#I like the idea that they all become a tight knit group of friends

[j-liz]

He didn’t show up.

Bonus:

Addition 2 after seeing so many sad tags

[d1xonss]

HEY ASHHH!!! hope youre doing amazing HOW ABOUT SARCASTIC READER (tony stark kinda personality😝😝) WITH DARYL AAGHH IT WOULD BE SO COOL like readers always so careless

A Friend

✧ Pairing : Daryl Dixon x Reader

✧ Era : Season 4

✧ Pronouns : she/her

✧ Genre : Fluff

✧ Word Count : 3.5k

AN ~ Hiii! Thank you for this request, I love the idea! I think any kind of sarcastic character paired with Daryl is just perfect. I’m not super confident on how this one came out but I tried to just work with it lol. Hope you enjoy!

You felt the hot sun beating down onto your skin the longer you stood outside, causing you to have to constantly wipe your forehead every few minutes to get rid of the sweat that pooled there. Your arms continued to burn with how many walkers you kept having to stab on the outsides of the fences, their arms trying to come through the openings to claw at you. You had the privilege and the honor of taking on this job today as Rick instructed, while his happy ass stayed inside and did a count of all the weapons and bullets we had. Making checklists if you will while you were stuck out here working your ass off.

Over the course of a few months, you had all been able to live peacefully inside this prison now without the Governor trying to kill everyone twenty four seven. It was relieving, but the problem you all seemed to have to deal with now were all the walkers built up along the fences, attempting to push their way in. No one knew what exactly caused this to be such a problem, maybe the loudness that everyone provided now with how many of you lived on the other sides of the gates. But it had become a pain to deal with to say the least.

You gritted your teeth as you took your weapon to stab another through the skull, moving down to the one below it, and then the one below the next, trying to take them out as fast as possible. Though suddenly you felt a cold pair of hands grasp onto your wrist, your eyes snapping up to see one from the left had a death grip on you. Literally. You yanked your arm back the moment it registered in your head, taking the blade and stabbing it through the eye, seeing its blood go everywhere.

You huffed out a harsh breath, “Fucker.” you muttered to yourself as you shook out your hand, stepping away from them for a moment to take a small break.

You reached down for your water bottle that you had placed off to the side, raising it up to your mouth to take a drink, feeling the coolness glide down your throat effortlessly. It wasn’t nearly enough to cool you down completely, but it was still better than nothing. 

Your eyes then drifted around to the many people outside the prison walls, working, eating, talking with one another. It was nice to see the larger community you had now when it was once just a small and tight knit group. Everything was expanding and growing, and you liked the look of it. But then your gaze trailed off to the left, and you really liked the look of that instead.

Daryl was hunched over the side of his bike as he tinkered with it, using a variety of tools and cursing under his breath sometimes when he couldn’t get it just right. Though that wasn’t the only thing you were focusing on. The way his arms flexed beautifully with every tug and pull he seemed to do, it was causing you to feel even hotter than you were before if that were even possible. And the sweat glistening on his skin while he worked, you could’ve sworn you were drooling a little. God he was hot.

Blinking rapidly, you managed to snap yourself out of it as you turned away before he could notice you staring, looking down towards the ground for a moment to compose yourself. Lord only knows there was just something about that man that you weren't able to resist, but the downside about that was, you knew he hardly even noticed or felt the same. The two of you had never really been the closest, in fact you barely even talked at all for the most part. He was more of a loner type, preferring to be on his own than socialize with other people. But hey, you can’t blame a girl for hoping. You then just put all your attention back to killing the remaining walkers outside the fence, wanting to get it done as fast as possible.

But you found you only lasted about another hour before you were completely over it, needing something else to do to pass the time but also make yourself useful. You found yourself wandering back towards the building as a few other members took over for you at the fence, lingering near the garages before your eyes suddenly spotted some fishing rods. You remembered how Glenn brought those back recently with the intention to use them at a lake just a few miles from here, in hopes of catching other types of food besides deer and squirrel.

You only saw the opportunity for a split second before you just decided to take it. After all it was something to do, and something that wouldn’t want to make you die while doing. You practically skipped over to the supplies laid out, grabbing the two fishing poles and the tacklebox filled with some bait, before heading back towards the gate so the person on watch could let you out.

The walk down towards the large lake was a breeze, giving you an actual opportunity to clear your head for a moment as you could finally get away from the constant snarls of the walkers. You could hardly even step outside anymore before the sound was already ringing in your ears. But out here it was peaceful, calm, and approaching the lake even further, seeing a wooden dock coming into view, it felt even more so.

You stepped out onto the wooden platform and instantly got to work, placing some bait on the hook, before casting the line out into the water, pulling at it a little every once and a while to get the fake fish to move around. You sat in silence for the longest time now, it then suddenly hit you all at once how boring this was to do alone with no one else to keep you company. How there wasn’t a single sound to be heard or even anything interesting to look at…nothing. A sigh then passed your lips as you held the rod loosely in one hand while resting your chin in the other, the silence now growing even more so.

That is until you heard a distinct noise. Footsteps approaching you from behind, heavy ones too, marching against the dock pretty loudly as they inched closer to you. Your eyes then peered over your shoulder, trying to not show the shock you felt when you saw it was Daryl coming up to you, crossbow in hand and a typical serious look on his face.

“The hell you doin?” he asked once he was close enough, eyeing the supplies that surrounded your figure, before his gaze returned to you.

Your brows furrowed. Was he serious?

“Oh you know, just…skydiving.” you said with a shrug, your tone coming out monotone and serious as your eyes squinted up towards him because of the bright sun behind his head.

He scoffed to himself at your sarcastic answer, his permanent scowl intensifying as he didn't open his mouth to speak again, causing you to roll your eyes. “I’m fishing-”

“I know that girl.” he cut you off, “I mean why the hell did ya come out here alone in the middle of the damn day?” he spat, literally. With the way he spoke so harshly he accidentally spit on your skin as he hovered above you.

You blinked a few times in slight disgust, “It’s a free country sprinkles,” you commented dryly as you wiped your cheeks, “And anyway, I needed to get away from all the constant noise back there. Didn’t think it would be that big of an issue.” you informed with widened eyes.

His expression continued to remain neutral as he nearly glared down towards you in almost disbelief. Was it because you came out here alone? Because you talked back to him? Or because you pointed out the literal shower coming out of his mouth, you weren’t completely sure. But he didn’t seem to want to say another word.

“Okay…” you trailed off awkwardly as you turned back around to face the water, preparing to just ignore his presence now until he decided to go away. He always did with interactions like this. You would know that better than anyone.

Though this whole interaction confused you slightly. He never seemed to care when you, or anyone else for that matter, went off on their own like this, so why the hell was this situation any different? Maybe he was on his man period or something, who knows. But still, besides the spitting, you couldn’t help but shake how hot he still looked in the sunlight. A part of you almost wished that he would stay.

But after a few lingering minutes, you still felt his hovering presence behind you as he continued to say nothing, yet he continued to stand behind you firmly in place. The whole thing was weird and was honestly starting to make you a little uncomfortable, just wanting to know what was going on in his head.

So you glanced back up at him, “Okay, either leave or come sit down.” you said bluntly, “Your stare is making me itchy.”

He stood there for only a moment or two longer, clearly debating in his head, before moving closer towards the edge where you sat and took a seat for himself with a sigh. His actions honestly surprised you, almost expecting him to just walk away with some kind of grumble under his breath. But it was safe to say he threw you off guard a little bit. That, and he managed to not say something assholey.

“Don’t want yer dumbass somehow gettin yerself killed out here.”

Ah. Never mind.

Your eyes narrowed towards him as you looked at the side of his face, “You think I can’t handle myself or something?”

“I know ya can’t.” he replied without missing a beat.

You scoffed to yourself, “Oh you better watch yourself, I’ll make you eat those words. I could take your ass down if I really wanted to.”

Now it was his turn to scoff as he truly didn’t believe a single word coming out of your mouth, “Alright…”

Rolling your eyes at his response, you reached around behind you to pull out the other fishing rod and held it out to him, “Make yourself useful at least.” you said with a pointed glance.

He eyed the thing in your hand for a long moment, making you think for a moment that he wasn’t even going to try. But again, he seemed to surprise you. He snatched it out of your grasp with a small huff, turning to put some bait on the hook just as you did before throwing the line out onto the lake, a bored expression written on his face.

Well this should be fun.

For a while, you two only sat in complete silence, but it wasn’t one that was uncomfortable. In fact you didn’t mind it in the slightest. He was out here keeping an eye on you, helping you bring something back to the community and it was not something you would be complaining about anytime soon. He sat fairly close to you to the point where you could briefly smell the lingering scent of cigarettes on his clothes. You felt that anyone else would be slightly bothered by the smell, but in all honesty, you loved it.

You didn’t know how much time had passed before Daryl began to shift uncomfortably where he sat, his movements bringing your attention to him. He looked a little stiff, almost uncomfortable as his posture was a little rough around the edges.

“You alright there?” you asked with a raised brow.

He groaned a little as he straightened up, “My back’s fuckin killin me…” he huffed as he continued to squirm a little bit now.

Amusement crossed your features once he said that, “Really? Damn, how old are you?”

His face however was far from amused as he looked back at you with some kind of pointed look, narrowing ever so slightly that caused you to back off. “...Tough crowd…” you muttered while turning your attention back to the lake.

You could briefly see out of the corner of your vision, his eyes were still on you as he let out somewhat of a loud and lingering sigh. “Forty three.” he answered almost regrettably.

It was obvious you were surprised, slowly turning back to face him, glancing over his features before you let out a small, “huh.”

His eyes rolled, “Yeah, go ahead and say whatever, I can feel it comin.” he spoke bitterly as he tugged a little on his pole again.

You laughed a little to yourself, “Calm down, I wasn’t going to say anything bad.”

“Alright…sure.” he spoke again, clearly not believing it as he didn’t look at you again.

“I was actually going to say you don’t look it…so…” you trailed off, your words far from a lie at what first popped into your head. It was honestly hard to believe, thinking to yourself that he looked like he was at least in his mid thirties.

But those words took him a little off guard, looking back towards you to see if you were actually telling the truth, before letting his guard down a little as he felt a little warmth in his chest, “Oh…thanks…I guess.”

You nodded sincerely, “You’re welcome…grandpa.”

The sound surprised you. It even surprised him. But Daryl couldn’t help the sudden laugh he let out at your little jab, covering his mouth as he chuckled to himself in surprise that you said that so effortlessly. Even he had to admit, it was a good one.

You even smiled a little to yourself at the unexpected reaction, seeing him calm down a little as he spoke next, “Man…I guess I walked into that one, I’ll give ya that…”

You dipped your head as you did a little bow from where you sat, “Oh thank you, thank you, I’ll be here all week.”

He chuckled quietly again at your sarcastic attitude, wondering to himself for a moment why he hadn’t spent this kind of time with you before. You were both in the same group for a good amount of time, nearly the whole time, and yet neither of you never really sought each other out. The two of you just never had gotten to know one another that well he assumed. But regardless, he supposed it was nice to do it now. Better late than never.

“Why…why haven’t we done this kinda stuff before?” he found himself asking out loud, just a slip of his tongue as he didn’t exactly mean to voice his thoughts like that to you. Though he almost couldn’t help it as he seemed to want to know your point of view.

But nonetheless you responded. “Cause you’re always too busy with bingo.”

He found himself laughing again, hearing you join in after a moment as your quick comebacks seemed to throw him off yet again, “Alright, alright, enough of that shit. Yer gonna make me feel ancient if ya keep it up.”

You laughed again with a shake of your head, “Sorry…but honestly…you kind of intimidate me.”

His brows furrowed a little in confusion, thinking to himself that you of all people wouldn’t have been intimidated in the slightest. Especially because of how long you knew him. “...Really?”

Your gaze ducked a little, “What? You see yourself as some big teddy bear or something, you’re not exactly Mr. Rogers.”

Daryl couldn’t stop the smirk from forming on his face at the comparison, nodding along as if you had a point, “Fair. Just…didn’t think ya saw me like that.”

“Well, if it helps…I don’t anymore. It’s nice to see you laugh…you know, showing some human emotion.”

The small smile he had still hung on his face as he looked at you, nodding again towards you, “It’s nice hearin ya laugh too.” he commented a bit quietly.

You smiled in return, not saying anything else as you were left completely content at where this ended up. You already liked looking at him, that was a given, but you also found yourself liking to see this other side to him as well. The side where he could actually let loose for once instead of putting up this whole tough guy act. And though you didn’t hear him admit it out loud, you knew he liked it too.

Though after only a few minutes of comfortable silence that fell over the two of you, he spoke up again as he squinted his eyes up at the sun, “Damn it’s hot out here.” he commented casually.

You on the other hand practically lit up at the opportunity that was given to you, staying quiet for a moment as you only nodded in agreement to his statement. He thought you couldn’t handle yourself against him? Not being able to catch him off guard? Challenge accepted.

Your eyes trailed down to the water just in front of you, leaning in a bit as you pretend to look at something below the surface, “Hey, do you see that?” you asked as you pointed.

His eyes looked toward you, before leaning down a bit as well to try and make out where you were gesturing to, “Huh? Where?”

“Right there.” you pointed again.

He felt a little stupid as he saw nothing, squinting his eyes more as he leaned a bit closer, “...Where?”

“It’s right…” you trailed off as your other hand moved up to his back, “There!” you said as you gently shoved him into the water, hearing him gasp before he fell face first into the lake with a splash. His reaction alone caused you to quite literally fall over laughing, hugging your sides as you giggled uncontrollably.

He then came back up with a breath, looking at you with a pointed glare as he was now completely soaked, “What the hell’s wrong with ya?” he asked angrily as he shook his head a little for the water that surely got in his ears.

You laughed even harder than before, “You said it was hot.” you pointed out as you laughed again to yourself, “Plus, I just made you eat your words.” you spoke cockily, referring to what he claimed earlier.

He stayed in place for a long moment absolutely dumbfounded, but then again he wasn’t planning on just letting you off the hook like that. He was absolutely drenched and pissed.

You began to notice the serious look he had on his face and you quickly calmed down, “Hey, I’m sorry, it was a joke.” you said as you leaned down a bit lower and reached out to him, “Here.” you offered to help him back up.

The man didn’t even need to think. No hesitation whatsoever. 

He quickly took your hand and pulled you into the water right along with him, hearing your small scream before you fell clumsily into the water. He chuckled to himself as he backed up, seeing your head pop back up almost instantly with shock written all over your features. But then again, you and him both knew you deserved it a little.

“You asshole!” you yelled playfully as you sent a splash toward his face.

“Oh, I’m the asshole?” he yelled back as he sent a splash back towards you, “You started this girl.” he chuckled as he kept pushing the water towards you.

That only caused the two of you to linger and splash each other in the water for quite a long time, neither of you even caring about the amount of time passing by. You were having a good time, playing around in the lake felt incredible on such a hot day like today. And neither of you could deny that each other's company, that was pretty nice too. You couldn’t even remember the last time you had laughed this hard, the situation alone causing you to be taken aback for a moment that Daryl was the one to bring out that side of you again. But it was refreshing, along with the cool water the two of you swam in for a few hours.

Though as the hour grew late and your fingers were starting to get pruney, you both collectively decided to get out and back up to the surface, ringing out your clothes all the while as you prepared for the walk back to the prison.

“No luck with the fishin, huh?” Daryl asked as he shook his head a little, the water droplets from his hair landing on you with how close the two of you were.

You sighed a little as you glanced back at the supplies you brought, “Guess not.” you commented, “But…I do think I found myself a new fishing buddy.” you said as you glanced back at him with a smile.

He looked at you for a moment before scoffing dismissively, “We ain’t no fishin buddies, that shit’s stupid.” he said with a chuckle as he moved around you to begin to gather up the stuff on the dock.

Your mouth dropped in offense, “Oh come on, it would be fun, grandpa’s love fishing.” you teased him as you watched him gather up all the supplies in his arms.

“Stop.” he said dryly as he brushed past you, beginning to walk back towards the prison.

You sighed dramatically, “Well at least bring out the joke book and humor me, it’s going to be a long walk back.”

“I swear to God, girl…” he grumbled a little at your teasing. But as much as he didn’t want you to see it, there was a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth at your words. And maybe a little amusement in his eyes too. Perhaps this whole thing was just the start…maybe he had finally found someone he could laugh and joke with. Someone he could call a friend.

~ Thanks for reading! (also, i am working on a part two for older, it’s just taking me some time. but i promise it’s on the way;))

[carlyraejepsans]

Going off what you said about sans, do you think Papyrus is an extrovert like he appears to be, or secretly an introvert? I've always seen people saying he's an extrovert, but he doesn't hang around people besides Undyne and Sans.

papyrus only appears as an extrovert, and being extroverted shouldn't be confused with the fact that he wants friends.

while it's true that he spends his entire introduction bemoaning his lack of friends, it becomes quickly apparent that this isn't the real conflict of his character. papyrus obviously has some issues with... well not so much his self esteem, as his self image. how to be "someone important" in "the right way". he's built up this idea of what a cool person should be, and that idea includes "having lots of friends who think you're cool" and "showers of kisses every morning" as key elements. which is all fine and dandy, except he... doesn't actually seem to want that?

i mean think about it. you go on a date because he feels like he has to, then he turns you down because he can't make himself fall in love with you. he basically acts as the mayor in town—and sure he's goofy, and ridiculous, but all of snowdin seems to be at least fond of him, if not actively amused by his antics—it would take nothing for him to make friends with them... eeexcept he also hates grillby's, ie the primary hangout spot for his fellow sentires in the area.

it becomes obvious the moment you compare him to his brother. sans, as opposed to papyrus, is depressed to a point that it impacts his energy and executive function, and STILL, where does he spent 99% of his time? at the bar full of people. sans doesn't need to charge his social batteries after interactions, he recharges his batteries BY being in social situations. papyrus, on the other hand, seems at his happiest with a tight knit group of close friends and plenty of personal space as well as private time, either by himself or with his brother at max (he does cite his house as his favorite place to spend time, rather than public spaces, and loves organizing family parties there post-canon)

so nope, not an extrovert imo. though still very much a community-oriented guy.

[hausofneptune]

THE CANCER ARCHETYPE

﹕PLANETARY RULER: MOON

﹕ELEMENT: WATER

﹕MODALITY: CARDINAL

﹕POLARITY: NOCTURNAL

﹕SYMBOL: THE CRAB

﹕BODY PART RULERSHIP: THE CHEST, BREASTS, AND STOMACH

﹕PLANETARY DIGNITIES: MOON IN CANCER (DOMICILE), JUPITER IN CANCER (EXALTED), SATURN IN CANCER (DETRIMENT), MARS IN CANCER (FALL)

↝ cancer is defined by it's emotional nature, and let me preface, cancer (alongside the water and fire signs) being emotional is not a bad thing. we're conditioned by society, our parents, our friends, etc. to believe that expressing emotions let alone having them is something that should be shamed, and i feel like that plays a very big role in how cancer is regarded. i mentioned this in the gemini archetype post, but some people will attribute negative stereotypes to certain signs and unironically refer to those stereotypes when describing what they believe is the "true nature" of the sign. in cancer's case, they're usually described as moody, maternal crybabies. and i would be remiss to not acknowledge the very obvious fact that most cancerian stereotypes are just rooted in misogyny and the collective distain for vulnerability and emotional expression.

↝ in my opinion, cancer is a very underestimated sign. people tend to get hung up on the emotional aspect of cancer, which is an integral part of cancer's archetype, but i feel like it overshadows the fact that cancer is cardinal, and therefore by nature a very ambitious, action-oriented sign. alongside the moon's rulership, cancer has the innate ability to gift life to new ideas and concepts, and they typically have an extremely deep, intimate connection to their creations, whether it be their careers, children, relationships/friendships, homes, etc. their deep emotional bond to these things is where their nurturing nature comes from. i don't want to reinforce the "cancers are the moms of the friend group" narrative because i know a lot of cancerians hate that lmao, so while cancerian energy can manifest in that way, it can also just be indicative of being protective (or even defensive) of one's own creativity, professional endeavors, or private life.

↝ cancerian energy is very guarded, and they usually maintain relationships with a select group of long-time friends and family. while this is a sign that's regarded as being friendly and receptive, they prefer the familiarity of the company they keep over connecting with new people and building new relationships with them. because they are guarded in relation to their loved ones and their passions, they can become volatile when they feel those things are being impeded upon. it's one of the reasons why i always visualize cancerians as al from fullmetal alchemist, they have the capacity to fuck you up, but inside they're just sweet little babies. cancer is also the youngest of the water signs, and i feel like that, paired with the moon's influence, is why one of the main lessons that cancer is here to learn is to experience their emotions without being controlled by them. they need to master the ability to navigate through life with balance between their heart and their head, instead of relying too heavily on one or the other.

↝ cancer, alongside the rest of the water signs, is not afraid to feel, and as i mentioned, that is a beneficial characteristic to have in a world full of people who are numb and jaded. but contrary to popular belief, cancerians usually are not the type to be openly emotional due to their guarded nature. they usually reserve their vulnerability for the tight-knit circle they keep. overall, cancerian energy is by nature very empathetic, creative, and intuitive. they're one of those signs that have a knack for being able to read a room and move accordingly. they do very well in leadership roles, and tend to be very direct and even authoritative at times in these positions, all the while remaining emotionally receptive to the needs of the people that they work with. cancer is an extremely resilient, responsible, and kind-hearted sign, do not let the mischaracterizations fool you.

﹕CANCER CELEBRITIES: ariana grande, chloë bailey, conor mcgregor, harrison ford, jacob elordi, jaden smith, kali uchis, kevin hart, lana del rey, lil kim, margot robbie, maya hawke, meryl streep, mike tyson, missy elliott, princess diana, priyanka chopra, robin williams, saweetie, selena gomez, solange, storm reid, taylor russell

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[theladybarnes]

CRIMSON AND CLOVER: CHAPTER FOUR

"Remind me, when do they become reasonable human beings again?”

▸ summary: spring break is just a day away, but something else is looming around the corner.  ▸ characters: robin buckley, eddie munson, steve harrington, dustin henderson & nancy wheeler  ▸ word count: 7.4k ▸ warnings: angst, semi-fluff, & slight depression ▸ series masterlist

FEBRUARY 28TH (TWO WEEKS LATER)

 The two of you haven’t stopped glancing at each other all night. 

 With every little still in conversation with a party goer, you rewarded yourself a chance to glance over at Steve. He’s talking with another girl, short, curly red hair, cute. But even with their in-depth conversation, his eyes always seemed to find yours.

 It’s been only two weeks since the two of you started to secretly hook up again. Neither brave enough to talk about it, nor explain it to your friends. But simply enjoying the sinful pleasures that each other gave. Seeming to forget the world when it came to each other.

 It was a bad idea.

 “So I must look pretty good if you can’t keep your eyes off me.” 

 You glance again this time to watch as Steve slid over the kitchen island so that he could stand beside you. 

 Alone.

 It gave you a moment to really look over his outfit. Eyes scanning over the black crew knit sweater that tugged over his top looked great with his jeans. Correction, his tight jeans. The very ones he bought at the outlet mall when he caught you staring last fall. 

 Next your eyes danced across the many features of Steve’s face. The constellation of freckles and moles on his skin. The way his deep eyes would always stare at you so intently. The warmth they seemed to only hold for you. All things you missed dearly.

 An overwhelming feeling hit you suddenly and you forced yourself to avoid his gaze any further by glancing down to the can in his large hands. “What are you drinking?” you asked, nodding towards it. “Aren’t you driving?”

 He chuckled a bit at the deflection before he looked down at the can with a small amusing smile. “It’s just a cherry coke.” He said simply before he held the can up towards your lips. “Want some, pretty girl?” 

 The use of an older pet name left you stunned with the offer. A heat quickly spread over your face but you managed to press on as you leaned forward to take a slow sip from the rim. All while keeping eye contact with Steve. That seemed to do something for him as he proceeded to bite down on his lip. Letting his eyes shift down to your mouth while you drank the sweet liquid. 

 A small dribble of the sugary drink managed to coat your bottom lip, making you jerk back in reaction. But before you could wipe it away, Steve already leaned forward in time to cup the side of your face. “So messy.” he hummed, letting the pad drag slowly over your bottom lip before he pulled away to casually suck between his lips.

 You couldn’t help but gulp, nervous for the way Steve seemed confident in all his actions.

 “So, I figured you were done with parties since Fall break.” you blinked, trying to gain back some control. “What brings you here?” 

 He paused for a second, brow raised at your sudden question before he quickly shook his head. Brushing off his past convictions apparently.

 “I’m here to see you.”

 “Really?” you scoffed, finding it both amusing and hard to believe that he’d be here for you at all when he wasn’t aware of any of your plans. Your answer thankfully came when Steve let out a small chuckle. He brought a hand up to point meekly behind you to where the other party guests were at. 

 “Patrick started on the team around when I did. Never really had a fall out with him so told him I’d stop by at work the other day.”

 The boy himself came into your vision as he tried leading a group of kids away from one of the rooms in his house. Apparently Patrick McKinney had a super strict Dad. Which made the party itself questionable, but in a town like Hawkins you can’t really argue with a free party.

 “And what about you?” He asked, stepping closer to bop at the tip of your nose with his finger. “It’s not like you to come to a party alone.”

 “Nancy.” You frowned, swatting lightly at his hand before pointing over towards the backdoor that led to more party guests. “Some people from her editing team are here and she wants to make friends with them. I offered to come with her for support.” 

 “And Nancy is your only company tonight?”

 Your lips pursed at the slight mention to Eddie. Both nervous and hesitant to bring your friend up at all. There was no telling what bringing him up would lead the conversation to. 

“Are you really interested in what Eddie is doing or are you wondering why I’m not with him?”

 Steve sighed, leaning in to rest his elbow against the counter. Bringing you both shoulder to shoulder and close enough that you could inhale the scent of cologne off his collar. You wanted nothing else but to turn your body over and bury your face into the fabric. Seeking the regular comfort it usually gave off whenever you used to cuddle up in his bed. Luckily your mind wasn’t foggy enough to give into that urge.

 “He’s with his friends. I don’t really keep tabs on him.” you answered anyway, keeping your gaze now at the can in his hands rather than his curious one. He let out a small sigh of relief before his elbow nudged into your side lightly. Almost playfully. 

 “So you’re not going to see him tonight?”

 Though he was trying to keep the mood light, there was a bit of worry in his tone that had your stomach twisting. The never ending conflict of keeping up the mindset of moving on and making sure that whatever you said wouldn’t hurt Steve’s feelings. 

 “No, I’m not.” you sighed, feeling suddenly tired with your internal struggle. “So if that’s all you came to catch up on then I guess we’re done with that.” Stealing his can of soda, you made your leave from the kitchen and tried to venture back out into the party. Hoping that the footsteps behind you weren’t his. 

 “Who’s to say I’m all done? What if I asked because I wanted to hang out with you tonight?” Steve asked, hand sliding up to rest on your lower back as he carefully led you towards the foot of the stairs. His palms were warm. Warm enough to seep through the fabric of your dress and nearly have you curling to wrap around him.

 “Is hanging out what we’ve been doing lately?” you asked, pulling yourself away as you leaned against the banister.  The small space only gave you the smallest amount of composure as you stared over at him. There was a small smirk tugged at his lips as he placed his hand right beside yours. 

 “Well, I’d consider it.”

 You threw him a weird look, only shaking your head as you took another sip. “You’re getting too comfortable.” His brow raised at that before they knitted together. “Maybe we should be hanging out differently.”

 He pursed his lips, displeased with that notion. “I kinda prefer what we’re doing now than the weird avoiding thing we had before.” he took the can from your hands, taking a quick drink before he gave it to you again. It was oddly sweet and reminded you of last year. When the two of you finally became friends and shared lunches together. You’d steal his drink then and he’d say nothing about it. Just like now.

 “And the sex wouldn’t be the reason for that, right?” you asked slowly, looking away. He simply reached a hand out to cup at your chin, gently turning your face back to look at his again. He was serious now, leaning in closer so that only you could hear his words next. 

 “I’m not gonna lie and say I’m not enjoying the sex.” he said, breath fanning over your already flushed face. “But that’s all you’re offering me and I’m going to take every bit of it you give me,” he explained. “Because we both know that if things were my way...it would be different.”

It took you too long to physically pull yourself out of his grasp. Needing a bit of space to get some clarity. You two were on the stairs in the middle of a party. Not at the privacy of each other’s houses. Where you were allowed to be lured in by his words.

 Carefully, you moved up a step. Giving yourself the higher ground and hopefully more confidence to put down the tone of the conversation Steve is turning things to. But even with that help, you struggled to bring the words past your lips when you saw the small bit of longing in his eyes. 

 “I’m not dancing around the subject again, Steve. We both want different things.”

 “It’s not like we aren’t used to dancing, Trouble.” His eyes locked onto something around your neck before he looked back at you again. “Besides, we both know the only thing I want is you.” 

 Shaking your head, you left him there. Needing to head up the upstairs to clear your mind. It was becoming harder and harder not to give in again and you were scared the next time you did you’d fall back into something that would get broken.

 Steve’s hand gripped lightly onto your arm when you reached the top. Gently ushering you into one of the empty rooms before you could protest. “Four months.” He said letting you go to close the door. “Four months is all I have and then you’re just gone.” 

 You stared at him in shock. Watching as the semi reserve he had moments ago slowly faded away as his worries seemed to kick in. “Steve,” you sighed, setting down the can on a nearby dresser. “Please. We shouldn–”

 “You’re still wearing it.” he interrupted, stepping towards you to reach for the chain against your neck. The small lamp over at the desk shined just enough to make the S around your neck glimmer. “You’ve been wearing this the whole damn time and I’m not supposed to take it as a sign? Do you..do you not love–”

 His sentence was cut off when you jumped forward to crash your lips against his. Hoping to stop the question from ever coming past his lips. Like always, his lips were soft, warm, and inviting. This time with the lingering hints of cherry cola still there. 

 He eagerly kissed back, Moving his arms to wrap around you as he pressed your chest tighter against his. It wasn’t long for the air to leave your lungs. Making your chest fill up with a burning heat that you tried to ignore in order to dive deeper into the kiss. There’s only a second you give a small space of shared air for the two of you. 

 Steve followed the same hungry path. Turning your kisses open so he could pant hotly into your mouth before closing it with his again. You’re not sure what’s making your head spin so much. The shared hot breaths between the two of you or just the usual pleasure that came when being this close to Steve. 

His hands found purchase over the round of your behind. Cupping at the cheek briefly before he squeezed it lightly. Your legs wobbled from the sudden touch and you couldn’t help but wrap one leg around his to stable yourself while your hands wrapped around his neck. Bringing him closer than ever tonight. 

This could have gone further. You wanted it too. But the sudden sound of something breaking downstairs caused you to flinch back and look at how much you allowed yourself to give in. The two of you rested foreheads against each other while you calmed down from the heat of the moment.

 Looking up, you saw that Steve had been watching you silently, but questionably. Probably even more confused by your actions that went against your words. You reached out to cup the side of his face, letting your thumb caress his cheek softly. 

  “I love you.” you said out of breath. “But that’s the problem. I love you and I need to be able to move on from you. Because I am leaving soon, and I don’t think I’m going to be able to step on any plane if I can’t get over you now.”

 “Honey..”

 There’s a sudden knock on the door, and the two of you jumped a bit before Nancy barged in the room. Her wide blue eyes scanned over your close positions before she shook her head. “We get outta here.” she said quickly. “One of Patrick’s neighbors gave the heads up and someone called the cops.”

 Steve quickly took your hand, leading the three of you back down the stairs to the hustle of party goers trying to make their exit. “You guys parked close?” he called over his shoulder, keeping you both nearby as he pushed through the crowd of people.

 You were about to answer his question when the sound of a prissy voice called out to Steve. The short girl from earlier pushed her way through people, beer in hand and a lazy smile on her face. “Stevie! You left without giving me your number, silly. I thought you wanted to talk about what school I’m going to?”

 The three of you stand there kind of frozen in place. From one side you could see Nancy glare over at the girl, probably confused about what she was going on about in the first place. On the other, you could see Steve's shocked face turned into a grimace. Feeling bad for the girl who was unfortunately in the middle of a drama she wasn’t even aware of, you quickly help end the problem. 

  “Harrington.” you told her, dropping out of Steve’s tight grip. “They’re listed.” 

  Without saying anything else, you reached for Nancy’s arm and dragged her out the door of the house. Towards the direction of her car. “Did that seriously just happen?” she asked, perplexed, trying to keep up with your fast pace. “Did you really just give that girl Steve’s information?”

 “Not now, Nancy. Please.” you said, voice wavering as you held in the mix of emotions. Why did you do that? You’ve been saying this whole time that the two of you needed to move on, and you’re even attempting something like that with Eddie. 

 So why was your stomach twisting so much about it? 

 The two of you only got half way down the block before a hand grabbed at your shoulder. Steve, who had barely caught up to the two of you, was glaring at you now. 

 “Why would you tell her that?” He asked. You tried to get out of his grip, wanting, no, needing to get away before you cried in front of him again. But Steve gently reached for your hands, getting you to stand close in front of him. “I thought we were...what changed just now?” 

 “I’m just.. trying to do the right thing for once.” 

 Nancy, who while free now, was still at your side. Looking over the two of you with such turmoil on her face as she witnessed everything. Steve didn’t seem to care how awkward that might be as he moved a hand to cup the side of your neck. Trying to bring you down to Earth with him.

 “Right thing? How the hell can that be the right thing? What about what you said, not five minutes. I thought you still loved—“

 You quickly reached up to cover his mouth. “Four months.” you said, repeating his words back to him. “Four months and I’m due back home.”

 His brows knitted tightly together as he shook his head in disagreement, reaching his hand up to pull yours away from his mouth. “But we..we still feel it. I still want this..us.”  

 “It doesn’t matter what we want at this point, Steve. Neither one of us should be held back because we’re too scared to face reality.” You took a step back and quickly reached for Nancy again. “I want us to be friends, Steve, but we can’t do this if we don’t get over each other first.” 

 Not having the heart to hear more of Steve’s pleas, Nancy quickly took the lead this time and dragged you away from the boy. Rushing the two of you towards her car and thankfully away from the peering eyes of everyone. 

 It wasn’t until you were both strapped into your seats that you finally broke down. Letting the hot tears roll down your cheeks. Nancy reached over to place her hand on your arm, calling out your name softly until you finally looked over at her. 

 “Are you going to be okay?” she asked softly. 

 You shook your head, looking at your friend sadly. “I love him so much, Nancy.” She reached out to hand you a tissue from her glove compartment, watching you with a concerned look on her face. “Please tell me I’m doing the right thing.. I need to know that this isn’t a mistake.”

 “You’re doing what’s right for you, and that’s all that matters.” she said softly, “Steve will understand eventually. We both know he’s a good guy..”

 “He’s the best guy, Nance.” you corrected her. “He’s the best and he doesn’t want to come with me.. why doesn’t he wanna come with me?” 

 She didn’t answer you, probably unable to think of a good response for it. All she does is start up the car and keep a hand patting at your arm. “I wish I knew.” she said eventually. “I really do..”

  MARCH 20TH (THURSDAY NIGHT)

 It was the soft sounds Eddie strumming against the strings of his guitar lightly that had lulled you to sleep. It filled the room with such soft background noise that easily relaxed the moment you arrived from Family Video an hour ago. 

 You had spent the majority of the night listening to the new songs that his band were planning on covering soon. Some too out of your tastes, and some like this current medley that pulled you into a nap. Which was all a pretty good distraction from your current problems. 

 It was weeks of you running on autopilot through work and school while you tried to ignore the ache in your chest. It would turn out that sticking to what you thought was right would only lead to you feeling worse. Every day was filled with a headache, stomach ache, or the current of your problems. Nightmares. 

 Every night, you found yourself dreaming up various scenarios that ended with you running away from everything. Leaving all your loved ones in broken pieces. All because you’re too scared to fight. It was torture and brought your current guilt of disappointing everyone to a new high. 

 Things only seemed to worsen when you found out later that weekend that Steve took your words to heart and decided to go out on a date with that girl.

 Then again the next night when he went out with another girl.

 Then another.

 And another.

 It was safe to say that you were definitely over now.

 But you knew better than to voice out the hurt of that reality. Especially when you still found yourself sitting comfortably in the Munson trailer over in Forest Hills. Making out with Eddie, touching Eddie, and occasionally letting Eddie touch you. But with your heart so out of it, you didn’t consider it actually moving on. But it wasn’t like you could claim that as being single either. 

 It was beyond messed up. You were totally fucking up your life and you weren’t sure how to control it anymore. The only relief was that you weren’t ruining anyone else’s. 

 Steve didn’t deserve the stress of having to uproot his life just for you. As amazing as that dream sounded, that’s all it was. A dream. You were asking for too much. You were too much. 

 A pity party for one, how sweet. (Tick)

 You squeezed your eyes tight, fighting against the venomous voice that seeped into your mind more than ever these days. 

 Venomous voice? Is that how you see it? Others would say I’m just brutally honest. (Tock)

 Something about the words threw you off and you found yourself squeezing the blanket tighter. Hoping that the cotton of Eddie’s blanket would ground you. But something about that voice started to sound familiar..

 Maybe it’s your guilty conscious finally catching up on– (Tic–)

 “Ah, now I don't hardly know her. But I think I could love her. Crimson and clover..”

 The soft singing from the edge of the bed pulled you out of your thoughts, calming down the building back in your chest. Turning over you caught sight of Eddie watching you from the bedside. His singing had stopped, but he continued the light strumming to the song. 

 “Ah, she wakes up to her favorite.” he mused softly. 

 Rubbing the sleep away from your eyes, you moved to crawl up in the bed. Sitting beside Eddie with a pillow hugged to your chest. You watched as his fingers worked the strings on the guitar. 

“Sorry I fell asleep.” you said eventually. 

 “S’okay,” he shrugged a bit, glancing over at you briefly. “Your snoring makes up for a nice break from hearing you talk.” 

 You fought back a smile, instead, playfully frowning at him while you pinched at his rib side. Causing him to briefly mess up on a note. “How do you know I liked this song?” 

 “You only ever make me shut up whenever it comes on the radio.” he snorted, finishing up the rest of the notes before setting the guitar to the side. He carefully turned around so that he could face you now, causing you to back up a bit. “It’s a good song. Did it cheer you up?”

 “How did you–”

 “You’ve been pouting so much it’s showing in your sleep.” 

 Letting out a huff of air through your nose, you looked down at the pillow. Unsure just what truth would make Eddie feel too uncomfortable or not. But instead of saying anything, you pushed yourself forward to capture your lips against his, wanting to distract him, and yourself, from any real worries for just a moment. 

 “Mm, Princess,” he chuckled against your lips, reaching out to gently push you back. “As much as I’d like to kiss you, I can tell you’re not into it right now.” 

 You looked down to your lap ashamed. Wondering just how much you were breaking through your usually well put up walls. Eddie poked gently at your cheek, waiting for you to look back up at him. 

 “We’re friends, right?” he asked, his voice gentle.

 “It’s up for debate..” 

 “As friends,” he drawled out, ignoring that bit. “I think that kinda means you gotta be honest with me now and then.” 

 “Honest?” you asked, feeling a familiar lump return to your throat. “Since when am I not honest?” 

 Eddie sighed dramatically as he crossed his arms over his chest. Patiently waiting for you to actually just give in to his request. Licking over your lips, you tried to pull your staggered thoughts together. 

 You sighed, a mixture of frustration and longing tugging at your heart. “It’s Steve,” you whispered. “He’s been dating now.. which means things are really changing.”

 Eddie's expression softened, and he nodded, waiting for you to continue.

 “I never meant to make things so complicated for myself. For anyone. But I’m still.. struggling to get over him.” The memory of his face when you left him at the party flashed in your mind and you fought hard to shake off the physical pain that came from the image. “Now he’s going on dates, doing the thing I said we should both do, and it’s killing me. And the hardest part is that it’s completely my fault and I don’t have a right to feel any of this.”

 He didn't say anything for a moment, processing your words. You could almost feel the conflict within him—the desire to talk against the very type of people he usually despised and the other to actually provide some help for you. 

 "Look, I'm sorry," you started, preempting any awkwardness. "You don’t need to say anything. I just needed to vent it out I guess.” 

 Quickly, you made an effort to climb off his bed but was gently pushed back into place by Eddie’s hands. He shook his head, a determined look in his eyes. "First off, don't apologize for giving me the answer to my question, okay?” he said slowly. “Second, I think it’s kinda a normal thing to feel shitty after a breakup.”

 “So you don’t think I’m just a whiney bitch who’s changing her mind quickly when she suddenly doesn’t like getting what she’s asked for?” you asked softly, feeling your own venomous words get to you.

 Eddie reached out to place a hand over yours. Brows knitted together with concern over your words. "I don’t think you’re a bitch at all. Maybe a pain in the ass, but definitely not a bitch.”

 With a sigh, you let silence fall between the two of you. Playing instead with the hem of your shirt as you tried to not overthink everything you’ve just said in the past five minutes. 

 Eddie leaned in, his voice carrying a comforting tone. "You know, you don't have to figure it all out right now.” His hand reached up to tip at your chin, making your gaze return to him. “I’m serious. You’re in your Senior year, you’re hot, single, and sometimes fun to hang out with. I think you should just forget about shitty ex-boyfriends, and think about doing cool stuff.”

 You couldn't help but chuckle at his enthusiasm. "You make it sound like that’s easy."

 "Definitely not easy,” he agreed. “But sometimes a friendly distraction helps.”

 “And what kind of friendly distractions do you have in mind?” you asked, leaning in towards him. A small noticeably blush spread over Eddie’s cheeks. He didn’t back away though, only clearing his throat before he brought a hand up to brush a bit of hair away from your eyes. 

 “Tomorrow night.” he said softly, “Come and watch me play with the boys.”

 You raised a brow at him, wondering how quickly his band managed to rehearse the songs he had just collected for them a day ago. “You have a gig tomorrow?” you asked, thinking about if you had any outfits at home that would look cool in a rocker sort of way. 

 Eddie’s eyes widened and he quickly shook his head. “Wrong choice of words. I meant Hellfire’s Campaign.” 

 “D&D?” you groaned, chucking the pillow at Eddie’s face. “You know better than anyone that I do not have any interest in that stuff!”

 “Come on! You’ve barely given it a chance! I’m really good as Dungeon Master.” he tried pleading, pushing the pillow away. You took the chance to roll off the bed, reaching for your shoes on the floor. “Wha- now you’re leaving?”

 “Yes!” you laughed, slipping on the boots quickly. “I am not about to sit here and get another lecture on the fundamentals of D&D and how it can open my imagination of storytelling.” 

 “Okay, that was only once. And to be fair, Dustin had some really good points that day.” 

 You threw him a pointed look before getting off the bed, going towards the mirror where his electric guitar hung to check on your hair. “I’m working tomorrow night anyway. Keith pleaded with me to close the store. Says he ‘needs the help’ or something.” you sniffed, fixing up the rest of your outfit. “You’ll have to have fun with your campaign without me.”

 “Ooh I love it when you talk with the right lingo.” he cooed softly, climbing up from the bed to stand behind you. “The game lasts pretty long.. I bet if you get off early you can catch it.”

 “I’m still gonna have to pass.” you said turning around to face him. 

 Eddie had a small pout on his face, and you couldn’t help but reach out to pinch at his cheeks. “While you’re kind of terrible at providing ideas on what I can do, I’d say you’re pretty good at keeping me from thinking too much about my other problems.”

 “Yeah? You feeling all better now?” he asked, a crooked grin tugging at his face. 

 “I’ll get there. Especially if you keep up with that nonsense talk.” you teased, watching as his smile quickly turned into annoyance. “Can’t wait to see what other songs you learn for me.” 

 He smiled a bit before quickly draping his arm around your neck, keeping you close in a small choke hold as he led you over towards his front door. “Keep teasing me and that might be the last song you get from me.” he said, lightly giving your hair a toss.

 You slapped at his hands, trying to keep your hair from looking crazy but he only held you tighter, making you laugh against his chest. With his free hand he pushed open the door, letting the chilly air seep inside the warm trailer. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

 “Yeah, I’ll try and find you for my next set of problems.”

 “Sounds like a plan.” 

 "Goodnight, Eddie." You leaned up as much as you could in your position, planting a gentle kiss on his cheek before you slipped out from under his arm out the door. With a glance over at your car, you couldn’t shake off a bittersweet feeling. Eddie was funny, caring, and possibly into you.

 The only problem was, you weren’t so sure where you stood with your own feelings. At a second glance, you watched as he gave you that same lopsided grin again. You couldn't help but hope that maybe, just maybe, you could figure it out soon.

 For Eddie’s sake.

  MARCH 21ST (FRIDAY) 

 “We’re going to be late.” 

 “He’s just getting dressed dear.”

 “It’s about fifteen minutes before we’re out of luck.”

 “He’s trying to figure out his style! It takes time.” 

 You pushed the set of pain relief pills into your mouth, downing the glass of cold water before you looked over at your Aunt incredulously. She had been pacing in the living room for ten minutes now while you both waited for Dustin to finish getting ready. It’s the third time this week he’s pushed the limits of being later or not, and you’re frankly tired of it.

 “He’s worse than me.” you pointed out, looking at the time on your watch again. “Then again, I only take long because beauty takes time. Boys taking long though.. well, we both know there’s only a couple of reasons for that.” 

 Aunt Claudia paused, eyes went wide at the nefarious thoughts before she instantly shot down the hall. There were a couple of swift knocks to his door as her worried voice perked in your ears. 

 “Dusty-buns what’s going on in there? You guys are going to be late!”

 “DON’T COME IN I’M NAKED!”

 There was a loud gasp and she slowly ventured out back into the living room. Her face pale and worried as she leaned against the archway. You couldn’t help but shake your head, arms crossed over your chest. “I’m telling you, worse than me.”

 She wiped a hand over her face, groaning a bit before the sound of Dustin’s door sliding open stopped her. 

 Dustin, looking a little bit smug for some reason, came down the hall. Completely dressed with his backpack hitched over his shoulder. “Shall we get going, ladies?” he chirped before making his way out the front door. You share a confused look with your Aunt before gathering your things and joining out with him. 

 After a small fight for the front seat, the three of you were thankfully on the road to school. Dustin was grumbling about something under his breath from the backseat before he leaned forward to peek over at you.

 “Since when did you care about getting to school on time? You’ve been close to late for the past two years.”

 “The word is close to late. And that was only because I was adjusting.” you scoffed, glancing over your shoulder. “I wasn’t fiddling around in my room doing God knows what, like you.”

 Dustin rolled eyes, his Mother beside him shaking her head swiftly. “I don’t like this Dusty, you need to be better at managing your time if you’re.. busier in the mornings.”

 Your cousin’s eyes narrowed over at you before he looked over to his Mother. Trying to put together what it is you two were insinuating. “Look, whatever crap she’s filling inside your head, just push it out. Because the only thing I’m doing in the morning is making sure that I’m ready for my education.”

 “And talking to Suzie.” you piped in, pulling down the sun visor to check your reflection, catching the stink eye from Dustin in the backseat. 

 “I wouldn’t expect anyone to understand the relationship that I hold with Suzie.” he sniffed, looking away. “Especially you, the girl who has put herself in the unfortunate position of being single even though she had a perfect relationship with the coolest guy.”

 "Ah, the expert on love speaks.” You chuckled dryly, pulling out your red maxi-color lip gloss to spread over your lips. “Tell me, Dustin, are you pursuing a class in relationship counseling now?”

 He rolled his eyes. “I don’t necessarily need to be in a class to know that you two were good together. It just doesn’t make sense why you make it seem like you guys are incapable of holding a long distance relationship. Suzie and I do it.”

 “Suzie and you met at a summer camp where she miraculously was not bothered by you in the first five minutes of speaking together.” you said with a head shake. “It’s complicated for some people, Dustin. College is a whole different world. Different schedules, different priorities... throw in things like long distance and it's a recipe for disaster."

 Dustin scoffed, crossing his arms as he fell back into the seat. "I think you’re just being overly dramatic about this. You guys could make it work if you wanted to."

 "It's not just about wanting to.” you turned over to look over at the back, watching as his annoyance turned slowly into a frustration you didn’t think he could have about it. “It's about feasibility and reality. And unfortunately, dear Dusty-buns, reality tends to be a buzzkill."

 There wasn’t much said from him after that as you guys neared the long road down to the school. All the kids were gathered around the main entrance, making their way across towards the gym for the early pep rally. Dustin was quick to brush past you without a goodbye. Making his way to meet up with Mike before the bell rang. You figured he was just on the list of people you were hurting from your decisions. 

 As you made your way towards the school gym amidst the bustling crowd, a familiar voice called out your  name.

 “Hey! Wait up!”

 You turned around to see Robin beckoning you over from Steve’s car. The unexpectedness threw you off. Causing you to lamely stand in place as you figured out what the best response would be. Robin quickly grabbed her stuff from the backseat before she started heading your way.

 "Hey!" Robin grinned, falling into step beside me. "You came right on time today."

 “Barely.” you chuckled, throwing a sideways glance at her. “Ready to huff out air in your lungs for the sake of school spirit?” 

 She shrugged, adjusting her bag on her shoulder while her hands struggled to keep her cap and trumpet in place. “That’s the plan. Though I’m pretty sure I'm just a walking zombie at this point with how tired I am. Who knows how well I’ll do.”

 Taking her feathered cap, you give her bangs a quick fix with your fingers before smiling over at her. “Well, at least you’ll be the prettiest zombie. So it can’t all be too bad.” you teased. She rolled her eyes but wasn’t able to hide away the shy smile from her face. 

 “Come on, let’s go so I can liven up your spirits.” she said eventually, nodding towards the school.

 "Yeah, let’s see about that.” you hummed, trying to match her enthusiasm before you glanced back towards Steve.

 His eyes met yours, and in that brief moment, a rush of emotions flooded in. Still, you managed a sad smile and lifted your hand in a small wave to him. His lips turned upright in a small attempt of smiling back before he nodded at you. 

 Robin followed your gaze and caught sight of Steve. "Hey, you okay?" 

 You nodded, trying to brush it off. "Yeah, just got caught up in the moment. Let’s go.” 

 Together the two of you turned towards the gym, heading inside for what was bound to be an interesting start of the day.

  The pep rally did not uplift your spirits as intended. 

 After having the loud music from the band buzz in your aching ears, the whole school was invited to listen to evangelistic words of Jason Carver. Someone you did not think you’d grow to dislike so much, but after hearing him speak of the many passing people of the school, including Billy and even Hopper, all for the sake of a championship? You easily found a disdain towards him.

 Even now as he sat comfortably gathered by his friends, you couldn’t help but scowl at him. 

 “Do you think if you glare hard enough he’ll just leave?”

 You stopped momentarily shooting daggers at Jason to look over at the table you had been walking to originally. Robin, who had saved you a seat at her table, looked up at you amused. She was finally out of uniform. Sporting her regular jean jacket than the ruffle and white combo that you saw her in previously. 

 “Unfortunately, I’m not El and can’t just simply move him out of the cafeteria with my mind.” you sighed, sitting down across from her. 

 Robin chuckled, taking a bite of her sandwich before she reached over on your tray to steal a fry. “I’m guessing that his little speech didn’t inspire you today?”

 “Oh you mean the speech where he callously mentioned the deaths of fellow students and Hopper in order to justify the team’s need to win?”

 “That would be the one.” she said, stealing another one. “I for one, have learned how to drown out kids like Jason after all this time.”

 "It's just hard not to slip back into being a mean girl again," you admitted with a sigh, picking at bits of your sandwich. "But people like this guy seriously make me want to reconsider.”

 Again Robin couldn’t help but chuckle at your words before she patted your hand lightly. “Don’t worry, kid. A few more months and you won’t have to worry about any dumb high school jocks.” 

 You leaned back against your seat, nodding your head in agreement. “A little disappointing I won’t be able to enjoy that new freedom with you.”

 “Hate to say it, but that’s high–”

 “But as long as you’re into band, or science, or parrrtieesss, or a game where you toss BALLS into laundry baskets!..”

 You, Robin, and the majority of the students instantly turned your gazes over towards the center of the cafeteria. Where Eddie of all people, decided to make a sudden ruckus amongst the already noisy room. He was standing on the table looking towards the direction of Jason.

 The other boy slowly rose up from his seat, confidently glaring over at Eddie as he stood ready for action. “You want something, freak?”

 For a second you were worried that there might be a sudden random fight in the middle of lunch. But Eddie, ever so serious, raised his hands up to his head in a horn-like way, and sputtered out a weird random response to the blond.

 Students all around seemed to drop their attentions after that. Most likely unsure how to react to that. You on the other hand couldn’t help but laugh at how oddly timed that was in comparison to your conversation with Robin. It wasn’t until you watched Eddie hop down from the table that you glanced back at Robin again. Her face was curious as she stared at you.

 “So, Eddie Munson, huh?” she hummed, taking a swing from her coke. “Are you two uhh..”

 “Together?” you asked incredulously. She slowly nodded her head. “No, we’re just friends. I’m not planning on dating anyone right now.”

 “Really?” she asked, perplexed. “There’s no one here to change your mind?”

 “Nope. I’m staying single until graduation and after that I’m out of here.” you frowned, balling up the remainder of your sandwich in the foil. “I am so done with high school romance.”

 “Oh, well if you’re done with high school romance..I do happen to know this out of high school guy..”

 “Robin..” you sighed, rubbing your hand against your forehead.

 A coy smile tugged on her face as she meekly held her hands up to you. Trying to feign some innocence with words she knows are completely biased. Apparently, it wasn’t just Dustin who had reservations about your relationship with Steve. 

 “Hear me out! He’s cute, has great hair, drives a nice car, and from what I know is super into you.”

 “And is also going on dates with other girls,” you reminded her. “Not to mention he’s part of the reason why I’m not dating anyone right now.” 

 Robin sat up right, setting down her food in order to reach out for your hand. “Look, I don’t know the full details of the break up.. just that it’s official. But I truly do not believe you or Steve are over each other. Regardless of what either of you is doing.” 

 Holding up your hands, you tried to shake your head innocently. But Robin only shuts that down when she pointed over at Eddie. “I’m not dumb. Don’t think I haven’t seen the way that guy looks at you when he’s picked you up now and then. It’s anything but just friends.” 

 You can’t help but sigh, feeling a little bit ashamed all of a sudden under your friend’s gaze. “It’s complicated.” You mumbled, unsure how to stick up for yourself. “We’re friends but sometimes more.. then I’ll think of Steve and pull away. It’s just..”

 It’s pathetic. (tick)

 The table before you blurred a bit and you tried to control your breathing. The familiar ache suddenly surged into your head. Making you reach out to grip against the table before you shook your head. 

 “Are you okay?” You heard Robin ask. 

 “I’m fine.” you said suddenly getting up from your seat. “I think all this noise is making my head worse.”

 YOU are making things worse. (tock)

 Robin stared up at you worriedly, her blues flickering over your face as she tried to piece together your sudden ailments. You reached down for your bag, slipping it over your shoulder before you pushed your chair in. 

 “I’m gonna head out. Take care of a couple things before the bell rings.”

 “Okay,” she replied wearily. “Do you want me to go with you?”

 You quickly shook your head, finally gaining back some composure. “I’ll call you later? Maybe after the game?”

 “Yeah, we can talk then.”

 With that you gave her a quick wave goodbye and quickly made your leave. Chucking the trash into the bin before pushing your way through the double doors back to the hallway. The halls were oddly quiet and you finally had a moment to let out a relieved sigh before you felt a warm liquid begin to pool above your top lip.

 Bringing a hand up you slowly swipe over your lip before looking to see that it was blood. Pinching your nose, you rushed over towards the nearest bathroom and rushed into a stall to retrieve a piece of toilet paper. 

 The bloody nose didn’t last long. In fact, it left just as quickly as it came. You couldn’t help but wonder where it even came from. Could it be that bad of a headache that it was making your nose bleed?

 After checking for any more blood on your face, you slowly came out of the stall, looking at your reflection in the mirror to make sure you were presentable again. The lights in the bathroom flickered. Sending an oddly familiar up in your spine before it returned to its normal fluorescent hue. 

Today was slowly turning from annoying to just plain strange.

A/N: Sorry it's taken me so long to give you guys an update. I've hit a bit of a writing block and had to split this up in order not to rush the whole first ep. Another update should be happening soon so you guys can get back in the flow of the story. Hope you enjoy!

Tagging Request: (if anyone else would like a tag, just let me know~)

@cluz1babe​

[misshoneyimhome]

Struck by Lighting

Tags; Angry!William; Friends-to-lovers; bestfriend!TimothyLiljegren; Fluff

Summary: In the midst of a difficult game, William appears to lose his composure, suggesting more than just frustration over a bad loss;

Author's Note: I wrote this a little while ago and just decided to share it today 😉 It follows the familiar friends-to-lovers plot, yet a little different, you know? 😅 Nonetheless, I hope you'll find it enjoyable;

By the way, a quick thank you to everyone reading my work! I never imagined anyone would enjoy what I write, and I'm incredibly grateful to be able to share my thoughts and ideas with all of you! Having 1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ followers might not seem like a lot to some, but to me, it's beyond anything I could have imagined 🫶🏻

[credits: inspired by a scene from Ted Lasso]

Word count: 3.4K

・✶ ｡ﾟ

The atmosphere was crisp as the five of you strolled through the streets of Toronto on a regular Friday evening.

The lad's hockey season had started just a month ago, and tonight, you were out with your group of friends: William Nylander, Timothy Liljegren, Pierre Engvall, along with his girlfriend Mathilda. Yet, this evening wasn't solely about the five of you chilling together; it was also a chance for Willy to introduce his new romantic interest to the tight-knit group. Being his close friends, he valued your opinion on this matter.

**

William had become, quite unexpectedly, one of your closest friends. It was something you hadn't quite anticipated from the day you were introduced to the inner circle of the Toronto Maple Leafs – particularly the inner circle of the Swedes.

Morgan had been your entry point, having known him back in Vancouver, and upon your move to Toronto, he graciously showed you around, and after a few months, he introduced you to his team. It was a bit surreal to suddenly find yourself among friends and partners of an NHL team, but undeniably, you felt like you belonged.

The entire team had been incredibly kind and welcoming. You hit it off particularly well with most of them. Auston and Mitchy were an absolute riot, always incredibly funny. Woll, alongside Mo, was among the kindest individuals you'd ever encountered. Tavares was the living legend, and the new guy, Knies – those eyes and that smirk – had a way of making anyone feel weak in the knees.

Everyone treated you kindly, but you could also sense a closer bond among the Swedes. It wasn't something frowned upon by the guys; in fact, it seemed this group genuinely encouraged everyone to become more open and mingle better with the rest of the team. Timothy, in particular, stood out as a genuine sweetheart, perhaps a tad less outgoing than the others.

And it was Tim that was the one who paved the way for you to join the Scandinavian friends' circle. You were consistently kind to him, offering help whenever needed, and being there to support him if he ever felt anxious. It all began with a simple, clumsy mishap in the hallways where he had lost his things, and you swiftly lent a hand. From there, it blossomed into casual conversations about various topics. And soon enough, you found yourself getting him a coffee, guiding him through breathing exercises before facing cameras, and keeping him company after tough losses.

And your efforts had earned you a cherished place in the hearts of the Swedes.

William, on the other hand, was a different story. He had to grow on you.

At first, you genuinely found him rather off-putting. With that way too satisfied, smug smirk on his face all the time, the way he knew all too well how good he was at hockey, and how he so effortlessly just sashayed onto the ice, scored a couple of goals, and became the hero of the day.

However, as time passed and you spent more moments with Tim's friends, you gradually peeled back the layers of William Nylander beyond the dazzling performances and mischievous grins. The more you hung around him, the clearer it became that it wasn't an act; it was simply his natural way of being - in a good way.

After each match, road trip, and workout session, you began to grasp the immense effort he invested in his training. How he'd show up early, stay late for workouts, constantly study technique videos, and engage in discussions with his father about his game.

You witnessed the sheer amount of energy required to uphold his positive mindset. In fact, it amazed you how he managed to stay so rooted and composed, even after a tough loss or demanding day filled with media responsibilities. And what struck you even more was his indifference to the attention and accolades he received; his primary focus remained on playing the sport he adored, striving to perform his best, and feeling proud of his achievements. He aimed high and held himself accountable to those lofty expectations and goals he'd set.

He simply impressed you.

On William's end, he hadn't given much thought to you initially. You were there, seemed nice, and that was about it. He wasn't one to dwell on things, so as he noticed your genuine friendship with his close friends, he didn't really have any negative opinions about you.

But much like he grew on you, you gradually made an impression on him. At first, he didn't pay much attention to you. But as you integrated further into the group, he began to notice your playful nature, your sense of humour, and the banter that developed among the lads. What initially elicited a light chuckle soon evolved into hearty laughter, echoing through the halls of the Scotiabank Arena after almost every home game, and Willy found himself thoroughly enjoying it.

Yet, beyond the good times, the real turning point occurred when William allowed you to see his more vulnerable side.

It had been a terrible game. For him at least, and he just wasn’t feeling good about it. And while he’d normally remain composed and all calm despite the challenging night, he’d involuntarily spat at his teammates about something regarding the play. 

And though there was a mutual understanding among the teammates, that outbursts like these were rather common and no one should take it personally, as it’d all be forgotten the following day, you couldn’t help but stand up to him. He’d said something that was clearly targeted towards Tim, and you were just not having it. 

So, after the match as everyone besides William had left, being one of the last ones as always, you’d stayed back just to offer him a quick remark. 

“You know you can’t talk to him like that,” you’d spoken in a low voice, yet your words been firm and sharp as you’d confronted him in the hallway on your way out. “He played his heart out and you know it. Everyone made mistakes tonight, even you, and you shouldn’t be saying things like these to him.”

William had been slightly baffled by your words. And though he knew you were right; he didn’t think it was your place to talk back to him like this.

“Timmy’s a grown man, he can take it.” He’d said in response. “He needs to know what he did wrong so he can do better next time.” 

In a way you knew he was right too. This was simply the way the boys showed their love and affection for each other as teammates, but you just couldn’t accept the way he’d speak to his close friend.

“I know, Willy. And I know you mean well, it’s just… Tim looks so much up to you, and we all know that you’re an amazing player, who gets a lot of attention, but that doesn’t give you the right to talk down to the others. You’re a team, and you also need to support each other in down times like these.” 

And your words had had a way to walk straight to William’s heart. The way you showed so much care for your mutual friend had really opened his eyes for you. You were more than just giggles and funny puns. You were indeed caring and protective of the ones you loved – just like him. 

“I’m sorry…” he’d murmured, which had taken you slightly by surprise. You hadn’t expected for him to give in to your confrontation so easily. But the softness in his eyes had given away that he might just feel a little regret of how he’d spoken to the lads, and quickly you found yourself feeling softening your facial expression as well. 

Though there’d been no yelling or shouting, you’d unintentionally tightened the muscles in your face, raised your shoulders, as you’d gathered the confident to speak to him. But then as you saw his expression exude a hint of vulnerability and his composure softened, you instead tried to flash him a gentle smile and simply show that this was all about your shared love for a person. 

And as concern and frustrations slowly faded away, you both shared smiles and light chuckles. And yet to another surprise, William had suggested for you to grab a late dinner snack, which you’d enjoyed at his place, while talking for hours about pretty much anything. 

You’d shared family details, stories from the past, future aspirations, along with casual dating experiences and ups and downs from what had you both still at the single stage. 

From that day on, your friendship had become almost closer than yours and Tim’s. 

You’d be the one to confront him when he was merely being a brat, just as you were there to shower with love and affection whenever needed. 

***

So, as the evening of the triple-“date” (you were there with Tim, though you weren’t romantically involved), was coming to an end, William turned to face you all, mentally preparing for the virduct of his new flirt.

“So, what do you think?” he timidly asked. 

“I think she’s sweet,” Mathilda had started out. “She seems kind and nice… friendly and funny, I suppose.” 

“Yeah, she’s got a nice laughter, doesn’t seem dum or without ideas,” Pierre had added. 

“And she’s attractive.” Tim chimed in with a lightning spirit. 

William nodded at the feedback, taking in that everyone seemed to approve of the girl he was becoming interested in. 

“Yeah, you could be a good match,” Mathilda spoke once again with her sweet, gentle tone of voice, as she tried to reassure William that he had found someone good. However, as much as you tried to remain composed, you just couldn’t hold it back.

“Oh, come on,” you blurted out. “Tell him the truth.” 

The group of friends looked stunned at you as you’d broken the silence, you’d maintain during the walk from the restaurant, earning you to elaborate. 

“She’s fine… that’s it,” you spoke gently, before continuing. “Which there’s nothing wrong with. Most people settle for fine. The question is just why the fuck you think she deserves you. I mean, you’re William bloody Nylander – you’re gorgeous, talented, funny, and overall, not too empty headed. Honestly, you deserve someone who makes you feel like you’ve been struck by fucking lightning.” 

Your words echoed through the heads of your friends as your bold honesty slowly sank in, and the others couldn’t contain their amusement. In fact, they just smiled and nodded in agreement as William maintained an intense gaze at you. 

“Anyway, that’s just my opinion,” you offered a sweet smile, and shrug your shoulders. 

And in the evening, William couldn’t help but reflect on your words. It was incredible how you’d always have a talent of speaking so freely and directly to him. And he couldn’t help but deeply appreciate it.

****

A couple of weeks later, the lads were back in Toronto for a home game after a lengthy stretch on the road.

And this time around, it was your turn to spill some news about someone you'd been seeing.

His name was Matt, a few years older than you, working as a chef. He had a kind and sweet nature, and in your view, he was an all-round good guy. Just what you needed after a string of let-downs. Each person you'd dated before had been either completely unfazed or overly dramatic about every little thing. You'd been with all sorts, from the typical sales rep to the cliché sports jock, the soft-spoken preschool teacher, and the imaginative journalist. Yet none of them shared your zest for life and love for outdoor activities or your calm and drama-free outlook on life.

But Matt seemed to be the right fit.

Even your friends' reactions seemed to back it up.

You all shared laughter and excitement during a coffee break - known as "Fika" as the Swedes called it. And soon after, he joined you and Mathilda among the other partners of the team for a home game.

However, the match turned out to be rather awful. The Leafs were trailing 4-0 at the start of the third period, and their gameplay displayed no signs of a potential comeback strategy or strength.

The atmosphere weighed heavy on everyone, evident in the collective sighs as the Senators once again slipped the puck past Woll and into the net. Fans covered their faces in resignation, acknowledging the likely outcome of tonight's game. Equally frustrated were the players, especially when Mitch received a 2-minute penalty for holding, granting the Senators another Power Play opportunity.

The tension only seemed to ratchet up from there.

Then came William; he pushed himself, maintaining a rapid pace, maneuvering around opponents with confidence, controlling the puck as he charged towards the opposite end. He searched for an opening to take a shot, almost finding the perfect opportunity. With an intense focus, he swung his stick high, eyes fixed on the target, aiming and letting loose his shot.

But the puck didn't find its mark.

And a resounding disappointment reverberated throughout the arena.

William, unable to contain his usual composed demeanor, vented his frustrations, taking it out on his stick. He forcefully slammed it against the boards, the rage causing it to snap into two pieces. It seemed like nothing was going right for him tonight.

And your heart sank as you witnessed his outburst.

You'd never seen him this angry or out of character. Typically, he was the one who kept his teammates grounded, but in that moment, he held nothing back.

The game ended with a harsh 7-1 scoreline, and while Auston managed to net a goal, it did little to lift the spirits of the team.

One by one, they departed from the arena after their showers and media commitments. Partners took their hands, quietly making their way towards the exit, understanding that the night ahead would be spent in quietness at home, focused on care and relaxation, as the lads mentally geared up for the next match.

Finding yourself among the last few standing, you exchanged concerned glances with Tim and Pierre, aware that Willy was likely still in the locker room, possibly berating himself.

Offering a reassuring nod to their unspoken worry, you turned to Matt.

"I'll go check on him. This isn't like Willy, and I just want to make sure he's alright," you said to him.

He gave you an understanding smile as you slowly walked towards the locker room.

Inside, you found William, seated in his stall with his head bowed, almost completely removing his gear. His body still gleamed from post-match sweat, hair damp and sticking to the sides of his face.

With cautious steps, you approached him, prompting him to glance up.

"Hey," you said in a hushed tone.

You knew how hard he was on himself after such games. There was no need to vocalize it. But you wanted to convey unwavering support to your friend, so you attempted to offer your best, concerned, and caring smile.

"Hey," he replied, his tone subdued.

There fell a brief silence between you two.

"Alright?" you asked gently.

"Yeah, sure..." he shrugged, his voice lacking its usual spark.

But you knew him too well.

"Babe, I know it might not mean much, but tonight wasn't your fault," you offered in an attempt to console him.

"I know," he mumbled, eyes fixed on the floor.

"Really? Because it seems like you're shouldering blame that isn't yours to carry," you ventured further, aware you were nearing sensitive ground. Yet, seeing him like this hurt, and you couldn't hold back your concern.

"I said I know, y/n," he replied firmly, his tone indicating an end to the discussion. "You don't need to keep digging.”

"I'm sorry. I just want to ensure you're not getting lost in self-pity. This was a team effort, and you all had a tough night," you persisted, trying to express your worries.

"And what do you know about that, huh?" he suddenly snapped, rising to his feet.

William was completely unlike his composed self. He was on edge, filled with an anger so unlike him. And it startled you.

"I don't..." you attempted to speak. "I'm just worried... Willy, I've never seen you like this before, and I just want to make sure you're okay," your voice quivered, conveying your genuine concern.

"Well, I'm not okay!" he burst out.

Never before had William raised his voice at you like this, not even following a devastating game. Something deeper seemed to be at play here than just the outcome of a hockey match.

"Then please, let me help you..." you urged, hoping to diffuse the tension.

"You can’t,” he retorted.

"Why not?" confusion laced your words.

"Because it's you I'm pissed at," he declared.

You were taken aback. He was angry with you?

“Why? What have I done to piss you off like this?” you questioned, bewildered by his accusation.

William struggled to steady his breath, trying to contain the fury coursing through him. Slightly lowering his voice to a more controlled but still assertive level, he continued.

"You always tell us that we deserve someone who makes us feel like we've been struck by lightning... yet you're with a dull, ordinary guy who isn't even close to your league, and you expect me to believe that he makes you happy?"

Wait, what?

"It that with this is all about… you playing a shitty game because I'm seeing someone you don't approve of?" you expressed disbelief. How dared he?

William exhaled sharply, standing with his hands on his hips.

"That's not… no, we just played a shitty game, we'll get over it," he attempted to gather his thoughts. "I just don't understand why you feel entitled to dictate what the rest of us deserve when you don't hold yourself to the same standard."

You struggled to fully grasp his words.

"What are you trying to say, Willy?"

"Don't you see... you should be with someone... not like him... someone who also makes you feel the way you want the rest of us to feel..."

"Well, I'm sorry, but that just won't happen," you spoke loudly, your mind racing faster than you could rationalize.

"Why not?"

"Because the only person who'd ever made me feel that way is you!"

A heavy silence filled the room as your confession hung in the air. 

You were left breathless, realizing you had verbalized something you hadn't even admitted to yourself before. A fleeting thought that had crossed your mind briefly but had never lingered for more than a moment. However, as the words escaped, they felt undeniably true.

And the truth was, you had deep feelings for William.

The laghter and playful banter between you. The affection you both had for your friends and families. How he always showed his genuine self with you, offering a listening ear and a supportive shoulder. You simply liked every part of him.

And as William gradually absorbed the sudden confession, he regained control of his breathing following his emotional outburst. He gazed intently at you, focusing on your worried expression, acknowledging your unintentional heartfelt disclosure.

Yet, he found himself speechless. There were no witty remarks or playful comebacks. He didn't feel compelled to challenge you or demand explanations. Instead, he took a step forward, gently cupping your head with his hands, leaning in to tenderly kiss you.

As your lips met, you couldn't resist, placing your hands on his chest, feeling all frustrations and negativity dissipate from your mind.

Relaxation flooded your body, sinking deeper into his touch. His hands moved down to your hips, drawing you closer, while yours wrapped around his neck.

His tongue delicately sought permission to explore beyond your lips, and you eagerly welcomed the intimacy.

It was an true, heartfelt moment where you both surrendered to desire and passion.

As you parted from the kiss, both breathing in the air that was momentarily lost, smiles couldn't be contained as you stood close.

Being in his arms felt incredibly right, and you wished for that feeling to never end.

However, reality beckoned, so you looked up at him with a gentle smile, brushing a strand of hair away from his handsome face.

"I suppose... I should let Matt know that I can't see him anymore," you chuckled lightly.

"Yeah, he should probably know that you’re already taken,” William replied with a hearty laugh.

[spacedlexi]

i just think a "friended/romanced + saved + trust aj" violet does such a good job rounding out the plot and characters of S4 and i dont say that lightly

she walls people off out of fear just like S3 clem did and learned to grow out of through the compassion of others. feeling like she could have done more to save minnie being what initially makes her step up to lead, but her accepting her love for clem (and clem choosing to save her) is what leads to her Truly accepting the school and everyone inside it as her Home and gives her something to fight for ("i tried my damnedest not to care about either of you. and i still couldnt tell you why." "i know where youre coming from. after losing so many people, sometimes its easier to keep everyone at arms length." "and then you wonder why you fight so hard to stay alive. i dont wonder anymore."). this being the reasoning behind violets detachment from the school, as well as a negative home life impacting her idea of what a home even was. but together they turn ericson from a prison into the home theyve BOTH been looking for, renaming it together, and envisioning it for the future together. the two of them understand each other deeply, from what theyve lost to how its affected them and the poor ways theyve decided to react to it. but through their support of the other, they BOTH get to evolve into more relaxed and confident versions of themselves, who know Exactly what theyre fighting for

her troubled relationship with brody and getting to learn more about what happened with the twins/violets reaction to it and how she ultimately blames herself/brodys guilt about her part in it and how she misses violet. getting the chance to mend that relationship before its too late. the 3 of them becoming closer because of it. and getting to develop clems friendship with brody leads to a more impactful moment later in the basement

her relationship with tenn reflecting clems relationship with aj, in the way they both made the decision to look after their respective boys after their primary guardians died (ajs parents, tenns sisters). both of them can understand the responsibilities they have taken upon themselves, and how hard it can be to do right. the 4 of them become a tight knit group quickly. especially in EP2 as vi supports clem while tenn supports aj through the marlon fiasco

her confused relationship with minerva introducing interesting conflict both within her relationship with clem (who has her own personal conflict with minerva, which vi still ties into through her relationship with both minnie and tenn) and the over arching plot, which has themes of learning when to let someone go because they are no longer who they once were (clem and lilly "we were family once", mitch about ms martin "you get all caught up in who people used to be, and you cant deal with whats in front of you", violet about minnie "the real minnie? shes been gone this whole time and i have to stop mourning her")

having a saved violet on the boat expanding the conversation with minerva about her motivations with the delta. violet apologizing for never looking for her, minnie saying she knows she would have but that its too late now, so sure this is just the way things have to be. getting to hear minnie say "you can be rewarded, just like i am", giving us insight into her character. and clem getting the last word before she rams the door down, her and violet fighting minnie Together. and violet saves clems life, making the Choice to shoot minerva, which in and of itself is a huge moment for violets character in regards to her relationship with both minnie And clem

and aj shooting tenn on the bridge brings things full circle, by putting violet in the same position louis was in EP2, where aj has killed the most important person to her, in an effort to save her life, and now she must reckon with those feelings the same way louis had to about marlon. not so easy now is it violet? ("so youre mad, but sad" "can i be that for a while?" "yeah, its ok")

just... ough... violets whole character just fits into Everything so well, but in a way that elevates the characters and plots around her, while also developing her into her own

[zayndrivesmeinvain]

The One That Got Away - Part 1

A.N- This is one of my first series that I wrote after a long hiatus and I am just getting back to it. I hope who ever comes along for this journey, they enjoy it. I would love to hear everyone's thoughts, ideas, opinions. Enjoy!

Summary: In which Harry and Alena were college sweethearts, however, all of that has changed and the only thing keeping in contact is the fact that they have a child together. Is it possible for them to even get to a normal standing friendship or is that long gone?

Word Count: 2.9 K

.......................................................................................................................

Alena

Pain. 

Pain is something that is different to everyone but to me, it's caused by the distress and lack of control I feel as though I have in my life. I’m pained that I am not able to give my daughter the best life that she absolutely deserves. It pains me that she doesn’t have a two parent household, because growing up neither did I and I vowed everything inside of me that when the day came I had a child that I would pick the utmost perfect partner that would stick around and be madly love with me in which we would make a life for ourselves and have that happy ever after - but unfortunately those cards were not on the table for me. 

I live a pretty generic life I would say. I work a 9-5 as a social media manager and editor for a top design magazine, I have a tight knit friend group, as well as a dog and a house and a daughter. I’m not the crazy going out type of girl, or the hook-up kind of girl. I keep to myself, take care of my daughter and live life to the best of my ability. 

-

It’s an early Monday morning which means I need to get myself ready for work as well as my daughter ready for school. I am lucky enough to be able to work most of my days from home and the office is used as an as-needed basis especially since I am a single parent. I’ve never been one to take “ the easy way out” but I sure as hell will take advantage of situations that do benefit me. 

My chestnut brown hair falling down my back as soon as I get out of bed, one quick look in the mirror and I can say thank the Lord himself that I work from home today. Over the years my hair has become unruly and quite the challenge to maintain. My skin slightly goose bumped due to the slight breeze in my bedroom, thanks to my ceiling fan. My feet are cold against the hardwood floors in my home, and I almost curse myself for not having enough carpet or rug in my room - when first purchasing my home I swore that carpet would not be part of the home's aesthetic but I would be young and dumb and would refuse to go back. 

“ Good morning Sunshine” is my go-to for waking my daughter up in the morning, unfortunately my daughter is not a morning person - a trait that she picked up from her father. Her emerald green eyes stayed hidden from me as she did her absolute best to try and stay asleep as she knew that it was time to get up and ready for school. 

“ It’s time to get up, Bubs, how are you going to become an Astronaut princess if you don’t go to school?” my arms embrace my daughter as I gently pick her up and walk her into the bathroom. 

“ Mommy, my tummy hurts.” my froggy 5 year old croaked. Now that I think of it… she does feel a bit warm. I was lucky enough that she was typically an energetic child who looked forward to going to school and meeting her friends, another trait she got from her father, however, today seems to be different. I placed her down on the edge of the sink and placed my hand onto her forehead as she seemed to be burning up. I do my best to be a fair and strict parent, so I can instill a routine and boundaries but it wouldn’t be fair to send her to school like this.

“ It’s okay, Bubs. Why don’t you stay home today and rest up. Why don’t we give you a bath and you can lay down next to mommy while she works, yeah?” I make my way over to the tub and start running a bubble bath for her to enjoy. “ Stay still, mommy will text daddy so he knows not to pick you up from school later.” 

Texting my daughter's father isn’t my least favorite thing to do, but I wouldn’t say it’s my favorite by any means either. There is so much built up pain and history even when I see his name pop-up on my phone or even see a picture posted of him. Harry Styles. My childhood best friend, my first crush, my first love and my first heartbreak. How is it possible for one person to be so many of my firsts? Some would say that Harry & I ended on a mutual note but it doesn’t mean that it hurt any less. We did our best to try the long distance thing while we tried finding ourselves in college but one thing led to another and it didn’t last. After agreeing to end things, we met-up one night and one thing led to another and a few weeks later I found out that I’m pregnant. Harry is an amazing father and I couldn’t ask for anyone better for my daughter, but he was not a good partner. He often slept around, could not commit to anyone and played every girl like the fiddle. We tried once more after Aria was born but that is when he was unfaithful and would stay out late and it's almost as if his whole personality changed.I guess people do change while in college and even after. 

“ Hey H, Bub’s isn’t feeling well. I’m going to keep her home with me today so no need to pick her up from school… thanks :)” I place my phone back down onto the counter and get Aria undressed for her bath. While allowing Aria to play around a bit in the bubbles I notice my phone has none stop been going off. 2 missed calls from Harry & 4 text messages. He’s so over dramatic. My phone rings again, before I could even say hello he gets his word in: 

“ What the hell, why haven’t you answered your phone?” I could sense his annoyance over the phone. 

“ Because I am bathing our daughter and I believe her cleanliness is more important than  worrying about my phone” I could see his eyes rolling already. 

“ What’s wrong with her? What happened?” His concern for Aria is something I could admire and could almost push past all the horrible things he has done to me in the past. 

“ Harry, she’s sick. She’s around other sick kids almost everyday… it was practically bound to happen. She’ll be fine in no time… she just needs to rest for the day and drink fluids and cuddle. I promise you I won’t let anything happen to your precious angel.” The last sentiment of my statement to Harry was meant more as sarcasm but in all honesty, she really is an angel and couldn't ask for a more perfect child. 

“ Erm, yeah.. Okay. Can I stop over after work later on? I can pick up some dinner for us three and maybe watch a movie with her…” I can sense the hesitation in his voice. Harry and I had an agreement that we would be civil parents for Aria, but I would prefer to not have “family hangouts” as much as I could avoid it. As much as I wanted a two-parent household for my daughter, I refused to confuse her anymore and give her a false hope that Harry and I would ever get back together. However, there are some exceptions to this rule and tonight is one of them. One thing I hold my ground on is never holding Harry back with Aria or anytime he wants to spend with her. 

“ That would be nice, Har… thank you. Just let me know what time you think you’ll be over later on tonight, and remember.…her bed times  9:00 PM” a gentle smile plastered on my face when I look back over at my daughter while she plays with the bubbles in her bath. 

“ Of course, give her a kiss for me to hold her off until I get there” before I could even say goodbye the line drops. 

-

The day was filled with many email correspondences, phone calls as well as planning for the upcoming next few months. Being the lead editor for one of the top design magazines in the country was no easy job by any means, but my passion and dedication for the job was what makes it all worth it. I’ve been very fortunate as well to have a very understanding team behind me which were my top supporters, and they absolutely adore Aria. 

Besides all of the work I needed to attend to, cuddles and a napping child were on my top priority list as well. I mostly worked from my couch today, which I excuse to my child being needy because she wasn’t feeling well but I would be lying to say that I just didn’t want to leave her side as well. For a while, it was mostly just the two of us together navigating through the world with no idea or plan in mind. 

Before I knew it, it was close to 5:00 PM and Harry said he will be here in less than an hour. While Aria was sleeping and I was on my “lunch” break earlier I was able to sneak in some dishes, laundry and a quick shower. My unruly hair from this morning was washed and maintained and I was able to apply the lightest layer of make-up. My outfit of choice for this gathering we were about to have was a pair of basic black leggings, paired with an oversized sweatshirt. 

“Mommy, do you know when Daddy will be here?'' She adores her father, a total daddy’s girl. I wish it didn’t make me jealous but knowing that he is her favorite person pulls at my heartstrings a bit. 

“ I think he’ll be here shortly, Bubs. Why don’t we get you changed in your comfy pjs so when daddy gets here, you guys can watch a movie?”

I gave Aria a quick bath to help her fever settle down. Her fever has been on and off for most of the day; but it seems as though it was getting back to normal for the last hour. She picked out her favorite waffle knit pajamas to wear with the pink and red hearts. She swore up and down that they were her movie watching pajamas & that they were the most comfy for “lounging around”. By the time Aria and I made it back into the living room, Harry had arrived. 

I walked to the front door with Aria in my arms & by the time I opened the door she couldn’t jump into Harry’s arms quick enough. There he stood with his work attire on: a pair of dress pants and a button down shirt paired with his matching tie. The young frat boy has turned into a businessman, Harry followed in his fathers foot footsteps and is now a partner in his fathers law firm. His hair looks like it’s been freshly cut, but a few curls still peak out on the top. 

“ Hi Bubby, I’m so happy to see you.” A smile is plastered across Harry’s face, he’s always been a proud father. He always says that Aria lights up his world, and that she in fact saved him and has made him a better man. The same smile he gives Aria, is a similar smile that he used to shine at me, those pearly whites were once my weakness. 

-

Harry so kindly brought over Chinese for the 3 of us, the three of us scattered on my dining room table. Harry and Aria spike up most of the conversation, Aria tells Harry all the letters and colors that she’s learned at school so far and what she thinks her classmates worked on today without her. It amazes me watching the two of them interact together, it’s almost as if I’m seeing double: Aria is so much like Harry in so many different ways: between their smiles, the way their nose scrunches up while them are really focused in on what the other is saying, to they way they chew at the the same time or how they both furrow their brows the same exact way. 

-

After dinner, I excused myself to flip some laundry as well as clean the kitchen up from the day's mess. Harry and Aria are now sprawled out in the living room watching Lilo and Stitch, Aria is laid out in between Harry’s legs, with her back to him while his hands are laid in her lap. Every so often I catch Aria holding her fathers hand and even planting kisses on them. Aria’s love and admiration for her father makes Harry a little bit more bearable, he is someone I will always love but I fell out of love many years ago after everything he had put me through: the lies, the cheating, the girl, the uncertainty… It was all just too much. 

-

It’s a little after 8:30 PM now, Aria fell asleep watching the movie with Harry and he insisted he would take her to bed and do her nightly routine with her which consists of cuddles and reading a book, if we ever skip this step she never has a good night's rest. I hear soft snores coming from her bedroom which indicates that Harry can handle her nightly bedtime routine and he will be leaving shortly, which allows me some alone time before the end of the day. 

- 

“ She’s fast asleep now…” a soft smile has taken form on Harry’s tired face. 

“ Looks like she isn’t the only one that needs to be put to bed” I begin walking him to my front door, to kindly let him know that I would like for him to leave, however, he asks if we can have a talk. 

Harry and I walk back over to my living room as I take a seat on my sectional and he sits across from me. The expression on his face indicates that he’s nervous and is testing the waters out before he opens his mouth. 

“ I’ve been seeing someone…” is what he blurts out with. “I’ve been seeing her for a while now and I would like to know if it’s okay if I introduce her to Aria.” His words take me by surprise, one of our initial rules was that we would not introduce Aria to anyone unless we thought it was serious and up until now it had not come up. For whatever reason, his confession stings a little bit. I was under the impression that Harry wasn’t really into keeping anything serious or that’s at least what his mother gossips to me about. Anne and I always had a very close relationship, even after everything that had happened between Harry and I. 

“Uhmmm, yeah…” my heart starts pounding a little quicker than usual and I’m hoping Harry can’t hear it. 

“ Her name is Elizabeth, she works in the same building as I do at the accounting office across the hall from my law firm… she’s the receptionist there. She’s really great, and makes me really happy. I’d like for them to meet this weekend… I’m going to my parents for dinner and they’ll be meeting Elizabeth for the first time too.” 

“ Har, I’m happy to hear you’re happy. If you feel as though this is someone you would like to introduce Aria to, then go ahead… under one condition.” I can see Harry’s once anxious demeanor break and a look of curiosity takes over him. 

“Under no circumstances and I mean none, are you to have any sleep overs with this girl while Aria is there. If I find out from our daughter that you had a woman sleeping over while she is there… I promise you Harry, I will raise hell.” A slight nod is always I get out of him before he speaks again. “ Understood… thank you.” Call me traditional, however, I don’t think it’s appropriate to have girls in and out of the house while our daughter is there.. Even if they are dating but knowing Harry, he can sometimes spin the truth. 

“I’m gonna go… I have a long day tomorrow.” I nod and get up to walk Harry out of my house. As we approach the door, I gently open it for Harry to walk through. 

“ Have a goodnight, Har. Thank you again for dinner.”

As Harry walks out my door and into his car, all I see is the young guy that I grew-up with and wonder how things went so wrong for us. My heart aches for what ifs? What if we did end up being the end game, would Aria be happier? Would I be happier? Would we have regular family dinners and have family vacations and family traditions?

I wiped those ideas out of my heart as quickly as they came, because I did not get to where I am in life harping on the past. I, Alena, do not sit around and feel sorry for myself or what my life currently is versus what I once dreamed of it being.

[evilcowgirl]

hi! I love your writing and was so excited to see someone writing about Javier!! There’s not enough fics with him sadly. I was wondering if I could put a request in for something like…maybe Javier finally confesses his feelings to reader after coming back from Guarma (nearly dying there) maybe because of that he decides to act on his feelings before the time really is too late

just an idea and ty for the wonderful writing <3

floral and fading

pairing: javier x reader

a/n: i love this request so sooo much and im so happy to be working on more of them ! thank u sm for requesting ! decided to only use the spanish that i know in this oneshot hopefully i didn't make any mistakes. also happy new year !!! <33

warnings: slight nsfw

word count: 2.2k

summary: Javier returns from Guarma with newfound determination to tell you how he feels about you.

Things hadn't been alright for a while now and everyone was starting to realize that one by one. There was a dark cloud hanging over the once tight-knit group; the faith that Dutch so often preached to the gang to keep was dwindling. You tried to keep yourself busy by helping the other girls out even more than usual. It worked wonders as a distraction for the chaos prevailing all around you. You were no fool though, and because of that you knew that things were even more vulnerable than they seemed, especially now with five of your men missing. That five including the ringleader of it all, now you felt like an idiot waiting on disaster to strike.

You all fled with the help of Sadie and Charles to a strange and unfamiliar place. It was a huge shift from the comfort of your own quaint little room in Shady Belle but you were forever grateful for their selflessness. You thought often of the missing members of your group, the one you considered your best friend most of all. In the short year and a half that you'd known Javier you managed to become attached at the hip quite quickly. This was despite his loyalty to the group and subsequent skepticism of any unfamiliar face. He had a soft spot for you that you shared for him. You could barely stomach the idea of Javier being hurt. You knew that it was best to be realistic—to prepare for the worst, but whenever anyone would even suggest that something could've gone wrong with the boys, you had to excuse yourself. It was unbearable not knowing.

Sadie was the first to notice your mourning. She offered you comfort and kept the rest of the gang alive as best as she could until everything worked out. Not once did she tell you that they'd be back though, or even try to convince you that they were all okay. Apart of you appreciated it; being lied to was the last thing that you needed in such a fragile state.

The absence of most of the gang's men was devastatingly evident. It was much quieter, no silly quarrels or drunken excitement at night. Most noticeably the melodic sounds of Javier's guitar we're missing. You were finding it hard to sleep without him there to play a song for you until you drift off. Most times you lie on your cot trying to think of anything but how silent it is. Your mind still drifts to thoughts of him—his music, his voice. The gentle touch of his hand on yours when he thinks you've already fallen asleep.

You've been completely smitten for months and your feelings only grow to be more intense as each day passes. Now that he's gone, you feel like a piece of you is missing. You find yourself wrapping your arms around your body searching for some kind of solace in your own touch since Javier wasn't there to provide his.

Emotionally, you were a wreck, that much was obvious. What bothered you most of all was that you were a wreck for a man that you couldn't even call your own.

Another rainy night came. Ever since the boys disappeared it felt like all it did was rain. The smell of mud and wet earth was inescapable as you laid your head down on your bed. Your eyes were closed but you were wide awake, listening to the sounds of raindrops falling rhythmically outside the cabin.

You jumped up at the sound of hooves beating against the ground and Charles alerting the rest of your small group. You heard stray words being exchanged through the walks. Whoever had arrived had to be one of your group based on the muffled "Are you alright?" you heard from Sadie.

Mary-Beth slept near you, waking up at all of the noise outside. "What is all that? Who's here?" She asked you as if you were in any different position than she was.

"I'm not sure but it could be the boys," You said, stepping down from your bed. You were only in your chemise but wasted no time rushing outside. Your heart was beating through your chest as you pushed through the heavy wooden door only to be caught by Charles, clad in wet clothes.

"Hold on just a moment, we aren't sure if he was followed." He says. His hands are firmly around your biceps holding you in place, you have no choice but to stop resisting.

"Who? If who was followed?" You ask him, blinking the rain out of your eyes. You were frightened at hearing that only one man had made it back. It left you wondering what could've happened to the rest.

"Hola, It's been a while huh?" You hear Javier's voice for the first time in days and your knees feel weak at the sound.

"Get your ass out of the rain." Sadie responds, you can tell she's relieved to see him. Sadie and Uncle help him down from his horse and you notice how he groans at putting weight on his leg. Once Charles finally lets you go you nearly fall over your own feet trying to get to Javier.

"Mi cielo, I've missed you. Are you alright?" He asks you as you wrap your arms around each other.

You were cold, shaking, overwhelmed, and still scared underneath your joy for having Javier back. You felt tears welling up in your eyes but you still nodded. You were closest to being alright right now than you had been for the past few torturous days.

"Javier I—" You found yourself lost in your own head as you looked at him. He was bruised and had dark bags under his eyes that gave you the urge to rush him to bed.

"I'm just so glad you're back," was what you settled on, but you had so much more to say. He smiled, pulling you closer to him as you walked.

"Where is everyone else?" You asked him as you lead him into the cabin. Charles placed a sympathetic hand on his shoulder as he walked in. He had a slight limp and was weighing you down. You both had to stop to sit at a bench inside.

"They'll be around soon. We had to split up. Things were. . .bad. We ended up on an island called Guarma—a sugar plantation. We all got back in once piece though."

"I'm glad you're alright, Javier." Tilly said, handing him a mug of coffee.

You'd never heard of Guarma but based on how roughed up he looked, you could assume that it was nothing like Tahiti or any other tropical paradise Dutch had promised you all.

"You're hurt." You said, stating the obvious.

"It's just my leg, I'm alright really." He placed a hand on your leg comfortingly but the feeling of the wet fabric against your skin just reminded you of how cold you were.

"We're soaked." He said with a smile that made you blush.

"I'll go get us dry clothes. You should come to the room; my bed's right over there." You say pointing over to the door that held most of the women's sleeping space. You hoped that no one would take issue with Javier being with you just for a while.

Once you were both dry and wearing fresh clothes you slumped down on the bed next to Javier. A candle had been lit to light up the small room, just enough to see each other. You were exhausted all of the sudden. The excitement of having the person who meant the most to you had taken a lot out of you. Your eyelids felt heavy but you still noticed Javier's gaze.

"What is it?" You asked. He shook his head fondly.

It wasn't anything new to catch Javier staring at you—though it was barely "catching" since he never tried to hide it. For a man with such an intense glare, one that made grown men tremble in fear, you loved his eyes on you. Javier was one of the most effortlessly intimidating men that you knew but when he stared at you with his eyes glazed over in pure adoration you felt nothing but entranced.

His hair was still damp, stray strands that weren't pulled back hanging over his umber eyes. You'd always loved his hair. He took better care of it than any of the other men in camp. He was always teased by Sean for it, for being too effeminate he'd say, but you were always quick to defend him.

You reached towards him and gently tugged away the piece of fabric that pinned back his hair. Neither of you broke eye contact as his hair fell, framing his face. You tucked a lock of it behind his ear and smiled softly.

"You look pretty with your hair down."

"Pretty hm?" He hummed. You could tell that there was something on his mind. He had just been through god knows what on some island you didn't even know existed of course he would be lost in his own head. You were selfish though, and desperate to join him wherever he was.

"What's on your mind, Javier?" You asked him nervously. You looked down at your fingers waiting for his response.

"Would it be cliche to say you?"

"Yeah," you giggled, "Unless it's true." Your eyes met again.

"What if it was?" He said. You felt the air in the room shift, "What if I haven't been able to stop thinking of you since you wandered into camp that day."

"I'd barely call it wandering. . ." You said shyly. The events that brought you to the gang always got you bashful. He got a kick out of seeing you get all flustered when he mentioned it; he did so often.

"It was one of the most important days of my life—meeting you. I don't think I could live another day without you being mine, amor."

"What are you saying?" You said dumbly. Your heart speeds up like you've been running. You're almost scared he can hear the rapid beats from where he's sitting right next to you. You sit up completely, bringing your knees up to your chest.

"When I was in Guarma. . . I was captured by some very misled men." He said. You could tell that he was simplifying the story for your sake, as he often did when telling you about his experiences he felt you couldn't handle hearing about. Maybe he was right, he knew how much you worried.

"You know, I really didn't know if I was going to make it. I've feared for my life countless times, no es nada. But being over there," He shakes his head at the memory. Your hands touch then. Yours on top of his, rubbing your thumb over the back of his hand is soothing patterns in the same way he'd done for you on restless nights.

"It was different. Being surrounded by strange men in a strange place, not knowing if I would ever see my family again—you again. It made me think of how life. . . es frágil. I can't bear to think of leaving this earth without letting you know how I feel about you." The candle at the bedside was growing weak, the warm light illuminated Javier's face enough for you to make out the sincerity in his expression. He was silently begging for you, and you were in no position to deny him.

"I love you so much that it drives me insane sometimes," You say with a hollow chuckle, "I really do, Javier."

He leaned in slowly and without thinking you found yourself doing the same. His eyes were dark with lust as he lingered at your lips. Whenever he kissed you for the first time you knew that there was nothing you wanted more than to be his forever. It was immediate, suddenly feeling like the most obvious thing in the world. He placed a hand at the small of your back pressing you closer to him as he stroked his tongue against yours. You ached for him. Following his lead, your brain melted into a slow repetition of more, more, more.

"I've wanted you. . ." He says, taking a breath against your throat; you shiver at the sensation, "For longer than you know."

"Like this?" You ask pulling away from him to meet his eyes.

"Oh, mi amor, no tienes idea," He says with a look of mischief, "Maybe I'll get us a room for the night soon? So I can have you properly." You nodded, too lost in your daze of love and lust to properly respond.

"Yeah. . ." You said breathlessly, leaning your head against his chest.

"Yeah?" He says with a chuckle. Your face feels hot and your chest is rising at a rate that gives away just how out of it you are. He's pined over this moment for too long, it barely feels real. You feel so safe in his arms knowing that he's just as smitten for you as you are for him. Even with everyone else daring to walk in at any moment, you cuddle up to him even closer. "Eres tan hermosa, can't believe you're mine, mi amor." He says, slipping in and out of his native tongue as he often does when he's passionate about something. There's something light and dreamy stirring in your mind that you can tell you won't be able to shake for days. His hand stroking against your hair feels like the beginning of forever, wherever that leads you both.

[soupbabe]

THEO!! I don't think ive ever sent you a request before! But I had this idea and you're the first person that popped into my mind for it. I wanted to request a platonic lost boys fic or some hcs where the reader is basically like best friend to all the boys. If you're not down just let me know, no worries!! <3 LUV YOOOOOOU

Platonic! Lost Boys + Reader Headcanons

HI SLAASHER <33 THANK U SM FOR SENDING A REQUEST, ESPECIALLY ABOUT MY FAV BOYS !! ILYSM

Tagging: @rottent33th, @the-pinstriped-hood, @devil-doll13

- Regardless of Max's intentions, the boys have a natural brotherhood among each other. They live their lives supporting each other through their unconventional lifestyle

- So being friends with them means so much more than you might think. They're letting you into their small found family, you're a lost boy whether you want to or not

- An important note to remember when being their friend is that absolutely nothing is sacred. The boys are agents of chaos

- They love causing a scene, they love doing mind tricks, they'll push you to your limits because it's all in good fun to them

- But I do think that if you have specific boundaries and you hammer it into them, they'll respect it. You're not just some guy like Michael, you're their friend !!

- They share anything and everything with each other

- Literally if Marko takes your clothes, you will have to fight him to get it back. And you will not be getting it back all in one piece

- Sometimes he returns it to you and it's a completely new garment, with new embellishments and trimmed down or with added fabric to make it just his size.

- David is also the absolute worst when it comes to taking your things too. Especially when you're human.

- Complain and ask him to get it back? He's flying up above you and placing it on a high ledge, telling you that if you want it so bad that you should go up and get it already.

- Don't worry he'll give it back to you when you start forgetting that he even had it

- Oh yeah the boys are very touchy and affectionate with each other

- Expect friendly punches to the shoulders, sharing a motorcycle with the boys, and hugs.

- Paul shares his love through touch, he's the biggest hugger out of everyone

- He loves laying his head on everyone's shoulder and cuddling welcomes you to do the same to him

- Another very important value is that no one gets left behind, they all protect each other and you have to be willing to put up a fight for them

- Whether verbally or physically, you'll have to back them up

- Dwayne isn't that much of an active defender like Marko or Paul, but he uses his intimidating aura to ward off people who are bothering you.

- Literally ever since I got this request I've been thinking about you defending Laddie and Dwayne and that was the moment he decided to let you be his friend

- You all are a very tight knit group of people. There's an "us against the world" vibe with the Lost Boys and they take that sentiment to heart

- Once you become one of them, you get a family for a lifetime ♡

[itsscatballou]

The Shower

a/n - I am nearing the end of season 6 in my rewatch, and this idea has been stuck in my head since ep. 12 in season 5. I am hyper-fixated on Daryl right now, and I am hoping writing these will get him out of my system!

Daryl x reader (female anatomy described)

Summary: Daryl needs a shower, and you encourage him to take one... with you.

Warnings: smut, 18+ only, m x f, p in v, fingering, stroking, unprotected sex, mentions of loss, killing, hunting

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Daryl had not said much to you, or anyone really, since you joined the group. They took you in a few weeks back, when you stumbled across an old church they were hiding in. You'd learn to read them all pretty quickly (you were good at that), trying to figure out how to fit in this tight-knit group.  It was clear they were all hurting. They’d lost a safe place recently, you’d been told. They’d lost people when it fell and they got separated, and since joining them, you’d seen them lose more. Sasha had lost her brother and her boyfriend; Abraham had lost a mission (you still needed to figure out what that was about). You were there when Maggie learned she’d lost her sister. That one seemed to hit hard for everyone in the group, especially for Daryl, you’d noticed.

You didn’t mind that Daryl didn't talk much, it was nice in the moments you found yourself alone with him (which seemed to happen more than not). It was not expected that you'd talk about your past, nor did you expect him to talk about his. You both liked it that way. It seemed to gravitate you both to each other – this silent understanding that you’d both lost people, and keeping to yourself was protection. So, you didn’t fully understand who Beth was to Daryl, but you did understand that he was hurting. For some reason, you could not shake the desperate urge to help him - to fix the hurt - or at the very least distract him from it. And now, seemingly safe in this miraculous compound, safe behind the big walls of what they called Alexandria, he seemed more on edge than anyone. Even Rick - which was saying something. You needed to help him. Watching Daryl sulking in a corner on the front porch while everyone dispersed to explore and get to know our new home, you overheard a conversation that gave you an idea.

“Have you taken a shower yet?” you heard Carol ask him.

“Mmhmm,” you heard him respond, obviously a lie. You could write “wash me” in the dirt and filth accumulated on his skin.

“Take a shower. I’m gonna wash that vest. We need to keep up appearances, even you,” Carol firmly suggested to him as she walked away to meet neighbors and begin her assigned job in the community. You heard Daryl mumble a response; you assumed he declined the shower when you heard Carol retort that she would hose him down in his sleep.

The house was empty now, as you made your way to the porch. This was a bold plan, you knew that. Your heart was pounding in your chest just thinking it through, but you had little doubt it would work. You’d had weeks on the road with this crew, and as time marched, you’d found yourself with Daryl more and more, both of you finding excuses to be alone. Excuses like scouting ahead together, or hunting together when you were all desperate for a meal. You’d become almost friends, and you were confident you could read him well enough to know how he’d respond to this. You hoped.

“Hey,” you drawled as you approached the archer on the porch, cleaning his crossbow. He looked up at you in a silent greeting. “Can I show you something?” you asked, tilting your head toward the door to indicate it was inside. You saw Carol look back at both of you as he put down his weapon and followed you inside.

You lead him upstairs, and through what was presumably the primary bedroom of the house, into the large attached bathroom. “Ya need ta show me somethin’ in the bathroom?” he asked suspiciously as you took his hand and lead him further in.  

“You trust me, right?” you asked him, looking in his eyes, not letting go of his hand. He held your stare for a moment before responding, “yeh, I guess.” Your eyes traveled to his lips and lingered there for a moment, and you could feel tension building in the room. You moved in slowly, meeting his eyes again as you got closer, and lightly kissed him on the lips. He tensed. You pulled back just a hair, searching his eyes for what he could be thinking, your breath mingling with his, and went in for a second kiss. This time, he returned the kiss. Both of you gentle at first, and then both seeming to get hungrier for it. You pushed your tongue against his lips and he opened, letting you in. He pushed your tongue back with his and made his way into your mouth, his hands moving to your waist and pulling you in close as he devoured you.

Yes. This was going to work.

You smiled a bit against his mouth, and teasingly pulled away from the kiss, backing up toward the large walk-in shower. You opened the glass door, and leaned in to turn the water on. Returning to Daryl, you ran your hands up his chest from his abdomen, slipping your hands under the shoulders of his vest and removing as it as your mouth found his again. Your hands moved to his shirt, slowly unbuttoning each one from the top.  He pulled back from the kiss to look at you, searching your face for a clue as to what you were thinking. A sultry smile made its way to the corner of your mouth as you grabbed your shirt at the hem, and took your shirt and bra off in one sweeping motion. He stared at your breasts for a moment, taking in the way they heaved as you breathed in and out quickly, the humidity from the steam and the passion of the moment quickening your breath.

That was all he needed – he quickly removed his shirt, shoes, and pants while you did the same, and then he nearly ran to close the distance between you and cover your mouth with his again. You could feel his length pushing against your stomach as your kisses grew sloppy. With one of his hands wrapped around your waist, and one tangling his fingers through your hair, you could already feel the heat growing in your core, wetting you. You smiled against his mouth again, and moved away from him. “Hang on a sec,” you said, a bit out of breath, as you bent over and collected the discarded clothes on the floor. You moved toward the door, tossed the clothes out, and shut and locked the bathroom door behind you. As you turned, you saw a discouraged look leaving Daryl’s face, and changing his expression to a ravenous one.

You grabbed his hand again as you moved past him into the shower, and standing under the steaming stream of hot water, pulled him against you again. You both quickly resumed your hungry kisses, and as the water washed some of the dirt away from Daryl’s face and neck, you followed the clean path with your mouth. Moving to his chin, then his neck, and slowly to nibble his ear. He groaned, and it was all you could do to keep from jumping on his hard member right then, but you wanted to make this last. You kept nibbling as you reached your hand down and found his shaft, and gently began pulling and stroking it. He responded by pushing you toward the wall and finding your lips with his again. You bit his bottom lip slightly and you stroked longer, and watched as his eyes rolled back in his head slightly. He moved his kisses down your neck and lingered there as he lifted your leg and placed it around his hip.

He held your leg there with one hand, gripping and kneading your thigh and his other hand slowly swept down your side to the front of your stomach, and further. He slowly cupped his hand when he reached your opening, and began sliding his fingers up and down, and in circular motions within your folds. He grunted deeply as he felt the slick that had built for him there. Slowly, he inserted a finger and began rubbing your clit in and out of your opening. You moaned, and then again, as he inserted a second finger, still sucking and kissing your neck. One of your hands slightly clawing his back in response, the other combing through the hair at the base of his neck, you pulled his hair slightly until his head titled backwards and you could feel the water of the shower soaking through his hair. He groaned as you pulled his hair again, and you could no longer stand it. You needed him inside you. Now.

You pulled his hair with one hand as your other hand pushed him backwards, until his legs touched the built-in, tiled bench at the other end of the shower, and he sat. With the warm water streaming down your back, you placed your knees on either side of his thighs, and looked down. His member at its full length now, you gulped at the size of him. You looked into his eyes, and grinned wickedly. He raised an eyebrow in question at you, as you used your hand to guide his tip to your entrance, and slowly sank down onto his cock. He filled you completely, and you had to take your time moving further down as you adjusted to his length. When you had him sheathed to the hilt, you met his eyes with yours again, tangling your fingers into his hair, and began rocking your hips back and forth. You watched as his eyes rolled back in his head again, as you rocked deeper. Your eyes never leaving his, you picked up the pace and felt your orgasm building already. You closed your eyes, throwing your head back and groaning as you ground your hips more and more. You felt his head lean forward and his mouth find the top of your breast. He slowly made his way down your breast with his lips until he found your nipple, and began sucking hard. Your moan was deep and loud in response. He nipped a bit with his teeth, and you felt the build of your orgasm reaching its peak. He sucked again, and thrust upwards with his hips, hitting a spot inside you that you weren’t expecting, and you felt your release shatter you. You gasped and cried out as you came, your arms shaking as your hand stroked his hair.

You felt him grin against your breast as he slowly stood, raising his mouth to yours again, and turning you until your back was pressed against the glass shower wall. He held your thighs around his waist as he began pumping into you, his movements becoming harder and faster, frantic as he chased his own orgasm. He leaned his head against your neck, and you felt his hot breath and he gasped and moaned. You clawed your fingers down his back as he continued grinding into you, making you see stars as the length of him hit every wall inside you. You could hear the wet sound of him thrusting in and out of you, in and out, slamming into you and making the glass wall shake. You felt his movements stutter a bit, and felt him twitch inside you as he let out a low roar, pumping hard two more times before spilling his seed inside you. You both froze there, panting and grinning, both coming down from your orgasms.

When he finally set you back down on your feet, your legs wobbled a bit as you moved to the shampoo, and offered it to him. You spent the rest of the shower cleaning yourselves and trying to get your breath back, shyly stealing glances at each other. When you were both done and drying yourselves with the soft, fluffy towels you found in a cabinet, Daryl broke the quiet.

“Wha’ was that for?” he asked you, not meeting your eyes.

“What do you mean?” you asked back.

“Ya brought me straight up here an’ started that outta nowhere. Why?”

“You mean other than because I wanted to?” you replied, “I guess because I knew you needed it. A release, I mean. You’ve been pent up and tense since...” you trailed off, not wanting to mention Beth’s name, “and it seemed like letting you blow off some steam might help.” And after a beat, you added, “and I didn’t want Carol to hose you off in your sleep.”

You heard him let out a breath like a chuckle, before adding, “I needed it, too, Daryl. I needed you.”

You met his eyes and you could read it there, a thank you. And something else behind it, was it affection?

He moved toward the door and peaked out. “Wha’ the hell? Our clothes ‘er gone.”

“Good. I was hoping Carol caught on and would grab them,” you reply back with a sinister smile.

“What ‘er we ‘spose to do now?” he asked, indignant.

“Well, you can sit in this bathroom wrapped in your towel until she comes back with clean clothes, or you can leave the towel in here with mine, and we can go into that bedroom and find some ways to pass the time,” you said with a wink, dropping your towel and sauntering past him into the bedroom.

He watched you for a moment, his eyes raking up and down your naked form, before dropping his towel and following after you.

[renegade-diamonds]

Hellooo i'm here for your daily dosis of omegaverse ronance, today thinking about Robin being the only omega of the fruity four, with the other three all being alphas - the joke tells itself. I'm thinking about an Eddie lives AU in which the three of them become a tight-knit group and do everything together as friends, even before Nancy and Robin get together. It's eye-catching, to say the least, because when I say they do everything together, I mean it. They basically have no friends outside each other in school, outside all the traumatized nerds, ages between 11 and 15, that are more or less related to them. To say Eddie is the most "popular" one of the four, as leader of the Hellfire club with at least two or three other friends there, says a lot. You get a dad of seven, an autistic lesbian who made her first friend at age 17, an alleged satanist accused of murder and a nerd who tries to pretend she's not a nerd and fails, all of which became social outcasts in their own ways.

So when people see them hang out - three alphas and one omega - they point and snicker and spread horrible rumors about all the different ways in which Robin's friends "help her" in her heats, and whether or not she returns the favor for each of them during ruts. It's a constant reminder of how much everything has changed since she presented. She can't even hang out with her friends in peace. She wants to be a wallflower again.

It doesn't help that a little bit of their scent always lingers on her from spending so much time together, or that Nanch keeps scenting her the way mates do every day as soon as they get to school so now she just smells of Unidentified Alpha most of the time.

The first time someone makes an implication to her face, she ends up having a panic attack in the bathroom and refusing her friends' help. So what if the four of them were in an empty classroom with the door locked? They were discussing Upside Down matters, but of course, that's not something they could tell people about. And the fact that Robin was visibly at the beginning of her heat was just coincidence (she couldn't afford to skip classes with the exams coming).

She never - never - thought she'd be called a slut in school. She expected people questioning her on why she never dated anyone, not for sleeping around too much - which she doesn't do, anyway! At least before they didn't like her for who she was, but this isn't even who she is, at all. And it only gets worse when she tries to tell the school authority and they just scold her for being alone in a room with three alphas when she's clearly beginning her heat. And then they call her parents, and her parents give her the yelling of her life and take away her bicycle and Robin just wants to scream because she did nothing wrong, and she still needs to get to the library to study for the exams, and discuss Upside Down business, and now she's just missing Nancy specifically a lot.

It's like torture because she actually feels so safe and content with her friends most of the time. It's a mix of feeling perfectly accepted and valued and her insticts telling her she's well-protected. But then someone will make a gross comment and shame her for feeling this way, and she's almost scared of going out again and be seen with them. I imagine that, highschool being highschool, alphas will group with alphas, omegas with omegas, etc and any mixing between the groups will imply something sexual in the middle.

She gets so sick of it that at one point, she asks Nancy to stop scenting her, and makes sure to wash her scent off all of her clothes and return the scarf she gave her, in hopes that it will stop the bullies at least a little. It kinda breaks Nancy's heart, and she hates the idea of Robin going around unprotected, because as humiliating as some people make it to be, at least it was a way of telling the world she had an alpha looking out for her. But the way Robin looks at her with tears in her eyes is just too much, and she finds herself accepting, hoping she'll be able to keep an eye on her from afar.

Ok, but imagine Nancy finding out what's been going on, or over hearing other students taunting Robin.

For all Nancy cares, it's open season once she finds out what the school admin did to Robin when she tried to report the harassment. She wants to expose the school's negligence towards bullying and omega's students safety. Nancy ends up calling in a favor with Murray who invites them to come over to do a few interviews for the expose.

As you might suspect, he sniffs out their weird quasi-relationship dynamic right off the bat. He clocks the way Robin sticks to Nancy's side in this unfamiliar environment within five minutes, and he spots the tells of Nancy's over-protectiveness of the omega the very first instance in which Robin's nerves visibly flared up.

Oh yeah, these two were right on the cusp of something new and Murray was going to make sure they realized it.

[changanomaly]

an assortment of unorganized total drama headcanons I have (some probably contradict the timeframe when the td timeline takes place in but whatever):

Courtney and Heather pretend to have refined taste in music but blast Mitski full volume when they're alone

Heather and Harold are still actually really great friends after TD and find that they have a lot in common. Exhibit A: Their MLP phases

Noah's 15th birthday gift from his mother was a Miku binder. Also yes Noah's transmasc keep scrolling

Izzy, Eva, Owen, Noah and Emma are all in a polycule and currently live in a big apartment. (for more info um here)

Prior to it, they'd been kicked out of 4 consecutively for 2 straight months due to a fire break out from an 'undetectable source'. Surprisingly none of them were caused by Izzy, but Owen repeatedly cooking/reheating food at 3 in the morning

The ROTI cast in comparison to the rest of the casts are incredibly tight knit and go out of their way to meet up and keep in contact with each other. Anne Maria and Dawn are definitely the mom friends of the group.

Scott can be slimy, but he sure do loves his family a whole lot, and even though there's a lot of them, they're all really close. Initial reasoning to going back on TDAS was to help them cover what the entire family had given to get him to recover from being attacked by Fang

After a recording of a season is over (other than TDI), all contestants- former, current, the ones who aren't arrested- are all invited to stay at Playa Des Losers for a week (a shitty excuse to get all generations of cast members to interact to each other in my head...why yes)

The pinnacle of wealth to Scott was watching Shrek the Musical live and his first thought in what to do with the million in ROTI after the vague idea of investing in stocks was to bring all his family (and briefly in TDAS as a date with Courtney) to watch it

Duncan has a soft spot for Izzy. She's one of the only people who visit him while he's in prison. She drags along Team E-scope (+ Owen and Emma) to her visits sometimes

Shawn's first exposure to zombie related media was Plants vs Zombies. He has several sunflowers, pea plants, potatoes and a couple of walnut trees outside of his house that he says will mutate alongside the zombie virus pandemic to protect him. He owns and plays a lot of zombie video games in general alongside his huge collection of zombie movies and other zombie related media- other than PVZ, his favorite's The Last of Us

At Playa, Courtney and Gwen talk. It's one of the rare times Courtney owns up to her faults genuinely. And she tries to do the same thing with Scott but she can't bring herself to knock on his door. The prospect of things turning out like Duncan- even vaguely- made her blood grow cold.

Jo, Lightning and Brick meet Sky while they're hanging at Playa after the TDPI finale and chat her up while she seemed really down abt it all. After some chatting, a bit of insults thrown (thanks Jo), Brick's understanding sympathy, seldom seen empathy from Lightning, and a lot of racing and competing with each other, they become quite close. They keep in contact with each other afterwards- which is more than Sky can say about most of her relations on her own cast.

Speaking of; Sky keeps in contact with Ella, Jasmine (and since they're kind of a package deal, Shawn), oddly enough- though they weren't in the same team and didn't talk much on the island- Sammy, even more oddly enough Beardo- who she finds out just had a hard time opening up, and most oddly enough Leonard- who she finds out doesn't actually think he's a wizard and was just playing up one of his characters since he wasn't skilled in much anything else and wanted to see how far he got into the show with his whole wizard act. He even went out of his way to try it again alongside his friend Tammy in TDRR.

The small group does online DND campaigns that Sky occasionally joins in on in between juggling Olympic training, but they're mostly dominated by Sammy, Ella, Shawn, Beardo and some of Leonard's irl friends. Leonard DMs.

Eva knows how to crochet. Beth finds out in one of the Aftermath shows backstage, and they actually bond together over it. Well, after Eva threatens to kill her if she tells anyone

Courtney's really into musical theatre (won't admit to it but love West Side Story and Heahers). So are Mike (who's fav musical is Les Mis and Hadestown) and Ella (duh) (her favorite musical is Robert and Hammerstein's Cinderella)

Ella and Gwen are close cousins (as seen in TDR, but is otherwise not canon), and most are kind of shocked to find out. Ella would often bring up how Gwen would always gladly play the Evil Queen to her Princess when they were younger, where Gwen would retort by bringing up how bad Ella's tantrums were when she didn't agree.

The Best Friends subplot was scripted. Carrie is a lesbian, and Devin's aroace. A couple of d-list actors who also coincidentally are best friends

The Drama Network (as I'll call it) gets sued hard after Pahkitew airs. Not only for what happened in the season but a lot of prior incidents that weren't brought up in court- like Dakota's mutation, Scott being attacked by Fang, and the general endangerment of minors that happened in ROTI. Ditto with Pahkitew. Since TD was still a big hit, it didn't make much of a dent with the Network but still made it so they were weary of bringing the show back- which is why there hadn't been a new season for more than a decade in universe

[theendwhereibegin]

The One Where We Lost A Friend

Shock doesn't even begin to explain how I feel right now, how the world feels right now.

His struggles, while as real as anything can get, were hidden so well. We only saw him laughing, joking, and making sacrastic remarks on our TV's as our beloved Chandler Bing, but behind all that, the man, Matthew Perry was battling his demons on a daily basis.

These are the sort of battles we all go through at some point in our lives, but we will never understand how hard it is to do this while in the public eye.

I always connected with both versions of him because, at the end of the day, his struggles were so palpable. The eyes never lie, no matter how hard you try to show the world a happier version of you.

FRIENDS, was always my comfort show, and it always will be, even if it will be a little bit harder on an emotional level to watch it now.

When I felt alone and misunderstood, the 6 of them were my friends as well and made me feel like I belonged.

Without even knowing it, one of them was to become the most important one as years went by, because without even knowing he made me fall in love with the idea that somehow, some day I will too find my true love, just like he had Monica, even if I felt like no puzzle piece will ever fit my way of being. Chandler taught me never to give up.

I grew up being awkward and always used humour as a way of socialising because I had no clue how to do that without stumbling on my own words. I used sarcasm to mask the fact that I felt maybe a bit uncomfortable in some situations. I was the one that everyone else relied on when times got hard because I used to brush it off and carry on.

As I somehow morphed into an adult, I realised just how important Chandler became as, without planning it, I was always looking for a guy who had his personality. I always dreamt of having someone with an amazing sense of humour, sarcam, and a whole lot of love to give. I might have manifested my fiance for my whole life while watching Chandler on my TV.

All of them were important to me, and looking at my tight-knit group of friends, I can honestly say that FRIENDS shaped my life in more ways than one. Simply by watching it, my subconscious manifested the people I hold dear to my heart today, and what a beautiful thing that is.

I am heartbroken. I feel like one of my own has passed away. I feel like I lost a friend, one of my best friends.

He has helped so many of us smile and feel at ease with who we are, and I don't even think he knew it. Growing up watching this TV show has shaped me into who I am today. I am Monica, Ross, Phoebe, Chandler, Joey, and Rachel, all rolled into one, in no particular order. A whole generation is them, and they will forever be us.

Rest in peace, Matthew. You'll forever be missed. We'll try to carry on your legacy by showing future generations the show that shaped us, made us laugh, cry, and scream with joy. We'll make future generations fall in love with our Chandler Bing.

[gray-morality]

We’re up to no good, ya want in?

■ Datacenter | Crystal – Balmung

■ Playtime | Approx. 6 pm to 10 pm EST

■ You must be 21+ | Mature themes RP

This is a rather specific kind of LFRP post. The goal is to find 2 or 3-ish (or more, who knows!) people to RP and plot with (alongside with my RP partner).  I (we) are open to plot or event ideas, character hooks, pre-established relationships/rivals, you name it. What we’re looking for:

Thavnair-centric - It doesn’t matter if your character is not Thavnairian or spend times outside the region; tbh our own “adventures” take us outside this nation regularly, but we always come back to Thavnair or, more specifically, we work FOR (the betterment of) Thavnair.

Morally gray - Don’t mistake this for evil; However, we’re not completely good either. Sometimes you have to bend the law, or walk carefully under it, in order to survive (or become the lesser of two evils). We try to help others, or ourselves, but life has a way to hand out lemons by the crates and making lemonade ain’t cheap.

Flight before fight - We tend to play more like civilians and a lot of our stories revolve around white collar crime. Not that our characters can’t handle being in a fight, but if it comes to that (and if the opportunity is there) I know of at least one of us that will try to run for it before engaging in combat >_>;;;; *cough* Hunting beasts and monsters, however, is something else entirely.

Lore compliance, realism and low power - This is our brand. We don’t want people who can solve everything single-handedly, who have enough IC wealth to buy off a whole residential district and pull all the favors, or can heal everything with the snap of their fingers. Where’s the fun in that? We like to eat dirt, chew it and spit it out (not for all three meals mind you, it lacks proteins).

Love for writing - And we mean that in the broadest possible way. It includes plotting, writing events and stories for our characters. They can be very centric to one or many characters - we’re all about character development - or to a group (we have Jijivisha). If you just want to sit and enjoy the chocobo ride, look elsewhere, ‘cause we ain’t even got any chocobos.

The small prints

■  Our RP style is turn-based para/multi-para and, speaking for myself, I’m not especially a fast typer AND English is not my native tongue (so I sometimes get stuck on a word or another and it gives 5 more minutes of waiting on my post xD)

■ We RP mature themes; and by that we don’t mean hosting orgies every weekend. As we roleplay characters of gray morality and part of the criminal world, harsh language and swearing (especially Fakhri), gambling (ehh Fakhri’s bread and butter lol), heavy use of alcohol (coughtFakhricough), smoking legal and not so legal substances (Guess who?), drugs (Starts with an F) and violence are all part of that package. We obviously respect people’s boundaries if a topic is sensitive for them. Also if you haven’t noticed, Fakhri is trash and Seda is the more respectable of the two.

■ No Discord RP. Multiple factors at play with this decision and, while there are very rare exceptions, just assume it’s not happening.

If you read through all of this, consider me amazed xD

This may all seem like a lot but me and my partner are actually quite laid back. We’re both adults with a career and obligations and we know what it is to get home tired, or not having the energy nor the time for the game on any given day, or week. This is why we highly value good communication and we respect each other’s time. Now, why only seek 2 or 3-ish people to RP with? We firmly believe in quality before quantity and, hopefully, having a tight-knit group is all we’ll need to weave stories and have fun. Think of it as a tabletop group of friends. As a final note, me and my partner both enjoy the PVE aspect of the game so if that’s something you enjoy as well, bonus kudos to you and let’s climb HoH already!

Also, liking rats is mandatory.

Fakhri Man’tik

■ alcohol, fogweed and gambling. Leaving the Primeval Forests behind, only to wake up one day in a dark alley, between a pile of trash and a rat. Even the cards couldn’t have foretold that he’d take that wrong turn, right into a world of crime, taking some of humanity’s vices as his own. But it seems the spirits (or a rat) took pity on him after all...

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

CAARD | https://fakhrimantik.carrd.co/>

TUMBLR | https://gray-morality.tumblr.com/

Seda Ballard

■ bad decisions, ambition and wanderlust.  Making a name for herself as a walking encyclopedia of Eorzean tariffs, imports, duties and taxes - and how to avoid paying them - her ink-stained fingers dancing through many account books. The path can be quite dark when one has no qualms where the money comes from. Good thing she met with someone who can hold a lantern to light the road ahead…

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

CAARD | https://catscratching.carrd.co/

TUMBLR | https://catscratching.tumblr.com/

[heimdallsbraids]

Blood of Mine | Ch. 2 (Heimdall x fem!reader)

Summary: Life is pretty simple. Survive the harsh conditions of Fimbulwinter in Midgard, trade with your dwarven friends in Svartalfheim and – avoid the shit out of Odin’s most loyal lapdog? If word reaches the All-Father about your blood-bending origins, you’re doomed… (Hints of Avatar: TLA, but not a crossover)

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Profanity, mentions of death

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Chapter Two: The Offer

As much as you hated it, shivering underneath layers upon layers of clothing was becoming second nature to you as you slowly plodded your way across the frozen Lake of Nine with two freshly caught rabbits slung over your shoulder. It was a lot less than what you wanted – no, expected – from today’s hunt, but it’s not like you would’ve been able to hike a deer all the way back to camp without your sled.

Thanks to your father, he’d all but given it away to a couple of raiders during your last visit to Svartalfheim, ultimately leaving you with no form of transport around Midgard. No form of transport meant a hell of a lot more work for you to keep the trade afloat.

“Sure, Dad. Just donate the sled. I mean, why the Hel would we need that piece of crap anyway?” You mumbled under your breath. “Should’ve just stayed in Niðavellir and worked for Durlin full-time – perhaps toss a cup of mead in that stupid Aesir prick’s face the next time he visits.”

Several weeks had gone by since your unfortunate run-in with Heimdall in Svartalfheim, and you hadn’t been back since. Durlin had become mighty antsy that another event like that would happen and had all but forbade you to return so as to let it blow over. You attempted to voice your protest by visiting the realm the very next day, but you only made it a few steps out of the mystic gateway before you were shoved right back in and sent on your merry way. You understood why he was being this way, but it didn’t make it any less frustrating.

He was one of the only souls who knew your mother, Randi, personally before she died. She was a powerful Valkyrie who served under the former queen Freya many years ago before she was killed in the midst of battle - or so you'd been told. You were only young when it happened, but it left a gaping hole in your heart that could never quite be filled.

Frankly, to this day, you have no idea how your father managed to land someone like her, but here you are - and wielding a dangerous power thought to no longer exist, at that: blood-bending. An extremely rare power it was; the ability to control a person or being from within, to tear them down from the inside as if they were nothing but a clump of wet sand. As far as you knew, your mother didn’t harness those same powers but rather passed them down through a long line of descendants – and even that was difficult to get a grasp on.

Unfortunately, this paints a giant red target upon your back for power-hungry people like Odin. If he were to get his hands on you, especially during this fragile window before Ragnarök, you and many others were doomed.

Luckily, no one but a tight-knit group of family and friends – including Durlin and Lúnda – knew of your circumstance, having taken an oath the moment your mother discovered the power flowing within your veins. But that didn’t make it impossible to find out if one dug deep enough. Hence, why you are lying low in Midgard under the guise of being a simple, mortal tradeswoman. With a few dwarven friends, of course. Your Vanir roots were practically non-existent to those who didn’t know you, and that was just the way you liked it.

“Dad?” You called upon making it to the cave where your crew had set up camp. Waving to the few who noticed your arrival, you quickly headed to where your shared tent was. You called out once more, basking in the warm glow of the fire outside, “Hey, you in there?”

A groan of ‘mm in ‘ere,’ was your only confirmation before the retching sounds began.

You grimaced, “Ugh… when is this ever gonna stop?”

As expected, there was no response to your jab, only more retching. The soft part of you considered heading inside and comforting him with some water and a small serving of soup to regain his strength, but that thought was immediately snuffed out the second you laid today’s excuse for a hunt on the makeshift bench near the tent.

Gonna have to go hunting tomorrow, too, you grumbled inwardly.

You set to work skinning and preparing the rabbits for the camp cook. It should suffice for a couple of days’ worth of rations if everyone spaced it out, but they weren’t exactly on the large side, so you weren’t holding your breath. You were in the midst of fixing up a flask of fresh water when a familiar voice floated through the camp.

Shock coloured your features once you spotted the culprit, “Durlin?”

He looked relieved to see you as he marched past a handful of curious locals, ignoring their puzzled expressions. He never visited the camp. Hel, even Midgard was a rare outing for him these days, the dwarf all too happy to stay nice and cosy in his home realm.

“How’s Björn?” He asked, finally reaching your workstation.

“Throwing up.” Your lips formed a thin line. “Now, why are you really here?”

“Straight to the point, eh?” He muttered, looking around before voicing lowly, “Something’s come up. I need you to come back with me.”

You folded your arms across your chest, quirking a brow at him. “I thought I wasn’t permitted.”

“I wouldn’t be asking if it wasn’t… urgent.” He pressed, glancing around once again. Come to think of it, he did look more rattled than usual.

“It can’t wait?”

He shook his head.

“… Fine,” you conceded. “You’re lucky I like you.”

He anxiously waited as you readied yourself, choosing to poke his head inside the tent to greet your dad. Disgust was written over his face as you finished packing your things and left the meat with the cook. The trek to the mystic gate felt longer than usual, your short friend barely uttering a word as he ushered you in.

“Are you going to tell me what’s happening, or are we playing some sort of guessing game?” You asked, blinking rapidly as your eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight of Svartalfheim.

“There’s someone who wants to meet you.”

“You’re being awfully cryptic, you know?”

His expression remained grim as he led you straight to the southern docks, bypassing his home and the safety office. A tall figure stood with their back to you, all on their lonesome as they observed the calm blue waves lapping at the jetty. A dark brown cape with green and gold accents flowed over their shoulders, granting them a mysterious air of superiority. Upon hearing your footsteps, they turned around. It was an older man you didn’t recognise. With an eyepatch.

You glanced down to Durlin. "The Hel?"

He only shook his head.

The confusion on your face must’ve been clear as day because he regarded you with a light chuckle.

“I’m sure you’re wondering why I’ve asked to meet you. The name’s Odin.” It suddenly felt like a stone was lodged inside your throat. He continued, “Your friend here tells me you’re struggling to make a living. Something about your father?”

“Yep.” You responded, narrowed eyes never once leaving Durlin’s, even as he looked anywhere else but at you.

Odin sidled forward, placing a gentle hand on the dwarf’s shoulder. “Now, now, no need for the hostility. Durlin was simply worried for your wellbeing.”

“Sure,” you offered, finally regarding the taller man with a forced smile. “But I’ve managed this long on my own. I’m sure I can hold out a little longer.”

He chuckled once again, “Determined. I like that.”

He placed his hands on his hips, a tiny grin stretched across his lips as he regarded the water once again. You couldn’t help but stare. For some reason, you’d had a grander image of the God painted in your head. Perhaps taller? Less old-looking even though he had centuries upon centuries on you.

“I wanted to offer you a place working with my merchants in Asgard, perhaps expanding the trade when the time is right. I’ve heard you’re pretty nifty in the kitchen, too. Lord knows Gladsheim could use a little shake-up with the food.”

Your mouth fell open. Just how much has Durlin blabbed about you? Here you were, weeks with no communication whatsoever between the two of you, and now all of a sudden Odin himself was inviting you back to Asgard with him? As a chef, no less?

No… this is bad news. I’ve got to stay away from him. You eyed the dwarf beside you once again. I’m gonna have a stern chat with this little shit as soon as-

Your chaotic train of thought was interrupted. “Having doubts? To sweeten the deal, I’m more than happy to discuss a working wage – with enough to send home for your father, of course.”

He had you there. Money was a constant problem over recent years, what with your father draining most of it away on his pick of poison. That, and his lack of assistance with the trade certainly didn’t help either.

You mulled it over carefully. He didn’t seem to know who you were other than the fact that you were a struggling Midgardian with Durlin as a friend. Perhaps it couldn’t hurt to give it a try - if only to get you and your father out of the sticks?

“I’ll give it a shot.” You agreed, but before he could say anything else, you added, “On one condition.”

“You name it.”

“I, uh, I could do with some new clothes. Mine are kind of…” you trailed off, scratching at the back of your neck in embarrassment.

“Consider it done,” he smiled, reaching over to place an arm on your shoulders. “Shall we head off then?”

Durlin’s worried face was the last thing you saw before you were enveloped in a dark flurry of screeching ravens.