#I’m having lots of dad!Bobby feels lately

[unrealisticlea]

Bobby really met Buck and was like “god I’m not his dad or whatever but if anything ever happened to him i’d kill everyone in this room and then myself…I wanna wrap him up in a blanket and make sure he’s never in danger again…I wanna give him a bodyguard…or a family to come home to…but I can’t do any of that so I’m gonna give him the next best thing”. And the next best thing was Eddie.

[talktomegooseman]

Baby baby

Ship: Bob Floyd x Fem! Reader

Word Count: 678

Warnings: pregnancy, mention of childbirth (nothing graphic)

Authors Note: Not Proofread. Feedback is always appreciated!

You hear the door open, and listen to the pitter patter of feet as your two kids go to greet their dad. Bob walks into the kitchen with Eloise on one hip, Eden on the other. “Hey mama. You been feelin ok?” He asks, putting the girls down, watching as they run to the living room and placing his hands on your protruding belly, feeling the taut skin. He looks at you with concern, knowing you were near your due date.

“Bobby. I’m fine. Elijah has just been kicking for the most part. Up until an hour ago…” you broke off, grimacing as a contraction rolls through you. “Babe. Why didn’t you call?” Bob asks, pulling you close, his hands kneading your lower back. “Because this is baby number three and knowing my luck he’s gonna be late anyways.” You reply, voice muffled by his shirt. “Given the fact that you’ve been having contractions for an hour, I think we’re gonna have ourselves a valentines baby sweetheart.” Bob says. He knew that with the girls it progressed fast and he had a feeling that it would be the same with this one.

You on the other hand, didn’t want to believe it. That is until things got more intense in the middle of the night. “Bob. Bob. Robert!” You whisper yell, shaking your husband awake. “Sweetheart?” “It’s time to go. I’ve called Reuben and Maria. They’re on their way over to watch the girls.” Bob got up with speed and precision that only a Naval officer could have, and helped you to your feet, grabbing a pair of sandals for you, slipping them on.

You leaned on your husband as he lead you to the car, having to stop a couple of times for a contraction to pass. You meet Reuben and Maria in the driveway and tell them to go inside. You knew the girls would be happy to see them come morning. The pair of them knew that they would be watched by them when you left.

Bob made sure you were in the car, and hopped into the driver seat and headed towards the hospital. “You ready for this sweetheart?” He asks, his hand in yours, rubbing circles with his thumb on the top of your hand. “About as ready as I can be. Are you? Last baby and all?” “Yeah. I am. I’m ready to meet my son.” He says, as he pulls into a parking stall nearest the entrance. He gently leads you into the building and gets you checked in.

“Mr. and Mrs. Floyd, good to see you!” your doctor says, walking into the delivery room, and begins the routine checks. “You too Dr. Draper.” You say with a grimace, as you feel a pop and a gush of fluid. “Right on time doc.” Bob says, as she laughs. “Let’s get this show in the road!” She announces, as your nurses enter the room ready to bring your son into the world.

A sharp cry filled the room at 1:30 AM and you slumped back against the pillow, chest heaving. “He’s here sweetheart. Elijah is here.” Bob says, tears in his eyes as your baby is placed on your chest. “Hi baby boy. I’m your mommy. This here is your daddy.” You say, voice thick with emotions, tears running down your face. “Happy Valentine’s Day Bobby.” “Happy Valentine’s Day sweetheart.” He says, kissing you, as Elijah is taken by a nurse who cleans him and takes his measurements. “Little man here has a good set of lungs, ten fingers and toes, and a whole lot of love.” Dr. Draper says, as she exits the room, leaving the three of you alone.

“Happy birthday Elijah Robert. We sure do love you.” Bob says, cradling the newborn in his arms, swaying gently. “We love you. Your aunts and uncles love you. Your big sisters love you. It’s right that Valentines is your birthday baby boy. You’re so loved.” You say, as Bob perches on the bed, relishing in the warmth and love you share.

[dotthings]

After rewatching 4.19 Jump the Shark, here's some thoughts on hunting, the making of personal connections, and what SPN is about.

As often happens with SPN, the characters themselves play out ruminations on these themes. I barely even have to write commentary.

DEAN What the hell was that? SAM What? DEAN 'Hunting is life. You can't have connections.' Dad gave you that exact same speech, remember? It was just before you ditched us for Stanford. You hated Dad for saying that stuff, and now you're quoting him? SAM Yeah, well, turns out Dad was right. DEAN Since when? SAM Since always. Dean, when I look at Adam, you know what I see? DEAN A normal kid. SAM No. Meat. Because the demons and monsters out there, that's all he is. I hated Dad for a long time. I did. But now I think I understand. So we didn't have a dog and a white picket fence. So what? Dad did right by us. He taught us how to protect ourselves. Adam deserves the same.

Notice how this severe idea that all they can have is this, nothing else, no friends (even friendships with other hunters is frowned upon, John was noticeably isolationist and distrustful and alienated his hunter friends who loved him, like Bobby), no love stories, nothing but the hunt, comes right from John's words.

Dean's shocked to hear it from Sam. In part because Sam always fought John about it and now Sam is quoting John, but in part it's because one of Dean's long arcs is rethinking a lot of John's ideas and finding his own identity outside of being John's shadow, or mimic.

In season 4, as Sam goes deeper and deeper under the influence of demon blood and Ruby's coaching, he goes colder and more ruthless and more remote, less like the Sam we know, and Dean notices more and more.

DEAN Listen to yourself, man. SAM You think I’m wrong? DEAN I think it's too late for us. This is our life. This is who we are, okay? And it's fine. I accept that. But with Adam, he's still got a chance, man. He can go to school. He could be a doctor.

Now it pulls back to Dean's resignation--but it's too late, the words are already out there with Dean questioning it. Too late for the audience not to notice.

While Dean doesn't expressly voice the idea that as hunters, maybe they don't have to sever all personal connections and turn off their hearts, it's self-evidently on Dean's mind. He doesn't see much hope for himself. That doesn't mean he isn't thinking it. And it's a very obvious part of the canon story for the run of the show.

As usual with SPN, two things can be true at once. Or there's a seed of truth but it's an incomplete truth. It is difficult to form and maintain connections in the hunting life, even with other hunters in the life. That doesn't mean Sam and Dean don't have any or can't have any. SPN self evidently shows they absolutely did, right along. Not just with each other.

Found family--the forging of connections, the human heart--is part of the life's blood of the story and always has been.

Dean in particular, throughout the series, has been adept at forming these connections and caring. He may at times try to shut himself away because it feels safer. The other people get less hurt. He'll get less hurt. But always he lets them in, he always cares.

It's easier with other hunters. People in the life with them, who understand that life.

John's narrow worldview of hunting, the ruthlessness, that's mirrored in Sam in this episode, and the idea that they can't have anyone else--isn't presented as the right answer.

Dean, as the series goes on, moves more and more into living the hunting life in a way that's by his own definitions, his own way, not his father's dictates. Despite the challenges of the hunting life. Dean makes his own rules.

We also see more instances of people in the hunting life who don't live by the extreme isolationist ideas of John Winchester. In fact, it turns out John was unusual and that hunters are sociable with each other, even if the life can be harsh and isolating. There's a hunting community. We only see glimpses of it early on because John kept Sam and Dean unusually isolated due to the circumstances of his particular quest, the YED.

But Sam and Dean are not their father. They forge their own path.

Most of all, SPN is a story about the connections that form between people--including the brothers, but not limited solely to the brothers.

SAM Dean...all this...it's not real. The dad Adam knew—he wasn't real. The things out there in the shadows—they are real. The world is coming to an end. That's real. Everything else is just part of the crap people tell themselves to get through the day.

You know what popped into my head when Sam said that? Dean's voice telling Cas in 4.22 -- You know what's real? People, families -- that's real.

Sam falls into a dark despairing mindset where all he can see is monsters and he is losing his heart. 4.19 ends on an ominous note

DEAN You know, I finally get why you and Dad butted heads so much. You two were practically the same person. SAM looks over. DEAN I mean, I worshipped the guy, you know? I dressed like him, I acted like him, I listen to the same music. But you were more like him than I will ever be. And I see that now. SAM I'll take that as a compliment. DEAN You take it any way you want.

Dean's coming to some realizations about his own hero-worship and imitation of his father, and seeing how he's not in fact, his father, no matter how much he fears it (or used to wish for it), and learning how much Sam is the one who is more like John than he is, despite Sam's lack of imitation and worship.

And without their friends who are like family, Sam and Dean aren't ever finding their way out of this thicket. They'd be lost, the world would be lost.

SPN is first and foremost about love.

[tip-top-cloud-surfer]

The President’s Son - Bob

Pairing: Bob / Fem!OC

Word Count: 1.6k

This work, all my works, and my entire blog are 18+ Only!

Warnings: Bodyguard AU; Sassy Bob; Threats of Violence; Referenced Past OC Death; Excess Sarcasm; Tension

Summary: Threats are made against Bob’s life. Venus is not looking forward to being a babysitter.

Master List

Being part of the First Family of the United States was not all that it was cracked up to be.

Constantly being watched and monitored and told what to wear, what to say, how to smile and wave was not what any kid wanted to deal with. And Bob might have been twenty-eight now, but he had been in the public eye practically his whole life, ever since his dad won a seat in the House of Representatives when he was eight years old.

And ever since then, Bob’s entire life revolved around his dad’s career.

Bob loved his dad, he really did. But there were some times when he just wanted to be able to go outside and be a normal human adult. There were times when he just needed his dad, not Rep. Floyd, or Senator Floyd, or President Floyd. Just regular old Bill Floyd. Husband, father of three, and a huge baseball fan. Bob needed that guy a lot of times over the last few years.

And Bob didn’t want the news sites—though Bob didn’t think that they qualified as “news” based on what they reported—talking about his glasses or his choice in tee shirts or God forbid that he, a legal adult, drink a beer while at a beach with his friends.

They stalked him when he was already pissed off with his day. They stalked him when he was grieving over his mom. They took photos of him as he consoled his sisters as their mother’s funeral. They tried to get him to talk about it a week after the fact.

He was sick of it. He was sick of the microscope. He was sick of all of it.

And a death threat—an actually credible death threat—really pushed him over the edge with it.

“Why the hell are they targeting me?” Bob demanded from his dad, getting up from his seat.

It was late at night in Washington DC and he had been picked up by the Secret Service from his private apartment and dragged over to the White House just an hour ago. They brought him straight to the Oval Office where his father—the President—and his father’s Chief of Staff were already waiting for him, both looking grim.

“It’s not like I have any political weight. I’ve announced publicly a thousand times that I don’t want anything to do with politics. So, why are they targeting me?”

“Hey, hey,” President Bill Floyd assured his son, walking over to him and grabbing his shoulders. “You’re going to be okay, Bobby. We’re taking this very seriously and we’re taking every precaution imaginable to make sure that you’re always safe.”

“That doesn’t answer my question,” Bob replied, trying to keep the tension out of his voice. “What the hell do they want with me? And I mean, are they going to go after Suzie too? Or Anna? I mean, should Grandma get into a bunker?”

“No, but everyone in our family will be seeing an increase in security,” Bill Floyd explained, somehow managing to remain calm. “And besides, Suzie and Anna still live here where they’re safe and where they’ll be looked after.”

“So, I’m just the unlucky bastard who got picked out?” Bob huffed, more than annoyed now.

“More than likely,” Tom Kazansky, the Chief of Staff, spoke up from his spot on the couch, “it’s about exposing weaknesses in your father’s administration and the security of the US government. You’re simply the easiest target on the list.”  

“Oh, gee, thanks, Tom, that makes me feel so much better,” Bob snapped sarcastically.

“He didn’t mean it like that,” Bill sighed, mediating between them. “It’s just that you don’t live here and your security isn’t as tight as everyone else’s. But that’s going to change right now.”

“How? You’re going to install cameras outside my door?”

“We’re sending you to a safe house,” Tom stated, causing Bob to whip around to face him.

“What?” he demanded, nearly hissing. Turning back to his dad, Bob’s brows furrowed. “I can’t leave DC. I have a life! I have friends! I have my degree and—”

“—All of which can take a brief pause until we’re sure that you’re safe,” Bill Floyd cut in, causing Bob’s jaw to clench shut with clear frustration.

“So that’s it then? I don’t have a choice?”

“Not if you want to live,” Tom continued, causing both Floyd men to shoot him near identical glares. “What I mean to say was that until we have identified and captured this threat, you will not be safe in your normal life. All you have to do is follow our steps and you’ll be safe, Bob.”

“And what steps are those exactly? Locking me up in some bunker?”

“A house,” Tom corrected, walking over to Bob.

“Where?”

“Montana.”

“Montana? What the fuck is in Montana?”

“The safe house,” Tom filled in, causing Bob to roll his eyes. “You and your bodyguard will remain in the safehouse until we catch the perpetrators. There may be certain events that you will need to show up for to give the American people some more confidence regarding the situation, but those will be thoroughly investigated and require my own personal approval."

"My bodyguard?” Bob repeated, clearly frowning. “I have a bodyguard?”

“A personal bodyguard. She’s an FBI agent hand picked by me and the Director.”

“Well, do you have a copy of her resume on hand? I might want to look through it,” Bob replied sarcastically, setting his hands on his hips.

“We’ve already sent Secret Service back to your apartment to pack your bags. You’ll need to hand over any devices that can be used to track you,” Tom continued, holding out his hand to Bob. When Bob glared defiantly back at him, Tom added, “Unless you want to compromise the safe house.” Begrudgingly Bob handed over his phone, which Tom stowed in his pocket for now. “Alright, you should be all set for your departure.”

“Which is when?”

“Tomorrow morning. 3:55 a.m., if you want to be specific.”

“Well, thanks for the heads up,” Bob muttered, glancing down at his watch. “Nearly a whole four hours.”

“Bobby,” Bill sighed, causing Bob to turn to his dad.

“What, Dad?”

“Everything is going to be fine. The operative assigned to you is one of the best of the best. And I’m sure that you’ll really get along with her.”

“Who is she anyways?” Bob asked, glancing between his dad and Tom.  

~~~~~

Venus did not work this hard to make it this far her career to become a babysitter.

She did not study all of those hours, train for all of those hours, pass every single test with flying colors and still crave for more, to end up as some over glorified babysitter to the First Son of America, as the stupid tabloids always called him, while the other agents in her squad got to arrest the dumbass with the gun who was threatening him.

“Why the hell am I up for the babysitter position?” she complained to Maverick as they walked quickly through the halls of headquarters. Maverick sighed and subtly increased his pace, but she kept up with him, fueled purely on spite. “Why can’t Seresin or Machado take it?”

“You blend in better than they do,” Maverick explained to her, leading the way down the stairs.

“That’s bullshit and you know it,” Venus stated bluntly, causing Maverick to sigh.

“It’s also because if it comes down to it, we can just play the girlfriend storyline and it will slip right under the radar,” Maverick stated, taking the stairs two at a time. Venus was right behind him. “And that’s only if he needs to make a public appearance.”

“So, not only am I his babysitter, but I’m his fake girlfriend too?” Venus complained, throwing her arms up in the air. “Anything else?”

“No, that should cover it.”

Maverick pulled out a thick file from his bag and handed it over to Venus, who took it quickly. She flipped the folder open and read through the front page as Maverick turned back to her. He tapped the top of the pile, causing Venus to shoot him a glare.

“These are your orders. Everything that you need to know to complete your mission. Including your alias and backstory that we’ve already put in place for you. You have the next,” Maverick paused to glance at his watch, “. . . two hours to memorize it, which is when the two of you head out to Montana.”

“Why Montana?” Venus asked, closing the folder.

“Because no one goes to fucking Montana,” Maverick stated bluntly as a black armored SUV pulled up in front of them. “And that’s the chosen safe house.”

“So, I’m stuck in the middle of nowhere with the president’s son posing as his fake girlfriend, but really acting as his babysitter? That’s my assignment?”

“Have fun,” Maverick replied, slipping into the car. “And play nice.”

“Aye, aye, Captain,” Venus muttered, sarcastically saluting him in return.

Watching Maverick drive off, most likely to the White House to brief the President’s son on this shitshow, Venus frowned and kicked the sidewalk with her shoe. She didn’t work this goddamn hard to end up as some babysitter to some rich kid who probably never had to work for anything in his life. The First Son of the US. The Golden Boy or whatever they called him.

Great. It was all just great.

[fangirlingfromdownunder]

Shaken Comfort at a Playground

Summary - Part 54 in the Comfort series

Pairing - Dean Winchester x Reader, Reader x Sam (platonic), Reader x Bobby (father-figure), Andre (OG Character) x Reader (best friends), Garth x Bess, Sam x Eileen

Series Masterlist | Masterlist

A/N: I’m so sorry guys! I’m quite late today, but we still got there, eventually. I hope you enjoy, and as always: Thank you all so much for your continued support!

You and Dean sit on a park bench close to the playground as you encourage Destiny to play with the other kids. 

“What if I don’t fit in? I’m not normal. What if they can tell?” Destiny says as she starts to tear up and she grips your arm.

You pull her up onto your lap. “It’s okay, Sweetie. Just introduce yourself and say you’re new to town. Just be nice and follow their lead. You’re alright. Sure your diet is a little different, but in most other ways you’re a normal little girl.”

Dean stands up and holds his hand out to her. “Come on, you ever tried a swing?”

She shakes her head as she looks at you as if asking for permission. “Go on. Have fun.” You smile as she takes Dean’s hand and lets him lead her to the swing set. You take your phone out to get a video as he lifts her up onto the seat and holds it steady as she gets comfortable. Her knuckles go white as she grips the chains tight. Dean stands behind her and pushes gently. 

“Alright, hold on tight and I want you to kick your legs out and back as you swing. It’s all about momentum,” he explains to her as he continues to push her gently. He gradually adds pressure to build momentum for her and propels her higher. She giggles as she goes higher. After a few swings, he takes a step back to let her swing on her own. 

You see the panic on her face when she swings backwards and doesn’t feel Dean’s hands connect with her back. “Dean! Dean?!”

“You’re doing it! Good work! Swing your legs out, and back. Out. And back. Good job!” Dean tells her as she continues to swing unassisted. 

You record for a few more seconds and then put your phone away to be more present. After a few minutes, a little girl around Destiny’s size walks up beside Dean and tugs on his shirt sheepishly. He kneels down to her level, still keeping an eye on Destiny, but giving the stranger some attention.

“Excuse me,” she says quietly.

“How can I help you?”

“Can you…please push me too?”

“Uh…” Dean nervously scratches his growing beard and looks around the park for other parents. “Where’s your parents?” He asks.

“They work out of town a lot and we travel often. It’s just me and my big sister, but we had a fight.”

Dean instantly pictures a young Sam in that same position and softens. “Sure, come on.” He stands up and grabs hold of the chains on the second swing and holds it steady while she climbs on. “Hey D, what are the rules?”

“Hold tight!” She calls out as she swings past. “And swing your legs out and back!” 

“Good girl!” He says to Destiny and then leans down to face the other child, “Think you can do that for me?” She nods enthusiastically. “Alright then, here we go!”

He pushes her gently and then slowly builds momentum. Both girls giggle as they swing in sync, with Dean’s help. Once they’re both happily swinging together he turns to you. “Okay, you girls have fun. I’m gonna go sit down for a minute but just call out if you need anything, okay?”

“Okay! Thanks, Dad…I mean, Dean.” Destiny’s smile drops and her legs stop swinging. Dean grabs the chains carefully and helps her slow down. “I’m sorry, Dean.” She starts to tear up.

He kneels down in front of her once she stops swinging. “Hey, it’s alright. I know I’m not your biological dad, but you can call me that if it makes you comfortable. And I know Y/N will feel the same. We’re raising you now.” She nods and he wipes her eyes. “You two play for a while,” he says as he glances back at the other little girl who has stopped swinging too. “We can talk about it more later over dinner.”

She nods, “Okay, Dean.”

He smiles at her and kisses the top of her head before standing up and walking back over to you. He sits down and takes your hand.

“What was that about?” You ask.

“She called me dad…and then got scared about how I’d react, I guess.”

“And? How did you react?”

“I told her she can call me that if it makes her comfortable. She’s our daughter in every way that matters. We’re not gonna give her up now.”

You rest your head on his shoulder and watch Destiny play in the play gym with the other little girl. “I told you you’d be a great dad. Who’s her friend?”

“I think her parents may be hunters…”

“What makes you think that?”

“She said they travel a lot and she and her sister are often left by themselves while her parents go out of town for work.”

“You think she knows? That she’ll notice D?” Despite you talking quietly, Destiny picks up parts of your conversation with her enhanced hearing and looks over at you concerned. “You hungry, Babe?”

“Yeah, I think it’s time to go.” Dean slaps his thighs and stands up. You both keep eye contact with your little girl as Dean puts on an act and calls out to her, despite knowing she can hear you. “Come on, D! We’re going now!” Dean squeezes your hand as you wait for her to run over to you. Dean scoops her up with his free arm and rests her on his hip as you walk to the Impala.

She hides her face in his neck. “Are they gonna kill me?”

Dean hushes her and shakes his head. “You’re safe with us. We’ll protect you. I’m just not sure if we should eat out in town now…”

“Yeah, let’s just pick up some take-out and go home. Sam’ll understand and so will Eileen, I’m sure,” you say. 

Dean tries to put Destiny down in the backseat but she tightens her grip. “I’m scared…”

He climbs in the back with her and lets her sit on his lap. He passes you the keys over the seat and you scoot into the driver’s seat and then turn around. Once all the doors are shut, Dean says, “As soon as I suspected she was the child of hunters I should’ve taken you home. I just…I would’ve loved to have met other kids like me…It seemed perfect. But you’re not me, and you’re not just our little girl…I’m sorry.”

You reach over and place your hand on Destiny’s shoulder. “We’ll keep you safe though. Hopefully, she doesn’t even know her parents are hunters, or maybe Dean’s wrong. There are plenty of reasons people move around for work. But just to be safe, let’s go home and we’ll look into it. I’ll call Bobby and see if he knows of any other hunters around Lebanon at the moment. You may not be exactly like us, but we love you like our own daughter and we’ll protect you like you are.”

She nods and snuggles into Dean’s chest. He tightens his grip to help her feel more secure.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

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[stefanmikaleson1864]

3 Months

A/N: Requested by @courtney-reagan​

I really hope you enjoy this !!! 

P.S. If you like my work please comment like and reblog it means a lot to see interactions on my work

911 X Reader 

Can you do one where Bobby and Athena’s daughter is kidnapped from Daycare by someone trying to get back at Athena? 

Athena’s POV

3 months. 3 long months since the last time we truly left the house. It was safe there. It was where I could protect my family.

 But lately I was struggling a lot and spiralling. I was working this big case and it wasn’t just affecting me anymore.

This case was a drug trafficking case. Angelo Lupo was the headmaster behind it. One by one we were scooping up the fishes. Angelo didn’t like that though. He couldn't do business without them. 

One of the little fishes ratted me out. Told him who arrested him and they put a hit out on me Bobby ad the kids. Apparently, this Angelo man had a lot of connections we didn’t know about. 

 My family was involved now and seeing those two worlds collide was hard. I felt like it was all my fault. May and Harry were with their dad. He took them out of state so that was one problem you would think was off my plate. 

But it wasn’t i was always worried this son of a bitch would find them. Then I also had the problem that Bobby and Iris were still at home. Iris was me and Bobby’s daughter and she was only 5. I couldn’t ask Michael to take her to so she was home with us. 

I couldn’t eat and I couldn’t sleep. The constant anxiety was over me. Bobby kept telling me that i shouldn’t worry and that I needed to try and act normal for Iris. She could tell something was off and we didn’t want to keep her scared. 

I knew he was right but actually working on it was a lot harder than I ever thought. 

There wasn’t much activity going on this past month. Maybe something happened to the guy. Maybe he ran out of the state so he didn’t get caught. 

Today was a good day to put what Bobby was saying to the test. We both had work and there was no one to watch Iris.

I tried putting work off as long as I could. Hell we both did but we didn’t have any more time left. 

 Bobby told me to put her in day care that she would be fine. I was trying to trust him. 

Neither one of us could take more time of work. So i needed to put my trust in someone else to take care of Iris. 

I could tell she was also ready to leave the house to. It wasn’t fair to her either. She needed her friends back and it wasn’t good for her to be stuck up in the house. So we were getting her ready to go to day care.

She was excited and I was trying to be happy for her to. She was running all around the house signing and dancing and it felt like the old her was finally coming back to her old self. 

Bobby was packing her lunch and I was getting dressed for the day. 3 months was what i kept telling myself. 3 months sense any activity. Why would anything happen today.

“Let’s go mommy i’m ready” Iris yelled to me breaking me out of my thoughts. 

“You got this it’s all gonna be okay” I told myself in the mirror. 

I grabbed my stuff and headed on down. Iris was all dressed up and had her lunch box swinging in the air. Bobby was waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs. 

He was smiling up at me and damn that smile could always get you. I walked down the stairs and wrapped my arms around him. He pulled me closer and pulled me into a kiss. 

It broke when Iris yelled out

“Ew that’s gross let’s go” She said scrunching up her face. 

We broke apart and laughed and headed out the door. I was nervous but i didn’t wanna show it. I didn’t want to take away Iris being happy. 

Bobby drove the way down. Iris was smiling out the window and she looked adorable and it did make me feel better seeing her so happy.

The daycare was about 15 minutes away but it felt like it was a lot longer. Finally after a while we reached in and Iris just about flew out the car.

We stopped and all got out. 

“Hey baby wait up” I yelled out. 

“Ugh fine” Iris yelled back

She ran back to us and Bobby bent down to her hug her. She wrapped her little arms around her and hugged him back. 

“I love you baby have a good day” Bobby said. 

I walked over and bent down to meet her to. I placed my hand on her face and smiled up at her. 

“I love you to have a good day dad will get you after his shift” I said 

“I love you to mommy and okay” She said in her little voice. 

She hugged me and i hugged her back and have her a good squeeze. 

“Now go on your friends miss you” I said 

She ran off and i tried to keep my nerves calm. Bobby looked over at me and smiled 

“You did good” He said wrapping his arm around me and kissing the top of my head. 

“Yeah for now” I said back

We both got back into the car and Bobby was gonna drop me off at work. I was praying for a normal day. Not that those really exist anymore. 

I didn’t even realize that we had pulled up until Bobby had broken me out of my thoughts. 

“Babe you ready” He said 

“As ready as I’ll ever be” I said chuckling and then got out the car. 

Bobby got out with me and then walked over and gave me a hug. He kissed the top of my head. 

He let go and looked down at me and smiled

“Your going to do great now go in their and kick some ass.” Bobby said 

“Yes Captian” I said grabbing him by the waist and pulling him in for a kiss. 

We pulled apart and i grabbed my stuff. We said our I love you’s and I went into the office. 

I was meant with the usual sad and upset looks. Which was expected  honestly. I went to my station and sat my stuff down. I was on desk dusty pushing paper work. I tried to look on the positive of it but it was hard. 

A good couple of hours had passed and things weren’t getting better. I was bored everyone was being different towards me. 

I decided to step out and get some air. And as i was pulling out my phone to look at it the phone started ringing and my heart stopped beating when i saw it was Iris’s daycare. 

I hurried up and answered 

“This is Athena” I said 

“Athena Omg the police is on the way  we tried everything” Her teacher said on the other line. 

“What the hell is going on” I asked pure panic in my voice. 

“A man came in he had a gun he made us get into a room and I tried to grab Iris but he wouldn’t let me” She said all in one breathe 

“I’m on my way” was all i got out 

I ran back in and went to the desk sargent. I barely also got a breath out trying to explain what happened. 

“They took her” I said 

“They took my baby they took her. Get the damn swat and every officer you can to 34th and 6th st. It’s Angel Ark daycare” I said. 

I didn’t even hear him call in. I just ran out of the building and into a squad car. I turned the sirens on and i did 100 miles all the way down. 

It usually takes about 15 minutes i got there in 3. That’s how fast I was going. 

I stopped the car in the middle of the street and meant some other officers on the scene. 

“Do we know anything” I asked. 

“Were searching the cameras trying to see something sergeant.” One officer said. 

“Try harder” I said walking away. 

I walked over to her teacher who was with some kids trying to calm them down.

“What happened” I asked 

“A man came in he had gun he shot a warning shot in the air and he made us all get into a room. And then he grabbed Iris and kept the gun on us” She said in tears. 

“Thank you” I said touching her arm. 

I was on my way in when Bobby cut me off 

“Athena what the hell is going on” He said 

Panic and worry all over his face. 

“They took Bobby they took her” was all I could get out.

“What who” He asked 

“Who do you think” I said 

“What are we gonna do” Bobby asked 

“Were gonna get her back he just got her he couldn’t have gotten far we closed down the area and were gonna have search times on the ground” I said 

“I can take the truck out we can look you know keep an eye out” Bobby said 

I knew he couldn’t just sit there. I mean what parent could 

“Yeah that’s a great idea go” I said 

I looked over at Hen who had a worried look on her face and i gave her a nod telling her to look out for him. 

I walked into the day care. I don’t know what I was hoping to find but anything would be something. I looked around the scene and there wasn’t much there. 

I decided to go to the cameras and see it for myself. I could feel my tight clenching and my palms sweating. 

I walked into the office and sat down. I took a deep breath and pulled up the footage. I fast-forwarded to the time it had all happened. 

My poor Iris her face looked so scared. It broke my heart so bad. But the man he had a limp and he had on a red bracelet. He looked familiar and I was trying to place it. 

I kept re winding and then playing it again. Hoping to see if something anything would. 

Then finally after the 100th time it hit me. Like a bomb went off in my head. 

“It was him Angelo Lupo” He was a part of the team I took down he was close with his boss. 

I knew the hell these people weren’t done. But I also knew that they kept a stash house close by here. 

I was hoping this dumb ass was stupid enough to take her there. It was a place that was familiar and that he knew. 

I pulled out my phone and called Bobby

“4876 Glendale ave check there bust every damn door they have” I said 

“On it” was all he got out. 

I ran out after them and got back into my squad car. I sped all the way down there sirens blasting. 

I pulled up the house the same time as the 118 did. Me and Bobby both ran out and up the house. He kicked the door down and we kept quiet. He went up the stairs and I was checking the down stairs. 

The upstairs was clear and I crept down the basement. My heart was beating fast and I could feel the anxiety growing closer. 

I walked down the stairs slowly. I made it to the bottom and I saw her. My baby girl was laying on the floor. Her little hand was tapped to the pipe and it looked like she was sleeping. 

I walked around the corner slowly and Angelo was sitting on the chair on his phone Dumb Bastard. Out of all things he was watching Tik Tok videos. He had no idea what was waiting for him. 

I slowly walked over to him and cocked my gun on him. 

He looked up and he was hella shocked. 

“Your under arrest you sick son of a bitch” I took the gun and pistol whipped him in the head. He dropped his head and was unconscious. I took out my handcuffs and took his arms and arrested him. 

“Bobby i got her” I yelled out. 

A few moments later he ran down and ran over to her. I ran over to and Bobby checked her pulse. She’s fine it’s good. 

Then he pulled out a knife and freed her little hand. We then pulled her into a group hug and smothered her with kisses. 

Bobby then picked her up and carried out her out the house. Hen and Chim were waiting by with the stretcher. 

“Were take care of her I promise” Hen said. 

“I know” I said 

I held her hand and followed them in the back. I walked into the back of the ambulance. Chim had on full sirens. 

Hen worked on put a IV on her and was giving her some medications I knew nothing about. I just kept my eyes on Iris. Thinking if i looked away she would disappear. 

We made it to the hospital in no time. When we rolled up the doctors and Nurses were waiting for us.

I didn’t want them to let her go but I also knew they had their work to do. Me and the rest of the 118 gathered in the waiting room. 

I couldn’t sit still and neither could Bobby. I couldn’t believe my worst fear had become true. I never should have left her. 

Bobby looked like he was reading my mind. He got up and walked over to me and grabbed my hands. 

“There was nothing you could have done” He said 

“We could have stayed home”I said 

“What for the rest of our lives and look she’s gonna be fine and now you got that sick son a bitch and it’s over” He said. 

“We don’t know she’s okay he could have drugged her with god knows what” I said

“Yeah well I can’t think like that right now our little girl needs us and she needs us to be strong” Bobby said 

I knew he was right. I knew my baby girl needed me to be strong. I just didn’t know how to do it. 

Bobby grabbed my hand and pulled me into sitting down. I sat in the middle between him and Hen and they both grabbed my hand. 

It made me feel a little calmer feeling their touch. 

A little bit later one of the Dr’s came in and we all jumped up when we saw her. 

“She’s fine her toxic screen came back negative and all her labs came back normal. Which is good she probably just had a paniac attack she got scared and it made her tired.” The DR said 

When she said that I felt my knees get weak and a wave of relief washed all over me. Bobby grabbed me up and I looked up at him. He looked down at me and he was smiling hard. 

Everyone was cheering and hugging each other after they heard the news. 

“See I told you she was gonna be okay” Bobby said 

“Can we see her” I asked 

“Of course follow me” The Dr said. 

We got up and followed her down the hallway. I was getting anxious all over away but in a good way. 

We finally made it and when i walked in my baby was sitting and smiling watching tv. Of course she was happy she always was. 

“When can we take her home” Bobby asked. 

“I want to keep her until tomorrow just to make sure she is okay” The dr said. 

“Okay thank you” I said 

We walked over to her and Iris nearly jumped out the bed when she saw us. 

“Mommy and Daddy I missed you” Iris said 

“We missed you to baby” I said

“Me to love bug” bobby said 

We both leaned in and gave her a big hug

“You guys are hurting me” Iris yelled. 

“Sorry” We both said.

Apparently it was to big of a hug. 

Iris grabbed my hand and and she looked up at me 

“Is the bad guy gone” Iris asked 

“He is not coming back ever Mommy took care of him” I said 

“Good” was all she said. 

Then the whole 118 piled in after that and they were all hugging on her and showering her with gifts. Buck even brought a whole ballon Bouquet. Which Iris ate up she was in heaven. 

Everyone was here and Everyone was going to be okay I told myself. 

3 Months Later 

3 Months had passed and Iris was adjusting okay. She had the nightmares and the nights she was sleeping with us. Which was to be expected. We got her a therapist to help her process everything. 

 May and Harry were back home and it felt complete. Being all together again made me feel complete. 

Angelo was arraigned and took a plea thank god. I was glad because Iris didn’t have to go through it all over again. 

I stayed home to help everyone adjust to what had happened. I was working on going back to work to soon. 

Knowing he was put away did take a lot of my plate. And I was anxious to get back out on the field. Everyone told me where it was i belonged and I knew they were right. 

All i could keep thinking though was how 3 months could change everything, But I knew together as a family we could face anything and everything.

[prosperdemeter2]

Teaser Tuesday - psychic!Eddie au

“Soph said she’s going to join once we actually get on location, so about mid-week, but I’ll be up by you in a few days.”

“You’re visiting?” Christopher asked with a little bounce in his seat.

Adriana’s tiny voice laughed and it echoed around them in a circle. “I am!” She exclaimed just as brightly. For someone who had been up all night long, Adriana certainly didn’t sound like she even needed another minute of sleep. Meanwhile, Eddie wanted to curl up in a little ball in the middle of his bed and sleep until the entire week was over. His dream from the night before didn’t exactly leave him feeling rested enough to be heading into his twenty-four hour shift. “We’re filming at an old jail and then we got a few house calls we’re going to investigate.” 

“Super cool.” Christopher said in the same way he always spoke about Adriana and Sophia’s little YouTube series. Not that Eddie didn’t also think it was, sort of, cool. His sisters had found their niche community and made something for themselves out of it. They had something close to five million followers, enough to quit their day jobs and turn it into a full time career - something that only Adriana had done during the pandemic. “Can I come?” 

“Well…” Adriana trailed off. 

“No.” Eddie said before she could even try to get him to say yes. 

“Maybe during the summer.” Adriana tacked on unhelpfully. 

Christopher frowned in Eddie’s direction, crossed his arms, and sunk down into the passenger seat with a scowl. 

He had been doing that a lot more lately. “Anyway…” Adriana muttered. 

“Where are you staying?” Eddie asked with a drum of his fingers and a glance at the clock. Christopher would probably get to school with ten minutes to spare, Eddie was going to be late for his shift. “Chris, can you do me a favor?” 

Christopher didn’t answer, too busy scowling at the traffic like it was at fault for Eddie not letting him go with Adriana and Sophia to investigate an old abandoned jail and not safety regulations. Those things had such flimsy floors and ventilations systems. “What?” He mumbled. 

“Can you text Buck? Let him know I’m running late.” 

“Fine.” He’d be over his frustration by the time Eddie picked him up from school - at least he hoped he would. 

“Thank you.” 

Christopher hummed, wiggling his starter phone out of his pocket, unlocking the screen with his thumbprint and finding the text thread he had going with Buck with ease (it was third on his list, right above Eddie’s contact and under two of his school friends. They had strict rules for the phone, Eddie had Christopher’s password and he had to approve the apps he downloaded, but he was trying not to hover too much. Chris deserved his privacy and independence and Eddie really didn’t want to be one of those overprotective parents that didn’t let their kids do anything). “We got an AirBnB,” Adriana answered smoothly. “I’ll send you the address when we get off the phone. Running late?” 

“When aren’t we?” Christopher sassed with a roll of his eyes. “Dad was too busy getting ready.” 

“Hey,” Eddie shot him a look and a shake of his head. Christopher’s cheeks flushed and he sunk down further in his seat with an embarrassed little frown. “Two people, one bathroom.” Eddie shrugged like Adriana could see him. “It makes things difficult.” 

“God, Sophia made me late for an interview the other day because she decided to hog the bathroom,” Adriana said with a laugh. “I get it.” 

His sisters shared a house with Walt, Adriana’s husband and their channel’s technology guy, and Melody, Sophia’s sixteen year old daughter, half of the year, twenty minutes away from their parents. “Buck said he’s texting you the pastry and coffee orders.” Chris read off his phone with a little half smile. 

A smart move, even if Eddie hated having to get the team coffee (Hen liked to make her orders as complicated as possible and Bobby had a very specific way he liked his breakfast sandwiches made that always made Eddie flush whenever he had to read it out to a poor, minimum wage working barista). If Eddie was late, Bobby was going to be forced to make note of it. If Eddie was late but arrived with breakfast, Bobby could say that he wasn’t late, only that he had been on a team fuel run. “Am I finally going to get to meet this Buck?” Adriana asked curiously, a tease in her voice that Eddie wanted no part of. 

“You’ve met him.” Eddie countered. 

“Does it count when the guy is flying high on painkillers?” 

“Dad’s asking him out!” It was his own fault, really, for taking the phone call in the car and not telling Adriana he’d call her back. Christopher beamed at him like he hadn’t just blurted that out happily to get back at him for not letting him go ghost hunting with his aunts. 

“Oh?” Adriana’s voice tilted ridiculously high. 

They hadn’t… actually been able to have that conversation yet. Eddie’s neck flushed. “No,” He corrected hastily. “I’m asking him to have dinner with us this week. I’m not asking him out.”

“Yet.” Christopher countered. 

Yet, Eddie noted to himself. 

“Yet?” Adriana echoed. 

“Chris,” Eddie slid the car into park and sighed. “Go to school.” 

Christopher cackled. “Bye, dad! Bye, Tia!” 

“Have a good day at school!” Adriana called out obligingly. 

“Love you.” 

Christopher would, one day, be too old to think it was cool to answer him back. He wasn’t there yet, no matter how annoyed at Eddie he got. “Love you too.” Maybe it was because of Shannon, or maybe it was because of the tsunami and the shooting and almost losing each other before Eddie could even really see him grow up. Either way, he cradled Christopher’s words like he always did, just as close to his chest as they always were and watched him disappear into the school, shoulder to shoulder with a friend at the doors. “So,” Adriana began. “Since when are you into guys?”

Since always. And, really, Buck was a special case. What with his… everything. It wasn’t fair, really, to have those eyes and those legs and that heart. Eddie was hopeless. “Rana -.” A boy, not much older than Christopher, stepped off the curb with a casual glance over his shoulder and a laugh on his lips. Eddie swore and slammed on his brakes, the boy’s hip mere inches away. 

The car behind him in the drop off line honked. 

“Eddie?” Adriana asked worriedly. “Are you okay?” 

Slowly, the boy turned to look at him. 

His face was a mangled mess of cuts and bruises, his right eye was gone completely, his clothing was hanging on in tatters and… 

Eddie blinked and he was gone, in his place nothing but the newly painted crosswalk. 

Eddie breathed out a harsh breath and eased his foot off the brakes, the truck rolling forward. “I’m good.” He answered automatically and swallowed past the misery in his throat. He glanced in his rearview mirror and the boy was on the side of the road, head cocked and hand raised to his shoulder as he… waved. 

That particular little boy hadn’t given Eddie a fright in months. 

Eddie waved back and eased his car forward. 

“Seen any ghosts lately?” Adriana asked with a laugh. “If you’re ever missing it, you’re more than welcome to investigate with me and Sophie.” 

How could he miss it? He lived with it every day. “No,” Eddie said with a shake of his head. “No ghosts lately.” The boy faded into a wisp of smoke. 

Eddie pulled out of the parking lot.

[winchesterfanatic1967]

Falling In Love Slowly, And Then All At Once Part 3

Pairings: Dean AU x Reader

Word Count: 2,793 

Warnings- Jo drama, mentions of cancer, mentions of chemotherapy, mentions of chemotherapy symptoms, flirty Dean! 

You were working another shift at Harvelle’s, and so far everything was going great. It’s been a week, and there were really no issues. You steered clear of Jo as much as you could. For whatever reason she didn’t like you, and you had no idea why. You never did anything to that girl but your guess why she didn’t like you was as good as anyone else’s. 

As you handed a beer to a customer you looked up to see your dad walk in with a couple of other people. An older guy with dark hair and another guy that looked to be around your age. God, he was handsome. 

Short dirty blonde hair with the greenest eyes you’ve ever seen. He had a little bit of stubble and he had a smile that would make any girl swoon. “Hey dad. I thought you weren’t feeling well today?” You ask with a surprised smile as all three of them sat at the bar. 

“Hey kid. I’m feeling a lot better now. Plus, it’s been a while since I’ve stopped by. This is my partner at the garage, John. And this is his son, Dean.”

“It’s really nice to meet you both. I want to thank you both so much for everything you’ve done for my dad. We really appreciate it.” You say with a smile and they returned it. They noticed that your eyes were welling up with tears and they both frowned. 

“Hey, your daddy is my best friend and I’ve known your mom for years. I want to help as much as I can. I know you don’t know me well at all but you’re family.” 

“Thank you. Alright soap opera moment over,-” Everyone chuckled at that. “Can I get you guys something to drink? Can I get you water or a soda dad?”

“Soda, please.”

You looked to John, “Anything on tap kid.” You nodded and your eyes fell to Dean. “Anything on tap for me as well.” He gave you a wink and you hid your smile. You turned to walk away and Dean couldn’t help but let his eyes roam over you, admiring your ass which earned him a slap on the back of the head. 

“What?” He asked in between laughter. 

 “That’s my daughter ya idjit. Watch it.” Bobby says and Dean puts his hands up in mock defense, John shaking his head with a chuckle. 

You returned with their drinks, “Thanks kid.”

“Thanks sweetheart.” Your heart fluttered at the nickname, and you felt yourself flush. You didn’t dare to look at any of them, and you continued to work. Checking to see if anyone wanted a refill, and wiping down tables and the bar.

You heard the loud laughter come from your dad and your ears perked up. You looked up to see that Ellen had joined him, and John and Dean. They were all laughing about something and you couldn’t help but smile. Everyone pretty much cleared out of the bar so you made your way over to them. “Hey kid. I’m not allowed to have one, but have a shot with everyone else.” Your dad says as everyone grinned. 

“Uh, I shouldn’t.” You shook your head. “I’m on the clock.” 

“Please, the place is cleared out. Have a shot.” Ellen says. 

“I guess if that’s okay.” You tried to repress your smile. “Jo! Break out the whiskey.”

“Mom,-” She began to protest. 

“Now. Please.” 

She rolled her eyes before gripping her back and giving you a glare. You raise your brow before making eye contact with Dean. He gave you a wink and you felt yourself blush once more. God, how was he able to do that to you so easily?

You wince as you down the shot, and shook your head as the burning sensation went down your chest. As the five of you made more conversation your dad let out a yawn. 

 “It’s getting late. Y/n, I’m gonna head home. I’ll see you in the morning.” Your dad says to you as you restock the fridge with bottled beers. “Okay dad, see ya. Love you.”

“You too, kid.” You pressed a kiss to his cheek and he left. “Dean, I’m going to head out too. I’ll see you at work in the morning.”

“Alright dad, I’ll see you later.” After John walked out of the door Dean gave you a small smile. 

“Sweetheart, can I get another please?” Dean asks you politely and you nod. Refilling his glass, you slide it over to him. “So, you’re Bobby’s daughter?”

“Yep. I’m Bobby’s daughter.” 

He smiled at you, and you felt yourself swoon. There was no doubt that he was your type, and your type was definitely the heartbreakers. He’s most definitely broken some hearts. 

“I just wanted to thank you again for everything you’ve done for my dad. It’s nice to know that he has supporters out there other than me and my mom.”

“I’ve worked with your dad since I was a teenager. He’s like a father figure to me and I’m going to do everything I can to help him.” He says making you smile. 

“Hey Dean!” Jo suddenly appeared next to you and practically hovered over the bar. You raise a brow at her. She was smiling so hard her cheeks probably hurt, and she was practically bouncing. 

“How ya doin’ Jo?” He asks politely while sipping on his beer and turns his gaze back to you. 

You bit back a laugh. It was so obvious that she was into him but he wasn’t giving her the time of day. You could feel her glaring, but it didn’t matter. The way Dean was looking at you right now, it was like no one else was in the room. 

“Well, when you’re done eye fucking, the beer cooler needs to be restocked.” 

 “I already did it.”

She looked inside and slammed it shut, walking away. You looked at Dean and he was trying to hide his smile. 

“Anyways, how old are you sweetheart? I always knew Bobby had a daughter, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen you around.”

“I’m twenty four.”

“I’m twenty six. You grew up in this town right?”

“Yeah. I didn’t go to Lawrence high though, I went to a private school. Maybe that’s why we never met.” You explained. 

“Gotcha. I would have recognized a pretty face like yours anywhere.” You bit back your smile and shook your head. 

“Do you have a boyfriend?”

“Nope. No boyfriend.”

“Good.”

“Good?”

“Yeah, I don’t have to fight anyone for your affection.” He says with a flirty tone and it makes you giggle. 

“What makes you think I’m that easy to get?”

“I’ll make you fall in love with me. Just wait.” He says with a smirk and sips on his beer making you giggle again and shake your head. 

You were chit chatting a while with Dean, and you were worried that you were going to get into trouble from Ellen if you didn’t get back to work. 

“I’m sorry to cut this short Dean, but I have to get back to work.”

“You guys close in ten minutes sweetheart, I’m about to head out anyways.”

 “Oh, wow. Where did the time go?” You say while looking at the clock. 

Dean stood up and you took his now empty glass. “So I guess I’ll see you soon?” You ask. 

“I’ll see you soon.” He flashes you a smile and he walks out the door. 

“He’s mine by the way.”

You turn around to see Jo standing there with her arms crossed, her face pissy. 

“Is that so? If he was yours, then why would he have been flirting with me all night?”

“He’s only after one thing anyways. Once he’s done with you that’ll be it.”

“You sound really jealous.” You say and she let out a laugh. 

“Baby, I don’t have to be jealous. You don’t know the history with Dean and I.”

“Do you have a problem with me or something? You’ve been completely nasty to me since we met, I didn’t do anything to you.”

“I just know your type, that’s all.”

“My type?”

“Using people to get what you want. Homewrecker,-” You cut her off. 

“You don’t know me or anything about me.”

“Oh but I do. And soon enough the whole town will know too.” With that she turned around and walked away. You shook your head and sighed. You barely have been here for a week and you already had issues with people. Off to a great start. But on the brighter note, you met the handsome and charming Dean Winchester who you flirted shamelessly back with. 

It was nice to flirt and be single again after dealing with the Cole drama. But you were in no position to be in a relationship with anyone. Your main focus was your dad and being there for him. His health was your top priority right now. 

 July 21st 

It was time for your dad's second chemo treatment. He was tired and nauseous after the first one, so he wasn’t looking forward to his second one. 

You and your mom continued working your new jobs, and so far so good. Your mom has turned into a robot though, she no longer expresses her emotions and cooks dinner, then immediately goes to work. She seems like she’s pushing you away, but thankfully she hasn’t pushed your dad away. 

She cooks around the foods he can’t have, and always makes sure he’s good to go. You had no doubt in your mind that she was an amazing wife to your dad and was always going to be there for him. 

 Bobby just finished another round of vomiting into the bucket the nurse had handed him while he was receiving his chemotherapy. This is the part he hated the most. He hated being tired and not going to work as much, but the throwing up and the nausea killed him. He hated throwing up.

 “Fuck!” He screamed and pounded the chair with his fist. He put on a brave face for you, but in reality he was scared. He didn’t want to die, he felt like he had so much left to do in his life. 

He wanted to see you get married, and he wanted to see you have children. He never wanted to be a father himself because of how abusive his own father was but once you were born he immediately melted and fell in love with you. You completely changed his perspective on life. 

He wanted to meet his future grandkids, and he wanted to spoil them. Unfortunately he had a horrible illness and these are the cards that he had to deal with. You didn’t know it, but every morning for about a year he woke up nauseous but he didn’t think about it too much because it went away. The constant what ifs were killing him inside. That was clearly a sign that something was wrong and if he got it checked out sooner maybe he wouldn’t be in this position. He could no longer hide the fact that he didn’t feel good when he was dragged to the ER. 

 His oncologist let him know of the things he would experience while on chemo. Nausea and vomiting was one of them. He would also experience weight loss, and even some hair loss. He appreciated you being here more than you would ever realize. He hated the fact that you were putting your life on hold for him though. You were in school and living out your dream. He couldn’t help but think you secretly resented him for putting your life on hold. 

When he finished his chemo, he felt like absolute hell. He couldn’t stop throwing up while the treatment was going on, and he was dripping with sweat. Thankfully Karen picked him up from his treatments so he didn’t have to drive. 

“How was it today honey?”

“Hell.” 

“Well, when we get home I’ll make you something light on your stomach, and some water.” He nodded softly and just looked out the window. 

You noticed your mom pulled into the driveway while watching tv. You smiled as your parents entered the house but frowned when you noticed how pale your dad was. “Hey daddy. How was it?”

“Shitty.” He grumbled. 

“I’m sorry, here. Sit down.” You say while guiding him to the couch but he gently pushes you away. “M’fine.”

You just looked at your mom and she shook her head. You followed her into the kitchen and she began to cook his dinner. “How is he really?” You ask her. 

“He’s feeling shitty. And he’s pushing me away. Don’t take it personally.”

“I won’t. I just wish he would let me be there for him.”

 “He will. Just give it some time. I can only imagine how he’s feeling in all of this. Everyone is devastated, but he’s the one battling cancer. Imagine what’s going through his head.”

You nodded sadly. You’ve been thinking about that yourself. The three of you ate dinner in silence, not one word spoken between any of you. “I’m sorry honey, but I can’t eat anymore. I feel sick.” Your dad says and your heart breaks. 

“It’s okay honey. Eat what you can and then go lay down. I’ll get you some water and you can get some sleep.”

“Here mom, I can clean the kitchen before my shift.”

“Thanks kiddo.” 

You were busy tonight at Harvelle’s, and it seemed like you couldn’t keep up. You looked up as more people came in, and smiled when Dean entered. “Hey sweetheart.”

“Hey Dean! Can I get you a beer?”

“Yeah, and a whiskey neat. It’s been a long day.”

“I feel you on that one.” You sympathized. “Coming right up.”

You got Dean his drinks, and you had a minute to chat. “So, how are you?” He asks while sipping on his drink. 

“I’m doing alright. Long day, busy night so far.” You gestured to everyone. 

“I see that.” He nodded. “Hey honey, can I get another?” A regular asked you politely and you nodded.

“One second Dean.” You say and he flags you away nicely. 

You grabbed the customer his beer and just as you handed it to him, you slipped and busted your ass. Everyone got quiet, and you looked up to see Jo standing there smirking. “I’m sorry Y/n, let me help you up.”

 “I’m good, thanks.” You say with a bitchy tone before dusting yourself off. You felt your cheeks turn red as everyone was looking at you. “Alright, nothing more to see here. Y/n, are you alright?” Ellen asks you with concern. 

“I’m okay.”

“It was my fault mom, I was closing a tab and my foot was out. I didn’t realize it was in the way and I accidentally tripped Y/n. I’m sorry Y/n.” She says sweetly. 

“It’s okay. Shit happens.” You say but deep down you knew she did it on purpose. 

When you finally returned to Dean it was like a dog walking with your tail between your legs. “I’m sorry you had to see that.” You mumble but he shook his head.

“She did that on purpose, don’t worry about it.”

“I’ve never done anything to her, what is her problem with me?”

“She’s had a crush on me since we were kids. I’ve never had feelings for her, only seeing her as a little sister. She’s never given up and I’ve told her many times nicely and blatantly to her face that nothing is going to happen between us. She’s been a huge cock block in the past before. I’ve been flirting with you, and she’s threatened by that.”

“But I met her before I even met you. She’s been nasty since the beginning. I don’t know what I ever did to her.”

“It’s just who she is sweetheart.”

“So how are things at the garage?” You change the subject, not wanting to talk about Jo anymore. 

“Busy as all hell. It’s been long working days and nights.”

“Well I hope you finally get a chance to relax.”

 “It’s looking like it’s headed in that direction.”

“Good.” You smiled and he returned it. You continued to chat with Dean while also working. He stayed pretty much all night. “Well pretty girl, I’m going to head out. But first, can I grab your number?”

“Absolutely.” You beam and grab your phone while he does the same. You typed your number into his while he did the same to yours. “I’ll text you. Have a goodnight sweetheart.” He says while getting up off the stool. 

“See you soon?”

“I’ll see you soon.” 

Dean Taglist- @agirlwithdemonblood, @akshi8278, @penguinlover0318, @lyarr24, @deanandsamsbitch, @katbratsupernaturalwhore, @flamencodiva, @avanatural, @seeingstarks, @nyotamalfoy, @agirlwithanangelheart, @fiftyshadesgrl, @jensenslady79, @Sensitiveorange, @winterreader-nowwriter, @nancymcl, @foxyjwls007, @stoneyggirl2, @sexyvixen7, @taylor-munson, @justrealizedimmascifygurl, @this-is-me19​, @gh0stgurl​, @edwardsfangirl1712​, @globetrotter28​, @dragonprincelovr​,  @mimaria420​, @hobby27​

[strandbuckley]

The Holiday Season

Buck spends an eventful Christmas holiday with Christopher and Eddie. His first as Eddie's fiance and Christopher's dad.

Read on ao3 here

“Buck, Buck! Dad! Wake up! It’s Christmas Eve, you gotta get up!”

“Wha-?”

Buck was barely awake enough to brace himself as Christopher clambered onto the bed, flopping down right in the center of Buck’s chest. Two small hands held his cheeks, and he leaned in to press their noses together as he spoke.

“Buck, get up.”

Buck slowly opened his eyes, going cross-eyed as he tried to focus on Chris. Eddie groaned next to him, rolling over and blinking blearily at them.

“Good, you’re up,” Christopher said, sitting up but not moving from his position on Buck’s chest. He said it as if he’d already forgotten that it was his commotion that had ripped them from their peaceful sleep.

“Chris it’s seven thirty,” Eddie said, voice bordering on whiny. 

“It’s Christmas Eve.”

“Yeah, I understand that buddy. But it is way too early to be awake.”

“But we have stuff to do today.”

“Yeah we do,” Buck held Chris tightly and rolled, depositing him on the mattress between him and Eddie. “But all of those things don’t happen until later. Much later. So your Dad and I would really like to go back to sleep for a little bit if that’s okay with you. You don’t have to go back to sleep but you’ve gotta be quiet, so you can stay here with us and watch the iPad quietly, or go play in your room until we get up.”

“I wanna stay here,” he decided, curling up snugly between them. Buck handed him the tablet from where it was charging on the bedside table and got him set up with his cartoons and a pair of headphones.

“Nice save,” Eddie whispered once he was thoroughly engrossed in his show.

“I try.”

In the end, the shows bought them an extra hour of sleep, which was slightly more than Buck had been hoping for, to be honest. This wasn’t the first time he’d been on the receiving end of Christopher’s holiday excitement, but it was the first time he’d experienced it so early in the morning. This was the first time he was waking up on Christmas morning with Eddie and his son. 

It had taken them a lot to get to this point, but Buck had never been happier to experience the holidays with his two favorite boys. Since he’d met Eddie, they’d spent the holiday together in some capacity. The first year, Shannon had returned to their lives, and he hadn’t wanted to feel like he was overstepping. But Eddie had invited him over the day after Christmas for games and to exchange their presents. The next year, they’d been working on Christmas Eve but Buck had found a way for them to spend it together regardless. This year though was his first Christmas as an official member of the Diaz family. Eddie would argue that he’d been a member of their family since they met, but Buck felt truly established now, with Eddie’s engagement ring on his finger. 

“So give me to holiday run down,” Buck said, once they had sent Chris off to get dressed and ready. 

“Okay, Abuela’s today for brunch, then Bobby and Athena’s for dinner. Tomorrow, we’ll open presents here and have lunch with Maddie and Chim. Shannon should be picking Chris up around five tomorrow and he’ll spend the rest of the weekend with her and she’s gonna drop him off sometime Monday after our shift.”

“I’m glad she got the time off work to spend with him. Partly because I’m gonna need a seventy-two-hour nap to be functional after this weekend.”

“Don’t tempt me with a good time.”

Buck should have been more grateful for Christopher’s early wake-up call since they ultimately ended up being late trying to get everything together. They were the last ones to make it to the house, but the food wasn’t quite ready yet as they made their way inside.

“Buckaroo,” Athena greeted. “Rough morning?”

“Chris woke us up at seven-thirty,” he explained, moving into the kitchen to deposit his and Eddie’s contributions to their meal on the counter.

“And you were still late?” Hen teased. 

“We gave him the iPad and fell back asleep. Guess we should have stayed awake.”

“Denny was up at five,” Karen sympathized. “I’ve lost count of how many cups of coffee I’ve had.”

“You look like you need this,” Bobby shoved a warm mug into his hands. 

“Bobby you’re a live saver. What is it about Christmas Eve anyway? I know we have things going on today, but Chris was acting like he normally does on Christmas morning.”

“It’s the anticipation. They know they’re getting presents at every party today so they can’t contain themselves.”

“I don’t miss that about having young kids,” Athena said. “If all of you weren’t coming, May and Harry would have slept until well into the afternoon.”

“How much longer until we reach that point?” Eddie asked, leaning over Buck’s shoulder and stealing his coffee cup, grimacing at the amount of sugar, but taking another drink anyway. 

“Don’t wish it away you two. They grow up too fast.”

Buck couldn’t help but agree. There were times in the last couple of years that he wished time would slow down. Christopher was only nine, and he knew realistically that they had a few more years of Chris waking them up early in his excitement. As much as he didn’t enjoy waking up early when he wasn’t on shift, he loved seeing his son’s face light up as he tore into his gifts. Eddie had told him what it was like, seeing Christmas through the eyes of your kid, but Buck couldn’t have imagined it until he was living it himself.

“Food is ready,” Bobby called out into the living room. “Come and eat.”

Buck helped Christopher make his plate and settled him at the table between himself and Eddie. It was loud, as they sat around the table eating and chatting, a dozen different conversations mixing together around him. He wouldn’t trade this for anything. Christmas with his found family was more than he had ever hoped for as a kid. 

The plates were barely cleared when the kids began shouting about it being present time. Each child had a gift from Bobby and Athena, but to make things simpler, the team and their partners had drawn names for Secret Santa. Buck had drawn Athena and he’d never had a harder time shopping for someone. He’d had to call in reinforcements in the form of Hen, swearing her to secrecy. In the end, he’d gotten her a gift certificate for a massage at a fancy new spa downtown. 

Maddie insisted they do gifts at random, spinning a wheel on her phone to choose who would go next because it was “more fun this way”. Bobby had chosen his name and his gift had almost brought him to tears. It was a cookbook of all of Bobby’s recipes, handwritten by the Captain. He fought valiantly against the tears, but they’d ultimately fallen when Bobby pulled him into a hug and whispered that the blank pages in the back were for his own recipes that he created with his family. 

Karen had drawn Eddie and had managed to score tickets to the Rangers vs Phillies game in the Spring. It was a sort of joint present for him and Buck, but Eddie, the bigger baseball fan had made a Christopher-like face of excitement when he opened them. 

Eddie’s pick had been Bobby, and his gift for the Captain had been a hit. It was a World’s Greatest Dad mug, signed by each member of the team. Bobby had gotten a kick out of it, immediately going to the kitchen to wash it and fill it with coffee. 

After the gifts had been exchanged, he and Eddie had gathered Christopher to take him to their next event. They’d stayed at Bobby and Athena’s much longer than they meant to and they only had an hour to make it to Abuela’s. She’d requested that Buck and Eddie come early, telling Buck that it was time for him to learn how to make her famous tamales. 

“Thank Bobby and Athena for your gift buddy,” Eddie had reminded as the couple walked them out, assisting them with the armfuls of leftovers they’d all but forced them to take home. 

“Thank you,” Chris said happily, clutching the new lego set to his chest. He’d already requested that Buck help him build it when they got home from Abuela’s house. 

“Thank you for brunch,” Buck kissed Athena’s cheek and gave Bobby a quick hug.

“Of course Buckaroo. You two have a good night.”

“And Merry Christmas,” Bobby added.

The drive to Abuela’s house from Bobby’s wasn’t long, but Buck found himself nearly falling asleep in the passenger seat as Eddie drove. When he glanced back at Chris in the rearview mirror, he found his son in a similar state, head falling to the side as he dozed. Eddie carried him inside, depositing him in Abuela’s bed to nap until dinner was ready. 

Eddie was immediately banished from the kitchen, being told to sit at the counter and not touch anything. Buck had taken pity on him and let him help chop the vegetables for the sides, knowing there was no way Eddie could make them inedible. Eventually, Eddie moved into the living room to see his sister Sophia and his niece who had come up from El Paso. His parents, thankfully, were not going to be in attendance. They were working on their relationship, and it had improved, but family gatherings made things unnecessarily tense. Instead, they had decided to stay in Texas with Adrianna and her fiance, Eddie, and Chris planning to take a trip down for a few days when Chris’s school was out on spring break. 

Abuela sang along in Spanish to the music playing from the speaker as she moved around the kitchen, occasionally giving Buck instructions. When the tamales were steaming, she’d sent Buck out of the kitchen and into the living room to mingle. He slotted himself into Eddie’s side on the couch, resting his chin on his shoulder and listening to the conversation Eddie and Sophia were having. He wasn’t sure what they were talking about, just content to listen to the rumble of Eddie's voice as he spoke.

“Hey babe,” Eddie turned to acknowledge him as Sophia was called away by her daughter.

“Mm, hi.”

“How did cooking with Abuela go?”

“Tamales are hard. But she promised to write down her recipe so I could work on making them at home.”

“Good, you’ve gotta earn your keep somehow,” Eddie teased. 

“As if washing your sweaty socks isn’t enough.”

Eddie laughed and kissed the side of his head, “We should probably go get Chris. Food will be ready soon and his mom is almost here.”

“I didn’t know Shannon was coming.”

Buck and Shannon, surprisingly, had gotten along really well. A little too well for Eddie’s taste if he was being honest with himself. Things had been rocky at first, with Buck and Eddie dancing around their feelings for each other in the months leading up to the divorce being finalized. But once they had settled into a routine with co-parenting and Buck and Eddie had finally gotten together, Shannon and Buck became fast friends. They were often the ones to text each other to communicate pick-up and drop-off for Christopher on her weekends or for Buck to tell her about school events where Chris had requested her presence (as much as they both loved Eddie, he was horrible with dates and it was much easier to cut out the middle man when it came to things like that).

“Yeah, Abuela invited her, figured it would be nice since we’re all on good terms now.”

“I agree.”

As if on cue, the door opened and Shannon stepped in, holding a plate of cookies that looked homemade. 

“Shannon,” Buck stood to greet her, giving her a hug and taking the plate from her hand. “I’ll take these to Abuela.”

“That better not be code for ‘I’m going to hide and eat them all’,” she chuckled, but relinquished the plate. 

“I would never.”

“Where’s Chris?”

“I was just about to go get him,” Eddie answered. “He wore himself out at our team brunch this morning and fell asleep on the way over. Buck put him in Abuela’s room to sleep for a bit,” Eddie stood and pulled her into a hug, kissing her cheek. “It’s good to see you.”

“You too Eddie. I’ll go grab him if you want.”

“Sounds good. I’m gonna go make sure Buck doesn’t eat all of the cookies.”

When Shannon returned with Christopher in tow, they all gathered for Abuela to lead them in grace before digging into the spread of food.

“The tamales turned out great Buck,” Eddie complimented.

“You made these?” Shannon asked, mildly impressed.

“Abuela did most of the hard work.”

“You were the best helper mijo,” Abuela complimented, everyone laughing when Buck ducked his head to hide his blush. 

Buck felt as if he’d gained twenty pounds by the time they finished eating. Eddie echoed his sentiment, leaning back in his chair next to Buck.

“Is it present time?” Christopher asked once the plates were cleared and the adults were sitting around talking.

“Yes,” Abuela declared. “Present time.”

They all moved into the living room, Eddie, Shannon, and Buck squeezing onto one couch, with Christopher in his dad’s lap. There weren’t as many children there, not nearly as many as there would have been with all of Eddie’s extended family so the opening of presents didn’t take long.

Chris received a few books from Abuela and a new set of dinosaur figurines from Pepa. Each of the older grandchildren, Buck and Shannon included, got money from Abuela, who said it took all of the guesswork out of gift-giving. 

Eventually, the excitement died down, Sophia and her daughter left, saying they needed to get home and rest before their flight back. Some of the other cousins retired too, leaving just Eddie, Buck, and Shannon. Chris stretched out across his lap, reading through one of his new books with Shannon while Eddie helped Abuela and Pepa clean up. 

“Buck,” Chris whispered.

“Yeah, buddy?”

“I’m tired,” he turned his head into Buck’s belly, snuggling close to him.

“Me too Chris. Wanna see if we can wrangle your dad and head home?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay buddy, let me up.”

Buck made his way into the kitchen rounding up Eddie so that they could head home. Shannon helped Chris out to the car, hugging him as she helped him into the seat.

“Bye, Mom. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“I love you, Christopher. You three drive safe.”

“We will.”

Chris was asleep by the time they were halfway home and Buck didn’t bother to wake him up again, just carried him inside and deposited him into bed.

“I wanna sleep so bad,” Buck grumbled, falling face-first on the couch and into Eddie’s lap.

“Me too babe. But we have to play Santa.”

They snuck around the house as quietly as possible, putting Chris’s presents from Santa under the tree. Buck had wrapped them in different paper to distinguish them from the ones he and Eddie had gotten him. They sat on the couch with the plate of cookies between them, eating enough to make it look like Santa had eaten them, and Buck even took a bite out of the carrot Chris had insisted on leaving for the reindeer. 

Once everything was set up, they moved into their bedroom and fell into bed, practically falling asleep before their heads hit the pillows. 

“Buck, Buck! Dad! Wake up! It’s Christmas, you gotta get up!”

Chris gave them a replay of their wake-up from the morning before, dragging his parents out of bed and into the living room for gifts. He tore into them with uncontained excitement, Buck sitting back to watch. Eddie appeared at his side with two cups of coffee, handing him one and keeping the other for himself.

“Thanks, babe,” he leaned over for a quick kiss. 

They leaned against each other, watching as Chris’s excitement built with every gift he unwrapped. When they were all opened and the three of them were surrounded by crumpled wrapping paper and ribbons, Chris settled down with one of his new toys.

“We should probably clean up all this paper,” Buck said, leaning his head on Eddie’s shoulder.

“We’ll get it later. Just enjoy the moment.”

Eddie kissed the top of his head as they huddled together on the floor, watching their son.“Merry Christmas Buck.” “Merry Christmas Eddie.”

[dawntainbobbynash]

ooo ok so here’s one that i’ve thought of a lot but i only see a few people talk about but what do you think bobby’s parents/brother are like? do you think he had any more siblings? (i’ve been writing a fic over the past while so i’ve gotten to kind of develop what i think his brother is like but i’m curious on your thoughts!)

LORD I have headcanons. I have a billion wildly conflicting headcanons bc we know so little and I can never decide how angsty I want his childhood to be. Not knowing drives me insane actually, thanks so much Fox

(gonna stick this under a read more bc it got long)

The one thing I absolutely refuse to change my mind on is that Bobby is the youngest sibling. He has to be the boss or the dad or somehow the strong one in so many of his relationships, so I just want him to be the baby with his parents and sibling(s) to give him a break and have a different dynamic

Lately, my inability to decide things has given me the idea of Bobby being adopted (his brother is still his bio brother), and I’m rather fond of that. It gives me the best of both worlds with crappy bio parents traumatizing him for a few years before he's properly raised by loving adoptive parents. It also fits wonderfully with my idea that he grew up comparing himself to Superman bc his parents called him their little Superman

I do think they inadvertently pushed the "all boys have to be firefighters" thing a little too hard, though. He was just suspiciously unhappy when he revealed that, and it's hard for me not to think there's baggage attached considering how long it took him to tell anyone that he's a fourth-generation firefighter when he should be proud of that. It's become my firm belief since then that he didn't necessarily want to be a firefighter when he was a kid, but he did it to make them happy and bc he felt like he didn't have a choice

I waver a lot about the specifics of Bobby's relationship with his brother, but I do usually think they have a rivalry about who's the better firefighter that mostly stems from Bobby thinking he has to be the absolute best at everything to be worthy of anyone's love (bc I fully believe he's felt like that since long before he broke his back)

I don't have a name for his brother (I used to, but I based it on headcanons I made before the firefighter family reveal and it doesn't feel right in light of the changes that made me make, and I haven't picked a new one yet), but I do think he's happily married with a minimum of three kids. Unlike Bobby, he was always excited to be a firefighter, and he always made it look effortless (their dad absolutely gave them some sort of training when they were growing up to make sure they would be ready for the academy)

I don't know if I think he actually has more siblings in canon, but I want him to have a sister too so I did create a new AU last week where I decided that Captain Shore from May Day is that sister. She's the eldest, her wife is an ER nurse named Jordin, and they have three adopted kids. I pushed the firefighter family legacy & their dad training only the boys for it to an angsty extreme in that, so she moved to LA the second she was old enough and built her life there, and only stayed in contact with their mother until Bobby moved to LA too. They fix their relationship and, when they eventually go back to Minnesota, they do it together

On the back to Minnesota note, I also think that Bobby hasn't actually spoken to any of them since he moved to LA, or even since Marcy and the kids' funeral. It just explains too much, like why they were never invited to the wedding and why he never talks about them and why they never visit even when he's been hurt. At first he just wanted to make his death easier on them, and later it just became the fact that he doesn't know how to reach back out. There's just... so much that he doesn't know how to explain, so much he doesn't know how to face again. They keep up with his life as much as they can through news and stuff, but they don't know how to reach out either

All in all, I think he has a family full of wonderful people who love him, but the combo of his own personality and the pressure to carry the family legacy soured some things as he got older and struggled to find his place in the world, and the cracks truly started showing once he broke his back, and everything finally fell apart after the fire and they have yet to fix it

[chickwiththepurpleguitar]

YOU STILL NEED PROMPTS AND I NEED CARRIE + RAY IN THE PARENTING VERSE, OKAY? just.... he is papi. i'm cry

Here you go my friend! Hope you enjoy! This takes place in like March 2015.

Carrie blows out a long sigh as Mr. Molina’s van pulls into the elementary school parking lot.

She considers checking her phone for the 800th time, to see if maybe she missed a message, an excuse, an apology. But there’s no point. There won’t be one.

The van rolls to a stop in front of the curb where Carrie’s been sitting since school let out, since Mami picked up Julie to take her to soccer practice and Carlos to baseball and called to Carrie through the car window, “Your dad’s on his way, sweetheart, he’s just running a little late!”

Well. “A little late” was four hours ago. Carrie already missed dance class, did tonight’s and tomorrow’s homework, and left about ten thousand messages with her dad’s assistant.

And not only did he not call her back, he’s still not here.

The driver’s side door slams open, and Ray Molina tumbles around the front of the car. “Carrie! Oh, sweetheart, I’m so sorry, I totally forgot I was supposed to pick you up today. You’ve been waiting so long, are you okay?”

If Carrie were younger, or stupider, she might have believed him. Heck, two months ago, she probably would’ve believed him.

But ever since the new year, Dad’s been acting weird. Distant and distracted. He eats dinner in his room more often than not, leaving Carrie alone with their private chef Gerta in the giant dining room of tier stupid new giant mansion. He missed Carrie’s last dance recital because of a “work emergency” and she can’t even remember the last time he smiled or laughed or told her he was proud of her.

“It’s okay,” she says as she tosses her backpack into the backseat and climbs up onto her booster. “You don’t have to pretend. Was it important?”

Papi hesitates as he buckles her seat belt for her. “Was what important, hon?”

Carrie sighs. “Whatever Daddy’s doing.”

Papi sighs, caught, and gives her a sad smile and a kiss on the cheek. “He just got held up at the studio, okay? It won’t happen again.”

“That’s what he said last time.”

Ray goes quiet again, just for a moment, like he doesn’t want to lie to her but he can’t quite bring himself to tell her the whole truth either.

Finally, he says, “Your daddy loves you very much, Carebear. He’s going through a bit of a hard time right now, that happens to daddies sometimes. Doesn’t mean he loves you any less, just means he might need a little help now and again. That’s what your mami and me are for. But don’t worry, we’re not gonna let him get off scot free for making you wait so long before he called me to come pick you up. I’m sure he’s sorry.”

Carrie squirms in her seat a little. She wants to believe him, wants to believe her daddy just needs a break from everything, like she does sometimes when the world just feels like too much.

But God, it feels like whatever kind of hard time he’s having has been lasting forever.

“Tell you what,” Papi decides, patting her knee. “How about you and I stop for ice cream on the way home? We don’t even have to get any for Julie and Carlos, it’ll just be our treat.”

Carrie bites back a smile. She can’t just start feeling better that easily, she’s been grumpy too long. “Can I get a double scoop?”

“Whatever will make you happiest, nena.” Papi holds out a finger. “Deal?”

Carrie twists her own finger around his. “Deal.”

--

Taglist:

@whenweremarried @sunsethimb0s @pink-flame @penguin0613 @fighttoshine @sunsetcurvecuddles @teenagedirtbag-dot-jpeg @brightattheorpheum @queenmolina @jandthephantoms @lexilucacia @sapphossidechick @acnhaddict @shrimp-colours @sunset-bobby @lenacarstairspotterstewart @conversationaltreestump @burntchromas @julieandthequeers @joyandthephantoms @it-tastes-like-lizard @jatpfs 

[hahahahahangst]

Anyone who knows what love is (Be The Young 39)

TW: [suicidal thoughts, self h*rm, violence, s*xual assault]

Other tags: [sister fic, canon-level violence, dean is an asshole, angst]

All chapter titles are song titles, some of them translated from Italian songs. We start from the first season and make out way through the series. I will occasionally break canon✨ .

Summary: Emily Reed, born and raised in Portland, is preparing her admission papers for Stanford, medical school. Little does she know, her life is about to change forever.

"After reading this whole letter, call John Winchester. [...] He’s your real father."

A/N:  We're getting to the end of the season!

MASTERLIST

Anyone who knows what love is

You can run around Even put me down Still I'll be there for you The world May think I'm foolish They can't see you Like I can

“Has any of you two been listening to anything I’ve said?” Asked Bobby. Dean was staring out of the window, Emily at the ceiling. Bobby had been talking for about ten minutes: she had not listened much, but enough to know what he’d been talking about. 

“Yeah, we heard you.” She muttered.

“And?” 

Emily and Dean looked at each other. Emily spoke first. “We’re not calling him.” She went back to staring at the ceiling. She ignored Bobby’s following phrase. However, she heard Dean’s.

“We are damn near kickoff for Armageddon, don't you think we got bigger fish at the moment?”

“I know you’re pissed-”

Emily cut him off. “That’s reductive.”

“Look-I’m not making apologies, but he’s your-”

“Don’t even try bringing blood into this mess.” Scoffed Emily.

“He’s your brother. And he’s drowning.”

“Bobby, we tried. We told him again and again- He wouldn’t listen.” Emily sat straighter to look at the old man.

“It’s too late.” Added Dean. 

“Are you two out of your mind?” Asked Bobby, nervous. Dean paced on the other side of the room.

“No, damnit!” He turned around. “No. We gotta face the facts.” He sighed. “Sam never wanted part of this family. He hated this life growing up. Ran away to Stanford first chance he got. Now it's like déjà vu all over again.” Dean sat on a chair that was lying next to him, sad. “Well, I am sick and tired of chasing him. Screw him, he can do what he wants.”

“You don't mean that.” Said Bobby. 

“Bobby, you weren’t there, you didn’t see- He’s gone. He’s not Sam.” Explained Emily.

“If he ever was.” Exhaled Dean.

All of a sudden, Bobby kicked a table, making all its content fall on the floor. Emily, startled, stood up. Dean did the same.

“You stupid, stupid son of a bitch! Well, boo hoo, I am so sorry your feelings are hurt, princess!” Mocked the man. “Are you under the impression that family's supposed to make you feel good?! Bake you an apple pie, maybe? They're supposed to make you miserable! That's why they're family!”

“That’s not how family works!” Answered Emily, upset. “And we told him- he walked out, he was choosing Ruby. He walked out, Bobby! He chose!” 

“You know who you two sound like?” Asked Bobby. “John Winchester! Let me tell you something about your dad: he was a coward!”

“My dad was a lot of things, Bobby, but a coward?” Asked Dean. Emily groaned, exasperated. 

“He'd rather push Sam away than reach out to him.” Explained Bobby. “Well, that don't strike me as brave.” 

“Bobby, I don’t give a fuck about what my dad did or didn’t do!” Yelled Emily. “What matters is that Sam is not himself anymore and he- HE CHOSE A FUCKING DEMON OVER US!” She repeated, accusatively pointing at Bobby. 

“HE NEEDS HIS SIBLINGS!” 

“HE COULD HAVE GOTTEN THEM IF HE WANTED TO!” With one final yell, Emily fell back on the couch. “But he didn’t.” She dried her face. “So now-” She cut herself off. 

Dean glared at her. “Now we have to find a way to prevent the apocalypse.” He concluded. In a blink, Dean had disappeared. A couple of seconds later, as she was still processing, Ramiel appeared in the room, apparently in a hurry. 

“Cazzo!” He yelled, looking around. “I’m too late, am I?”

”...were you looking for Dean?” 

“Yes.” He recollected himself. Emily’s stomach contorted. Damn, he was hot. It seemed unfair to be that attractive in such an emergency.

“Well, he just disappeared.” Emily shook away her thoughts. “Let me guess- It was your people.”

“Oh, Emily, they’re not my people anymore. I’m on the run.” He explained, closing his jacket.

“Meaning?” The girl stood up and reached for her laptop. 

“I rebelled, tesoro. I refused to follow their orders.” Said Ramiel.

“Well- Where are they keeping Dean?” Emily opened her laptop and placed it on her knees, looking at the angel. Ramiel didn’t answer. “Miele, I know you know. Just tell me.” Ramiel seemed to break a little when Emily used the nickname on him.

“Sì, sì, you’re right. I do know. But I don’t think it’s wise to go there.” 

“Why?” 

“Once we get in, they won’t let us out.” He exhaled.

“So what are we supposed to do?” Emily browsed to the phone company website on her laptop. “I’m not gonna sit here and watch the world burn. Ramiel, if we can’t get to Dean, then we need to get to Sam.”

“I don't know where he is. He's protected against my sight.” 

Emily looked up at the angel. “If I tell you where he is, can you help me get there?” She asked. The angel seemed set back by her words, but was quick to answer. 

“Anything.” 

Emily spent the next several hours fighting with the phone company to get Sam’s phone and GPS turned on, to no avail. 

“Damn it!” She threw her phone across the room. “I’ve literally run out of numbers to call. We’re not gonna find Sam like this!” She paced back and forth in the room. 

Bobby entered the room holding a book. “What if we didn’t go to Sam, but we went directly to Lilith? He said he was close, right?” 

“Yeah-” Emily stood straighter, realizing what book he was holding. “You’re right! We found her once with a tracking spell, right?” 

“Exactly.” Bobby looked at Emily. “But kid, if you get there and Sam still has to arrive…“ 

“We’re all dead.” She exhaled and put her hands on her waist. She looked at Ramiel. He was leaning against a wall, distractingly looking at his cufflings. “It’s a risk we’ll have to take.” She touched the angel on his shoulder. He raised his gaze. “Are you in?” Asked Emily. Ramiel nodded and pushed himself away from the wall.

It was almost night again before the spell was ready. Emily was standing next to a window, looking out as if Dean was to pull into the backyard of Bobby’s at any moment. She tried calling him for what was probably the fortieth time. She left another voicemail.

“Dean, I don’t know if you are getting these, but- Wherever you are, me and Ramiel are going after Lilith. I’m gonna put an end to this, okay? Please call me- call me if you’re still alive, okay?” She flipped her phone close and leaned on the cold window glass. She felt someone’s presence behind her. “What, you eavesdropping on my phone calls now, Miele?” 

“I’m an angel, I can hear through walls.” Emily, still looking out the window, felt Ramiel get closer and put his hands on her shoulder. They were weirdly warm to belong to a body which had probably died years prior. Ramiel ran his thumbs up and down on Emily’s shoulder.

“The spell is ready. Did you pack everything you need?” He asked. Emily looked over at her backpack, which laid on the floor, still packed with dirty clothes. 

“No, but- it’s no use. You know we’ll probably die, right?” She turned towards him and sat on the ledge of the window. “Miele, why are you coming on this suicide mission with me?” 

“I like you.” Shrugged Ramiel. “And I don’t want the apocalypse.” 

Emily shook her head. “Like me, like me, or… just like me?” She joked. Ramiel looked at her, extremely confused. “Nevermind- you said the spell was ready, right?” The angel nodded and left the room. As he turned away, Emily checked his figure and shrugged, thinking that maybe, if they survived, some angel sex could have been fun. 

Emily caught herself thinking about it a little too explicitly. 

“I can’t believe I’m about to die and I’m thinking about sex.” She whispered to herself as she entered Bobby’s living room. The man looked at her. 

“Pardon me?” He asked, trying to hide a smile. 

“Nothing- the spell?” She said, awkwardly gesturing in front of her. 

Bobby placed a map under a pendulum, then performed the spell. The pendulum started swinging and eventually stopped on a very precise location. Emily leaned over the table to see better. 

“That’s…“ She squinted. “A random empty road in Kansas?” She tried looking closer.

“Well, I doubt Lilith is hiding in a roadhouse.” Said Bobby. “The spell should be precise to the street. Let’s take a closer look at that road.” Bobby turned around and fished another map from a box. He opened it in front of his and Emily and Ramiel walked behind the man to see. “Here.” Bobby pointed to the street. “There’s not much, a convent and a high school.” 

“Well, it has to be either one of the other.” Emily walked to her laptop in the other room and brought it back to where the man and Ramiel were waiting. She typed in the name of the convent and started looking for news. 

“Got it.” She smiled, proud of herself, after snooping around for a bit, hunched over the now dismantled spell. “In ‘72 the convent was abandoned after a priest killed eight nuns.” She glared at Bobby. “And get this-” She continued. “The priest said a demon named Azazel made him do it.” 

“Well, that seems too much of a coincidence to not be the right place.”

 Emily didn’t waste another second and stood up, hurriedly grabbing her backpack. Ramiel followed her. He was about to teleport her, but she stopped him. She walked back to Bobby and hugged him. “Thank you.” She said. “I’ll see you- at one point.” He patted her on the back. Emily gestured at Ramiel and in a blink, she was in another room. 

Immediately, her mind was overwhelmed by Sam’s thoughts and feelings. She felt a mix of anger and fear. In front of her was Dean, trying to break down a large door, unsuccessfully. When she saw her, he stopped. 

“What-” He started to say. She interrupted him immediately, hurrying towards the door. 

“Yeah, what are you doing here, this is not safe- whatever, move!” With a hand gesture, she forced the door open. 

”...even you have to admit…I'm- I'm awesome!” Ruby's voice said. Emily charged in the room, ready to fight Lilith, but she was too late.

Lilith’s body was already lifeless, slumped on the altar, blood dripping copiously out of it. When she looked back, Ramiel was standing in the middle of the door and Dean was a couple of steps further.

In front of her, instead, were Lilith’s body, Sam, who looked shocked and upset, and Ruby, who instead, was proudly looking around. It took Emily a moment to sort all the things in her brain. 

Lilith, dead.

Sam, alive.

Dean, alive.

Ruby, alive.

Everything was alright, but one. 

Emily used her powers to slam Ruby into a column. 

“Wrong.” Said Emily, walking towards her. “You’re not awesome, you’re fucking dead.” 

Emily, s- Sam’s voice echoed in Emily’s head, but she interrupted him by also slamming his body on a wall. 

“NOT NOW, SAM! I’LL DEAL WITH YOU LATER!” She let go of Sam’s body, who fell on the ground, struggling, before Emily turned towards Ruby again. The demon was giggling. “You think this is funny?” 

“Hilarious.” She smirked. “You made my life so difficult, never keeping that trap shut, but in the end, I won.” She laughed. “I won, demon barbie.” 

Emily heard the sound of Dean helping Sam up behind her. Trying not to roll her eyes at it, she kept talking. “Yeah?”

“Sure.” Ruby smiled, proud. “I knew I could not get through to you or Dean, but you know who can? Sam. Oh, he talked you right into trusting me!” 

“You poisoned him.” Emily tightened her force, making Ruby wimper. “You turned him into a junkie.” She extracted the demon-killing knife from her jacket. “Last time, we let you walk, Ruby, but this time-”

“It doesn’t matter.” Ruby kept her smile. “It’s too late. He’s coming.” She nodded towards Lilith’s blood. It was slowly, but weirdly deliberately, moving into a circle. 

“Oh Ruby.” Exhaled Emily. “I’ve been waiting for the moment I get to waste you since you first showed up.” She stabbed Ruby in her chest. The demon tried to scream, but no voice came out. “I don’t care if I’m too late.” Concluded Emily, extracting the knife. She let the body fall on the floor, lifeless, and took a step back. “Now.” She put the knife away and turned towards Sam, who was standing not too far away. He tried to speak, but Emily didn’t let him. “WHAT DID I TELL YOU, UH?!” She walked towards him. “YOU ARE A F-” Dean got a hold of her arms and stopped her. As she was about to cuss him as well, he pointed to Lilith’s blood. 

“There’s no time. Let’s get out of here.” Emily turned to where Dean was pointing. Then, she looked for Ramiel, but he was nowhere to be found. The blood had completed the circle and was converging towards the middle, making another smaller circle. The moment the second circle was complete, light started to emanate from the middle of it, flooding the room. 

That was it. Lucifer was rising. 

“Come on!” Pleaded Dean, grabbing her by one side of her jacket and shoving her towards the door. Emily looked at him, then she looked at Sam. As light almost blinded her, she started running towards the door alongside Dean, but the light soon became too bright and she was overwhelmed by white.

[afterglow-tommylee]

Chapter 26. I’ve Been Around For A Long, Long Year

Holy fuck dudes can you believe this? 

Oh wait, hi, it’s Tommy again… well I guess you probably could tell that anyways. Nevermind. Ok where was I? Oh right, 

We’re fucking married!!!

Alright, I know I’m a little late to the fuckin’ party on that one but there was so much Andi had to get to before she would let me come in here again. She’s a perfectionist that way let me tell ya.

Dude, it feels so fucking amazing to be married to that girl. She’s like, everything I’ve ever wanted in a wife I promise. Now I know you’re all thinking, ‘what the fuck, you’ve been married 3 fuckin’ times Tommy, how’d you just figure this out now?’

Ok to explain this I’m gonna have to go back a few years here, so sorry babe I’m taking over for a little bit. You’re all cool with that right? Awesome, I thought you’d be.

Ok, so my first wife I married when I was just a 19 year old kid and I mean that in every sense of the word. I mean I know most people think I’m still just a kid and most days I still feel that way but in this sense, now looking back, I had no idea what I was getting myself into, and I’m definitely not the first one to think that years later. I was in love though and I thought it would last forever. Let’s be honest here, we made it a whole 30 days. I should’ve figured it was a mistake when I introduced her to my parents and, well my mom was shocked to say the least and my dad, well he just looked the other way. 

We were just insane. She was over the top crazy jealous and when we fought, shit you better look out. But that’s what made it all the more hotter I swear, or so I thought at the time. She’d throw anything she could at me when we were in the midst of our fights and there was even a time where she fuckin’ stabbed me in the hand with a butter knife then turned around to finish making her peanut butter sandwhich with it. Like, What. The. Actual. Fuck.

The last straw was when she called my mother a cunt. I don’t remember what started it, but once again we were fighting and she all out called my mother that, and she wouldn’t let it go no matter how many times I told her to stop. No one calls my mother a cunt and I fuckin’ kicked her out like yesterdays trash. After that I swore I was never gonna get married again.

Yea I know

But I did get married again, and I know you know all about Heather so I won't bore you with all that. I’ll only say this, I loved her with everything I had. We had been through a lot together and after a while, we just weren’t on the same path anymore. She wanted to focus on her career and I wanted to start a family and since we wanted different things, it just went all bad from there. 

So I was single guy again, and it was fuckin’ crazy. But I wasn’t single for long, I know I can’t help myself. I started dating Bobbie Brown - you know the chick from the Cherry Pie video? Yea her - and holy fuck that was crazy. She was super sweet and so hilarious and we were crazy about each other. But once again, jealousy is one angry motherfucker when it comes out. Like one minute we couldn’t fucking keep our hands off each other and the next minute we were fighting like animals. We were engaged but I never ended up pulling the trigger. There were just so many odd things that made me second guess her. Her strange mood swings and her paranoia, and then especially since she had me arrested for domestic violence after a big blow up we had. I know, sounds familiar right? 

Cue Pamela 

Now I’m not going to go into all of that here with you, since I did mention some of it earlier and again you guys are probably over the whole thing, I know I am. I feel like you all are screaming at me like “Shit Tommy didn’t you learn anything?” - I know, I know. Fuckin’ trust me dudes I know. You want drama in your life? Marry an actress. I’ve had enough to last me 5 lifetimes over, maybe even more.

After that I was done. Truly done. There was no fuckin way I was gonna do that all over again. After Pamela and I had finally called it quits - after months of us going back and forth missing each other, then fighting, then missing each other and hooking up, and I knew we had to stop but I just wanted us to be a family for our boys - we finally ended all the bullshit. I signed those divorce papers and never looked back. I came to realize that we really just needed to stay friends cause everything else just wasn’t working anymore. 

I stayed single for a long fuckin’ time - I mean I’m not gonna lie, there were a few late night booty calls in there somewhere - but I was free and clear and just didn’t want anything to do with relationships, dating, or like… y’know any of that shit. 

Then Andrea walked into that boardroom and I was done. That’s it, I found her. I found the one and even though I know I said that so many times before, this time I truly meant it. I still have no idea how she is my wife. She absolutely changed everything. It’s like, where the fuck has she been all my life? There is no fuckin’ way this is real. I keep thinkin’ I’m gonna wake up, like it’s all some sort of dream that isn’t really happening. 

Everything she does just blows me away. When I pulled out the titty cam - you guys remember the titty cam don’t ya? I mean how can you forget him? - I wasn’t sure what she was gonna do but I thought I would just play it up, y’know? If she got mad, or embarrassed I knew I was gonna hear about it later, but she totally just jumped right in. In later shows, it was like this competition between us, who could get more girls to flash us? She always won and I mean c’mon who could resist that sweetness she has.

She has opened up so much since we’ve been together and I’m so incredibly proud of her. That photo shoot we did together for that article, fuck dude, she was so fuckin’ gorgeous and those shots came out incredibly beautiful. When she showed me the final photos, I had to frame them right away and I hung them up right in the foyer so that everyone could see just how beautiful she is. 

She takes on so much and being a woman in this business is tough, and that’s comin from a guy who has seen it all. She has definitely seen it all and then some, but she never lets any of that shit get to her.

I mean we’re not all perfect, rainbows and fluffy clouds all the time. We fuckin’ fight just like any couple would. You’ve only seen just a glimpse, but trust me, you do not want to fight with an Irish girl. You will fuckin’ lose bro. 

No, but seriously it’s not to the extent of my previous relationships, she is definitely way more level headed even when she’s angry. I could never see her do anything like what I’ve experienced with my ex’s. She may want to though, cause I know I can be a dick when I want to be haha, but she would like, never carry it out. 

She never lets the business get in the way of us. Even when we’re butting heads about where I’m playing next or, the interviews and press she has set up, and I’m being a little brat about it, not wanting to fuckin’ do any of that shit - only some days though, most days I love it - We’ll definitley argue. But once I’m about to go on that stage, we make up, and she is like, in my corner ready to battle the world with me.

She is an amazing step mother to my boys, and they get so excited to see her everytime I pick those little monkeys up to see them. I swear they love her more than me. I just never thought I would ever find someone like her in a million years.

So, all of this to say, she is everything that I ever wanted in a wife and then some. I honestly didn’t think girls like her existed. Every time I was with a chick they’d be all cool with what I do until after a while they’d try and change me. Andi isn’t like that. She loves me for who I am and I love her for who she is. Music is always going to be my number one no matter what, but Andi is my number one too - er as well - y’know what I mean. She is the first woman to ever understand that. She’s never fighting against it or trying to change me in any way. She’s right up there with me and for that, there aren’t any words to explain my love for her.

Now that I’ve rambled on for the better part of… fuck what time is it? Shit! Ok, gotta go dudes, but I promise I’ll be back. I always am.

See ya!

[gibbonskokholm18]

Dr Hough, Gregory Arthur

Emma also spent 2 years at Old Mutual Investment Group as COO of a world funding boutique. Emma graduated from UCT with a BBusSci in 2001. Interning at Flagship was one of the best learning experiences I’ve ever had. The internship allowed me to apply my data gained at college in a practical and real-world way. The folks at Flagship were all very welcoming they usually have been at all times open to answering my numerous questions. I enjoyed this expertise lots and I would encourage anyone who needs to realize an insight into the world of asset administration to use for this internship. I’m just so sorry I couldn’t have accomplished extra for you, Gerald, at the scene. Rest In Peace and wishing your liked ones long life. Dearest daddy - On today and every single day I keep in mind your love and k ..... Dearest daddy - on this and daily I remember you and love you fo ..... We mourn with you the passing of our dearest pal and remember wit ..... Mommy time has gone however my love for will never go.Your teachings are ..... You might be missed by all and your legacy wil ..... In loving memory of Bobby Raucher, taken tragically from us too quickly ..... My internship at Flagship turned out better than I could have anticipated as it is a very inclusive environment. I felt that I was capable of enhance my data and skills daily of the internship. I left feeling that I know what it's to be part of an investment team, what the duties of an fairness analyst are and what it means to work within the industry. But the overal image hold true… South Africa’s prime wines age very well on the whole. The theme that night was to be South African fine wine, still a reasonably novel subject at this time. Emma is the enterprise strategist for the global funding group at Flagship. She joined Flagship in 2019. Emma has 19 years’ expertise in asset management. Prior to Flagship, Emma worked at Coronation Fund Managers in research, operations and distribution help roles for the home and world investment teams. dr gregory The Smile Foundation is about meaningfully connecting folks to bring about new opportunities, new futures, with the result being – new lives. We supply holistic care to transform the lives of those kids who're threatened with rejection by society. Next EC Swim Series occasion takes place at Marina Martinique in two weeks time, see for additional information and to register on-line. Registration closes on the Thursday afternoon before race weekend and late entry charges apply. During this time of the 12 months, hundreds of rands are withdrawn to be paid out to club members. Many a contented hour working with David at Shell. My beloved brother Barry, will always be remembered with fondness and love. Sandra Bloch Menachemson. Your life was filled with ache and struggling expensive Renny but you all the time confirmed such grace and courage. Not a day goes by with out you in my coronary heart . Love and miss you foreve ..... Bret at present 5 years you left us. Love you to the moon and back dad. In loving memory of my father, his loss is felt by his spouse, kids and grandchildren as keenly as ever. Gone however never forgotten. A very special friend beloved by many. Always joking and making enjoyable out of every thing. I wish to reach for the telephone and name you to share a joke or speak by way of the tough moment, or simply shoot the breeze. You are really missed my pal. Always remembered for the love he sha ..... Thinking of all my beloved Pelham and Sulcas family and their surprise ..... Wishing the Heneck household a long life.

[ltleflrt]

Hey Carrie! You talked a little the other day about writers' tendency to start a fic too early in the story, and how you see a lot of first scenes that could have been scrapped to improve the story. My question is if you have some tips to recognize while writing that first scene that you are starting too early in the story?

Hello friend!

That's a really good question, and I'll see if I can give an answer that makes sense. I am not a professional, and I'm not educated or trained in this stuff, it's just something that I recognize from years and years and years of voracious reading. And as with all writing advice, I encourage you to take what I'm going to say with a grain of salt and remember that no writing rule is a hard rule, only a guideline.

Also, my advice is going to be pertaining fanfiction, and specifically to AUs. Obviously a published book has an editor with a razor blade going through a manuscript for you, and the problems that bother me in fanfiction crop up in AUs more than Canonverse.

Oh, and every instance of "you" is general, not specific 😜

So I think the main problem that I see is that people are starting with an Info Dump. An Info Dump is not always a bad thing, sometimes it's completely necessary, but it is NOT where you want to start your story. If it absolutely has to be done, it's better to be somewhere in the middle or near the end. When it's something that your characters need to know.

That's an important bit: Do your characters need to know this?

And related to that: Does your audience need to know this for the story to make sense?

And very important follow up: If the answers to the above questions are yes, does the character/audience need to know this RIGHT NOW?

There's a lot of information about your story that YOU need to know. Heck, my notes files are full of sooooooo much stuff that I know about the characters and plot that never reaches the final product.

So when you're reading your first chapter (I say reading, not writing, because sometimes info dumping for your own benefit is good, and then you fix it before you share the story lol), ask yourself those two questions.

So for example:

In an AU where Dean is a tattoo artist, and it's his POV. The story starts with Dean driving to work, and when he gets there he's going to find out that the empty shop next door has been purchased and is going to be a yoga studio. He meets Castiel out front, up on a ladder trying to hang a hand painted sign, and some teens go running buy and knock into the ladder and Dean has to catch Castiel from falling. (Anyone who wants to adopt this idea is welcome to it btw, I would love to read this lol)

The mistake I often see in a first chapter like this is that as Dean is walking to work, there's a whole Info Dump about why he's a tattoo artist instead of a hunter. He'll be ambling along, thinking about his nice little business, and there's info about how his mom died in a fire, and his dad was a jerk, and Dean didn't go to college because he saved his money for Sammy's college fund, and Dean's only passion was art, and Bobby Singer introduced him to a tattoo shop owner who took Dean under his wing, etc.

Question 1, does your character need to know this?: Why is Dean reflecting on his past? Does Castiel need to know this information in order to build a romance with Dean?

Question 2, does your audience need to know this?: Why does this information matter? If Dean's only reflecting on this because you want to make sure your audience knows where the timeline changed and this became an AU, then you're starting too early in your story. Dean doesn't need to know this, and honestly in a lot of cases the reader doesn't need to know this. This is information that should have been left in your notes file.

Question 3, does the character/audience need to know this NOW?: If this information is pertinent to the plot, like maybe there's some trauma there that Castiel might need to know about to develop their relationship, then you don't want to put it HERE, you want to put it in a conversation with Castiel LATER.

If I was writing this AU, I would just start with Dean sipping his coffee, he's kinda tired because reasons, he looks up to see an unusual commotion, and has to drop his coffee and sprint forward to catch Cas. If he's reflecting on anything in this scene, it's going to be whatever made him tired, or how good/bad the coffee is this morning. Since Cas is a new business owner, they can talk about the origins of Dean's business on their first date, because it'll be a relevant response to Castiel talking about the origins of his yoga studio.

And just in general, if Dean's origin story includes a lot of canon elements, like mom dying in a fire, dad being a deadbeat, Sammy being the adorable overachieving Stanford student.... try to hide that info for as long as you can so that the audience is actually curious about it by the time the info might pop up. It's the wild divergences that are more interesting earlier on.

Okay, and then I want to talk about my giant pet peeve for a starting chapter. It's a specific kind of info dump, that often includes the stuff from above, but then goes a step further.

My nemesis, The Daily Grind.

I haven't asked the authors, so I could be wrong about this, but I feel like most of the time when this type of chapter is included in a story it is because the author wants to show the reader that the character's life is boring and meaningless before the plot's inciting incident. I can absolutely see why that might be considered an important detail about the character, but keep in mind if it's boring and meaningless to the character, it's boring and meaningless to your audience.

You know how I said earlier that writing tips should never be hard and fast rules? Well this is in regards to that Show Don't Tell rule, and it's an example of TOO MUCH showing lol

It is possible to do a daily grind in an interesting way, but only if you include a Shake Up right away. And you have to look at the 3 questions a little bit differently.

So for example:

Castiel POV, and he works in an office. His daily routine is to always get up at the same time every day, he goes for his run, he grooms himself, he has his breakfast, he goes to work and talks to Kelly about how Jack's doing in kindergarten for a few minutes before going into his office. Adler comes in to be a prick, Castiel hates him for it, and then he does his reports, has lunch hiding in a corner of the lunch room so that his co-workers will leave him alone, he does more reporting, leaves an hour after his shift technically ends, goes home to a lonely apartment that maybe includes a pet who is the only being that shows him affection, has an unsatisfying dinner of leftover takeout while watching a mindless reality tv show, then he goes to bed.

Ugh.

BORING.

Which, yeah I get it, the point is that his life is boring. But now the story is too, and I've clicked the back button before I can see how exciting it's capable of getting.

Question 1, does your character need to know this?: No. He knows. Poor thing definitely already knows.

Question 2, does your audience need to know this?: Yes, but...

Question 3, does the character/audience need to know this NOW?: Yes, but new question for ya:

Optional Question 4, why does this need to be separate from your plot's inciting incident? The answer to this 4th question is usually that it doesn't.

Chapter 2 of this type of beginning usually shows the shake up of Castiel's day. My advice is to start with the shakeup, and sprinkle in the details of what you would have put into chapter 1 to show the contrast. It's far more interesting to learn how boring Castiel's day is by starting with the shake up.

So, same scenario:

Castiel's alarm doesn't go off for some reason, OH NO HIS ROUTINE IS SHAKEN UP! You're explaining his routine while also stressing him the fuck out because he has to rush, or skip something that he normally needs to do. Action! Interesting! He gets to work late, and has to miss his conversation with Kelly about Jack because she's telling him that Adler's already in his office being a prick because Castiel isn't there waiting for him like he always is. Oh shit, he's pissing off his asshole boss! Conflict! He's so flustered by the shakeups that he misses something on his report, and he gets a call from that new marketing guy Dean Winchester who asks if they can have a meeting about it when Castiel normally takes his lunch. BAM! MEET CUTE OPPORTUNITY! While Castiel is getting all flustered by how pretty Dean is while they talk about TPS reports, he can reflect on how this is both better and worse than hiding from his co-workers in the corner of the lunch room. The rest of the day after that meeting he's thinking about how weird this day is, he still goes home an hour late, he talks to his pet about his weird day when he gets home, and maybe he still eats leftover takeout, but he's not paying attention to the reality tv show because holy shit he wants to count Dean's freckles.

In this example, you're Telling the audience about Castiel's normal routine instead of Showing them. But since it's during a plot heavy chapter, it works!

Lemme see if I can TL:DR this...

As you're reading, ask yourself who needs to know this information, why do they need to know this information, and why is it important for this information to be included early instead of later?

If the answer to any of those questions boils down to "this is backstory" instead of "this kicks off the plot", then you've started too early.

I hope this helps? I'm always nervous about giving writing advice because so much of the time I have no idea what I'm doing, and I'm just feeling around in the dark. And I definitely do not ever want to hurt an author's feelings, because this hobby is so fucking hard, and we're all fragile. Even authors who welcome con-crit with open arms will have a weak point that they're unaware of that might get poked wrong and cause a crack, ya know?

I hope anyone who gets this far who might see their own works reflected in my examples understands that I have a lot of respect for their ability to put their work out into the world, and I want them to keep doing it. We're here to have fun, okay? Okay. I love y'all 💜

[buckleyblueyes]

ahh that's amazing! thank you in advance. I got this idea into my head: what if there is this one time they're all on a call, and maybe it's something that hits a little too close to home for Buck, maybe it's playing on his fears and insecurities, but the moment Buck sees what they're dealing with he gets SCARED, and freezes, and subconsciously grabs Eddie's hand, because Eddie makes him feel safe. He is his best friend (who he's in love with, ofc) after all. Eddie is well. Surprised. Very much.

Anon! Thank you so much for your patience with this one! I know it's been ages since you sent it in. I hope it's worth the wait and that I did justice to your prompt! (CW: drowning)

Eddie feels Buck tense up beside him as soon as Bobby tells them where they're going: Splash Zone Water Park. They have calls to pools fairly often, and Buck always gets a little bit tense going into it, no matter how long it’s been since the tsunami. Eddie presses his knee against Buck’s in the truck, offering a silent comfort to his friend. Buck seems to push down his fears by the time they pull up to the scene, forcing himself to shift into Firefighter Buckley mode as they make their way through the park. Eddie lets himself be relieved, until they arrive in front of the wave pool.

Of course it’s the goddamn wave pool. Even worse, there’s a nine year old boy laid out on the stone patio next to the pool, dripping wet, brown hair plastered to his forehead. He’s unconscious, bleeding from the side of his head, and his chest isn't rising and falling like it should be. Buck freezes immediately at the sight, reaching out for Eddie with his right hand, and wrapping his fingers around Eddie’s left wrist. It takes Eddie a moment to realize that Buck is feeling for his pulse, grounding himself.

Eddie does his best to steady his breathing and heart rate once he realizes what Buck is doing. The sight in front of them is upsetting to him, of course it is, but he knows it’s worse for Buck. He’s not the one who walked around for hours not knowing if Christopher was dead or alive. He’s not the one who almost died himself (at least, not that day.) “It’s okay,” he murmurs quietly, so only Buck can hear. “I’m here, I’m alive. That’s not Christopher.” It’s purely a medical call at this point, so he makes no attempt to move away from Buck as Hen and Chimney begin administering CPR to the boy. His mother is crying, wailing, begging them to save him. His lips are turning blue. Buck’s grip on Eddie’s wrist is like a vice.

“We got a pulse!” Hen finally calls out.

Buck’s grip doesn’t loosen, but Eddie does hear him let out of a heavy breath. He twists his hand out of Buck’s grip just enough that he can slide his arm up, so Buck is no longer holding his wrist, but is holding his hand. He gives Buck’s hand a firm squeeze and finally hazards a glance up at the man in question. Buck is staring at their intertwined hands now, confused. At least, Eddie decides, he’s distracted from the drowning boy. He runs his thumb along the back of Buck’s hand, in what he hopes is a comforting gesture.

He knows they’re crossing some kind of line here, that hand holding in the middle of an emergency scene (even one where their presence turned out not to be strictly necessary) is not something that he’ll be able to brush off as strictly platonic. It doesn’t scare him like it used to, though. Maybe it’s because he watched Buck date Taylor, so he knows how much worse it would be to not have Buck, or maybe it’s all the therapy he’s been in since the shooting. Either way, Eddie’s not afraid anymore. He and Buck have been on the edge of something--or maybe everything--for months, so if holding Buck’s hand will help ground him, keep his mind from thrusting him back in time, then it’s a risk Eddie is willing to take.

Hen and Chimney are loading the boy into the ambulance--he is breathing again, still unconscious and probably severely concussed, but alive--when Bobby finally makes his way over to them. He takes in the haunted look in Buck’s eyes, and the fact that their hands are still tightly clasped together, and frowns.

“You boys alright?” He asks, but he’s looking at Buck.

Buck nods slowly. “I--Yeah. Just...Brought up some bad memories.”

“This was a rough one,” Bobby agrees. “I’m gonna take us off rotation for a while when we get back to the station.”

“Thanks, Cap,” Eddie says. Buck doesn’t say anything.

Bobby smiles in that warm, fatherly way of his, looking between them. “Take care of each other.”

As if there’s any universe where they wouldn’t.

Eddie doesn’t let go of Buck’s hand until they get back to the station, and only because he needs two hands to cook.

“I’m not hungry,” Buck says, still hovering in Eddie’s space.

“You were about to eat before the call came in,” Eddie insists gently. “You need to eat.”

“And you’re gonna cook for me?” Buck shakes his head. “I think I’ll take my chances with starvation.”

Eddie rolls his eyes, pulling out a griddle and a clean spatula. “I think I can handle grilled cheese, Buck.”

Buck’s mouth opens and closes in surprise. “Grilled cheese?”

“Maddie may have mentioned making it for you a lot growing up.” Eddie flushes slightly at having to admit he’s talked to Maddie about Buck. “I thought it would be comforting.”

Buck stares at him, eyes wide and mouth turning up into a tentative smile. “Yeah, it is.”

“Good,” Eddie smiles back. “Now, go sit down.”

Eddie bustles about the kitchen, pulling out the good buttermilk bread that Chimney always buys instead of the whole wheat bread that Bobby puts on the list, the pre-sliced cheddar cheese, and the butter. “After we eat, how about we video call Christopher?” It’s late in the afternoon, he’ll be home from school by now.

Buck lets out a long exhale. “Yes, please.”

Eddie flips the bread slices on the griddle and places the cheese slices on the toasted side. “Great.”

“I--” Buck starts. “I didn’t know how to ask.”

Eddie looks up from the sandwiches. “How to ask for what?”

“To talk to Christopher,” Buck draws patterns on the tabletop with his index finger. “I know I’m not--He’s not mine.”

Eddie doesn’t say anything at first, just plates up the sandwiches, brings them over to the table, and sits down next to Buck, who takes a small, tentative bite.

“I don’t think that’s true.”

“What?”

“You said Christopher isn’t yours,” Eddie picks up his sandwich, but doesn’t bite into it. “I don’t think that’s true.”

Buck is staring at him again, confused.

“Look, I don’t know what we are anymore, Buck,” Eddie admits. “Things are different between us now, and I don’t know what I’m doing, but I know that you love Christopher, and that he loves you just as much. If that doesn’t give you a right to call him, to reassure yourself that he’s okay, then I don’t know what does.”

“I…” Buck’s eyes fill with tears.

"It's okay, Buck." Eddie reaches over to wipe Buck's tears with his thumb. “Just eat your grilled cheese."

Buck does as he’s told, making it halfway through the sandwich in three bites. “You know, there’s no law that says we have to wait until we finish eating to call Christopher.”

Eddie raises a skeptical eyebrow, looking up from his own half-eaten lunch. “Will you actually finish eating if we call now?”

“Absolutely.” Buck takes a big bite to prove his point. “See?” He says, through a mouthful of food. Something so childish shouldn’t be so endearing, and yet, somehow it is.

Helpless, Eddie pulls out his phone. Carla answers on the second ring. “You better have a good reason for interrupting math homework.”

“I do.” Eddie assures her. “Can you put Chris on?”

Carla gives him a look, but does as he asks. Christopher is grinning--probably excited to have his math homework interrupted “Hi, Dad!”

“Hey, kid.” Eddie can’t help but return his son’s smile. “How’s the math homework going?”

Christopher’s smile falters slightly. “Oh, it’s good.”

Somehow Eddie doesn’t totally believe that, but it’s not important now. “Listen, I’ve got somebody here who wants to say ‘hi’, is that okay?”

The boy’s smile comes back even wider than before. “Is it Buck?”

“Yeah,” Buck says, loud enough that the phone can catch it. “It’s me.”

“Hand the phone to Buck, Dad!” Christopher is bouncing with excitement. “Hand the phone to Buck!”

He does, scooching his chair closer so he can still see the screen himself, and before Buck can even greet Christopher, the kid is launching into a monologue.

“Buck! Dr. Lassiter assigned us a big, semester-long project for science class, can you pleeeaaase help me with it? I want to build a model of the solar system, but it has to be totally accurate.”

The tension Buck's body has been holding onto since the phrase “water park” fell from Bobby’s lips is finally starting to fade.

“Absolutely. Do we want it to move?”

Christopher’s eyes widen on screen. “Yes!”

Buck laughs. “Well then, we’ve got our work cut out for us.”

Eddie smiles softly, as Buck and Christopher begin planning their project. He knows he must look like a lovesick fool, but to be fair, that’s what he is. He rests one hand over the crook of Buck’s elbow, and doesn’t miss the pink that appears across his cheeks.

“Alright, you three,” that’s Carla’s voice, “Somebody still has math homework to finish, and I’m sure you boys will have to get back to work soon.”

Eddie sighs. Carla is right, unfortunately. But Buck looks lighter than he has all day. “We better do what Carla says.”

“Will you come over after work?” Christopher asks. They won't get off until after Christopher will already be at school, so Buck will probably go to his loft after work. But Eddie doesn’t doubt now that Christopher has asked, Buck will manage to make it over to their house by the time Christopher is home from school. He wonders if it's too soon to ask Buck to sleep in his bed, instead of going to his loft at all. It's yet another line to cross, but at this point Eddie's lost track of all the lines they've crossed.

“You bet,” is Buck’s answer. “Now get back to your math!”

“Okay, dad,” Christopher says, rolling his eyes, voice dripping with sarcasm. It’s meant to be a joke at Buck’s expense, but Eddie can see the breath catching in Buck’s throat all the same, so he pulls the phone from his hand and takes over.

“Good-bye, Christopher! We love you!”

“Bye Dad! Bye Buck! I love you guys, too.”

Buck finds his voice again. “Bye Superman!”

“So,” Eddie says, putting the phone down. “Do you feel better now?”

“Eddie…” Buck hesitates, dropping his hand down so it rests over Eddie’s. His skin is warm and rough and unlike earlier Eddie can actually enjoy the feeling. “Thank you.” He’s thanking Eddie for more than just the grilled cheese and the phone call, and Eddie knows it.

His answer is simple. He turns his hand over, and interlocks their fingers. “Always, Buck.”