ryan to Crowphie (11:54) Shouldn’t you be at work?

Tavaroff clears his throat. Sophie glances up from her seat in Jacob’s office to where Tavaroff sits in the other chair. Jacob seems too strung out to care one way or the other if Sophie has sent off a text during a briefing. These meetings are mostly Tavaroff boasting at this point. He brags about how many False Face he’s taken down, or how easy it was to apprehend all of the Snake Bite users after the bad batch sent the addicts into a panic.

“I’m sorry,” Sophie says without a hint of apology. “Did I miss something?”

Jacob croaks out from behind his desk. “We have reason to believe that Batwoman is finally gone. If it’s true, then we can take our rightful place as Gotham’s primary protectors.”

Sophie fights the urge to roll her eyes. “Respectfully sir, Batwoman tends to help Gotham’s citizens both inside and out of Crows’ territory. Until we expand our range, we cannot be the sole protectors of Gotham.”

Tavaroff chuckles. “This again.”

Sophie sits up straighter. “Yes, this again. The majority of our task force—“

He interjects, “I think you mean my task force.”

Her nostrils flare. “The Black Mask task force takes up the majority of our resources at the moment. Between that and our private contracts, the poorer citizens of Gotham are left with the GCPD, at best.”

Jacob shakes his head. A slight sheen of sweat coats his hairline. “Agent Moore, if you want to run a low rent Crows task force, then put in a request. See how many of our investors want their money stopping petty thugs and-and—“

Sophie makes sure to meet his eye. “And Snake Bite addicts, sir?” His right eye twitches enough to let her know it landed. “‘Why bother helping them?’ Is that your official stance? What about the citizens who simply don’t have any other options? The homeless—“

Tavaroff groans. “My God, Moore. Go back to texting if this is all you have to add.” He turns in his seat to face Jacob. “Or better yet—“ His pointed look is apparently all the request he needs.

Jacob blinks up at Sophie like she’s a stranger, like every year she’s spent by his side means nothing.

“Agent Moore, you’re dismissed.”

She considers resisting. She could plead to stay, or pull rank, or throw a fit about the fact that someone as trigger happy as Russell Tavaroff barely deserves to exist, let alone run a task force. Or she could take the dismissal and go home without the extra headache. Text Ryan some more. Maybe turn on another episode of that ridiculous Dance Academy show and actually enjoy herself for once. It’s not like anybody listens to her around here anyway.

Sophie to Ryan (12:13) Shouldn’t you be happy I’m not out there on the streets, arresting people?

Ryan to Sophie (12:15) As someone you’ve arrested, obviously

Sophie to Ryan (12:16) 🙄 shouldn’t you be at work?

Ryan to Sophie (12:17) I wish. Mary took me off the schedule. She seems to think I’d stop a bar fight, even if I was just in the office.

Sophie to Ryan (12:19) Better stopping them than starting them.

Ryan to Sophie (12:20) This might come as a shock to you, but fighting in bars isn’t really my thing.

Sophie to Ryan (12:22) Could’ve fooled me. You stomped over with some heat the other night. I wasn’t sure if you were coming to fight me or drag me off the dance floor.

Ryan to Sophie (12:24) Well, Mary wanted to talk to you

Sophie to Ryan (12:25) Right, Mary wanted to.

Sophie to Ryan (12:38) Anyways

Ryan to Sophie (12:38) I’ll probably bug Luke soon. He promised to bring games and keep me company.

Sophie to Ryan (12:40) I’ve never been much of a game person. I mostly read when I’m not working.

Ryan to Sophie (12:41) 😴😴😴 (12:42) Watch a show or something please. Have a passive hobby.

Sophie to Ryan (12:44) For your information, I’m turning on your little dance show right now

Ryan to Sophie (12:45) Wait, are you really watching? What episode are you on?

Sophie to Ryan (12:47) Easy there, Ryan. I just turned it back on. It’s episode four.

Ryan to Sophie (12:49) Can you believe Tara didn’t want to room with Abigail?

Sophie to Ryan (12:51) Please don’t tell me Abigail’s your favorite

Ryan to Sophie (12:52) The baddest ballerina to ever do it??? Hell yeah she’s my favorite. She’s awful at the beginning, but she grows on you

Sophie to Ryan (12:53) Someone’s projecting

Ryan to Sophie (12:55) Excuse you, I have never been awful a day in my life (12:56) besides, I’m not the try hard rule follower who loves and serves a profession that will never love her back

Sophie to Ryan (13:03) Who are you then?

Ryan to Sophie (13:05) I’m Ryan Wilder

Sophie to Ryan (13:06) 🙄

Ryan to Sophie (13:08) God, Sophie, save names in your phone

Sophie to Ryan (13:09) My bad. You’re in here under “pain in the ass”

Ryan to Sophie (13:10) Okay, Crowphie

Sophie to Ryan (13:10) Please tell me I’m not saved under that (13:11) Ryan

(13:13) Fine. I'll change your name to something else. You'll see.

Jordan bites on the edge of her nail as she scans the document one last time. She sits on the edge of her seat at Ryan’s dining room table. Ryan’s already teased Jordan about it, but then Jordan teased Ryan about having to flop into the seat, so Ryan let it go.

“Okay, we’ve got the Do’s and Don’ts for the Dance. The Acceptable Behaviors, the Dress Code—” Jordan lists them off.

Ryan interjects to clarify, “For the youth and the volunteers.”

Jordan nods, highlighting the differences on her laptop screen. The first Sheldon Park youth social event will have a relatively lax dress code for the teens and young adults. All expressions are welcome, though basic length requirements will be in effect. All volunteers and chaperones will be in clearly labeled shirts and lanyards. They will be advisory on-lookers, no dancing with the students whatsoever.

“All that’s left is the slideshow.” Jordan’s face splits into a wide grin. “Now, everybody else sent their pictures — thank you for this, by the way.” Jordan pulls up the slideshow in another tab, and a picture of Ryan and Angelique in their prom dresses smiles back up at them. “But my sister couldn’t be bothered, so we get to pick for her.” A mischievous wiggle of the eyebrows, and Jordan logs into Facebook.

She scrolls through Sophie’s Facebook, which Ryan admittedly leans a little closer to the screen to see. Sophie’s profile picture is still her Crows swearing in photo. “It’s been this way for years. She changed it for, like, two months when she and Tyler got married, but then she changed it right to back this.”

Ryan frowns. “Not a selfie in sight.”

Jordan shakes her head. “It’s awful. I’m working on it. But you need to see this.” Jordan excitedly goes to the videos section and finds her favorite one. “Behold: the greatest video ever taken.”

She hits play, and Ryan can’t help but smile as a twelve-year-old Sophie and seven-year-old Jordan walk onto screen in their childhood living room. They’re wearing Halloween army uniforms. Sophie’s serious as ever, and Jordan giggles as she comes to stand back-to-back with her big sister. The opening notes of the song ‘One Girl Revolution’ begin, and Ryan cackles.

“You’re not,” Ryan says, but then it happens: the young Moore sisters perfectly reenact the final drill team performance from Cadet Kelly. “Not the dance from that gay ass Disney movie!” Ryan laughs. Much like the leads of the movie, little Sophie is precise and alive, glowing as she throws a baton and later twirls the ribbons. She’s freer than Ryan has ever seen her.

Jordan smiles. “I’m pretty sure this made her do ROTC.” She exits out of the video after downloading it to her computer. She opens up Sophie’s prom photos. There are a few of Sophie getting ready, but all of the joy and freedom of the younger Sophie are gone here. She’s rigid and respectful, and in the photos with her mom, Diane Moore, there’s a layer of glass over her. Like she’s sealed herself away.

Her face is picture perfect with her group of friends — “all other ROTC kids,” Jordan explains — but the only picture that feels like Sophie is one of her and Jordan. They’re back-to-back again, in a Charlie’s Angels pose. Sophie’s squatting lower than she should in such a long dress. It’s clearly restricting her movement, but her head is tossed back in what had to be a raspy laugh. Jordan’s in an awful bright pink tracksuit, and Ryan finds herself tapping the screen.

“That’s the one.”

Jordan saves it. “It’s basically the only real picture we have. Back in high school, it’s like Sophie faded away. She did everything for our mom, and then our dad died, and she just… vanished.” Jordan opens up pictures from Sophie’s high school graduation. There’s that same polite smile and perfect posture. Then Jordan pulls up Point Rock pictures. “First year, same thing. Then, second year, she was back.”

Sophie’s hair is shorter than it is now, but longer than it was for the high school pictures. Her school uniform’s bland as all hell, but she’s center in a group of cadets in front of their dorm building. While everyone else smiles at the camera, Sophie smiles a more private smile to someone that Ryan can’t see.

“Kate.”

Jordan nods. “I didn’t know it was Kate then. But falling for her must have given Sophie something new to believe in.”

“Please don’t say love,” Ryan says. If the only thing keeping Sophie from being a mindless drill-bot is love, then they’re all in trouble.

The younger Moore laughs at Ryan. “Not that cheesy, just… something other than eternal damnation or self-sacrifice. Our mom still sends me daily bible verses. Meanwhile, Sophie used to send me to the library and let me use her computer. She drove me to club meetings and encouraged me to figure out what I believed in.”

Ryan clicks her tongue. “All that just to become a Crow. You’d think she’d take a second to come up with something better for herself.”

Jordan pauses. “I think she’s starting to. Not to make it weird or anything, but you’ve really helped with that. I’ve been saying for years that the Crows are not the solution to Gotham’s problems. She refused to listen to me, but after what happened with me and what’s been happening with you….” Jordan smiles over at Ryan. “It’s good for her. She actually took me for drinks to talk about rehabilitating the Crows image the other day.”

Ryan can’t explain the warmth in her chest at that. Jordan’s probably misplacing the credit anyway. As if Sophie actually cares what Ryan thinks of her.

She nudges Jordan. “Is that why she’s chaperoning the dance?” Sophie will probably spend the whole night shining her flashlight down on unsuspecting teens. Anybody who dances a little too close, anybody with the hint of smoke or alcohol on them, anybody having any fun at all. “You know what, I should probably chaperone too. Just to keep her from ruining the night.”

It’s the wrong thing to say. It absolutely is. Jordan’s face splits into the widest smile that Ryan’s ever seen from her. She bites it down right after. Reels it in to a more controlled look, but that joy on her face is a problem waiting to happen.

“Right, just to stop her.” Jordan pulls up the volunteer assignment chart and adds an extra space beside Sophie’s name. “You might even have to coordinate outfits for something this intensive. Maybe call her up. Set a date.”

Ryan narrows her eyes. “Jordan.”

She looks up as innocently as ever. Damnit, she has the same eyes as her sister. A warm brown that immediately sets Ryan back a step. “To go over specifics. God, Ryan, don’t make it weird.”

Once Jordan leaves, Ryan sends Sophie the video of the Cadet Kelly reenactment. It’s a perfect conversation starter after all.

Crowphie to Ryan (04:30) I’m going to kill Jordan. (04:31) Burn it

Ryan to Crowphie (04:32) Burn it yourself next time you come to the loft.

Crowphie to Ryan (04:33) Be there in ten.

Ryan hesitates. It’s clearly a joke, but the loft is empty. What better way to get information on Sophie than to see Sophie herself?

Ryan to Crowphie (04:34) See you then.

Crowphie to Ryan (04:35) …are you serious?

Ryan to Crowphie (04:37) Don’t make it weird, Crowphie. You’re going to text me about Dance Academy anyway. You might as well come watch it here.

Crowphie to Ryan (04:38) Okay. See you in ten then.

“Where’s your bottle opener?” Sophie asks as she searches through the drawers in the kitchen. She’d thought bringing beers would be a nice casual thing to do. Keep it light. Keep it simple. Yes, this is their first time actually hanging out without a crisis, or an excuse. That doesn’t mean that it has to feel charged. They’re two, fully functioning adults. They can hang out as friends.

“On the fridge!”

Sophie wheels around on her heels. There are a few magnets on the fridge. A small whiteboard has a guestbook that only Luke and Jordan have signed in on. There’s a Save the Date for one of Mary’s classmates’ engagement party, a printed selfie of Mary and Ryan at the bar, and — bingo — the bottle opener.

She pops the lids on two beers and heads back to the living room. Ryan pauses as she arranges chip bags on the coffee table. Sophie doesn’t know whether to appreciate the fact that Ryan didn’t break out the bowls, or question whether they’re both really adults.

Ryan saves her from that line of teasing by starting her own. “You are such a stereotype.”

Sophie pointedly eyes Ryan’s flannel shirt. It’s soft, blue fabric hangs loose over Ryan’s tank top. Always a tank top. Doesn’t she ever get cold? With the top of her chest out, dragging Sophie’s gaze lower. She lingers for a second before shooting her eyes back up.

Ryan smirks, and Sophie just hands over the beer. She reaches in her back pocket to pull out her phone. The Phone Rehabilitation Center basket is still going strong.

“It’s a little weird that my sister’s been in the loft more times than me.”

Ryan sips her beer. “Careful, Sophie, you sound jealous, of your sister, which is—” Ryan says, “Normal,” at the same time that Sophie says, “Ridiculous.”

Ryan looks a bit offended. Sophie clarifies, “I mean, I doubt that Jordan is your type.”

“I’m sorry, your type is any lesbian in a latex suit.”

Sophie cringes. Ryan’s assessment is less intense than Luke and Mary’s, but it still feels wrong. “I don’t have a type.”

Ryan says, “Everyone has a type.”

“What’s yours?” Sophie asks. As their eyes meet, she recognizes that this might not be the casual friend conversation that they should be having. First of all, Sophie knows at least a bit about Ryan’s type. Imani cares about people. Great smile, big hair, brown eyes. She breathes air into a room without trying, which is what makes her exceptionally good at fundraising events.

Angelique wasn’t around Sophie much, so it’s harder to parse out personality traits. Wavy hair, lighter eyes, closer to Ryan’s height than Sophie is. She loved Ryan fiercely though. Maybe that’s the unifying factor?

Ryan smiles and says, “Badass is my type. Ambitious, bold women who… make the world their own.”

Sophie can’t help herself. “That’s easy. Everyone’s ambitious. I became first in my class at Point Rock.”

Ryan chuckles into her beer. “In the military. That’s the exact opposite of making your own way.”

“I almost got expelled!” Sophie argues. Ryan’s incredulous stare does get Sophie to add, “For homosexual conduct, but it counts. My mom never even found out.”

“Don’t ask, don’t tell your mom about it, huh?”

Does Ryan not know? Sophie turns her beer bottle in her hands. “She never asked, and after I told her, she cut me off. Thankfully, I waited until I was twenty-eight to do it.” Nearly a year later, it doesn’t hurt any less. “Hey, who knew I could’ve just told her the truth to get away? I could’ve saved a lot of time in the military.” The joke comes off sad even to Sophie’s ears. She backpedals. “No, my dad was in the Marines, and serving meant supporting the family and upholding this legacy. But, uh, I did miss out on the typical college experience.”

There she goes. Safe territory.

Ryan briefly meets Sophie’s eyes. Hers seem softer than they normally are. Ryan leans back into her side of the couch. “My mama wanted me to go to a big university so badly. She kept leaving brochures in my backpack, or in the medicine cabinet. She flat out gave a matching set to me and Angelique since she thought the only thing holding me back was Ang.”

Wow, high school sweethearts with a mom’s acceptance. Sophie literally can’t imagine what that must have felt like. There’s a light in Ryan as she remembers it though. A humor that’s free of the usual loss when she brings up her mother.

Sophie knows Ryan’s rap sheet. Ryan never went to a big university. If Ryan’s shared this much, maybe they can keep going.

Sophie asks, “What stopped you?”

Ryan holds her beer close to her chest. “I didn’t want to leave her. My mama, not Angelique. Ang would’ve been fine. But Mama….” Ryan’s nail picks at the beer label. Sophie pitches forward in anticipation. Mama what? Did she need help? Did Ryan stay to take care of her? Or did Ryan worry about what the distance would do to them? Ryan seems like she would’ve dropped everything to help her mother. She already does that for strangers.

Sophie wants to reach out to Ryan. Let her know that it’s okay to keep talking about this. Before Sophie can, Ryan retreats back under her defenses. Ryan raises her beer in a little toast. “Mama’s place was better than any dorm I could’ve afforded. So Gotham Community it was.”

Come on, Ryan can’t stop there. Sophie tries to keep Ryan talking. “Jordan went there. She said her major was ‘Saving Gotham,’ while mine was ‘Getting the Hell out of Here.’ What about you? What did Ryan Wilder want to do with the rest of her life?”

Ryan groans like they’re seventeen and applying for colleges. Totally, unabashedly, sick of the question. She’s probably the type to say that she just wanted to live. She wanted to survive when everyone around her doubted that she could. It’s cliche, but on Ryan, it would work.

Instead, Ryan flops her head back into the couch and says her answer to the ceiling. “I wanted things to be simple. Take a few classes, hang out with my girl, come home to my mama, and just… relax.”

The simplicity is actually what hurts Sophie the most. No dreams of grandeur, no deep need for respect and approval. Sophie bumps her knee into Ryan’s as a show of comfort. Much better than a hand touch. Less stakes.

“It sounds nice,” Sophie tells her. Ryan’s eyes meet hers, and there’s such an unguarded vulnerability for a moment. Ryan spends so much time pushing people away, or protecting herself. Even now, she doesn’t seem like she’s rested at all. She deserves a real break. “You could still have that. Parts of it at least. Angelique is gone, but there are other girls.”

Sadness slips into the corners of Ryan’s eyes. They sag with the weight of it, tucking under furrowing brows. Oh, should Sophie have changed the subject? Ryan seemed okay with the Cora talk. Maybe Ryan’s not as over Angelique as Sophie thought. Maybe Ryan doesn’t want other girls.

Ryan goes for a joke, but her usual humor isn’t in it. “Trying to push me off on someone else already?”

Wait, is this sadness because of Sophie? “I—”

Ryan reaches for the long forgotten remote. “Don’t worry, Imani will be back soon enough.”

Imani. Right. Ryan’s dating Imani. Sophie nods. “That’s good.” So, so good.

Ryan nods. “We don’t see each other a lot. My hours aren’t easy to work with.”

Sophie nods once again. Her heart picks up speed. “Right. With Tyler, I never had to worry about that. Much easier to date when someone’s….”

“In on it?” Ryan finishes. Sophie’s mouth is dry all of a sudden. Her words catch in her throat, and she tries to remind herself not to get her hopes up. Not to believe that maybe, finally, Ryan will tell her.

Her voice cracks as she asks, “In on what?”

Ryan breaks eye contact. She shrugs at the TV. “How busy you are.”

Sophie swallows down her disappointment. “Yeah. So busy…. I probably can’t stay for more than an episode or two. You understand.”

Ryan keeps her gaze on the screen. “Yeah, of course.”

“I don’t get it,” Luke says the next day. He jams on his Switch controller, laser focused on the Mario Kart race in front of him. He’s a close second to Ryan’s first place spot.

Ryan rounds a turn so beautifully that the Nintendo angels must sing. She shoots off a blue shell that knocks Luke back just as he was about to get in front of her.

Luke shrieks from his side of the couch. “Ryan! Shit! Fuck, damnit!” Ah, the sweet sound of defeat. The victory music blasts from the loft’s TV as Ryan’s character wins the race. Luke glares at her. “How are you so good at this and so bad at actually driving?”

She gasps. “I’m not that bad! If anything, I’ve proven I’m ready to remotely drive the AI.” Let her take the Batmobile out again.

He humors her. “And do what?”

She can’t exactly use the AI and be in the car. Her face lights up in her signature smile. “I’ll turn the Batmobile into an UberEats. Make up for my lost wages.”

He snorts. “Yeah, I can imagine the promo codes now. Use ‘BATMOMEAL’ for twenty percent off your order.”

“Ooh, that’s a good one.” Ryan admittedly never wants to return to the gig economy. It’s extremely humbling to get a rejection email from a food delivery service based on her ex-con status. Almost as humbling as Sophie cutting out on her yesterday.

Luke settles deeper into the couch. His eyes scan Ryan for weaknesses. She can practically see the little neurons firing before he says, “You didn’t invite me over just to beat me in Mario Kart. I’m fine with going another round, but my pride can’t do much more of this.”

The phrasing does make her smile. It cuts through the anticipatory air that settles between them. It’s not necessarily pressurized air. Ryan can still breathe under it. Can still pretend that she’s catching up with her friend and not putting them both in a potentially awkward situation.

Start small. Work her way up. She presses play on their next race.

“Have you called Stephanie yet?”

A bit of tension locks Luke’s shoulders in place. “Please tell me you didn’t do all this to instigate in my love life.”

She keeps it casual while gaining speed. “It must be hard trying to date while you’re on the Bat Team.”

He dodges a banana peel on the track. “You mean while we’re lying about where we are all the time? Yeah, no, I’m not interested in doing that. Or in talking with you about girls.”

She recovers with an exaggerated groan. “That’s literally the best part of having a lesbian friend. I’m great at this stuff! From all sides!”

He cringes. “I don’t want to think about you and sides.”

She wiggles her eyebrows while lining herself up to ride over the acceleration arrows. “Okay, waste all this knowledge then.” The ramp sends her flying over the others, so she can reclaim her spot as first.

Luke blurts out, “I’m not wasting anything. Stephanie was great. Very fun, very… attractive.” His respectful, measured tone makes Ryan smile. “But Kate brooded for a reason. It’s not worth the extra hassle.”

That again? “You shouldn’t be confined to a life of brooding, Luke.” None of them should. Ryan can’t have her mama, and she doesn’t want to take any classes, but she should get a girl to come home to.

Luke scoffs. “Better brooding than charging into an ambush.”

She winces. “Excuse me for trying to stop False Face.”

He makes a disbelieving hum. Ryan mocks the sound. He keeps driving though. His cheeks are puffed up like they’re just barely holding in his words. She can’t let him talk. He doesn’t know what went down with her and Sophie, but he’s assuming. Plotting in that giant, nerd brain of his. He knows, and he’s going to bring it up.

She should just get it over with.

Ryan huffs. “Fine, say it.”

Luke pauses the game to face her. He opens and closes his mouth once before going for it. “I say all of this with care, alright? Remember that. You… are a very expressive person. You clearly feel hard, and that is an amazing thing. You love to fight. You love to win. You love to, you know, prove that you’re meant to be where you are.”

Oh, shit. "Are we playing games of having therapy?" She tries to joke.

Luke continues. “You got hurt the other night specifically because of whatever talk you had with Sophie. I don’t need to know what’s happening there. That’s between you and her, but Ryan….” His voice slows as his eyes plead with her. “As a member of your Bat Team and a citizen of Gotham, I need you to be careful. And as your friend, I need you to stop running from real conversations.”

She lifts her leg. “I’m not running anywhere like this.”

“You’re running right now.” He shrugs with a little grin. “And that’s okay. I haven’t been the easiest to talk to, and you haven’t had people to open up to like that. It can be really scary to let people hear you.”

“I talk with you and Mary,” Ryan defends.

He affirms that, nodding. “You have. In order to keep the suit, or to justify what you’re doing, or when we’re up on a roof with the whole world below us.” He scratches his chin. “I can see you holding back though. It’s like….”

Luke lifts up his hands and clenches them into fists. With his arms up and flexed, he mimes along with his metaphor. He says, “Like when you come back from the grocery store, and you’re holding everything to get it back in one trip. Bags on your arms and hanging off your fingers. You’ve gotta clench and flex to get into the house, but once you’re there, you have to let them go. And it feels good to do it, doesn’t it?”

A phantom ache sets into Ryan’s fingers. She uncurls them from her controller and fans them out in front of her. Her eyes sting, so she keeps them focused down rather than looking back at him. “I hear you,” she says softly.

Luke nudges his shoulder into hers. “That’s the only way to get out of brooding. You have to let us hear you too.”

“Ooh,” her voice has a watery tinge to it, “I’m gonna make you regret that. I’ve got a lot of feelings. Wait, is there a mic in here? Anything recording? I need to save this proof that you care about me.”

Luke playfully nods along. He smiles and sinks into the couch. “You’re getting ahead of yourself there.”

Ryan bounces as best as she can without aggravating her ankle. “No take backs. I’m telling everyone. You love me. You neeeeeed me. You’re worried about me.”

“Keep saying that, and I’m smothering you with a pillow before Mary gets back.”

She scoffs. “You don’t have the strength!”

Luke immediately starts rolling up the sleeves to his button up. He’s been working out more, and they definitely define the muscles more than they used to. Ryan can’t admit it though. She bites down a laugh and teases him some more.

“Ol’ string bean self. That’s just the fabric making it look like you have muscles.”

“String bean!?” Luke pops off the couch with what might actually be a bit of outrage. He unbuttons his shirt and throws it at her. She can’t stop herself from laughing at this point, as Luke flexes in his tank top in several warrior poses. Each more ridiculous and overtly masculine than the next.

That’s when the door opens, and Mary comes in. She freezes in the doorway with her eyes wide and locking quickly on Luke’s bare arms. She doesn’t squeak, but she does stop with her mouth open, and Ryan laughs even harder.

Mary’s eyes do a thorough examination of all the skin on display. Ryan bounces between watching Mary have the realization that Luke is hot and Luke have the realization that Mary is sizing him up right now. A flustered panic wars with his pride as Luke’s gaze jumps to where Ryan’s still holding onto his shirt.

Ryan breaks the silence by telling Mary, “Luke wanted to prove that he could kill me.”

Mary recovers enough to look over at Ryan, but she keeps cheating glances at Luke. She says, “I have access to a full pharmacy. I could kill you too. It’s not about muscle. I mean kids have killed before.”

Ryan snaps at Mary. “Hey, this is not the support I’m supposed to have from my Bat Team.”

Mary smirks. “Bat Team, no. From your family, it’s totally understandable. Right, Luke?”

Luke nods, but Ryan doesn’t know if he’s actually listening to their conversation. His cheeks are nearly two shades darker. Mary’s attention has made his chest puff up and his shoulders straighten. Awww.

Ryan offers up a controller to Mary. “You in?”

“Yeah, let me just drop off my stuff in my room.” Mary heads for her room.

Ryan calls after her, “And get into something more comfortable, right!?” Mary’s door clicks shut, and Ryan turns round on Luke with her eyebrows up to her hairline and the widest possible smile. His narrowed eyes say, don’t do it, and she cheeses even wider. “No brooding, huh?”

He launches a throw pillow at Ryan’s head.

Ryan takes a deep breath. She stares down at her phone that night. No brooding. No running away. She settles into bed and sends off a text.

Ryan to Crowphie (10:30) I didn’t want to leave my mama. That’s why I didn’t go to a bigger university. I’d spent so much of my life waiting for her. How was I supposed to leave her behind? So I worked and she worked and we started over. New place, then Alice. I started over with Angelique, then Blackgate. Every time I get my life together again, it changes. I don’t really know how to plan for what’s next. And I’m terrible at simple. I’ve been in the house for a week and I’ve already bothered everyone I know.

(10:32) We’re barely even friends, and I’ve been texting you every day. You can tell me to stop by the way. You don’t have to talk to me because of Mary or whatever.

There’s more that she could say. Sophie doesn’t have to keep her company. Sophie doesn’t have to flirt with Batwoman, or even work with Batwoman. Sophie doesn’t have to be in Ryan’s life at all. That’s how it used to be. If that’s what Sophie wants, then they can go back to that.

Crowphie to Ryan (10:36) I’m not talking to you for Mary. (10:36) I’m not doing this.

Ryan’s heart stops at the text. What does Sophie mean? What is she — buzz. Ryan’s phone springs to life. INCOMING CALL: CROWPHIE. Ryan probably should change the contact name.

Sophie talks the second Ryan answers. “I actually need to sleep tonight, so I can’t go back and forth in texts. I’m going to be serious. Don’t make a joke, alright?” She waits. There’s a rustle of what sounds like blankets on her end of the phone.

Ryan sits up taller in her bed. “Alright.”

Sophie takes a deep breath in. “You’re not bothering me. I came to see you because I actually enjoy talking to you. Believe it or not. I know that I don’t say that often. I know that you have every reason not to trust me because of our history, and I am sorry for that. In my line of work, it’s easier to put people in clear lanes and keep it moving. I misjudged where you should be.”

She isn’t the only one misjudging. If Ryan had it her original way, she never would have talked to Sophie at all. “Maybe the lanes don’t need to be there.”

A little chuckle on Sophie’s side. “That’s how you get accidents, Ryan.”

Like them? An unintended consequence of Ryan picking up the suit? “It’s a metaphor. Or did you not learn about those at Point Rock? Too busy hiding out with your secret girlfriend?” Ryan teases.

Sophie’s eye roll is implied with her deadpan. “You don’t have to hide when you live together.”

Ryan gives a delighted gasp. “Stereotype Sophie strikes again. Your first girlfriend, and you were practically married.”

“Didn’t you live with Angelique?” Sophie replies.

“When we were kids.” This is where Ryan normally stops. She usually tells people that she and Angelique lived in a group home together, then stayed in touch as they got older. It’s not wrong. It’s just incomplete. “She, uh, saved me when I got kidnapped.”

Sophie inhales sharply. “You were kidnapped!?”

Ryan keeps her tone light. “And no, I wasn’t annoying enough for her to give me back.”

“You don’t have to joke about it,” Sophie says.

Ryan quietly admits, “It’s easier if I do. It wasn’t… pleasant, but it was mostly about breaking my spirit more than anything else. I was thirteen. Ange was the only one who tried to find me. It’s part of why I would never give up on her. Why even when your fellow Crows wanted to ruin my life, I couldn’t let her go. There’s no me without Angelique.”

Silence follows the admission. Ryan strains to hear something. Is Sophie thinking over there, nodding off, readjusting her beliefs? The longer the silence stretches, the more Ryan’s mind whirs. She already opened up to Sophie about her mom today. Now this. Mary’s the only other person to know about the Candy Lady.

Sophie says, “Glad she’s getting a fresh start then. You really seem to care about her.”

“I care about a lot of people.”

“Name five.”

Ryan snorts. “Luke, Mary, my plant, stopping Alice—”

“Stopping a person isn’t caring about a person.”

“I absolutely care what happens to her.”

That gets a laugh out of Sophie, then a yawn. “Uh huh. Well, a plant’s not a person, so you’re at three.”

Ryan cares about herself; that’s four. “Jordan.”

“Again with my sister.”

Ryan laughs and settles down into her pillows. “Oh, and Taylor.”

“Your coworker?” Sophie asks incredulously. There’s a bit of that disdain in her voice that really makes Ryan smile.

“Oh yeah, the best one we’ve got at The Hold Up. She is the only one I’ve gotten into a fight for.”

“Ha!”

“Ha, ha, okay, I’ve been in one bar fight.” Ryan can admit that.

"So childish." Sophie yawns again. “Tell me about it?”

Ryan glances up at her ceiling. “Okay, so, a few weeks ago, a bunch of frat guys came into the club. They swore that they were going to be respectful, but I caught them recording Taylor on their phones. Kate left a pretty specific policy for things like that.”

Ryan keeps going with her story, animatedly recapping how the rest of the staff had formed a wall around the bar and guests joined in too. They had taken pictures of the guys to post on their No Entry list. The guys got so intense about being ostracized from a ‘safe space,’ and Ryan told them she’d make it real unsafe if they didn’t leave. (Sophie gives a soft chuckle at that. Ryan’s thankful to be on the phone so Sophie can’t see how big she smiles at that.) Then one of the guys told Ryan to make him leave, and Ryan broke Kate’s policy and fought the guy. He came at her, and she flipped him, knocked him down, then out, then told his friends to carry him out of there.

It’s not her best fight story. Batwoman once took down a guy with a suit that made him look like The Thing. That’s a good story. But forcibly deleting every picture on some assholes’ phones while the rest of the club watches is pretty great too.

By the time Ryan’s done telling her story, it’s quiet on the other end. The little hums of acknowledgement have given way to a steady stream of air.

“Sophie?” Ryan waits for an answer. “Soph? You didn’t fall asleep on me, did you?”

Ryan honestly thinks it’s kind of adorable. Kind of soothing. She swaps the phone to the speaker while she sends a sarcastic text.

Ryan to Crowphie (11:15) Woooow, see, this is why you didn't make the list. You ask me a question and then sleep through the answer. And I'm the childish one?

They need to sleep anyway. Sophie doesn’t even shift when the text comes through. Is she always a heavy sleeper? Ryan didn’t used to be, but as she got more comfortable, she started sleeping better. Mary has had to wake her up for more than a few shifts when Ryan’s alarms haven’t cut it. It’s a victory after Blackgate and nightmares wrecked her sleep before.

Ryan rolls onto her side and lets herself wonder what it’d be like if things were different. If Sophie wasn’t a Crow and Ryan wasn’t Batwoman, if they were just two women at the bar, would they have ended up back here? Swapping stories until Sophie fell asleep beside her, an arm over Ryan’s waist, a light whisper of her breath caught between them. Warm and present, like home.

She ends the call before she can fall asleep herself. It’d be way too embarrassing to explain in the morning. But she does send another text.

Ryan to Crowphie (11:17) Since you won’t see these until morning, 1) you can make it up to me then

Ryan can't believe she's doing this. If anyone sees these, she will never live it down.

Ryan to Crowphie (11:18) 2) Good morning Crowphie

Sophie laughs when she wakes up to it.

Sophie to Ryan Childer (06:40) 1) We can't all be nocturnal. Some of us have to sleep. Let me know how I can fix your fragile ego.

(06:40) 2) I forgot to say this last night: Change doesn't have to be a bad thing. It has been in the past, so it makes sense that you'd be nervous about losing what you've built. The nerves mean you care. They mean you're after something worth wanting. Simple is out there if you want it.

(6:44) 3) Good morning, Ryan Childer

author's note: end of chapter six. What'd you think? Talk to me, Gotham. I know it was long (over 9k words). Hope that's okay. We'll be back to a shorter chapter for the next few. Next up, we go to the dance!

read chapter seven here

#wildmoore #BATWOMAN #ryan wilder #sophie moore #batwoman fic #fic: i know you even if you don't want me to #mine #ryan x sophie

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princess-havok · 3 years

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Love Fast Los Angeles Readthrough: Chapters 13-18

Hooookay so. I feel like most of this book is just Al running around LA and trying to get in Stella's pants and just being generally clueless which I guess is A Thing for Davey's characters. But I have a lot of questions about real-life people in this book and who does and does not get to keep their real name. We'll get to that.

After leaving the Pink Corvette gig, Al and Sky end up in a CVS parking lot where she immediately calls in a prescription because she's freaking out and the Mythicals have her meds. When Al goes inside to pick them up he finds out they're actually prescribed under the name Emily Golden. Al has a towel in his car that he stole from the Ark that is monogrammed 'JG.' NO REASON THESE TWO FACTS ARE RIGHT NEXT TO EACH OTHER I'M SURE, CARRY ON.

There's some awkward almost-sex and a weird hand job but to Al's credit, when he realizes Sky is not into it at all he loses his interest as well and takes her home (throwback to Pop Kids when Stella was high well past the point of being able to consent and had several guys going at her at once!!! That was fucked!!!).

Unrelated to anything, Davey proves to be way more up to date with what the kids like because he mentions Al using VSCO and this book came out in 2017 and I still don't really know what VSCO is, so. Yeah. I'm too old for all these newfangled apps.

I think it's time to talk about the use of real celebrity names vs making up pseudonyms. Stella is apparently banging James Franco, and he's just... that's his Whole Ass Name. He's just in this book (being very on brand for James Franco AS IT TURNS OUT). Al has talked about the pop superfame he's hooked up with and featured on his site, Marlena Lopez before, ands she's obviously meant to be Selena Gomez. I say 'obviously' because it is pretty clear before this but ALSO there is definitely a slip-up on page 106, the beginning of chapter 14:

"As I dug my hand into a drift, Marlena started telling Taylor while we should have a threesome. Fully agreeing with her points, I packed a snowball and pegged Terry Richardson in the center of his chest. He retaliated. Taylor pulled Selena from the war and after getting pegged twice in the head, I called a truce." (106)

So I guess somebody missed one in the Find-And-Replace passover this book got.

So, anyway, Marlena/Selena gets a pseudonym, but James Franco is just there. And Alexa Chung hangs around the Effs too like she's just another character in this book and not an Actual Person? Every time Al posts her picture he gets attacked in the comments by someone named @snowsimian which is so funny because she dated Alex Turner of... The Arctic Monkeys.

And then there's Taylor Swift. Of all the people to use a real name, it's the notoriously litigious Taylor Swift? (Full disclosure I support everything T. Swift has done in the name of protecting her work and the rights of artists. Except when she tried to trademark the phrase 'shake it off.' But her battles with Apple Music and with Scooter Braun? I am HERE FOR. But like. My girl likes to sue). The object of obsession of one of THE most rabid fanbases I've ever seen online? And whom Davey also decides to write as closeted?? Davey really said 'fuck it' and chose violence here. There is so much to unpack here!!! I want to alert the Swifties to the whole chunk of chapter 16 where Al instigates a car chase with Taylor Swift and an unnamed short-haired (butch??) lady because he sees them kissing. The tinhats would definitely take it as confirmation that Taylor is in fact gay (and that whatever ship name they had for her and Cara Delivgne or however you spell it was real) and the rest would ABSOLUTEY flood Davey's mentions with nonsense and/or alert Taylor herself and all hell would break loose and I live for that chaos. I just want to know who decided Selena can't be Selena in this book but Taylor can just straight up be Taylor.

Anyway, Sky doesn't get the role in Terror Cake. A model got it, because the directors wanted a more "all American" look so they cast... a blonde Australian. Davey really hates Hollywood lmao.

So Al and Sky make loose plans to go to Disneyland, they talk about Club 33 which makes me wonder... is Davey a member? I have questions. Then as Al is leaving, he spots Score arriving. Sky had mentioned a "meeting" she forgot about and seemed surprised that whoever this meeting was with got there so fast, and Al makes 0 connections here, even after The Barbie says '"You know Sky talks to him right?" she says while passing the chick her empty glass. "Seems like they're fucking"' (134). He assumes she means Jamie Shannon. I DO NOT!!!!! Also they're shopping for an engagement ring for Al to give Sky in this scene because Al has no chill at all.

Will Al ever figure out what's up with Sky? Will he learn to pick up on a single hint, ever, about anything? Why is Taylor Swift just IN THIS BOOK?

We may or may not find the answer to one or two of those by the end of this book.

#love fast los angeles #lfla #davey havok #jenn reads lfla

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noladyme · 4 years

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Chess. Chapter 4

Y/N never hurt anyone who didn’t deserve it. She only took what she needed, or what she felt others needed. She’d stayed out of sight for a long time, avoiding anything that could get her in to too much trouble. But for some reason Rick Flag shows up in her life, and in an instant, everything changes.

TW: violence, blood, language

I was taken to a shower room. With no other exit than the door we came in through, it seemed the Tweedles felt it would be safe enough to leave me alone in there.

I showered for an eternity. The water was hardly warm, and it smelled moldy in the room, but I didn’t care. I let the water run over me, scrubbed every inch of my body with a bar of soap on a string. I ran my hand down my injured ribs, and winced at the pain. Remembering Flags hand touching that same spot but an hour before, I smiled to myself. His touch then had been gentle, and my mind wandered into a more pleasant direction. A bang on the door interrupted my train of thought.

“Finish up!”, a voice called. I turned off the water.

A clean set of clothes had been laid out. Another tank top, this one not cut into pieces, a clean set of underwear, and a pair of orange pants, with much too long legs for me. I folded them up, to right bellow my knees, and finally put on the slip-on shoes that completed the outfit.

Calling out, I let the twins know I was ready.

After eating the mac’n’cheese and jello that was pushed through the hatch in the door, I slept deeper than I ever had, on the small cot that had appeared in my cell, while I was being questioned – or recruited, I wasn’t sure which it was. The last thing I saw before drifting of, was loose wire hanging from the corner of the ceiling, where the thermal camera had once been. I wasn’t being watched anymore.

---

I woke up to the sound of the door being unlocked; I sprang up from where I had been laying, fully awake, and on high alert. Two guards stepped in to the room. Not Flags men.

What the fuck is this?, I panicked, and took a stance, preparing for a fight.

Grabbing me by the wrists, they spun me around, locking my arms behind me. They held me like this, as Griggs stepped into the room, and looked me up and down.

“You look even better clean, puss”, he leered at me.

I lifted my knee, and stomped down onto the foot of the guard to my right. Letting go of my arm, he yelped; and I swung my arm, punching Griggs in the face.

Covering his mouth with a scream, he then slapped me hard, making my ears ring.

“You goddamn bitch”, he said, blood running from his busted lip. I laughed at him; and made to get another hit in, when the second guard holding me, kicked me behind my knee; making me lose balance, and topple over.

Laying face down on the ground, someone put a knee on my back, holding me down, as my ankles and wrists were put in cuffs. Spewing all of the worst profanities I knew, I then twisted my neck, biting at the guard holding down my shoulders. I narrowly missed him, and another hand held my head down, making my forehead meet the concrete.

“Watch it, dumbass. We need her whole!”, Griggs spat. He pulled a sack over my head.

They carried me like this, down the corridor, as I screamed and cussed. This isn’t supposed to happen, I thought. Where’s Flag? Waller, even?.

I hadn’t officially accepted Wallers “offer” of joining her circus. Was this payback for my little stunt yesterday? Was I being sent back to Gotham? Or were they taking me somewhere to end my suffering.

A sharp pain in my ribs – from a boot, I figured – made me consider whether euthanasia wouldn’t be a kinder fate.

A door opening and closing behind us. The temperature changed. The air was damp, and the sack on my head stuck to my skin, making it difficult to breathe.

I heard the sound of a gate opening. “Freak transport”, Griggs voice called. Laughing.

Another door. I was made to stand, and my feet were uncuffed. I heard the sound of hip hop music. More musical torture? Metallic clanking, and I was pushed forward harshly, almost falling over.

“Get that shit of her”, Flags voice said. Thank God.

“Careful. This one has sharp teeth”, Griggs said; and someone pulled the sack of my head.

Blinking, adjusting to the light; I examined the room. About 100 yards deep, 50 yards wide. From the looks of it, an old indoor basketball court. My calculations turned out to be right, as a tall, dark man, wearing the same outfit as my own, was shooting hoops at the end of the room, never missing one throw. He turned in my direction, and looked at me, then Griggs busted lip, and laughed to himself.

In one corner a large figure, wearing a hoodie, sat with his back to me, watching BET on a small flat screen. In another, a man covered from head to toes in tattoos – I could tell, as he wasn’t wearing a shirt, or shoes – was doing pushups.

Flag walked up from behind me, staring me down.

“Welcome to the gym”. He took out a set of keys, and uncuffed my hands. “I can handle it from here”, he said to Griggs.

“Are you sure, sir? She seems cranky”, Griggs answered, and put his hand on the gun in his belt.

“I’m sure, asshole. If we need anything, I’ll let you know. Now get”.

“Dick”, Griggs muttered, and walked out the large door we had come through. The metallic sound started, and then made a last large clank, as it shut behind him and his guards.

Flag examined my face, and stroked his fingers across the small cuts on my forehead, from my former spat with the guards.

“You need to be careful, kitten. I won’t always be around; so if you piss them off again, I might not be able to help you”.

“You weren’t there to help me this time, and I made out fine on my own”, I retorted.

Flag moved his hand down to my belly, looking at the blood on my top, lightly touching it.

“I can see that”, he said, removed his hand, and continued. “You ripped your stitches”.

“I’m fine”, I pouted.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is our newest team member”, Flag called out. “Y/N Y/L/N. Also known as Chess”.

The man with the basketball, turned around, and made a final throw over his shoulder; and the ball went straight into the hoop, then bounced away across the floor.

The tattooed man stopped his workout, and walked towards us.

“Croc, did you hear me? Get your ass over here”, Flag shouted.

The large figure turned of his television, got up, and walked towards us, pulling the hood off his head. For a second, I was tempted to run, or even do something as embarrassing as hide behind Flag. The tall mans face was covered in what looked like scales; and it took me a hot second to realize that was his actual skin.

Killer Croc. I’d heard of him.

“Don’t worry, cher’. I ain’t gonna bite”, he growled at me; showing his terrifying teeth, in what I guess was supposed to be a smile. In spite of his appearance and reputation; I instantly felt calmer, from his use of the cher’ endearment. It reminded me of Sammy.

Sammy. “What happened to the owner of the club?”, I asked, voice shaking.

“He’s fine”, Flag answered. “I bumped him on the head a bit, when he tried to stop me from going after you. But I left a large tip for him. He’ll be able to make next months payment to whichever scumbag is using their protection scheme on him”.

I exhaled, relieved.

“And my cats?”, I remembered, panic returning.

“Your neighbor has them. Don’t worry”.

Good. Selina was sweet, though a bit kooky; and she seemed to love cats, more than even I did.

“All your loose ends are tied up, and as long as you behave, they’ll stay that way”.

I raised my eyebrows at him. “You are using my cats to blackmail me?”, I asked.

“Yes”, he answered shortly, and smirked.

By now, the three men were gathered in front of me.

“Where the hell is Harley and Digger?”, Flag called.

“Harley had feminine things to do”, basketball guy answered, before being interrupted by a shrill voice.

“Flag! The british guy was watching me on the toilet again!”. A curvaceous but lean woman appeared in a doorway to my right. She was dragging the rugged looking unicorn man, by his ear; storming towards us.

“I’m Australian, you crazy bitch”, he yelped; and she yanked him by his ear to the ground, putting a foot on his neck.

“Whatever. Do it again, and I’ll punch you in your kangaroo pouch!”, the woman hissed, and kicked him in the chest, before walking over to us. Once she saw me, her face instantly went from murderous to gleeful, and she reached out her hand to greet me.

“Harley Quinn. Pleased to make your acquaintance”, she said; grabbing my hand, and pulling me in to a tight hug.

Surprised, I simply patted her back, and then pulled away.

“You smell nice”, she whispered in my ear, before stepping back to join the others.

I was suddenly terrified and ecstatic at once. The queen of Gotham. It was like meeting actual royalty; if that royalty was crazy as hell, and had access to weapons.

They stood there; a motley crew of deadly weirdos, smiling and/or grimacing at me.

“Diablo. Deadshot. Killer Croc. Harley Quinn. Captain Boomerang. This is Chess”.

Basketball mans – correction, Deadshots – eyes lit up.

“You’re the invisible girl”.

“That’s her”, Flag answered.

“Can you talk for yourself, mami?”, asked the tattooed man – Diablo.

“I always thought a woman should be seen and not heard”, said Digger.

I smiled, disappeared, and the next thing he knew, he was back on the floor, wincing in pain, from my knee on his back. I leant towards his ear, still invisible.

“Are you sure about that?”, I purred, and dug my nails into the skin of his neck.

He yelped, turning around quickly; and I fell back, landing on my butt, before I sprang up, to stand next to Flag. Only then I made myself visible again.

Digger scrambled to get to his feet, and stepped towards me; a sneer on his face.

Flag stepped in front of me spreading his arms, as if protecting me. What is up with this guy?, I thought.

Deadshot stepped forward to face Digger, and Croc took a hold of his arms, holding him in place.

“Stay cool, man”, Deadshot said. “Looks like we’re going to be working with this lady now, so you need to back of”.

Digger settled down, but not before shooting me a look I couldn’t figure out whether was angry, or strangely aroused.

Flag turned to face me. “That wasn’t very smart”, he smiled.

“What? He has a mouth on him”, I answered.

“The last guy who used that sentence, lost his spot on this team in a pretty bad way. The spot you are now going to fill”. He went to stand next to me again, folding his arms across his torso.

“What happened to him?”, I asked.

“We don’t talk about it”, Harley pouted. “It was kind of gross. Speaking of which! Did you get yours yet?”. She sprang forward, putting her hand on my neck, as if searching for something.

“That’s the next step”, Flag said. He reached for his belt, and pulled out a strange looking gun.

None of the crew in front of me would look me in the eyes. Only Deadshot furrowed his brow, and kept eye contact with me; then pushing his lips into a thin line, before mouthing sorry.

Flag put the gun to my neck, and before I had time to react with anything more than a gasp, he pulled the trigger, and a sharp pain – there one second, gone the next – spread throughout the skin around the wound he’d made.

He let me go, lowered the gun, before meeting my eyes with a pained look. “It’s official”, he said, and put the gun into its holster.

I stood there. Mouth agape. Confused.

Deadshot stepped forward, patted my shoulder once, and then walked back towards the basketball.

“Welcome to the Suicide Squad”, he called out, made a shot, and the ball went into the hoop again.

Tag list:

@gloriousgam3r

@hyp-oh-critical

#rick flag imagine #rick flag fic #rick flag #rick flag x reader #suicide squad fic #suicide squad imagine #deadshot #harley quinn

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nano--raptor · 4 years

Text

Random Facts with Beck

Pairing: Chris Beck x Reader

Warnings: Fluff, silliness, slight cursing, implied smut, pre-smut, slight angst/alluding to heavy matters.

Word count: 1376

A/N: This got a little longer and more domestic than I planned, but I hope you enjoy! Also, don’t come at me if they don’t make tea in space, I didn’t look that much into it. Random facts and other info courtesy of asking google for them, as well as here!

Written for @the-ss-horniest-book-club with this prompt from @prunes-said-bucky

-----

No one said being in space would be easy, you knew that from the start. Thankfully you had great chemistry with all the crew, but it didn’t stop the homesickness and the feelings of hopelessness that started setting in. Being alone in outer space and on an alien planet with only six other humans definitely took a toll.

You and the rest of the crew had become closer than family. You’d all had your share of ups and downs, as well as chances to help pick each other up. The guys had been great, and it was awesome to have other women on board with you. But the one who surprised you the most was Chris. While the other guys were friendly and goofy, Chris seemed to go out of his way to make the others, and you especially, smile. He’d draw smiley faces on the whiteboard, even if someone was using it, or on the windows, or on the airlock doors (which Lewis hated), he’d bring you coffee in the morning, or he’d randomly interrupt silences with random facts.

“Did you guys know that penguins can drink salt water?” You looked up at him from your calculations, he sat casually in his chair at the table, absently doodling something in his notebook.

“Really?”

“Mm-hm, it helps them survive with limited access to fresh water.”

“Huh… that’s interesting.” You went back to your math, trying to work out the various equations to do with the weather and temperature of Mars.

“Isn’t it?”

“Wouldn’t that be handy for space travel…” Martinez piped up from the kitchen area.

“Assuming the water, if we even find any, is salt water.” Beck pointed his pen at him, making one of his goofy faces that always made you smile to yourself. You tried to keep it hidden, but you were pretty sure you felt Chris’ eyes on you. You felt yourself blushing and he continued. “They don’t convert the saltwater though, they just remove the salt from their blood more efficiently than we can.”

“Wow,” Martinez mused as he sat down at the table with his laptop. “Random-ass facts with Beck, everyone.” Chris grinned and held out his hands to accept the appreciation.

“I’m here all week. All mission in fact.” You groaned, but couldn’t keep the small smile off your face, and he winked back at you. The room fell silent for a while, but now you just couldn’t keep penguins off your mind.

“Dammit Beck, now all I can think about are penguins…” He laughed out loud, the sound sending warmth rushing through you.

“Which one is your favorite?” At your confused expression, he went on to list different breeds. On and on and on.

“Emperor penguin, african penguin, adelie penguin, chinstrap penguin, galapagos penguin, king penguin -”

“Dude,” Martinez tried to cut him off, shoving his shoulder from across the table. Beck laughed again and continued.

“Australian little penguin, gentoo, yellow-eyed, royal,” he dodged another swipe. “And don’t forget the rockhopper penguins.” Martinez threw a marker at him now, just as Commander Lewis walked into the room.

“What’s going on here?” she demanded, although there was a softness in her voice which made you grin again. “Martinez apparently doesn’t like penguins.” Beck quipped through his laughter. Lewis opened her mouth to respond, but then closed it, just shaking her head and looking to you with a raised eyebrow. You shrugged, rolling your eyes about the guys, and stood to meet her at the counter. “Tea?” She accepted, leaning against the counter as you started to prepare the drink.

“So? How’re you doing?” You shrugged again and handed her one of the mugs. “Okay. Can’t get this simulation to work out, but we’ll get there.” She smiled and held your gaze, saying more with her eyes than her words did, in front of the others.

“Well if you need anything, you let me know okay?” You returned her smile, thinking back to some of the late night conversations you’d had with her.

“Will do, Commander.” Lewis smiled again and lingered for just a moment, before taking her tea and leaving the common space.

“Boys.” They watched her go before breaking into a fit of giggles. You rolled your eyes again but sipped your tea, happy for the camaraderie.

-----

Later that night you were just about to switch off your light and go to sleep when there was a light knock on your door. You opened it slightly to see Chris standing on the opposite side, dressed in a t-shirt and sweats.

“Hey you,” he greeted you quietly. “Can I come in?” You smiled softly and took his hand, gently pulling him into your room. “Of course.” You closed the door and then turned to him, pulling him towards you and brushing your lips against his. His hands fell to your waist and pulled you close, one hand raising to your chin and pulling you into a kiss, gentle and comforting. You took it all in, his warm hands and body against yours, soft lips, long eyelashes fluttering against your cheeks. It warmed you from the inside out which was exactly what you needed these days. The kiss broke and Chris leaned his forehead against yours.

“You doin’ okay?” His question echoed your commander’s from earlier, and held just as much weight. You and Chris had grown close during the mission, starting with easy conversation, and eventually growing much closer. You spent most nights together too, and it was a comfort that you were falling for, as much as you were falling for him.

“I’m okay. It just... Creeps in sometimes, you know?”

“I know,” he whispered, kissing the top of your head and pulling you close. “It’s lonely as hell out here. We’ve got an amazing crew but we’re still only a handful of people.” You hummed and leaned your heat against his chest, listening to the soothing thump of his heartbeat, letting your eyes drift close. “Come lie down.” Chris stripped his t-shirt off and crawled into the small bed, while you turned off the light and snuggled in next to him. He drew small circles on your shoulder and you did the same on his chest. His steady breathing and heartbeat helped soothe you. A lazy calm was falling over you, and you were just about to try and find his lips again when his voice broke the silence.

“I failed to mention earlier that there are three different types of Rockhopper penguins…” “Chris, oh my god! That does not turn me on!”

“What? Random facts aren’t sexy?” He feigned hurt, and you giggled and squeaked as he pulled you close to him, wrapping his arms around you and capturing your lips. “I mean... they’re interesting... but no,” you answered in between kisses. His lips trailed down your throat and back again, as his hands found their way under your sleep shirt, fingering the edge of your underwear, and trailing up over your stomach to brush against the curve of your breasts. Your soft gasps soon filled the room as he held you tighter, kissed you harder, rolled his hips against yours. You needed him to get on with it already. You loved the build up so much, but you soon felt like you might burst if you didn’t get him inside of you already. You pushed yourself against him, rolling him onto his back, and straddled his hips. He moaned as you scooted lower and trailed your hands down his chest and abs, lightly brushing against the waistband of his sweats before slowly sliding them down.

Chris growled and flipped you back over, hovering over you as he kicked the sweats off. He inched your shirt up over your head, trailing his lips along your stomach and chest. His hardness pressed against your thigh and you squirmed, aching for him already. He smiled against your skin and slowed his pace, slowly pressing kisses to your throat until his lips were right beside your ear.

“Did you know that zebras are black with white stripes, not white with black stripes?”

“Fuck sakes Chris! I am begging you. Either fuck me, or shut up!” You couldn’t help but grin as he laughed out loud and wrapped himself around you.

-----

Tags! ❤️ @sfreeborn @jobean12-blog @crushedbyhyperbole @mannatgalhotra @bubbabarnes @buckysthing @marvelgirl7 @ikaris-whore @aesthetical-bucky @littleredstarfish @godofplumsandthunder @winterboobear11 @stuckyinamoose @our-whitetulips-us @throwmyheartawayagain @cristie24 @jesslovesyouall @buckybarney @my-own-private-library @hawksmagnolia @peaceinourtime82 @infinity-saga @kenzieam @sallycanwait68 @hailmary-yramliah @ballyhoobarnes @earthworthies @tinymalscoffee @moonybarnes

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theseaeaglelives · 3 years

Text

Round 11

THE SEA EAGLE

MAKING RUGBY LEAGUE TRULY GREAT AGAIN!!!

Round 11

Manly Sea Eagles 28

Defeated

Parramatta Eels 6

This was a display of muscle, power and solid defence tinged also with sadness following news of the unfortunate passing of immortal and Manly legend Bob Fulton who for obvious reasons will be the focus of this week’s report (see below). Bozo’s passing no doubt cast a shroud of sadness over the Manly camp, but not surprisingly showing due respect to the great man, Manly smashed the hapless Eels into submission in this away fixture at Bankwest.

Manly now have staked their claim as a genuine top eight side and possible top four contender (as long as Tommy Turbo plays).

Manly were up for a big game and they delivered. Manly have now gone from wooden spoon contenders to top 8 contenders in the space of 6 weeks. In fact as it stands today, only the high rolling Panthers and to a lesser extent, the Filthy Wrestlers are playing in better form.

The impact of the Manly forwards in taking the game to their allegedly more fancied Eels rivals cannot be underestimated in this one. Manly gave it to the Eels forward pack and came up convincing winners. When the Manly forwards dominate in a side that contains the likes of Tommy Turbo (and also the second Turbo known simply as Saab Turbo - ie Jason Saab), backed up with the skill and class of Cherry Baby and Turbo's brother Jake, rising star Josh Schuster and quality goal kicking from Ruben Garrick, it will take a very good side to defeat Manly.

In this fixture that side was certainly not Parramatta.

Special mention must also go to young Reuben Garrick who is sharp shooter with the kicking boot , and is now showing a lot of class on the wing. Young Garrick, a Gerringong junior formerly mentored by Eel legend Mick Cronin, could well have drifted away this season, but he has held strong, no doubt under the coaching of master coach Des Hasler. Manly are the better for it.

The Sea Eagle would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the performance of ever improving centre Brad Parker. The Sea Eagle now officially retracts all prior criticism of the attributes of Brad Parker in questioning his ability as a genuine first grader. The time has come to announce that Brad Parker certainly is now of first grade quality and the Sea Eagle publicly apologises for all prior criticism in not recognising what obviously the Manly football management and coaching staff clearly did, and that was to persevere with young Parker.

Wallabies now sponsored by Cadbury

Cadbury now sponsor the Wannabees.

How did Darrel Lea let this one slip by, who wouldn’t want to see the brand “Soft Centres” on the back of each Wallaby player???

Still, we still have the prospect of a Wallaby renaming to the Caramello Bears to look forward to.

Or perhaps:

And, as a sponsor incentive, if they start winning some big games (to wit a Bledisloe Cup or a World Cup):

At least we won’t have to put up with QANTAS as a Wannabee sponsor and their Woke view on the world. The handling of the Israel Folau debacle surely must be placed at the feet of this shameful airline (personal opinion).

Woke Soft Co8!ck Award of the Week

Absolute stand out this week. The organisation known as PETA. These clowns go by the name People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Their motto “ANIMALS ARE NOT OURS TO EXPERIMENT ON, EAT, WEAR, USE FOR ENTERTAINMENT, OR ABUSE IN ANY OTHER WAY”

This week these geniuses disputed the traditional methods used to eradicate the potential life threatening consequences of the western NSW mouse plague (life threatening terms of destruction of food for livestock and for humans to eat). Those methods being poison and associated other nasties to send said rodents to Manyana for ever.

As per the 3AW website on 19 May 2021

Animal rights organisation PETA is advocating for mice, as a mouse plague wreaks havoc in NSW, Queensland and some parts of regional Victoria.

Crops are being destroyed, farmhouses are being invaded, and there are reports some farmers are being forced to spend up to six hours cleaning up mouse droppings.

….

In a radio interview ****, PETA spokesperson XXXX , …

“Our common advice to rodent overpopulation is, of course, to avoid poison which subjects these animals to unbearably painful deaths but also pose the risk of spreading bacteria, and there are alternatives which exist,” she said.

XXXXX blamed governments for the mouse plague.

“It is so unfair that these mice are going to suffer these horrible deaths,” she said.

“It’s the fault of the government because they really should have taken control of this situation earlier .. through humane methods like humane trapping, birth control.

“Their inaction months ago has led to this situation.

“The situation has gotten so bad that not only farmers are suffering, but mice are suffering.””

Sea Eagle Comment:

Whilst cruelty to animals can never be condoned, and live exports fits nicely into that basket, the simple fact remains that humans like beef, chicken, pork, fish, kangaroo, veal and a range of other animals to eat. As well, there is no doubt a wild fish (eg Shark) or mammal (eg bear, dog, lion, tiger etc etc) will not hesitate to take out a human or anything else within its range, in order to eat, or defend themselves, at will, and with impunity. So too will a plague of mice if given half a chance.

Have these clowns never heard of the famous fairy tale the Pied Piper of Hamelin. Perhaps one of them could go through their school things, pull out the old recorder, and take a trip to the Western NSW and see if they can play a nice little ditty to persuade these rodents to follow them into to the Murray Darling basin (PETA members going in first), in order to avoid mice extermination by poison (or attempted extermination by poison by humans). Death under this scenario of course, still being inevitable to said mouse.

The Sea Eagle recognises here that the mice have the upper hand. Firstly though they be small, they be many, and they reproduce at exponential rates. It is probably already too late to stop them.

The Sea Eagle would personally like to see a few card carrying members of PETA, as part of the 2021 Origin series pre game entertainment, to be forced to run successive sets of six against the respective NSW Under 18’s and Queensland Under 18’s forward packs, the task being to see if PETA can break the defensive line. Who wouldn’t want to see that.

And, in the interest of gender equality, perhaps a pre match parade around the ground (if for no other reason than to see how a rugby league crowd might react to a bit of gender equality morphed into animal rights activism) – ie. something along these lines:

VALE BOB FULTON

Manly Sea Eagles legend and rugby league Immortal Bob Fulton has died at age 74 after a long battle with cancer. The news was announced on 2GB by one of Bob Fulton’s closest friends, Ray Hadley.

The legendary Manly, NSW and Australian representative is survived by his wife Anne, sons Scott, and Brett, and daughter Kristie.

Bob Fulton joined Manly in 1966 aged 18. He never played reserve grade. He won premierships with the club in 1972 and 1973 before captaining the Sea Eagles to a third title in 1976, in his last game for the club. He also played in two other grand finals for Manly in 1968 and 1970 where Mainly were unsuccessful against the then mighty South Sydney Rabbitohs.

He joined Easts in 1977. He took over as captain-coach of Easts in 1979 but his playing career came to an end midway through the season after succumbing to a knee injury. With Bob Fulton as full time coach, Easts qualified for the 1980 grand final and were minor premiers that season. Unfortunately, Easts lost the 1980 grand final losing to the then very strong Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs (the Entertainers).

At this point, mention needs to be made of the well known phenomenon known simply as “they never go better when they leave the Nest”.

In the case of Bob Fulton, he is an obvious exception to the rule. Whilst it's true he did not win a Premiership for Easts after having left Manly in the late 70’s, it could hardly be said that he went worse, particularly when he was coming off an exceptionally high benchmark. He still played for Australia and captained Australia through to the end of his career. That he made a GF in his first full year of first grade coaching, proves that he certainly did not go too much worse, in fact he was only just beginning his meteoric rise as a coach.

Bob Fulton of course returned to Manly in 1983, where he stayed for the rest of his rugby league career. After losing the 1983 grand final to the then mighty Parramatta Eels, he steered Manly to premierships in 1987 and 1996, and coached Australia from 1989 to 1998. During this period he coached Manly to 5 grand finals for two Premiership wins.

This coaching record alone proves that it is well and truly possible for a former Manly player to maintain the same high standards when they return to the Nest, and there's no doubt that Bob Fulton maintained the same high levels of winning success upon his return to Manly as coach and the absolute head of football during that time.

As an Australian Test coach he led the Kangaroos to two World Cup victories and numerous test successes.

Bob Fulton was part of the first four players to be granted status as ‘Immortal’ in 1981, alongside Clive Churchill, Reg Gasnier, and Johnny Raper. To be named in the Immortals is the highest honour in Australian rugby league and there can be no doubt that Bob Fulton deserved that accolade.

Manly have had some very good players over the history. Players like Roy Bull, Rex Mossop, John O'Neill, Malcolm Reilly, Fred Jones, Max Krillich, Graham Eadie, Terry Randall, Paul Vautin, Des Hasler, Cliff Lyons, Michael O'Connor, Geoff Toovey, Steve Menzies, Glenn and Brett Stewart, to name a few. No doubt there are plenty more, who cannot be named in the interests of brevity. And then there is the current crop of Cherry Baby, Jake Trbojevic and of course his brother Tommy Turbo.

With that said, and in such illustrious company, there is still no doubt that the best Manly player ever was Bob Fulton.

As a Coach, whilst it might be considered a close thing when one considers the top line coaching abilities of the likes of Ron Willey, Frank Stanton and current coach Des Hasler, in the Sea Eagle’s opinion, Bob Fulton was the best Manly coach of all time.

The Sea Eagle had the privilege of watching Bob Fulton play live on many occasions as a young lad growing up. Simply put there was nothing quite like him. He was remarkably strong defensively, had blinding acceleration, he could draw and pass, he could offload, he could chip over the top regather and score, and he was not injury prone. Above all else, he was always the difference between Manly winning and not losing, when it really mattered.

The Sea Eagle recalls seeing on one occasion in the 70’s, at a church at Manly, a sign displayed that asked the simple question “What would you do if Jesus returned tomorrow?”. In a time when Graffiti was unheard of, someone had written their well-researched answer underneath said sign, which was “put him at 5/8 and move Bobby Fulton to centre”.

There is not much more that needs or can be said.

May he rest in peace.

THE SEA EAGLE

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daggerzine · 4 years

Text

Peter Milton Walsh of The Apartments offers a pocketful of sunshine...

Peter Milton Walsh started his, band, The Apartments, in Brisbane, Australia in 1978. He didn’t release his debut LP until 1985 (The Evening Visits...and Stays For Years). I didn’t hear the band until 1995 when Restless Records here in the U.S. released the terrific A Life Full of Farewells (in between was 1992′s Drift). The releases have been sporadic throughout the years (and there were several years in between when Walsh did create any music at all) but each one glistens with a special kind of magic that only Walsh seems to possess. Though 2020 has been a difficult year, to say the least, one of the bright spots was the release of a new Apartments’ record In And Out of The Light released on Talitres Records (through Riley Records). The record is classic Walsh, spare, gorgeous songs written as the sun goes down (or comes up) with love or loss as its main theme (in most cases). I sent Mr. Walsh some questions and he was more than happy to open up about the record and what’s next.

Peter Milton Walsh photo by Belddyn Butcher, 2020

When did the songs start coming together for the new record?

The plan was to record the album in a couple of weeks in September 2019 in Tours, which is about 2 hours South of Paris. Antoine has a studio there. Natasha would come down from Lille, Nick from London. Then I was moving over to Berlin to mix them with Victor Van Vugt, who now has a studio there. Vic produced the evening visits… back in 1985. (He went on to work with P J Harvey, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds etc.)

But the band wanted to hear the songs before September. So I started by making a couple of demos with a guy who lives just around the corner, Darren Cross. A great musician.

Butterfly Kiss was one, Pocketful too. I sent Butterfly Kiss off to Natasha when she was in Lisbon, and she wrote back to say she’d listened to it over and over, ten times or more, walking at night by the Tagus river and that she fell in love with the song in Lisbon. I thought that was a good sign!

I found that those two songs came alive in the process of recording the demos, so then I thought I don’t want to do any more demos, I just want to make an album. Now! The process made me impatient to begin the album.

So rather than wait till September, I found a place near where I live in Sydney, and approached the producer, Tim Kevin, telling him I had a couple of songs to start the album off with but that I wanted to try to write the rest of the songs as we went along.

The earliest we could start was July, early days of Winter here, as Tim’s studio was very heavily booked.

I have been writing songs since I was 15, and I’ve never really gotten any better at it. I still don’t know what’s happening exactly. But I thought, this will make the whole set of songs very fresh, very in the moment.

This album will not be me trying to recapture the past, it will be me in the present moment, in the Winter of 2019.

I had recorded the title track of No Song, No Spell, No Madrigal like that. All we had for NSNSNM was my piano part, Eliot’s bass and Gene’s drums. The rest of it I made up in the studio. Wayne kept asking me when we would finish the vocal part, because we were running out of time, and even though I didn’t have any idea what the finished lyrics would be I kept telling him it was OK—the song would start in the rain and end in the rain and across the course of the song the guy would be changed.

I thought of the lyric like a voiceover in film noir—the guy reaches the end of the song and just knows he must change his life.

And that’s how we went with In and Out of the Light. Each time I’d finish a new song, I’d think—I’ll never write another song again. But some time would pass—we were recording very sporadically—and something else would come up. We went on like that until we hit the magic number 8, and I thought—OK, that’s 8 songs that sit together well, don’t tempt fate. Stop now, start mixing the album.

What was the recording process like, I’d read other musicians recorded parts in their own country?

I would record some guitar or piano, a vocal, arrange the song, then upload it. Natasha, Antoine and Nick would then record things they thought might work and upload them for us, then Tim and I would select what we wanted and add it. It was very easy. In many ways, we were recording in the perfect way for the COVID era—though the COVID era had not yet begun. Sometimes I’d record 1 day in a week, sometimes more. Very short days. Usually home by six. All very unusual, but that was the situation because Tim was so heavily booked.

The new record

Had you worked with produce Tim Kevin before? What did he bring to the sessions?

No. He’s got a fabulous ear, is a sensational guitar player and singer and has an epic, really impressive concentration span. Also, he was very open to the way I wanted to work—we’d had that discussion before committing to recording. So I could turn up, play him something, and ask if he saw some promise in what I had. And mostly he did.

Did you have any hesitation about releasing a record in 2020?

We finished mixing the day before lockdown hit Sydney, so that part of the timing was beautiful. Playing music, being in a band, touring, releasing records—this is a casino life anyway. If you can’t accept that things often don’t go to plan, you’re in the wrong line of work.

We had a tour planned for September/October 2020, when the album was due for release. That had to be cancelled. We then had a bigger tour planned for February/March 2021—clubs, festivals, some big shows—and had to cancel that as well. I have no idea when we’ll be able to leave Australia—yesterday, the Australian Tourism minister announced that rising COVID cases in Europe and the US mean that Australians won’t be able to visit either of these places next year, unless a vaccine was invented.

Where did the title come from, In and Out of the Light?

Possibly two things occurred to me. Firstly, that on the days that I was recording, I would disappear from the high, bright Winter daylight into the lamplit darkness of the studio and that this too—moving in and out of the light—is the pattern of existence. We are constantly changing, and the conditions of our lives do as well. No feeling is final.

For those of us who wish there were more Apartments records, why do the records come out so infrequently?

The Apartments once had a good 4 year run—drift, A Life Full Of Farewells, fête foraine and apart then, for personal reasons, I turned away from the music world, and any kind of public life that goes with it.

Will you be playing any shows (I know here some folks are beginning to do occasional backyard shows and others in other unique venues…drive in theatres, etc).

That’s a great idea.

His previous record from 2015

Who are some of your favorite current musicians/bands?

If a song has fingerpicking, a certain kind of smoke or melancholy in the voice and maybe a major 7th, I’m a fool for it and always have been, always will be. With new music, I can be as fickle as the next person and I’m not a particularly organized person—so there’s no purpose or method in how songs get to me.

It’s random, they seem to just float in. But here are some of the tracks that have seduced me recently, from my Soundcloud/Bandcamp/Spotify lists. I’m drawn to singles; if I love the album as well, that’s really magic.

Lonny—Incandescente

https://soundcloud.com/lonny-sc/incandescente

Mason Lindahl—Outside Laughing

https://tompkinssquare.bandcamp.com/track/outside-laughing

Arlo Parks—Black Dog

https://open.spotify.com/track/1NGPZKzplieiPc5g6lAJ49?si=KYK_7EZLRkCK5PUjW0DeUA

Ruby Haunt—Avalon

https://open.spotify.com/track/5rwKSB1WtNDWOBmwxZMWrg?si=uNxxyWjGRRuvYZrk5500oA

Endless Winter—Angus Roy

https://angusroy.bandcamp.com/track/endless-winter

Harkin—Decade

https://handmirror.bandcamp.com/track/decade

www.theapartments-music.com

www.talitres.com

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treason-and-plot · 5 years

Text

URL SONG CHALLENGE

I was tagged by @mysimsloveaffair @dreamsongsims and @justasimthing. Thank you, Groovers! To complete this challenge post the title of a song that corresponds to the letters of your tumblr url. Tag as many people as there are letters in your url.

Okay so for this challenge I decided I would only use songs that were pertinent to my story, which meant they either listed on the soundtrack, or were included in a character’s playlist. (Sometimes both.)

T- The Day You Went Away- Wendy Matthews Probably no song has been played at more Australian funerals than this one. I’m not generally a fan of ballads but this is just uniquely beautiful and heart-tugging. One of Dom’s all-time favourites.

R- Real Life- Duke Dumont From Mia’s clubbing playlist.

E- Elegia- New Order From the Naomi playlist. I picture Naomi walking along a beach in winter while this haunting song drifts on the air, her hair trailing behind her, her fingernails caked in blood.

A- All The Lovers Kylie Minogue Georgina’s homage to Vinnie. (Also one of my all-time favourite videos)

S- Sure Thing- Miguel Jonita’s theme song.

Even when we're down to the wire baby Even when it's do or die We could do it baby, simple and plain 'Cause this love is a sure thing

O- Only a Girl- Gia Woods From Audrey and Persephone’s playlist.

N- Nobody’s Diary- Yazoo- From teenage Georgina’s playlist. I can imagine her playing this in her room while she pined over Joël.

A- Atomic- Blondie Whenever I hear this song I am reminded of Joël and Anita’s first night together. Make it magnificent...

N- Number 1- Goldfrapp Another from the Jonita playlist:

Walk out into velvet Nothing more to say You're my favorite moment You're my Saturday...

D- Deep End Lykke Li From a secret ship playlist ;=)

P- Price Tag Jessie J- From Mia’s playlist. Mia’s playlist is nearly all boppy dance tracks.

L - Light Years Away- Oliver. Another track from the secret ship playlist. And the title is particularly apt because knowing my glacial pace it will be light years before the ship sees the light of day, lmbooooo!

O- Odd Look- Kavinsky There is a scene in my story (below) where Roy is standing on the side of the road in Isla Paradiso, staring up at the lighted windows of Naomi’s studio in the castle that she shared with Raj, and this is the song that is playing in the background.

T- The Man- The Killers The ultimate Roy anthem;=)

So now I have to tag 14 people...okay, here goes. @sunset-melody @shhhushhh @coin-tricks-and-thirium @sleazy4goopy @pixelddump @nocturnalazure @samkat10423 @foulballoonkid @city-mouse @luvluvmeh @doka-chan @lauraraeamos @omgdoubleume and @depistako!

#music meme #storytelling

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kzonajal · 4 years

Text

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stevenphan · 4 years

Photo

#Photography #Automotive #Toyota #Corolla #KE70 #Drifting #Australian Drift Club #SMSP #Sydney Motorsport Park

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irwinkitten · 6 years

Text

matching colours | c.h

requested: yes!!! pairing: calum x reader prompt: you have matching soulmate tattoos notes: @babylonshood‘s fault this time!! thank u @modelukesfor the tattoo ideas!! (also thank u for pointing out my tired ass mistake i love u) @themuseumnights gets a special shoutout for helping me organise my brain without me going into meltdown mode. special thanks also goes to @cals-babylons because my mind is fucking weird and she reminded me to keep at it. we all know i’m a slut for soulmate!aus so here i am and i’m not sorry time to hurt some hearts wheeeeeeeeee word count: 1.9k!!

---

No one really understood why tattoos began appearing on people that turned eighteen.

At first, the public just assumed it was those eighteen year olds, getting drunk and celebrating turning eighteen. But the designs were so intricate, so unique, other questions began to get asked.

It was only when the first couple with matching tattoos met, did people even begin to consider the soulmate theory.

It was by chance that someone had recorded them meeting, and their tattoos that had adorned their wrists had gone from colourless lines to a colourful piece. When asked, they’d described it as if their entire view of the world shifted to fit this one person, who they’d move mountains for, and even though they’d tried to keep it platonic-due to relationships they were in at the time-they realised very fast that denying themselves someone who was designed for them was not only difficult, it was painful.

And so from one chance meeting, the world began to accept the soulmate theory, as more and more evidence came forward for it and supported the theory.

People were fast beginning to realise that part of the tattoo were lyrics, lyrics that sang to your soulmate. Most believed it was a way for you to connect with your soulmate, to understand them a little if you hadn’t found them yet.

When you turned eighteen, you were half asleep and halfway down the stairs before you registered the words and the image that had appeared on your unmarked skin.

“My tattoo appeared!” You burst into the kitchen, startling your parents who looked confused for a second before realisation dawned.

Your mum reached you first as you held your arm out to show her, your own eyes taking it in.

“What kind of design is that?” The words fell from your lips and your mum smiled in response.

“It’s called a Celtic Love Knot, sweetheart. Quite appropriate if I do say so.”

“I don’t think I recognise the lyrics?”

“It’s a Frank Sinatra song.” Your dad finally answered and he pulled out his phone, playing the song.

You found yourself swaying to the music almost immediately and your dad grinned as he took your mum’s hand and the pair began to dance around the kitchen.

“I’ll be seeing you, in all the old, familiar places.” Your fingers traced the words as your dad sang along to your mum and you could feel hope well up in you.

You suddenly understood why so many people had said to listen to the song of your soulmate.

“What shall we do for your birthday, little one?” Your dad asked once the song had finished and you remembered that it was your birthday.

“Uh, can we just have a quiet day in? I’m not bothered about doing much today.” You responded with a shrug and your dad sighed before nodding.

“Alright little one. One quiet night in for the birthday girl, coming on up.” You laughed as he kissed your cheek before disappearing back upstairs to shower.

---

You’d been nervous about the tattoo. So many people you’d met all seemed to excitedly scan your arm to see if there was a match, to the point where you started wearing longer shirts because you could feel yourself becoming frustrated.

You’d always wondered how you were going to meet your soulmate. It was only when you turned twenty one that your dad suggested to start going to jazz clubs that made you really consider.

It wasn’t something you could do often, working two jobs to keep the place you had, but whenever you had the time, you visited the local one, not too far from your apartment.

Over time, you got friendly with the bar staff with each visit. It had gotten to the point that you had claimed your own little spot at the end of the bar, able to watch the band play, but if you wanted to dance, there was space to do so.

Being greeted like an old friend as you stepped through the door, a wide smile at the bouncer who gave you a smile back. You frequented so often that all the staff knew you by name, knew your order and knew how to cheer you up.

“There’s our favourite person in the whole world!” You laughed as you sat down, watching Jack make your drink.

“C’mon Jack, you surely have other favourites?” Placing the drink in front of you, he winked before shaking his head.

“Nope, you’re the one for me, sugar.”

“You’re hilarious.” You deadpanned in return before taking a sip of the drink, handing him the money. He just laughed.

“I know sweetheart. Oh, I forgot to tell you, we’ve got Sinatra night tomorrow night, I know you’ve been meaning to come to that.”

Luck was certainly on your side because for once your few days off that you had coincided with each other which meant you could actually relax for once. And with this opportunity, you knew you couldn’t pass it up.

“For once I’m not working. What time do they start?”

“Around about seven, so I’d get here before six thirty. You never know, you might meet your soulmate.” Jack teased before moving to serve another customer, making you smile wistfully into your drink.

“If only I was that lucky.” You murmured, taking a sip and listening to the smooth jazz that you’d fallen in love with over the years.

---

The next day you’d decided to make a little bit of effort for the evening.

Instead of your standard skinny jeans paired with a decent top, you opted to wear one of the lighter summer dresses you owned. You kept to minimal make-up and for once you felt refreshed.

It was a rare day when you got to enjoy your days off entirely, and feeling refreshed like you did was even rarer. You felt alive and it was noticed when you stepped into the club.

“Look at you, all dolled up and looking like you’ve actually rested.” Jack teased as you took residence in your usual spot.

“Remind me why I am friends with you?” Came the sarcastic response and the other bar tenders laughed as Jack pouted.

“You know you love me sugar. We going with your usual today?” You nodded and he grinned in return. There were some days you half wished Jack had been your soulmate, but he’d found his a few years before you started showing up to the club.

You twisted in the bar stool to see the band trouping out on stage just as someone took up the space next to you.

“Just a whiskey on ice, mate.” An unfamiliar Australian accent drifted over you and you let your gaze flicker to the guy who had his back to you as he spoke quietly with the person next to him.

Turning away, you found yourself swaying as older classics filled the air

After a few songs, and another drink, you stood from the stool, gently swaying to the music as the vocalist crooned out New York, New York.

You certainly appreciated your soulmate’s music taste as you’d gotten older.

As the song moved to I’ll Be Seeing You, the song of your lyrics tattooed into your skin, the Australian accent spoke up once more.

“Would you care to dance, doll?” There was a gentle touch to your shoulder and so you spun around, fully intent on agreeing, but when your eyes met dark brown, the air in your lungs left you as you could feel something slot itself into place.

Immediately, your eyes went down to your tattoo which had filled with colour, your eyes returning back to his almost immediately.

“Who knew my girl would be a fan of Sinatra?” He breathed. You smiled at him, taking his hand in yours.

“I believe you wanted to dance?” It knocked him out of the shock and he grinned so widely, you could feel your heart skip a beat as he moved around the little makeshift dance floor with you, his voice singing along quietly.

You were almost certain that you were going to melt.

Once the song ended, you found yourself not wanting to let go of your soulmate. He really was here.

“My name is Calum. What’s yours, doll?” He’d finally spoken and you blinked before realising he’d spoken.

“Oh, I’m Y/N.” You beamed up at him in response and you watched as his face relaxed into a wide smile.

Taking off the leather jacket that he’d had on, your eyes darted to the sleeves of the crisp black shirt as he began rolling them up, ignoring his friend he’d arrived with.

There, clear as day was your matching tattoo and the lyrics ‘Loving you is not in my control.’

“Oh.” You breathed, your fingers tracing the skin lightly.

It was one of the few things you’d shared with your parents. You remembered going to see the show with them when you were a teenager and you’d fallen in love with the song, understanding that finding such a love like that was rare.

But as you stared at Calum, you began to understand the emotions a lot more, your heart filling up with such joy.

“It was just a song that stuck with me I guess. I watched the musical and I remember wishing to have someone who could love me as much as Fosca loved Giorgio.”

“You found them, doll. But I promise you that I won’t up and die on you.” He whispered and you giggled softly.

“Please don’t. I waited a long time for you.” You whispered softly and his arms wrapped around your waist, drawing you closer. His friend had long since realised what was going on and kept anyone else from disturbing the two of you.

The band had struck up once more and Fly Me To The Moon filtered through the room and the two of you began to sway once more.

“In other words, please be true. In other words, I love you.” Calum sang quietly and just as the music struck up, his lips met yours and you could feel every emotion flooding through as your arms snaked up around his neck.

“Alright love birds.” Jack’s voice broke through your little bubble and you smiled into the kiss as you pulled away.

“Serenading me with Sinatra, you certainly have a talent Cal.”

Pulling you closer, he laughed as he pressed a kiss to your cheek.

“What can I say? I’m a romantic at heart.”

Your heart had never felt so full and spending the night with Calum, dancing to the sound of Frank Sinatra covers in his arms, talking about your lives as you swapped stories of growing up.

As the night drew to a close, his friend long since abandoned him for other ventures of night life, you suddenly found yourself hesitant.

“I don’t want tonight to end.” You whispered softly and he gave you a sweet smile in return.

“Did you think I was letting you go that easily? You’re stuck with me for good now, my beautiful soulmate. Would you care to accompany this poor, love-sick sap back to his home for some more wine and dancing?”

“Since you asked so nicely, I think I can spare the time.” You teased, his lips pulling up into a grin as his arm wrapped around your waist, tucking you into his side as you began to leave.

“As long as you’ve got time for me doll, I’m happy to do anything with you.”

---

tag list: @cals-babylons, @plainwhiteluke, @calumsdemons, @wrappedaroundcal, @pumpkincalum, @blameiuke, @pumpkinsmashton, @themuseumnights, @astroashtonio, @catchinqcalum, @modelukes, @qualitylu, @5saucewho, @babylon-uncrowned, @dontstopisagoodsongchangemymind, @therainydays4, @my-world97, @silverchainbee

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plusultrabitchez · 5 years

Text

Rooms On Fire Chapter 23: Vegas Part 4

"Oh sweet Jesus that's good!" The hot water of the shower was waking you up and relaxing your muscles. Everyone, including yourself, was pretty hungover from the night before. Most of your friends didn't remember the decision to sleep in a giant cuddle pile, so the confused reactions were amusing, to say the least.

You had woken up to Hitoshi spooning you and holding you tightly in his arms, Katsuki cuddling one your legs like there was no tomorrow, and Kaminari cuddled around your other leg while Sero and Mina were spooning him. They all looked so precious and serene so you tried to sneak out of their grasps, but their holds on you were too tight so, unfortunately, you had to wake them all up.

"Hey gorgeous." Hitoshi said groggily as he shuffled into the bathroom. You heard him lift up the toilet seat to take a piss. "So....I dared you to give Bakugou a lap dance last night?"

You chuckled as you washed your hair. "Yes you did." Hitoshi grunted in response and flushed. "And did someone do body shots off me last night?" "Just me..." You smirked. "Oh good." "And Midoriya." Hitoshi laughed. "Oh god." You poked your head out from the shower. "Chill out Tiger, it was off your bicep." "Eh that's not too bad. Poor Midoriya though." He chuckled as he slipped off his sweatpants. "He should be so lucky as to do a body shot off you." You said as you checked out your insanely handsome boyfriend stepping into the shower.

He let out a satisfied sigh as the hot water rushed over his body. He soon felt your arms gently wrap around his waist and you nuzzle your face in his back. He smiled and put his hands on yours while you both enjoyed the hot water. The silence was broken by Mina yelling into your bathroom. "We're going to get cleaned up and go to breakfast in 20 minutes! You guys wanna come?"

You nodded against Hitoshi's back. "Yeah! We'll be there!" He called out. You groaned causing him to turn around. "Are you alright (Y/N)?" "I'm alright, just a massive headache. Waiting for my pain killer to kick in." You said, your voice now muffled by his chest. Hitoshi smiled down at you and ran his fingers through your hair before lightly rubbing your temples. You hummed and closed your eyes as he tilted your head up to him. He continued gently massaging your temples then moved to your scalp. "Is that helping gorgeous?" He asked softly. You let out an affirmative hum as the movement Hitoshi's fingers gave you full body tingles. He leaned forward and planted gentle kisses all over your face.

"Mmm, I love you so much." You cooed. Hitoshi's heart fluttered and placed a tender kiss on your lips. "I love you too." After a few minutes of Hitoshi's care, your headache was letting up. "You're the best Hitoshi." You said leaving a trail of kisses across his bare chest. His grip in your hair tightened. "Careful with that sweetie. You're getting me all worked up."

You giggled before lightly nipping his chest making him hiss and bite his lip before pulling away. "Tease." You grinned and stuck out your tongue. "What are you guys going to do today?" He asked. "We're going hiking then going to..." you pointed finger guns at him. "Thunder From Down Under." Hitoshi chuckled. "That sounds like fun." "Yup, gonna see all the dongs." You said with a wink causing Hitoshi to crack up. "What about you guys?" "Hitting up a strip club tonight, but before that, we're going to go to the desert to blow some shit up." You quirked an eyebrow. "Guns and rocket launchers." He winked.

You gaped at him in shock. "What?" He asked with a confused look. Your expression quickly changed to a pout. "I wanna go. That sounds so fucking cool." Hitoshi started to feel a little bad doing all this stuff without you since he knew you would love it. "Don't get me wrong! I'm having an awesome time with the girls and I love how much we've all bonded on this trip, but..." You trailed off. "You want to blow shit up too." Hitoshi completed your sentence for you. You nodded. You felt guilty for wanting to do other things besides hang with the girls since it was the main reason for the trip.

Hitoshi caressed your face and smiled apologetically. "We can come back just you and I. And we can do all the crazy shit you haven't been able to do and then some." You looked up at him with a pouty look. "Really? He chuckled. "Of course gorgeous." He gave you a sweet and reassuring kiss. "And if it's just you and I..." he leaned and nipped your neck before saying in a low voice: "I can fuck you senseless every night we're here." You let out a small moan and bit your lip. He smirked at you. "Now let's go get some fucking coffee." . . . "Aaaaah who's grand idea was it to go hiking?" Mina whined. "I regret drinking that much last night." Jirou groaned. "It's not much longer." You chuckled. You all had been hiking for 2 hours and the terrain was tough but beautiful. Tsu and Momo had brought their cameras and had been taking pictures the whole time while you and Ochako were leading the group. "Have you been enjoying yourself?" You asked. "Oh my god, (Y/N) this trip has been so much fun! Thank you so much for planning it!" You let out a little sigh of relief. "Good I'm glad. I was worried things got a little too crazy last night." She giggled and blushed. "Oh things were definitely wild, but I had a blast! We should do trips like these more often." You quirked a brow. "Wow really? Well, twist my arm." You both laughed and linked arms as you continued your hike.

"Is there anything, in particular, you would like to do now that we've been here a few days?" Ochako gave you a confused look. "I thought you had everything planned." You shrugged. "Yeah I do, but we can always change plans around. What's important is that you and Midoriya have a good time." Ochako thought it over for a moment. "I kinda wanted to see what that Eiffel Tower restaurant is like." You smiled at her. "I can make that happen." She gave you a hug. "You're the best." You hugged her back. "Only the best for my best friend." . . . BOOM The boys watched in awe as the rocket Hitoshi just shot off decimated a small shack. "Okay, if this is how you feel all the time I think I understand you a lot more now." Hitoshi said to Bakugou who wore a huge smirk on his face.

"MY TURN!" Kaminari called out trying to snatch the rocket launcher from Hitoshi. "Whoa, dude! Chill out!" Hitoshi said using his long arms to his advantage to keep Kaminari at bay. "That's incredibly dangerous! As punishment for something so reckless, you should have to go last! I will take your place by going next." Iida commanded while waving his arms about. Midoriya quirked his eyebrow at Iida. "Wouldn't the person after Kaminari just get to go ahead?"

"...I want to do it." Iida mumbled with his head down. Hitoshi laughed. "Alright Iida, here you go." He handed the launcher to Iida who lit up like a kid on Christmas morning. Hitoshi and Bakugou drifted to the back of the group to grab water and watch Iida shoot off the rocket. "So what the hell are the girls doing today?" Bakugou asked opening his water bottle. "They're hiking in the desert before heading out to the Australian dong fiesta."

Bakugou chuckled. "You realize we're all going to get a ton of snapchats from that?"

"Oh yeah, tons." Hitoshi watched Iida shoot off the rocket and lose it with excitement when he blew something up. He sighed and looked at this phone lock screen which was a picture of you two together.

"She would love this shit." Bakugou said nodding at Hitoshi's phone.

"Yeah she would. She was so jealous this morning when I told her what we were doing." Hitoshi chuckled and put his phone back in his pocket. "I promised her we would come back so we could do all the things she missed."

Bakugou nodded then was quiet for a moment. "Well, tomorrow is our last day here. Maybe we could, I don't know, do something together."

"What did you have in mind?"

"OH MY GOD YOU GUYS THIS IS NUTS!" Ochako was completely red the entire show. Mina was living for the beefy strippers that were chiseled like Greek gods but you, Tsu, Momo, and Jirou couldn't stop laughing. Mina was, of course, snapchatting the entire thing to the guys. You all had front row seats and were a few drinks in for courage.

About halfway through the show, the performers turned their attention to Ochako. Unbeknownst to her, you had gotten a special VIP package. Mina was already recording when Ochako was snatched up onto the stage by a hoard of hulking Australian beefcakes. They carried her small blushing frame to a chair in the middle of the stage. Your group and the entire crowd was cheering her on in anticipation of what was to come.

Ochako was the entire red color spectrum as she got her special dance from the performers on stage. You all were crying with laughter as Mina recorded the whole thing. She panned around to see all of your reactions to catch you laughing so hard you fell out of your seat and onto the floor.

"Behold! The power of the great Australian dongs has conquered Kubo! The strongest of us has fallen!" She yelled, still recording you wheezing on the floor. You flicked her and the camera off before she panned back up to Ochako who was surrounded by guys in thongs thrusting around her. She looked like she was going to stroke out any minute now.

The performers carried Ochako back to her seat when her dance was finished and everyone in the crowd was going crazy. They started a new routine and one of the dancers came down to the front row and started dancing up on random audience members. Of course, you were one of them.

"Oh my god!" You laughed as a dark-haired 6'4" hulking man was now dancing up on you. You were blushing violently as his crotch thrust into your face. "I'm Kubo! Nice to meet you!" You yelled over the audience screams and held out your hand.

"I'm Jeramy." He shook your hand and pulled you out of your seat and placed you on stage where you were swarmed by the rest of the dancers. "Holy fuckballs!" They gave you the same treatment as Ochako. "I thought this was only for brides?!" You giggled. "Your friend asked us to do this." Jeramy chuckled. You glanced over at Ochako with your mouth agape. She winked and gave you a thumbs up. "That little shit. I'm so proud of her." . . . ~Shinsou's POV~ "I have no idea what I'm doing." He said throwing back a shot before going to get singles. "Well let me take the lead!" Kaminari said puffing out his chest. "I've been to dozens of strip clubs." "Of course you have." Kirishima sighed rolling his eyes while Sero facepalmed. "I don't know if you wanna brag about that dude."

Midoriya hid behind Iida who was just as confused and out of place while the rest of the guys got drinks and singles. "Hey, Shinsou." Bakugou nudged his shoulder and gestured at Iida. "We gotta fuck with him." A devilish smirk formed across both their faces as he nodded in agreement. Hitoshi leaned in to whisper to Bakugou. "We gotta do it later in the night. Lure him into a false sense of security." Bakugou nodded and then gave each other a small fist bump.

They all got drinks and found a spot towards the front to sit down and watch the dancers. The dancers were insanely attractive and very talented. All he could think about was (Y/N). In his mind, none of these women could come close to her. He looked over to see Midoryia looking down at his feet with his eyes strained.

"Izuku, my dude, you gotta let loose! This is your bachelor party! You're allowed to do this."

Midoriya looked at him overflowing with nervousness. "I just don't want to do anything that will upset Ochako."

Hitoshi nodded. "And I get that! Nothing wrong with that, but I'm sure Ochako won't mind considering her and the girls are at the Australian dong paradise or whatever it's called.

"Holy shit guys! Have you checked the snapchat stories Mina has been sending us?" Kirishima asked running over to Midoriya and Hitoshi with his phone out. They all huddled around for a moment and watched a dozen basically naked greek gods dance all over the girls.

"See? They're having a great time." Hitoshi's voice cracked.

Bakugou was cracking up at the videos. "Did you see (Y/N) fall out of her seat and bust her ass?"

Hitoshi looked back at the video and saw what he was talking about and cracked up himself. She was obviously having a fun time which made him happy. Seeing her laugh and flick off the camera made him miss her like crazy for some reason. Was he crazy about all those big hot dudes thrusting into her face? Not really. Was he happy (Y/N) was having a great time with her friends? Absolutely.

"Alright, guys. Time for us to have our own fun." They all put their phones away and started throwing singles at the dancers. The dancers LOVED Midoriya.

"Oh my god! He's so cute!" One girl said pinching his cheeks while he blushed violently.

The other dancer gasped and ran up to him as well. "So adorable! Why are you here sweetie?"

"He's getting married!" Hitoshi said and nudged Midoriya with his elbow.

"Oh, in that case, you're getting a lap dance cutie!" The two dancers fawned over him and dragged Midoriya to the back room.

"G-guys?" Midoriya squeaked looking to his friends for help, but they were the opposite of help. They were all cheering and toasting to him.

They turned their attention to the main dancer on the stage. She had very sharp features, dark hair, she was gorgeous. "You boys are the rest of the bachelor party?" She asked sweetly as she danced.

"Yes ma'am! Or friend Midoriya is getting married in a few months." Kirishima said.

As Kiri and the rest of the guys made small talk with the dancer Hitoshi checked his phone for any messages from (Y/N). He missed her. He wished he was getting a lap dance from her.

"Hey, ready to fuck with Mr. Class rep?" Bakugou asked snapping Hitoshi from his thoughts.

"Uh yeah yeah." He put his phone away in his pocket.

Bakugou quirked his brow at him. "She gets carried away at strip clubs. I'm sure she'll tell you all about it later."

"How would you know?" Hitoshi asked even though he already knew the answer.

Bakugou laughed. "We went to a lot of strip joints together. I have no idea why it just always seemed to happen."

Hitoshi laughed and shook his head. "Well, she's never dull. That's for sure."

"Definitely not." Bakugou said getting out a wad of money. "How many do we want to stick on him?"

Hitoshi simply smirked and got the attention of another dancer passing by and they made the arrangements. Once Midoriya was back from his lap dance, that's when the ladies would strike. A few minutes later Midoriya returned to the group. His hair was a mess, he was as red as he's ever been and shaking in his big red shoes.

"Midoriya, you okay bro?" Kirishima asked putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Sure!" he squeaked. "That was just....I miss Ochako."

The group cracked up at him. "They got you all worked up huh Midoriya?" Kaminari teased as he threw an arm around him. Midoriya buried his face in his hands due to overwhelming embarrassment.

"It's alright Midoriya! I hear a lap dance is essential to the bachelor party experience." Iida said with one hand on Midoriya's shoulder and the other waving wildly in the air.

"Dude, did you do research on bachelor parties?" Sero asked.

"I did indeed! I also watched several movies on the subject." Iida said proudly as he adjusted his glasses.

"Whaaaaaat the fuck." Hitoshi chuckled and shook his head.

"The Hangover series was very enlightening. However, I am rather proud that we've managed to keep track of Midoriya and haven't locked him on the roof of the hotel or lost another member of our group." He clenched his fist and wore a prideful look. "Congratulations everyone. We are having a good time AND being responsible!"

"Well, good to know that you think lap dances are essential to a bachelor party because you're in for a treat." Bakugou smirked as 4 dancers surrounded Iida.

"Oh wow, he certainly is the tall dark and handsome type." One of the dancers said while feeling Iida's bicep. "Oh he's strong too. I'm Coco."

Iida's body was rigid and his face red, but he didn't forget his manners. "Nice to meet you, Coco, I am Tenya Iida."

"Hi Tenya." A blonde dancer came up and grasped his other bicep. "I'm Bambi."

"Interesting name. Were your parents a big fan of that movie?" Iida asked as the girls led him to a chair.

She giggled. "Sure honey."

With Coco and Bambi on either side of Iida, two more dancers approached him and introduced themselves as Starr and Cherry. The girls started to take turns giving Iida a lap dance. Iida did his best to keep his composure, but the red creeping onto his cheeks was betraying him. Before he knew it, all of them were topless. Iida's blush saturated every inch of his skin.

Iida cleared his throat. "Excuse me, ladies. Aren't you cold? Do you need to borrow my jacket?"

The rest of the guys were howling with laughter over his reactions. Kaminari was snapchatting the whole thing and Hitoshi and Bakugou high fived as Iida continued to make polite small talk to the dancers throughout the duration of his dance. By the end of it, Bambi had slipped Iida her number and informed him that her real name was Jane. After the dance was over he bowed and shook the dancer's hands.

Hitoshi made an effort to decline any dance that was offered to him during the rest of their time at the club. He knew (Y/N) wouldn't mind, but he wasn't interested in a lap dance from anyone other than (Y/N). He thought about how she danced the night before and went on his phone and ordered a stripper pole for their place. Maybe if he got lucky it would be delivered by the time they got home in the next few days. Now that made him excited.

"Did you seriously just order a stripper pole while you're at a strip club?" Bakugou laughed as he peaked over Hitoshi's shoulder to his phone screen.

Hitoshi laughed. "Yup, sure did. Maybe it's lame, but..." he pulled up a picture that he had taken of her in her bikini the previous night. "Can you blame me?"

Bakugou laughed. "No, not really." They both sipped on their drinks as they watched the dancers on the stage. "God I can't wait until we can get out of here."

Hitoshi nodded in agreement. They were going to meet up with the girls after this and he couldn't wait to see (Y/N) since he hadn't seen or talked to her since their shower this morning. He replayed the snap that Mina had sent them and thought about how badly he wanted her in his arms. She was wearing short shorts with tights that resembled thigh highs and a black crop top and she looked so cute and sexy. He did notice that a hickey that he gave her was clearly visible which filled him with pride.

"Hey guys! Ochako just texted and said that their show is done and they're headed to the bar now. Are you all ready to head out?" Midoriya said smiling at his phone, clearly relieved that his time at the strip club would be over soon.

The boys walked up to Vince Neil's Tatuado bar on the strip. The place looked like a ton of fun, they quickly spotted the girls when they walked in. They had a big table with tons of appetizers and pitchers of beer. Hitoshi looked around and didn't see his girlfriend. "Where's (Y/N)?"

"Nice to see you too Shinsou." Jirou smirked.

Hitoshi blushed and scratched the back of his head. "Sorry Jirou. I didn't mean to be rude. I just, I haven't seen her since this morning."

"Awww you two are so adorable." Mina cooed while she ruffled Hitoshi's hair. "She's at the bar getting some specialty drinks for everyone."

Hitoshi immediately took off to the bar to find her while the rest of the guys sat down at the table. Midoriya and Ochako nuzzled together instantly.

"God he's fucking whipped." Kaminari laughed as he sat down.

"Oh shut up dunce face. You would be too if (Y/N) was your girlfriend." Bakugou snapped as he poured himself a beer. Kirishima looked at Bakugou apologetically as he sat down next to him. "What are you looking at shitty hair?" He grumbled.

"You holding up okay?" Kirishima asked quietly in order not to draw attention.

Bakugou took a swig of his drink. "Yeah I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"

Kirishima just sighed and decided not to press him. "Just hanging out with all us idiots all week." He joked. Bakugou knew that that wasn't the actual reason he was asking, but didn't want to talk about the real reason. "Yeah, it's been almost insufferable." He smirked at Kirishima who gave him an understanding smile and clinked their beers together.

Hitoshi quickly spotted (Y/N) at the bar and smirked as he got an idea.

"Excuse me, ma'am. Looks like someone shot you with their phasers set to 'stunning'."

"Well, they said over in communications that hailing frequencies weren't the only thing I raised." She turned around with the biggest smirk on her face.

They both started laughing hard before embracing each other. "Hey gorgeous."

"Heya Tiger."

~Your POV~

You had ordered a bunch of random drinks and shots and had them brought to the table where you all were eating and drinking and discussing your escapades from earlier that evening. You sat next to Hitoshi and across the table from Bakugou and Kirishima. You were having a great time shooting the shit and munching on loaded nachos and sipping on an ice cold beer.

"Oh by the way (Y/N), I keep meaning to tell you that Bunji says 'Hi'." Bakugou smirked.

You groaned and then laughed. "God noooo! Will he ever give up?"

"Who the hell is Bunji?" Hitoshi asked before taking a bite of nachos.

"This total and complete creep that Katsuki and I used to work with." You said rolling your eyes.

"Correction: A total and complete creep that YOU used to work with. I still gotta see the asshole all the time." Bakugou said.

You giggled. "Oh god, well at least he doesn't hit on you every day and stare at your tits."

"I don't know. The fucker is getting more and more desperate and I'm getting concerned for my safety."

His comment made you cackle. "Oh, that reminds me." Bakugou said topping off your, Kiri, and HItoshi's beer. "I need some more of that hot sauce."

You and Bakugou started laughing so hard that tears welled up in your eyes.

"Hot sauce? What's so funny about hot sauce?" Kirishima asked.

"Our first week at the agency Bunji would NOT leave (Y/N) alone and we had to stay late one night for paperwork and the creep hung around and just stared at her the whole time."

Hitoshi's nose scrunched up. "Jesus what a fucking douchebag."

Bakugou nodded. "Yeah, he's a grade A scumbag."

You remembered something mid-sip of your beer and waved your arm around. "Yeah! Remember he asked me how Inasa and I managed to bang because he was so much bigger than me?"

Hitoshi facepalmed. "God! I did not want that image in my head."

You, Bakugou, and Kirishima laughed at his reaction.

"Well it was fucking gross, so before we left that night we took that crazy hot sauce I have and doused all his food and drinks with it."

You four erupted with laughter.

"Let me tell you that dudes ass was obliterated for days after that." Bakugou laughed wiping away a tear.

"Attention everyone! Karaoke will be starting in 10 minutes. Get in your song requests now!" The voice boomed over the speakers.

"Karaoke?! Oh my god! Kaminari let's going sing!" Mina said as she excitedly shook Kaminari's arm.

"Hell yeah! Let's do it!" He replied and the two of them bolted up.

"Ooh that sounds like fun!" Ochako bounced up and followed them.

"Yeah I'm in." Jirou followed.

"I'll go sign us up!" Kirishima ran off.

"Wait? 'Us'???" Bakugou barked.

"Do you want to sing anything Iida? Midoriya?" You asked.

Midoriya chuckled. "I'm not really a singer, but I can't wait to see what everyone else sings."

"I'm in the same boat as Midoriya. We will watch from the sidelines and provide moral support."

You and Hitoshi raised your glasses to them. "Same here!" Hitoshi said.

"What about you Tsu? Momo?"

Momo blushed. "Singing and anything musical is all Kyoka's expertise. I'm afraid I don't excel in that area."

"Yeah me neither. I'm excited to watch though." Tsu said with a sweet smile.

A few minutes later everyone returned very excited for what was to come.

"I chose a great song for us to sing guys!" Kirishima said looking at Bakugou and Sero.

Bakugou rolled his eyes. "I ain't singing."

You laughed. "Why not?"

He glared at you. "Same reason you're not. Don't want to."

You shrugged and took a sip of your beer and waited for the Karaoke to start. The lights dimmed and you leaned into Hitoshi's arms as you turned your attention to the stage. Hitoshi planted a few soft kisses on your neck and nibbled at your ear which gave you body tingles and made you sigh happily. You put your hand on his thigh under the table and lightly squeezed. His grip on you tightened ever so slightly.

"You look really sexy tonight." He whispered gruffly in your ear.

"Only for you Tiger." You whispered back looking up at him. He was able to get a nice view of your cleavage given his angle and he licked his lips and his eyes grew darker.

You giggled and winked at him. He grinned and leaned into your ear once again. "I can't wait to get you back to the hotel."

You bit your lip and giggled as your grip on Hitoshi's thigh tightened.

The announcer came onto the small stage that was used for Karaoke. "Welcome folks! We're starting out tonight's show with Mina Ashido and Denki Kaminari performing Finesse!

"Oh Jesus Christ." You and Hitoshi said in unison.

They weren't half bad. Mina was a pro at working the crowd. They got everyone in the place singing along and cheering for them. Of course, your table was the loudest. You all vowed that no matter how terrible the performance you were going to hype up every single person on stage.

Up next was Jirou who sung Rebel Girl by Bikini Kill. You and Momo were on your feet cheering and yelling the who time. Jirou killed it, but none of you were surprised since she was in a band and musically inclined. She had the perfect voice for the song.

Ochako was up next and sang the song 2002 by Anne-Marie and was completely adorable. Midoriya was head over heels for her and you all watched him watch her. His whole face lit up and his eyes sparkled as he watched her perform. It was heartwarming and wholesome. No one cheered louder or applauded more than he did when she finished the song.

Kirishima managed to bribe Bakugou to actually sing with him and Sero, but not before taking several shots. They did a passionate rendition of Welcome to the Black Parade by My Chemical Romance. He started the song annoyed, but by the end of the song, he was really into it. Like REALLY into it. You laughed at it and revealed to your friends at the table that you and Bakugou had gone to karaoke a bunch during your time working together and he secretly loved it.

The three of them stumbled back to the table and Bakugou pointed at you. "I have a dare for you."

Hitoshi quirked a brow and you cringed. "Oh Jesus Katsuki, I've had enough truth or dare shenanigans last night."

"Okay then, how about a request then?" His look softened.

You sighed heavily. "What?"

"Can you sing that one song from that one time?"

You laughed. "Wow, that one song from that one time. That really helps me narrow down what song you're talking about."

"You know the song from that time we went to Karaoke with that Tatsuo guy."

"Oooooh, you mean the dark-haired pretty boy from that one time."

"Yeah! That time!"

You sighed. "I don't know Katsuki. I'm not drunk enough to actually sing."

"You should sing!" Hitoshi said. "I've never heard you sing sing. Only around the house."

You blushed lightly. "I don't know."

The rest of your friends cheered you on while Bakugou stared you down. His eyes were pleading and desperate. "Come onnnnnn. All the cool kids are doing it." He teased.

You cracked up. "Alright alright." You took two shots of tequila back to back and went up to the stage to put your request in.

"Alllllright folks next up with have (Y/N) Kubo singing Stay The Night!" The announcer stepped off the stage and you stepped up to the microphone.

"I know that we are upside down. So hold your tongue and hear me out. I know that we were made to break so what? I don't mind. You kill the lights, I'll draw the blinds. Don't dull the sparkle in your eyes. I know that we were made to break so what? I don't mind."

As soon as Hitoshi heard your voice his heart stopped for a moment. He never knew you could sing like this. In that moment he fell in love with you all over again. Hearing your sweet voice, the spotlight illuminating your gorgeous features. He was completely consumed by your performance.

"Are you gonna stay the night. Doesn't mean we're bound for life. So oh oh oh, are you gonna stay the night. I am fire gasoline, Come pour yourself all over me. We'll let this place go down in flames only one more time."

Bakugou didn't take his eyes off of you. This song held a very special memory for him and he wanted to memorize this the best he could. The only time he looked away from you was to glance at Hitoshi who was completely enamored. He turned his attention back to you singing and dancing on stage and smiled.

Everyone was cheerings and singing and dancing along with you. Once the song was over you returned to your friends who were all standing and cheering and applauding loudly.

Hitoshi scooped you up in his arms and pulled you into a loving and passionate kiss. It reminded you of your first kiss all those months ago. You wrapped your arms around his neck and sunk into him overcome with bliss. After a few wolf whistles and Sero yelling "Get a room!" you and Hitoshi finally broke your kiss.

You made your way back to your seat and to your surprise, Bakugou came over and hugged you. "Thanks bitch." he said softly.

You smiled and hugged him back. "You're welcome asshole."

After a few more hours of eating and talking you all headed back to the Villa to hit the sack. You rode on Hitoshi's back the whole way. The two of you had been extra cuddly and you were loving it. Hitoshi was always affectionate, but not being able to see each other all day made you touch starved. The entire way back to the hotel you were playing with his crazy purple locks and nuzzling into his neck. The two of you were completely smitten.

When you arrived back at the Villa Hitoshi and Bakugou told everyone to hang out in the living room for a minute before heading to bed. You groaned because you wanted, no, needed to be alone with Hitoshi.

"We changed some plans around for tomorrow. So we're all going to be spending the day together."

You perked up. "Really?"

Hitoshi smiled at you. "Yup! Bakugou and I got a bunch of cool shit planned."

Kirishima fist pumped. "That's awesome! I can't wait!"

"Wow, that's great that you guys are working together so well." Midoriya beamed.

Bakugou rolled his eyes. "You don't have to act so surprised you damn nerd."

Midoriya just sighed.

"Hey guys?" You raised your hand.

Hitoshi and Bakugou looked at you with quirked brows.

"I call dibs on dinner plans."

"Deal!" They said in unison.

"Alright guys come on. Let's all go to bed." Midoriya yawned. Everyone agreed and dispersed to their rooms. As soon as you and Hitoshi were alone he tackled you to the bed making you erupt into a fit of giggles.

"God I love you so fucking much (Y/N)." He said his eyes full of love and adoration.

His look made your heart melt. "I love you so fucking much too Hitoshi."

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