#I’ve been planning it for literally months but finally pulled the trigger and booked the hotels today!!!

[crancisfrozier]

I’m officially going to Ireland and the UK this October!!!!

[mypoisonedvine]

Making Ends Meet | dark!Mandalorian x reader

summary: you’re just a simple woman trying to make your way in the universe, with the universe’s oldest profession.  unfortunately for you, a new customer doesn’t plan on going easy on you.

word count: 3.2k

warnings: smut (dub con), kidnapping (?? kinda), prostitution, rough sex, pain kink, lots and lots of degradation, ooc mando being a meanie

please do not read if this content would be triggering or upsetting for you, dark fics aren’t for everyone and it is your responsibility to manage your own content consumption

If you were going to have any hope of making rent this month, you needed to book someone tonight— and not a cheapskate who’d try to stiff you after he’d already stiffed you, no, you needed a big spender, a high roller.  You needed somebody who had extra credits to throw around and wore it on his sleeve.

You needed a guy like the one who had just walked in— with beskar on his sleeve.  That’ll do quite nicely, you thought to yourself as you watched the Mandalorian cross the room to talk to the bartender.  

Seemed like he was here on business, unfortunately, from the way he didn’t even venture a glance at you or any of the other women skulking about; but then again, you couldn’t be entirely sure where he was looking with that big helmet covering his face.  It might not be the easiest sell, but you were determined to get this guy for the night— and, more importantly, his money.

Walking up to the bar with your best sultry saunter, you leaned in beside him and smiled as he turned his head to look at you.  "Hey," you purred.  "Haven't seen you around before.  We don't get a lot of new faces around here… even when they're hidden."

He didn't say anything, which was a little concerning, but his head tilted down a bit as if he was looking at your body, which was a good sign.

“What brings you to Tatooine, hm?  Business…” you trailed off as you ghosted your fingertips over his armor-clad forearm, “or pleasure?”

“Business is my pleasure,” he informed you sternly.

“And pleasure is my business,” you countered with a smirk.  Before you could say anything else, the bartender returned with a sack in his palm that he tossed into the Mandalorian’s hands, something metallic jingling inside.

“For a job well done,” he explained with a crooked, toothy smile, “as promised.”

“Payday, huh?” you noticed, your tongue darting out to wet your lips.  “Never comes often enough, amirite?”

Your quip was met with tense silence as he slipped the bag into a sack at his waist.  He turned to leave, but you reached out for his shoulder and stopped him.  

“Wait,” you requested, desperation starting to taint your tone of voice.  He spun and faced you again, and you tried to keep your body language relaxed and sensual in spite of your stress.  “What are you gonna spend all that on?”

“My ship,” he decided after a quick moment.

“Why not spend it on yourself?  You must be tired after working a long, hard day,” you sighed sympathetically, stepping a little closer.  “Why don’t you stay a bit longer and take a moment to relax?”

It didn’t seem like he knew what to do with that, and you motioned to a wide, cushioned chair nearby.  Amazingly, it worked; he walked to the chair with that swagger of his, the blaster at his hip suddenly so much more obvious with the way it swung with every step.  As soon as he sat down, you put a leg up beside him, straddling him slightly but leaving enough space to (hopefully) have him wanting more.

“You must be getting hot under there,” you smiled, making sure the double entendre was obvious.

“Maybe I am,” he shrugged.

“All this heavy armor... does it get uncomfortable?”

“I’m comfortable,” he denied.

“Good,” you purred before biting down on your lip as you rubbed his chest— or, rather, his chestplate.  “You know, I’ve heard that Mandalorians are even harder underneath the steel.”

He paused a little before he answered.  “Only in a few key places,” he finally replied, his gloved hand reaching to brush over your thigh.  You grinned, knowing you finally had him.

“Why don’t you come to my room and show me?” you suggested.

“I imagine your time isn’t free,” he observed.

“Fifty credits for an hour, or a hundred for the whole night,” you enumerated.

“That’s a little steep,” he noted with a tone of irritation.

“It’s my price,” you shrugged, “take it or leave it.”

“I’ll leave it,” he decided, shoving you back and standing up to leave.

“No, wait,” you blurted out, “eighty for the night.”

“I don’t have all night,” he informed you sternly.  “Twenty for the hour.”

“Twenty?!” you squawked.  “What kind of girl do you take me for?”

He grabbed your wrist tightly, suddenly, and pulled you into him.  “A whore,” he answered with a rough growl, “and apparently not as cheap as you look.”

You swallowed dryly, irritated by his attitude but desperate for the cash you knew he had.  “How often do you come through Mos Eisley?” you asked quietly.

“As rarely as I can manage,” he replied.

“If you pay a hundred now, I’ll be here every time you come in, for as long as you need,” you offered.  “Standing order, permanently.”

It was difficult to negotiate with someone whose face you couldn’t see: you weren’t sure if the silence was him considering it, or just watching you squirm in his grasp for fun.  

“A hundred,” he repeated slowly, “for whatever I want.”

“Whatever you want,” you nodded quickly.

“Whenever I want,” he added.

“Whenever you want.”

He let go of your wrist and you stumbled back, rubbing the sore skin with your other hand.  “Show me to your room,” he requested suddenly.

You led him back behind a few tattered curtains, past the hall and up the stairs to your cramped apartment.  It wasn't much, but the red silk draped everywhere and the incense burning in the corner certainly set the mood for the work you did.  Your door slid shut automatically behind him, and normally this is the part where he’d kiss you or you’d kiss him, but that was sort of impossible in his current state.  With an awkward pause, you waited for him to undress.

“Take off your clothes,” he instructed instead— and it was even more dominant than you expected, but you were happy to oblige as you untied the strip of fabric keeping your flowy tunic together, letting it fall off of your shoulders and onto the floor.  You didn’t have anything else on, just for the sake of simplicity, and he said nothing as he stepped forward until he was just inches away from you.

He quickly disposed of his gloves to touch you with his bare hands; his rough, warm skin over your waist and hips and breasts was a strong contrast to the worn leather, and even moreso to the hard, cold beskar.  His skin was tan, especially considering that it rarely saw the sun, and you let yourself imagine what the rest of him would look like based on that long with the subtle dusting of dark hair that extended from his arms.  Of course, in your mind, he was stunningly gorgeous, because it was more fun for you that way.  The way he spun you around quickly and forced you to bend over the edge of your bed made you realize he wasn’t as interested in your fun, though.

You yelped a little at the unexpected force, and again when he slapped your ass out of nowhere.  

“You’d better make it worth my while, after I paid a hundred credits,” he grunted.

“Of course,” you agreed quickly, looking back to see him slipping to fingers underneath the edge of his helmet.

“Don’t turn around,” he growled.  “Don’t look back.”

“Okay,” you nodded nervously as you whipped your head back to face in front of you, staring diligently at the dark red comforter beneath you, “I— I won’t.”

You heard the rustle of clothing and a sigh of relief— noticeably one not modulated through the helmet speaker.  Unceremoniously, his helmet was tossed down onto the bed beside you, bouncing and rolling a bit before it found purchase on your quilt.

Next must have been his trousers, as you heard his heavily-equipped belt fall to the floor just before the subtle little grunt you’d come to know as the sure sign that a man had freed a throbbing cock from the confines of his trousers.  He roughly kicked your legs apart, grabbing your hips and using them to hold you up as he started to grind his bare cock against your slickened folds.  You could tell by the way his shaft spread your lips that you had no chance of taking him— he was too thick, you couldn't even tell how long he was yet but he was definitely too thick.

He must have realized something similar, because he pushed you forward a bit; you realized he was looking down at your pussy, which made your face burn with embarrassment.

"Get yourself wet for me," he instructed firmly.  

You didn't think you would ever be able to get wet enough to fit him.  "How?" you asked.

"I don't care how, just do it.  You have thirty seconds."

You gasped a bit but shoved your hand between your legs and frantically rubbed your clit— it didn't really feel that good, with the pressure and fear overwhelming your senses instead of pleasure.  And he didn't make it any easier on you by literally counting each second.  You got a bit wetter, sure, and you'd already been turned on from earlier, but it was still not gonna do you much good against the monster he intended on putting inside you at any moment.

"Fifteen," he continued counting, his voice dropping so much deeper all of a sudden.  "Fourteen."

Halfway out of time already and you weren't that much more wet than when you started.  Your mind was racing with thoughts of everything sexy you could manage to conjure— his voice did help, the deep timbre reverberating right up your spine as anxious fear started to blend in with forced arousal.  You tried to focus on the ways that being fucked by a faceless, mysterious stranger was sexy, rather than the ways it was terrifying.

"Ten," he counted, his voice changing as you heard him smile— you weren't sure how you could hear it, but you could.  "There you go, I can see it now."

You whimpered a little, the sound catching in your throat as fingers suddenly teased your entrance, not quite pushing in but threatening to.  As they swirled around your folds, a lewd wet sound filled the air, mixing in with your heavy breathing and his dark chuckle.

"You hear that?" he asked, and you nodded quickly.  "Just a few seconds left, make them count."

Rubbing faster, you felt your hips start to rock of their own volition, similarly to the way your walls were clenching around nothing in search of being filled.  

"Three, two, one," he finished as you felt the thick head of his cock start to push against you.  You dropped your hand, knowing you'd need both to stabilize yourself.  "You want it?" he asked roughly.

"Yes," you answered, your voice coming out weaker than expected.

"Beg for it," he instructed coldly.

"Put your cock in me, please—" was all you could get out before the words stopped in your throat as he suddenly pushed in.  You were barely processing the first inch as he barreled past your resistance to shove the next few in.  It already felt like you would run out of room inside your body before he ran out of cock.

"F-fuck," you hissed, "slow down.  You're too big."  You hoped maybe he'd take pity on you if you phrased it as a compliment.  You were wrong.

"You're a whore," he reminded you, "can't you take it?  It's all you're good for, anyways."

That got you to shut your mouth as he thrust himself completely into you, finding the end of you easily with the head of his cock while your hands clutched the bedsheets for dear life.  You winced but managed to suppress a cry as he started to fuck you, not quite fast yet but so much deeper than your brain could process.  "Ffffuu-uuck," you stammered, the sting starting to fade but the overwhelming pressure never really letting up.

"How's it feel?" he asked, almost sounding like he could moan but holding back.  "Don't lie."

You realized, then, that he didn't want you to fake pleasure like most clients did— he wanted to see your pain, and know he caused it.  He enjoyed hurting you.  You swallowed the lump in your throat and whimpered your honest reply: "Hurts."

"Good."

His balls slapping against your clit only added to the overwhelming sensations you were trying so hard to ignore, pain and pleasure becoming indistinguishable all of a sudden.  You could tell your walls were clamping down on him as pressure built in your gut and threatened to push past the point of no return.  Your moan was so much louder than you expected it to be, broken and guttural and animalistic. 

He pulled your hair roughly, making you yelp.  “That’s right,” he instructed through his teeth, “fuckin’ scream for it.”

“Fuck!” you sobbed loudly.  

He leaned forward and it felt like his body would surround yours, somehow, especially when he reached down to roughly grope one breast and then another.  He never stopped thrusting through it all, even when his head fell exhaustedly between your shoulder blades— it was so odd to be able to feel his forehead and hair on your skin but have no idea what his face looked like at all.

The telltale signs of orgasm were arriving in your body— your thighs quivered, your voice cracked, your walls and clit throbbed with need.  It felt like you could read every detail of his cock inside your silky wet heat, like the ridge of his leaking head was rubbing up against your swollen g-spot with every thrust.  You felt as if being so full of him had forced you to vacate your mind, too, to accommodate his size— as if that were possible.  

Either he sensed your peak approaching as well, or he just had convenient timing.  "Wanna feel you come around it," he grunted.  "Can you come for me?  Or are you completely useless?"

“‘M close,” you warned him as your answer, shame sending a shiver up your spine even though you felt guilty for it.

“Then come,” he ordered, “right fuckin’ now.”

It was odd how that actually did push you over the edge, his brutal thrusts and degrading words creating a perfect storm inside you as the friction became too much to bear.  You sobbed as it wracked through you, arching your back absent-mindedly, clenching your legs together as best you could with his legs in between them.  He didn’t stop fucking you through it, which meant that the sensation built to the point of ‘too much’ extremely quickly as your attempts at begging for mercy were lost to breathless moans.  Overwhelmed, your body collapsed onto the bed limply, your hips only staying up because he held them up, like your weight was nothing to him at all.

"Yeah, just like that,” he taunted, “fuckin' come on my cock, fuck— you're just a dumb slut, huh?  You love getting fucked like the desperate, needy fucktoy you are, is that it?"

"Y-yes," you whined weakly, cheeks burning at the feeling of him using your body— or maybe it was from the head rush caused by the afterglow of your orgasm. 

"You like it when it hurts,” he posited.  “You want me to hurt you."

"Yes— don't stop, please…" you whimpered, quiet but definitely loud enough for him to hear.

“Not gonna stop,” he promised, “‘til you’re full of my come.”

“Fuck,” you groaned, voice sounding hoarse and thin.  It had been a while since you lost your voice because of a session… and since you had walked funny for a few days afterwards.  This one was definitely going to do both.

As his hips started to slam harder and faster into yours, you really hoped it was a sign that he was close; his raspy groans made you sure of it, though.  You could feel his cock swelling and flexing, incredibly, and it made you a little light-headed but it made your overstimulated walls throb around him as well.

With one deep, exhausted growl from the man behind you, a warmth began to spread through you from the inside out.  When he released his grip on your hips, you fell onto the bed with a sigh and a thud.  A hand appeared in your peripheral vision to snatch the helmet off of your bed, and it only took him a few moments to stuff his softening cock back into his trousers and magically be dressed again.  Funny how he looked exactly the same as he had half an hour ago, meanwhile you were confident you looked totally fucked-out and fucked-up.

“You’re a good fuck,” he offered a monotone compliment as he pulled on his gloves, staring down at you as you slipped your robe back on and tried to ignore the warm sticky feeling between your legs.

“You’re… intense,” you replied, chuckling a little.  “Guess I’ll see you around, then.”

He didn’t respond, or leave, but just stood there looking at you for a minute as you stood up and adjusted yourself, trying not to limp noticeably because you figured he didn’t need any more ego.  “‘Whenever I want’ only applies when I’m on this planet,” he observed suddenly, interrupting the silence, “which I try not to be.”

“You can come around as often as you like,” you explained.  You froze when he appeared behind you, reaching his arms out and caging you in against the wall the second you'd turned to face him.

“But wouldn’t it be so much more cost-effective if you were with me all the time?  On my ship?”

You whimpered a little as he leaned in closer, and you felt his gaze on you through the dark visor of his helmet even though you couldn’t see it.  “That… that wasn’t the deal,” you whispered nervously.

“The deal’s changed,” he growled, ignoring your yelps of pain as he manhandled you and pinned you to the wall by your neck before you could even try to fight back.  “Whatever I want, whenever I want,” he growled, “that’s what you said.  I’ll hold you to that.”

The leather gloves creaked softly as he tightened his grip on the sides of your neck, forcing your lips to fall into a useless gasp for air.  Your hands reached out to claw at his chest, a silent plea for release, but he wasn’t having it.  

“Whatever you want,” you barely managed to croak out as your vision started to go dark.  “Please, Mando…”

“Whenever I want?”

“Whenever, please,” you cried, tears stinging your eyes.  He let go, finally, and you crumpled at his feet.  Somehow, you’d managed to sell yourself into slavery— for a measly hundred credits.  This whole thing had begun with you needing to make rent, and it ended with you realizing you wouldn’t return to your apartment again at all.  

He didn't need to shackle or bind you to make you follow him to his ship; his power over you was nauseatingly effortless, but you weren't about to try to run from an unhinged warrior like him.  

You'd always wanted to leave Tatooine and explore the galaxy… this wasn't exactly how you'd imagined doing it, as a Mandalorian's whore, but there were worse fates.  Like being a Mandalorian's target.  And you planned on doing whatever he wanted you to if it meant avoiding that.

[bonky-n-steeb]

𝑅𝐸𝑀𝐸𝑀𝐵𝐸𝑅

PART ONE

𝙇𝙊𝙆𝙄 𝙭 𝙍𝙀𝘼𝘿𝙀𝙍 | 𝙎𝙏𝙀𝙑𝙀 𝙍𝙊𝙂𝙀𝙍𝙎 𝙭 𝙍𝙀𝘼𝘿𝙀𝙍

𝗦𝗨𝗠𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗬: Bored after staying on Asgard your entire life, you decide to sneak on earth. But what happens when Steve falls irrevocably in love with you, the Queen of Asgard, wife of Loki.

𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦: yandere, obsession, death, violence, cursing, manipulation. If you find any of this triggering, please DNI. Also inform me if I left something out.  

ɴᴏᴛ ʙᴇᴛᴀ ʀᴇᴀᴅ, ᴀʟʟ ᴍɪsᴛᴀᴋᴇs ᴀʀᴇ ᴍɪɴᴇ

As you know my previous account got deleted and therefore I have to post this again... Hope you guys like it!

SERIES MASTERLIST || MASTERLIST

You sat reading a book in the ethereal gardens of the Palace, with your back pressed against a tree. Loki had brought that book from Midgard. You loved reading, and Loki always got you books from all over the nine realms. That’s how you had bonded in the very beginning.

As you read the book, you had a feeling you already knew what was going to happen, as if you had already read it. So, you closed it and stared at the grand garden before you. Filled with plethora of flowers, the sweet smell diffusing in the air, the palette of colors pleasing the eye.

“Do you need something?” Your maid asked. You shook your head, “I don’t, and even if I needed something I would take it myself.” You gave her a smile at that.

You were the daughter of a common farmer; you were independent since your birth. You had a habit of doing everything by yourself and even despite it being years since marrying Loki, you still couldn’t quite get adjusted to maids. They weren’t servants for you, they were your friends. Your humility and intelligent was something Loki had fallen head over heels for.

The entire Asgard was happy and wonderfully surprised when Loki had announced that he would be marrying you. A common girl with barely any powers was marrying the God of Mischief and the king of Asgard; that had generated quite the rumors, some even thought it was one of his pranks. Even you were worried, but Loki had chased all your worries away.

Despite Thor being the elder brother, Loki had been crowned as the king. Though Thor was powerful and had immense strength, he neither wished to be the king, nor did he have the time to be one. He was rather busy with Midgard and thus Loki had taken the mantle.

When it came to you, even despite being the God of Lies, Loki never lied. He was the best husband you could ask for. Taking your opinions in consideration, asking for your help, cherishing you, loving you more than anybody else. He didn’t rule Asgard alone, no, he ruled Asgard alongside you.

You had changed him; from the selfish Loki whose heart was filled with vengeance, you had made him into a noble and beloved king. But still he never stopped pulling pranks on you, and you took it just as lightly. He was still very mischievous at his heart and you had accepted him with all he brought along.

There was just one thing he didn’t allow: you visiting Earth. And that was only because he was worried for you. The people of Midgard had not taken his attack lightly, and they were still very much furious. Though they were now on good terms, he didn’t want anything to happen to you. You were his everything.

And visiting Earth at least once was one of the only things you wanted. Literally everyone had been to Midgard except you. Even Loki and definitely Thor frequented Midgard, but not you. Once a month you both used to come to that topic and he would brush you off, promising you to take somewhere else. And that maybe fueled your need to go to Midgard even more.

“What are you thinking about, my love?” When you heard his sweet yet authoritative voice, you smiled softly. Lost in thoughts you hadn’t even noticed he was sitting beside you. You inhaled deeply, “I was thinking about the forbidden fruit. I was thinking what would go wrong if I went to Midgard. Just once Loki, just once. That’s the only thing I ask of. I’ve heard the Earth is circular, unlike Asgard!” You asked giving him your best puppy dog eyes.

“Now my beloved, how many times, huh? How many times do I have to list the reasons why you shouldn’t visit Midgard. I won't be able to live if something happens to you. I will go insane, there won’t be a point in living.” He gently took your chin between his fingers and pressed a soft kiss to your cheek.  

“I know Loki, I love you too. But aren’t your relations with Earth better now? And Thor goes there all the time and so do you! And I have powers Loki!” You had the powers of making anyone reveal the truth. You were a rarity; a commoner with powers. Your ability to extract truth was really an ace at your side while ruling Asgard.

“We don’t know if someone is holding any grudge. I can’t risk it. Ask me anything, I will search the entire universe for it and bring it upon your feet. Just not Earth. Now I don’t want to ruin such a perfect day by arguing with you.” Before you could speak further, he shut you with a kiss.

As you both laid in each other embrace, you got lost in the abyss of his eyes. “Oh Loki, do you know how much I love you?” With eyes full of mischief, “Well you do know a certain way to show your love, my beloved wife.” He quipped.

~~~

Today Thor was leaving for Midgard. And at the same time, you had made your plans to sneak. You had started wondering if Loki had a mistress there, well what else could be his reason for not permitting you to visit Earth.

One part of the plan was already in action. You had shared your concerns with Heimdall. He had been awfully quiet but when you had pleaded and asked of it as a favor for his Queen, he had agreed. On the condition that you would return within 3 days, or else he would pull you back to Asgard. You had happily agreed.

The plan was simple, while he would transport Thor, you would go too, you just had to stand close enough to Thor. All excited, you got ready in the best of your clothes. You knew they didn’t dress like this on Midgard, but you had an impression to make as the Queen of Asgard.

The dark green silk robe complimented your emerald wedding ring; you wore button earrings and connected them to your hair clip with chains. You let your hair down but not without braiding few locks of hair; your right index and ring fingers were adorned with your best rings. You wanted to wear your crown, but decided it would be too much for Midgardians; after all you were going there for vacation, you had no plans of ruling earth.

Not many were there to say goodbye to Thor, the Prince travelled very frequently. You were glad that today neither Loki nor the warriors were there. “Goodbye Thor, have a safe journey!” You said as you stood a little too close to him. It was your signal for Heimdall to transport you to Midgard. “Thank you, sister...” before Thor could complete his sentence, you were both sucked into the wormhole.

~~~

It was a.... cool experience to say at least. To be honest, you had no idea. You had kept your eyes closed through half of the journey, and you had probably screamed your throat dry. You did travel through the Bifrost at times but Loki always held you tight. Today though you were spinning all by yourself in the rainbow tunnel. Thank the Norns, it was over faster that you expected.

As Thor landed gracefully in the Avengers compound, you landed straight on your ass and skidded halfway across, bruising you elbow and knuckles.

Thor’s voice boomed aloud, as you tried to get up rubbing your aching ass, “Oh dear Sister! Are you alright?” He said as he helped you get up, “Well, Heimdall didn’t tell me how to land.” You tried to lighten the mood.

“There must have been some mistake. Don’t worry I’ll call Heimdall to send you back.” He said softly while rubbing your elbow as he began praying to Heimdall.

“Uhh, well Thor, that’s not needed. And this... this wasn’t an accident at all. I kind of made a deal with Heimdall and he sent me here...” Thor’s eyes widened with shock and what you thought was anger. You had never ever seen Thor get angry at you, ever. And you were truly scared now.

Thor and you were best of friends. It was as if you two were siblings, not Thor and Loki. As you looked at him now, you knew you had truly screwed up. You knew your decision would anger Loki, but his anger you could handle. You weren’t quite sure about it with respect to Thor.

“You did what? You aren’t supposed to be here! You are going back to Asgard before anyone sees you.” He held you by your elbow and it hurt like hell. “But Thor,...” you tried pleading. Maybe you had not guessed the extent of your family’s anger correctly and you knew you were going to pay for it badly.

“I wasn’t asking you.” He said in an impersonal tone. “You need to understand this is for your own good.” You were tired of listening to the same thing over and over again for so many years. And you finally snapped.

“Tell me the truth Thor! I know that’s not the only reason, why don’t you people want me to come here? Does... does Loki have a mistress here? Huh? I’m so sick of listening to you people give me all kinds of stupid reasons to keep me away from here! You know, if maybe you had not reinforced the fact that I’m not allowed to visit Midgard again and again, then maybe I wouldn’t be so obsessed with coming here.” You couldn’t hold your tears back.

“It’s not what you are thinking, trust me sister, Loki only loves you. But we need to go now and don’t use your powers on me.” You snatched your hand away from him. He was correct in guessing your intentions, you were going to use your powers on him to make him say the truth. But his anger held you back. After all, he was your family, and this visit to earth was just three days long.

“There’s one catch; you can’t take me back. I told you, I’ve made a deal with Heimdall. It includes that He won’t open the Bifrost for me to leave Earth until the evening of the third day!”

~~~

The Avengers were all gathered in the briefing room. Thor was coming back and they needed to discuss an important upcoming mission. As Steve stood telling everyone about the mission, they could hear the tell-tale noise of the rainbow tunnel as they called it.

Tony yawned loudly and stood up from his chair, he was least bit interested in the meeting and just wanted to get out. “Thor is here. We should go meet him.” He said stretching. Steve rolled his eyes, while Nat and Clint got up.

“We can continue, Thor knows where to come.” Steve interjected. “I guess Tony is right on this one.” Wanda said shrugging. Before they could continue, they heard the noise of Thor and a lady arguing. Her voice was vaguely familiar.

“Let’s go!” Tony said excitedly as he hoped to get a little more spice on this dull day. Reluctantly even Steve joined the entire group as they walked outside. Thor was facing them and from his gestures even they knew he was truly angry. The lady had her back to them, her golden magic swirling around her hand, showing her anger and annoyance at Thor. She was dressed in the finest fabric.  

Thor stood still and suddenly stopped fighting as he saw literally all of the Avengers looking at the two of them with keen interest. You saw his stunned and somewhat worried expression, so before he could stop you whipped your head around.

The moment you turned, Steve’s heart stopped in his chest. He couldn’t believe his eyes. This was not true; this couldn’t be true. You were just like in his dreams, if not more beautiful. Your eyes pulled him in like sirens calls. Your voice a sweet balm on his heartache. You looked like a goddess, and he was sure you were one. But, how could you possibly be here? So very real, standing in front of him in all your grace, just as if to taunt him.

You tilted your head in confusion, all of them, literally all of them were staring at you as if they had seen a dead person walk out of the grave. “Uh, well, you must be the Avengers I’ve heard so much about! It was rude of us to fight out here, and I apologize for the commotion. Let me introduce myself, I’m Y/N, The Queen of Asgard and the wife of the beloved King Loki.”

As you said the words, all of the Avengers’ eyes widened with confusion, as fear and anger gripped their hearts.

[escape-from-reality-fics]

The Accidental Revelation ❋ E-Chan

↳ Pairing: Lee Changmin (E-Chan)/Reader

↳ Word Count: 3,739

⁙ Summary: You and Changmin go to a party to celebrate your friends recent successes. It doesn’t exactly go as planned when a secret gets revealed during a fight

⚠️ Warnings: Contains cursing, fighting, mentions of body image and a brief mention of some adult themes. Please do not read if you are triggered by any of these!

“I’m so excited!~” You can’t help but squeal, wiggling happily in the passenger seat of your boyfriend’s car. Changmin glanced over at you from his spot behind the steering wheel and chuckled, enjoying your sparkly eyed expression. 

“You haven’t seen Kenzie in a while huh? Even though her and Junseo are a thing now,” Changmin mused to himself, smoothly turning the car onto another street, getting closer and closer to your destination.

“It’s because she’s always busy! She told me the last time we spoke that she had like 20 bookings for this month alone and another 15 people wait-listed. Her business is taking off,” you praise her, feeling proud of your best friend for pursuing her dream of being a photographer. 

Changmin reaches for your hand, bringing it to his face to leave a sweet peck against your palm. You giggle to yourself, lacing your fingers with his. You turn back to stare out the window, always keen to watch the surroundings fly by in a rush of colors. Your mind was also turning, having found out some very important news just a week ago. You’d found out you’re pregnant and you had no clue how to bring it up to Changmin. This trip would be the perfect distraction from the conflict you were feeling.

Ten minutes later Changmin is pulling to a stop outside of a rustic house, something not very common in South Korea but very much beautiful. The both of you exit the car, stretching your legs from the not-so long, but traffic filled drive. Changmin comes around to your side of the car, putting an arm around your shoulders as you tilt your head back to admire his handsome face. 

“How did I manage to get the most handsome man in the world to be my boyfriend huh? I must have done some good deeds in my previous life,” you joke, watching as his mouth splits into a wide grin, leaning down to peck his lips to yours briefly. You sigh wistfully, your eyes slipping closed and feeling like your life was really complete in that moment. 

“C’mon my love, we have a party to crash,” Changmin reminds you, as your eyes peeled open, his hand pulling you along. Reaching the front door you leaned forward and knocked, also ringing the doorbell for good measure. A minute or so passed before the door swung open, revealing the figure of your best friend Kenzie. 

“AHHHHH! I’m so happy you guys could make it!” She screeched, rushing forward to tackle you into a tight hug. You loudly cackled and hugged her back, tilting her from side to side. Changmin watched the outburst with the air of someone who has seen it countless times, slipping by and heading into the house where you hear shouts of his name. 

“Come on in. Everyone else is in the living room playing Uno, but I’m pretty sure Harry-June and Sungmin are in the kitchen raiding the snacks by now. I told them they could only have some once you two arrived,” Kenzie explained, leading the way into her big house. You were well acquainted with the layout having been there times and times before but the size still always took you by surprise. 

“Well hello boys!~ Who’s winning? It better be Seongsik because I have a bet with Changmin I am NOT losing,” you laugh, watching as they all whip their heads to where you’re standing. 

“Well sad to say (Y/N) but you might be losing that bet. I’ve got the most cards,” Seongsik laughs as you crumple beside Dongil on the couch, pretend groaning in despair. Yuku laughs from where he sits a few feet away and you smile back at the ray of sunshine himself. Turning back, you watch as they continue their game, Heechan being crowned the winner. Changmin returns from the kitchen with Harry-June and Sungmin, the three of them carrying armfuls of chips and chocolates. 

“I think some people have already started eating without us. How rude,” you tease, pointing out the chocolate smears on the lips of Sungmin who blushes profusely at being caught. Him and Harry-June settle down on the floor around the coffee table, the huge L shaped couch being filled by everyone else. Changmin shoves Gwanghyun over, taking the spot on your left as the younger boy complains, squeezing closer to Seongsik. 

“So now that everyone is here, we have snacks and drinks and the games are set up, are we ready to get this party started?!” Kenzie announces, as everyone cheers, excited for what’s sure to be a fun night. 

Kenzie grabs her PS4 controllers, handing them out to whoever wins rock-paper-scissors. The winners end up being Sungmin, Junseo, Changmin and Heechan. They decide to boot up some type of shooting game, becoming immersed fairly quickly. 

“Hey (Y/N) did you want to come play Cards Against Humanity with us? Or do you wanna watch the boys play their game?” Seongsik asks, pulling out the big black box and getting it set up on the coffee table. 

“Sure but just to warn y’all I’m gonna win,” you say cockily, sliding down from your spot beside Changmin, moving to sit at the coffee table. You swipe up your cards, taking a peek at your options before smirking. 

You pass the time by playing the game, occasionally having other boys switch out to play some games on the PS4. Changmin let’s one of the younger boys take his controller, needing a break from shooting computer generated aliens. You’re in the middle of placing a card down when you feel his hands run through your hair, leaning back to further his ministrations. 

“Minnie?” You pout, staring up at him with the best puppy dog eyes you could muster, obviously wanting something. He stares back down at you, replicating your pout horribly before whining back. 

“Yes (N/N)? What can I do for you?” 

“Can you get me cake or chocolate or something? I really want something sweet all of a sudden,” you ask, barely finishing your sentence before he’s standing up and strolling to the kitchen. 

“Wow you have him whipped huh?” Gwanghyun teases from beside you, placing his card down and waiting for Harry-June to read them out. Yuku leans over to ask Sungmin what whipped means, nodding his head seriously as the older boy answers. 

“He’s not whipped! He’s just being a caring boyfriend is all,” you shove him playfully before letting out a loud whoop at winning the game. Kenzie, Gwanghyun and Heechan all sigh at their respective losses. 

“Hey I’m gonna run and grab some drinks from the garage really quick, don’t start the next game without me!” Kenzie warns, grabbing a hold of Junseo as she passes him, basically being voluntold into helping her. The boy himself looks quite smitten however, a blush painted across his cheeks as his girlfriend tugs him away. You stand up from your spot and shake out the numbness in your legs from sitting cross-legged. 

“I’m gonna go pee really fast. Be right back,” you inform Harry-June who scrunches his nose up while at your too much information moment. Yuku nods from beside him, giving you a small thumbs up as he shuffles the cards. 

Ruffling his hair you stroll to the bathroom and do what you need to do, taking a bit of time in there to freshen up and fix any stray hairs. You barely take 5 minutes in the bathroom, returning quickly to the living room but stopping in your tracks. 

On the coffee table is an empty plate, chocolate icing smears present. Kenzie is sitting barely a foot away, licking the exact same icing off a fork. For some unknown reason this fills you with annoyance. 

“What’re you eating?” You huff, coming closer to the coffee table but not sitting down quite yet. She looks up at you, eyeing the way your hands are held on your hips and your mouth set in a small frown. 

“Oh there was a piece of cake sitting here so I just took the liberty of eating it. I think it was the last piece too but I’m not too sure,” she says, reaching forward on the table to deal herself some cards, before looking back up at you. 

“Aren’t you gonna sit down and play another game?”

“I was until someone had to go and eat the cake that was mine,” you respond snootily, arms now crossed over your chest as you shifted your weight to your left hip, something that was a clear tell for you being mad. 

“Yours? (Y/N) it was literally just sitting here on the table. No one’s name was on it,” Kenzie rolled her eyes, believing it was silly to be arguing about a slice of cake. That was the final straw for you.

“Are you kidding me, Kenzie? Usually if there is food sitting somewhere and no one is near it you’d at least ask who it belongs to!” You growl angrily, jabbing a finger in her direction. The boys are starting to notice the fight building up, wearily looking between the two of you. It’s Junseo who bites the bullet and tries to calm the both of you down.

“Let’s just take a breath here. Can’t we just get (Y/N) another piece of cake? Problem solved!” Junseo says soothingly, putting himself between you both as Kenzie stands up to meet your fiery gaze. Yuku and Harry-June are nervously glancing between the two of you, not expecting their older sister figures to fight. 

“Uh that would be a problem solved if that wasn’t the last piece of chocolate cake,” Changmin whispers into the air, the tension becoming so thick it could be cut with a knife. Kenzie gently pushes Junseo to the side, stepping in front of you and giving you a fake sympathetic smile. 

“Maybe if (Y/N) didn’t feel the need to be a fatass all the time we wouldn’t be having this problem. You don’t need to eat shit all the time you know?” Kenzie hisses, pointing at the small amount of chub around your belly, something you were always insecure about. 

“Are you being fucking for real right now? I don’t eat like shit all the time. You just have to be a fucking bitch and mess with me!” You seethe, waving an arm at her. 

By this point Changmin had also stepped forward, trying and failing to pull you away from the situation. Junseo is doing the same to Kenzie but the both of you refuse to budge. You can see from the corner of your eye the worried expressions and stances of the other boys, preparing for a fight to go down.

“I will actually fucking drag you right now if you don’t shut the fuck up!” Kenzie yells, shoving your shoulder as you stumble back a bit. You steel yourself and give her a good push back, seething in anger. 

“Fucking try me, I dare you! You’re too fucking pussy!” 

“Oh really?! I’ll fucking drag you across the floor and outta this house! I don’t care that you’re pregnant!” She screams in your face, raising her hand and slapping you harshly as you reel back in shock never expecting her to use that against you as she was the only one you confided in. Everyone around you had gone quiet, expressions varying from shock to surprise. Changmin’s hand loosely wraps around your wrist and you vaguely hear a shocked whisper of the word ‘pregnant’ but you’re too far gone to care. 

“Oh it’s fucking on you hoe! I’ll drag you any day whether I’m pregnant or not!” You yell, giving her a harsh punch to the side of her jaw, grabbing her hair for good measure. She retaliates and starts clawing at you as the two of you break into a full on fist fight. 

It lasts barely more than 15 seconds before everyone is breaking the two of you up. Junseo and Seongsik drag Kenzie away, taking her in the direction of the kitchen as you notice with triumph that she is sporting a few good scratches and bruises. 

Changmin takes this chance to gently lead you away, finding the guest bedroom and sitting you on the fluffy duvet, crossing his arms as he stares down at you with a mix of disappointment and concern. 

“She had it coming to her so don’t you go giving me a huge speech about me being in the wrong,” you grumble, crossing your arms but wincing, noticing the scratch marks going down your arm. Changmin notices and sighs, going into the on suite bathroom and wetting a face cloth to clean you up. 

“I’m not gonna lecture you sweetheart. I just wanna know what went through your head to start a full on fist fight with your best friend of 17 years… Over a piece of cake?” Changmin asks, pushing away hair from your face that Kenzie had pulled. 

“I-I don’t even know honestly. I was just looking forward to that cake and she took it from me. All that I felt was immense anger and she didn’t make it any better by not apologizing,” you murmur, putting your face in your hands as what you’d done settles in. Silence settles heavily into the air, Changmin shifting his weight as he stands crouches in front of you, dabbing at the scratches on your arm. 

“What she said…. Is it true? About you, uhm, being pregnant?” Changmin’s hesitant and fragile voice filters through your ears, making your head shoot up to look at him with surprise. You feel your heart thrumming in your chest out of pure nervousness, not knowing whether he would be happy or upset that you were expecting. 

“Changmin I-I was going to tell you I swear! I just didn’t know how and I didn’t know if you’d be angry or upset with me. We’re still so young and we aren’t married. Heck, you’re only in the beginning of your career and I haven’t even started mine. I’m just so scared,” you finish in tears, sobs escaping as you hastily try and wipe your eyes. 

Changmin doesn’t say anything, instead just gathering you into his arms. You bury your tear soaked face into his chest as he murmurs soothing words, running his hands up and down your back to comfort you. 

“I’m definitely not angry. Shocked for sure, but never angry. I sorta wish I was told in a different way as well, but I’m happy! I’m gonna be a dad!” Changmin says, a smile prominent on his lips and happy tears welling in his eyes. You smile back, wrapping your arms around his neck and giving him a long peck on the lips.

“I’m so thankful to have you be my soulmate,” you murmur against his lips, feeling him pull you closer onto his lap intending to further what you were starting. You were almost on board but stopped and pulled away, feeling the stinging pain on your cheek as a reminder of what just went down. 

“As much as I’d love to continue what we were starting, I should probably go see if Kenzie is okay and apologize,” you hum, standing up from Changmin’s lap as he groans, trying to fix his pants to hide the tent that had started forming. 

“Fine, but you owe me later,” he grumbles, following you out into the hall as you lace your fingers with his. You giggle at his obvious irritation.

“Don’t worry baby when we get home I’ll make it up to you,” you whisper seductively, cackling at the expression of pure want that flutters across his face. Shaking your head you continue on your way, stepping into the living room moments later.

Most of the boys were all sitting around the TV, playing their video game again and looking up in surprise when you entered the room. You glance around and notice that Kenzie, Junseo and Seongsik aren’t anywhere to be seen. 

“Hey (Y/N), are you feeling a bit better now?” Dongil asks gently, wearily eyeing the scratch marks on your arm and reddened hand print on your cheek. Yuku also is staring at you worriedly and you feel bad for setting such a horrible example for the younger boy. Nodding, you give Dongil and Yuku a small, sheepish smile. 

“Yeah I’m all good. I sorta need to talk to Kenzie though?” You trail off, feeling everyone's sympathetic stares on you. Heechan nods in the direction of the kitchen, focusing on winning the game. You huff at him but shuffle towards the kitchen anyways, Changmin letting go of your hand to go join the others. 

You end up peeking your head around the doorframe of the kitchen, watching Kenzie’s back as she flies around while ordering Seongsik and Junseo to do things for her. Your brows furrowed in confusion as you come out from around the corner, catching Junseo’s eyes as he gives you a small smile. 

“Ah I think Seongsik-hyung and I should go see if the others need anything!” Junseo squawks, yanking Seongsik out of the room as the older boy complains. Kenzie goes to protest their retreat before taking notice of you, the words dying on her lips. 

“Uh hi,” you say awkwardly, giving a small wave as she eyes you up. Kenzie purses her lips and turns back around to whatever she is doing, making you deflate a little. 

“I’m sorry,” you hear come from where she is standing by the counter, furiously mixing something in a large stainless steel bowl. You almost didn’t catch what she said, having to strain your ears to hear her whispered apology. 

“No, I’m the one who should be sorry. I started a fight all because of a stupid slice of cake. And with my friend of 17 years at that,” you chuckle, moving to stand beside her as she looks up at you with tears shining in her eyes. 

“I didn’t mean any of what I said. Words just spilled out and I said horrible things. I’m so sorry!” She says remorsefully, wiping a tear that slides down her cheek. Pulling her into a hug you shush her. 

“We both said some pretty bad things and even got physical but sometimes shit happens. All we can do is acknowledge it, apologize and move on,” you pull away and hand her a paper towel from the roll on the counter. Kenzie chuckles and dabs at her eyes.

“You’re right of course. Which is why I’m making a whole cake for you and Changmin to take home. I also shouldn’t have outed your pregnancy like that. I knew you were scared to tell him and I still used it against you,” she looks down at her sock covered feet shamefully as you hum. 

“Well I would have never found a better way to tell him so at least I have a story we can tell our kid and laugh about,” you tease, pulling a loud laugh from Kenzie who shakes her head in amusement. 

“Friends?” You say, reaching a finger into the cake batter on the counter, smearing it across her cheek as she squeals. Kenzie ends up returning the favour, the two of you now matching. 

“Friends.” 

“Well I guess we should go reassure the boys that we aren’t ripping each other's hair out anymore!” You say cheerfully, watching as Kenzie pops the cake batter into a baking pan and puts it in the oven, setting a timer. 

The two of you exit the kitchen, giggling at each other and wiping the cake batter of your faces. The living room had gone strangely silent and you looked up to see everyone wearily watching. Changmin and Junseo are on the edges of their seats, wary about another fight breaking out. 

“Don’t worry gentlemen. Kenzie and I have duked it out and we’re all good now!” You say, pulling her into a side hug and giving her a noogie to which she whines at. 

“Good cause if I had to break up another fight I would start charging fees,” Gwanghyun mumbles, watching the two of you fondly with a slightly disgruntled expression. Plopping yourself on the couch, you snuggle into Changmin’s side. 

“So you’re both good now? No more fights over cake?” He asks, raising an eyebrow mockingly. You hum, putting a finger to your chin as you pretend to think.

“Well there’s no guarantee I won’t punch her if she steals my cake again. We’ll see!” Laughing at their expressions, shaking your head. 

“So uh, pretty sure you all heard what Kenzie said earlier and I’m pretty sure you are all eagerly waiting for me to confirm or deny. Yes I am pregnant and yes you will all be uncles. And an aunt,” you announce, watching as all the boys plus Kenzie stand up and start cheering and exclaiming loudly. 

“So our kid is gonna have 8 crazy uncles and 1 crazy aunt. I hope they’re prepared,” Changmin cackles, watching his band mates and friends still celebrating. 

“And to think, this all happened because of a piece of chocolate cake!” 

~17 Years Later~

“So Dad only found out you were pregnant with me because you and Auntie Kenzie had a fist fight over cake?” Your son asks you, watching his Aunts and Uncles chatter and laugh with each other around your spacious backyard. 

“Yep! And on the way home I tried suggesting to your Dad to let me name you chocolate cake but he said no, sadly. He said no for your younger brothers as well,” you sigh wistfully, remembering each time you had asked Changmin to let you name at least one of your three children after what you both liked to call “The Accidental Revelation”. 

“Mom, I mean this with all respect, but sometimes I don’t know what Dad sees in you,” your youngest son laughs at your offended expression. 

“Hey I love your Mom a lot! Even if her choice of baby names is a bit…. Unconventional,” Changmin comments, wrapping his arms around your waist from behind and pressing a kiss against your cheek. 

“EW NO PDA!” Your middle son yells as he tries to cover his younger brother’s eyes, getting shoved away.

“Maybe we should try for a fourth and finally name them chocolate cake!” You say cheerfully, clasping your hands together as Changmin and your sons stare at you in disbelief. 

“NO!”

“Aw man!”

[shadow-assassin-blix]

A Picture is a Poem Without Words

CHAPTER 7

A/N: Okay. So this one is a long one. It’s like 10k. Many things happen. A lot of family drama but fluff to even it out. So we see the return of Javier and Horacio, briefly along with some Steve. Escobar and Valeria appear and are not viewed in great light. (Valeria is not my favorite character tbh).

Warnings: Okay. So. There is some childhood abuse talked about, nothing in extreme detail but I marked when it begins and when its safe again. There’s a brief mention of an attempted assault, not detailed just implied. Um. 

As always: “Speak” “Spanish” ‘Thoughts’

She had cleaned up the house for the most part and was satisfied with the work she had done. She had just started to sit down when there was a knock on her. She made her way to the door, answering it.

“Salcedo? What brings you here?” She asked surprised.

“Pacho wants you close by. Escobar is not happy and Pacho is worried that you may be a target,” He quickly explained.

She sighed, somewhat annoyed, “And I’m guessing I don’t have much of a choice in this matter?”

Salcedo gave her an apologetic look.

“Let me go get some things. I have 2 boxes of mail to go through so that shall be coming with us,” She tells him quickly.

She handed him the box of cards, letters and small gifts. He took it with a nod and another guard came up and took the heavier box from her family in New York. She grabbed some of her own clothes, and necessities packing them into a suitcase quickly. Once she was ready, they drove her to Pacho’s home.

She walked in, noticing the brothers were there with Pacho. She sees Alvaro sitting next to him reading a book, a notepad near him for when he stopped to write every so often.

She made her way over to the couch, taking the open seat by Pacho quietly. He continued to speak to Miguel about something, the only sign that he gave that he noticed she was there, was his hand coming to rest on her knee.

Salcedo and Córdova set her boxes near her, before taking her suitcase upstairs to her room.

While they talked, she began opening cards. Most of them were from other fighters, who wished her a happy birthday and told her they missed her.

Some had cash stuffed in their cards. Others they sent a gift, that was in the form of a fox. She lined up several trinkets, shakers, towels, and such, all fox themed.

Gilberto asked with a laugh, “Why do you have so many foxes, little one?”

“It’s a long story…” She said with a shake of her head.

She had eventually gotten through all of the birthday wishes, and all that was left was regular mail, so she set the box aside for now.

She walked over to the heavier box, laying it down flat. She pulled out a knife to cut the tape that sealed it. As she pulled open the flats, the first thing she saw was a note resting near a some brand new boxing gloves.

She quickly pulled them with an excited squeak.

“Yesss. Been needing a new pair,” She mumbled throwing a glove on to see how it fit.

She clenched her fist a few times, checking it out. Once she was satisfied, she set them gently onto the coffee table. She turned back to the box and noticed there was plain white box sitting in there as well, so she set it and the note aside for a moment.  She cleared away the tissue to find bubble wrap and it was tightly wound across the large item that was inside.

She gently cut down the sides of the cardboard box, so it was completely flat. She then gently lifted the item up and began to unwrap it one-handed.

She slowly revealed a shadow box, that had her old fight outfit, a few news articles, and her first pair of gloves pinned inside.

“The Silver Vixen?” Came Pacho’s voice as he walked up to get a closer look at it.

“That was my fight name,” She said softly staring at the items inside fondly.

She looked up, and gently waved over a couple guards, asking them to put it some place safe for her. They did, carrying it off to the side. She turned to the white box and note.

She opened the note reading it quickly.

‘Hey sis, on the off chance that you ever come back home, we figured you should have the proper gear and attire beforehand. Love you, Happy Birthday! – Jack & Andy’

“Oh lord,” She whispered as she realized what exactly was in the white box.

Pacho raised an eyebrow, looking at her expectantly.

“Well. Go on. Show us,” His voice was teasing.

She pulled the lid off, shoved the tissue paper away and pulled out a sports bra, a pair of shorts, and a silk robe, all in a dark silver. All embellished with the words “Silver Fox” in white stitching.

“You never told me you were a fighter,” Pacho noted staring at the items.

“I mean… I only did like 10 tournaments/matches,” She waved it off.

“Uh huh. And how many did you lose?” Gilberto asked with a teasing smile.

She looked every which direction, not making eye contact as she not so casually scratched her face, before holding up one finger.

“One? You lost one match?” Miguel asked with a shake of his head.

“Yeah. I did it for a year… during my last match, there was an FBI recruiter in the crowd, and he told me I should apply. So… I did,” She explained briefly, retaking her seat. “And now here I am.”

Pacho leaned over and quietly whispered, “I find that strangely sexy. I might have to see some of these moves of yours.”

She shook her head, smiling at him somewhat embarrassed.

“I’m really not that good. Just… quick,” She replied modestly.

As they resumed talking about business, she grabbed the rest of her mail at the bottom of the box.

She quickly flicked through them, determining them to be junk mail. She checked the box and saw a manilla envelope at the bottom, she grabbed it setting it to the side as she dumped her cards and gifts back into the box, tossing the fighting outfit in there as well.

She was following along with their conversation, as she set the somewhat thick envelope onto her lap.

She looked down at it, her breath catching in her throat as she noticed the address. She swallowed thickly as her hands pulled the plain envelope off, turning it around to open it.

She opens it with somewhat shaky hands, and sees a newspaper sticking out of it. She pulls it out, unfolding it. After flipping it over, she noted it was the local newspaper from her hometown. More specifically, the obituary section. Her eyes drifted down to the column smacked dab in the middle of the page.

‘Aurelia Lage, 59, passed away…’

That was all she was able to read before she dropped the paper. She stood up suddenly and walked into the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of tequila before walking outside.

Pacho, grabbed the newspaper that she had dropped, searching it for answers. He quickly found it, recognizing the last name. He sets the paper down and grabs the manila envelope and slowly follows her outside.

She was sitting on the grass, the bottle of tequila resting between her legs. Her face was pale, and she was trembling.

He slowly made his way over to her, sitting by her side. He watched her take a long drink, with a small grimace.

“Your mother?” He prompted quietly.

Blix nodded her head.

“I. I don’t know how to feel. Relieved? Happy? Numb? How does one feel, knowing that the person who hated your entire existence is dead?” She asked rhetorically.

She sighed heavily, knowing she had to finally tell him everything.

“My mother… She uh… had my sisters with her first husband. He died… and she went on the hunt for husband number 2,” She began with a scoff.

“She found him in the mayor of our fair town. A married man, mind you. He and his wife… were having trouble conceiving a child. That was the kind of woman my mother was. She saw a woman, who tried and tried to have kids, and saw it as a weakness to take advantage of,” Blix said bitterly. “They had their affair. She got pregnant, but uhh… so did his wife. His wife had a healthy baby boy… a month after I was born. Do you know what it’s like to have sibling who has no idea you exist?”

Pacho didn’t respond, he just wrapped an arm around her, pulling her in close.

TRIGGER WARNING

“Suffice it to say, the mayor left my mother. And me. The… abuse… started slowly. I would get in trouble far more often than my sisters, even if I wasn’t involved. Time outs were longer. Which slowly led to her locking me in my room… and starving me for days. My sisters… they tried to help, but I didn’t want them to get in trouble…” She took a deep breath, having to steal her nerves to explain the next part.

“When that longer worked, it became physical. I’m not going to explain all of it… but it came to a head when I was 15. She threw a vase at me. It broke against my face. I uhh. I needed 100 stitches to close the wounds,” She stuttered, sniffling as tears began to fall.

TW END

“I grabbed what money I had hidden, from doing odd jobs around the neighborhood. Ran away, once the stitches were out. I made my way to New York. Got busted with some other kids with stolen goods. Judge sent me to a group home and made me go to therapy. That lasted a month,” She snorted at the memory.

“Was about 19. Trying to find shelter from the rain. A couple of guys… cornered me. It was pretty obvious… what they had planned. Tried to fight them off. The owner of the building we were next to, heard the commotion. Scared them off. Took me in. Gave me a job at his gym. Made me get my GED. Was his best fighter for a year, before I became an FBI agent. Traveled the world. Landed here...” She trailed off.

“Met a man who, while a commitment-phobe, taught me to love myself as is. Then I ran into you… and the past 2 months? Have been the happiest I’ve been in a long time,” She stated, looking at him.

Pacho smiled softly, beckoning her to him. She slowly crawls into his lap; she goes to bury her face into his shoulder but stops.

“I’m going to ruin your shirt,” She mumbled.

“Honey. I can literally buy 20 of these. I don’t care if you ruin it,” He informed her quietly, running his hand through her hair.

She stared at him for a moment, before slowly burying her face into him, as smalls sobs began to rake through her body. He quietly shushed her, running his hands up and down her back.

She’s not sure how long she sat like, but by the time her tears became small sniffles, she was exhausted. She slowly pulled away, rubbing her face to dry it off.

Pacho slowly pulls the envelope forward, asking, “Do you want me to open it?”

She nodded her head, “It’s her will for sure, but I don’t know what else is in it.”

“How do you know that?” Pacho inquired as he gently opened it.

“The name. Whit Jacobson? He does all of the will and testaments. He also runs the funeral home and crematorium. ‘Your one stop shop, for when a family member drops.’” She mocked, her eyes rolling.

Pacho paused in his movements, “Please do not tell me… that was his slogan?”

She nodded her head, smiling tightly.

Pacho shook his head, pulling out the documents inside. She took it with shaky hands, looking it over. She noticed almost immediately… that it was off. There were large gaps between each paragraph and some sentences even cut off halfway through a word.

“Great. Now I need lawyer to help me deal with this bullshit,” She muttered annoyed.

She looked back toward Pacho’s hand as he pulled out a few stacks of photos. She froze as she looked at them. The first photo in each stack, was of one of her sisters. A small smile appeared as she examined them.

“Your sisters?” Pacho realized, noticing how they all resembled one another.

“This is Lily, Hope and Darla,” She pointed them out with a sigh. “Lily is the sweetest, Hope the craziest, and Darla, the oldest, is the serious one.”

“They sound lovely… but none of them could hold a candle to you,” He said sweetly.

She smiled shyly at that, and gently placed the photos back into the envelope, swearing to look at them more closely later, and put the will back in as well. Pacho made her stand up and led her over to one of the outside tables and told her to wait there.

A few minutes later, he walked back outside with a plate of food and two forks. He sat down in one of the seats and pulled her into his lap.

“Eat. Need to soak up some of that tequila you’ve been drinking,” He teased her handing her a fork.

She shook her head and took a few bites. The two of them quietly ate, occasionally playfully fighting over a piece with their forks.

Halfway through, he slowly stopped, pulling away slightly. She looked at him confused, setting her fork down, turning her attention to him.

“The last thing… my father ever said to me, was that I will never be a man. He told me this after he caught me with a neighbor boy. I was 16 and he threw me out on the streets,” He slowly began, a bitterness in his tone.

“I began working with the Cali soon after. Worked my way up the ranks. At one point… another guy, was pissed that I was doing so well. Ratted me out to the Gilberto & Miguel. Told them I wasn’t man enough, that I didn’t belong. Do you know what they did?” Pacho asked her.

She shook her head.

“They made me partner. All I am, all I have is because of them,” Pacho ended with a sigh.

She started to say something but stopped herself, voting to instead take another bite of food.

“What?” Pacho lightly asked.

She paused before mentioning, “That day… in the hotel? When we talked about the surrender? You made a face or.. maybe it was your tone… but I had feeling that you weren’t thrilled by the idea. It makes more sense now. The cartel. It’s allowed you to live how you want, without restraint or fear. Without it, what are you left with?”

He gave a short laugh, nodding his head. “You noticed that, but fail to notice several men eyeing you like your hottest thing they’ve ever seen?”

“I notice what’s important, silly. Those guys? In the long run, mean nothing to me. You, on the other hand, mean a great deal to me,” She whispered pressing a kiss to his cheek.

“Also. Who was this asshole that tried to out you? Need to know in case I need to stab a hoe,” She half-joked.

“A Salvador, no one of importance to be honest. But I appreciate you wishing to defend my honor,” He laughed.

“I’m going to go to bed. Do you mind if I crash in yours? Don’t… want to be alone,” She said soberly.

He nodded his head, giving her a kiss. “I’ll join you in a little bit, alright?”

She smiled and stood up, making her way inside. She was on autopilot making her way upstairs, she didn’t even bother stopping by her room. She stepped into Pacho’s bedroom, making her way over to his closet. She grabbed one of his plain long sleeve button-ups. She stripped down to just her underwear and threw the shirt on.

She went into the bathroom to clean her face and do her business. A few minutes later, she had crawled under the covers, holding one of the pillows closely to her as she quickly fell asleep.

Downstairs, Pacho walked into the living room, sighing heavily.

“What happened?” Gilberto asked curious.

“She was informed in not so many words, that her psychotic mother passed away. She needs a lawyer to look at this will, it’s terribly edited and I’m sure someone was trying to pull a fast one,” He briefly informed him, dropping the will onto the coffee table.

“We will get ours right on it. Go to her. Gilberto and I will crash here tonight, and make phone calls in the morning, okay?” Miguel stated firmly standing up with Gilberto.

“Careful Miguel. It almost sounds like you care about her?” Gilberto teased.

“She’s a good girl and she’s good for you. She’s the Lady of Cali after all,” Miguel pointed out looking at Pacho, referencing her newly acquired nickname.

Pacho nodded and bid them goodnight. Alvaro looked at his brother and noticed he was fidgeting.

“You told her about our father,” He stated more than asked.

Pacho looked at him, raising an eyebrow.

“You’re fidgeting. You only ever do after talking about him,” Alvaro explained nodding towards Pacho’s hands.

Pacho had no response to that, and just smiled tightly.

“Go get some rest little brother,” Pacho recommended after a moment, making his way to the stairs.

When he got to his bedroom, he paused, staring at Blix who was in the middle of the bed, passed out. He noted with a soft smile that she was in one of his shirts. He quietly got ready for bed, and as he slid in next to her, she turned over, reaching for him.

He settled in, pulling her close, listening to her sigh happily as she snuggled into his arms. He noticed after a moment, Diego standing at the doorway.

Diego had come up after one of the guards who had been patrolling outside, overheard their conversation and relayed it to several others.

He strips down to just his boxer, and gently, hesitantly, lays behind her, wrapping an arm around her. She blearily looked at his arm, noticing the extra warmth, and just slowly held it to her.

Once she was back to sleep, Diego quietly asked, “How is she so nice? Survived all of that, and… is not bitter at the world?”

Pacho hummed, “I think she’s more bitter than she lets on. She just doesn’t want the world to see it. We can talk later. I don’t want to wake her up.”

Diego nodded his head, and the two of them slowly fell asleep.

When Blix woke up the next morning, she was slightly disoriented. Her eyes blinked open slowly, confused as to why she was so warm. She glanced down and noticed two different arms were wrapped around her waist. Looking to her left and right, she spotted Pacho and Diego, sleeping contently on either side of her.

She smiled, reaching up to rub the sleep out of her eyes. When her vision was cleared, she spotted Alvaro waiting by the door, smirking at the sight before him.

“Hey,” She softly greeted.

“Good morning. Your phone’s been ringing, I figured you should probably answer it,” Alvaro greeted, showing her phone in his hand.

She nodded, gently sitting up, trying not to wake either men. She eventually stood up, and gingerly walked toward the end of the bed, stepping off once she got there.

She whispered a thank you as she took her phone. She noticed that Steve, Javier, and Theo had tried calling her.

She calls Theo, and once he answered asked, “What the hell happen?”

“It’s a shitshow boss. Escobar surrendered but his terms are laughable. He built his own prison and DEA can do fuck all about it. But now, the embassy is under a microscope. All staff must report in to discuss the new changes. You are wanted by 1pm boss,” Theo said rushed.

“Shit. Umm. Okay. Its 9:30? Okay, I can be there by 1. I’ll see ya then,” She answered hanging up and rushing into her bedroom.

She grabbed some black slacks, and a silk blouse from the closet, tossing them and some heels onto the bed, while she raced to get herself ready. She didn’t have time to get a shower in, so she cleaned her face, threw on a dash of makeup and healthy amount of deodorant/perfume.

She threw her hair into a slightly messy bun and tossed the shirt she was wearing to the floor. She grabbed a bra and got dressed in minutes. She tossed her FBI badge around her neck, made sure her IDs were in her messenger bag, and after securing her gun into its holster, slipped it onto her hip.

She jumped into her shoes, grabbing her bag and phone, moving quickly downstairs.

“Alvaro? Please tell your brother I will be in Bogota for the day!” She called out as she passed him.

She saw Salcedo and a few others getting into a car.

“Hey, Salcedo! Mind if I bum a ride to the airport with you guys?” She asked as she caught up to them.

Salcedo replied, “Of course. Get in.”

She hopped in, taking a seat next to Navegante. They took her to the airport, making small talk.

Two hours later, and she was standing in front of the American Embassy. She made her way inside, stopping briefly to check on her team, since they were all assembled in their water closet sized office.

Her team gave her a stack of files to go through, and a few reports she needed to sign off.

She took them with her as she walked into the conference room that was crowded with members from every department.

When she stepped in, the attention turned to her.

Her director commented, “Nice to see you finally join us Agent Lage.”

She went to apologize but a random agent, one from CIA felt the need to mutter loudly, “Too busy whoring around I’d bet.”

Her eyes narrowed, and a tight smile formed on her face, ignoring the chuckles.

“I’m sorry if I am a bit late director. I was informed of a death in my family last night,” She spoke plainly.

The director looked at her with sympathy, and said, “My condolences. Please be sure to stay the full meeting. Many things are to be discussed.”

She nodded her head and turned her gaze to the man who spoke before, “I’m sorry. Were you trying to say something earlier? Couldn’t quite hear you over your mumbling? If you have something to say, say it to my face like a man. That way at least when I knock you on your ass, you can have some dignity.”

She smiled somewhat viciously when he turned red and backed away into the crowd.

She moved toward Javier and Steve who were leaning against the wall, waiting.

A few minutes passed, before the room began to clear out. Soon it was just 2 members of each department. When they all took their seats, they were informed that Ambassador Noonan has retired.

“I am to be your new ambassador and things are going to change around here,” Arthur Crosby spoke firmly.

He laid out the new guidelines, especially for the DEA. He told them that everyone will be setting up in Medellin in a new office.

He eventually turned his attention to her and Theo.

“I want the both of you to bring me up to speed about these museum robberies,” He demanded looking at them expectantly.

“Our suspect is Augustus König. He’s wanted around the world for numerous robberies. We have narrowed down a list of potential warehouses that he may be using to hideout, and store everything he’s stolen. As far as we are aware, he hasn’t sold any of the items,” Blix began speaking.

“… and… He knows who I am. We ran into each other the other day. I don’t think he’s aware of the other members of my team, but he made me well aware that he doesn’t fear law enforcement,” She concluded hesitantly.

Theo looked at her surprised.

Stechner snorted, “Hm. Was that… before or after your little trip to Medellin the other day?”

She looked at him and asked, “Is there something you’d like to say?”

“Hmm. No, just find it interesting that both you and the Cali Cartel were seen in Medellin around the same time,” He said with feigned innocence.

“Are you having me followed?” She accused her face hardening. “Ambassador, I apologize but this is something I would like addressed. Seeing as how, my lovely… coworkers here… had no qualms about leaking my dossier to said cartel, and your predecessor knew about it.”

Crosby raised his hand to stop Stechner from speaking, “Listen, all of you. The priority is the Medellin cartel and the Communists. No more spying on other agencies, if there is not a valid concern. No more arguments. No more fights.”

He stared pointedly at Blix when he said the last line.

“Now, if this König is indeed aware of you Agent Lage, then I would hope you are taking the necessary precautions to make sure this doesn’t blow up in our face. The Colombians would have a field day if they learned we were the reason for millions of dollars of priceless art was lost forever because of a minor mistake,” Crosby returned to the subject at hand, subtly warning her to not mess up.

She nodded her head in affirmation. They spoke more next steps, and toward the end her phone began to go off.

She winced and quietly answered it, “Hello?”

“Miss Lage? This is Alan Starkman, Pacho called me to look over your will?” Came a male voice.

“Oh. Um. Do you mind if I call you back in about 10 minutes, I am in the middle of a meeting?” She requested trying to end the phone call quickly.

“Sure,” He replied before hanging up.

She rolls her eyes and puts her phone back into her pocket. “Sorry. Lawyer.”

They finished up the meeting without further interruptions and as she stepped out, she turned to the ambassador.

“Uh. Sir. Just a quick note, I am having to deal with some nonsense regarding my mother’s will, and I may have to make a trip to Georgia to fix things,” She spoke quietly.

“Do what you need to do. You have my condolences as well,” He remarked making his way to his office.

She nodded her in appreciation but was internally grimacing.

She quickly called the lawyer back, who was quick to inform her that many things were off. He has it set for them to meet with Whit Jacobson at 1pm tomorrow in Georgia, with her sisters.

She thanked him for his help and said she’d meet him tomorrow at the airport.

Once that was done, she sighed heavily. This was not how she expected her day to go.

She worked on the files she had at hand, finishing them up in an hour, when Javier appeared at her desk.

“You finish?” He quietly asked.

She nodded her head, he told her to come with him.

She does so, following him to his truck. They drove for a while before pulling up to a familiar home, where the car out front was packed full of suitcases.

“Horacio has been reassigned. Figured you’d want to say goodbye before he’s shipped to Spain,” Javier tells her.

She kissed his cheek in thanks and stepped out. She walked up to the door, knocking on the frame, and calling out “Anyone home?”

She hears two sets of feet running toward her and was almost knocked off her feet when two small bodies ran into her.

“Ah! My favorites! How are you my loves?” She exclaimed picking them both up in her arms and waddling with them into the living room.

They tell her they were sad that they had to leave. “Oh, I’m very sad too. I may have to steal you and take you to Cali with me.”

“Don’t tempt me,” Julianna remarked as she walked over. “I might let you.”

Blix laughed as she put them down, giving Julianna a hug in greeting.

“He’s out back,” Julianna tells her nodding her head toward the backyard.

Blix slowly made her way to him outside. He was staring off into the distance, hands in his pockets.

“Hey old man,” She greeted, lightly teasing him.

He turned around to face, a small smile on his face. She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him. He returns it muttering, “Hey, brat.”

She hugged him for a solid minute, not really wanting to let go, but she didn’t want to make it weird.

She pulled away with a sigh, asking in disbelief, “They’re really reassigning you to Spain?”

He nodded his head, and opened his mouth to respond when he stopped, moving his hand to tilt her chin up. He examined her face with a frown.

“Have you been crying, little fox?” He asked concerned.

“I found out my mother died… and I have to go back home to Georgia to fix some bullshit concerning her will,” She muttered quietly, breaking her gaze with his.

He sighed softly, before leaning forward to press a kiss to her forehead. He was one of the few people she had confided in about what had happened to her when she was young. In that moment, she looked so small and though she did her best to hide it, he could tell she was scared.

“What do you need me to do? Need me to go with you tomorrow? I’ve been told I can be quite intimidating,” He offered her.

“You’ve been told huh?” She repeated with a teasing smile.

“I appreciate the offer, but… this is something I need to face alone. You always said that my past will try to catch up to me. Well. It has,” She denied his offer with a shake of her head.

“Doesn’t mean you should go through it alone. I know we butted heads a lot in the beginning, but you’ve become a kid sister to me. If you need me, you can always call me. Day or night,” Horacio informed her sweetly.

She felt her nose twinge and lip tremble, as she tried to not cry in front of him. She couldn’t quite speak, so she just simply threw her arms around him in another hug. He chuckled quietly and hugged her back.

She stepped back after a moment, sniffling softly, trying to calm herself.

“I’ll miss you,” She whispered.

He threw an arm around her shoulder, mumbling into her hair that he would miss her as well, as they walked back inside.

She said her goodbyes to everyone and made her way back to Javier in his truck. Javier drove her to his apartment after that, and she sat somewhat numbly on his couch as he made lunch.

A sandwich and some chips were presented to her, and she took it with a soft ‘thank you.’

He sat next to her, throwing on some tv, a movie of some sorts. The two of them quietly ate, setting their plates on the coffee table once they were both done. She was vaguely aware that he had on Star Wars.

She slowly rested her head against his shoulder, he held her hand in response. She quietly told him what was going on with her family. He was quiet the entire time, listening to her. When she was finished, he didn’t react at first. He surprised her when he suddenly pulled her into his lap, wrapping his arms around her tightly. He held her close, and that’s how they sat for most of the day.

When evening rolled around, she made a few phone calls that she needed to do before tomorrow. When it came around time to go to bed, she collapsed on top of him once he was laying down on the bed.

“At some point… I do want to talk about you... about… that phone call I made… a while back. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable that night. I do…think about us… Probably more often than I should, given I was the asshole who called it off,” Javier voice spoke out into the darkness.

“…I think about it too… but maybe for now… it’s a good thing we are not together. We both have very different priorities when it comes to our jobs. Maybe… in the future we could talk about this more in detail,” She requested politely, even though in her head, she didn’t know if a future with Javier would happen. Not with the feelings she had for Pacho.

He nodded his head, “Yeah. This whole thing with Escobar… is… draining. I’d rather you didn’t witness any of the fallout. As ridiculous as it sounds, you’re safer in Cali.”

She thought in her head, ‘Yeah. Especially when I’m dating a Gentleman.’

They fell asleep and the next morning, she slipped out. Getting dressed in what she wore yesterday, before heading out to the airport. She met with the lawyer, an older man who was a bit on thicker side. He gave her a bag of clothes to change into, before they hopped into one of the cartels personal planes.

She made her way toward the bathroom, relieved to see there was a small shower. She cleaned herself off before looking into the bag that she was handed. As she changed, she noted that Pacho was probably the one who picked out the outfit. It was a black button-down silk shirt, with black pencil skirt that went past her knees, with a matching pair of black pumps.

She walked out feeling fresh as their flight made its course. The trip took 5hrs and soon they had landed. She grimaced with disdain at the humidity and the heat. They got into a car and made their way to Willow’s Creek, Georgia.

She made some calls on her way there and as they parked outside the courthouse, after driving into town, she let her lawyer walk in first to finish up her calls.

Minutes later, she was walking, and stopped just next to the conference room where she could Jacobson complaining that he was being scammed and what an outrage this was.

“Indeed, Whit… what an outrage?” She mocked stepping inside.

She momentarily froze when she saw her sisters, whose faces all lit up as they took her in.

“This,” She set her copy of the will down before them. “Was what he sent me. And just glancing at the original, you see that I was given forged document.”

Darla, was the first to move, taking the will into her hands and looking at with growing outrage.

“What the hell is this Whit?” Came her voice, deeper than she remembered, but with a hint of sultry.

“Whit… here. You what? Thought I was an idiot? That I would sign this blindly? Hmm?” She questioned, turning her attention to him, as he nervously stuttered.

“It’s a shame… especially when,” She pulled out her badge presenting it to him. “I’m a federal agent. It’s a bigger shame that… I had to cash in a couple of favors with the White-Collar division. Because if you were willing to screw me over…. How many other families did you do this to?”

Behind her, in the office, several agents had begun to enter and were seizing everything.

“I would nev-” Whit began to deny.

“Uh huh. It’s interesting that a man who barely makes 30k a year is able to afford a Porsche and the house you own… Are you really going to keep denying this?” Blix smiled victoriously.

An agent came in serving a warrant, arresting him. She waved goodbye as he passed her.

“Is this the original?” She asked turning around to face her sisters who looked at her in shock.

Lily nodded her head. Blix grabbed her pen from her bag and quickly signed the will with a sigh.

When it was done, she looked at Starkman and requested, “You’ll get me a copy of this, yeah?”

He nodded his with a smug smile, “There are some assets that do need to be discussed. Ladies?”

Blix reluctantly sat down across from them, and said, “Shoot.”

Lily spoke first, “Well. Um. We all discussed that the ranch and everything should go to you. You loved it the most, it’s only right it goes to you.”

Lily slid a small envelope that had a set of keys inside.

Blix smiled smally, taking them.

“The house. Um. None of us want it and I doubt that you do either,” Darla took over pausing to see Blix shake her head ‘no.’ “So, we are dividing everything among us, and selling off/throwing away furniture we don’t want. The grand piano is yours.”

“Along with all the books in the library,” Chimed in Hope, her voice bright and cheery.

“The last sort of major items are the cars. The Morgan, the Convertible, and the Mustang,” Lily ended.

Blix thought for a moment before stating, “Well. Darla should get the Morgan. It was always your favorite. Plus, you were the only who learned how to drive stick.”

They all chuckled a little at that.

“Then… the ‘stang and convertible should go to either of you. I don’t need a car, have plenty,” She said looking at Lily and Hope.

They both nodded, Darla then stated, “That’s all of the major items, like we said, we’re just going to divide everything evenly. We did, however, find one thing, that you should have now.”

Lily giggled as she pulled out a small pink bomber jacket, that had the words “Pink Lady” on it.

“Good lord where did you find that?” Blix asked mildly horrified as she took it.

“One of the boxes in the attic, we all found ours, so we hoped that you would come and get yours. Maybe give it to any little ones you wind up having?” Hope explained somewhat shyly.

Blix smiled at it and whispered a soft ‘thank you,’ before folding it gently and putting it in her bag.

“If that’s everything, I need to be going soon. Work waits for no one,” Blix noted standing up.

“Uhh. Just… one last thing… you… you wouldn’t happen to know what happened to mom’s little black book, do you? People… keep trying to claim that she owed them stuff from years ago,” Lily asked worriedly.

Blix paused at the door, sighing. She turned to them and said, “I have it. I’ll fax over a copy I made for you guys.”

She then grabbed a scrap piece of paper from her bag and put down her numbers on it.

“You can uh… call me on either of the first 2 numbers. The third is my fax. I’ll be sure to get that info to you guys, asap,” She said, pushing the paper to them, and walking out.

Her hands shook as she threw on her sunglasses, just before she made it to the door. She wasn’t sure how to react with everything. She stepped outside and made it halfway down the stairs when she saw a peculiar sight.

“Pacho,” She said, drinking in his form as he leaned against a motorcycle, looking every bit the bad boy persona.

She strolled over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist, under his leather jacket.

“What are you doing here honey?” She asked with a smile.

“Checking up on my girl. How are you?” He wondered looking her over.

“Better now that you’re here,” She replied sweetly, giving him a kiss.

He kissed back and told her, “I came to steal you away for a few days. I have some business down in Florida I need to take care of. I figured you and I could have some much needed alone time.”

She smiled at that and started to answer when she heard someone clear their throat. She turned around and spotted her sisters standing, looking at the two of them curiously.

“Pacho. These are my sisters. Lily, Hope, and Darla. Guys, this is Pacho, my boyfriend,” She introduced quickly.

Pacho smiled charmingly and said hello to them with a small wave.

Lily was the first to react, throwing her hands around Blix, pulling her into a tight hug.

Blix was not expecting, giving a small “Oof!”

Hope and Darla joined in and were hugging her as well.

Pacho smiled as he noted that Blix was trying and failing to not cry. Staring at her sisters, he noted their caramel blonde hairs, and blue-green eyes. Seeing them together, he realized, if Blix had been blonde, it would’ve been difficult to distinguish who was who.

They said their goodbyes and promised to call each other.

Blix wiped her eyes, returning to Pacho’s embrace.

“So. How exactly do you expect me to ride comfortably on this thing in this skirt?” She asked with a laugh.

“The skirt shortens,” He tells her with a smirk.

She looked down at it and spotted that just above the knee was flap that perfectly covered the zipper. She unzips it without care, stepping out of it, and tossing the fabric into her bag.

It was still a bit tight but gave her legs more mobility. She moved to straddle the bike but stopped.

“Can we… make one quick pitstop before we go to the airport?” She pleaded.

He nodded his head, and she directed them to a place that was about half a mile away from town.

As he pulled up, she took in the crumbling barn in the distance, and the house that had seen better days.

“This is your grandparents place, yes?” He confirmed as they stopped.

She nodded her head, “My sisters gave it to me.”

Blix walked toward the house, hesitantly. She looked all around, remembering how beautiful it once was. It saddened her to see it in the state it was in.

She pulled out the key, and gently opened the door, brushing away cobwebs that had formed near the entrance.

The inside of it still looked the way it did when she was child, just dusty. There was only one thing she wanted from inside. A photo. It sat on the mantle, just above the fireplace. She brushed off the layer of dust that had built onto it, revealing her as a child, with a large black stallion.

She picked it up, brushing it off as best as she could, as she made her way back outside. She locked the door behind her, and then gazed fondly at the frame in her hands.

She moved back to Pacho, and shyly showed him the photo. He smiled as he stared at it.

“Aww. Look at you. So cute. Was this your horse?” He asked teasing lightly.

“Yeah. His name was Zeus. I was the only he would let ride him. He was very... peculiar. I found out later on, that they rescued him when he was a foal, and he had been starved. I’m pretty sure he uh. He knew. Kindred spirits and all,” She explained softly.

“What happened to him?” Pacho inquired curiously.

“He was sold. He uhh. Went to a farm where he became a racehorse and had many babies. He died about 5 years ago? I think? He was 20,” She stated as she gently placed the frame into her bag.

Pacho stared at her and mentioned, “You looked very happy in that photo. Now I see why my ranch made brought you such joy.”

She simply gave him a kiss and got back onto the bike with him. They rode away, Blix feeling lighter and more relaxed than she’s felt in a long time.

They drove to the airport, hopped onto a plane, greeting Navegante. It wasn’t long before they landed in Florida and made their way to a small, nondescript motel.

The plans discussed were about getting rid of the Lion and taking over Escobar’s market here in Florida. It took about 3 days to get the assets under Cali’s control, and watching Pacho work his charm was a sight to behold. In their free time, he wooed her, taking her to museums and parks. At night they spent tangled up each other, whispering sweet nothings to one another.

When the work was done, and they packed up their stuff, they had but one last thing to do. They invited Lion to their motel, where Navegante make quick work of him. Blix didn’t bother asking what he did with the body; some things are better left unknown.

That day they returned to Cali, and it was as she walked inside Pacho’s home, she realized, that this was becoming more of a home to her than her own place. Especially when she walked in to see Gilberto and Miguel standing there, waiting to welcome the both of them home.

Gilberto gave her a huge hug that she wasn’t expecting but accepted it. Her attention was directed to the side where a large pile of boxes laid and behind all of it, sat a grand piano. It was mahogany wood, in a Victorian style.

She wandered over it, gently lifting the cover over the keys. She looked at it and played a few notes. She noticed quickly that the keys needed to be tuned, as the tones were offkey as they played.

She ran her hand softly over the wood, noting the smalls scuffs that she knew needed to be worked out.

“Wouldn’t happen to know anyone who can tune a piano do you?” She asked them over her shoulder.

“No, but we could find one pretty easy,” Miguel offered with a chuckle.

“These got here fast? Is Starkman trying to impress me or something?” Blix questioned staring at all of the boxes.

“Possibly. You are the Lady of Cali after all,” Gilberto said grandly, with a laugh.

She turned to look at him in surprise, “The Lady of Cali? When did I earn that title?”

“It’s what the other cartels referred to you as, after the party. Kind of stuck with everyone here,” Miguel explained, with half a shrug.

“You made quite the impression on everyone. You are well liked,” Gilberto said proudly.

She smiled looking at the boxes. Most were notated as books and then one was marked “Blix’s Room.” She reached over into Pacho’s pocket, grabbing the pocketknife she knew he carried, to open it.

She held the knife, trying to control the shakiness she felt as she cut open the tape. A moment later, she set the knife down, and pulled the flaps open. Inside she could see several trophies, and a couple of small knickknacks. But the thing that caught her eye the most was the large, dark brown teddy bear.

She bit her lip as she reached in and pulled him out. She stared at him for a minute, memories flickering through her mind. When she first got him, the comfort he brought, leaving him behind when she ran away.

She slowly set him back inside, shaking her head.

“Umm. I’m not quite sure what to do with all of this?” She wondered turning her gaze to Pacho.

“We’ll figure it out. C’mon. Let’s go eat,” He suggested, holding his hand out to her.

She takes it, holding onto it tightly as they made their way to the table to eat.

Elsewhere, in La Catedral, Escobar was concocting a plan. Blackie had come to him with some interesting developments.

He wanted to get back at the Cali Cartel, but he had to get rid of their little federal agent. Not permanently but distracted. Away from them for a time.

He made a call to Valeria and slid the information to her.

“Sorry, Miss Lage, but this is too good to pass up,” He murmured to himself looking down at the file.

Back with Blix, she was listening to Gilberto tell a story about Pacho from when he first began, trying not to laugh at it.

Halfway through the story, Diego came in, and he looked distraught.

“Diego? What’s up?” She asked him concerned.

Diego didn’t speak, just turned on the TV that was setting in the dining room. He switched it to the channel where Valeria Vasquez was reporting.

“And in other news, I have just received info from an anonymous source. Scandalous information about a US Senator,” Valeria teased, her eyes bright.

Blix froze, sitting up straight.

“US Senator Alexander Danvers had quite the illustrious affair about 30 years ago. Now, you are probably wondering… Valeria? What does that have to do with us? Well. That affair led to a bastard child. Federal Agent Blix Lage of the FBI…. Whose stationed here in Colombia,” Valeria reported.

Blix stood up suddenly, pacing back and forth.  

“I’m going to kill him. That bastard. That fucking bastard. To hell with the DEA, to hell with extradition. I’m going to murder him. Him and that bitch,” She muttered angrily, as she paced.

“Honey? Kill who?” Pacho asked, stepping into her path, trying to get her to focus and calm down.

“Escobar! OBVIOUSLY! ‘An ANONYMOUS source?’ When EVERYONE knows she’s whore herself out to that man for any information to BOOST her career!” She exclaimed, furious.

“Can this week get ANY worse?” She murmured defeated, resting her head against his chest.

She heard her phone ring and she groaned loudly as she looked at the ID.

“Yes, Ambassador?” She greeted her voice strained.

“Get to Bogota. We apparently have a guest on their way here. This story has been running for the past hour and has made its way to US media. This is a scandal we did not need Miss Lage,” Crosby informed her.

“Yes sir. Right away,” She answered robotically hanging up.

“I have to go to Bogota. Again. Apparently… guests are making their way to the Embassy. Joy,” She relayed grimacing.

“Wait. Rewind a bit… Your father is a senator?” Miguel questioned confused.

“Unfortunately. Moved his way from small town mayor, to governor of Georgia, to US Senator. My half-brother is currently running for governor himself,” She explained dully.

Gilberto and Miguel looked at her surprised.

“Don’t get excited. That man hasn’t acknowledged my existence once. Doubt my dear lil brother even knows I exist,” She stated, cutting off any ideas that may be forming.

“When I come back from this train wreck encounter, we are going to sleep… for 5 weeks,” She said to Pacho, exhausted.

He pulls her to him, pressing kisses to her face, whispering, “Sounds like a plan.”

She went upstairs, packing a bag for a few nights, planning to stay at a hotel. She angrily threw in some clothes, slowly stopping. She closed her eyes, wishing that this was just some terrible nightmare. She collapsed to her knees, the stress of the past week hitting her hard.

She found herself crying into her hands, as silently as she could. She knew one day her past would catch up to her. She just didn’t think it would happen all at once. She was tired. She was tired of pretending she was okay. So, in the silence of her room, she cried.

Pacho made his way upstairs to check on her and stopped when he heard her sobs. He let her cry for a moment before he walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her. He gently lifted her into his arms, carrying her to the bed to lay her upon it. Once she was on the bed, he curled up next to her, softly wiping away the tears that had formed.

“Do you want me to go with you?” He asked in a whisper.

She shook her head, “No. The media will probably be all over me for a day or so. Don’t want the world to find out I’m also dating a cartel member.”

He nodded once, before assuring her, “I’m here if you need me. I’ll hop on a plane to you. Just say the word. If not, I’ll be here waiting for you to return to me.”

She smiled, sniffling as she tried wiping her face off to clear more tears.

“Regretting being with someone who has so much baggage yet?” She asked in a self-deprecating tone.

“No. Quite the opposite really. I’m quite in love with my Lady of Cali,” He confessed looking her in the eyes.

She felt her breath catch at that admission, and she could feel her heart swell with emotion.

“Pacho… I only just stopped crying and now you’re going to make me cry some more?” She inquired feeling tears in her eyes again.

“Are they happy tears?” He lightly questioned.

“Yes. They are. Especially when… I’m pretty sure I’m falling for you too,” She admitted kissing him.

“Good to know. Now, get to Bogota. Deal with your shit father. Come home to me and I’ll make sure you won’t be leaving my bed for hours if not days,” He promised her.

She nodded her head agreeing, before sitting up and walking into the bathroom to clean herself up real quick. Once she was done with that, she finished packing and was off to Bogota. The brothers had paid for a hotel room for her, telling her to get whatever she wants.

So, when she checked she ordered a small sandwich and fries. It was late by the time she got in, and the ambassador called her again to tell her to be at the embassy at 8am sharp and that even the president of Colombia would be joining them.

She ate quietly, before falling into a fitful sleep. When she woke up the next day, she was not prepared to face whatever hell that was waiting for her.

She showered, got dressed, and 15 mins before 8am she was at the steps of the embassy. There were reporters and photographers everywhere. She sighed and stepped out, pushing past the crowd that was shouting questions at her.

“What’s it like to be the bastard child of a US Senator?” She hears Valeria ask her just as she was about to reach the top.

She stopped, annoyance racing through her entire being.

She turned sharply around to her, and threw back, “Valeria. What’s it like being such a mediocre reporter that you lie about your ‘anonymous sources’ when we all know who you get your info from?”

Her face fell and was filled with rage as several other reporters laughed then coughed.

“Tell Mr. Escobar I say hello,” She spat out, turning away from her and walking inside.

She made her way up to conference room, ignoring the stares and whispers that erupted all around her. She stepped inside, ignoring the 3 people who were sitting down. She greeted the president and the ambassador first. She slowly turned to look at the older gentleman that sat in the middle.

His hair was once a dark brunette that now has streaks of grey, his eyes were bright green. The woman besides him, was blonde and demure looking. The last man, as she turned her gaze to take him, was her age… and honestly, they looked like they could be twins.

“Hello senator,” She greeted somewhat dully.

She took her seat and waited for the ambassador to speak.

The ambassador informed her that they are unaware of what exactly the evidence was that tied her to the senator. As he spoke, senator Danvers cut in claiming this was all a lie, a scam. That he had no idea who I was.

His denials infuriated her.

She stood up suddenly and stared him in the eyes.

“Listen. I didn’t want this. I don’t care about you. But don’t you dare lie. You had an affair. You had me, then your son. You abandoned me without a second thought. Don’t you dare say that you have no idea who I am, when we,” she pointed to the younger man, “look like twins.”

He stopped and stared at her stunned.

“I lived with this knowledge since I was 10. Just ask your wife. She knew. She knew the whole time,” She informed glancing over at her. “In fact, she was the one who told me all about it.”

“Martha, what is she talking about?” He quietly asked her.

“Yes Martha. Tell him. Tell him how you hired me to help you work on your garden and how you told a 10-year-old that she was not only a bastard, but unwanted by both of her parents,” Blix stated bitterly.

Martha looked away, not wanting to meet anyone’s eyes.

“Listen. I don’t want to start a fight or interrupt your life. I was quite content in you not being in my life. I get it. My mother… she was a leech. I understand why you left her… but you left me too. And my mother made sure… to let me know that I was not wanted,” She admitted, motioning to the scars on her face.

“I have spent the past 30 years without you. I can live the next 30 or so without you. Go back home. I don’t want you in my life,” She concluded firmly.

She stepped out of the conference room and made her way downstairs to the DEA department. She spotted Steve but no Javier, so she stole his seat.

She collapsed and sat rather lazily in the chair, slumped.

“Rough day?” Steve asked taking in her posture.

“Rough week. My psychotic mother passed, had to reconnect with my sisters, dealt with some bullshit over the will which led to an arrest for white collar, someone figured out who my father is, and he and his family are upstairs trying to deny everything,” She summarized.

“Can I hide here for a time?” She asked glancing over at him.

“Sure, if you help go through these transcripts,” Steve bargained holding a stack of papers.

“Deal,” She replied taking the stack.

She sat with him for an hour, going through transcripts and helping him find any leads.

Javier eventually appeared, raising an eyebrow at her in his chair. He pulled up another chair next to her, taking half of her remaining stack. She smiled at him, as he teasingly nudged her with his elbow. They quietly worked until Theo appeared.

“Hey boss, sorry to interrupt. Um. There’s someone asking for you upstairs?” Theo tells her.

She nodded her head, finishing the sentence she was on before standing up. She ruffled Javier’s hair with her hand and reached over to do the same to Steve.

“Bye guys. Good luck,” She said, following Theo.

Theo glanced at her a few times, when they stepped into the elevator.

“Please don’t ask,” She quietly pleaded.

“Ask what?” Theo asked acting confused.

She smiled appreciatively at him. When they got up to their floor, she paused when she sees her half-brother standing by their offices.

She made her way to him cautiously.

When she was finally before him, she greeted, “Hi.”

“Hey,” Came his voice, slightly raspy. “Can… can we talk?”

She nodded and led him to her office. “I’m sorry it’s kind of small.”

Her office barely had room for the 2 chairs and desk. He waved it off.

“So. I… I gotta say… I don’t know how to start this. Um. But I guess. The beginning is best? I’m Ajax. 30. Sagittarius. Hoping to be Governor when I grow up. And would love to get to know my older sister, if she’d let me?” He introduced, rubbing the back of his neck.

Blix smiled awkwardly, and followed suit, “Blix. 30. Scorpio. FBI agent, lead investigator of the art crimes division here in Colombia. And…I would love to know about my little brother too.”

She laughed when she realized after a moment, she was doing the same neck rub he did.

“We… have the same fidget behaviors,” She muttered.

“I hear you’re a fighter and a damn good one,” Ajax complimented.

“I hear you have a really good shot at being Governor. If I was in Georgia, I may have to vote for you,” She said to him.

“Listen. My mom…I’m sorry she made you feel that way when you were younger. My… Our dad will come around eventually. He just… was shocked to say the least,” Ajax apologized.

“Mh.” She was doubtful but didn’t say much to disagree.

They talked a few more minutes and exchanged numbers to keep in contact.

She had to have few more talks with the ambassador and president for the next three days to assure that this was not going to affect her job. Once she was finally free, she made her way back to Cali on a late flight.

When she landed, she was greeted by Diego who was waiting for her.

“Honestly, I’ve never been happier to see you. Would it be weird if I hugged you?” Blix politely asked as she stood in front of him.

Diego smirked and held his arms open to her. She hugged him, feeling relieved. They get into the car and started to drive. About halfway there she noticed something was off.

“Why are you being so quiet? What happened?” Blix questioned looking at him concerned.

“He didn’t want me to tell you… but you should know. There was an attempt against Pacho… Yesterday. Escobar’s men tried to kill him while he was playing soccer,” Diego explained not looking at her.

“But he’s okay, right?” She was worried.

“Yes. Shaken up. But fine,” He assured her.

She let that information sink in. She knew it was only a matter of time before an incident like this happened. She wasn’t quite sure what her reaction was going to be when she sees Pacho. She did know that Escobar had no idea who he was dealing with.

[editorialsonlife]

Welp, this week has been an exhausted, overthinking, crying mess, culminating in crying in the shower this morning and phoning off work for the day coz I actually couldn't face having to deal with people. The need to just have eight hours to not need to be anything to anyone was strong and I'm so glad I took the day off.

The annoying thing is there hasn't really been any major trigger. Its just been a stupid combo of things that have all kicked in and like, eg. On so many fronts. Just realised I haven't even recapped the wedding yet, oops. Need to do that. My bad.

I guess the wedding is a good place to start because work was freaking hectic when I went on leave, and its not like any work got done while I was away so came back to the same amount of work plus a weeks worth of revisions and edits which was tough. The wedding itself, like all weddings, was ridiculously social and we were both so peopled out by the end of it man. We had a great week on Waiheke away just the two of us and genuinely felt like maybe the suckballsness of 2019 and 2020 might be almost behind us at that point. HA HA HA HA HA YOU OPTIMISTIC CREATURES YOU.

Both of us walked back into jobs which no one had done anything, I walked back into a particularly argumentative coworker (who is about to become the boss but that's a whole separate issue) and then we spent the weekend over the hill in martinborough for a friend's wedding which was organised in three weeks because we found out she has terminal cancer and has been given 6 months to live. So the emotional rollercoaster just freaking continued because that was so bittersweet and hard to watch and she is so unwell.

In addition, we agreed to stay with a couple of friends (married) who were going through mad drama. I'll honestly be surprised if they're still together by the end of the year. But on top of dealing with the wedding friends and that heartbreak, we were then dealing with these friends and it literally became a weekend of couples counselling and trying to look after them. straight back into another manic week at work trying to pull together this workshop which happened on Monday. So hectic. I am not a professional facilitator and while i can do an ok job, I still was dealing with the messiness of getting through the wedding and I have event organising fatigue following that one and just.... argumentative coworker was being an absolute dick about things that was just unnecessary.

We had a weekend at home not seeing anyone or with any plans which was great. Larissa came over and we've booked a girls weekend in Nelson for August which will be fab but she's going through a whole flatting sitch which is nightmarish, super glad she's moving out on Sunday so that was a lot of emotional labour for her. On Friday night we went to Jess and Rob's because their house is finally finished and they moved in and we got into a bunch of discussion about their wedding which is still too soon for my liking but at least she respected not dealing with it during mine so thats a bonus.

Then Monday was a 5am start to actually run this workshop which was just a freaking nightmare. Govt clients are such. hard. work. and this group was a lot to deal with. plus argumentative coworker. I don't think I slept more than four hours any night this week.

it's just been such a busy freaking month, and there's been so much on. Oh yeah. Lynaire moved away in the middle of all of this, Erin leaves in three weeks. I just want a week with no major life changes happening, honestly.

And this week? has just been such hard work mentally. I'm so tired, I'm not feeling at all resilient, and my brain has helpfully spent the week adding up all the different ways I am not good enough or not measuring up and everything I've done wrong and all the ways in which I am inadequate. So that's just been a real good time overall. hence crying in the shower at half past six this morning.

It's been a good day though. I read a book in bed til it warmed up a bit. Went for a good walk down to the river and back. Went and got lunch and watched some gilmore girls and tidied my room and cleaned it and remade the bed with all our winter bedding (thank you 0 degree mornings) and tidied the house and did all the dishes etc. It was very nice not to have to be anything to anyone for a while and just stay home.

There's just so many things in life I just can't even face dealing with right now that I need to. So much stuff that I was like, after the wedding! and now we're here and the pile is huge and overwhelming and I don't know where to start. I need to find a good routine again and get back into looking after myself again. I had hoped I was done with the day to day levels of self management I was doing when I was obnoxiously anxious but I guess the answer to that was a big fat nope. Which sucks but anyway. here we are.

Famous last words, hopefully life will be a bit more chill after this weekend and I can at least get back to yoga once a week again. god I miss it. I need to figure out how to exist in my body again for a while and shut my brain off. I also signed up for yin yoga this weekend with an old yoga teacher who I love so hopefully thats lovely and lush and restorative with any luck.

God I'm exhausted. I feel like I need a break, like I didn't just have a whole week off less than a month ago. Goodness knows it doesn't feel like I did though.

Anyway, that's the friday night update for you. #life man. She's been a lot lately.

When I get the wedding photos back I'll try and do a decent recap.

[my-major-is-k-howard]

Lover

Inspired by “Lover” by Taylor Swift. I had a really fun time writing this chapter (which is why it’s so long... oops). I was listening to “Two” by Sleeping at Last and “The End of All Things” by Panic! at the Disco while writing so I threw in a couple lyrics from those songs into the vows. I hope you all enjoy! 💚💙

Word Count: 3915

Trigger Warning: lead up to sex (at the end)

Ch. 1 Ch. 2 Ch. 3 Ch. 4

————————————————————

Ch. 5 - To End Up With You

If Anne wasn’t already crying at her proposal, the next picture definitely got her to cry. Her eyes landed on the next Polaroid and instantly felt tears streaming down her cheeks. It pictured her wedding day, the day Anne got to marry her best friend and love of her life.

The year following the proposal was hectic to say the least. Cathy did many book signings and press conferences in the months following the release of her book. It was a massive hit and, though it did receive some criticism for its inclusion of queer characters, the public enjoyed the novel and praised the author for shedding light on such important topics. Cathy was astounded by the amount of support her novel received, showing her gratitude in every speech she gave and every note she wrote as she signed each copy of her book. Anne never doubted for a second that Cathy’s novel would be a best-seller and when it happened, the couple celebrated together in a mix of tears, champagne, and kisses.

On top of that, Cathy and Anne began planning for their wedding. They set the date for a little less than a year after the proposal so that they would have adequate time to make their special day perfect. They toured so many venues before finally settling on a quaint spot outside of the city. The house was small and old-fashioned, paired with a beautiful garden where the couple planned on getting married. They tasted cakes together, picked flowers, and chose color schemes, each new milestone filling them with anticipation for the big day. They also went dress shopping and each managed to keep their dresses hidden from each other until the day of the wedding.

As Anne strained to see through the blur of tears, she took in all of the beautiful details of the photo. Kat had captured the first moment that Anne and Cathy saw each other in their wedding dresses. The garden gazebo they were in was white with vines climbing up the pillars, making it a picturesque backdrop for the Polaroid. The two brides were facing each other, clearly admiring the beauty of the other. They both looked on the verge of tears, the love they shared evident in every part of their posture and gaze. The flow of tears only increased as Anne got lost in the memories that the picture brought to mind.

~~~~~

Anne flinched as a bright flash flared from the Polaroid camera to her right.

“Kat, you almost made me mess up my eyeliner!” Anne squeaked, turning to the girl next to her.

Her cousin flashed her an apologetic smile. “Sorry! I took one of Cathy getting ready and thought it would be cute if you each had one.”

“If you show me hers, I might forgive you,” Anne responded and gave Kat her best pleading face in hopes of getting a sneak peak of Cathy before seeing her in person.

Kat’s smile wavered and she shook her head, not making eye contact with Anne. “I can’t! I promised I wouldn’t spoil anything!” 

“At least I tried,” Anne mumbled before shifting her attention back to her eyeliner. After several failed attempts at completing her left wing, the Boleyn girl sighed in defeat.

“Hey Kat,” Anne spoke up shyly. “Could you, you know, help me with my eyeliner?” Anne felt embarrassed as the question left her mouth. She never liked asking others for help, especially since she always felt helpless and weak when doing so. Cathy had always made an effort to ease Anne’s fear of asking for help, even with tasks as simple as applying eyeliner. That was one of the many things she loved about her bride.

Anne subconsciously smiled at that thought. Cathy was her bride. And, in a few short hours, she would be her wife. I really am the luckiest person in the world, Anne thought to herself.

“Yes, of course!” Kat’s excited response snapped Anne out of her reverie. The younger girl quickly rushed to her aid, grabbing the eyeliner pen and doing her best to complete the bride’s makeup. 

After a few tries and many “sorry”s later, Kat finally perfected Anne’s wing and proudly gestured for her cousin to look in the mirror at her finished product. “Kat, you really outdid yourself. You’re almost as good as Cathy!” 

Anne admired her reflection, truly taking in every detail and committing it to memory. This was the day she had been waiting for since she first started dating Cathy. She was ready to take her beautiful fiancée as her wife and share their first kiss as newlyweds. Anne could barely contain her excitement for the day ahead of her.

“Are you ready?” Kat asked.

“Yeah, almost. I just need to put on my dress and I’ll be good to go,” Anne responded, gesturing to the sleeveless, lace wedding dress hanging up behind her. She stood up and prepared to change into it.

Kat quickly rushed to her side to help her put on the dress. “I meant more emotionally, actually. How are you feeling?”  

Anne stepped into the dress and slid it up. She took a second to actually think before giving the girl an answer. Of course, she was beyond excited to marry the love of her life but there was also a little voice in the back of her head that made her anxious about the hours to come. What if something went wrong? What if Cathy changed her mind? What if Anne messed everything up? Anne sighed as all the “what if”s swirled around her mind. 

Kat gave her a worried look before she finally spoke up. “If I’m honest, I am excited but also a little scared. I’ve been looking forward to this day for years and I just want it to be perfect. I don’t want to mess it up, not only for me but for Cathy. God, she deserves the world and I’m so scared that I’ll disappoint her.”

Kat zipped up the dress before turning the bride to face her. “Anne, everything’s going to be fine. Cathy loves you more than anything, and I know that for a fact. You could literally be wearing a trash bag and she would still marry you just as you are. And if things aren’t perfect, that’s okay. It’s those little mishaps that you’ll look back on together and smile about. I love you so much, Anne.” Kat finished her little speech by giving Anne a big hug that nearly made Anne cry.

“I love you too, Kitty Kat,” Anne whispered and hugged her even tighter. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Kat whispered as she pulled away. “Wow, Anne! You look amazing!” Kat marveled at how stunning Anne looked in her wedding dress and full face of makeup. 

“Aww thanks,” Anne responded before turning to look at herself in the mirror. She admired how her dress perfectly accentuated her curves and how her makeup brought out the green in her eyes. She hoped more than anything that Cathy would like her appearance. 

Anne began daydreaming about what Cathy would look like in her dress. She imagined her shy smile as their eyes met and the glimmer in her eyes as they admired each other’s beauty. Anne was glad they had decided to meet in the gazebo before the ceremony to see each other for the first time because Anne wasn’t sure she could wait until the ceremony to see her bride.   

“Do you have your vows ready?” Kat asked.

“Yeah, I wrote them down,” Anne said as she picked up a small, folded piece of paper that was lying on the vanity desk. She opened it up to reveal her handwritten calligraphy script professing her love and promises to Cathy.    

A small knock on the door sounded and Anne looked over to see Aragon in the doorway. “Hi, Anne. Cathy’s almost ready now. We’re going to head to the gazebo soon.” The older woman gave her a warm smile. “Oh! Also, Cathy wanted me to tell you she loves you.”

Anne blushed before responding. “Okay, thanks Catherine. Tell Cathy I love her more,” Anne replied.

“I certainly will,” Aragon said as she closed the door. Anne couldn’t help but smile at the fact that in a few short minutes she would be seeing Cathy in her wedding dress for the first time.

“Kat, do you have your camera ready?” Anne asked her cousin.

“Of course I do,” Kat responded and picked up her camera from its place on the desk. Anne gave herself a quick glance through the mirror, running her fingers through her perfectly curled hair one last time before standing up to meet her cousin by the door. 

“Then let’s go see my bride.”

At the gazebo, the four other queens managed to get the two brides back-to-back without either of them peeking, a truly impressive feat since Anne repeatedly tried to look before they were ready. Now, Anne’s back was pressed gently against Cathy’s and she was buzzing with excitement. Anne slowly reached her hand behind her until it brushed Cathy’s. 

“Can we turn around now?” Cathy asked, almost as impatient as Anne was at this point. 

“Almost. I’ll count down and then you two turn around. Okay?” The two girls hummed in agreement as Kat fidgeted a little more with her Polaroid camera. “Alright. 3, 2, 1. Turn around!”

Time seemed to slow as Anne turned to face Cathy. She caught a glimpse of her dress first, an elegant long-sleeved gown that suited Cathy perfectly. As she completed the turn, Anne took in the sight fully and couldn’t help but gawk at the beauty in front of her. Cathy’s hair was done up so that her curls graced the sides of her face and her makeup was simple yet stunning. 

Anne barely registered the flash of Kat’s camera, too smitten with the woman in front of her to even notice. She felt her breath catch in her throat as she met Cathy’s eyes. She could see tears forming in them and a wave of emotions crashed over Anne, threatening to knock her off her feet. She took a small step forward and reached out to take Cathy’s hand. Cathy immediately obliged and Anne lifted it to her lips, pressing a soft kiss to her knuckles. 

“Anne…” Cathy whispered, her voice thick with emotion. “You are so beautiful.” Anne felt a tear slip down her cheek as she heard Cathy say those words.

“You’re more beautiful Cathy,” Anne whispered back, leaning closer to her bride as she pressed their foreheads together and wrapped her arms around her waist. Cathy in turn leaned into Anne and wrapped her arms around Anne’s neck. They stayed in that position for a few seconds, eyes closed, just reveling in each other’s presence. “I love you, Catherine Parr. I love you so much more than you know.”

Cathy pulled back far enough to meet her bride’s eyes. She opened her mouth to say something before changing her mind and swooping in to kiss Anne’s lips. Anne reciprocated with the same passion, before Cathy pulled away a couple seconds later.

“Isn’t it bad luck to kiss your bride before the ceremony?” Anne cheekily asked. Cathy let out a chuckle before pecking her lips again.

“I can’t help it when you look like you just descended from heaven with your wings intact. You’re irresistible, Anne.” Cathy brushed a strand of dark hair behind Anne’s ear.

“And you look like a goddess that just emerged from the sea, my love. I’m so lucky that I get to call you mine,” Anne whispered back. 

Anne was broken out of her bubble when she heard someone sniffle off to their left. She turned to look and was surprised to see Cleves wiping furiously at her eyes. The other queens were all in similar situations. Catherine was holding onto Jane, both of them with tears streaming down their faces. Kat, of course, had a bright smile on her face despite the tears that were pooling in her eyes.

“Well, Anna, I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen you cry,” Anne spoke up with a mischievous smile on her face. She loosened her grip on Cathy as they both turned to face the other queens. 

Cleves scoffed before responding. “What? Would you prefer for me to gag like I usually do?”

The queens broke out into giggles after that comment before composing themselves once more. 

“Should we read our vows now, Anne?” Cathy asked. The couple had decided to read vows before the ceremony with only the queens to keep the intimate moment as private as possible. They thought the perfect moment would be at the gazebo after seeing each other’s dresses for the first time. 

Anne nodded before turning to her cousin, who she had given her vows to before her walk to the gazebo. “Kat, can I have my vows now?”

Kat shuffled a bit between the several pictures she’d taken until she finally pulled out the slip of paper Anne had given her earlier. She walked over and handed it to her with a small smile. “Here you go!”

Cathy went to get hers from Aragon before returning to stand in front of Anne. They got lost in each other’s eyes momentarily before beginning their vows. 

“Love, you go first,” Cathy said and motioned for Anne to start.

Anne slowly unfolded the paper and cleared her throat nervously before reading her vows. 

“Catherine Parr, as I stand before you today, I can say with the utmost confidence I have never loved anything or anyone as much as I love you. Every part of you, every vice and every virtue, has taken my world and flipped it on its head. You challenge me to be a better person, to think harder, to work harder, to love harder. You are my perfect match in every way and you inspire me to live up to my potential. My whole life I thought that love was supposed to be painful, to have your heart broken and mended over and over again. You changed that definition with your constant and unwavering love. Your love is home that, no matter in sunshine or in rain, will always be a safe haven for me to return to. 

“I promise that I will be that haven for you too, that I will hold you close whether you are laughing or crying. I will be dependable and steadfast. I will always try to make you laugh and brighten your day when the world feels like it's caving in. I’ll even hold up the sky on my back if it means keeping you safe. I promise to make sure you eat and sleep, even if I have to force you out of your study and away from your writing to do so. I promise to spend the rest of our lives falling deeper in love with you. Everything in my life thus far has led up to this moment, led up to you. Now, Cathy, I dedicate the rest of my life to you, until the end of all things.” 

Anne finished reading her vows and looked up to meet Cathy’s tear-filled eyes. She was proud that she got through the entire speech without crying, a feat she didn’t think was possible while writing it. Cathy sniffled shyly and dabbed lightly at her eyes in a vain attempt to prevent the tears from falling down her face. 

Anne cupped her face with her free hand and caught a tear that was slowly making its way down Cathy’s cheek with the pad of her thumb. Cathy leaned into her touch softly before speaking up. “That was so beautiful, Annie.”

Anne averted her gaze to the floor as she blushed a deep crimson at the praise. “Thanks, love.” After a brief pause, Anne removed her hand from Cathy's cheek and spoke up again. “I think it’s your turn now, Cathy.”

Cathy blushed and shuffled with the paper in her hands. “Right, of course.” Cathy opened the paper and gave Anne a shy glance before starting.

“My dearest Anne Boleyn, before I met you my life was a dull shade of blue, almost grey, a sea of sadness and loneliness. I spent days, sometimes weeks, at a time in my bedroom drowning in my own fear. I feared the world, I feared vulnerability, I feared love. When I met you, you shattered my blue-tinted glasses and I finally saw the world for what it truly was, a paradise filled with every shade of color with you by my side. You filled my life with joy and laughter. You saved me from drowning in my own thoughts and fears. Most of all, you taught me how to love. The more you showed me of yourself, the less I feared being vulnerable. You listened to my thoughts, you cared about my feelings, you showed me how beautiful true love can be. 

“I vow to be the loving wife you deserve for the rest of our days. I will love you unabashedly, without any strings attached. I will care for you in sickness and in health, and kiss all your boo boos when you hurt yourself on your heelys. I vow to support you and stand by your side, to see things from your perspective while offering mine in exchange. The times will change and the oceans will rage but I promise, Anne, that I will always choose you. I can’t express how much of a privilege and honor it is to support you, to love you. I am yours forever, Anne Boleyn, and I wouldn’t want to spend the rest of my life with anybody but you. I love you.” 

 By the time Cathy finished her speech, Anne was a crying mess. Cathy always had such a beautiful way with words and it made Anne fall in love with her a little more each time she shared her writing with her. Cathy gently took Anne’s face in her hand, wiping away the stray tears with her thumb. Anne smiled softly at her before whispering, “No wonder you’re a writer. That was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard in my life.”

Cathy blushed and then leaned up to kiss Anne on the forehead. “I meant every word of it, Anne. I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you.”

“We have to get through the actual wedding first. And I’ll have to redo my makeup before then too.” Anne chuckled to herself.

“It’s not too bad. Your mascara is a little messed up but the rest is fine.” Cathy gave her an encouraging smile before continuing. “Your eyeliner looks great! Did you do it yourself?”

“No, I did it!” Kat chirped before flashing Anne an embarrassed smile, afraid she’d said too much.

“Babe, you know I can never do it properly on my own,” Anne added as Cathy laughed. “Which is why you’ll be doing it for the rest of our lives.”

“I’ll gladly do it for the rest of our lives, Anne.” Cathy pressed one last kiss to Anne’s lips before the one they shared at the altar after officially being pronounced Mrs. & Mrs. Boleyn-Parr.

If Anne was honest, the day had passed in a blur and before she knew it she and Cathy were back at their home, a little tipsy but more happy than they had ever been in their lives. When they got to their bedroom, Anne turned on the fairy lights to shed some soft light around the room so they could see. 

Anne sat on the edge of the bed and shuffled through the several Polaroids Kat had taken throughout the day. There was one of them at the altar sharing a kiss, a few from the reception with the queens, and even the ones that Kat had taken while each of them were getting ready. Cathy’s picture showed the queen applying blush while pulling a silly face at the camera. 

Anne laughed to herself at her wife’s antics before feeling the bed dip next to her. Cathy rested her head on Anne’s shoulder, peering down at the pictures she was holding. She noticed the one Anne was currently looking at and chuckled.

“I tried to get Kat to show me this picture before we met at the gazebo. I wanted a sneak peek so badly but I doubt even this would’ve prepared me for how breathtaking you were,” Anne whispered to the queen next to her.

Cathy laughed before responding. “I tried to blackmail Aragon into showing me a picture of what you looked like. I was so excited to see you I could barely wait.”

Anne rested her head on top of Cathy’s. “I guess we’re more alike than we thought.”

Anne shuffled the photo to the bottom of the stack she was holding and revealed the final Polaroid she had yet to see. It was the picture of them at the gazebo, turning to look at each other for the first time. Her eyes filled with tears instantly and she struggled to keep her composure. She left out a soft sigh before speaking.

“I think this one is my favorite.”

“We should hang it up then,” Cathy suggested softly and lifted her head from Anne’s shoulder. Anne turned to meet Cathy’s gaze and smiled. She stood up and placed the other pictures on their nightstand before taking her favorite and hanging it up on one of the free clips. She admired the Polaroid in the warm light, taking in every detail as if it was the last time she’d ever see it.

When she finally turned back around, Cathy was shimmying out of her dress. Anne approached her quietly and wrapped her arms around her from behind. She pressed feather soft kisses to her back leading up to her shoulder and then her neck. 

Cathy hummed with contentment and leaned back in Anne’s embrace. Anne began tracing different shapes on Cathy’s bare abdomen as she repeatedly pecked Cathy’s neck. Slowly, Cathy turned to face Anne and caught her lips in hers, beginning soft and slow but quickly turning heated and passionate. Cathy moved her hands to the zipper of Anne’s dress and slowly tugged it down.

They parted as Anne’s dress hit the floor, leaving only enough time for Anne to step out of it before reconnecting their lips in a heat of passion and desire. They inched their way backward until the backs of Anne’s knees hit the edge of the bed, causing her to unexpectedly lose her balance and fall back onto the soft sheets. 

Cathy chuckled at the sight until Anne grabbed her wrists and pulled her onto the bed as well. She landed on top of Anne, causing the taller girl to huff at the sudden weight before laughing. She gazed up lovingly at Cathy before kissing her once more. Anne grabbed Cathy’s waist and slowly rolled them over until they were in the middle of the bed. 

Anne pulled away to catch her breath and looked down at her beautiful wife, surrounded by a sea of white sheets. Cathy’s chest was rising and falling rapidly as she stared up into Anne’s eyes. They didn’t need words to express the love they had for each other. They showed it and felt it in different ways that night.

[peachyteabuck]

pull you out of here

summary: asgard needs a queen, thor wishes to defy his father, and you seem to be the solution to both

pairing: dark!thor odinson x reader

words: 4,971

trigger warnings: dark possessive thor, stalking, emotional manipulation, heavy dubcon, smut, slight breeding kink, heavy angst, cheating, unhealthy relationships 

ask box / masterlist / commission info / ko-fi

To say that Thor was mad would be an understatement. To say Frigga cared would be a complete lie.

“He’s trying to get me to marry, Mother,” he nearly screams. Nonetheless, the woman remains calm. “To cede some of my power to some woman!”

Frigga watches her son stomp around her chambers with a watchful eye, never moving from her seat across the room. She’s watched her son – her lovely, wonderful son – perform this long-winded act many times before; when Loki came into their lives, whenever Frigga had to force them to share. Thor, in classic eldest-sibling fashion, thoroughly disliked anyone impeding on what he thought to be his.

His toys, his room, his room, his power. All of it, everything he wished for, was his.

This included his throne, apparently, as is made obvious by his red-faced rambling.

“What, is he going to pluck some maiden from the streets of Asgard? Make her some puppet for during in my rule?” he’s stomping now, nearly spitting.

He stays like that – acting the same way he did when Loki stole a single potato from his plate when he was old enough to walk and talk and feel but young enough to not have a single muscle on his lanky body.

Just like usual, he eventually tires himself out, using his last bit of energy to bark in the general direction of a servant to get him some ale. He sits in the chair across from his mother, elbow resting on his knees.

Thor’s voice is quieter now, much more pensive. “Mother, what am I going to do?”

Frigga waits for the servant to bring the large drink and for Thor to gulp half of it down before responding. “What you father wants is for you to have a bride – it’s important to the people you rule over. What your father wants –“

“Is for me to give my power to some woman,” Thor scoffs into his drink. “I’m aware.”

Frigga rolls her eyes. “No, darling. What your father wants is to make sure the woman is to his tastes.”

Her son scoffs. “What does that mean?”

“It means, if you picked a woman from say,” the woman shrugs. “Midgard, then he wouldn’t be able to say no to her for fear of backlash from the Asgardians,” Thor smiles as she continues talking, now understanding. “They love their humans, you know.”

They laugh together, happy as their devised their plan: Thor would leave the next day for Midgard, spend some time there, woo some woman he knows will not impede too much into his duties as king.

So, when Thor saw you in that faded orange cardigan, the leggings that showed off your thick thighs, and a well-loved t-shirt that looked incredibly soft with your hair piled on top of your head and fuzzy socks on your feet and you yawning so adorably as you waited for your coffee to be finished, he knew he had to have you. Sure, maybe he was being shallow when he thought about being buried between your thick thighs or laying on your large breasts, and maybe he should’ve learned more about your personality before calling you his “dream girl.” But still, he knew you were the one and he needed to get you to fall in love with him ASAP.

There were a few problems with this mission:

First: he didn’t know your name, your job in the tower, or how to find you. He knew you as “the adorable one who likes coffee,” which doesn’t narrow it down, especially because they were in New York and more specifically Stark Tower, where everyone within city limits was running on two gallons of coffee, anxiety, and institutional access to research databases.

Second: after pestering every Avenger he could find, Thor found out that you had a boyfriend. A long-term one, too. About five years is what Steve begrudgingly told Thor after the God broke into his personal gym during his morning run on the treadmill (that day it was hailing, and Captain America will put up with a lot – but he refuses to get hit in the face with golf-ball sizes sphere of ice). A few minutes later, Barton (who admitted very quickly to listening through the vents) told Thor that rumor had it he was going to propose pretty soon – had picked the ring and restaurant out but hadn’t booked the reservation.

Third: very soon after learning that you were taken, Thor also learned that he would likely be spending a lot of time with you since where you worked and his favorite place ended up being the exact same. Tony’s personal lab (where he often worked with Bruce), was pretty much where you lived. Your official job description was akin to “personal librarian,” which meant keeping the lab orderly so Tony could on inventing things (or whatever else it is he does). Once, about a day before Pepper decided to hire someone, Tony spent four hours sorting screws.

Four. Entire. Hours.

You, with your degree in IT and concentration in database creation and management, were perfect for the job. He was even allowing you to use his lab for research – making you a pioneer in a field you didn’t realize existed until LexisNexis contacted you asking to moonlight as a consultant during their company-wide restructuring.

Some (mostly those who interviewed for the job and didn’t get it) called you a glorified assistant, a nanny whose only job was to clean up toys. Still, Tony spoke highly of you during parties and interviews and whenever anyone complimented his lab.

Given your dedication to your work, a few months in Tony offered you an apartment a few floors down. It was newly renovated, and since most Stark employees lived in Stark Industries-subsidized housing not located within HQ, you lived mostly secluded from everyone else.

To you, it was amazing. You never had to see anyone you didn’t intend to and you never had to brave the famously-bad New York winter weather just to go to bed. In all honesty, it was your dream life.

Thor, though, had to disagree. It made it impossible to “bump into you,” he never saw you when you weren’t working (you made it very clear you preferred to either a) work in silence or b) listen to music or an audiobook you picked). Even if he managed to catch a glimpse of you on your lunch break, you always seemed to be more interested in something else – a book, a conversation, whatever. Never, ever, did he seem to be able to catch you off guard.

About a week in, he realized this would be much harder than he originally thought.

Over the course of six months, Thor learned a few things:

First: you really like to read. He ends up asking Natasha (arguably the person you’re closest with) about every book you like in an attempt to have something to talk about.

Second (before he wanted to talk to you about the Poisonwood Bible but after he finally got Natasha to crack): You really don’t like your boyfriend, and your boyfriend doesn’t really seem to like you. When he asks why you two are still dating, Natasha just shrugs sadly.

“That’s a story for her to tell, not me, Odinson,” she said.

Third (the next morning, he sniffed around the kitchen to find anyone who would tell him anything about you): You were incredibly insecure about your body. He learned that from Steve. He learned from Sam that this was why you stayed with your emotionally distant romantic partner; because you thought you couldn’t find anyone better.

This, of course, was a lot of information to handle at once. So Thor did what a bunch of bubbly college students on YouTube called “mind-maps” so he could sort out his thoughts. What started as a fresh, clean, white sheet of graph paper ended up being a masterplan to win you over.

Step 1: Have a solid conversation with you

This happens much faster than expected. The next morning, to be exact. It’s sort of warming up, so you’re wearing a thin pullover and a pair of tight, light grey jeans. The pullover has some Midgardian logo on it, one Thor doesn’t recognize. When you turn around as you wait for the coffee machine, he asks you about it.

“What’s on your…” he gestures to said logo.

You smile bashfully, tucking a piece of hair behind your ear. “It’s, uh, it’s just some concept art for a book I like. ”

Thor beams. He knows he’s got you. “What book?”

You shrug, grabbing the pot and pouring the steaming liquid into your peach pink travel mug. “It’s called Nothing, it’s by Janne Teller…

From there, you and him talk about what’s possibly the darkest book of all time. You explain to him the plot, the emotion it evokes from you. It truly is your favorite piece of literature; you really could talk about it for hours.

So, you do. Over your morning coffee, then a larger-than-usual breakfast, and then lunch. You make grilled cheese and tomato soup, biting every few sentences.

“God, my favorite line, like of the entire book is like,” you take a bite, chewing as you speak. “So Pierre is talking to these kids, and this one kid is Muslim, and gave up the prayer mat, or rather was made to give up his prayer mat. And Pierre is like ‘what price was your faith?’ And that line has like, continued to haunt me. It’s just,” you swallow. “What price do we pay to prove ourselves to others, you know?”

Thor listens intently as you speak, nodding and smiling as you go on. It’s amazing how much someone lights up when they talk about something they’re passionate about. It’s probably mid-afternoon when you finally realize that you’ve been talking for literal hours.

“Oh my god,” you gush, collecting the dishes and placing them in the sink. “I’m so sorry, I’ve been-”

Thor grabs your wrist, bunching at the sleeve. “No, please do not apologize. I have been meaning to talk to you for a long time.”

You blush, not meeting his eyes. “Why would someone like you want to talk to someone like me…”

That’s sort of when Thor’s suave facade cracks a little. You’re everything he’s ever wanted in a partner. Literally ever. And your inability to see that troubles him deeply.

“My dear, you’re so smart and quick and eloquent,” he tells you, never break eye contact. “Don’t even think I don’t want to be around you.”

You blush, not responding while scuttering off and mumbling something about having to go to a meeting for Stark.

Step 2: Get you to spend what Natasha and Wanda call “quality time” with him.

This one happens a little while later. Tony, in an effort to reward you, gave you some time off. The problem is that you hate taking off work, you always have. It’s impossible for you to feel good when you’re not being productive, and the idea of laying around for three days is unimaginable to you.

“Listen, you need some sun, you’ve been cooped up in here for weeks,” Tony tried to plead with you as he hanged upside down from the ceiling.

“C’mon, I’m not a house plant! What am I going to do anyway?” you cry out from your spot on the floor.

Just then, Natasha happened to walk through the door with a paperwork mishap. If there was a lightbulb above her head, it would’ve burned bright enough to blind them. Without doing anything that even resembles what she originally walked into the lab to do, Natasha bolts out at the speed of lightning.

“THOR!” she screams when she enters his apartment. “THOR, I HAVE SOME VERY GOOD NEWS!”

Promptly, he comes out in just a towel, glowing like some candle in a dark room. “Yes, Natasha?”

She takes a minute to wolf whistle before she beings. “The darling girl you’ve had your eye on has a few days off coming up...you should take her somewhere! Do something!”

Thor’s silent. He sort of didn’t think this would ever happen...now that he has the opportunity he’s a little floored. It’s like when you’ve been doodling hearts with your crush’s name in them and then they actually talk to you. “Oh...oh Gods...what do I do? How should I ask her…”

Natasha’s a little giddy with excitement at the prospect of Thor taking you out. You’ve been so good to them in so many different ways...she wants someone to do something nice to you for once. If that meant setting you up with the super-hot God of Thunder (and Fertility...wink wink), then so be it.

“Oh goodness, you can do anything!” she mentally runs through all of the endless possibilities. “She’ll want something quiet, quaint...coffee shop? No, that’s too boring. Some fair thing? No, that’s too crazy, loud. Maybe you could...oh my God that’s perfect!”

Thor, still in a towel but now dry, looks confused. Appreciative, but confused. “What, Natasha...what is it?”

Her grin stretches from ear to ear, teeth flashing and eyes bright. “You should help her organize the bookshelf in her room, she’s been talking about it for ages and she’s always talks about she’s never had the time or the energy and-”

“You think the best way for me to get to know the future mother of my children is to help her organize her...shelf of books?” Thor is now dressed. Natasha doesn’t question it.

“Uh...hells yeah! Listen, dude. If you really want to get to know her you need to get her in a situation, she’s comfortable with,” Natasha sees she has a text indicating she’s needed for some logistical work for the next mission and turns to leave. Right before the elevator, though, she turns to face Thor again. “But don’t mention the ‘mother of children thing’...it’s weird.”

Thor takes note as he prepares to ask you about the...date? Is it a date? That he’s planning on taking you on. Luckily, he doesn’t have to try too hard, because Wanda and Steve less than five minutes later to help him.

“Oh Thor-egous Odinson!” Wanda sing-songs as she enters into his living room. She practically bouncing off of the walls as she goes to sit down next to Thor on the large, plush couch.

“Hey Thor,” Steve mumbles quietly. He chooses a chair across from both of them, obviously extremely uncomfortable with the situation. He’s one of the few people who knows you really well, though, so the need for qualified individuals overpowers his personal feelings about manipulating you into going on a date with the God (Natasha refused to use that word when Steve brought it up, though. “I’m just encouraging her, Steven, calm down,” she tried to explain to him on the elevator up. “Don’t call me that,” is all Steve replied).

“So,” Wanda chirps. “Nat told us you wanted to help our favorite little book worm organize her bookshelves on her sequence of days off?”

Thor gives a small noise of affirmation, knowing very well that Wanda and Natasha understand you the best. If he had any choice of making his plan work, they would have to be a part of it – whether they knew it or not.

They spent hours talking about you – both of them providing deep analysis of your likes, dislikes, preferences. The things you love, hate.

It ended with lists sprawled on scraps of paper, things they told Thor he had to memorize if had “a sliver of hope” of having you like him.

With pockets stuffed full of these promises, he walked away with a small smirk and much better idea of how execute his plan, as has all led him into the next step:

Step 3: Make you like him much more than your current paramour.

This part appears to be the easiest, given your boyfriend is an aggressively mediocre man-child. You’ve got a picture of you and him on one of the bookshelf cubicles not overcome by thick books, next to a few small figurines of miscellaneous origin.

Thor asks about them as you both work to clear the bookshelf, throwing everything on the floor to be sorted later. Each one makes smile brightly for a few moments before sadness overtakes your eyes. One of them – a small fawn curled into a sleeping position on a small, circular bed of grass – seems to bring a special wave of melancholy to your face.

“Yeah, that was from when we met, a, uh, a study abroad program to a Canadian university. He and I had a mutual friend who made miniatures for fun – still does, actually – and we met through her. He bought me that for our first anniversary.”

Thor does his best to hide his wicked smile, but nevertheless is appreciative of your downcast eyes. “It sounds like he really loves you.”

You don’t disagree, just sigh. “So, can you help me sort these books by color type?”

Thor smiles wide as he can. “Of course.”

As he separates the books into four piles (warms, cools, white, and black), he goes over the state of his plan:

Step 4: Have you break up with your current paramour.

This step seems to be a significantly harder step, given your stubbornness surrounding being with him. It’s not as if Thor can grab you by the shoulders and say “he doesn’t love you! He’ll never love you! Just stop being in a relationship with him!”

He totally can’t do that, right? Right?

(After a few communiques with his mother they both decide, no, he can in fact not do that.)

So he settles for driving a wedge between the two of you that even he can fit in. Somehow, that seems just as good.

Step 5: Have you join him in Asgard.

This, too, feels much harder than sowing dislike between you and your…previous courtesan.

You’re smart, interesting, something Thor has yet to see in many possible wives. The problem is, your intelligence and fascinating nature are tied to your highly demanding job that you are, unfortunately, very attached to. Attempting to keep you for anything longer than your contractually obligated lunch break is tough enough, how could he convince you leave your job? Your home?

The floor-to-ceiling bookshelves – now organized by color – stare down at Thor almost mockingly. He wonders, as he hears the teapot screeching and two mugs being placed onto the counter, if his plan worked. You’re naïve, sure, but too naïve for him to mold? He’s been manipulating people since he was a golden child – him misreading you would be a blow to his ego, his very being.

But he cannot give up. Not when he’s only two steps into his plan.

As such, Thor spends the next few weeks following you around – doing everything he possible could to make your life easier. A mug too high? He would grab it before you could sigh about what shelf it was on. Dirty dishes? He’d fill the dishwasher, do the handwashing, and put all the clean dishes away after drying them. He did laundry and put it all away in its exact place.

Natasha made a comment Thor didn’t understand about 1960’s housewives, to which the god said nothing in return. He’d join you multiple times a week to do whatever you wanted – sometimes you’d watch a movie together, other times he’d help you shop online. Sometimes he’d help you cook food for the week, once he listened to you talk about new academic research you were interested in.

One special week he even held you as you cried about the man who was supposed to be the love of your life. That week, he wiped your tears and held you as you feel asleep, nuzzling into one of the many large hoodies he had acquired on his time on Midgard. That week, he thought he had cracked it – thought he had finally figured out how to get what wants.

Unfortunately for him, the truth was not kind to his endeavors. Not even a full day had passed before you were gushing over the man once more, sparkles in your eyes and hands clutching the latest “cute” thing he had texted you.

It was sickening, really, how easily you allowed yourself to be manipulated by him. Still, it gave Thor an ounce of hope. It this imbecile could get you crawling back to him, surely a god could do it too.

So he kept with the constant visits, with the bringing you lunch and coffee and eating take out on the floor of your bedroom and watching bad movies with you. It was menial, but it was working.

You began to trust him, began to get used to his presence.

For this reason (and maybe a few more you didn’t want to talk about), the knock on your door at dusk on a Wednesday was not exactly unexpected. For this reason, you answered the door in a loose crop top and soft, worn pajama shorts and ankle socks with smiling avocados on them.

You opened the door to him, excited to show him the duvet he had helped you pick out. It looked so much better in person, and you thought he’d like it.

He followed you, of course he did, into your bedroom. You were expecting that.

What you weren’t expecting was him to slam you into one of the few spots on the wall devoid of posters, trinkets, other miscellaneous crap that made the place feel a little more like a home.

You couldn’t see much over his broad shoulders, but somehow the top shelf of the very bookcase he had help you organize all that time ago.

Each title seemed to mock you as he began to speak.

“You’ve been holding out on me, little lamb,” he said with a sneer.

You tried to push at his muscular chest to no avail. “Thor, I don’t know what you’re t-“

He pushes you against the wall once more, ignoring your cries in pain. “Shut the fuck up, you know exactly what I mean.”

He rips the crop top off – revealing your simple black bralette. He moans as his large hands palm at your breasts, and you have to fight one yourself, too. It’s been so long since you’d had sex, let alone gone to first base; your lover (the one you had been with for over five years) hadn’t touched you like that since you’d decided to move into Stark Tower and your less-than-extensive sex toy collection had satisfied you in the very least.

Still, this was wrong. Very, very wrong.

“C’mon,” he growls, moving his hands south. “You know you want to…”

“I-” You try to push him away, only being able to think of how you were going to explain this to a man you thought one day you’d marry. You have to tell him, right? You have to tell him about what Thor tried. That’s the basis of good relationships, communication. “No, I don’t, Thor please-“

That’s when the last bit of him cracks, the soft edges to his voice sharpening and his jaw squaring.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” he growls, ripping the shorts off next. “Do you understand all the shit I’ve put up with for you? All while your shithead boyfriend barely sent you a fucking text once a week to see if you were alright.”

“Thor, I-“

“No,” he shouts, making you flinch away from him. “Don’t excuse him! Don’t try and tell me he loves you like I do!”

That makes your eyes widen in fear, makes your hands shake where they’re pined at your side.

Thor softens everywhere except in his grip, keeping you pressed against him. “Oh, darling you don’t have to worry. I’m never gonna hurt you…”

A smile spreads across his face, then, leaning close to your ear. “Unless you want me to.”

He palms your clothed pussy, slipping two fingers inside of your dripping heat. It’s a delicious feeling and you fight back a moan, terrified to give him the satisfaction.

“C’mon darling,” Thor coos. “Let me hear you.”

He removes his fingers, then, smiling when you whine before stuffing his thick cock inside of you. It fits easily, given how wet you are, and for a moment – just a moment – you lose yourself to the pleasure.

“O-Oh,” you moan. “Oh, that feels so good.”

It all breaks down when Thor speaks once more, though. words flowing between him biting at your hot skin.

“That’s right, love,” his hands roam your body with fervor. “Let me make you feel good.”

It’s then that your mouth goes dry and a sense of dread washes over you.

“I-,” you try to find your verbal footing, wanting to find a path away from him. “I shouldn’t be doing this, I-“

You freeze when Thor uses one of his large hands to wrap around your throat, pinning you between him and the wall.

“Are you fucking serious?” he growls. “You’re really thinking about him right now?”

He nearly spits when he mentions your boyfriend, skin hot from fury.

“Think of all the things I’ve done for you!” he hisses into your ear. “How much easier I made your life. What has your boyfriend done for you?”

You don’t respond. In turn, he only fucks into you harder.

“That’s right. I know how little he loves you, and how little you love him,” you scream as he flips you around, using one hand to pins both your arms behind your back with your cheek pressed to the cool wall. “And yet you stay with him, why?”

You say nothing in return, though it’s not like you could. Each word dies in your throat when Thor thrusts into you once again. All that’s able to escape are choked sobs, broken pleas that sound more animal than human. Part of you wonders if Thor can hear you, another part wonders, if he could, would he care? If he truly understands what he’s doing, does it matter whether or not you want to push him away and cut away the skin he’s touched?

You can’t tell which is worse – dangerous naivety in combination with his strength, or determination blended with disregard.

Fiery tears burn as they stream down the already heated skin of your cheeks, but even that isn’t enough to distract from the feeling of Thor’s large hands all over you.

“C’mon little lamb,” he growls, voice sending bolts of electricity through you. “Cum for me.”

He swipes at your clit in smooth, tight circles, golden hot pleasure flooding your veins.

You reach your peak with a deep, chesty moan, nails digging into the skin of his back as you bucked your hips near violently.

“F-fuck,” Thor growls, continuing to thrust into you. “You feel so good around my cock, little lamb. You’ll have to excuse me, you’re going to make me cum much sooner than I would on an average night.”

Your eyes widen in fear, ready to plead for him to pull out.

Thor just lets out a small laugh, nipping at your skin. “Don’t worry, lamb, I won’t fill you with my seed.”

You let out a sigh of relief, but it doesn’t last for long.

“The last thing either of us need is for you to be bearing the mark of my child away from our people.”

You barely have time to react before Thor tucks his face into your neck as he finishes himself off, thick white ropes of cum painting your lower half.

You think it’s over, but of course it isn’t – that would be too fucking easy. He moves two of his rough fingers – still smelling distinctly of your sex – through his masterpiece before shoving them deep into your mouth, smiling. At first you gag, but as your blood begs for oxygen you accept your fate and clean the salty substance with your tongue.

“There you go,” he coos, beaming as he gazes down at you. “Such a good little lamb…I wonder if you can clean my cock like that?”

You can’t tell which you flinch harder at, the nickname or the thought of him sticking his dick past your lips and down your throat.

“Oh, don’t try to act like you don’t like it,” Thor says between light kisses he peppers across your neck. “Don’t you just love the idea of servicing me forever?”

You can feel him getting hard again against your thigh and you whimper, desperate to get away.

“Fuck don’t make that noise, little lamb, makes me want you more,” Thor groans. “Just imagine it – you and me on Asgard. I can rule and you can be my pretty little pet.”

Your eyes widen in fear, brain now fully comprehending what, exactly, Thor wants from you.

“Thor, please,” you beg. “Please, let’s be rational. I mean, Stark needs me! Right? You know how much Tony needs me!”

Thor just laughs, burrowing his nose into the nap of your neck. “Oh, my little lamb. We’ll figure it out – maybe you can train someone else to do your job. Or Tony can finally figure out how to be a man and figure that shit out himself,” he pulls back to kiss at your temple, whispering into your sweaty hair. “To be honest, I really don’t care. He’ll lose you soon enough, and how he handles that is neither of our problems.”

It’s then that you understand, that you really understood what was happening with Thor, what he wants from you.

In that moment, you understood that if your world was crashing down, and Thor would be there to pick up the pieces – whether you wanted to or not.

[artificialqueens]

Not Nineteen Forever (17) (Branjie/Scyvie/Ninex) - Ortega

a/n: hey angels! thank u for ur patience, here is yet another chapter of the hellscape that is n19f. as i said on my blog, u will either love this chapter or hate it. either way let me know what u think!! this is a big chunky one at 13k (ik i’m treating u during this quarantine) so grab ur snacks and settle in. lots of love, byeee!

trigger warning: a little light drinking xo

please note: this fic contains young adults often behaving in irresponsible/unadvisable ways with regards to alcohol, drugs and sex. if you are someone who feels as if they could be heavily influenced by fic and incorporate what happens in the plot into ur own life, pls steer clear!

summary: Brooke, Yvie and Nina are three flatmates who forged a friendship in their first year of university and picked up some other waifs and strays along the way. Now in their final year, there are feelings that need to be unravelled and confessions to be made whilst navigating drunk nights, hungover mornings, takeaways, group chats, library meetups, cafe gossiping, and the small matter of getting a degree.

last chapter: Scarlet celebrated her birthday by helping Nina win back Monet, a surprise party organised by her girlfriend, and a suspiciously civil Brooke and Vanjie.

this chapter: from one birthday to another, the gang heads out to the country to celebrate Brooke and Akeria’s 22nd. everyone seems back on good terms, but will the combination of hide and seek, truth or dare, a hot tub and of course a lil bit of alcohol change anything?

***

“Holiday!...da-da-da-dum-dum-daaa, Celebrate!”

Brooke rolled her eyes, unable to help herself laughing as Nina rolled her suitcase towards Monet’s car. “It’s hardly a holiday, is it, girl? Overnighter in an airbnb in the middle of buttfuck nowhere?”

“Listen, I’ll take what I can get, thank you very much,” Nina raised her eyebrows, as Monet lifted the door of the boot up and Nina heaved her case inside.

“Oh, what a compliment,” Monet quipped from beside her, Brooke making a sick noise as Nina slid her arms around her girlfriend’s waist and gave her a squeeze.

“Not with girlfriends, obviously. You’re a Tesco Finest girlfriend. Not a smartprice girlfriend,” Nina explained, Monet smiling proudly and nuzzling their noses together. Brooke already wanted to vomit and she wasn’t even car sick yet.

“Pack it in, bitches, or Monet’s uninvited,” she deadpanned, pushing herself off the wall she was currently leaning against and looking up at her bedroom window, ignoring the girls’ shouts of indignation. “Right, have you got everything, yeah?”

“Have you seen the size of this bitch’s suitcase? I think she has literally managed to pack your kitchen sink,” Monet cocked an eyebrow at Nina, who elbowed her in the ribs. Nina produced her phone from the pocket of her dungaree dress.

“Hey Google, can you divorce your girlfriend?” she asked into the speaker, Monet howling a laugh and shoving her.

“Seriously, guys, I haven’t packed enough anti-sickness tablets for this,” Brooke said dryly, making her way to the passenger door.

“Oh, are you planning on recreating the great rail replacement bus fiasco of ‘18?” came a voice, Brooke turning round and narrowing her eyes at her smug flatmate, emerging through the door with her girlfriend and a small holdall bag.

“I was sat hungover opposite the toilet on a three hour coach journey, what the hell else was I expected to do?” Brooke defended herself. Yvie sat down on the wall outside their building, Scarlet joining her.

“Hmm, all I’ll say, Monet, is that I hope you have at least three empty plastic bags in the back seat with her,” she advised smugly, Brooke wishing she was still leaning against the wall so she could shove her off it.

“When is Plastique coming for you guys? Can I arrange for you to be sitting in the middle of the road when she drives up it?”

“Hey, what the fuck did I say?!” Scarlet yelped, outraged.

“You’re a bystander, Scarlet, and a bystander is worse than a bully,” Nina remarked sagely, Monet nodding along in support.

“Besides, I’m allowed to bully Brooke. It’s part of the lease,” Yvie shrugged, fixing the huge round sunglasses that had been on the top of her head and positioning them so they were right at the bridge of her nose. The March sunshine was welcome; it made Brooke feel happy, optimistic of things to come. Even the small scrub of grass out the front of their stairwell had bright purple, yellow and white bulbs poking through it, bringing a defiant sense of beauty to their surroundings. Brooke had been so pleased with the weather when she’d opened her curtains that morning that she’d packed a bunch of clothes she usually reserved for the summer. It felt odd wearing her denim skirt without the black tights she’d clad herself in for the past three months, but it was a welcome feeling. Yvie hadn’t really seemed to get the Summery memo other than her sunglasses- a huge knitted jumper covered in holes hung off her skinny frame and a pair of thick exercise leggings kept her legs warm.

“You couldn’t spruce yourself up a bit for my birthday, bitch? I feel like any minute now you’re going to start dancing around the street moulting straw singing about how you desperately want a brain,” Brooke smirked, Yvie simpering a fake smile and giving her the finger in response.

“It’s only fifteen degrees, Brooke, it’s hardly time to crack out the Kopparberg and blast T Shirt Weather yet,” Scarlet laughed. It was a bit hypocritical, Brooke thought as she looked Scarlet’s outfit up and down- a floaty, lacey dress and a pair of white Adidas- but of course she would defend her girlfriend. It wasn’t actually fair, contemplated Brooke. Scarlet and Yvie would always team up, so would Monet and Nina. Brooke had to fight all her battles herself.

“Besides, your birthday is over! Move on, hoe,” Yvie smiled, running forward and shaking Brooke’s shoulders relentlessly as the other girls laughed uproariously in the background.  Brooke laughed and batted her away, knowing she was just joking. As she shoved her friend off of her, a familiar grey Audi drove up their street and pulled in behind Monet’s car. Plastique gave her horn a little beep, waving and rolling down her window.

“Let’s ride, bitches! I’m so ready for this weekend,” she squealed, as Yvie and Scarlet rushed to shove their bags in the boot of her car.

“I think I’ve been ready since we booked it,” Nina sighed, stretching. “Right, let’s go, girls! Dun-duun-da-na-na-dun dun.”

As Nina continued singing Shania Twain and hopped in the passenger seat of Monet’s car, Brooke passed by Plastique’s window and gave her hand a squeeze. “You know how to get there, yeah?”

“Up the motorway then off at junction 4 and then just follow all the signs for the B road. We good,” she nodded, then gave a laugh. “Kiki’ll probably end up in France somehow, you know what her sense of direction is like.”

“Yeah, but she’s got Silky and Vanj to direct her. She’ll be fine,” Brooke shrugged, thumping on Plastique’s door and making for the other car. “Right, see you ladies at the airbnb!”

Monet blasted her horn once, twice, three times as Brooke dashed into the back seat and buckled up. As Nina connected her phone to the aux cord and started blasting typically Nina-ish cheesy music, Brooke felt an excited little smile creep up on her face, slapping her hands against her thighs to the beat. The past almost-a-month had gone by quickly, and Brooke and Akeria’s shared birthday trip away had arrived before Brooke had known it. It had been booked on a whim, an excited message from Akeria on the group chat about a potential birthday night out had grown arms and legs until suddenly the girls were all transferring her money for a night in the country to jointly celebrate her and Brooke’s birthdays. They had turned 22 within ten days of each other, and the girls had all decided that the amount of money they would have spent on two big nights out- Ubers, big bottles of vodka for pres, club entry, club drinks and cheesy chips at the end of the night- probably equated to the same, if not more, than the amount they would drop on a boujie house in the country. The house they had booked was huge- five big bedrooms with floor to ceiling windows, a lounge straight out of a murder mystery drama with plush sofas, towering bookshelves and a massive roaring fire, a kitchen with a table big enough to fit them all round and an aga with what seemed to be a thousand burners- though whether anyone would know how to work the damn thing was anyone’s guess, Brooke thought with a snort. The icing on the cake of the whole place, though, was a huge section of outdoor decking with a hot tub set in the middle of it. To most of the girls it would be like living somebody else’s life for the weekend, but, Brooke thought mischievously, to Plastique it would probably seem the same as a weekend at home.

Brooke was glad they could all do something like this, go away together after what had happened. She didn’t really know what had happened to Vanessa to make her warm up to her so unexpectedly. It had all started when they were preparing for Scarlet’s birthday surprise; Brooke remembered how hard her heart had been beating that morning as she’d known it was the first time she’d be properly seeing Vanessa since they broke up, having to wipe her sweaty palms on her jeans as the door to the kitchen had opened and Vanessa, Akeria and Silky had walked in. Akeria and Silky, to their credit, had been fine and normal with Brooke, despite the amount of dragging through the mud they had probably done to her name when they’d heard the news of her and Vanessa’s breakup. Vanessa, (understandably, thought Brooke) had hugged Yvie, Plastique and Nina, but not Brooke, the obviousness of the action lost in the frenetic melee of the girls seeing each other all at once. Brooke had preferred that, though. She wouldn’t have wanted the awkwardness of reminding herself how perfectly her arms seemed to fit around Vanessa, the brief scent of the Aussie shampoo she used in her hair, her head against her chest even for just the tiniest second.

After that, Vanessa had started with the digs. Brooke had thought she’d had malicious intent at first, until she got bored and decided to fire back.

(Yvie’s voice had yelled from the hallway. “Who’s made the cupcakes yet? Anyone?”

“Well if it’s Brooke, we all dyin’ tonight.”

“At least I can make something! How much do you drop on Deliveroo in a month, like, half your student loan?”)

With each verbal sparring match, Brooke had watched as the small, sardonic snorts Vanessa had given evolved into a full-blown beaming smile, the kind she always used to shoot Brooke’s way with the perfect white teeth and the tiny dimple and the little blush that hit her cheeks. It was almost painful knowing that Brooke had given up that smile. And that had been the moment. The moment that Brooke had finally admitted to herself what she’d been wanting to deny all this time- she deeply wished she hadn’t ended things with Vanessa, that she’d fought through the ick and given it at least more of a shot than she had. Now Vanessa had moved on and she was seeing someone else and she was happy. Happy without Brooke. Why had Brooke broken up with her so quickly?

She was an idiot.

“She was an idiot.”

Brooke snapped out of her trance, blinking and trying to figure out how Monet had managed to get inside her head. “What?”

“That woman. Blue car. Completely cut me off,” Monet rolled her eyes, frowning as she inched forward in the traffic until she was almost bumper to bumper with the car in question.

“Oh M'net, don’t start a fight,” Nina sighed, resting her knees against the glovebox.

“I’m not! I’m just letting a bitch know that her misconduct was noted,” Monet growled.

“Her misconduct was noted? God, you’re such a teacher,” Nina laughed, a big chuckle with loads of heart that made Brooke smile.

“Hey, so are you!”

“Stop fucking bickering or I will take your vocal cords and strangle you with them!” Brooke cried, tiring quickly. She watched Monet smirk in the rear view mirror.

“It’s alright, Neens. Just because Brooke’s jealous of happy couples and regrets breaking it off with Vanjie-”

“Wait what? I don’t…oh, Nina, for fuck’s sake! I told you not to tell anyone!” Brooke snapped, training accusatory eyes on her friend. After Scarlet’s birthday, she’d told Nina what she’d told Yvie, just in a little more detail, and she’d been more sympathetic than her other flatmate, making her tea and nodding understandingly as Brooke vented at her. Nina was usually good with secrets, a reliable and trustworthy friend. Brooke couldn’t understand why she would-

“Ahahaha!!! BITCH! You just totally exposed yourself! Oh my God!!” Monet screeched in time with her tyres, thumping her hand against the steering wheel. Brooke was confused, her heart still thudding. “Nina ain’t told me shit but I got eyes and ears, an’ I saw you two flirting at Scarlet’s. All damn day and night. You don’t act like that with someone you just broke up with.”  

“Yeah I’m afraid you just spilled your own secret, Brooke,” Nina deadpanned from the passenger seat, giving a little laugh.

“Shit,” Brooke sighed, putting her head in her hands. “Great. Well, you probably think I’m a total asshole, Monet.”

“Hey, I’m a very chill person! You do you, girl. You wanna get with Vanessa for 3 months, break up with her for one and then get back with her again, that’s no business of mine,” Monet shrugged, a twinkle in her eye.

“Yeah, I know I made a mistake, thanks,” Brooke sighed, biting her lip as she let her thoughts wash over her. Monet had a unique angle on the whole situation. She lived with Monique, of course, and that whole thing was still going on between her and Vanessa, if a message Vanessa had accidentally sent to the group chat last week was anything to go by. Brooke had wondered for days on end whether it had actually been an accident or not, the content of the message sending her crazy with jealousy as it was essentially just Vanessa begging Monique to come round and fuck her into the mattress. She’d considered whether or not it could have been deliberate, but the absolute roasting Vanessa had received afterwards from the other girls couldn’t have been worth it if it had. Brooke considered asking Monet for some inside knowledge, decided against it, and then did a U-turn as she concluded that her pride and dignity were already bruised so she might as well go the whole hog and shatter them.

“So, uh…Vanessa’s still seeing Monique.”

Monet ran her tongue over her teeth. “She’s certainly round at the flat a lot.”

“So is that, uh…I mean, do you think that’s going to turn into anything more, or…?”

“I don’t know, girl, I don’t know if it’s my place to say.”

This is like pulling teeth. “Do you think they-”

“They’re having a lot of sex.”

“Monet!” Nina burst out in a shocked laugh.

“What?! They are!”

“Excellent!” Brooke exclaimed sarcastically, staring out the window as the city around them turned into fields and the houses turned into service stations.

“C’mon, Brooke, you have to admit you do kinda deserve this a lil’ bit,” Monet laughed, Brooke rolling her eyes from the back seat.

“Right, both of you shut up. I’m officially banning any conversations about pining or relationships until we get to the house. We sing, we eat snacks, occasionally we play I Spy. That’s it,” Nina scolded them, turning around in her seat and staring Brooke down. Brooke had never felt more like a disgraced teenager in her life.

“Ughhhh, fine, Mom,” Monet groaned, changing up into fifth as they hit the motorway, the weekend becoming more real and making Brooke tingle with excitement despite the news she hadn’t wanted to hear.

Just as Nina had ordered them, the three girls spent the rest of the journey singing at the top of their lungs to Vengaboys, B*Witched and Cascada, Brooke on crisp duty as she passed the cavernous bag of barbecue rib McCoys forward every five minutes or so, Monet making hurried grabs at crinkle cut crisps in between changing gears. Brooke managed to avoid the dreaded travel-sickness that had plagued her since she was about six years old, much to Monet and Nina’s delight. The sun didn’t let up, and it still hung proudly in the sky as the girls pulled up the leafy, tree-lined driveway to the house they’d booked, the branches hanging low and curling around each other signalling they hadn’t been cut in a while. Spying Akeria’s Corsa and Plastique’s Audi already parked, Monet pulled up alongside the huge white house, the little set of three stone chimneys on the roof puffing out smoke and letting the girls know that at least one room wouldn’t be too cold inside. As Monet neatened up her parking, the sound of Silky’s screeching cut through the crunching of wheels against gravel, and the rest of the girls spilled out of the front door shortly afterwards. As soon as the car had stopped, Brooke excitedly hopped out of the passenger seat, hugging any girl she could reach. Before she knew it, she’d found herself pulling out of a quick hug with Vanessa, and the two were in front of each other.

“Hey,” Brooke decided quickly to speak first, setting the tone so there wouldn’t be any awkward pauses.

“Hey! How was your ride? Get here okay?” Vanessa asked politely, tucking a strand of her caramel hair behind one ear. She was dressed in a tiny little cropped black jumper and some faded grey jeans, Brooke trying to ignore her mind reminding her of how right it felt to wrap her arms around Vanessa again, how tiny her waist was and how much she wished she could go back for another hug- for fuck’s sake, cut that shit out.

“Uh, yeah! It was fine. Traffic wasn’t too bad. How about you?”

Vanessa let out a laugh. “Shit was like Wacky Races. Akeria nearly rammed some old cunt off the road. I’ve never seen road rage like it, we genuinely feared for our lives. Or her license. Oh my God, this house is insane. C’mon, you need to see it!”

There was a split-second where Brooke felt Vanessa tug at her hand, which was quickly dropped as if the action had never happened. It was almost as if Vanessa had been on automatic pilot; the ease with which she used to slip her hand into Brooke’s hadn’t been forgotten by either of them. And then Brooke felt Plastique leap onto her back like a monkey, and the girl was excitedly chattering away to her, and the moment had passed.

Brooke barely had time to take in the huge cream-painted hall with the varnished cream stairs stretching practically up to the ceiling when Plastique steered her down two steps and into the kitchen, grey stone tiles making Brooke’s feet feel cold even through her trainers and the huge wooden table overflowing with assorted snacks. Akeria and Scarlet clung to the rail of the AGA, the two girls clearly feeling the cold in the chilly kitchen.

“Did any of us actually bring a meal between us or are we just going to live off of Twirl Bites and Classic Dip Selections?” Yvie wondered, picking up a four-pack of various dips. Brooke laughed.

“Hey, there’s pizzas in the fridge! Do y’all really think I would let you starve?” Silky piped up, opening the huge fridge to reveal at least ten pizzas, more than they would eat in one night.

“Nobody goes hungry in the presence of Silky Nutmeg Ganache,” Plastique smiled proudly, holding her fist out for Silky to punch. As the girls’ fists connected, Brooke watched as Vanessa scraped a wooden chair out against the stone floor.

“You girls wanna have a munch and then get wrecked?”

“Hmm, if we get drunk too early then there’s no way we’ll be able to work this oven,” Scarlet shrugged, biting her lip and frowning.

“Yeah, we’re gonna struggle to operate this sober,” Monet considered, opening up one of the oven doors and investigating.

“Well how about we snack and then play a game? I wanna play hide and seek in here,” Nina bounced on the balls of her feet excitedly. Akeria snorted.

“Hide and seek, you’re such a child. But to be fair, that could be fun. Or sardines.”

“What’s that?” asked Brooke. “I don’t know if we had that but called it something else.”

“That one where one person hides and everyone else seeks,” Yvie explained. “It’s way better. Way more chaotic.”

“Sweet. I’m down,” Brooke shrugged. She was glad that all of the girls she was friends with were happy to dick about and play kids’ games for an afternoon, and it was the kind of thing she’d miss when she graduated and would have to find a job.

The girls were all feeling peckish after their long drive, though, so they all grabbed the nearest snacks they could and headed upstairs to the living room, where Akeria had managed to start the fire which was crackling warmly in the huge marble fireplace. They all dumped their food on the huge glass-topped coffee table and had a little explore around the house before they relaxed. There was a surplus of bedrooms, and it had been agreed that since they were celebrating Brooke and Akeria’s birthdays, the two girls should have a bedroom to themselves each. Brooke’s bedroom had a huge bay window out to the rear of the house where the fields stretched for miles, and an actual four-poster bed.

“I can’t help but feel like you guys should take this room and I should take yours,” Brooke said with a pang of guilt for Yvie and Scarlet, who had dumped their things in the room they were sharing and had come to investigate Brooke’s.

Scarlet made a noise of discouragement. “No, it’s fine! This’ll get cold anyway, it’s so big. Our room’s cosier.”

Brooke watched Scarlet share a smile with her girlfriend and wrap both of her arms around Yvie’s. “Yeah, honestly, Brooke, it’s fine. Scarlet would manage to bump her head and toe and Christ knows what else on all four of the posts anyway.”

Scarlet burst out into offended laughter, letting the girls know that she secretly agreed a little bit.

“How’re the others?” Brooke asked, peering down the little corridor with the exposed wooden beams and hearing chatter and Monet’s deep laughter coming from the other rooms.

“Plastique, Silk and Vanj are all in together. I think V drew the short straw so she’s on the sofa bed,” Scarlet gave a shrug.

“That’s unfortunate,” Yvie commented, raising her eyebrows at Brooke slightly.

“Behave,” Brooke smacked her, not appreciating the implication. Vanessa had only just become friends with her again. They were hardly going to spend the entire night going at it like rabbits just because Vanessa wasn’t looking at her like she wanted to kill her anymore. “Come on, lovebirds. I feel like I haven’t shovelled enough crisps down my throat today.”

The three girls made their way to the living room again, where Nina and Monet were draped over the sofa and snacking on some sort of jelly sweets. Gradually the other girls joined them in drips and drabs and they spent the time chatting and gossiping in their usual way- about anything and everything under the sun. Brooke kept finding her eyes being drawn to Vanessa. It wasn’t entirely her fault- she was sitting opposite her, and often Brooke would find her already looking her way. Although that could have just been Brooke’s imagination. God, she didn’t even know anymore.  

“Right!” Nina cried, as everyone looked dangerously close to slipping into a snack-induced coma. “Sardines time!”

“Kiki should hide first, it’s her birthday!” Silky argued immediately, Brooke only the tiniest bit affronted.

“Hey, hey, it’s Brooke’s birthday too. Also, I feel like y’all are way more enthusiastic than me about this, so I really don’t mind.”

“Brooke hides first!” Nina shouted unnecessarily. Brooke stood up from the sofa and rolled her eyes.

“Wait, so everyone is after me? Christ. This is like that nightmare I had about being on Hunted.”

“Good luck tryna squeeze that Jolly Green Giant-ass body into any of these cupboards, bitch!” Vanessa yelled across the room to uproarious laughter, Brooke turning round in time to see Vanessa stick her tongue out at her.

“Oh, like you can talk! Are you not the same size as an actual Subway sandwich?” Brooke bit back, sticking her tongue out right back and feeling an excited fizz in her stomach as she caught Vanessa blushing slightly as she laughed. As the other girls joined in with the mocking and all piled on each other, Brooke spotted two girls who weren’t laughing- Akeria and Silky were looking at each other knowingly, a look that seemed to convey disapproval. What the hell was their problem? If Vanessa was fine with her, then that meant there was no reason for the two of them to hold a grudge either, right?

Brooke frowned, trying not to read too much into it. She turned around and headed out the door. “Okay, count to 100 then, bitches!”

As she heard the others all start chanting descending numbers like a terrifying cult of mathematicians, Brooke began dashing around the house for a place to hide. She ran past the bedrooms, assuming that the others would check there straight away. Brooke considered going behind the porch door, but then thought that might end up being too obvious. She found herself in the kitchen, and to her delight she noticed a huge wooden door set into the wall that had to be a cupboard. Opening it, she saw what looked to be a pantry- shelves and shelves with only a couple of tins left by other guests at the house. It was good, but Brooke didn’t think it was a particularly great place to hide until she spotted another door at the very end of the pantry- slightly smaller with a little circular handle. As Brooke turned it, she was confronted with a tiny dark room, with only the blinking lights of the boiler that sat inside to illuminate it.

Perfect.

As Brooke hopped in, she could hear the blood roaring in her ears and her heart thumping. She wanted to giggle. This was exactly how it had felt to play hide and seek when she was little, and she couldn’t believe she was a grown-ass twenty-two year old still feeling the same way. Hell, she couldn’t believe she was a grown-ass twenty-two year old playing hide and seek. Gradually, she began to hear the sound of footsteps thundering above her, the old ceiling creaking and letting Brooke know the girls were on their way. Then, it all went silent for a while. Brooke breathed out heavily. Just then, she heard the door to the pantry open and one set of footsteps shuffle through it. They dashed to the end of the room and then seemed to be satisfied that there was nothing more to investigate- until Brooke heard them do what seemed to be a double-take. Keeping her breathing silent, Brooke stood frozen to the spot as she saw the door gradually open with a long, murder-mystery style creaaak…

Shit.

Vanessa stood at the doorframe to the cupboard, a shit-eating grin on her face. “I’ve been tellin’ Yvie I’m the best at hide and seek, but she ain’t believe me. What’d that take me, two minutes?”

“Yeah, good job, Poirot,” Brooke smirked, although it was hiding a multitude of nerves. Her and Vanessa, stuck in a tight, dark space together until the other girls found them. This was fine. This would be fine. “Right come on then, girl, you need to get in.”

“Fuck no, I ain’t goin’ in there! That’s a straight-up spiders’ nest, fuck that.”

“Just get in!” Brooke grabbed her gently but firmly by the wrist and dragged her inside, closing the door behind them. It was entirely dark except for the small strip of light where the door met the doorframe, which illuminated Vanessa’s hair and collarbones. There was a small beat of silence in which Brooke’s eyes adjusted to the darkness again, and when her vision had settled she could see Vanessa smiling at her cheekily. “What?”

“There’s a spider in your hair.”

Brooke rolled her eyes. “No there’s not.”

“There is! A big one. It’s some Harry Potter type shit, I swear.”

“Shut up, Vanessa, I’m not falling for that shit,” Brooke snorted a laugh, squashing the unease that began to creep up on her.

“It’s got, like, a billion eyes.”

“Has it.”

“An’ forty legs,” Vanessa bit her lip, trying not to laugh.

“What the fuck kind of biology classes did you go to? A spider with forty leg- JESUS!” Brooke all at once cut herself off, feeling a movement at her shoulder, her hair flicking against her neck slightly. She gave herself such a jolt that it felt like whiplash, and she watched as Vanessa laughed at her brushing wildly against her shoulder. Brooke was confused when her hand connected with another hand. Vanessa’s hand. How the hell she’d managed to reach up there without Brooke’s notice was anyone’s guess, but she’d certainly done what she’d set out to do. Brooke launched herself forward and squeezed a hand at Vanessa’s waist, laughing as the other girl screeched in response. The two girls descended into giggles, Brooke having to fend off Vanessa’s playful swipes as she berated her.

“Shut up, bitch! You’re going to get us caught!” Brooke laughed, grabbing one of Vanessa’s wrists in each hand. Suddenly, both girls paused, the compromising position they were in dawning on both of them. The memory of when she used to pin Vanessa to the bed with both her wrists and kiss her neck shot through Brooke’s mind like a hot iron, unwanted and welcome all at once. In the darkness, she could see Vanessa’s single raised eyebrow.

“You telling me you don’t wanna get caught?” she murmured, her voice low and making the atmosphere charged and thick with something that hadn’t been there before. Brooke squeezed her thighs together. This couldn’t turn into something else. She couldn’t let it.

“Well, that is the whole point of the game,” Brooke said, trying to inject as much level-headedness into her tone as she was able. To her dismay she watched as Vanessa’s eyes took on a dark twinkle.

“Oh, right, uh-huh. The game. Sure,” she smirked, Brooke only able to laugh in response because that way she wasn’t saying anything. This situation was fucked. It was so weird. Vanessa was flirting with her, unprompted. So what did this mean? That she still liked Brooke? That she wanted to be friends and was just playing? What did this mean for her and Monique? They couldn’t be that serious, then, if Vanessa was doing all this? Or maybe they’d fallen out and Vanessa wanted her to be jealous? But what was the point of making somebody jealous who wasn’t here? What if her and Monique were together and Vanessa was cheating? What if-

“AYYYYYY FUCKIN’ HOES! Yes! I’m shit-hot at this game, Jesus!” Silky threw the door open, screeching her head off and sending every thought that Brooke was overthinking into the stratosphere.

“Stop yellin’ bitch, and get in!” Vanessa laughed. As Silky squeezed into the ever-decreasing-in-space cupboard, Brooke felt her throat almost close up as Vanessa shuffled up against her to make more room, tilting her head up, locking eyes with Brooke and sending her a look that she couldn’t decipher before looking away and whispering to Silky.

They were eventually found by the other girls- namely because there was no space at all once Scarlet arrived so Plastique found half of the girls with one toe in the cupboard and the rest of their bodies outside of it. The game carried on, but Brooke’s head wasn’t properly in it. She would deliberately put in the bare minimum effort when she was looking for the girls because, really, she wouldn’t know what to do if she was stuck in another confined space with Vanessa. Why had it turned so weird before? All flirty and edged with something she couldn’t work out. It wasn’t right- Vanessa was meant to be mad at her, meant to hate her and never want to speak to her again and somehow they’d gone from civil, to nearly-friends, to eye-fucking each other in a boiler cupboard in the space of a month?

The encounter was still playing on Brooke’s mind as she got ready for dinner. The girls had all decided that they would “do a Love Island” (in the words of Akeria) and all get glammed up to sit in the living room and play games after they’d eaten. It felt funny to be putting on a dress, heels and fake lashes without the possibility of going out anywhere, but the methodical process of putting on her makeup was a welcome distraction from the swirling thoughts in Brooke’s head.

“Ayo,” came an unexpected voice, causing Brooke to flinch a little and drop the lipgloss she’d been applying moments before. Looking behind her in the mirror she saw it was just Yvie and Nina. Usually she’d have been happy to see them, but right now she was doing too much overthinking and couldn’t let on what had happened earlier between her and Vanessa. So Brooke just stuck on her best fake smile as she turned around to face them.

“Hey! You guys look so good,” she complimented them, Nina smiling and Yvie giving a little snort.

“Well I didn’t want to be accused of not making an effort for your birthday again,” she poked her tongue out at Brooke and tugged a little at the beads on the hem of her short gold dress.

“If you trip in those heels I hope you know that’s, like, instant paralysis,” Brooke commented, looking at the spikes of Yvie’s six inch stilettos. When the girl did glam, she did glam, Brooke had to give it to her.

“As if Yvie needs to be any taller than she already is,” Nina laughed playfully.

“Awh, she needs to be tall so she can look down on her smol bean uwu girlfriend,” Brooke teased, Nina continuing to giggle and Yvie giving an amused roll of her eyes.

“What’s up with you anyway, bitch? You’ve been, like, extra bitter around all the couples today. It’s supposed to be your birthday, cheer the fuck up,” Yvie gave her a little nudge with her foot. Brooke frowned. She didn’t think she had been being bitter, but maybe Yvie was right. Fuck, what had she even said today? Brooke hoped that Vanessa hadn’t noticed anything.

“No, that’s not true. I’m fine! Just…” Brooke sighed, the bingo-hall-style tombola spinning rapidly in her head to generate an excuse. “…exams are soon, you know, and I’ve not started revising yet-”

“Oh my God, bitch, they’re in May! This is March! Chill the hell out,” Yvie laughed, pulling Brooke up from her position on the floor by the long mirror in the corner of her room. “Let’s go eat pizza. If Monet and Plastique have worked out how to cook them in that 1920s horror oven.”

As Yvie excitedly strutted out of the room and Brooke made to join her, Nina reached out to squeeze her hand.

“You’re a crap liar, Brooke Lynn Hytes,” she hissed quietly, Brooke rolling her eyes and making to protest when Nina spoke again. “But I won’t push it. I just wish you’d open the fuck up more.”

Brooke felt guilty. “I just don’t…it’s something I don’t want to overthink, Nina. So the best way you can help is helping me stuff myself full of carbs then pouring a 24 pack of San Miguel down my throat.”

Nina nodded understandingly as they reached the top of the stairs, Brooke holding back a snort as she watched Yvie cling to the bannister for dear life as she descended. Nina gave her hand another squeeze, then dropped it. “I can do that. You look beautiful, by the way.”

Brooke shyly looked down at her short, black one-shoulder dress and smoothed it down. “Thanks, babe.”

Nina’s smile suddenly turned scheming. “And so does Vanessa.”

Before Brooke could protest, Nina was bounding down the stairs in her bright white Filas that she’d paired with her blue and white checked dress. It wasn’t as formal as Brooke’s or Yvie’s, but that was the beauty of having a glam night in a big house where it was just them- nobody could judge you for being over or underdressed.

As Brooke followed her flatmates into the kitchen, she was met with the sight of her friends all happy, chatting, and in their best outfits. Annoyed at herself, she found her eyes darting around to find Vanessa. She wanted to know why Nina had said what she’d said, wanted to know if she was just winding her up.

And then her eyes came to rest on the most gorgeous version of Vanessa she’d ever seen, and her anxiety dipped, did a loop, then spiked. They were both in black- some dumb coincidence that the earth had sent her way, no doubt- but Vanessa’s was shiny, a vinyl dress that clung to her as if it was made of latex and painfully highlighted every curve of her body. She’d paired it with red heels, which had straps that snaked their way up her calves and showcased her perfect skin. Her dark hair had been blow-dried out (probably by Akeria, Brooke guessed) and fell in perfect waves down her back and over her shoulders (had she fucking highlighted her collarbones?). Her makeup was, as usual, perfect, a dark shock of eyeshadow and an indecent red on her lips causing Brooke’s heart to race. The worst part, though, about the whole outfit, was the silver zip that ran from the top of the dress to the bottom, right in the middle at the front, and either Vanessa (or someone mucking about with her…probably Silky) had unzipped it just the tiniest amount. For about the hundredth time that month, Brooke cursed herself for breaking things off with Vanessa. It wasn’t just about her looks though, or her body, or how much she missed the sex. Their interaction in the cupboard made Brooke remember how funny Vanessa was, how much of an endearing goofball, how she was just a cheerful person whose only real wish in life was to be properly happy. And Brooke had hurt her, made her the exact opposite of that. Vanessa loved everything and everyone so deeply, was the most open of books, and was so unafraid of feeling. Meanwhile there was Brooke not even able to tell her own flatmates, the two girls that knew her best in the world, about her own feelings.

As she watched Vanessa’s eyes drift from Scarlet and Monet, who she’d been talking to, across the room to rest on her, Brooke felt her heart stop. Not giving a single thing away, Vanessa smiled, gave a little wave, and crossed the room to where Brooke stood.

“Hey!” she began, so confident and self-assured and making Brooke feel more like a trashbag than she already did. “Nice dress.”

“Thanks!” Brooke smiled, uncharacteristically flustered at the tiny compliment. “You look so beaud!”

Fuck. Brooke kicked herself for getting tongue tied, badly hoping Vanessa wouldn’t have noticed. As she watched a confused smile appear on her face, Brooke realised she’d have to explain herself. “I was going to say beautiful, then I changed it to good and they just sort of…mushed together.”

Brooke felt her face grow hot as Vanessa simply raised an eyebrow in a smirk. “I’ll take both. Beautiful and good.”

Just as Brooke was about to defend herself, Silky announced to the girls in her own Silky-esque way that the pizzas were ready, and, giving a cry of delight, Vanessa had dashed across the room and left Brooke forgotten about.

As they all ate, Brooke fought an internal battle. She had absolutely no right to feel sorry for herself, this mess was entirely of her own making. Besides, she had to put everything out of her head now; she had made her decision, Vanessa had moved on, and she had to let the whole thing drop. But despite all this, it didn’t stop her brain constantly pestering her with what-ifs.

It was still pestering her once they’d all finished their dinner and moved upstairs into the huge living room for drinks and games, so she was glad when Nina popped herself down beside her with two ice cold bottles of beer from the fridge.

“One for each hand,” she explained. Brooke burst out laughing. She fucking loved Nina so much.

“Where’s yours?”

“Monet’s making mojitos for me and her. I love having a girlfriend, it’s like a sexy butler that you get to have sex with and cuddle any time you want,” Nina mused wistfully, giving Brooke her second belly-laugh in the space of two minutes. As she composed herself, Monet came into the room with two huge tall glasses overflowing with crushed ice and garnished with lime and mint.

“Where the fuck did you get mint and limes?” Brooke asked, screwing her face up in confusion then scrambling to pull a slightly more attractive one as Vanessa came in flanked by Silky and Akeria.

“I brought them, bitch! Anyway what did I miss?”

“Nina called you a sexy butler,” Brooke said casually, sipping one of her two beers and smiling as she watched Nina grow flustered.

“Jesus Christ, I’m getting all the compliments today! First I was a Tesco Finest girlfriend, now I’m a sexy butler. You know how to treat a lady, Neens,” Monet teased, pulling her girlfriend in and smothering her with kisses on the cheek.

“Ugh, get that couple shit outta here,” Vanessa yelled from the other sofa, throwing a leftover crisp at them. Monet instantly snapped back.

“Uh, like you can talk, Vanj.”

“What the shit hell is that meant to mean?” Vanessa laughed, amused.

Akeria grew outraged as she turned around to face Vanessa, her long, straight hair swinging wildly as she flipped it over her shoulder. “NEED we remind you what you sent to the group chat last week?!”

Silky began yelling, mirroring the cries of woe and dismay that were circling through Brooke’s brain at being reminded that Monique was still very much in the picture. “NO we do NOT need reminded! I can’t go through that again, dear Jesus God…”

“Fuck babygirl, I need that mouth on me-” Akeria began reading dramatically from her screen, the girls cringing and laughing and every word feeling like a kick to Brooke’s gut as Vanessa, face bright red, wrestled with Akeria to get the phone out of her hands. “-I’m touching myself but you know it’s not the same- aw, V! Give it back!”

“I’m gonna eat this fuckin’ phone, Akeria Chanel Davenport, I swear,” Vanessa chided her furiously, holding the phone out of her reach then relenting, giving it back to her. Silky fanned herself dramatically, making the others laugh. As Brooke did her best fake laugh and joined in, she tried not to make eye contact with Vanessa’s embarrassed face.

“Aw, are we talking about the unfortunate dirty text incident?” Plastique’s voice came from the hall, everyone laughing again as she sat down in the armchair beside the fire. “Seriously, V, you should be a songwriter. I swear that whole thing could’ve been from a Kamille song or some shit-”

“Well, all sexts are a little bit cringey, aren’t they?” Nina offered kindly, attempting to cheer Vanjie up. In doing this, she only succeeded in earning herself an exasperated cry from Monet.

“V, do you wanna go out? I can’t stand this bitch any more, she just keeps insulting me.”

As everyone howled with laughter and Nina frantically smothered her girlfriend in kisses trying to get her back onside, Brooke sneaked a look at Vanessa. She was laughing, but her face was still a little red. Christ, she looked so cute. Idiot, idiot, idiot.

“Speaking of sex, I’m assuming Yvie and Scarlet went off to bang?” Plastique shrugged, everyone finally realising who was missing.

“Oh, fuck this! Save that shit for later!” Silky protested, Akeria laughing and whacking her.

“Hey, let them be happy! It’s my birthday so I’m sayin’ if they want to fuck, let ‘em. In the meantime I have an empty wine bottle and a room full of girls with secrets that need spilled,” Akeria announced. Plastique clapped excitedly, Silky cheered and Vanessa rolled her eyes.

“For Christ’s sake, Kiki, do we not already know all there is to know about each other?” she complained. Interesting. So Vanessa didn’t want to play truth or dare, a game she was usually always down for.

“Excuse the fuck outta me, we played that stupid tuna game earlier!”

“Sardines,” Brooke deadpanned, earning herself a laugh from the room.

“It was some type of fish, I got that much right.”

“How are you through a whole bottle of wine already?” Silky asked, impressed.

“Can I live? It’s my birthday! Now will you hoes stop pissing in my cereal and let’s play!” Akeria implored, setting the wine bottle down against the red carpet and spinning it so violently Brooke worried that it would smash on the marble grate. It slowed, turning round and round and finally resting right back at where Akeria leant down from the sofa. She let out a giggle. “Oops. Guess it’s me.”

“Keeks, truth or dare!” Plastique asked excitedly. Akeria tilted her head, deep in thought.

“Hmm. I ain’t drunk enough for dares yet, so let’s go truth.”

There was a beat of silence as everyone racked their brains to think of something. Monet was first with an idea.

“Fuck, marry, kill: Silk, Vanj or…uh…”

“Asia,” Vanessa said simply, sipping some coke and spirit concoction through a straw as Silky let out a screech. Brooke was confused. She met her eyes with Nina’s, who looked equally baffled.

“Wait, who’s Asia?” Nina asked. Akeria, to her credit, looked composed. To be fair, Brooke had hardly ever seen her look anything but.

“She’s a friend from my course. We did a paired project together an’ she came over to the flat to work on it the other week,” Vanessa shrugged. “Her an’ Kiki seemed to hit it off.”

“I don’t have a fuckin’ crush on the girl, Jesus. Don’t make it weird,” Akeria rolled her eyes, blinking slowly. If Brooke squinted she might’ve spotted a flush to Akeria’s face, but perhaps that came from the glow of the fire.

Monet muttered under her breath to Brooke and Nina as the three flatmates bickered away. “Is Akeria gay?”

Brooke blew out a bunch of air. “Fuck, I don’t even know who’s what anymore.”

“She’s never classed herself as straight,” Nina elaborated cautiously. “She talks about getting dicked down by guys a lot. Then again, it’s really only Silky that does that and Keeks just joins in.”

“Silk and Vanj know something we don’t,” Brooke reasoned, watching as the two girls laughed and Akeria sat, poised and smirking at them indulgently as if they were kids.

“Right, enough! ‘Keria, fuck marry kill: Vanjie, Silk or Asia, then,” Monet shrugged, sipping her mojito.

Akeria flipped some hair over her shoulder and tilted her head to the sky thoughtfully. “I honestly can’t decide who I’d rather kill, Silk or Vanj.”

“Oh, so you’re gonna fuck or marry Asia, correct?” Vanessa quipped, a little fire igniting in Brooke’s heart as she watched a wicked smile spread across her scheming face.

“No, I don’t know her well enough to have any strong feelings towards her either way. You and Silk, however…” Akeria raised her eyebrows long-sufferingly, coaxing a laugh out of the other girls. “Uhh, right, marry Asia, or whatever. Kill Silky.”

“Bitch! I’ll kill you for real,” Silky objected, pummeling Akeria’s arm with a cushion.

“Fuck Vanj because she likes girls anyway and if she’s going down on me it means she’s not talking with that fuckin’ gritter-truck voice of hers,” Akeria shrugged as she concluded, the room cheering and Vanessa doing a little celebratory bow. As she flipped her head up she caught Brooke’s eye, giving her a little wink. Brooke crossed her legs and tried not to think about Vanessa going down on anyone. Least of all her.

“Aight!” Akeria said, indicating to everyone that her turn was well and truly over. “We move.”

The bottle was spun once more, Brooke taking a long drink out of her bottle and draining it. She needed to be tipsier than this. Everyone else seemed a little more drunk than she was, apart from Vanessa who she noted was sipping her drink sparingly. Brooke shook her head a little, trying to stop bringing her focus to Vanessa every five minutes. She’d taken her heels off and tucked her legs up underneath her on the sofa, and her thighs looked good for it.

“Plastique, truth or dare!”

Plastique tucked her hair behind her ears. “Uhh, dare.”

Brooke knew what to do for this one. Plastique had taken Ariel on a couple of dates, but the girls were emotionally stunted and neither of them had properly articulated their feelings to the other yet. “Call Ariel and tell her how you feel about her. Properly.”

As the other girls “oooh"ed in appreciation, Plastique fixed Brooke with an unimpressed glare. "I’m not doing that.”

“Pussy,” Brooke shrugged, sipping her other beer. Vanessa let out a laugh from the other side of the room.

“Brooke Lynn’s telling someone else they’re a pussy for not being open about their feelings? Are we in the correct universe?"

As the other girls gave a laugh that was only the slightest bit uncomfortable, Brooke rolled her eyes. "Okay, well at the very least send her a heartfelt text.”

“Why are you pushing this so much, ma?” Plastique pouted as she relented and reached for her phone.

“Because I’m bored of sitting in lectures hearing you moan about how you can’t tell her how you feel because it would make it weird or how you don’t want to come across too intense!"

"We all had to listen to you pine after Vanjie for two and a half years but we never forced you into admitting anything,” Plastique shrugged, the room erupting into shrieks. Brooke gave a choke of a laugh, wanting the ground to open up and swallow her. She knew her face was bright red without having to look in a mirror and, as much as her brain was imploring her not to, she found her eyes darting quickly to Vanessa to catch a glimpse of her face.

Calm, smiling tight-lipped and smug. As if she’d won something.

“No, but you did start a sweepstake about us so get off the high horse, thanks!” Brooke sing-songed back, the slight hint of irritation to her voice letting Plastique know she was to drop it. Us. The word felt weird in Brooke’s mouth, it hadn’t been used in so long. Two and a half years. Had she really liked Vanessa for that long before everything had happened between them? Brooke had actually thrown away two and a half years of feelings for the sake of one feeling of indecision, a feeling that maybe they shouldn’t have been a they any more?

For Christ’s sake don’t look at Vanessa.

“Fine. I’ve put tonight’s really fun but I miss you, I always miss you when you’re not with me, hope you know how much I care about you. That heartfelt enough for you bitches?” Plastique muttered, embarrassed. Nina let out an “aaw”, Akeria made a sick noise.

“Acceptable,” Brooke shrugged, sipping on her beer again. Suddenly, a cheer went up from Akeria, Vanessa and Silky who could see who was coming through the living room door first. Yvie and Scarlet were walking close, holding a glass of red wine each and wearing matching poker faces.

“Oh, here they are! Nice of you to finally join us!” Nina cheered, Scarlet giving a small smile and smoothing her dress down, sitting beside Yvie on the last remaining couch.

“All the best people are fashionably late!” she shrugged. Yvie gave a snort and swept some hair over her shoulder to cover her neck. Brooke saw the action and jumped on it.

“Nice neckwear.”

Yvie turned only slightly red. “Thanks. Gucci.”

“Hear that? Yvie’s girlfriend is Gucci. Not Tesco Finest. Gucci,” Monet nudged Nina, setting another laugh off amongst the girls.

“We’re playing truth or dare,” Brooke explained to the two girls, as Plastique gave the glass bottle a bit of a pathetic spin.

“Vanjie!”

Vanessa shook her head. “Nah that spin was shit, it don’t count.”

“Like hell it don’t! Truth or dare, bitch?” Silky all but interrogated her. Vanessa thought about it for a moment, then decided.

“Truth.”

Brooke’ heart hammered in her chest. She hoped to God they wouldn’t ask Vanessa anything about her, anything about them.

“What’s going on with you and Monique, Vanjie?” Monet asked dramatically, Akeria giving a cry of delight and thumping her hands against her thighs.

Great.

As the room broke out into eager laughter, Vanessa just smiled.

“Well, Monique and I are good friends, and…we get on well. We both been, y'know, unlucky in love a lil’, so…” Vanessa trailed off, the room giving little chokes of anticipation and Brooke’s stomach twisting. “…if it’s one in the morning and one of us is maybe still up…y'know…”

Monet gave a tiny squeal through her teeth. Brooke wanted to wedge herself in between the sofa cushions and not emerge again til May of next year.

“Y'know, Monique’s very confident, very sure of herself, an’ that's…y'know, it’s attractive…” Vanessa trailed off, running her tongue over her teeth. Brooke knew that face, remembered the time when that face used to get directed at her before they’d fall into bed together, frantic kisses planted along collarbones and clothes discarded over the uneven floorboards of Vanessa’s room.

“But what’s actually going on? You’ve said so much but not actually said anything,” Yvie let out an unimpressed laugh. Vanessa composed herself and sat up straight, taking a rare sip of her drink.

“Well, we get on well. She’s a good person. And we’re friends,” Vanessa smiled coyly, causing the girls to laugh uproariously.

“Okay, okay, we all see it! We all get it!” Monet laughed, the knife twisting in Brooke’s stomach. Could it have been more obvious that they were obviously having each other in every type of position imaginable with any chance they got, or was it just Brooke being paranoid? She thought back to what Monet had said in the car earlier and concluded that, occasional hits of the bong aside, she was not being paranoid by any stretch of the imagination.

The game rolled along. Nina was made to do something vague and embarrassing with Monet that Brooke forgot quickly (or perhaps blocked out), Scarlet was forced to admit (rather proudly, Brooke thought) that her and Yvie had quickly fucked upstairs in the time they’d been away, and a few other of the girls did a couple of bland truths. As much as the bottle spun and spun, it never seemed to point Brooke’s way. Brooke was glad. She didn’t want to admit or say anything, and she also didn’t want to do anything remotely risky. However, when the bottle landed on Vanessa a second time, Brooke began to reconsider her thought process.

“Dare,” Vanessa smiled, a glint of danger in her eye flashing quickly as she darted her eyes quickly to Brooke.

Brooke tried not to look at Nina as she spoke. “Vanjie. Kiss the hottest girl in the room.”

“Oh, that’s a good one,” Plastique whispered quietly. It seemed as if the whole room held its breath. Brooke didn’t know if she was grateful to Nina for the setup or whether she wanted to descend into the earth’s core. She knew Vanessa had answered this question before with this group of girls, she knew that Vanessa thought the answer was her. But that was before everything had changed. Brooke felt her pulse race as Vanessa looked to the ceiling, deep in thought.

Slowly, she turned her gaze to Yvie and Scarlet.

“Yvie,” she began, a small sinking feeling lodging itself in Brooke’s chest. “Can I kiss your girlfriend?”

Yvie smiled at Scarlet proudly, happy for the compliment. “Dare’s a dare. Bring her back.”

“Scarlet, can I get a lil’ smooch?” Vanessa laughed, Scarlet laughing back and motioning for her to sit beside them on the sofa.

“C'mere, friend,” she laughed easily, Vanessa crossing the room and joining them. Brooke remembered when Vanessa had kissed Scarlet before- in the nightclub, before they were together and before Yvie and Scarlet were together. She remembered how it made her feel- a little irritated and sad all in one. Looking back, she realised it was plain and simple jealousy, and she knew her feelings weren’t going to change this time.

Quickly, Vanessa leaned in and met Scarlet’s lips, kissing her gently but slowly, her hand resting on Scarlet’s hip easily. It could only have been about three seconds long, but each one seemed to tick by agonisingly slowly, and Brooke hoped she wasn’t showing any of her fucked-up emotions on her face. As the two girls pulled away and the others whooped and whistled, Scarlet made a face.

“Bitch, all I tasted there was pepperoni. That was the least sexy kiss I’ve ever had.”

“You loved it, hoe!” Vanessa laughed, retreating back to her seat. Desperate to look at anything but Vanessa’s face, Brooke watched Yvie and Scarlet. Yvie had the satisfied grin of a mafia mob boss as Scarlet whispered something in her ear, then smiled seductively, kissing her once, twice, three times, red lipstick meeting purple.

“Well if I wasn’t bi before, I sure as hell am now,” Plastique fanned herself.

“We are the cornerstone of Plastique’s sexual identity. That’s a fucking compliment!” Scarlet cheered, Yvie laughing and wrapping her arms around her.

“Nah, you and Yvie are my parents. The Mums of the group,” Plastique explained.

“Fuck off, we’re not the Mums!” Yvie laughed, outraged. “Nina and Monet are literally right there!”

“Hey! That’s not fair!” Nina cried, outraged at the perceived injustice.

“Yeah, don’t lump me in with this dork!” Monet yelled, laughing with the other girls as Nina swatted her on the arm.

“Right! Spin, Vanj,” Yvie ordered, the girl spinning the bottle round obediently. Brooke watched as the top of the bottle whizzed by her once, twice, three times, past Yvie, Scarlet, the Antigua Road girls, slowed down as it reached Plastique, edged past Monet and Nina and then came to rest on Brooke.

“All RIGHT! About time this bitch spilt some tea,” Silky clapped in delight.

“Brooke,” Akeria said with the threat level of an MI5 employee. “Truth or dare?”

Brooke paused. Her go-to was usually a truth, however there was no way she was going for that this time, not while she was still a concrete mixer of feelings for Vanessa and not while there was a room full of people wanting to know exactly what was going on with them. She shrugged. “Dare.”

“Okay-” Akeria tailed off, making to stop and think. A practically evil smile spread across her face as realisation dawned on her. “Same dare. Kiss the hottest person in the room. Ten seconds.”

Silky let out a scream, growing so excitable on the sofa that Vanessa was almost sent through the ceiling. Scarlet whispered something to Yvie on the sofa, both of the girls looking at Brooke intently. Plastique shouted over something to Akeria that Brooke couldn’t hear. All she could focus on was how Vanessa had grabbed Silky and was laughing, but somewhat nervously. Her face had gone bright red. Brooke bit her lip. She thought back to their flirting in the cupboard earlier, how they were almost back to square one again, the weird bid Vanessa had made to make Brooke jealous. She could always kiss Yvie or Nina, take the easy way out. But the more she looked at Vanessa, the more drawn she became to her until before she knew what she was doing, Brooke had stood up from her place on the carpet and taken one, two, three steps to sit on the couch and look Vanessa in the eyes.

Brooke could hear everyone in the room screaming, and she knew Silky had run out of the room shouting incoherently, but all she seemed to hear was her blood roaring in her ears as Vanessa leaned in. Before she knew it, Brooke’s hand was resting on Vanessa’s bare thigh and they were kissing each other, slow and deep and lazy and in a way that Brooke never wanted to end. She felt Vanessa’s tongue licking at hers gently and immediately felt a throb of heat between her legs as she remembered 3ams spent between her sheets and Vanessa’s head buried between her thighs.

Christ, this was a bad idea, this was a bad idea-

“ZERO! And y’all can officially cut that shit out,” Brooke suddenly felt herself being wrenched away from Vanessa, Akeria’s voice cutting through her hazy thoughts and bringing her back down to earth with a bump.  

“Well, I feel like on that note,” Monet clapped her hands together decisively. “I’m away out to drink in the hot tub. Anyone else?”

One by one the girls agreed, dashing out of the room excitedly, and it was obvious to Brooke that everyone would be talking about what had just happened. Vanessa had run off quickly, her hand in Silky’s as the two dashed upstairs to get their swimwear on. The only girl that was left in the room as Brooke made to do the same was Akeria. She frowned at Brooke as they both left the room, a warning in her eyes which sent a chill down Brooke’s spine. Trying to ignore it, Brooke dashed upstairs, changed into her pink bikini and then ran outside to join the others. They wouldn’t talk about her and Vanessa’s kiss if she was there, so the less time she was away the better. Brooke grabbed a third beer from the fridge on her way out to the garden, and as she stepped outside she noticed how the moon already hung huge and bright in the sky, how the grass already had a shine of cold wet on it, and how everything looked almost a little bit magic. Joining the others and sitting between Yvie and Plastique, she tried to ignore Vanessa sitting opposite her in a black bikini that looked equally sinful as the outfit she’d been wearing before. Luckily the rest of the girls had no further desire to play drinking games, and talk instead turned to movies. Brooke didn’t join in. She couldn’t- too much was swirling around her mind, namely how good the kiss had felt. Scarlet had probably lied to make Yvie laugh- Vanessa had tasted like sugary coke, and the all too familiar scent of her perfume was still inexplicably clinging to Brooke. It had been weird to kiss after months of no contact at all. It had been a bad decision. Brooke had done yet another wrong thing.

So why did it feel somehow correct?

“Right!” Akeria said after a while, almost toppling over as she stood up. “I think I’m gettin’ a touch of the hypothermias. Who’s comin’ inside to watch Sister Act?”

“Bitch! That’s like, my favourite movie. Hell yes,” Monet sprang up, knocking Nina off her lap and into the middle of the hot tub. The girls erupted in a laugh, Brooke almost dropping her beer into the water. One by one, they all filed out of the water. Brooke was the last one left. Admittedly she didn’t want to leave- she was now tipsy enough to not feel the cold, and she could have lain back and stared at the white light of the full moon in the inky sky forever. Just as she was about to follow the others, she noticed that the second-to-last girl out of the hot tub was Vanessa. Brooke swallowed thickly, trying her best not to stare at how the small droplets of water clung to her thick thighs or how her tiny bikini barely covered her firm ass, or how her slick, wet hair cascaded down her back. Almost as if she could read Brooke’s mind, Vanessa slowly, tortuously turned around. She had a little wicked smile on her face, the kind she always used to wear when she flirted with Brooke. It made Brooke cross her legs and squeeze her thighs together.

“You got a good enough view from there?” she asked, playfulness coating her words as she spread both her arms out to lean against the back of the hot tub.

This was bad. This was not good. Brooke couldn’t flirt back. It would only lead to another really horrendous, catastrophic decision. Her mind was hot-wiring, and to her dismay she couldn’t come up with any form of quick-witted comeback. Noticing how long it was taking her to reply, Vanessa gave a throaty laugh.

“Hmm. I’ll take that as a yes, then,” she purred, crossing the water and sitting down close next to Brooke. Brooke tried her best not to choke as she took a sip from the bottle in her hand.

“Thought you were going to watch Sister Act?” she asked, trying to sound casual but cringing at how nervous she sounded as the words left her mouth. Her blood pressure dialled up a notch as Vanessa laced her fingers together, placed her hands on Brooke’s bare shoulder, then rested her head against her fingers.  

“I don’t know. Think I’d rather see what’s so special about this view you love so much,” Vanessa murmured softly, Brooke not missing the way she rushed out the word ‘love’ as if to distil any awkwardness. She didn’t need to worry, though, because right now all Brooke could focus on was how good Vanessa looked in that black bikini, and how her red lipstick still clung to her plump lips as if it had just been applied, and her beautiful dark gaze from under her fake lashes.

“Hmm. It’s a pretty good view. Pretty beautiful,” Brooke found herself whispering, eliciting a sparkle from Vanessa’s eyes. Fuck. Shit. She shouldn’t have said that, it just seemed to have happened, but with Vanessa sitting pressed up so close to her how else could she have possibly reacted? There was a small silence in which Vanessa gave a small giggle, looking down at the constantly popping bubbles. The jet stream pummeled Brooke’s back to bits.

“What’s funny?” she smiled cautiously. Vanessa looked at her, something nostalgic on her face.

“Your pickup lines are still cringey as fuck,” she smirked, Brooke rolling her eyes a little. She had to steer this conversation back to normality. Whatever the fuck normality was as far as her and Vanessa were concerned.

“That wasn’t a pickup line. If I was trying to pick you up, you’d know about it.”

“Oh, I know about it, baby. Don’ worry,” Vanessa hit back instantly, Brooke taking the pet name like a fatal shot. Brooke knew that Vanessa knew what that word did to her in the right context with the right tone. Fuck. Bad idea, bad idea. She was determined not to lose whatever game this was. She would not do anything stupid. She would not ruin the tiny, small beginnings of this foundation of their friendship that they were gradually re-building. She would stand up and go inside and watch Whoopi fucking Goldberg dance about in a fucking habit and all would be right with the world again.

“Two and a half years, huh? You had it bad, bitch, I never knew I had that kind of effect on you,” Vanessa laughed suddenly, Brooke trying not to blush as she remembered Plastique’s words from earlier.

“Not that you’re letting it go to your head,” Brooke shrugged, taking a sip.

Vanessa giggled again. Brooke wished she wouldn’t. “Never.”

“Good compliment for you, I guess.”

“Better than beaud,” Vanessa smirked, snorting a laugh as Brooke tipped her head back and cringed. As she quietly stopped laughing, Vanessa shrugged lightly. “An’ I mean, nice to know I’m the hottest girl in the room too.”

Brooke let out a small sigh at having to confront her decision. “I mean just because we’re not dating any more doesn’t mean it’s not objectively true. By Western beauty standards you probably are the hottest girl in the room.”

Vanessa laughed again. “Western beauty standards, my God. I’m not even white, you dumb bitch.”

“Yeah, but…you’ve got this gorgeous skin, and all your shiny hair. And your eyes that go all twinkly when you’re happy,” Brooke explained. Where was all this coming from? “And you have perfect white teeth, and the best smile. I feel like you light up the whole room when you laugh.”

Brooke’s heart gave a twinge as Vanessa’s face broke out into a smile, tilting her face to the side a little inquisitively. Brooke gave a little cough, aware of all the compliments she’d given her. “And you have a really good figure as well, so, yeah.”

“Oh, obviously. Well, we all know how much you like that,” Vanessa smirked cheekily, Brooke suddenly snapping her neck round to face her properly.

“What?”

“Liked that. Like, liked. Whatever. We’re friends now, we can laugh about it,” Vanessa shrugged, the words coming out of her mouth confirming their status at once relieving Brooke and putting her on edge. They were back to being friends. This was what Brooke wanted, right? Vanessa still had the little cheeky grin on her face as she spoke again. “Friends who still kiss each other, apparently.”

“Well, you kissed Scarlet,” Brooke said, trying to make it as nonchalant as possible. Judging by Vanessa’s smug reaction, she hadn’t succeeded.

“You seem pressed.”

“Not pressed! Just saying,” Brooke tried to protest gently but felt she came on way too heavy.

“Mhm. There’s just one problem about all this, though…” Vanessa murmured, her tone charged with something that immediately made the hairs on Brooke’s arm stand on end, giving her goosebumps.

And then, with one fluid movement, Vanessa moved to straddle her.

Shitshitshitshitshitshitshit.

Brooke’s heart almost flatlined as Vanessa spoke, her face still wearing the tiniest cocky smile that Brooke so badly wanted to kiss off of her. “It’s kinda hard to try an’ be friends with you when I know what you look like with no clothes on.”

Brooke tried her best to keep her voice level. “Well, it’s also kind of hard to try and be friends with you when you’re flirting with me.”

“It’s also hard to be friends with you when I know what your kinks are…” Vanessa brought her arms around Brooke’s neck and barely concealed a smile as she bucked her hips ever so slightly. “…Mami.”

Brooke felt the tiniest hiss escape her lips, glad it wasn’t the fuck that had immediately popped into her head.

“It’s kind of hard to be friends with you when you’re riding my thigh…or when you’re coming on to me like this,” Brooke replied, keeping one hand firmly on the side of the hot tub and the other wrapped around the glass bottle in her hand so tight she thought it would smash.

“Coming on to you?” Vanessa suddenly tipped her head back and laughed, Brooke immediately realising what she’d said. “That can be arranged, you want face, tongue or fingers?”

“Fuck’s sake, Vanessa,” Brooke laughed softly, letting one of her hands drop down under the water and rest against Vanessa’s thigh. As Brooke’s thumb rubbed at her skin softly, she tried to reason with herself. Just because she was stroking Vanessa’s skin, and had her on top of her, and was basically talking dirty to her, didn’t mean that anything was actually going to happen.

“I know you miss me, Brooke,” Vanessa said, her tone matter-of-fact as she straightened up a little in Brooke’s lap, Brooke eyeing the way her breasts were pushed up.

Brooke had to think carefully about her response. She knew she’d hurt Vanessa, so she had to keep things light. “I mean, it kind of looks like you miss me, baby.”

Oh fuck, that pet name was a mistake. Vanessa’s smile was sultry as she pushed one of her hands into Brooke’s hair. “Me? Nah, I’m just doin’ this because it’s fun. Monique’s treatin’ me very well.”

Jesus fucking Christ, Vanessa knew how to hit Brooke where it hurt. Brooke pursed her lips. She wanted to fight dirty, she would give as good as she got. “And that’s why you’re cheating on her?”

Vanessa burst out laughing. “Oh, bitch, please! Me and her aren’t exclusive! We ain’t even a thing! She vents to me about her ex, I vent to her about you, and then we fuck away our frustrations!”

A part of Brooke’s heart soared up into the black sky like a helium balloon. She didn’t think she’d shown her relief on her face until Vanessa gave a laugh. “So. You ain’t denied it.”

“Denied what?”

“That you miss me,” she shrugged, giving a little look down at Brooke’s hands on her thighs. Brooke couldn’t pinpoint when she’d brought the other one down under the water but apparently she had done. Her throat was dry as she considered her response. Before she could get there, Vanessa threw her mind into chaos as she brought her hands back behind her head, fidgeted for a moment, then suddenly threw her bikini top across the decking. As Brooke’s gaze flicked down to Vanessa’s full breasts, the other girl brought one finger up and tilted her chin up to face her. The heat between Brooke’s legs was unbearable, and she felt her paper-thin resolve rapidly melting away. Vanessa smirked. “You wanna kiss me so bad right now, don’t you? Like you kissed me earlier. You can’t even stay away.“

Vanessa seemed to edge closer to Brooke, although they were already so close that seemed an impossible feat. Brooke raised an eyebrow. “See, I feel like if Monique fucked you as good as you say she does, you wouldn’t be in my lap right now.”

Vanessa blinked slowly, mockingly. “Oh, baby. You don’t want to know the things I let her do to me.”

Brooke bristled. The tension between them and Vanessa’s teasing was getting her riled. “You’re right, I don’t.”

“Aww. You jealous, baby?” Vanessa pouted. This was going to drive Brooke insane. Her mind constantly swung between this being a bad idea and a good idea, and she had no idea which it would settle on.

Brooke locked eyes with Vanessa, the other girl’s gaze a challenge. “No.”

“You sure? You seemed jealous when I kissed Scarlet earlier, I saw your face.”

“I don’t get jealous,” Brooke repeated, holding her gaze with Vanessa. Their faces weren’t too close but their bodies were, and Brooke felt as if she was a ticking time bomb.

“So you ain’t jealous of Monique?” Vanessa murmured inquisitively. Brooke shook her head, now unable to tear her gaze away from her lips which had felt so perfect against her own earlier. “You ain’t jealous of the fact she gets to ride my face and get my pretty lil’ tongue working her clit? You ain’t jealous of the fact that it’s her name I’m crying out when I cum on her fingers? You ain’t-”

Frustrated, tense, and out of willpower, Brooke let out a low growl as she finally brought her hands up to Vanessa’s jaw and crashed their lips together, kissing her wildly and deeply and running her hands over every inch of Vanessa’s skin she was able to touch. She didn’t even care that she’d proven Vanessa right, because she had missed this, missed her, missed the way they just seemed to fit together like two pieces of a puzzle and dear sweet fucking Jesus she’d been an idiot to give up this sex. Brooke whined needily as she felt Vanessa pull away, the other girl laughing against her lips.

“You don’t kiss like a girl who ain’t jealous,” Vanessa tutted, a satisfied smirk on her face. "Or one that don’t miss me.”

Brooke ran her hands up and down her back and pouted. “Shut up.”

“Hmm. That ain’t no way to talk to me if you’re planning on getting what you want, lil’ brat,” Vanessa raised her eyebrows, bringing one of her hands down to rub at Brooke’s hipbone. Brooke let out a whimper and bucked her hips. She needed Vanessa so badly, and her words were only making things worse. Or better.

“Fuck, please, Vanessa, shit,” Brooke hissed, not caring about how pathetic and needy she looked now as she brought one of her hands up and rubbed a thumb over one of Vanessa’s nipples. Brooke felt her clit throb as Vanessa gave a little hum of delight at the contact. Her fingers had only been there for a second before Vanessa grabbed her wrist and held it down under the water, the sudden force causing Brooke’s eyes to grow wide.

“You broke my fuckin’ heart an’ now you really think I’m gonna make it that easy for you?” she barked a laugh, a guilty twinge tugging at Brooke’s rapid heart. “Fuck that. I want to hear you beg me to fuck you. You’re gonna have to work for me, baby. Shit’s on my terms.”

“Fuck, Vanessa, I really don’t give a shit how desperate I sound,” Brooke sighed, the shock of the prospect of Vanessa changing her mind about all this lighting a fire in Brooke. “Please, please, please, please, baby, I’m sorry, I’ll do anything you want, just fucking touch me, please-”

Brooke cut herself off with her own moan as Vanessa ran a hand down her body and lightly pressed two fingers against her, rubbing gently and making Brooke want to sob.

“Good girl,” Vanessa purred, Brooke writhing underneath her and completely past the point of thinking about any of the consequences of any of this. “You miss me, don’t you?”

“Fuck, so much.”

“You been missin’ this?”

“Shit yes, so much.”

Vanessa’s eyes were dark as Brooke looked up at her. “Nobody’s gonna fuck you like me, are they?”

Brooke’s eyes nearly rolled into the back of her head, thinking that at this point if Vanessa asked her to get married she probably would’ve booked the damn venue. “No, only you, baby, fuck.”

“Mm, such a good girl,” Vanessa smirked, Brooke’s clit giving a spasm as she thought now was really not the time to realise she had a praise kink. “I don’t know, though. You seemed pretty sure you wouldn’t miss me when you ended things.”

“I do miss you, 'Ness, I promise, I’m sorry, I’ll beg on my knees if you want me to, I don’t give a fuck, you’ve been driving me crazy all night…so fucking perfect, shit…"

"Mm…you would look so pretty on your knees,” Vanessa leaned in and murmured into Brooke’s ear, pressing the lightest little kiss to her neck and almost sending Brooke over the edge before anything had even happened yet.

“I’ll do whatever you want, baby, fuck, I want you to feel like you’re the most gorgeous fucking goddess in the world,” Brooke gasped as Vanessa brought her other hand down to touch herself, the sight of her working Brooke and herself into a frenzy the hottest thing she’d seen in months. Her mind short-circuited, and she struggled to know if anything she said made any sense. “Jesus Christ, Vanessa, please fuck me, I can’t take much more-"

Pride glinted in Vanessa’s eyes before she leaned in and kissed Brooke, hot and wet with her fingers still rubbing and teasing her through the material. Pulling away, she motioned to the decking around the hot tub. “Lie back then, baby.”

As Brooke almost drove her face into the decking in her haste to scramble out of the hot tub she ignored the little voice in the back of her head that told her everything about this was a bad idea, and instead focused on the one that screamed it was the best decision she’d made in months.s

[secret-engima]

In Fangs and Feathers, what are everyone else's reactions to meeting Xanxus, and vice versa? Are any other reincarnations going to pop up?

In GENERAL reactions are shock (the king has another son?), horror (he’s so VIOLENT AND RUDE), and incredulity (why does Noctis LIKE this guy???). Some more specific ones would be-

-Cor. Cor and Xanxus DO NOT get along for the longest time. It’s like introducing two cats very, very improperly. They tolerate each other at best. Cor thinks Xanxus is violent, uncontrolled, reckless, and selfish. Xanxus thinks Cor is a very, very dangerous man playing at being more calm and in control than he is and that triggers bad memories of Nono’s guardians and their trickery.

-These two will eventually come to a more stable neutrality toward each other after Xanxus stops acting like he’s going to stab Regis at any moment (ie when Xanxus realizes that Regis genuinely does love his illegitimate son and has all the snake-like qualities of a sad fluffy dog) and after many very bloody sparring matches that leave them both exhausted and in need of an elixir.

-Ignis is straight up horrified. He knows Noctis attracts strange people (look at Crowe) and forgives the dangerous ones (look at the various assassins that Noctis has converted) but .... but THIS is Noctis’s brother? Regis’s other son and Titus’s nephew? He’s so .... ANGRY. He walks around like he’s about to commit murder at any given second and yet Noctis ADORES him. It’s only the fact that Ignis can see Xanxus adores Noctis in return that keeps Ignis from trying to poison Xanxus’s tea or something.

-Xanxus, for his part, actually likes Ignis? He’s a Bby Inverted Sun who is clearly very protective and loyal to his Sky. Very smart for his age, and smart enough to be both wary and willing to throw the rule book out the window in favor of protecting Noctis (or better yet, using the rulebook to tangle someone up and trip them legally down the nearest elevator shaft). Ignis knows Xanxus is dangerous and is prepared to fight him to the death the moment Xanxus proves a threat to Noctis. Xanxus approves. He knows Ignis won’t WIN, but he approves. Finally Small Trash gains an Element that isn’t useless or suicidal and hasn’t tried to murder him beforehand.

-Xanxus’s arrival is before Gladio’s Nicked Lung incident (we’ll all just assume Xanxus was out on a Hunt or something when that happened k?) but he’s always ... been neutral toward Gladio. Neutral leaning toward negative. The kid is a brat. Arrogant brat that takes pride in his duty while also being scornful of the bby Sky in his care and THAT makes Xanxus dislike him. BUT, he’s also a kid and kids can change. Plus this is Small Trash’s Storm, he is fully expecting some kind of violent Incident to happen to turn the kid’s attitude around. This does not mean Xanxus won’t join Crowe in kicking the pants off Gladio after he gets back and hears about the Nicked Lung Incident OR from holding it over Gladio’s head for years after but it does mean he won’t outright try to kill Gladio because he knows this is ... how Tsuna-Noct always courts his Elements.

-Gladio thinks Xanxus is SCARY, but also admires him. He ... almost wishes he could be Xanxus’s Shield instead of Noctis’s at first (until the Incident) and thinks Xanxus is a “real man” for always being on the move and ready to fight and get things done. But he also dislikes Xanxus to an extent because Xanxus tends to ignore him or call him Trash instead of his name so....

-After Xanxus hears of the Nicked Lung Incident, Gladio upgrades his opinion of Xanxus from “scary but kinda cool” to “UTTERLY TERRIFYING DO NOT ENGAGE ABORT ABORT ABORT” and also becomes glad he is NOT Xanxus’s Shield because Xanxus is a feral mass of instincts, magic, and wrath tied together in the rough shape of a prince.

-Clarus always knew Regis’s reckless youth would come back to bite. He just ... didn’t expect it to be QUITE this bad. Or violent. Or magically powerful. Or CUNNING because this boy has never touched the political scene before yet he maneuvers through it with the careless abandon that only comes from knowing EXACTLY what all the rules and dangers are and just not giving a flying tonberry.

-He is ready for YEARS for Xanxus to either turn on Regis or turn on Noctis. Or both. Especially after Xanxus’s Shield shows up (more on him later). It ... takes him a long time to accept that yes, Xanxus is loyal and loving, he’s just a feral Cor turned up to 11 all the time and age is not going to make him Chill like it did Cor.

-Xanxus equates Clarus to Nono’s favorite Guardian. Specifically the one that abused Xanxus as a kid and continued to belittle him and treat him as a mad dog for the rest of his life. For obvious reasons, even if this first impression is incorrect, it sours Xanxus’s view of Clarus for years. They come to a silent non-aggression agreement for Regis’s and Noctis’s sake eventually, but not without much glaring (on both parts), snarling (on Xanxus’s part), swearing (on Xanxus’s part), and veiled comments (on Clarus’s part). Once Xanxus is wayyyyyyy older and has been around long enough, their antagonism mellows into something of a snarky frenemies thing, but it takes a while.

-Prompto thought Xanxus was terrifying for all of the ten minutes it took Xanxus to walk in glaring and then let himself get bowled over by a happy Noctis. Seeing the man lying on the floor complaining about “Small Trash get a diet you’re heavy” while absently petting Noctis’s hair went a long way to turn Xanxus from “nigh-eldritch demon” to “really grumpy cat” in Prompto’s brain. It helps that Prompto is the sweetest thing on the planet and even Xanxus doesn’t have the heart to be mean around him (plus Prom is a kid, the most kid-like of all Noctis’s friends, and Xanxus has always had a soft spot from brats as long as they weren’t threats to his Elements or the Vongola).

-Xanxus takes one look at Prompto and goes “ah. Bby Inverted Cloud. Abused bby Cloud. I will protecc.” then hides it under fifty billion layers of Gruff that fools everyone but Noctis, Prompto, and Xanxus’s own Shield.

-Is secretly ECSTATIC when Prompto shows a talent/interest in firearms and proceeds to gleefully train Prompto up to Varia Quality in them. Needless to say, Prompto is now the deadliest thing on the planet (Xanxus is more deadly, but Prompto looks like a cinnamon roll and thus is always underestimated, making him more deadly in the long run).

-The glaives are terrified. Captain’s nephew is powerful, is the King’s oops baby, AND has the general temperament of a rabid Coeurl stabbed to a chainsaw.

-Check that, all the glaives are terrified except for Tredd and Nyx. Tredd loves to antagonize despite the bruises it leaves him and Nyx wants to be friends because HUMAN COEURL. Lib and Luche are a Despair.

-Everyone is a Fear (even Nyx) the day they realize that Xanxus is Titus’s choice for Captain replacement. Which explains why Xanxus signed up the day after he turned 18 despite hating the military but STILL.

-Xanxus ... secretly loves the Glaives. These absolute morons are like his Varia but slightly less psychotic and loud. They are also his Uncle’s People so they must be protected (even if protection comes in the form of chasing them around the training ground shooting at them until they learn to dodge properly NYX). Tredd is a pest, but what do you expect of Storms, and Nyx is a blast because he can actually keep up with Xanxus’s crazy and is usually up for 90% of it. Xanxus’s favorite is actually Lib because Long-suffering Braincell Cloud but shhhh Xanxus isn’t supposed to play favorites with his future troops.

...

-To answer your last question ... yes there will be more reincarnations, but I haven’t decided which ones yet? I know that most of Tsuna’s guardians are NOT present because that makes the cast too big and risks overthrowing the Chocobro dynamic. I also have no plans to bring in any of the Arcobaleno so far and most of the Varia are also not present because I wanna focus on Xanxus and the glaives but.... There IS one member I’ve decided to bring. XDD

-Xanxus spends the three month trial run being kept secret from the world just in case he decides he hates Regis. Obviously he doesn’t, because Regis is the Best Dad™ and that means AFTER that, Regis has to man up and hold a press conference on the existence of his eldest son (who there are rumors about because even the best can’t keep Xanxus completely off the radar).

-Literally one week after the press conference where Regis did his speech and then was surprised when Xanxus actually PLAYED NICE for the camera (ie: didn’t cuss everyone out and only used the word trash ten times, even if he did scowl the entire time and ignore any questions aimed his way), all of Insomnia is thrown into a panic because someone just kamikaze ran a gunship at the Wall and used the diversion to slip through the opening that had been made to let in the weekly trucker convoy of foodstuffs and whatever. Naturally all the Crownsguard and Kingsglaive are up in arms to find the infiltrator that punched the border patrol in the nose and then disappeared into the back alleys.

-Another week goes by with no sign of the infiltrator until he once again rigs a diversion in the form of a truly astronomical amount of firecrackers set off at 4 AM right next to Crownsguard HQ. In the chaos of responding to the “gunfire”, the Nif infiltrator proceeds to careen his way through Citadel security, avoiding capture or death through truly insane shenanigans that make Crowe’s invasion years earlier look like a kitten run.

-Xanxus disobeys orders to stay in his room to instead go hunting for the Trash daring to invade his new home and, being Varia quality, successfully finds the infiltrator before anyone else does in the gardens. Xanxus pulls out a pistol, intending to shoot the Trash through his kneecaps because no doubt the king will want to interrogate him, when the Nif teenager, who has to BARELY be enlistment age and probably only four months out of Imperial boot camp, whirls around and CUTS THE BULLETS with his sword. Which promptly shatters.

-“VOI!” The teen yowls loud enough to shake the leaves of the trees and maybe a few window panes and Xanxus freezes. The teen drops his useless sword hilt on the ground and bares his teeth at Xanxus, green eyes glittering with fury and white-blond, waist length hair left to fly every which way in the breeze (noble’s kid then, no way he’d escape regulation haircuts if he wasn’t from some high noble’s spawn), “You! Get over here and let me stab you!”

-Xanxus holsters his pistol and stalks forward without a word. The teen gets nervous the closer Xanxus gets, Xanxus’s magic flaring around them to box them in with a Shield spell. Once he’s nose to nose with the teen, he reaches out with his magic, poking and prodding angrily at the soul in front of him. The teen doesn’t flinch, just glares with something feral and desperate in his eyes, something manic and NEEDY that reaches out and catches at Xanxus’s burning magic without fear.

-Xanxus takes a breath and its shaky, “Squalo?”

-The Niflheim teenage officer bursts into tears even though he’s trying not to, cussing Xanxus out in between his sobs because Xanxus DIED and he LEFT THEM and HOW COULD YOU YOU IDIOT TRASH BOSS.

-Because they are alone, and because this is his Rain that he thought was forever lost, Xanxus pulls Squalo into a hug that was almost spine breaking and shakes as he pours his magic into the gaping hole in his Shark’s soul.

-The Kingsglaive find them in the garden an hour later, no tears in sight (but eyes suspiciously red) yelling at each other and wrestling like long lost playmates on the ground. Titus, who is used to assessing his nephew’s condition via magic sensing, picks out the vibrate bond of magic between them and groans. “Xanxus, HE’S A NIF. HE’S LITERALLY THE ENEMY.”

-Xanxus hauls the boy (who’s birth certificate would tell you is Tempestas Highwind) to his feet and then pulls him protectively behind him with a snarl of, “Back off, Shark Trash is mine.” When Regis and Clarus, just arriving on the scene and already getting flashbacks to Crowe, make faint noises of protest, he grins and declares-

-“Shark Trash is my Shield, and if any of you have a problem with that you can put it where the sun don’t shine.”

-And Regis wonders what kind of horrible person he was in a previous life to deserve this. Son. Son pls, son he is AN OFFICER OF THE ENEMY FORCES YOU CAN’T MAKE HIM A SHIELD.

-Tempestas/Squalo, loud enough to shake window panes, “VOI I DEFECT FROM THE EMPIRE.”

-Titus just ... groans. Because he knows that look in his nephew’s eyes, that’s both Xanxus’s innate stubbornness AND Lucis Caelum possessiveness. The only way they’re getting rid of this Nif kid is by prying him from Xanxus’s cold dead hands.

-Also fun fact, YES, Squalo is related to Aranea. He is her older brother by a year and YES this is going to lead to the sibling spat to end all spats when she learns her brother uP AND DEFECTED TO LUCIS for seemingly no reason. Tho honestly she’s not surprised, because Tempestas has always vocally hated the empire.

[fanfiction4thesoul]

Take Care

Pairing: Roger Taylor x Reader

Word Count: ~4.4

Warnings: Smut (18+ only), fluff, knotting(? I feel like that should be warning)

Summary: Part II of my Alpha/Beta/Omega au. Roger and Reader finally make time to mark each other.

A/N: Hello again everyone! Sorry this took so long to come out. November is crunch month at uni so I’ve been extremely busy. After so many of you lovely people liked my first a/b/o fic, I decided to write a second part, sexy times included. I hope to God I don’t scare anyone away with the sex. I still don’t know how many of you actually know a/b/o au’s and who is just along for the ride. So, I hope you like it and thank you to anyone that likes/comments/reblogs. Honestly, I get a small dose of happiness anytime I get a notification!

Here’s a really rough background of a/b/o au’s and a link to Part I (though I think this can be read as a stand alone piece):

A/B/O Background

Part I

“You’re what?!” Freddie shouted.

Roger watched as he nearly spat out his drink across the table, unsure about his outburst. “I said, (Y/N) and I decided we should mark each other.”

“Oh, I know what you said, darling. I just couldn’t believe it. You’re really going to mark (Y/N)? And she’s going to mark you?”

Roger frowned over his beer. “Yeah. Why? Wha’s the problem?”

“I think Freddie is just a bit shocked is all, Rog.” Brian interjected before Freddie could answer, though he did roll his eyes.

“Of course I’m shocked! Marking is a high commitment. Are you sure you’re ready for it, darling?” Roger continued to frown, though his anger was spiking too. Was Freddie really going to sit there and lecture him on commitment?

“Fuck off, Fred. I know what I’m doing.”

“Rog―”

“No! You think this was just a whim?!” Roger slammed his beer on the table, “Everything that happened at the bar just made me realize how much I want her. It’s not just to keep her safe. I love her. I want to do this with her.” He ended much more quietly, locking eyes with Freddie who looked slightly admonished though there was still something hiding in his eyes.  

John hummed next to him, drawing his attention. Deaky had been quiet since Roger made his announcement, though that was nothing unusual for him. “If this is what you and (Y/N) want, then I’m happy for you, Roger.”

Roger finally grinned, wrapping an arm around Deaky’s shoulder to pull him closer. The beta gave a soft smile as he blushed, but went with Roger’s movements. “See! Deaky understands! What’s so wrong with it?”

Freddie was picking at the label of his beer while Roger waited. “I want you to be happy too, Rog. And I don’t question your affection for (Y/N), darling, you know I don’t.” He looked up from his beer with pleading eyes. “I just want to make sure you’ve really thought about this before you do it.”

“I can see where Fred’s coming from,” Brian put in. “If you break up with (Y/N), it’s a hard time untangling yourself from your instincts until the marks fade and clear from your systems. Are you sure this is what you both want?” The beta’s voice was calm and reasonable, that normally either soothed Roger, or made him really mad. 

This time, it made him pause. 

Despite all the different scents from the bar, Roger could easily smell their sincerity. With only a slight mixture of apprehension from Freddie and Brian, and happiness from John, Roger knew they weren’t trying to pick a fight with him.

Roger sighed. “I’ve thought about it. Stayed awake nearly the whole night after I asked her thinking about it. (Y/N)―(Y/N)’s it for me guys. This is just another step towards that.” He looked at all of them in turn.

He wasn’t lying. When he held you that night, he was terrified. He didn’t want you to think he was asking only because of the alpha asshole. As he was going over the decision, replaying your reaction, you had shifted in your sleep. You mumbled his name while pulling yourself practically on top of him, snuggling into his chest. Looking at you, knowing that even subconsciously you were still thinking about him, wanting to be closer, Roger knew there was nothing to worry about. 

After a moment's pause, John said, “Well that’s that,” and quickly redirected the conversation. Roger gave his shoulder a small squeeze of thanks before jumping into the distraction.

When John and Brian were ready to leave a few hours later, they asked if Freddie needed a lift. His gaze flicked over to Roger before turning back with a bright smile. “No, I think I’m going to have another drink. What do you think, Rog? How’s about one more?”

Though Brian raised an eyebrow, he took Freddie’s excuse (after John subtly elbowed him in the side) and they left together. Roger slid to the middle of the boothe and only had to wait a half a beat before Freddie slid to the center as well. Grabbing Freddie’s hand under the table, Roger linked their fingers together which earned him a small smile from Fred. 

While Roger thought of Brian and Deaky as pack, there was something special about his relationship with Freddie. It was by no means romantic, but perhaps on another level of friendship. Freddie was Roger’s best friend, and he’d do anything to protect him. 

“Alright… what’s really got you so upset over me and (Y/N)?” Roger knew his outburst earlier wasn’t out of total disbelief. There was something else there. 

Freddie’s eyes danced around the room. “It’s not… I’m not upset. Or mad. Or anything unhappy about the situation.”

“But?”

“But as an omega, I worry.”

Now Roger was confused. “Worry? About what Fred? Are you worried I’m going to hurt (Y/N)?” Roger couldn’t help the hurt that tinged his voice. 

“No! Not at all Roger!” Freddie finally turned to look at him. 

“Then what is it?”

“You… you said you were going to mark each other. And you are going to have (Y/N)’s mark?” He sounded so apprehensive which only made Roger more confused. 

“Well, yeah? (Y/N)’s my equal, and I know it’s still uncommon but… I don’t know. The thought of wearing her mark makes me really happy. Why? What’s wrong with that?” Roger questioned, still not seeing the point Freddie was trying to make.

“I’ve heard a lot of talk. About omegas marking alphas. And it’s… well it’s not great.” Freddie unlinked their hands and shifted back to look into Roger’s worried eyes. “Some alphas are picking fights with other alphas that have a mark. There’s also been some… traditional alphas discriminating against marked alphas. I think it’s fantastic that you want to do that with (Y/N). But there’s a lot linked to that mark, Rog. And I want you to know about what’s happening before you do anything. You’re an alpha living in an alpha’s world. If you can’t handle wearing an omegas mark, you’ll only end up hurting (Y/N), no matter how much you love her.” 

Roger only needed a moment to digest Freddie’s words. After a pause, he let out a breath and smiled. Freddie gave him an incredulous look. 

“You had me all worked up there, Fred.”

Freddie was angry, “Roger, I’m being serious. I have a lot of omega friends who had to go through letting a mark fade because their alphas couldn’t handle it!”

“No, Fred,” Roger said, waving his hands about, “I understand. Completely. But that doesn’t change a thing for me. So I get into more fights. So I might go home with a black eye or a broken nose. So an alpha might not let me into their store. So what? I won’t let those things stop me from being with (Y/N). No way in hell.” Roger said it with so much conviction, it blasted Freddie’s senses. “I appreciate you lookin’ out for me, though. (Y/N), too.”

Though Roger could tell he still looked slightly worried, he gave him a small smile, and grabbed his hand once more. “Darling, if your pretty face gets punched black and blue, (Y/N)’s not gonna want to kiss you anymore.”

Roger laughed, pulling Fred closer and letting the seriousness fade. “I’ll have to plan my outfits around the color of my face then, yeh?”

Marking didn’t have to occur during an omega’s heat like bonding marks did. However, the catch was that sometimes marking could be intense enough to trigger an omega’s heat. You and Roger didn’t want to chance your heat coming on in the midst of all their crazy. Roger worked it out with the boys when they could plan for a weekend off of playing any gigs. That way, Roger could take care of you if you heat came on.

Now, it was the day you planned for and you were a ball of nerves. Roger had left earlier in the morning to attend to his stall in Kensington Market with a promise that he would be home at a reasonable time. As soon as he left, you had no idea what to do with yourself. You thought you could take the day to yourself and relax, but you were far too jittery to do that. There were no errands to be run, no groceries to pick up; there was literally nothing to do. Roger made sure of that, again in case of your heat. 

In fact, he prepared so well for the occasion, it felt almost too planned. Sex with Roger was always fantastic, but it was also sort of spontaneous. Planning it out made you feel so weird, almost like a strange business transaction. The more you thought on it, the more you fretted and the slower time seemed to pass. So your day ended up being filled with music you barely listened to, half a book you’d have to reread, and your distressing thoughts running through your head.

You groaned, face planting onto the sofa in despair when you realized you had been staring at a fuzzy TV screen for who knows how long. Maybe you should just flop on the floor and stare at the ceiling for the rest of the day.

“What are you doing, love?”

You yelped, pushing yourself up from the sofa. Roger stood at the head with an amused smile on his face, watching you. “Rog! You nearly scared me half to death!” Honestly, he about gave you a heart attack.

“(Y/N), you do realize how incredibly hard it is to sneak up on you? You can smell me. Besides, I thought you heard me come in.” He was grinning ear to ear, clearly entertained.

You huffed, rolling onto your feet. “I’m just so glad you’re finally home.” His eyes softened as he brings you to him. 

He kissed your forehead. “Is that your way of saying you missed me?”

“Hmm. More like, it’s boring without you here.” You wrapped your arms around him.

“Same difference, love.”

“Then, yes, I missed you.”

“Hmm.”

Roger held you for a moment, scenting into your neck. You took a deep breath, sighing at the combined smell he was creating of the two of you. His lips grazed the juncture of your neck, making you pause. He was mouthing right over where he would place his mark and it was beginning to send tingles down your spine. Trailing up your neck with his lips, he whispered in your ear, “I can’t wait to mark you up, love. Show the world that you’re mine.”

“Rog… please,” you sighed, closing your eyes.

“You’re asking so nicely, lovie,” he groaned, pulling away and making you whine at the loss. “But not yet.”

“What?” you opened your eyes, “Roger I thought―”

“No, no. We’re doing this tonight,” he reassured you, rubbing his hands across your back. “But I’ve got to take care of you first, yeah? In case you go into heat.”

You weren’t quite sure what he meant, but his smile was warm as he led you into the kitchen. He instructed you to sit down at the table and not to move. 

You watched him putter about the kitchen, listening to him hum an unfamiliar tune all the while. He checked a few times to make sure you were still sitting where he asked, giving you a wide smile before turning his attention back to what he was cooking. You waited patiently, full of amusement at his little show. His smell radiated happiness and you felt yourself ease with his emotions. Finally, he set a plate of spaghetti down in front of you making you raise an eyebrow at him that he dutifully ignored.

“‘Ere ya go, love.” He sat next to you, thighs touching under the table.

“Thank you, Rog.” You glanced at him from the corner of your eye. “Am I going to have to ask?”

“I’ve no idea what you’re talking about, love,” he mumbled around a mouthful.

“Rog. We never eat pasta. And you rarely cook. So. Want to try again?”

He blushed slightly, looking down at his plate, only making you more curious. “I… well I read somewhere that eating a lot of carbs before a heat is really beneficial for an omega…” He trailed off a bit before turning to face you. “And, well, I know you know how to take care of yourself before a heat. But my instincts are telling me to show you how well I can take care of you… you know… as your alpha.”

“Roger.” You were touched. You put down your fork and grabbed his hand, interlacing your fingers. “Rog, you already do so much for me. You’re a fantastic alpha. I’m so happy to call you mine.” He gave you a wide smile before bringing you in for a sweet kiss. 

The rest of dinner passed uneventfully. You talked about the band a bit. Roger filled you in on an obnoxious customer he swindled at the stall, making you laugh when he did a horrendous impression of them. 

“You didn’t do anything today? Anything at all?” He was cleaning up the last of the dishes, looking at you with a raised eyebrow as you leaned against the counter.

Thinking back on your unproductive day only made you scowl and blush. “I couldn’t concentrate on anything. So no.” You stared at the ground, a little embarrassed at your actions.

“Hey, none of that, love,” He lifted your chin with his hand, thumb brushing your cheek. “Fred yelled at me about a hundred times today. Said I was too distracted. And I was.”

“Really?” It made you feel better to think that Roger was feeling the same anxiety as you. He brought you into a hug and you nuzzled into his neck.

“Hmm. Course, love. You’re very distracting.” He let you scent him for a moment before ushering you both into the sitting room. You snuggled up on the sofa, leaning against Roger’s side as he chose a station to watch. “C’mon, love. You need to relax a little.” He squeezed your waist, pulling you closer to his side.

You weren’t quite sure how you thought it was going to be when Roger got home. It certainly wasn’t him cooking you dinner. And you didn’t think you’d end up on the sofa. Honestly, you were half thinking he’d come home and just ripe your clothes off and get right to it. Or that it would be awkward, like ‘are you ready to start’ kind of deal.

Regardless of how you thought it was going to happen, you were happy like this. It felt far more natural―far more you and Roger―than anything you thought up in your head. You ended up watching a bunch of reruns of Coronation Street, episodes you’ve seen plenty of times. But it didn’t really matter to you. Just being with Roger made anything worth doing.

When the station finally switched to a different program, and Roger still hadn’t initiated anything, you thought it was about time to put your plans for the night in motion. You had calmed down considerably and now it felt like any other time with Roger. 

Roger was so sweet to calm you down with some normality. But now you were ready. And you wanted to let Roger know that.

You started moving your hand up and down his thigh from where it had been resting. An innocent gesture except you made sure to inch closer and closer to his groin but never touch.

You kept up your motions, pretending to watch TV until you felt him try to subtly shift under you. You made sure to keep out of reach and had to suppress a smile when you smelled his arousal start spreading through the air. When he shifted again and you cleanly avoided his growing bulge, he groaned.

“What’s the matter, Rog?” You turned towards him, attempting to be coy. But he was having none of it. He immediately grabbed your face and pulled you in for a hungry kiss. He swiped into your mouth and you let him devour you, moaning into the kiss. 

You yelped as he suddenly hauled you across his lap so that you were straddling his thighs. Grabbing your hips, he ground you down against his erection causing him to whine into the kiss. You kept up the movements, sending pleasant sensations through you and drawing little noises from the both of you. Roger tugged on the end of your shirt and you pulled away just enough to pull it off with his quickly following.

“Christ, (Y/N)...” he breathed out, moving to mouth along your neck as his hands came up to play with your already bare breasts. He tweaked your nipples between his fingers making you mewl. “Tell me you’re ready. Tell me I can let go, honey.”

“Yes… yes, yes. Mark me, Roger.” You moaned, tilting your head to bare your neck in submission. Threading your fingers through his hair, you held him against you while he scented and kissed you sloppily.

Roger groaned again before bringing his hands under your ass and standing up with you in his arms. Quickly, you wrapped your legs around his waist, securing yourself to him. While he moves you towards the bedroom, you rubbed yourself on his bulge to get more friction, kissing up his neck all the while. 

“Oh!” You gasped out.

Roger had pushed you roughly against the wall and gave you a desperate, hungry look.

“(Y/N),” he panted, “if you don’t stop moving, I’m going to take you against this wall. Comfort be damned.”

The thought no doubt turned you on, and you let him know by groaning at the idea. But there was no way you were letting him mark you against a wall. “Get me there fast and we won’t have a problem.”

He growled, wrenching you away from the wall and hurrying down the hall to your bedroom. Roger was quick to throw you on the bed, following your body up the mattress. Stopping at your breasts, he sucked one into his mouth, swirling his tongue around the bud. You arched up into his touch, crying out.

“Rog, please,” you begged.

He chuckled a little as he pulled off your breast, moving up to kiss you. “I’ve got you, honey.” He reached down to help you tug off your pants, taking your panties down with them. When you moved to Roger’s pants, he groaned as his cock finally sprang free of its confines. 

You took him in your hand, pumping up and down while he gently rutted into you. He tugged your hands away, bringing them up beside your head as he hovered over you. “I want you to mark me first. I’m gonna knot you so good, you won’t have the strength left to do anything.”

“Promise?” You gave him a smirk, even as you felt yourself clench.

“Cheeky little thing…” he laughed, moving to kiss you again. You sighed into his mouth as he slowly took you apart, taking his time to lick his way in and explore. His fingers found your core and trailed through your folds, gathering the wetness on his fingers. “You’re dripping, love,” he groaned against you.

“Roger, please…” you moaned. You needed more than what he was giving you, but you could barely form the words. It felt like you were a huge incoherent mess since the minute he touched you.

“You beg so prettily, love. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of you.” He moved his fingers away, but quickly replaced them with the head of his cock. He teased your entrance, giving you shallow thrusts that made you whine for more until finally, he sunk fully into you with one smooth motion.

“Oh, god!” you cried out.

“Shit, love. Always so tight.”

He gave you a moment to adjust to his size. It always took you a moment, no matter how much he prepared you. Once you rolled your hips, he took his cue to pull out, only to slam back in with enough force that you felt it in your throat. He started out measured and slow, but with powerful thrusts that had you seeing stars. You couldn’t help the noises you let out as Roger kept his even pace.

The entire anticipation of today had such a huge buildup that left you so on edge. And the thought of finally being marked only added to the pleasure. Before you knew it, your orgasm was fast approaching and Roger hadn’t even touched your clit. He was panting against your neck, whispering sweet nothings mixed with such filthy words that did nothing but turn you on even more. 

“Rog… ‘m close… Oh!” Roger angled his thrusts, hitting the sweetest spot deep inside you. 

“God, (Y/N)... I can feel how close you are… Go on. Come for me, love. Come on my cock.” Roger’s words washed over you. Even though they weren’t intoned with his alpha authority, your body couldn’t help but respond to his command.

You cried out arching your back as your high washed over you. Latching onto the juncture of Roger’s neck, you bit down hard and you both moaned at the sensation. Omega marks technically don’t do anything to a pairing besides just being there for show, but it still heightened the scent of Roger’s arousal.

“That’s it, love… so good to me… oh God, sweetheart.” He worked you through you orgasm, never faltering in his pace until you let go of his neck. His movements slowed to a stop and he moved back to look at you. “You okay, love?” He asked, worry painting his voice.

Swallowing thickly, you nodded your head. “Yeah, yeah. I’m good.”

His hand came up to move some stray hair from your face. “Good enough to keep going?”

You felt yourself clench at the thought despite the overstimulation and Roger groaned at the feeling, closing his eyes. “Told you to let go, didn’t I? We’re not stopping ‘til you mark me… alpha.”

His reaction was instantaneous. 

He growled, eyes flashing, before pulling out of you and turning you over on your stomach. Dragging you up onto your hands and knees, he fell into place behind you. Slamming into you, you groaned at the sudden movement on your still sensitive insides. His hands kept your hips moving, bringing you back onto his length as he repeatedly pushed into you. 

You were so overwhelmed by everything he was doing, all you could think was, Roger, Roger, alpha, Roger. The grip of his hands was bruising but it kept you grounded as your ground yourself back against him, searching for more.

Roger’s voice filled the air, loud over the sound of your lovemaking. “So good to me (Y/N)... the best… such a good omega… mine… gonna look so good with my mark…” 

You whimpered when one of his hands found your clit and began rubbing it in little circles. The stimulation was almost too much, but you could still feel your arousal building back up.

Suddenly, Roger’s other hand left your hip to push your shoulders down to the mattress. With your head down and your ass up, your instincts told you that you were presenting for your alpha, and all rational thought flew out the window. 

“Alpha!” you cried, letting your baser instincts take over.

“Fuck, (Y/N)...” Roger groaned. You felt the base of his cock start to swell, catching against your opening with each drag. Roger was still working you with his fingers when he lent over you, plastering his chest to your back. He supported himself on one hand, pressing your upper body into the mattress. “You ready, baby? Ready for my knot?”

You moaned into your arm. “Roger, alpha… please, knot me.” You barely got the words out before Roger growled again, slamming all the way inside you, grinding down as his knot swelled. The flicks of his fingers were bringing you so close that when he finally bit your neck, you exploded. 

White hot pleasure shot through you and all you felt was Roger, everywhere. His chest against your back, his fingers on your clit, the pressure of his teeth on your neck, and his knot pressing against you so deliciously, filling you with his cum. It felt like he was inside you, tearing you apart and remaking you.

“That’s it, honey… so perfect. You’re milking me so well… God, I love you so much.” Roger continued to praise you, working through your high. But this time, you felt his emotions as an undercurrent through your body. His own pleasure, the alpha pride, but also his love, spilling into you. You let out a choked sob at the emotions, unable to hold back. Roger repositioned you both on your sides so you were spooning on the bed. The jostling moved his knot, making you clench and causing Roger to groan as well. 

Roger stroked your hair back, moving it out the way to nuzzle at the mark he made, soothing over it with his tongue. You sighed, closing your eyes as your heartbeat slowly started to calm down and your instincts started to fade from your mind. Contentment radiated off you, and you could feel it in Roger as well. His euphoria, not just from his climax but also from claiming you made your own heart clench as your emotions swirled back and forth between each other in a loop.

When his knot went down, he pulled out slowly, but you still winced at the ache it left behind. Roger quickly ran off and came back with a warm washcloth to tenderly clean your dripping entrance. He chucked it away when he finished, bringing you back into his arms to rest across his chest. You snuggled closer, closing your eyes again as he rubbed your back.

“Doesn’t look like we triggered your heat, love.” He whispered against your hair, brushing his lips against your head.

“Hmm. That’s okay… my next one’s supposed to be in a few weeks anyway.” you mumbled.

“Still have the whole weekend off, though.”

You smirked against his chest. “And whatever will we do?”

Amusement radiated back at you, “Oh, I can think of a few things, love.”

[myinconnelly1]

ArchAngel: Ch 1 Pt  5 When Life is a Literal Wreck

Masterlist

Previous

Word count: 2312

Warnings: Canon Violence, canon gore, Season 1 spoilers. ABO Dynamics

“All right so what's this trail you found?”  Dean asked as he looked at all the papers and notes John had scattered everywhere.

“It starts in Arizona, then New Jersey, California. Houses burned down to the ground. It's going after families, just like it went after us.”  John said standing from the desk in the motel.

“Families with infants?”  Sam asked, already knowing the answer.

“Yeah. The night of the kid's six-month birthday.”  John said.  He looked at Natalie, then over at Dean and Sam quickly.

“I was six months old that night?”  Sam asked holding back tears at the thought that everything that had happened to his family was his fault.

“Jim Murphy's dead,”  John said, anger mixing with anguish written on his face.

“Pastor Jim? How?”  Sam asked astonished.

“His throat was slashed. He bled out. Caleb said they found traces of sulfur at Jim's place.”  John said, face falling to the ground.

“A demon.  The Demon?” Dean asked as he realized that the sulfur deposit would be caused by the extreme hormonal change of an alpha or omega.

“I don't know. Could be he just got careless, he slipped up. Maybe the demon knows we're getting close.”  John responded frustration seeping from his voice.  “Now we act like every second counts. There's two hospitals and a health center in this county. We split up, cover more ground. I want records. I want a list of every infant that's going to be six months old in the next week.”

“Dad that could be dozens of kids. How do we know which one's the right one?”  Sam asked.

“We check em all that's how,”  John said.

“I can get us into county records without to much trouble,”  Natalie said holding up her newspaper identification card.

The group split up and got as many records as they could.

“Call you? Are you kidding me? Dad, I called you from Lawrence, all right? Sam called you when I was dying. I mean, getting you on the phone? I got a better chance of winning the lottery.”  Dean shouted at his dad.  The boys had just finished telling John about Sam’s visions, and Natalie thought John was taking it pretty well.  Considering his track record.  She continued to write little notes in her journal as the fought, trying to keep track of what was happening.  Maybe it would be something that would be important later.

“You're right.”  All three of them looked at John gaping.  “Although I'm not too crazy about this new tone of yours, you're right. I'm sorry.”  Dean looked from his dad to Natalie.  The feeling that she had something to do with his new voice was overbearing to him.  Sam’s phone rang them pulling Dean from his thoughts.

“Hello?  Who is this?”  Sam said then waited with a look of confusion on his face.  Recognition dawned on his face, followed by fear.  “Meg.”  They all turned to stare at Sam.  “Last time I saw you you fell out of a window.  Just your feelings? That was a seven-story drop.”  Natalie shivered at the memory of the woman.  Sam seems to hesitate then hands the phone to John.

“This is John.  Caleb?”  John asks after a moment.  Sam and Dean respond to the name instantly, going to high alert.  Natalie looks at the older man.  She had meet Caleb, it wasn’t a pleasant evening for either of them.

“It's gonna take me about a days drive to get there,”  John said after Meg demanded him to meet her.  With Caleb dead, they all knew she was done playing around.

“I'm going to Lincoln,”  John said, looking at his boys after he hung up the phone.  Natalie stored her little notebook in her jacket pocket.  “It doesn't look like we have a choice. If I don't go, a lot of people die, our friends die.”

“You're going to hand Meg a fake gun and hope she doesn't notice?”  Dean asked bewildered.

“I just...I just need to buy a few hours, that's all.”  John said.  That tired expression fell over his face again suddenly.

“You mean for Dean and me. You want us to stay here, and kill this demon by ourselves?”  Sam asked.  Dean had walked over to where Natalie was standing, and pulled her jacket off, nuzzling her to soothe himself.

“No Sam. I want to stop losing people we love. I want you to go to school, I want Dean to have a home.”  He looked over at his older son and the Omega.  Natalie’s gaze fell to the ground almost guiltily as Dean lifted his head to look at his dad.  He had never voiced his desire to settle down.  “I want...I want Mary alive.”  John turned his back to his children hiding his emotions.  “It's just,”  He started to say something but seemed to change his mind.  “I just want this to be over.”

“Let’s split up, Dean you go get the gun,”  John said as they started dividing their tasks out.

“I’m going to stay here, maybe I can get in touch with some people to help your friends,”  Natalie said, as she moved to the motel bathroom.

“All right listen to me. They made the bullets special for this colt. There's only four of them left. Without them this gun is useless. You make every shot count.”  John said handing them the gun.  Dean and Sam nodded taking the gun.

“We’ll see you soon,”  Sam said.

“I’ll see you later,”  John agrees before getting into his truck.  An odd smell hits Dean as John opens the door, but the boys wave their father goodbye and watch him leave.

“I know that you're in here, you can come out,”  John says out loud when he gets out of sight from the brothers.

“I’m really losing my touch,”  Natalie says uncurling from the blanket in the backseat.  “How did you know I was here?”  She asked moving to the front.

“You mean besides your new overpower scent that is all over my truck?”  He chuckled darkly at her.  “You left the bathroom window open back at the motel.”

“I had to, Dean he’s not-”  She stopped not able to finished her explanation.

“You don’t have to explain yourself to me,”  John said before they put the miles between themselves and his sons.

“We could always tell em the truth,”  Sam says.  Dean just looks at Sam for a long moment, one eyebrow raised.

“Nah!”  They laugh.

“Do you think Nat is having any luck warning the other hunters?”  Sam asked his brother trying not to think about the enormity of their situation.

“I’m sure she’s doing everything she can,”  Dean says still looking out the window at the house.  Something about Natalie had been bothering him since their dad had been back but he wasn’t sure what it was.

“Dean...ah...I wanna thank you.”  Sam chuckles.

“For what?”  His brother turns to look at him finally.

“For everything. You've always had my back you know? Even when I couldn't count on anyone I could always count on you. And ah...I don't know I just wanted to let you know, Just in case,”  Sam finished.

“No, I don’t want to hear that speech.  No one except for that Demon is dying.”  Dean says finally.  “I’ve got a smoking hot Omega back at the motel, and she can’t get enough of me.  I plan on pissing you off with her for a long time.”  Dean jest.

Dean paced while holding the phone to his ear, listening to it ring out. They had managed to save the family and the little baby, but the demon had gotten away and Sam had wasted a round.

“Come on Dad, answer your phone damn it.”  Dean was seething as Sam went over to look at a paper sticking out of Natalie’s jacket.  “Somethings wrong.  Dad’s not answering and Natalie isn’t here.”

“Dean,”  Sam said looking at the paper.  Dean called his dad again.

“You boys really screwed up this time.”  Both brothers could hear Meg’s voice over the cell phone.

“Come on, Dean, you really think these demons are going to leave a trail?”  Sam said hours later in the impala.

“You’re right. We need help.”  Dean said sighing with resolve and driving through the night before pulling into Singer Auto Salvage.

“Bobby, thanks. Thanks for everything. To tell you the truth, I wasn’t sure we should come.”  Dean said to the crotchety old hunter.

“Nonsense. Your Daddy needs help.”  Bobby brushes the concern away.

“Well, yeah, but last time we saw you, I mean, you did threaten to blast him full of buckshot. Cocked the shotgun and everything.”  Dean recalls when they last left Bobby’s in a hurry.

“Yeah, well, what can I say? John just has that effect on people.”  Bobby laughs.

“Yeah, I guess he does.”  The comment made him think of Natalie and his body ached.  He pushed the feelings away as Sam started talking to the older man about a book.

“And these, uh, these protective circles. They really work?”  Sam asks pointing at a picture in the book.

“Hell, yeah. You get a demon in - they’re trapped. Powerless. It’s like a roach motel.”  Bobby agrees.  “Cuts off their signal from where ever they are hacking into.”

“What do you mean?”  Sam asks.

“Well these Demons, they are Alphas and omegas that are amped up on a big something, but the trap acts as interference and they lose their potency.

“Man knows his stuff.”  Dean sighed as Sam chuckled.

“No more crap,”  Meg said as she breaks in the front door to Bobby’s house.

“Gotcha,”  Dean tormented as the blonde demon realizes she’s been trapped.

“Are you gonna read me a story?”  Meg taunted as Sam opens the journal and starts to read in Latin.

“Your kidding right?”  Meg rolls her eyes.

“Oh yea, this is a good one.  Something about trigger and key phrases.”  Dean pretended to sound stupid.  “He finishes that and bye-bye Demon, normal girl again.”

“You boys should head out of here before the authorities get here.”  Bobby urged.

“You didn’t ask Meg about Natalie,”  Sam states later in the car.

“If she said anything about her, it would probably be a lie.”

The brothers and their dad were at a cabin hiding and resting, but somehow the demon still found them.

“Dean? What the hell’s going on?”  Sam gasped as he came into the room.

“Your brother’s lost his mind.”   John pressed

“He’s not Dad.” 

“What?”  Sam says looking between his father and his brother.

“I think he’s possessed. I think he’s been possessed since we rescued him.”  Dean said still holding the gun up at his father.

“Dean, how do you know?”  Sam asked his brother.

“He’s .... he’s different.”  Dean's grip on the colt was shaky as he started to fight back tears.

“If you’re both so sure, shoot me then,”  John says hanging his head, but the brothers aren’t able to pull the trigger.  “I thought so.”

“I’m gonna kill you!”  Sam roared as Dean is flung against the wall.

“Oh, that’d be a neat trick. In fact,”  John puts the gun on the table between them.  “Here. Make the gun float to you there, psychic boy.”  John’s words remind Sam of what Natalie had written on his little note page.  She had called him psychic too.

“I bet you’re real proud of your kids, too, huh? Oh wait, I forgot. I wasted ‘em.”  Dean snarls at the demon.

“You’ll feel my pain soon enough,”  The demon mutters before starting a psychic onslaught on Dean.  Blood began to flow from several sudden wounds as Dean screamed in pain, willing his father to not kill him.

John broke free of the demons grasp and Sam grabbed the Colt shooting him in the leg.  Sam was surprised by the effect, unlike the vampire, it didn’t drop him to the ground completely unconscious, John knew the demon was still there, but like a computer virus, it scurried out of John and disappeared, seeming to leave John to pick up the pieces.  

“Why didn’t you end it?!”  John shouted at his younger son.

“I didn’t want you to not be you anymore,”  Sam said mindful of the fact that Dean had passed out again.  “Where’s Natalie?”  She wasn’t at the apartment when we found you.”

“The Demon used me to tag her, ArchAngel picked her up back in Lincoln.  I don’t know why he tagged her instead of using her.”  John muttered as the two of them moved to get Dean into the Impala and get to a hospital.

“Look, just hold on, alright. The hospital’s only ten minutes away.”  Sam said as he placed Dean in the backseat, resting him against the window.

"I’m surprised at you, Sammy. Why didn’t you kill it? I thought we saw eye-to-eye on this? Killing this demon comes first – before me, before everything.”  John said disappointment and frustration evident on his face.

“No, sir. Not before everything.  I know you have been holding something back.  Ever since the vampire hunt, you’ve been acting weird.  Letting us hunt with you, open up with the heart to hearts.  What’s really going on?”  Sam accused.

“Natalie is Dean’s Omega.”  John sighed.  “She told me something important the night we split up to hunt the vampires.”

“What?”  Sam asked, looking shocked at his dad.

“It’s not my place to tell you.  But once we kill this demon, we need to find her.”

“Look, we’ve still got the Colt. We still have the one bullet left. We just have to start over, alright? I mean, we already found the demon-”

A demon driving a semi-truck plowed into the passenger side of the Impala, ramming it off the road and rendering the Winchesters unconscious.

@waywardbaby​ @destielhoneybee​ @snffbeebee​ @deangirl7695​ @spnbaby-67​ @maddiepants​ @tabrown2021​ @ladywinchester1967​ @woodworthti666​ @miraclesoflove​ @tumbler-tidbits​ @emilyshurley​ @akshi8278​ @mannls​ @wendibird​ @bobasheebaby​ @flamencodiva​ @theoneandonlymelol​ @chelsea072498​ @donnaintx​ @justsomedreaming​ @supernaturalenchanted​ @kalesrebellion​ @prettydeaneyes​​ @emoryhemsworth​ @yourdommelb​

[twdmusicboxmystery]

TWD 10x08: The World Before - First Thoughts

Hello everyone! So what did you think of the episode. I totally loved it! Yes, it’s frustrating to get a cliffhanger for the MSF, but I, for one, am kind of used to it by now. I more or less count on that for every finale and MSF. If it doesn’t happen (because sometimes it doesn’t) then awesome. But when it does, I’m not surprised or upset by it. 

But onto happier things. This was one of those episodes that was just dripping with symbolism. (My favorite kind! So today I’ll talk about the broad, sweeping things and what most jumped out at me (and there was a LOT that did, even on first watch) and tomorrow I’ll do nitty-gritty details. Later in the week, I have some other things to post that I’m hoping will help everyone get through the hiatus, so stay tuned for those. Let’s dive in!

This is one episode that the spoilers definitely didn’t do justice to at all.

***As always, spoilers abound for 10x08 below. Don’t read until you’ve watched! You’ve been warned!***

Daryl’s Reaction to Carol and Lydia:

Depending on what you follow online, this might not mean much to you. But the groups I’m in follow spoilers and there was a lot of talk about how Daryl didn’t seem to care that much that Lydia was gone, or that Carol sort of lost her. And the spoilers only talked about a very tender scene between Daryl and Carol. 

Well, they did have a sweet scene together, but him not caring about Lydia and not getting after Carol was utterly untrue. (If you’ve watched the episode, you know this.) 

No, he doesn’t exactly scream in Carol’s face or anything (but Daryl wouldn’t do that anyway) but he does get after her. I really liked their interactions because I feel like Daryl might just have finally gotten through to Carol about her destructive behavior. She cries, and that’s where he hugs her. It was actually a really beautiful scene.

I will grant you that it doesn’t last long, as Carol still chases blindly after Alpha not long after, but still.

Music References:

Probably my favorite thing was the musical references. Luke names and later hums a specific piece of classical music: Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini. 

Even if the name doesn’t ring a bell for you, I can almost guarantee you’ve heard it before. HERE’s a video so you can listen. If you can’t access this one, just google it or search your YouTube. I promise it won’t be hard to find a way to listen to it. It’s one of the most famous pieces of classical music of all time.

It was featured in a film in the 80s called Somewhere in Time that had a cult following (one of my personal faves with Christopher Reeves and Jane Seymour).

So, my first instinct was to research the song itself. Like, does it have a coda? I knew I had some sheet music from this song on my shelf so I went and got it. Mine doesn’t have a coda, but mine is also only the 18th variation.

It’s important for everyone to understand what a variation is in classical music. A variation is basically just one part of the overall symphony. Any given symphony is divided into parts, or variations. Not unlike chapters of a book. Each one is part of the overall story, but different things happen in each chapter, right? Same with Variations. All part of the same symphony, and therefore all based around and repeating the same musical themes, but all slightly different as well.

So, any given variation may not have a coda, but we need to look at the symphony as a whole. (And I can back this idea up because in the episode, Luke finds a book in the library of this piece of music and on the cover it says something like “complete preludes for piano” on it. 

So, what I’m getting at is that the 24th variation IS a coda. I found this description of the 24th variation:

Variation 24: provides a massive capstone to the entire work.  The Dies Irae theme emerges heavily in brass and strings while piano and winds recall prominent features of the subject.  A brilliant coda reiterates fragments of the theme, compressing earlier ideas within a massive acceleration. Suddenly and surprisingly there is a drop to an unexpected soft dynamic and two cadential chords from the piano mark the ending.

Obviously that is very significant. They’re mentioning, talking about, humming, and showing us sheet music for a very famous symphony that has a coda. I think our TWD coda is about to roll back around, don’t you?

But I’m also wondering about the Somewhere in Time theme. I’m sure at least some of you aren’t familiar with it. It’s an American film with a cult following. But in terms of pop cinema culture, Paganini’s Rhapsody and this film are very intertwined. There are plenty of people who wouldn’t know that symphony at all EXCEPT for the film, so I have to wonder if they chose this piece of music, both for what it means by itself, and also for the Somewhere in Time reference. Notice the “time” element of that title.

The film is a ridiculously romantic time travel story. Its about two lovers who are basically separated by time, and have to travel through time to find one another and, you know, be together forever. Sound like Bethyl to you?

And because I was thinking about that, I noticed something else. When Aaron is talking to Gracie (there are a lot of interesting things in this scene, but I’ll go into most of them tomorrow in my Details post) he tells her a story about once visiting some old Native American ruins. He says he started to wonder about the lives and identities of the people who once lived there. People who had been “lost to time.” So there was a definite theme about people being lost in time in this episode. Very significant. Actually kind of gives me chills. In a good way. ;D

Gracie:

I felt like there was a large emphasis on Gracie in this episode. Aaron talked about her to Gamma last episode, in conjunction with bikes (which we’ve long associated with kidnapping and even “missing girl” stuff) so I still feel like Gracie might be taken.

Here, when Aaron learned about Dante killing Siddiq, he kind of had a meltdown, saying he should have seen it and Dante had been part of the community for months and had even treated Gracie. I don’t think we should read into that literally. I don’t think Dante did anything to Gracie or anything. But I feel like she’s being associated with the whole Siddiq/Dante situation.

And of course we had the part where he sat with her and quizzed her on the license plates. So I feel like they’re setting up something with Gracie here, and I’ve said before that I can see something along the lines of Gracie being taken/kidnapped and Aaron going to find her, and that somehow leading to Beth. So I guess I’m just seeing this as confirmation that something with Gracie is in the works, even if the rest is just conjecture right now.

Bear Trap:

This probably qualifies as more of a Detail than anything else, but it was too huge not to share. After they cross the border, Carol almost steps in a bear trap. Daryl sees it in time and stops her saying, “You could have lost a foot.” Lost shoe/foot symbolism anyone?

I’ve come to believe that the lost shoe/foot theme is directly tied to the death fake out. I won’t say much more than that except that only Daryl and Carol are in this scene. So, it might point to Ezekiel’s coming death fake out, which I think is close, or to the one Daryl is involved in, which would just be another way to hint at Beth being close.

But it’s more than that. MUCH more. Some of you may remember that WAY back, a long time ago (like during the 5b/6a time period) some of the prominent TD-ers of the time dug up some information about a Beth figurine/toy that was set to be released. They were going to release one that included a bear trap prop in the package.

Now, that figuring was never actually released. People in our fandom actually contacted the toy company to ask about it and were told that it was planned for release at one point, but for unspecified reasons, the company (that would be AMC) changed their minds and scrapped the project.

We still don’t know exactly why, though I suspect it was because TD was so active back then and they simply decided they didn’t need to give us this hint.

Lots of theories about the large bear trap circulated back then. People even wondered if it would have something to do with Beth and Shiva, which it didn’t. But it’s weird, right? I mean, why would tptb release a figurine of Beth with such a specific, large prop that never showed up in her story line and had absolutely no bearing on anything in her—or any other character’s—story?

Well, obviously TD took it as something symbolic/a clue to how she might return. Now, we have an actual bear trap as part of a sequence connected to the Whisperers, when many of suspect we may be as little as two episodes out from her return. Significant enough for you? I can’t stress how huge this little bear trap detail is.

But I can even take it further than that.

In terms of what specifically happens in this episode, it was a foreshadow of the ending. So Carol almost stepped in the bear trap, but just barely avoided catastrophe. Daryl yelled stop, stop and managed to pull her back before she stepped in the trap, triggering it, which would have been very painful. Near the end of the episode, Carol chases after Alpha. Daryl yells, stop, stop! But she doesn’t listen and what happens? They trigger the trap.

So, some pretty basic foreshadowing for the end of the episode. But the idea of that also has my head spinning, because I can’t help but compare it to other things.

First, it’s the bear trap being associated with Beth again. Because, in my head, them triggering this trap, and it being symbolized beforehand by the bear trap, is just another way of saying that something about them triggering this trap Alpha set for them will lead to Beth in some way.

But I’m also thinking about Alone. With this symbolism in mind, you could argue that Beth stepping on the small game trap at the beginning of Alone foreshadowed her getting caught in the Grady trap at the end of that episode. The sequence is similar. When the metal, animal trap is scene early on, catastrophe is largely avoided.

(Yes, Beth steps in the trap, but it only results in a hurt ankle. Nothing to worry about. They even emphasize that it’s not broken. If Carol had stepped on hers, it would have snapped her leg like a twig, and they needed her to be able to run later, so they couldn’t do a complete parallel. But again, catastrophe largely avoided.)

Then, near the end of the episode, a MUCH bigger trap is triggered. And this time, catastrophe can’t be avoided. Daryl couldn’t stop the Grady cops from taking Beth, though he tried. And he couldn’t stop the group in this episode—including himself—from falling into the pit, though he tried.

In fact, you could argue that because the rest of the group ran out ahead of him after Carol, while he stayed behind to fight walkers, this was a huge parallel to the end of Alone. Think about it. He stays behind to lead the walkers away while she runs out ahead of him. We see him running through the yard of the funeral home in the direction she went, looking for her, but she’s already fallen into the Grady trap by then.

Here, the rest of the group runs out ahead of Daryl, after Carol. He takes care of the walkers and then runs in the direction they all went, looking for them. But they’d already fallen into the pit by the time he got there. See why this is so huge?

(P.S. On TTD, they pointed out that we see this from Daryl’s POV, which was true of Alone as well. We saw everything through his eyes, and didn’t see what happened with Beth. Only what he saw.)

The dark pit they fall into reminded me of two things: 1) the cave Gamma’s sister went into with Alpha before emerging into the light, which I pegged right away as a Beth-parallel. 2) the darkness-to-light theme in general. We saw it around Beth a lot, but around others as well. So if this is the group going into the darkness, then when they re-emerge into the light, maybe that’s when Beth will show up? (a.k.a. episode 10?) Just a thought.

But for Beth, Grady = falling into a dark pit. In this shot, we see her walking into a dark corridor/tunnel with light at the other end. And this is RIGHT before she’s shot. Which I always saw as her heading into the darkness, but it foreshadows that she’ll come through into the light (survive). And now we’re seeing a replay of this in 10x08.

Virgil:

Okay, let’s talk Virgil. For the record, I don’t think he’s linked to Connie and Kelly. That was a fun theory and I was hoping for it as much as the next person, but I didn’t get that feeling while watching the episode. First off, it’s not that he’s been separated from his family and looking for them, which is what early reports of him suggested. Rather, it’s that he left his community on some kind of supply mission and he’s trying to get back to them. So, he knows exactly where they are. He’s just trying to get home.

That’s right. HOME theme. They emphasize several times that he’s going home. He says it, Michonne repeats it, etc. And remember that finding one’s way home is associated with the North Star/Sirius symbolism, thanks to Carl saying that to Judith in S6.

And where Virgil’s home is, is AWESOME! Pay attention to this TD-ers, because it’s SUPER significant. He tells Michonne that he lives in a compound on Bloodsworth Island in Tangiers sound. I had to sit back and let that sink in. We’ve always said Beth will return by water. If she’s on an island, that kind of makes every water reference we’ve ever seen around her make sense. The picture of the ship behind Hershel in 4a (Smooth seas don’t make for good sailors), the teddy bear that washed up on the beach in 7x06, etc.

I had to do some research on this place because I wasn’t familiar with it. Both Bloodsworth Island and Tangier sound are in the Chesapeake Bay area. The sound is bordered by parts of Virginia and Maryland. My point? This really isn’t very far away. Michonne mentions a 2-day trip to get there.

But given all the symbolism around this, and that this may be where Beth is…well, suddenly it seems like she really may not be very far from D.C. at all.

And then there’s the idea of the naval base. Virgil says it’s hard to find and fortified. Remember what I said about the helicopter people: that they’re probably ex-military, which is why they’re so good at security and keeping people from leaving their group once they’ve entered. It would also make sense why they’ve learned to purify water, since they’re on an island surrounded on all sides by salt water.

So what I’m saying is that this plays very well into everything we’ve been thinking thus far. We already know Danai is going to the Rick Grimes films, so to say she’ll run into Rick is a foregone conclusion. But I’ve said before that I think Rick and Beth are in the same place, or at least within the same organization.

I want to point out that Michonne quotes Rick’s line to Virgil: My mercy prevailed over my wrath. Now, on the one hand, that’s just a very obvious way of foreshadowing that when she leaves, she’ll be finding Rick. His storyline is about to come back into play, and Virgil will be part of that. We already knew that because of outside-the-show stuff. But a good example of foreshadowing at work, and we’ve seen plenty of similar stuff with Beth.

But that line is also tied to Carl’s death. I won’t go into all of this today (I will in a later post) but this is also helping me draw a line between Carl’s death and how Beth will return. I know that’s kind of a tease, but it’s also a whole other rabbit hole, so I’ll give it its own post later.

Wolves and Whisperers:

I said I’d talk more about the Aaron/Gracie scene tomorrow, and I will, but I want to point out one more thing that jumped out at me. First, when Daryl/Carol/Father Gabriel were interrogating Dante, they emphasized that Dante and the Whisperers believed they were setting people free. First Dante said it, claiming that not caring about yourself or others makes you free, and then Carol repeated it for emphasis.

Then there was the Native American story Aaron told Gracie. Both of those things are major callbacks to the wolves. One of the wolves told Morgan that what they did would set people free. And then Crazy Wolf Dude told Morgan in 5x16 that their beliefs were remnants of the beliefs of Native Americans who first settled the area, who believed they were wolves.

And I’ve said before that the wolves were a forerunner and symbolic parallel of the Whisperers, so this is nothing new, but I wanted to point out the strong resemblance in beliefs. And is it literal? I don’t know. I could see it going either way. Maybe at some point we’ll learn that the wolves were an outgrowth of the Whisperers or something.

But it really could just be a symbolic parallel as well. Even if it is just that, it would explain why there was so much Beth symbolism around the wolves and lend credence to the idea of her returning during the Whisperer arc. Just saying.

I also think Virgil has some parallels to Morgan. Again, I’ll talk about this more tomorrow, but in 3x12, Clear, when Rick/Michonne/Carl ran into Morgan, they were looking for weapons to help them fight a war against the Governor. When they found Morgan, he came across as somewhat crazy, and they had to tie him up until they were sure he wouldn’t kill them.

Similar stuff with Virgil. He comes across as a threat and is taken prisoner at first. In the end, Michonne goes with him to find weapons to help them in their war against Alpha. So there are some definite parallels there.

Okay, these were the biggest things. I’ll stop there because this is already long. Plenty more to cover, but I’ll do it tomorrow in the Details post. How did YOU like the episode?

Oh wait! One more thing. Hehe. Can I just point out the title. The World Before. I have to ask, the world before what? Something big is about to change, y’all. ;D

[negasonicimagines]

My One and Lonely

whew! this was intense! I’m really sorry if this doesn’t correctly fulfill these requests, folks! i tried! 

1: “okay what about poly yukisonic x reader where the yukio, ellie, and the reader have started a new relationship, but the reader is unsure of it?? and Ellie and yukio just reassure thems?? basically I just want poly yukisonic x reader angst with a happy ending. : ')” 2: “Could you do a negasonic imagine where reader is her girlfriend and has telekinesis? And Wade takes any opportunity to tease the couple so reader constantly uses her powers to slam the door in Wades face?” [yeah i defo didn’t really fill this one but the reader has telekinesis and DOES slam the door in Wade’s face and I have so many requests bro... but I’d be willing to redo this if you’re not satisfied] TRIGGER WARNING for mentions and discussion of past abuse. the reader also almost has a panic attack. let me know if i missed anything

“You know, you could just talk to them about it,” Wade tells you, and your fork and book fall to the ground.

“Uh, no? I literally can’t, dude. Now my fork’s dirty.”

“Uh, yeah. You literally can, dude. And that’ll teach you to be lazy, using your powers for easy stuff like turning pages and eating. I bet the fork’s not that bad.”

“Like you wouldn’t do the same thing,” you scoff, and he shrugs, nodding.

“Come on. It’s totally normal for you to be feeling the way you are. They were friends and dating before you came into the picture. Insecurity’s normal. Especially considering-”

“Call me insecure one more time and I’ll use the dirty fork to show you just how insecure your eye’s placement in your skull is,” you threaten, feeling your face heat up. You didn’t like that your weakness was so obvious. Or that he reminded you of her.

“Christ, maybe I really am a bad influence...Nah, we’re just birds of a feather,” Wade says with a cheeky grin you don’t know how you can see through the mask. Maybe his tone of voice makes the subtle expression more perceivable. “Sorry,” he quickly adds. “But, seriously. They’re the last people who are gonna judge you.”

“Who’s the last people that are gonna judge Y/N?” You hear from behind you. Ellie. Shit. She made you far more nervous than Yukio did. Yukio was the gentle, sensitive moon, and Ellie… Ellie was the sun. Nuturing, yes, but scorching, too.

“Well-”

“No one. Not important. Right, Wade?” you plaster on a smile, fiddling with the fork in your hand before letting it float in the air. “Want the rest of my ramen? I’m not very hungry.”

“Uh, yeah, sure.”

“Catch,” you say, flinging the fork at him telepathically. He gasps sharply, but his reflexes are quick enough to grab it.

You get up, and notice Ellie looks a bit… gloomier than usual.

“Everything okay?” you ask, and she nods, her lips twitching into a small smile for you before quickly concealing the expression.

“Yeah, I’m alright. ‘Kio and I missed you at lunch, that’s all.”

“Well, I was, uh… Hanging out with Wade. Like you saw,” you explain.

“You didn’t seem very happy. He didn’t say anything to bother you, did he?”

“Oh, uh, no. I was just a bit stressed. Exams coming up and all that.”

“Exams are a couple months away,” Ellie reminds you. “But you were stressed, weren’t you? Look, if you’re having regrets, whatever, fine. I wouldn’t be happy about it and neither would Yukio, but you have a right to your feelings. Just don’t fucking lie to me, okay?”

“I- I promise it’s not about that. Really, I’m… Happy to be with you guys.”

“Then what is it? Seriously?”

You stiffen, you can tell she’s getting angry. Your heart feels like a stone in your chest, cracked and heavy.

“It’s nothing,” you say, not meeting her eyes.

“Alright. Keep your secrets, then,” Ellie sighs, walking away. You head to your room, locking the door behind you. Most students with telepathic abilities get their own rooms in an effort to avoid accidental harm of their fellow students. This was the case for you, and you used to like it.

But then, you met Ellie and Yukio. The two of them were already dating when you were officially introduced, and you became fast friends with them. It quickly evolved into more, and the three of you became what many refer to as a “throuple.”

The facet of the insecurity Wade so rudely talked of earlier was, of course, the fact that they were roommates, and you were alone every night. They got to cuddle and kiss and you got to watch ASMR.

It was depressingly lonely. Sure, every once in awhile you could get away with sleeping over on weekends. But, most of the time, the teachers monitored the rooms, making sure everyone was where they were supposed to be, in case of emergency.

But, wait, there’s more!

As mentioned previously, Ellie is the sun. Yukio is the moon. What are you in that?

And it didn’t help that you were still struggling to cope with the aftermath of her, a little over a year later.

Before you began your schooling at Xavier’s, you were friends with a small group of fellow mutants that were slowly drawn together by fate. One of these mutants was a girl. You can’t even bear to think her name.

Back then, you were only telepathically gifted. You hadn’t even dreamed you would be capable of telekinesis one day.

But she, she had super-strength, and she liked to use it on you. Even when you didn’t want her to.

You were defenseless.

You shake, pulling your knees to your chest.

“Hey, why’s the door locked? I thought we were all gonna work together on our art projects.” Yukio’s bright voice is muffled by the door.

“Uh, um, yeah, yeah, I’ll be there in a, um, sec,” you say, your breathing growing heavier and more fast-paced. “Actually, uh, you- you and Ellie sh...sh-should just go and, uh, go work on your projects t-together. I’ll- Yeah, I’ll, uh, figure mine out eventually.” Shit, I’m doing a terrible job at covering this up.

“You okay in there, bunny?” It was a cute nickname that Yukio liked to call both you and Ellie.

“Mmhmm, yeah. Just a bit, uh, very tired. Gonna take a nap soon.”

“Okay…” she says, and you know she doubts you. Failure.

“On second thought, uh, I’ll just go to bed early tonight. Let’s get to work,” you decide, unlocking and opening the door.

Upon opening the door, you notice Wade behind them.

“Didn’t realize you took Art, Wade.”

“You also didn’t realize that we planned for you to come to our room. You were supposed to show up twenty minutes ago, actually. So, we went to talk to Wade. Since you tell him everything these days,” Ellie says, pure bitterness in the mention of Wade. It wasn’t that she hated him. She hated that you told him and not her. Not even Yukio, who she’d admit was far more approachable than her.

“Sorry, kid,” he says. “They had a right to know.”

“You- You didn’t tell them about- About…” You feel your eyes widen, alarm racing through you slowly and quickly at the same time.

“No, not that. Not her. Just the other stuff.”

“Oh.”

“Her?” Ellie asks. “Cheating on us, seriously?”

“No,” you say, and it comes out as a whimper due to her angry tone. “I- I- This was a bad idea, Wade. You guys should just go, all three of you, I don’t feel well, I’m tired, I-”

“I’m gonna leave you kids to sort this out,” Wade tells you three. “Good luck.” He slowly backs away.

“Can you close the door?” Yukio asks, and you jolt, door slamming in Wade’s face.

“Yeah,” you say afterwards. This was becoming less stressful thinking and more panic attack by the moment.

“You’ve been avoiding us lately,” Yukio points out. “Wade already told us why, but… I want to hear it from you, ‘kay?”

“It’s nothing, I-” You take a careful, ragged breath, sitting on your bed. Yukio sits on the stool at your desk, and Ellie leans her back against the door. “I just don’t fit. I’ve never fit in anywhere, and I never will. All I’ve done trying is bother others. Especially Ellie and you.”

“You don’t fit?” Ellie asks. “What the fuck do you mean?”

“I- You’re the sun...Yukio’s the moon… And I’m just… I’m Pluto.” The last bit comes out as a shaky whisper. A large, hot tear rolls down your cheek swiftly.

“What?! No! No, bunny, you’re- You’re…” Yukio kneels in front of you, swiping your tear away with her thumb and keeping your sad face in her hand. “I can’t think of anything, but you’re not Pluto, baby.”

“The eclipse. You’re the eclipse, Y/N. Everything aligning perfectly so that we can be together,” Ellie says thoughtfully. “Is that all? You feel like you don’t have a place here, with us? You do. You’re what makes this whole thing work, okay? Now please, please tell me you didn’t cheat on us for validation.”

“The her comment, right…” you say, the temporary relief you felt by Ellie’s original statement subsiding. “No. I didn’t cheat, I swear. I’d never do that to you guys, to anyone. I… The last relationship I had before you guys was, um… Not the greatest. It was around a year ago, a little more. Before Xavier’s. Before I honed my abilities. There was a girl, a mutant like me. Like us. But she, uh… She had super-strength. And I wasn’t very physically strong, I was pretty weak, actually. So… You can probably see where I’m going with this, or I hope you do, because I don’t like talking about it, not at-” You finally dissolve into tears. “Not at all…”

Ellie rushes towards you to embrace you, and you flinch reflexively.

“I’m sorry. I was really thoughtless. Just now and for most of our interactions today,” Ellie admits. “I’m just… Things between me and ‘Kio weren’t the greatest, but we were trying because we knew we were meant to be together. And then you came along, and everything made sense. Everything finally fit together, perfectly. And- And I don’t wanna lose that. Ever.”

“Same here,” Yukio agrees. “You’re so great, Y/N. Wade said that you feel really lonely all by yourself in here. Maybe we should try to get you transferred to our room. Sometimes they let people room in groups of three, and they probably could use the extra room.”

“Yeah, but… It’d be kind of annoying to have me tagging along all the time,” you remind her.

Ellie’s eye twitches. “Tagging...Along?”

“That’s the phrase, isn’t it?” you ask.

She takes a deep, calming breath, and you watch her fingers move as she counts to ten on them silently. They’re both sitting with you on the bed, now.

“Ah-” Ellie clenches her teeth, hissing for a moment, as if she’s in pain. “Y/N, you’re just as much a part of this relationship as Yukio and I. What part of that is so hard for you to understand?”

“I- I don’t know. It’s just hard to believe. I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop.”

“What shoes? There are no shoes here,” Yukio tells you. “I really only wear them because it’s frowned upon not to, and because if I didn’t then I’d pick up all sorts of nasty germs.”

Ellie nods in agreement. “Same.”

You sigh, knowing there’s no way to convince them of how worthless you are to the relationship. Maybe because to them, you aren’t?

“Hey, did you see that? I saw that. I think it’s clicking, ‘Kio.”

“I did see it,” Yukio agrees, and you smile a little at their antics, shaking your head. “Let me go to the office and get the room transfer forms. I’d love to stay, but I think you two cuties need to talk a bit… In private.”

Yukio exits.

“I’m...Sorry. For talking to Wade and not you guys. I shouldn’t have-”

“You’re allowed to confide in your friend. I shouldn’t have taken it as personally as I did. I just know there was a time, before we all got together romantically, where you would’ve talked to me or Yukio about something if it stressed you out that much. But I guess not… We didn’t know about her.”

“It’s just hard to even think about. I feel so ashamed all the time, I’m really sorry that I didn’t-”

“Seriously. You don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to, and I feel seriously shitty that I was such an asshole about it. You have a right to privacy, as long as you’re not putting anyone or anything in danger. But, the anyone and anything includes you. Okay?”

“Okay,” you respond, and Ellie kisses your forehead, her dark brown eyes looking to yours before she places the softest kiss on your lips, carefully holding your face as if you were priceless and she didn’t want to risk breaking you. You lean into her, forehead on her shoulder.

“Let’s lay down. I owe you some cuddling. I hear I’m an excellent big spoon,” she tells you.

“From a biased source. Let’s try the sweetheart’s cradle,” you offer.

“What the fuck is the sweetheart’s cradle?”

“Honestly, I did far too much research into the perfect cuddle position, for the time it might actually happen.”

“We don’t really cuddle, do we? Yukio hasn’t really given you any cuddles either, has she? Wow, you’re really missing out- ...Oh. I’m so sorry,” Ellie apologizes, looking more heartbroken than determined with this one. She hadn’t realized the extent to which you were being neglected by them. “I’m sorry, doll. Really sorry.”

“Doll? That’s new,” you comment.

“I figured you deserved a petname of your own,” Ellie informs you. “Now, explain this ‘sweetheart’s cradle’ to me.”

[doomedhowell]

Two Strangers Drinking Champagne In An Airport

Summary: Dan and Phil in an airport terminal drinking champagne out of plastic cups with a bunch of those airport TV screens in the background with all the flights cancelled.

Genre: AU, Fluff

Word Count: 5,252

Trigger Warnings: swearing, drinking champagne

A/N: So, this is my @phandomreversebang fic! I’m really happy with how this turned out and had a lot of fun writing it. This fic goes to this artwork done by @pine-tree-gi, I hope you like it! And thanks so much to my awesome beta @deferredmomentum! :D

Dan knew that it was a bad idea to book a flight during the middle of December when it’s snowing so heavily. His mother even warned him to book a flight earlier. But, of course, Dan thought it would be just fine, that he would be able to get to America on time without any problems.

His family has been planning this trip for a couple weeks now. They’ve been wanting to go America and spend Christmas somewhere warm. It’s unusual, but still… Dan’s quite excited. It’s different. But, good. Plus, he hasn’t seen his family in a couple months due to his busy schedule as a radio host at the BBC.

After all, the only reason Dan is able to make the trip with his family in the first place was that the BBC has finally given him some time off for the holidays.

Dan makes it to the airport, luckily without any troubles getting there with a supposed storm coming.

Finally, he can relax for a little bit before his flight takes off. He decides to grab a coffee from Starbucks, before heading over and taking a seat in the waiting area in Terminal. He’s prepared to wait for his flight. Unfortunately for him though, the airport is pretty busy. Dan is assuming it’s because of the holidays, and Christmas nearing. As long as there aren’t any screaming children around, he doesn’t mind the wait.

It doesn’t take very long before more seats are being filled in the waiting area.

A rather tall man with black hair sits down in the chair next to him, but he doesn’t seem to be interested in starting any conversations with Dan, not that it really bothers Dan anyways. He’s an awkward person normally around strangers, so he prefers not talking to strangers unless he absolutely has to.

It isn’t until about fifteen minutes later, when the stranger next to him finally starts speaking.

“So, where are you heading for the holidays?”

Dan blinks a few times as he looks over at him. “Huh?” The stranger surprising him.

“Sorry about that,” the man chuckles. “I was just curious. Are you heading anywhere for the holidays?”

“Oh, well… yes. I’m going to be heading to Florida with my family,” Dan tells him, sitting up a little more in his seat so that he can talk properly. “That’s where we’re spending the Christmas holiday.”

“Really? No way. That’s where I’m heading as well!” The man exclaimed excitedly.

Dan can’t help but smile a little, the stranger’s excitement being infectious. “Wow. That’s really weird. Where are you staying? If you don’t mind me asking, of course,” He certainly doesn’t want to come off as creepy or invasive to this person he literally just met. He’s just curious, that’s all.

“Disney, of course. My family and I go to Disney whenever we can. There’s no better time to go to Disney than during the holidays. It’s magical,” he replies with a smile. “Oh, by the way… my name is Phil.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Phil...” Dan reaches over and shakes Phil’s hand. “Dan.”

“You as well, Dan,” the man, Phil, gives him a friendly smile. “So, how long are staying in Florida?”

“We’ll be staying until New Years,” Dan tells him. “We’ve never really planned something like this before. It’s our biggest family holiday yet. Luckily, my job is letting me have a long holiday off. It’s been real busy.” He’s honestly shocking himself, he’s never this talkative towards strangers that he’s just met. But, for some odd reason… he feels like this stranger is just easy to talk to. He’s not intimidating. It also helps that he’s very nice.

“It’s good they’re letting you have the holiday off. Where do you work?” Phil asks.

“The BBC. I host a radio show,” Dan smiles proudly.

Phil’s eyes widen in surprise, suddenly realizing who this stranger actually is. “Wait a minute, this is crazy! I thought that you looked familiar but I couldn’t place my finger on it. You’re Dan Howell from the BBC, aren’t you? I listen to your radio show all the time. I do try to watch whenever I can but sometimes it’s almost impossible with how busy I am. I prefer watching than listening though, if I’m being honest.”

Dan blushes. “Wow. I can’t believe you actually listen to my show,” he says.

“Why not? You’re on every morning, and I enjoy listening to you. Very entertaining,” Phil grins.

“Thank you. Really, that means a lot to me to hear that from one of my viewers,” Dan grins back at him.

Phil can’t help but chuckle. “We’re both going to Florida for Christmas, and I watch your radio show. Coincidence, huh?” He looks over at Dan.

“Yeah, it is, isn’t it?” Dan leans back.

A half an hour passes by. Dan has mostly been talking to Phil for the most part, getting to know him and even learning about his family as well. Dan truly enjoys talking to Phil, but now he’s starting to get bored of waiting. There’s still a half an hour left of waiting before they board their flights.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,”

Dan frowns as he looks over at Phil. “What is it?” He asks.

Phil stands up from his seat and looks up at the flight bookings. “The flights are cancelled?”

“What?” Dan instantly stands up from his seat and looks up as well. “You can’t be serious right now,”

“I-I know it was going to be windy outside today but I didn’t think that it would affect the flight,” Phil says. “There’s no way this is happening right now.” Phil groans and runs a hand over his face, frustrated.

Dan shakes his head and without a second thought, he walks up to the desk, wanting answers immediately. “Excuse me, they’re saying that the flights are cancelled. Is this true?”

“Yes, I’m afraid so sir. The flights are now cancelled due to the storm,” the lady at the desk confirms.

“Fuck,” Dan mumbles, running a hand through his hair. “Is there any other available flights for tonight?”

“No, sir. The storm is going to get worse, and we won’t be having anymore flights go out tonight. I’m sorry. I wish I had better news to give you,” she says, and Dan can tell she feels genuinely bad.

“When is the next available flight I can get?” Dan asks, hoping for any positive news. “If possible.”

“What flight has been cancelled for you? Maybe I can help you,” she says.

“Florida,” Dan tells her. “If there’s any way you can get me the best available option, that would be great.”

Luckily, the lady is able to help Dan book another flight for the next morning. Dan’s relieved about this, although he knows as soon as he tells his mom the news, she’s not going to be happy.

“Hold on a second,” Dan turns around and he instantly spots Phil, waiting for him. He waves him over, and watches as Phil grabs his bags and heads over to them. “Do you want the good news, or bad news?”

“What’s going on? Is there any news about the flights?” Phil asks nervously.

“They cancelled the flights due to the storm,” Dan informs Phil. “There’s no more available flights tonight, but this kind lady has offered me a plane ticket for tomorrow morning. You should get one too.”

“Yes, of course. When’s the next available flight?” Phil asks. “The sooner, the better.”

“There are available flights for the morning. I’ve already got one. I figured you’d probably want one too,” Dan informs him. “I also thought that it would be a good idea to book another one before anyone else starts asking about cancelled flights.”

Dan and Phil finally get their flights taken care of. It’s more stressful than Dan would have liked it to be, and he’s frustrated. He thought for sure today was going to go smoothly. But, it’s not going smoothly, and now he has to call his mom and tell her the news that he’ll be arriving later than planned.

“At least we were able to book new flights,” Phil says, trying to lighten up the situation.

“Yeah. I’m glad we were too. But, my mum is going to be so upset with me when I tell her that I’ll be late. She specifically told me that I should have booked flights days before this. I mean, I really wasn’t trying to prove her wrong or anything. I just... wanted to work a few more days before leaving for the holidays,” Dan sighs with frustration and runs a hand through his hair. “Fuck, I need a drink!”

Phil frowns as he stares at Dan, and then he looks around. He smiles when he spots the champagne bar. “Hold on a second. I’ll be right back,” he says, before walking away from Dan.

Dan blinks a few times as he watches Phil, and then decides to pull out his phone and call his parents. He’d much rather tell her the news now than get an earful from her when he arrives in Florida.

“Dan? Hello sweetheart, are you on your way here?” His mom asks when she answers the phone.

“Oh, Good. I’m glad you got your phone working,” Dan chuckles.

“Yes, we have managed to get it working. Why are you calling? Aren’t you supposed to be on a plane?”

“Yeah, about that. It’s a funny story actually…” Dan chuckles nervously.

“Daniel, what is going on?” His mom asks, worry in her voice.

Dan cringes at the use of his full name. “Mum, look, I’m not got to be able to make it on time,” he says. “Before you say ‘I told you so’ just know that I no idea there was going to be a massive storm.”

“Goodness, Daniel. Your flight has been cancelled, hasn’t it?” She asks, sighing.

“Yes, it was cancelled. But, it’s going to be fine, okay? I was able to book a flight for tomorrow morning. So, I’ll be there tomorrow. Don’t worry. We’ll still have plenty of time to spend together,” Dan assures her.

“Dan, you should take this as a lesson and listen to your mother next time. Mother knows best,” she says.

Dan rolls his eyes. “I was waiting for that part,” he mumbles.

“Well, I’m glad you’re safe. Take care of yourself, Daniel. We’ll be here waiting for you,” she says, sighing.

Dan smiles a little. “Thanks, mum. I’ll see you soon. I promise. I’m sorry about the delay,” he says.

“That’s alright, dear. It’s not your fault. I’m glad they cancelled the flights while a storm is happening, otherwise, I would have been up worrying about you all night,” his mom chuckles.

“Hey. Dan?”

Dan looks over when he hears a voice and blinks a few times when he sees Phil standing behind him, and then he raises his eyebrows when he realizes that Phil has two glasses of champagne in his hands. “Mum, I’ve got to go now. See you soon,” he says, before hanging up on her. “You seriously went and bought two glasses of champagne? Are you crazy?”

Phil grins. “Why not? Nothing else better to do since our flight’s been cancelled,” he says, handing Dan one of the glasses.

Dan takes the glass, and then he stands up. “What are you planning on doing for the rest of the night?”

“I’m not quite sure yet,” Phil replies, taking a sip of his champagne, then sighing. “Might just go home, come back in the morning for the flight. My apartment isn’t that far from here, actually. I doubt I’ll get any sleep tonight, but what other choice do we have?”

“Yeah, I think I might do the same thing actually,” Dan chuckles. He looks up at the departure board and sighs when he sees all the cancelled flights. “This is really fucking depressing.”

“That’s what the champagne is for,” Phil says, chuckling.

“You’re right about that,” Dan clinks his glass to Phil’s before they both take a drink of their champagne.

This is not how Dan expected his night to turn out. He should be on a plane right now to Florida but instead, he’s still in the airport drinking champagne with a cute boy he just met.

Of course, Dan’s not upset by any means about the cute boy part. Talking to Phil has been the best part of his holiday so far. He’d much rather stay here, talking to Phil, than leave to be with his family.

Before they know it, the bottle is empty and the champagne is already starting to kick in for Dan; as he’s been the one that’s been drinking most of it.

“This fucking sucks,” Dan complains as he slouches in his seat, his now empty glass in his hands.

Phil looks over at Dan and raises his eyebrows as he watches him curiously. “You said that already,”

“Well, it’s true. It sucks, Phil,” Dan huffs. He goes to take another drink, but whines when he realizes that there’s no more champagne in the bottle. “And now we’re out of champagne! This is the worst night ever.”

Phil laughs, and reaches over to gently take the glass away from Dan. “Uh, perhaps that’s a good thing,” he says. “I think you’ve had enough champagne for tonight, Dan. You must be a lightweight.”

Dan quickly sits up, ready to protest. “Hey, that’s mine! And… you can never have enough champagne, Phil!” He tries to take the glass back, but Phil stops him. Dan pouts as he stares at Phil, and then smiles. “You have pretty eyes. Like, really pretty eyes. Did you know that?”

Phil chuckles and shakes his head. “I think it’s time to go home,” he says. “You’re in no state to be driving so I hope you don’t mind coming home with me for tonight. We have the same flight tomorrow anyways.” He walks over to return the champagne glasses.

Dan gasps, instantly thinking that Phil’s gotten sick of him already once he leaves.

Luckily, Phil is back within’ seconds before Dan can have a total breakdown.

“Oh, thank God! I thought you’d left me!” Dan cries, throwing his arms around Phil.

“Dan, oh geez-” Phil grabs a hold of Dan to steady him, and then he slowly helps Dan stand on his feet. “Wow. You have a couple glasses of champagne and you’re practically drunk You really are a lightweight. And, I wasn’t leaving you, Dan. I just told you that we were going to go to my place tonight.”

Phil eventually manages to get an Uber to pick them up at the airport, only struggling slightly with lugging  Dan and getting their luggages to the car. They finally make it to Phil’s apartment.

“Dan, wake up. I’m sorry but I can’t carry you up to my apartment,” Phil says as he shakes Dan awake.

Dan grunts, and it takes him a few seconds to wake up. He blinks a few times before looking at Phil. “Wha- Where are we?” He slowly pushes himself up.

“My apartment. Can you walk? I don’t think I can carry all of our luggage up by myself,” Phil says.

Dan rubs his eyes tiredly. “I can walk,” he mumbles.

“Okay, come on,” Phil gets out of the car, and helps Dan out. He hands Dan his luggage and grabs his. “Thank you.” He says to the  Uber driver before shutting the door. “Alright. We’ll take the elevator.”

“That sounds nice,” Dan yawns, and then he reaches down and grabs his luggage, and then he starts following Phil into the apartment building. “Remind me to never drink champagne at an airport again.”

“Partly my fault. I would have never given you champagne had I known you were a lightweight,”

“I’m not a lightweight,” Dan argues.

“Please!” Phil laughs. “You should have seen yourself after just two glasses of champagne, Dan.”

“How about this? Let’s never speak of this again, especially not to my mother,” Dan says.

“I don’t think I’ll ever meet your mother so I think you’re good there,” Phil assures Dan.

“I mean, who knows at this point? You’re taking me to your apartment right now. Next thing you know, we’ll be walking down the aisle and getting married!” Dan gasps, and throws his arms around Phil’s neck, squeezing him. “Phil, doesn’t that sound lovely? A wedding. Oh, we would make a damn good couple.” Dan tries to lean forward to kiss Phil, but Phil quickly pulls back before Dan has the chance.

“Dan!” Phil yelps in surprise, and quickly pushes Dan back so he doesn’t have another chance to try and kiss him again. Phil normally wouldn’t mind being kissed by a cute boy like Dan, but Dan’s drunk, and Phil doesn’t want to take advantage of him. “Heavens, the champagne is still getting to you, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” Dan whines, pouting. “My head hurts.”

“I promise it won’t take long before we get to my apartment,” Phil chuckles at the younger boy.

Finally, the two boys make it to Phil’s apartment. Phil shows Dan the guest bedroom, and he’s not surprised when Dan instantly crashes onto the bed and passes out. It’s been a long night, after all.

Phil sighs as he stares at Dan for a moment, before walking over and tugging at Dan’s shoes. He finally pulls Dan’s shoes and socks off, and then he grabs the blanket and gently covers Dan up. He smiles, wanting him to be as comfortable as possible while he’s a guest in his apartment.

Dan sleeps soundly throughout the night, and Phil’s kind of glad because he’s not sure how well the night would have went down had Dan chosen to be awake. They both probably would have been miserable, and now Phil has the pleasure of waking Dan up for their early flight to Florida.

“This should be fun,” Phil mumbles tiredly when he walks into the guest bedroom. He looks up and chuckles when he sees Dan sprawled out on the bed. Phil sleepily drags his feet over to the bed, and then he reaches down and shakes Dan a few times until he wakes up. “Sorry bud, time to wake up.”

Dan blinks a few times as he stares at Phil, his expression full of clear confusion.

“I know you’re probably confused. I’ll explain everything later. Get dressed. We’ve got a flight to catch. Hopefully nothing goes wrong this time,” Phil says, before walking back out of the bedroom.

Dan groans and allows his head to fall back onto the pillow.

Slowly, everything starts coming back to Dan as he gets himself ready. Dan feels absolutely horrible, and he knows that he has Phil to thank for everything he did last night, otherwise he has no idea where he would have ended up. Either way, he hopes he would have come up with a good plan B without Phil.

“Hey there, sleeping beauty,” Phil grins when he sees Dan walk into the living room.

Dan looks up and Phil and glares at him. “I’m too tired to yell at you,” he says. “Oh, sorry about last night.”

“What are you being sorry for?” Phil asks curiously.

“You know, like… drinking too much champagne and everything. I’m sure I was annoying,” Dan says. “Despite what I said… I know I’m a lightweight. I should have known better than to drink champagne.”

“That’s alright. I’m the one who gave you the glass in the first place,” Phil shrugs his shoulders.

“Thanks for not leaving me drunk at the airport too. Lord knows what trouble I would have gotten into,”

“It’s alright, really. I didn’t mind. It was… kind of entertaining,” Phil smiles.

Dan groans. “Please tell me I didn’t do anything super embarrassing. I only remember bits and pieces!”

“Well… there was one incident,” Phil says, remembering Dan trying to kiss him last night. “I’m not mad, but… you totally tried to kiss me, and it was hilarious. You were talking about weddings, you know?”

“Hold on, I tried to kiss you. Oh, shit. I’m so sorry!” Dan covers his face with his hands.

Phil laughs as Dan becomes more embarrassed. “Don’t be sorry,” he says. “You didn’t kiss me at all, but you certainly tried. It was cute. I just didn’t want to take advantage of you while you were drunk.”

Dan looks up at Phil. “Thanks. Most guys wouldn’t have done that,” he says quietly.

“Well, I’m not like most guys, am I?” Phil shrugs his shoulders, and he jumps down onto his feet, and he looks up at Dan. “Do you want to have anything for breakfast before we leave?”

Dan shakes his head. “No, thanks. I’ll probably just grab something at the airport or eat on the airplane,” he says. “Besides, I wanna get there early to make sure everything is set. No more cancellations.”

Phil nods. “Good idea. We should head out now then,” he says. “Let me just quickly grab my bags.”

Dan and Phil both finish getting ready, and they grab another Uber to get to the airport.

Dan’s honestly surprised that Phil is still sticking with him, even after the disaster that happened last night. Phil doesn’t have to stay with him, yet he chooses to. Dan would have thought that Phil would be annoyed by him at this point, considering Dan spent the night as his apartment after getting drunk on champagne.

“Well, here we go again. Round two,” Dan speaks first as they enter the airport together.

“Good news. Seems pretty normal so far,” Phil says as he scans the airport.

“Yeah, let’s just hope that it stays that way,” Dan mumbles, glancing around. “I cannot wait another day. My mum will kill me if there’s another cancelled flight. She’s already giving me shit for not leaving early.”

“If it makes you feel any better, I’m definitely getting an earful from my mum about this,” Phil says.

“I guess that does kind of make me feel better,” Dan smiles as he looks up at Phil.

Phil rolls his eyes playfully, though that doesn’t stop the smile from forming on his face.

After checking in, Dan and Phil head over to the waiting area and take their seats beside each other. Luckily, it’s not a long wait. It’s about a nine hour flight. It’s still pretty early in the morning, so Dan hopes that they’ll make it to Florida still even if it’s late at night.

Dan’s also glad that he and Phil got seats next to each other on the plane, so hopefully that will make the nine hour flight less boring. At least he’ll have someone to talk to. Plus, Dan doesn’t know when he’ll get to see Phil again after this so he’s enjoying the time he has left with the man.

“You sure you don’t want any champagne while we wait?” Phil asks.

Dan’s eyes widen instantly at Phil’s question. “Are you crazy? After the events of last night…?”

Phil laughs at Dan’s reaction. “Don’t worry Dan, I’m just kidding! It’s too early for champagne anyways,” he says. “I just wanted to see what your reaction would be.”

Dan sighs and shakes his head fondly at Phil. “You’re crazy,” he chuckles, and leans back in his seat. “So-” He bites his lip as he looks over at Phil again. “Do you think we’ll see each other again after this?”

Phil raises his eyebrows. “You mean you haven’t gotten sick of me yet?”

Dan grins. “You know, I was worried you were getting sick of me, especially after last night’s fiasco,”

“No,” Phil chuckles. “Really, it wasn’t that bad. I’ve dealt with worse. If anything, it was entertaining, and made what could have been a terrible night really fun. I hope we can hang out again after the holidays.”

“Well,” Dan sits up again. “We’re both going to be in Florida. Maybe we can find a day to hang out before heading home. I mean, as long as you’re okay with that. I don’t want to interrupt your family holiday.”

“You wouldn’t be,” Phil shakes his head. “After I tell my mum this story, she’ll want to meet you.”

Dan groans and buries his face in his hands. “Please don’t tell her anything embarrassing about me!”

“Well that won’t make the story as fun then,” Phil pouts.

The wait is about forty five minutes before Dan and Phil board the plane, taking their seats.

Dan spends most of his time talking with Phil on the plane, though he does manage to watch a movie. Dan decides on watching Jurassic World, a movie he hasn’t gotten a chance to see yet.

When they finally arrive in Florida after a long flight, Dan exits the plane and finds his mother waiting, and his brother as well. Dan smiles as soon as he spots his family, and quickly heads over to him.

“Daniel!” She exclaims excitedly, instantly pulling her son into a hug. “Oh Dan, I was so worried…”

“Mum,” Dan laughs, hugging her back. “I was fine. It was just a cancelled flight.”

“Because of a storm,” she pulls away from the storm and looks up at Dan. “You had me worried all night, but I’m glad you’re here now. You’re safe with your family. How was the flight?”

“Thanks, mum. I’m glad I’m here too,” Dan smiles, surprised that she doesn’t immediately bombard him with the classic ‘I told you so’ line. Dan looks over at his brother. “Hey, bro. Haven’t seen you in awhile.” He pulls his brother into a hug. When he pulls away, he quickly looks around and is instantly relieved when he spots Phil reuniting with his own family as well. Dan’s relieved that Phil hasn’t completely left yet. Dan still has to get his number, after all. “Hey, mum. There’s someone I want you to meet.”

“Oh?”

Dan smiles, and then he leads the way over to Phil.

Phil looks over and grins when he sees Dan. “Couldn’t leave without saying goodbye?”

“Well, how are we supposed to make plans later if I don’t have a way to contact you,” Dan chuckles.

“You’re right,” Phil nods. “Mum, this is Dan. He’s the one I was telling you about last night.”

“Wait a minute…” Dan crosses his arms against his chest. “You were already telling her about me?”

“Well, I didn’t say much about you. Not really. Okay, I couldn’t help myself. It was hilarious,” Phil giggles.

Dan rolls his eyes, and then he looks over at his mum. “Mum, this is my friend Phil. We met last night before our flights were cancelled, and… he’s also the reason I had a safe place to sleep.”

“Phil, it’s lovely to meet you. Thank you for taking care of my son. I’m sure he was a lot to handle,”

“Mum!” Dan complains. “You just met him and you’re already embarrassing me.”

Phil laughs, and looks over at Dan’s mum. “Really, it was no problem. There was champagne involved but that was mostly my fault. I really enjoyed Dan’s company. He made the night a lot less boring.”

“So, I guess this is where we part ways then,” Dan says.

“Unfortunately. But, not without exchanging numbers first-” Phil says as he pulls out his phone, and then he exchanges numbers with Dan. “You better text me later once you’re home. I want to know you’re safe.”

Dan can’t help but smile at that. “Don’t worry, I will. See you later?”

“Definitely,” Phil nods. “See you later, Dan. Have a good holiday with your family.”

Dan watches as Phil loads his stuff into the car with his family’s help. Dan waves to Phil as Phil gets into the car. He sighs as he watches drive off. Then Dan turns to his own family, and blinks a few times when he sees the two staring at him. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Are you sure you two just met each other? Sounds like you two are…”

“Mum!” Dan’s eyes widen.

“What? I’m just saying. He’s a nice boy,” she smiles. “I wouldn’t be upset if he comes around again.”

“Well, uh, I apparently I was talking about weddings last night so don’t be surprised if we do end up getting married,” Dan chuckles and shakes his head. “Come on, let’s get going. I’m exhausted.”

“Sounds like you had a wild night last night,” Adrian snickers.

“You don’t even know,” Dan mumbles, shaking his head. “It was a night I’ll never forget.”

One Week Later;

It’s been a week now since Dan has arrived in Florida for his family holiday, and since the interesting night he met Phil. He’s spent a majority of his time catching up with his family and relaxing by the pool. Dan’s also been texting Phil quite a lot. They’ve been making plans to see each other before the holiday ends.

“Do you have everything ready to go, Daniel?”

“Yeah, mum. I have everything ready,” Dan says as he grabs his bag. “This is what I’ve been waiting for.”

“Well, we agreed that it would be nice to spend some time together before doing the fun things,” she says.

“I understand. I’ve just been dying to go to Universal Studios,” Dan says. “Especially to see Harry Potter.” Dan looks up the second he hears the doorbell rings. He gasps, and runs through the living room. “Wait, don’t get it!” He shouts when he sees Adrian heading towards the door. Dan nearly trips over his own feet before he finally makes it to the door.

Adrian bursts into laughter before heading towards the kitchen, leaving Dan to open the door.

Dan takes a deep breath before reaching over and then finally opening the door. He nervously looks up and smiles widely when he sees Phil and his family. “Phil!” He greets. “It’s so good to see you again.”

“You as well, Dan. I’ve been looking forward to seeing you since we’ve been texting,” Phil says, before pulling Dan into a warm hug. They pull away from the hug, and Dan allows Phil and his family into the beach house. Phil looks around before looking back at Dan. “This is where you’ve been staying?”

Dan chuckles, and nods. “Yeah. Might as well be comfortable if you’re going to be on holiday, right?”

“You do have a good point,” Phil agrees, nodding. “So, you excited for today?”

“Hell yeah,” Dan grins. “Do you know how long I’ve been dying to go to Harry Potter at Universal?”

“From what you’ve told me through texts, I’m guessing a long time,” Phil chuckles. “I’m very excited too. It’s going to be so much fun with both of our families going at the same time too.”

“I’m just still surprised you haven’t gotten sick of me yet,” Dan blushes.

“Dan, why on Earth would I get sick of hanging out with a fun, cute boy?” Phil asks, smiling. “You honestly haven’t given me a reason not to like you yet. So, I think that I’ll keep hanging out with you. As long as you’re okay with that.”

Dan rolls his eyes playfully at Phil. “Oh, please, of course I’m okay with that, you big doofus,” he says, throwing his arms around Phil and hugging him tightly.

Dan has no idea where this friendship with Phil will take him, but… he’s excited, to say the least.

[shemakesmusic-uk]

INTERVIEW: HAIKU SALUT

Haiku Salut, the acclaimed instrumental trio from the Derbyshire Dales, release their third album There Is No Elsewhere today via PRAH Recordings.  

Haiku Salut are a dream-pop-post-folk-neo-everything group which consists of multi-instrumentalists Gemma Barkerwood, Sophie Barkerwood, and Louise Croft. Between them, Haiku Salut play accordion, piano, glockenspiel, trumpet, guitar, ukulele, drums, and melodica. Their music also features electronic elements, which they refer to as “loopery and laptopery”.

Influenced by the evocative film soundtracks of Yann Tiersen and Benoît Charest, the genre-melting electronica of early Múm, and the impressionistic writing of Haruki Murakami, the band released their debut album Tricolore in 2013, to critical acclaim. They later wrote about the experience in their debut book, Japanese Poems Steal Brains, a fully illustrated collection of haikus, which told the story of the band to date. Haiku Salut’s second album, Etch And Etch Deep, was released in July 2015, to similar acclaim.

This year’s release, There Is No Elsewhere, is Haiku Salut’s first album for neo-classical and electronica label PRAH Recordings and sees the trio continue their distinctive re-imagining of dreampop and rural electronica.

We were lucky enough to have a chat with band member Gemma Bakerwood all about There Is No Elsewhere amongst a few other things. Read it below.

Hello! You've just released your third album There Is No Elsewhere. What can you tell us about the record?

"We’ve spent three years making this album. When we began writing we were working with ideas of existing on the periphery, occupying your space and celebrating community. There is an overarching thread of belonging and what it means to belong and solidarity that weaves through the album. We wanted to write a party album that addressed the notion of living according to the predefined cultural landscape (and defying it)."

You've collaborated on tracks on the LP with Glastonbury Brass. How did that come about?

"We were really keen to work with a brass band, particularly as this album’s central themes are about pulling together and celebrating community. What better way to that than with a brass band? A literal example of coming together to create something bigger than the sum of its parts. We had initially hoped to use a band local to our area but when we found out our friend’s dad played the tuba in Glastonbury Brass and that they were happy to get on board we couldn’t pass up that opportunity. We took a mid-winter trip to Somerset to record with them which was an incredibly humbling experience. To hear our songs being played back at us by championship musicians was something else. There was such a warmth of feeling and hope and community."

How does There Is No Elsewhere compare to your previous two releases, Tricolore and Etch And Etch Deep? How has your sound and songwriting evolved?

"I think this album is a lot more cohesive that the previous ones. We had a real vision of what we wanted this album to be about and I hope that comes across. We have always written in the same way, we write fragments of songs together and separately which we then patchwork together. We try not to write with playing live in mind to remove any restrictions on what instrumentation we include. This is usually how someone suddenly ends up with the arduous task of having to learn a trombone."

It has been said that this album sees you finally finding your place, both musically and politically.

"We wrote the album at a time of political uncertainty and helplessness and the ideas we had were inevitably permeated by the news and political climate. It is hard to avoid the sense that these are particularly terrible days and I think it’s natural to become confused about the outcomes or reasons for pursuing creative ventures. You feel the need to make a big gesture, to make large statements and pursue instant changes, yet you feel small and insignificant. You’re making electronica in a village in Derbyshire whilst people are fleeing their homes and being treated barbarically by their country and our own. It all began to seem so very menial and privileged. But it was this sense of helplessness that encouraged us to advocate a sense of what we believe in and what we can do about it. It is an album about occupying your space, being proud of what you believe in and who you are. It’s about making small life changes, making better decisions, writing better songs, having better conversations, knowing that these can lay foundations for change. It’s about finding who you are and not being dictated to about what you should be. It’s about celebrating others. It’s about making changes for a better future and the importance of rejoicing and celebrating each other and our communities."

The cover of the album features original artwork by the painter Geoff Diego Litherland. What was the reasoning behind choosing that particular artwork?

"We’ve admired Geoff’s work for some time and feel very honoured to have him on board! The piece we have used is an oil painting called ‘A Field In England’. I think his style of painting fits really nicely with our music often fusing the organic and inorganic, the bleak and the beautiful. This piece has become very important to us and very much helped shape the album’s expression. The portal, the warning and symbolic meaning behind the octagon all gave a further significance to the album. The octagon has a symbolic meaning of infinity and transition, which reinforces the significance of the endless ‘now’ and the responsibility we have for the ‘here’. We should say that the music, the album title and the artwork provide a triforce of meaning. All work together equally to make the whole. If you take one element away the coupling left take on another meaning altogether."

You're going to be taking your celebrated lamp show on tour again later this year in support of the new release. How did the idea of a using lamps in your live performance come about?

"I can’t remember how we came up with the idea for the lamp show, we liked the idea of experimenting across media platforms to create a sense of space and emotion for the audience. The lamp show was intended to create a haunted living room feel. Our good pal and long-term collaborator Robin Newman came on-board to help us to develop the idea. Lamp shows are our favourites, there’s so much planning and effort that goes into pulling them together but we always get lots of great feedback. There are still some of the original lamps in the team, but we have seen A LOT of lamps meet a very ugly demise. What a way to go though eh!"

You also recently did a collaborative piece with the Robot Orchestra which was performed at the Great Exhibition of The North 2018 earlier this month and featured self-performing instruments. Intriguing! Tell us a bit more about how that happened.

"When we were approached by Brighter Sound to take part in The Hexagon Project we had already begun experimenting with the idea of turning the electronic back into analogue. We use field recordings in our music, taking these sounds and mangling and manipulating them into rhythms and beats. We had begun thinking about ways in which we could turn that on its head and make wonky and glitchy beats play out on objects using motors. We wanted to stretch the process, go full circle, use electronic impulses to trigger organic instruments and remove the boundaries of electronic and analogue experience so began experimenting with various MIDI triggered motors and solenoids along with Arduino and Ableton’s Max For Live. We spent some time writing a piece of music that would really showcase the machines, in the final performance they took centre stage whilst we operated organic instruments playing static repetitive loops which we chose to mirror with automation. We also got to work with a young programmer Dan whose skills far exceed our own in this area. He had built and programmed a robotic glockenspiel that was definitely the showstopper!"

Which of the new songs are you most looking forward to performing live?

"I’m really enjoying playing ‘The More And Moreness’ at the minute; it’s a real fun one to play and Louise has been learning the trombone since the last album in our attempt at creating our very own mini brass band! We’ll also be playing some songs that we haven’t played live before which is always equally exciting and terrifying."

What's your favourite thing about performing live and being on stage?

"Haiku is unlike any other band I’ve been in, there’s a lot of preparation and sculpting that goes in before songs are ready to be performed live. The amount of practice and choreography that goes in to get everything running smoothly is ridiculous! When we’re finally able to get out there and perform them in front of an audience it’s magical!"

When on tour, what do the three of you do in your down time between shows?

"There is a tour manual. With an extensive list of sightseeing opportunities. We used to plan activities en-route (an escape room here…, nipping to Stratford-upon-Avon for a jazz brunch there…) but sometimes nothing beats just a good ol’ wander."

And which has been your favourite city/venue so far?

"I always love playing in Glasgow. We’re at The Great Eastern this year, which I’m particularly excited about. The venue moonlights as a music hall but spends it days as a day centre promoting social inclusion and helping reduce loneliness. The venue hire money goes towards supporting the day centre. What a bloody glorious idea!"

Finally, what does the future hold for Haiku Salut?

"After tour we will be back to working on the score for The Ada Project, a play about Ada Lovelace. We’ll also be developing some electronic triggers that will be integrated into the set design to allow the performers to interact with the props to make music. We’re also planning to develop some of the ideas from the recent Robot Orchestra Collaboration and see what we can come up with."

There Is No Elsewhere is available now via PRAH Recordings.