#UK winter temperature

[newscast1]

UK faces major energy crisis as temperatures plummet, costs rise

UK faces major energy crisis as temperatures plummet, costs rise

In the midst of an energy crisis in winter, the UK govt data has revealed that domestic gas and electricity prices have gone up since the past year. A man serves himself a hot drink during at the Ashburton Hall community hub in Croydon, England (Getty image) By Loveena Tandon: The United Kingdom is facing a serious energy crisis as temperatures plummet and energy costs rise along with an…

[wileys-russo]

cold snap II l.williamson x reader

I have no idea where this came from or what it really is besides a whole loft of softness cold snap II l.williamson x reader

the early winter cold snap came as no surprise to anyone who'd spent a few years living in england, and if you'd lived there your entire life it was just another unfortunate but expected consequence of the dreary uk weather.

that wasn't to say that though you always knew it coming that it wasn't unpleasant, from the plummeting temperatures, icy roads, snow covered yards, frosted windows and the icy chill of the wind as it pricked at any and every sliver of skin it could find like tiny little pin pricks.

but though it had its downsides there were some perks to the temperature drop, to you the key thing being the fashion. you'd always loved the feeling of being bundled up in a multitude of clothing. hoodies and jackets and coats and scarves and beanies, you had it all and would near drown yourself in layers like a burrito.

not that you really needed them when you had the best defence against the cold you could ever hope for, leah.

leah who loathed the cold, hated the temperature drop and detested winter with all her might. any chance she got she'd whisk you both off for a weekend away somewhere warm, which was seldom given her career choice and insane schedule.

but the best defence against the cold snap was her body pressed up against yours, arms tightly squeezing you as you'd melt into her embrace, warmth flooding your body as her rosy pink lips gently peppered tender loving kisses against any sliver of skin they could as if trying to protect it from the incoming cold.

it was routine to find yourselves wrapped up together in a mountain of blankets on the sofa wearing one anothers hoodies and limbs entangled. your body cradled between leahs legs as her hands would creep up your top to find your stomach, tracing gentle patterns on the skin with her fingertips.

the gentle lull of her heartbeat and the steady rise and fall of her chest would reward you with a sense of safety and security you knew you'd never find with anyone else, not that you ever felt the need to test the theory.

leah was perfect, and she was yours as much as you were hers.

you'd always been a morning person by nature especially having valued your studies as a teenager you were always early to school, hidden away in the library with your nose buried in a book or scribbling down notes.

leah who was your best friend at the time ribbed you relentlessly for it. but the blonde was hardly ever on time for class herself and you'd often teased she was even late to her own birth which her mum roared laughing at.

but over the years you'd tried to break her out of her sleeping habits leah learned that those little pockets of time alone with you in the library before school were some of her most treasured memories.

she'd watch you over the top of the book she was pretending to read, eyes flickering down to the page when you'd look up and almost catch her with a smile.

leah loved how you looked those mornings, your eyebrows furrowed and glasses nearly slipping off the end of your nose as you'd quietly mumble along to what you were reading, finger tracing along the words as you went.

to leah you'd always been an anchor point. reliable and dependable and endlessly endearing, and yet always seeming just out of reach as you'd flit from relationship to relationship never really settling down with anyone long enough to allow them to get to know you.

but that was where leah knew she'd always won because there wasn't a single part of you that you'd not opened up and shared with her, and much to the infuriation of your partners over the years leah was always your go to person for everything and anything, and the first person you'd go to with any sort of news good or bad.

it didn't take leah long to realise that she was in love with you, but fearing that if she stuck her foot into the rotating door of partners you'd spun over the years that her feelings might not be shared and she'd be rejected or worse lose you entirely, so it took her a long time to be honest with you.

her mum had known of leahs true feelings for years and was forever encouraging leah to open herself up and be upfront with you, and there were too many times to count where leah was sure she was about to do it but then she'd chicken out right at the last minute.

but as leahs football career began to grow and afternoon trainings and weekend games turned into her missing days and sometimes weeks of school for camps, tournaments and academy commitments it had finally clicked.

you were just as much in love with leah as she was with you, though neither of you were yet to actually realise this.

but what you did both learn was that distance makes the heart grow fonder and the more time you had to spend apart the more you silently yearned for one another.

it was your final year of high school and leah had just returned from a tournament in morocco with the england under 19's squad. with the yearly cold snap having just kicked in and the blonde having coming from scorching temperatures you'd died laughing as she turned up to school in about ten layers.

"yes miss i've been told and i've already been given my warnings! but its fucking freezing and these don't do anything." leah snapped at your english teacher who warned her for the grey hoodie she had on beneath your uniform, yanking at the paper thin blazer covering her.

you'd grabbed her knee beneath the table and squeezed gently, giving her a warning look as leah mumbled an apology and your teacher hummed but let her outburst slide much to your relief.

"hey you need to calm down you can't afford an afternoon in you've got training." you warned quietly, her head falling to your shoulder as you shared your textbook, leah having overslept and turned up late she'd forgotten almost everything bar her head.

but with her mood only worsening as time went on you'd opted not to tease her for it, rather doing everything you could to try and make her first day back easier. "i wish i was in bed." leah mumbled with a frown, tapping her foot against yours to signal to turn the page which you did.

"you and me both lee, you and me both. lunch is next anyway, then two more classes and you get to run around and get all dirty and sweaty like you love!" you pinched her cheek and again turned the page as her foot knocked against yours.

"two classes you aren't in." leah huffed, pulling her head off your shoulder and slumping backwards into her chair, arms crossed over her chest with a frown.

the bell to end class cut you off before another word could be said, leah shoving your books back into your bag for you as the two of you joined the rest of your friends, making your way to where the six of you always ate together.

"leah!" you laughed as the girl attached herself to you from behind, hugging your back firmly to her front. "m'hungry and i'm cold." the girl mumbled, having already eaten her food you knew she was eyeing off yours.

"and thats my problem how exactly?" you mocked, shoving the last mouthful of your sandwich into your mouth and leaning up to kiss her cheek. "mate the betrayal!" leah gasped, fingers digging into your ribs as you squealed and tried to push away from her but the girls iron grip was unbreakable.

both of you missed the knowing look shot among your friends, all of whom had front row seats to your endless pining over one another over the years and had spoken to the pair of you individually about no longer dancing around it.

"wanna go to the library?" leah asked, chin resting on your shoulder as you reveled in the warmth from her body hugging yours. "is leah catherine williamson willingly asking to go somewhere with books!" you gasped sarcastically as she flicked your ear.

"yeah its warm in there they have heaters!" "alright you've sold me lets go."

~

"stop looking at me and read those notes, you need to catch up!" you kicked her from where the two of you sat cross legged on the floor, hidden away behind the aisles. "but its so boring man!" leah groaned, snapping the book closed and dropping it in her lap.

"then go find a book thats interesting, i have to finish this." you chuckled, gaze dropping back to the homework in your lap as leah rolled her eyes. "thats not even mandatory and we got it an hour ago, you don't need to do it right now!" leahs foot nudged the book.

"its not mandatory for me but you're behind and its mandatory for you. so if i finish it now then you can take it with you and copy after training so you won't need to stress." you answered without looking away, swatting her foot away as leahs face softened.

it was at that moment as you sat together in the library, hair tucked away in a beanie and glasses once again hanging off your nose that leahs body surged with adoration for you and for the first time along with that came a confidence she'd lacked until now.

"hey. can we talk about something?" her foot bumped you again and hearing the obvious switch in her tone of voice you nodded, putting aside your notebook and raising your eyebrows to show you were listening.

"so i have this friend yeah? and she's sort of got this massive dumb crush on someone shes really close to, like her best mate." leah started, avoiding your eyes as she looked up to the roof and you frowned a little.

"okay." you nodded slowly, encouraging her to continue. "but she's afraid that if she tells her best mate that they won't feel the same way and it'll make it weird between them." leah continued, still not looking at you as you moved so you were sitting beside her.

"okay." you repeated, unsure if you were misreading this as your hand sat dormant by leahs. "so what would you do?" leah asked, a lot quieter now. "if i was your friend?" you clarified as she nodded, neither of you making eye contact.

"i would tell your friend that lifes too short, that she should tell her best mate. because if they are close then even if the feelings aren't the same it won't ruin anything, and if the feelings are the same then by telling them she won't miss out on an opportunity to explore that." you answered honestly, heart hammering now as you hoped you weren't misunderstanding.

a silence fell between the two of you the only noise the gentle chatter of your peers scattered around the library but in your own little bubble all you could focus on was leah.

suddenly your pinky moved just a few centimetres, gently nudging leahs before stilling. holding her breath leahs own pinky inched sideways a little grazing yours, and slowly you felt it interlock, eventually her whole hand grabbing onto yours and interlacing your fingers.

"so i'm sort of in love with you and i have been for years, and i don't know if this makes things really weird and if it does then i'm so sorry but you're like the best human ever and-" leahs head snapped toward yours as she started to ramble making your lips curl into a smile.

leahs words died in her throat as you cleared the gap between you and cut her off pressing your soft lips to hers, pulling away as the blonde stared at you dumbstruck.

"does that fix your friends worries?"

~

several months later and you and leah were even more smitten with one another than before. with school nearly finished you knew leah was angling for a contract with the arsenal senior team and when leah wanted something she put her entire being it making it happen.

"hi love! she's still upstairs, even though she knows we need to leave in five minutes!" leahs mum amanda greeted you with a hug before yelling upstairs making you laugh. "im nearly ready woman keep your pants on!" came leahs yell back making her mum roll her eyes.

"charmer she is." amanda sighed as you shot her a grin and she hurried off to make sure jacob was ready to go, the four of you headed to watch him play with his own team.

jogging upstairs you entered your girlfriends bedroom but frowned unable to see your actual girlfriend inside of it. "rah!" you jumped about a foot in the air as hands grabbed your waist and spun you around.

"dickhead! don't do that." you scowled as she put you down, doubled over laughing as you kicked her and she whined, flopping down onto her bed. "leah you're not even dressed, hurry up!" you groaned impatiently.

"okay sorry mum!" the blonde mocked, disappearing into her closet as you clicked your heels together impatiently. "stop that! its stressing me out." leahs head popped out to point to your feet as you smiled and continued to do it making her eyes roll.

"leah we need to leave, shift it!" amanda yelled from downstairs as you stood up, the blonde finally stepping out of the bathroom fully dressed. "ready now?" you quirked an eyebrow. "mm not yet, one more thing." leah held up a finger as you sighed, hearing amanda huff from downstairs.

to your surprise your girlfriend grabbed your hands and pulled your body into hers, one hand cradling the back of your neck as the other nudged your chin upwards and her lips captured your own.

"we need to go!" you laughed quietly into the kiss, trying to pull away as leahs grip on the back of your neck tightened. "they can wait thirty more seconds." leah grinned, teeth tugging on your bottom lip teasingly.

but right as it started, the kiss came to an abrupt end as leah pulled some sort of material over your eyes. "come on! god you're always making us so late babe." leah groaned holding her hand out as you adjusted the beanie she'd put on you and rolled your eyes.

"you know being cute only gets you so far williamson."

once at the game you and leah tried to be discreet as you sat down together, not having told either of your families just yet. but with amanda on your right and leah on your left with her aunt and cousins sat behind, it didn't take long.

the two of you were pressed as much into one another as you could be, leahs arm draped over the back of your seat as you leaned into her side and she'd whisper things into your ear every few minutes making you grin or giggle.

your feet would tap and poke against one anothers playing footsie like a couple of children, one of your hands resting on leahs knee, fingers playing absentmindedly with the strands of denim which protruded from the rips in her jeans.

you both missed the amused looks from leahs mum beside you who'd just been waiting for one of you to crack and tell her after she'd unknowingly caught the two of you making out in the living room one afternoon, choosing not to make herself known and rather leaving you both to it.

but as the game continued leahs advances seemed to get bolder, her lips kissing your cheek and forehead with a loud smack as you'd huff and shove her away making her grin and do it over and over again, for once barely paying the match any attention.

"stop! your fingers are freezing." you laughed quietly, wrenching her hand away from where it travelled up your hoodie. "and your stomach is very warm, stop being selfish!" leahs hand crept back up, cold fingers pressing teasingly into your ribs making you squeal and smack her.

"girls." you both looked up as amanda called for you, subtly pushing leahs hand out of your lap. "you know this means no more sleepovers and closed doors under my roof, yes?" amanda smiled as you choked on air and leah hit your back, giving her mum an incredulous look of shock.

"mum!" was all the blonde managed to scoff out in surprise as both of your faces burned bright red.

"what? i gave you lots of opportunities to tell me! you missed your chance love."

~

nowadays, the cold snap still came and your girlfriend still loathed it, but she made sure to take full advantage of all the perks she could squeeze from it.

which is why her arms tightened around your torso as you tried to get up, causing you to smile. "baby?" you spoke softly, running a hand through her blonde her, her face calm and still, eyes squeezed shut. "leaaah!" you sang out slowly, finger tracing gently across her face.

all you received was a huff and a grunt as she rolled over, burying her face in your neck and tangling her legs with yours. "come on i said one more hour and its been two now, get up!" you laughed, tucking a hand up her hoodie and scratching at her back.

"if you wanted me to get up you'd not have started that love." leah sighed happily, shifting herself even closer into you. "don't you dare! give it back." her head popped up and she cracked one eye open with a glare as you retracted your hand.

"doesn't belong to you." you teased with a smile, moving your hands beneath you as leah scoffed. "does too!" leah argued, both eyes open as suddenly she was on top of you. "so does this, and this, and this, and this and-" she peppered kisses all over your face and neck as your laughter filled the room.

"baby its cold and its raining and we both have the day off, just want cuddles." leah flopped back down on top of you, lips curled into a pout as you rolled your eyes playfully.

"fine! one more hour."

that hour again became two and with leah well and truly dead to the world this time you managed to wiggle out of bed, leaving her tucked away in the covers as your body screamed for coffee.

you sighed in relief as the first sip hit your lips, taking a seat at the counter and staring out the window, watching as each raindrop smacked the glass and trailed down carving its own little path.

"what part of i want cuddles did you not understand!" you glanced over your shoulder to see leah with the duvet wrapped around her, hood covering her bed hair and an annoyed scowl on her face.

"what part of one more hour did you not understand?" you smiled teasingly, sipping at your coffee as she rolled her eyes. "is the heat on? im actually freezing." leah mumbled, her body quickly moving to wrap around yours.

"go put another layer on then baby, the heat is on." you chuckled, craning your head back to press a few lazy kisses to her jaw, head resting against her chest. "can't believe you chose coffee over me." leah grumbled.

"well one fuels me and the other drains me so..." you trailed off with a shrug, squealing as suddenly you weren't in your chair anymore, feet off the ground as leah carried you into the living room. "leah!" you laughed as she dropped you onto the sofa and crawled on top of you.

"look! its like our private little kiss cave." the blonde beamed, tugging the duvet over her head to engulf the both of you like a fort as she hungrily kissed you, stealing the air from your lungs as her hands slipped up your hoodie.

"baby your hands are freezing!" "oh really? see my lips are the coldest right now, you would be a terrible girlfriend not to help me warm them up."

[lazycats-stuff]

Since Christmas is coming up, I wanted to request that Aussie reader that gets rly annoyed because he has to celebrate Christmas in the winter and not the summer with prawns and pavlova.

Just batbro getting so pouty because it’s cold and snowy (idk I haven’t rly been in snow) and hates it.

Also wanted to ask you, what season are you celebrating in? Summer or Winter? You don’t have to answer but I’m just curious.

Well my anon... Christmas is long gone, but that doesn't mean we can't have Christmas! Although I am the Grinch, but hey. Also, I celebrate Christmas during the winter, but it's been years since it snowed on Christmas... Also, this gif is adorable. And cool. And thank you all for 1.7k followers... The fact you like my writing is still a mind blowing thing to me.

Summary: (Y/N) is Australian who celebrates Christmas during the winter. He hates it.

Warnings: minor swearing, (Y/N) is grumpy, the fam is amused.

Being from Australia made someone a bit more tougher when it came to certain things. Such as snakes and spiders. (Y/N) was used to them and considered them roommates sometimes. Of course, moving from Australia to the good ol' US of A, wasn't an easy change. First one being the ruckus and sensitivity about alcohol.

While being 18, you can enlist in the army and die for your country, but can't drink? (Y/N) thought it was ridiculous. Despite still being underage, but legally an adult, he loved to sip some wine and beer... But Alfred and Bruce always made a ruckus about it. (Y/N) thought that Alfred would be on his side since Alfred is from the UK and they also drink underage...

(Y/N) has never felt so betrayed before.

Secondly, the summers were bad in Australia, especially on the coastal areas of Australia. (Y/N) grew up in Sydney and summers were pretty hellish back there. Here? For Australian standards, these Gotham summers are bearable. Sure, the summers may be from December to February. Yes, Australia has it all flipped around.

(Y/N)'s brothers thought that he was insane with how well he was handling the heat well. (Y/N) never told them that the heat in Sydney was that bad, but the outback and the central parts of Australia are hell on Earth. As if (Y/N) would reveal his secret. The temperatures were perfect...

But there was only slight issue with living in the USA as an Australian. Only one. It's a pretty big one as well.

Everyone knows that Australians celebrate their Christmas during their summer. A summer that begins in the month of December and where people are actually on the beach, enjoying the warm weather with their favorite classic desserts, one of the best examples being a cake called Pavlova.

That is also (Y/N)'s favorite dessert and often makes it when he wants to feel like Christmas is coming. Especially during the summer when he knew that he couldn't celebrate Christmas during the warm weather. That was his substitute Christmas. Winters in Gotham... Well...

He didn't like it. At all. He absolutely hated it. December should be warm, sunny, warm enough so you can go out and enjoy the warmth, maybe even swim! Make snowmen out of sand... Well, then they would be called sandmen. (Y/N) was depressed and sad, to say the least. You know the term seasonal depression?

(Y/N) felt it every single time when December rolled around. Instead of a beautiful sunny day, day filled with warmth, spent on a beach, not bundled in milion layers of clothes...

Not this Gotham winter... Not this snow either. (Y/N) absolutely hated it. Absolutely. While the entire America was looking forward to Christmas, (Y/N) was grumbling in his room, looking out the window, the way that the snow fell. (Y/N) frowned.

At this time, in Australia, he would be eating his Pavlova and his beloved prawns. That's what he would be doing... Just sunbathing. Making sandmen. Eating his beloved Pavlova... And his prawns...

He prefers warmth over this stupid snow. He would give anything to go back to Australia, to Sydney and enjoy Christmas on a sunny beach... Maybe he can take one of Bruce's private jets... Pull something off as well... But only Bruce is allowed to even use them and has numbers of the pilots...

And where is (Y/N) going to find a pilot? Craigslist?

Hell no.

So he quietly puts up with it. December, with January and February, are the hottest months in Australia... And here, on the other side of the world, they are the coldest.

And that's why (Y/N) was moping the kitchen while the rest of the family decorated the tree. He hated this festive feeling in this cold weather.

His Australian mind couldn't comprehend this. Just... Happy in the cold? What is that type of bullshit?

" (Y/N)? Why are you moping? And why do you look so sad, as if someone killed something you enjoy? " Bruce asked as he came into the kitchen, getting a cup of coffee.

" Someone did kill something I enjoy. " (Y/N) muttered.

" Oh? " Bruce asked, smile appearing behind his mug, knowing exactly what (Y/N) was talking about, but choose to stay quiet about it. " And what that might be? " Bruce asked, making (Y/N) scoff.

" You know exactly what I mean B and what makes me so pissed during this winter. " (Y/N) grumbled, crossing his arms.

" Well, it's not my problem that Australia is so messed up. " Bruce said and (Y/N) raised his eyebrows.

" The hell is that supposed to mean? " (Y/N) asked, not sure to be offended or amused, since Australia is pretty weird, that much was true.

" The seasons are all twisted. Australian summer is in the winter months, the winter is in summer months... You get my gist. " Bruce said and (Y/N) scoffed. " And besides, what is so bad about snow? " Bruce added, making (Y/N) scoff even louder.

" What is so bad about snow? It's cold, it melts, it's not fun, it's gross... Do you want me to keep going? It's better when I was back in Australia, celebrating it on the beach, in the sand... " (Y/N) stated and Bruce laughed, ruffling (Y/N)'s hair.

" I know, I know. But it's not that bad here. Snow is not that bad. Sure it is the pure opposite of sand and it's warmth during the summer. You can make snow angels, snowmen, throw snowballs at your brothers... " Bruce said, trying to appease to (Y/N).

" Well, I can't go swim can I? Everything is cold and frozen. I can't do anything in the snow. I can only freeze to death and stay inside. " (Y/N) grumbled, still not happy with this type of Christmas. " It's bullshit. That's what it is. "

" You are lucky that Alfred isn't here, otherwise you would have gotten an Alfred glare for that swearing. " Bruce said, sipping more of his coffee. " Also, is some sort of coldness really that bad? Is snow that bad? " Bruce asked, making (Y/N) laugh.

" For an Australian, snow on Christmas is sacrilegious. Like, a cardinal sin. We celebrate the Christmas on our beaches, during hot weather. Not during this snow and winter... Complete and utter bullshit this is."

" You just need to adjust. " Bruce said and (Y/N) rolled his eyes, just as everyone else walked in.

" Oh (Y/N), snow is not that bad on Christmas. " Jason stated.

" It is! " (Y/N) retorted.

Tim and Dick chuckled and Damian shook his head in amusement.

" I can't believe that you can't understand me! " (Y/N) whined and Damian chuckled quietly.

And that's how the evening was spent, teasing (Y/N) about his hatred for snow. And they even let (Y/N) put the star on the top of the tree.

" Come on, lets watch Home alone. " Bruce said, patting a spot on the couch next to him. (Y/N) laughed sarcastically, but he complied, making sure to wrap himself in a warm blanket, making sure to have his beloved Pavlova nearby. "

" I want my prawns tomorrow. " (Y/N) stated out of nowhere, making everyone laugh.

" Of course, I'll get some for you. " Bruce said, putting his arm over (Y/N)'s shoulders, making sure to bring him closer, to try and give him some comfort.

" Wait, where is Alfred? " (Y/N) asked, confused.

" Went home to see his family. " Bruce explained briefly.

" Ah. "

[xas24]

hellooo!! lmfao idk if its just me but am i the only one who noticed that pedri absolutely HATES the cold, or he just gets rly cold easily idk but the way he wears his puffer jacket is so cute, anyway i was hoping u could write something related to that?? love ur work btw !!!☺️

cold boy - pedri

summary: pedri visits england for the first time and realises that he was definetely not made for cold weather.

being from an island that is known for its hot temperatures, pedri cannot handle the cold that surrounds him in various areas of barcelona in winter, or anywhere that is close to a minus in the temperature. his coat would be clung to his body, begging for some sort of warmth in these freezing conditions, and this was something that didn't go unnoticed by y/n or many barça fans.

y/n thought it was absolutely adorable, the way he would shove his hands into the pockets of his coat, head and neck covered by the hood. sometimes she would fling her scarf around his neck, just so he could get that extra bit of warmth she knew his body very much needed.

currently, the two were in the uk, back in y/ns home town for a few days of the holidays. y/n was aware of how cold the temperatures usually are in england, which is why she’d made her boyfriend pack as many fluffy sweaters, puffer coats and beanies he had.

pedri was excited for the adventure, the new experience of visiting england, a place he had never been before, but most of all he was looking forward to meeting his girlfriends family once again. he knew how much they loved him, and likewise he enjoyed their presence and the positive, cheery aura her folks possessed.

what he wasn't mentally prepared for was how cold it would be. in all honesty, he thought y/n was exaggerating with the temperatures; he didn't think it would be this cold until it had smacked him right in the face. his nose and tips of his ears had instantly started to turn pink and his lips became chapped, yet he still put a smile on his face whilst greeting his girlfriend's family and laughing at their jokes of how the canarian was finding this freezing weather.

it was now the second day of the couple being in england, and pedri was slightly adjusting to the winter weather. when y/n had asked him to go down to the markets with her, he had refused as he didn't want to spend another second freezing his ass off outside.

but when she pouted and pressed a delicate kiss to his lips, he couldn't deny her anymore.

"thank you! i promise it'll be fun, its not that cold out today." y/n stated as she put on her puffer coat. just a quick look outside begged to differ but pedri huffed and put on his own coat, grabbing his gloves and his beanie before following her out the bedroom.

the two made their way downstairs and as y/n was grabbing her bag, she noticed how cute her boyfriend looked stood to the side, his hair and ears submerged into the wool of his beanie and his hands in his pockets.

she grabbed a scarf and smiled as she made her way over to him.

"here," pedri watched as she reached up and wrapped the scarf around his neck twice. she fluffed it up so he was fully covered, then kissed him on the lips. "now you won't feel as cold."

pedris heart practically leaped out of his chest at her gesture; his cheeks warmed with love and adoration for the girl infront of him, transforming his lips into a shy grin. his arms wrapped around her neck as he pulled her body closer to his so he could lay a kiss onto her lips properly, mouths slotting together and cold breaths mixing as he kissed his gratitude and love into her.

"thank you, but i think i'll still freeze to death." he whispered against her mouth once he pulled away.

y/n chuckled and pinched his side, eyes glaring up into his brown ones. "you'll be fine, stop being a baby."

pedri pouted and snuck his head into her neck. the warmth he felt, all snuggled up into her body with his arms around her waist, was unmatched - no cold could truly bother him whilst he was in his girls arms. he pressed a kiss to her neck and whined once again that he would rather stay inside.

"no, you're gonna have fun, trust me, amor. c'mon." she grabbed his hand, letting him kiss her cheek one last time before pulling him towards the front door.

she really wanted him to see her home town, the markets that she grew up going to every weekend, the views of the sunset, the lights that illuminated the night and kept the town awake, and especially the snow that made everything look like a fairytale.

pedri saw the excitement evident on her face, so his fingers tightened in her hold. he pulled her closer to his body and they both made their way down the streets and to the markets. they laughed and talked about whatever they wanted whilst the snow trickled down and the cold wind wafted around them but pedri could’ve cared less in that moment as he had his girl by his side.

[cheriladycl01]

The Deeper Connection - Zhou Guanyu x ChildhoodBestfriend! Reader

Plot: You made friends with Zhou when he first came to the UK to pursue his driving career, and you were like two pee's in a pod. When he reaches F1 and life gets busy for the both of you he finds solitude in your childhood hideout.

A/N: I haven't been that active lately with finals coming up, however I'm still trying to post regularly!

You'd grown up in Sheffield all your life, you lived in a very nice home and came from a pretty well off family. With a dad in oversea real estate and your mum as a business owner and entrepreneur in the UK you wouldn't ever have to ask for anything twice.

The trouble was that you tried out so many hobbies and none of them really tended to stick.

Ballet when you were at three, didn't work with zero hand to eye coordination.

Horse-riding when you were five, didn't work after you got bored with how slowly you were being taught to ride.

Acting school when you were seven, didn't work when you were bullied for only being there because of mummy and daddies money. This completely made you loose your passion for it.

Swimming when you were eight, which you had to stop because of a medical condition with the cold water in the winters and your body temperature not mixing well.

Space camp when you were nine, didn't work because you were bored where you already knew everything they talked to you about because it was a special interest of yours.

Pottery when you were ten, whenever something broke you got really disappointed and sad with yourself and eventually it became something you only did every now and then to avoid burnout.

Gymnastics when you were eleven, didn't work after getting bored within the first weeks and it taking up too much time.

You were 12 when you met Zhou Guanyu, he moved into a house down your road in the gated woodland community of large and wealthy farm homes and mansions.

You guys became close almost straight away, you'd spend every night in the treehouse that his dad built him when they first moved in. But he wasn't always around, some weekends you'd knock on his door and no-one but the maid would answer explaining that the family weren't around.

She'd let you into the house, where you'd wait for him in either his bedroom or out in the treehouse. Sometimes he wouldn't come back until 10pm, and you'd be curled up on his beanbag in his room, asleep and his parents would have to call yours suggesting yet another sleepover.

After 3 years of knowing him, you found out where he'd been going and why he was home schooled just like you. He would kart, but now he'd got into Italian Formula 4 and he wouldn't be home as much.

You'd cried begging him not to go, Zhou really was your only friend and even though it had only been three years of friendship you'd attached yourself to him insanely quickly.

Not that he minded of course.

Your managed to go see one race with him, it was in Monza and he'd won it all. And that weekend he asked you to be his girlfriend. You of course said yes, as a two giddy sixteen year olds and went on from there.

The distance got easier when he was in the European Formula 3 championship in 2016. You being 17 weren't actually allowed to make your own choices yet, but the minute you turned 18, 5 months after Zhou, you were following him around to each race.

At this stage taking a gap year before you were due to go to university was better for you, and Zhou. In 2018, he got the news he'd be going to Formula 2 for the 2019 and you'd been accepted to Oxford.

For that first year you made it work. You visited him at races when you had breaks from university and he would come stay with you in your small uni accommodation in the off season or when he had longer breaks into between races.

But when 2020 rolled around, and you were forced to be separated by the growth of COVID-19 your relationship fizzled out. You pushed and pushed trying to keep the sparks there but one day, Zhou phoned you explaining that he couldn't do it anymore.

You'd cried so much that day, and you'd never felt more alone. The only place you thought to go that was safe was the tree house, you could get there through the side gate and you knew Zhou's parents were in China on business only leaving the maid there.

So that's what you did, you laid there curled up in a blanket Zhou brought you, crying until it got darked and you started to scare yourself looking into the dark woods.

When you were younger and you thought you heard or saw something in the woods, Zhou would hold you close explaining to you it was just your imagination and you'd immediately feel a sense of calm wash over you.

You left the treehouse that night getting on the last train you could think off back to Oxford.

Zhou continued in F2 in 2021, but got progressively more busy when competing in a small stint of the Winter F3 Asian Championship, of course you kept up to date with him.

You loved the boy and you didn't ever think you'd stop.

When the announcement of his promotion into F1 happened you cried happy and sad tears. Happy he'd achieved his dream, but ultimately sad he was in the big leagues now and he would definitely have no time for you.

He had a phenomenal first year and you watched every single race, even getting up at absurd hours to watch him. You cheered him on all the time and would get anxious whenever you had to stop or DNF.

Silverstone with the Russell incident was the worst. You parents had to hold you tightly as you cried seeing just how bad the crash was. Seeing George run over to his flipped over car that he couldn't get out of and a red flag being called.

You ran out the house going straight to the treehouse. His parents watched as the 22 year old climbed up the old rickety ladder, bag in hand and red bloodshot eyes.

They knew you'd seen his crash and you wanted some space.

What did shock them was the fact that you consistently came back every night for a few weeks.

It was a warmer night and you still had your blanket but there wasn't a need for a hoodie when you first came out. You were just laying there on the wooden planks looking out of the little skylight in the breaking wooden roof at the stars.

"Hey" a voice says softly making you turn to the ladder.

"Zhou?!" you explain sitting up quickly looking at him. Not that you hadn't seen him on Instagram or in his post race interviews but he'd grown into his face. He was as handsome as ever.

"Mmmmm" he sighs, almost in a grunt sort of way. He comes next to you and lays down, not coming to close scared that you'll leave if he pushes to close.

"Your star is up there tonight" he says raising his hand and pointing to the brightest star between the tree line. He'd named it your star when you'd spend the first night out here.

"How's it been, travelling round the world?" you ask softly turning to look at him, laying on your side. He turns onto his as well to also look at you.

"Lonely" he whispers with a sigh, pushing some of you hair behind your ear making you hold you breath as his fingers brush along the side of you face and down to your lips before recoiling his hand back.

"But your so busy and round people all the time!" you argue confused as to why he would ever feel lonely.

"I think sometimes even though I'm surrounded by people, they aren't people that get me... you know?" he asks turning onto his back, looking up at the sky.

"I think i feel the opposite" you laugh.

"What do you mean?" he asks, his gaze not wavering from the sky.

"I feel like i have absolutely no-one around me, but everyone i do bump into can see right through me" you sigh, having struggled at work recently as a graduate and new employee, working from home.

"Seems like we both are out of our comfort zones then" he offers with a sigh.

"Mmmmm i did have my comfort zone at one point" you say, it came out pointedly which you didn't intend.

"Yeah?" he asks, looking over at you again.

"Yeah it was you. I don't think I've ever experienced a connection like I have... had with you" you sigh.

"Had, you don't feel that way anymore?" he asks with a sad frown, that makes a frown of you own appear.

"You broke up with me in one of the loneliest periods in my life, It's always just been you Zhou, I've never had anyone else and then you were just gone ... I- you broke me and took a part with you" you sniffle, not sure how else to describe the heartbreak you were feeling.

Some people had their heart broken, where it would splinter all over and someone would come along and patch it back up until it healed.

Some people had their heart broken, where it would completely shatter and all the pieces are spread out and someone has to come along and pick up all of those pieces and puzzle them back together.

Some people have their heart broken, where it again completely shatters but the culprit takes a piece of that heart with them so that if theirs a time when someone else does come around and fix it it's never fully fixed, beating but never full.

And Zhou had that piece of your heart and no-one had put back the remaining parts of your heart, you'd gradually started to do it yourself but it was proving to be a long process.

"I-" he starts but chokes on his words.

"I think, I'll always love you Zhou Guanyu..." you whisper sitting up, your hair loosely falling over your shoulder.

"I know I'll always love you. And I want to take back everything I did! I need you in my life!" he says looking over you, making you look down.

"You cant take it back Zhou..." you start before looking up seeing his teary expression. "But i think we could start again. I don't want my heart back, it's yours to take... all of it forever. Your only going to be it!" you smile, knowing this was your chance to have him back.

He was your soulmate you were sure of it.

He leans up and pulls you into a kiss.

"I promise from here on out, I'll never leave you again again!"

Taglist:

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[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved on our archive

By Fionnula Hainey

Feeling achey and 'bruised' and 'completely weak' are among the symptoms people who have tested positive for Covid have described in recent weeks.

It comes as a new strain of the virus is spreading across the UK and other countries. Expert have suggested the new variant, named XEC, will soon become the dominant strain, causing a new wave of infections over the autumn.

XEC is understood to have emerged from Omicron subvariants and experts believe vaccines will be effective against the new strain, although some have suggested it may have a 'transmission advantage' over the current dominant strains.

On social media, people who have tested positive for Covid in recent weeks have been describing their symptoms, with some claiming they have 'never been this sick'. Feeling weak, struggling to move and suffering from a fever are among the symptoms that Covid patients have detailed.

On X, formerly Twitter, one person, who tested positive for Covid on September 11 after avoiding it for three years, said: "This new variant is taking no prisoners. I’ve never been this sick in my entire life." Another said Covid had left them "completely weak" and "unable to move for multiple days".

A third person echoed the sentiment saying they struggled to walk after testing positive for the virus. "I tested positive for Covid on Wednesday," they wrote. "Yesterday, I woke up with an achy back. Today I cannot walk. Read that again. I CANNOT WALK. Of the five times I’ve had Covid, this was never a symptom. We are in for a long winter with these mutations."

Another person who said Covid was "kicking my a*s" described being "the most sick I’ve been in years" two days after their positive test. They added: "Must be a super strain."

Feeling weak and achey were common symptoms among people saying they had tested positive, while others reported feeling feverish or suffering headaches.

"Last night felt achy and couldn't get warm, tested positive," one person wrote. "Couldn't sleep at all last night. Woke up with a splitting headache, no fever, but my body feels like one big bruise." Another said: "My lungs are suffering. I am weak and I hurt all over. Covid positive."

Another person said they had "a sore scratchy throat, head and body aches and a fever".

Because widespread testing is no longer taking place as it was during the pandemic, it is difficult to determine just how prevalent Covid is in the UK currently. The NHS recommends that anyone who is suffering from Covid symptoms should try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people.

The NHS has not released a specific list of symptoms associated with the XEC variant but experts say symptoms are similar to the common symptoms associated with previous dominant variants.

According to the NHS website, the most common Covid symptoms are:

a high temperature or shivering (chills) – a high temperature means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or three or more coughing episodes in 24 hours a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste shortness of breath feeling tired or exhausted an aching body a headache a sore throat a blocked or runny nose loss of appetite diarrhoea feeling sick or being sick The NHS says symptoms are similar to that of a flu or the common cold and people will usually feel better within a few weeks, but some people may experience symptoms for longer.

People are no longer required to take a lateral flow test if they have symptoms of Covid, but tests can be bought at pharmacies for people who want to get tested.

If you or your child does test positive the NHS advises that you stay home and isolate. Children should isolate for three days, while adults are advised to isolate for five days.

In addition, it is recommended that you do not meet up with people who are more likely to get seriously ill from viruses, such as the elderly or people with a weakened immune system, for at least 10 days after a positive test.

[ostdrossel]

Another week

with mediocre bird activity has passed but there was a lot of sunshine, and it was nice to see the trees do their best to make everything glow before we now get into cooler temperatures. The Goldfinches have returned, now with more drab winter plumage, and the Blue Jays were ruling feeders.

In other news, Birdsy has cameras for pre-order available again, and for the first time will also be available in the UK. I use Birdsy cameras for videos and livestreaming. You can check out their offer on their website birdsy.com.

Last but not least - I seem to only sell calendars when they are on sale this year, so they will be on sale again next week. Come good into the weekend!

[weclassybouquetfun]

Netflix recently held their NEXT UK event which rolled out their upcoming slate of films and series; and while not a UK production (but a European one), surprising no one there was no info on THE OLD GUARD 2. In fact, the only news remotely about THE OLD GUARD 2 comes from Matthias Schoenaerts who was asked about the project while doing press for HBO's THE REGIME.

No more A LITTLE CHAOS, Schoenaerts' Zubak is trying to bring big chaos into the kingdom.

What says Matthias?

Until the release of THE OLD GUARD sequel - whenever that will be - what is the gang up to?

-Charlize Theron is reuniting with her F9: THE FAST SAGA director Justin Lin in TWO FOR THE MONEY, which will pair Theron with Daniel Craig. The film described as a heist thriller which casts the pair as career thieves whose relationship evolve over the course of three big jobs.

-Still awaiting word on the distribution and release of Homer's ODYSSEY inspired THE RETURN starring Ralph Fiennes, Juliette Binoche and Marwan Kenzari

, but a bit of Marwan adjacent news is that Dutch influencer/ Holland's NEXT TOP MODEL participant and presenter Anna Nooshin's partner actor Thijs Boermans  recently told the story of how when they were picking out names for their baby

- if it was a boy they had a name chosen for someone Anna knows and who Thijs looks up to: Marwan Kenzari. Were it a boy, they were opting for Chico which is Marwan's nickname and the name he used to go by when acting.

They ended up having a girl, but prior to delivery, they opted not to go for Chico because they thought it was so exotic, only to Ibiza and realize chico is just boy in Spanish.

-Luca Marinelli utilized the casting couch and is sleeping with the director of his now in production film PATERNAL LEAVE! The director? His wife, Alissa Jung.

What is it about? "On the desolate beaches of the Romagna Riviera during the winter, a young woman of German origin meets her father, an Italian, for the first time. The film tells of an intricate and painful comparison between decisions made in the past and the consequences that are reflected in the present."

No solid release date has been given for Joe Wright's Benito Mussolini limited series "M. IL FIGLIO DEL SECOLO / M. SON OF THE CENTURY" with Marinelli playing Il Duce.

However, the head of one of the production companies who produced the series, recently said it will be out in Autumn in this year.

Excerpt from her interview.

One of Luca's costar in M... Gabriele Falsetta mentioned the project in an interview. Although he said he couldn't reveal details, he praised Luca and said that he raised the "temperature" with the level of his acting and that the cast still keep in touch via WhatsApp.

-Kiki Layne's film DANDELION premiered at South x Southwest.

[ayeforscotland]

High humidity isn't that unusual here, it's just that it's usually cold enough that it's not uncomfortable. We're supposed to be in a temperature maritime climate, so mild and wet, but with this fucking awful heat the wet bit makes everything utterly wretched. Our houses aren't designed for this weather at all, which I don't think people elsewhere realise (they're abysmal in winter too). No aircon, shit insulation so we get cooked as houses retain the heat rather than keep it out, no shutters on the windows to stop the sun getting in, no bug screens... And also no idea how to deal with heat, or awareness that you need to avoid being out/active during the hottest part of the day. I didn't grow up experiencing weather anything like this. I really can't cope with it. People die as a result of hot weather, and I've seen posts where people laugh about it, but it's serious and I would really like to see a public health campaign across Scotland (and all of the UK) to raise awareness of how to keep safe. It's scary because it's only going to get worse, but most nutters are excited to have another day of BBQ and sunbathing weather without having to go to the south of Spain. Ugh. Anyway. Yes. Horrible weather, it's no laughing matter at all. Here's hoping this summer isn't as bad as we fear it will be.

Yeah I’m fine with colder humidity - it’s the absolute nightmare combo of heat and humidity that fucks me.

All houses built to retain as much heat as possible leads to uncomfy days and sleepless nights.

[ardri-na-bpiteog]

We need better climate change education immediately because the amount of times I've seen "No 'climate change' here in Ireland/the UK 😂😂😂 this is the coldest and wettest summer of my life."

Like babes. Climate change doesn't mean that everywhere will hotter across the board all the time. It's climate change, the increase in the average temperatures is fucking with established climate patterns. Climate change is likely the reason the weather has been especially wet and cold so far this summer.

Have you noticed there's been a lot of "the ______est weather of my life" lately? Whether it's unusual amounts of rain, an unusually cool summer, or a winter without frost, it's all influenced by climate change babes!

[thebreakfastgenie]

I understand that the UK does not have the infrastructure to keep cool and that’s why the rising temperatures and heat waves are hitting them hard but I don’t understand where the hell the “their homes are insulated to keep heat in” line of reasoning came from. The northern US routinely gets winter temperatures as cold or colder as well as hot, humid summers. Air-conditioning is common here now but it wasn’t until fairly recently and even now plenty of people go without because they can’t afford it.

[fantastic-mr-corvid]

i think it should be illegal for anywhere in the uk to reach 25+ degrees celcius. stupid ass temperature i swear i will never complain about our winters or the average 5-8 degrees in our kitchen just make the heat stopp!!!!! im not built for heatt

[arceespinkgun]

A Gift for Jazz Fans: "The Mission"

The annuals that are part of the Marvel UK comics continuity have some great stories in them. Somehow, I hadn't known one of those was "The Mission" by Jamie Delano from the 1986 annual until very recently. I've always wanted to see more of Jazz's inner thoughts and feelings explored, and this story delivered on that and then some. It provides really interesting answers to the question, "Underneath it all, who is Jazz, at his core?" (Plus, it gives Hoist a rare chance to show off his skills without being eclipsed by others.) It provides complex characterization of Jazz and his personality that would be great to see return in newer media.

Head below the cut to read on! I've provided the full story and the illustrations.

The Mission

It was a monochrome world. The onset of the Alaskan winter had clapped the wild land in irons, squeezing the colour from the mountains and the sky. The black-toothed peaks chewed at grey clouds, swollen with snow.

Jazz, the heroic Autobot, was undismayed by the cold. He found the gigantic landscape exhilarating in its scale, its grandeur more a challenge than a threat. Although, in his current mode — disguised as a Porsche — the freezing conditions caused him some minor problems with traction.

He hugged himself closer to the frosted surface of the Alaskan highway and accelerated northwards. The road tested him as it writhed its way across the land. Jazz chased it, with the thrill of perfect control pulsing through him. He slid — broadsiding through the curves — and climbed through the howling gears, arrowing into the straights, cutting through an occasional brief convoy of toiling trucks, like a barracuda through a shoal of jellyfish. The stillness of the massive land invited speed — its silence, noise.

This landscape dwarfed even the Autobots, he thought. How it must oppress and torment the humans who came here! Their design allowed them only marginal resistance to temperature fluctuations. Thankfully, in this, as in most other aspects, Autobots were far superior machinery.

Jazz considered the force which drove him at such speed towards the heart of the Yukon region on the boundary between Canada and Alaska — the perpetual, Earthbound war with the Decepticons. This mission, on which he had embarked with his comrade, Hoist, should have been a straightforward one. A simple observation of the Constructicons, perhaps rounded off with a bit of simple sabotage for good measure. However, something had gone drastically wrong.

Jazz squeezed a few extra revolutions from his motor. He needed to hurry. There were still one hundred miles to cover before he must leave the road, then the same distance again across difficult terrain, to bring him to the origin point of Hoist’s signal. He had not realised that their line of communications had become so extended. It was bad tactics. With enemies as dangerous as the Decepticons, mistakes could be costly.

ACTION AT LAST!

Despite a sense of foreboding, Jazz could not deny that the action was doing him good. He had been idle for too long. For three weeks he had been locked in a freight container. First there was a week, en route from San Francisco to Skagway by sea — a journey which had stressed his balance circuits severely. Then, a further two weeks in a Skagway freight yard, with all systems shut down to conserve fuel. Listening watch only, had been the orders — it had seemed like eternity. When, finally, the brief signal had found his eager antennae and tripped his systems into life, it had not been the one he was expecting. It had been a single brief transmission on the Auto- bots’ Urgent Distress Frequency.

Hoist had done good work as a scout in the past, Jazz had thought as, gunning his powerful motor fiercely, he had cracked out of the steel container as if it were tinfoil; but he lacked flair. He was too methodical for fieldwork. He was a workshop machine, maintainance was his strength. However, with the Decepticons fighting on so many different fronts, the Autobot warriors were spread too thinly. All hands were pressed into service; constant opposition to the enemy was vital. Now Hoist had got himself into trouble. Jazz hoped that his comrade had not tangled with the Constructicons. They would turn him into scrap and use him to make rivets.

Like a snarling bullet, the Porsche ripped into the sub-arctic night. In his riotous wake, snakes of powdered snow writhed, hissing from the road.

SHREWD TACTICS

Until he had stepped into the hole, Hoist had been well satisfied with progress of his mission. It had been no easy task to locate and observe the enemy unit in such haphazard and gargantuan geography as that of the Yukon territory. A city could be lost and never found here. But by shrewd tactics and thoroughly practised techniques he had accomplished his task.

He had tracked the Constructicons and for three days he had waited motionless in the dark, cold, shadows of the mountainside. Only his powerful full-spectrum scanners operated in this time — locked onto the activity of the Constructicons, as constantly they mined and tunnelled their way into the permanently deep-frozen silt of the river plain below.

Whether it was a tactical base they were building, or a mine for some kind of mineral fuel source, Hoist had been unable to ascertain from long range. So, as the Constructicons had now become invisible to his sensory receptors — other than as a clatter of indistinguishable industry beneath the surface of the ice- bound ground — he had deduced that the risk involved in a covert, close-quarters reconnaissance of the target was acceptable.

He had raised his massive bulk to a vertical position. Ice which had lacquered him burst away from his flexing joints in small crystal explosions as the Autobot manoeuvred his frosted form down towards the terraces of the frozen flood-plain.

Conscious of his high sensor profile in this open country, Hoist had kept low, hugging the occasional rocky shoulder with which the mountains nudged the ice-skirted streams towards the river. In this fashion he had approached to within half-a-mile of the enemy’s subterranean work site.

DISASTER!

Then, crossing a low ridge-top with all sensors locked firmly onto the target — alert for the sudden, searing light of a laser — waiting for the rush and metal- tearing fire of a missile — Hoist had stepped forward into nothing. Sudden, split-second, bottomless, unknown, no- thing.

With a gyro-wrenching jolt the drop had stopped short and Hoist was trapped, suspended, held by the shoulders in the impossible grip of the earth frozen hard as granite. His huge legs had flailed at emptiness in wild, futile, energy expenditure and his torso had flexed and strained against the immovable walls of the pit into which he had fallen. Then came realisation that a moment of carelessness had brought potential dis- aster on him and his mission.

He had fallen into some kind of vertical shaft — not a natural feature — and was now wedged with his arms trapped uselessly by his sides. Worst of all, his head and the armoured dome of his shoulders were sticking up above the surface of the ground, like a beacon for the first Constructicon who surfaced for a routine defensive scan. He had decided to risk a brief emergency trans- mission, calculating that even if the enemy intercepted his signal and destroyed him, Jazz would still have the target’s location.

As the frozen hours passed, there was wind. With the wind came snow — swarming out of the darkness liked crazed bees. The Autobot scout waited. He could do nothing else.

ROUGH TERRAIN

After leaving the Alaskan highway and enduring twenty miles of cratered dirt road, until the risk of mechanical damage began to outweigh the benefits of speed, Jazz reluctantly abandoned his Porsche mode and transformed.

There had followed eight hours of slow, zig-zag navigation through a savage landscape. He had climbed boulder-strewn mountain passes and ploughed, stumbling through drifted fields of snow. The wind drove constant flights

of ice needles which scoured him abrasively, periodically clogging his sensory receptors, blinding and disorientating him as he struggled to make his way towards the source of the distress signal.

His sensors determined the location of the Constructicons easily enough. Briefly he considered a lightning, maximum fire-power strike on the concealed installation. But however tempting the prospect of entombing the Constructicons in a crypt of their own manufacture, Jazz's priority had had to be to ascertain the fate of Hoist. He thought he detected traces of Autobot alloys — but the geometry of the image was wrong.

Apprehensively he went to full scanner power and focused. Out on the snow carpet he now distinguished the head and shoulders of his comrade. The Constructicons must have destroyed him and left this wreckage as a warning — or a trap. Fascination and dread drew Jazz down onto his belly and he furrowed forward through the snow, armour grinding on the hard ground beneath. His weaponry was ranged and armed.

As he drew near to the remains of Hoist, he was fine-tuned to a hair trigger of violent reaction, expecting a Constructicon ambush at any second. So, when suddenly his comrade’s head swivelled towards him and spoke, it was unfortunate, but not surprising, that Jazz reacted in the way that he did.

Hoist had remained completely still as the snow hurried down around him, covering his body and the pit. Once more he had shut down all systems except for perception, to minimise the chances of detection by the enemy and to conserve fuel. When, eventually, he sensed movement behind him he knew that it must be Jazz. Gratefully he turned to greet him.

RELEASED

His comrade’s action was spontaneous — and ultimately disastrous. At the sound of Hoist’s voice, Jazz flipped over in a blur of motion. He snapped into an attack position and Hoist saw the Autobot’s photon-rifle lurch as it discharged a concentrated gem of solar power into the Constructicon position.

“Why?” Hoist asked, bewildered. “Why did you do that?”

As soon as he had fired, Jazz realised he had responded more like an untested junior warrior on his first mission, than a hardened Autobot commander. He had jeopardised their position in the extreme. He recovered his equilibrium and sprang into action. Straddling the pit, he bent and thrust down his arms to find firm purchase on the smooth, hard armour of the trapped Autobot. Enormous feet chewed into the frozen ground as machinery stressed and levered. Jazz increased power to maximum and, slowly, the dead weight of Hoist began to lift from the pit.

“Trust you to come all this way without mishap and then to fall into a gold-mine at the last minute!”

“Gold-mine?” replied Hoist, as his shoulder armour screamed in friction with the rock-hard earth.

“Do you mean that humans would endure these conditions to dig a useless metal from the ground…”

“They have no logic.”

Jazz would have liked to explain what he had learned of the Klondike gold rushes. How hundreds of thousands of men and women forced their way into the wilderness — enduring misery upon misery, deprivation upon deprivation — in order to win riches and respect. But he knew that Hoist would not understand — and the time was inappropriate.

With an ungainly metallic slithering, the bulk of the freed Autobot tangled him into the snow. Jazz extricated him- self and was about to suggest that they made a hasty strategic withdrawal when he was distracted by a sudden prickle of light from the enemy position. He barely had time to acknowledge this as laser fire, when the world turned red and then disappeared in a flare of purest sterile white.

Clumsily rolling into an operating position, Hoist saw and felt the vicious lines of laser light cutting the air and boiling into the snow around them. Instinctively, he returned fire, his arm launching a covering pattern of heat-seeking missiles which charged, vapour trailing behind them, into the enemy emplacement. He looked for Jazz — and was dismayed to see him stationary and fully exposed to the Constructicon fire. Hoist’s expert eye scanned for damage — and found it. Jazz had been hit in the side of the head.

The armoured steel, still glowing faintly, was puckered around a small, neat puncture. Hoist knew that the Autobot’s sensory and logistical circuits — a complex honeycomb of micro-circuitry — must have been powdered by this hot-shot.

The Constructicons were fanning out, trying to surround them before moving in to finish them off. Hoist had to get both of them into concealment, or a strong defensive position — or they were doomed.

Fortunately, although Jazz's logic circuits had been re-structured by the laser, his motor mechanisms were unimpaired. Bellowing wildly, Hoist bundled him frantically towards the sheltering slopes of the dark mountainside. With fortune and the inaccuracy of the Constructicon marksmen, they might just make it before they were overrun…

CONFUSION

Abruptly, he was aware that he had been moving for a long time.

Who was he? Where was he? Why was he?

What was that thunderous voice that roared in his head? Why was he being pushed, slipping, sliding, crashing and reeling through the jagged black and soft white of this place?

On a ridgetop, he stopped and turned to consider his tormentor, a powerful machine of destruction and violence. He struggled to frame intelligible sounds, but a siren wail that seemed to mimic the wind was all that burst from him. Simultaneously, a splash of fire blossomed beside them, throwing out shoots of rock and ice which rattled and punched at his metallic hide.

He was still listening to the complex percussion of the falling debris, when the violent machine swung a mighty arm and struck him a ringing blow. Surprised and unbalanced, he toppled and fell, limbs scrabbling wildly for grip where there was none. Then he was moving, accelerating downwards in a reckless exhilaration of speed, cleaving up plumes of soft, white powder. He was out of control.

“Move! Move!” Hoist roared in frustration. His damaged comrade stood, vacant, as if engrossed in some strange entertainment. Hoist shoved him again, as he had been shoving him for hour after mountainous hour, mile after ice-bound mile, trying desperately to keep ahead of the pursuing Constructicons.

He watched for a second as Jazz tobogganed down the ice-slope and then, spurred on by the laser fire that pierced and shattered the black rock around him, he too launched himself on the armour-rattling descent.

If Hoist’s navigation was correct they should have cleared the high peaks now and should soon be able to make the tree-line and find forest cover. Fifteen hundred feet below, he came abruptly to rest at the foot of the ice-slope. He shook free the snow that had compacted itself in his scanners and looked for his hapless companion. Locating him, Hoist groaned inwardly — more aberrant behaviour!

The second-in-command of the Autobot Warriors, right-hand of the great Optimus Prime, was sitting atop a large snow-clad boulder — his attention rapt upon six balls of compacted snow, which he manipulated skillfully from hand to hand, managing to keep them all airborne and mobile.

Juggling. In the midst of a potential battle-zone, he was juggling! Still, at least there was nothing wrong with his co-ordination, thought Hoist.

COVER AT LAST

After several miles of difficult descent through a boulder-choked gully, they entered the forest.

Hoist felt marginally more secure as they moved between the trees. They would help screen them from the Constructicon scanners. His damaged companion, Jazz, seemed to be inhabiting a different world. He had lost all awareness of their mission and the danger they were in. He sauntered along, stopping to investigate every feature of their environment in minute detail, as if each held the secrets of the Universe. It was highly tedious and Hoist wasted critical fuel in constantly prodding the Autobot onwards.

Hoist had calculated that their fuel reserves would not take them beyond reach of the enemy. They were going to need transport. A vague plan was forming in his logic centres. He knew that, mathematically, its chances of success were slim; but the only alternative was ultimate destruction at the hands of the Constructicons. They must press on to the south. They needed a river.

Simultaneous with the awareness of a distant crashing and shattering of timber which assailed his senses, Hoist realised that Jazz was no longer with him. Desperately he scanned, trying to locate his comrade’s metal bulk amongst the distracting ghost images thrown back by the trees.

Jazz sat as if sculpted from the landscape. His attention was wholly focused on a stunningly perfect piece of machinery. Four delicately precise limbs supported a powerful, lithe, brown torso. The head, set atop a strong flexible neck, bore strange, spreading antennae with which, for some mysterious purpose, it scraped at the column of one of the tall, static machines.

Suddenly, the entrancing machine froze. Briefly, it cocked its head to one side and then was gone. Disappointed, he turned to find the Violent One shouldering his way through the densely packed columns, like an avalanche.

DEVASTATOR!

Hoist knew from the scale and volume of the fast closing pursuit that the Constructicons must have combined into their awesome composite form — Devastator. Frantically he bullied the unwilling Jazz through the clawing forest. He was urged both by the horrendous tearing of timber, as the gargantuan Decepticon machine levelled all before it in its single-minded desire to annihilate them — and by the fact that he sensed the presence of water ahead.

In seconds they broke from the trees and stood on the rocky banks of a river.

Instantly Hoist was assailed by doubt. A hundred yards upstream the towering, curved, concrete wall of what he recognised to be a hydro-electric dam spanned the river gorge. What should have been a violent torrent was reduced to a sedate surge. Surely the water would not have depth or power enough for his purpose. Nevertheless, with Devastator’s ruthless destruction of the forest rending the mountain air, he knew that defeat could not be contemplated. They were Heroic Autobots — the conflict would continue to the end.

Quickly Hoist selected four tall, thick pine trees. With a series of rapid, powerful movements, he felled and stripped them of branches. Then he manipulated them into the water. It was barely deep enough to float them.

Hoist sensed that the end was near. They would have to stand and fight.

Fifty yards downstream, the mighty form of Devastator ripped, splintering out of the forest. Remorselessly it scanned the river gorge for its enemies. Hoist primed his weaponry and looked for Jazz. In full view, the damaged Autobot was standing, facing the soaring wall of the dam, calmly scanning it from top to bottom and from side to side.

CAUGHT IN THE OPEN

Ugly, he thought to himself. This wall was ugly. It should not be here, obstructing the flow of the water. The water was a part of the big machine that was this planet. The planet was part of the solar system and that was part… The wall was wrong.

Sounds from behind turned him. Two things were happening. The Violent One who harrassed him constantly, was approaching at speed and beyond him a gigantic machine straddled the river, crushing boulders to powder under its enormous weight. This giant was pointing at him.

Then the Violent One cannoned into him, slamming him back into the ugly concrete of the wall. At the same moment, from the pointing arm of the giant machine, a light flared out, like the light of suns. Energy crackled past him and solid heat chewed into the wall, concentrating on a patch which suddenly spurted water and steam in a glittering power-jet.

Then the Violent One was dragging him again. The pulsing light danced from the giant's arm several more times but it did not touch them. The Violent One reached suddenly for his head — and then there was nothing at all.

FINAL CHANCE

There was a chance, one final, desperate chance. Hoist saw it and took it. The ten-thousand degree pulse of solar energy which Devastator had launched at Jazz had punched a hole straight through the dam. Hoist saw cracks, beginning as filaments but rapidly spreading into a web which crumbled from its centre. He knew that he had but scant seconds.

He dragged Jazz to where the tree trunks bobbed and lurched, side by side on the slowly rising river. With the quick, deft skill of an expert mechanic, he shut down Jazz’s systems completely. He just had time to lay the disabled Autobot on the loose raft and throw himself on top — clenching and binding the tree trunks together with his own huge strength — before the dam disintegrated.

A mighty, surging roar of water boiled into the river gorge and plucked up the cumbersome vessel like a feather, spinning and tossing it forward in a wild freedom of escape.

An image, which would remain in Hoist’s memory banks forever, swept by. In panic and alarm, the Constructicons had disassembled from their Devastator mode as the churning wall of water spewed over them. In a split second they were submerged — bowled and scraped along the bottom of the gorge like pebbles — whilst the Autobots’ raft surfed over them on wild wings of water.

The mission was over, thought Hoist. They had failed, but not completely. The war would continue and he and his comrade Jazz, repaired by Ratchet, would fight the Decepticons again.

Two days later, at a back-road gas- station, just south of the Canadian border, a sleepy pump-jockey was surprised to see a towtruck towing a battered Porsche that looked as if it had been in the wars. He was more surprised, as he watched them disappear down the road, to realise that it had no driver. By Jamie Delano.

[mistydeyes]

yellow tulip - hopeless love

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summary: Kyle is back for another summer! Soon, you and him fall into a comfortable routine. But what happens when you start to have feelings for the Manchester boy and his radiant charms? Read Part I!

where i picture the reader living

pairing: Gaz x childhood love! fem!Reader

warnings: fluff, mild angst, unrequited love, UK inaccuracies (especially with geography)

🏷️ @the-faceless-bride

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Once Kyle and his mum had left, you spend the next month helping your mother re-pot some flowers to be brought indoors and began your preparations for the winter. She even let you handle shears as she showed you the process of trimming the wildflower garden as they began to wilt under the cooling temperatures. You went back to your small primary school in the next town full of stories about your best friend from Manchester.

Later on in the school year, you were driving your mum crazy as she couldn't give you anything pleasing to bring to show and tell. Flowers were boring because everyone knew she was the flower lady and none of your small trinkets satisfied you. After consulting with Nana, your mum soon let you know she was going to bring over something special. Nana had taken a picture of you both running around after the lemonade incident and you excitedly held it in your hand. Your pigtails were seen mid-air as Kyle chased you, a marigold and petals adorning his short, dark curls. You both were covered in flour and you recognized the signature dark pink stains of the lemonade. Once you were able to give the picture to your mum after admiring it for so long, she placed a dried gardenia flower behind it before pushing it through the laminator. "This one means 'transport of joy' because whenever you're sad, you can look at that picture and think of happier times," she said and kissed your forehead.

As the school year progressed, Kyle would send letters and pictures of him in London. In one photo, you were shocked to see one of his front teeth missing. In the letter he wrote, "I lost it during recess, but I can whistle through it now!" and you laughed at the image of him trying to whistle through the empty cavity.

When the strong green petals of daffodils began to poke their way to the surface, you know it was only a few weeks until Kyle would return for the summer. You had so much to show him, including your notebook filled with pages of flower knowledge (and better handwriting) as well as the crafts you had made in his absence.

It was a warm, beautiful day when you saw his mum's car make its way down the road. You were outside tending to the blossoming wildflowers in the front lawn and making sure they were properly watered. You couldn't help by race beside their car as you saw him approaching. He placed a hand on the window and excitedly waved hi.

It took all of two seconds for him to jump out of the car and give you a big hug. "I missed you so much!" he exclaimed and your mum handed you a small and large bouquet.

"This one is for you, Kyle," you said handing him the smaller one filled with the pure, white, bell-shaped petals of lily of the valley (return of happiness) and you sheepishly walked over to his mum handing her the larger one.

She admired the beauty of the flowers, smelling them deeply and letting out a sigh of happiness. "Mummy, Y/N can tell you what those mean!" Kyle said as he tugged on his mother's skirt.

His mum leaned down and you pointed to the flowers one by one. Your mum had designed this one but she was planning on teaching you all the different ways to construct a bouquet. You described how you had picked justicia (perfection of female loveliness), jasmine (grace and elegance), wood sorrel (maternal tenderness), and finally agrimony (thankfulness). As you spoke, Kyle wrote down, "maternal, elegance, and perfection," something he would be looking up in his dictionary later. She gave you a large hug, thanking you for the wonderful gift. She promised you she would dry them when she returned to Manchester and would cherish it. As Kyle's grandparents emerged from the house, the family gave their final hugs and said goodbye.

So began another summer, one to be remembered. Along with your routine from last year your mother and Nana also trusted you both more with mature tasks. You learned how to organize a range of bouquets while Kyle impressed Nana was his ability to read through recipes that she would be struggling to see with her fading eyesight. At night, his Grandad would teach you how to cup fireflies in your hands and see their radiant glow under the night sky.

You were the happiest you had ever been and the adults enjoyed seeing you and Kyle adventuring through the garden and telling stories of mystical forests and fairytale characters. He even taught you how to swim in the local pond, something he had learned that school year. He laughed as you accidentally got water up your nose and were sneezing profusely. But soon the summer days would become shorter and the early morning chill would linger. You knew it was time for his mum's car to come rolling up the road and take him away. Like before, you had a tearful goodbye to Kyle as he helped his mum pack his remaining things. He returned to Manchester, this time with a bouquet of double violets on his lap, reciprocal friendship.

And like that, you soon fell into the comfort of the yearly routine. Kyle would enter as the long days ended with a sky painted with hues of sapphire, rose, and pink and when the hydrangeas of all varieties began to bloom. Upon his departure, you would both leave with more adventures to tell and new skills. With each summer, you were becoming a more experienced gardener and florist while Kyle learned how to prepare a wide array of meals and picked up on his Nana's love for aviation. His bookshelves soon became filled with aviation books but he still kept his prized dictionary from you. You both continue to maintain your journals with you adding in dried flowers and even better illustrations.

As you two grew up alongside each other, you realized how your best friend was becoming a more handsome and mature individual. You no longer were able to stick flowers behind his ear as he grew a full head taller than you. His face also began to mature. He no longer had a full head of curls, instead had short coils in the front and shaven sides. He even began to gain more muscle, regularly wrapping his arms around you and throwing you into the refreshing water of the pond during a particularly hot day. You would always try to outrun him, but the young man was faster and more agile than you. One thing stayed the same and that was his smile. Your heart would skip a beat when you looked over at him and he noticed how his lips curved upwards and his eyes closed with crinkles appearing in the corners of them. For weeks after that moment, any mention of yellow acacias (secret love) and tulips (declaration of love) made you blush.

As you lay in your bed, listening to the hum of the crickets and thinking of a cozy life in the countryside with Kyle, you heard a soft tap at your window. You got up and saw Kyle on the other side, having climbed up your cherry tree. Kyle was now 12 years old and soon you'd join him as your birthday was at the end of August. As you opened the window you wondered what he was doing here so late.

"Kyle, shouldn't you be asleep," you yawned. "We're going with Grandad to the market in the morning and picking up vegetables for dinner."

"My mum just called me, I'm actually heading out tomorrow. She says that she's picking me up early this summer," with this statement you couldn't help but frown in disappointment. For the first time in 6 years, Kyle would be missing your birthday.

"I wanted to do something special before your birthday though," he began and reached out a hand to help you out of the window. It was 11 pm and you knew your mum was fast asleep in the next room over, tired from a long day of designing bouquets and selling them on her online shop. You hesitantly grabbed his hand and he moved to stabilize you by holding your waist. You braced yourself on the tree branch as he lowered you to one closer to the ground. You climbed down the tree and he jumped from his high position. As you swatted his arm at the risky action, he brushed you off saying his growing body could handle it.

With both of you on the ground, he led you to a small picnic blanket adorned with fairy lights, a small cake, and what you thought was an attempt at a bouquet. You were touched, this is the sweetest thing someone had done for you and it didn't help that it was your crush doing such.

"This is beautiful, Kyle, thank you," you said and sat down on the cotton blanket. He sat next to you and picked up the bouquet.

"I had your mum help me with picking these flowers out for you, she let me sneak in the garden when you were in the shower." he sheepishly said and placed the bouquet in your lap.

Your eyes flashed around and looked at the colorful arrangement, coronillas (success crowns your wishes), coreopsis (always cheerful), bellflower (gratitude), sage (good health and long life), all wrapped with leaves from the arborvitae (unchanging friendship). The arborvitae hurt, you appreciated the sentiment but were wishing your friendship would evolve into something more. Something more intimate, a representation of red carnations, pure and ardent love. You surpassed the slight disappointment and hugged Kyle. You could smell the lavender shampoo his Nana made specifically for him as well as the scent of old books on his skin. As you pulled away, you looked at the cake. It was adorned with marigolds and honeysuckles along with a delicately written, "Happy birthday."

"Although, my bouquet isn't as nice as yours. I believe this design takes the cake," he joked and you laughed at his pun. "It's carrot cake, your favorite, and I might have snuck a few marigolds and honeysuckles out of your yard to add some flair. Couldn't let you forget about that day," he said and you smiled at the sentiment.

He pulled a lighter out of his pocket and lit the small candle in the middle. You blew it out, making a single wish, "to always be in Kyle's life, no matter in what way."

He cheered and took out some forks for you to enjoy his confectionary masterpiece. You took a bite of the cake and your mouth exploded with the rich cream cheese icing and the perfectly balanced sweetness and spice of the cake itself. You couldn't help but finish the cake off with him as you both lay down on the blanket looking at the stars.

"What do you want to do after this, Y/N?" he asked breaking the silence.

"Go back to my nice comfortable bed," you joked back. Yawning slightly as you fought sleepiness to cherish this moment.

"No, I mean what are you doing after all these summers? We only have 4 more years until we have to decide on going to sixth form or not," he added, turning to face you.

"I do fancy the classics and my mum would love to see me studying English and classical literature. Although, you know I would have to pick up a minor concentration in botany," you replied. You too had been thinking about this, looking at prospective schools early on and hoping to find one that would satisfy your requirements.

"I think I'm going to join the Army," he said and you were shocked. This was the first time you had heard about this and you couldn't imagine the mild-mannered Kyle serving as an officer and going through the extensive training. Sure, he was strong and fast and smart but this was far from the future you had pictured for him. He took your silence as a negative response.

"What? You didn't think we could spend endless summers in the countryside. Eventually, we'd both go our ways and you'd marry some farmer boy and live with acres of land" he argued, his tone becoming more defensive. As if the arborvitae wasn't enough. You wanted to grab his face lovingly and tell him that he was the one you wanted to live with. Your fantasy of having acres of rolling gardens was suddenly shattered. He finished his argument by saying softly, "Plus, you know I'd finally be able to get into the sky."

"I understand, Kyle, just promise you'll visit when you can, yeah?" you requested and turned to your side to face him.

"I'll be sure to take leave to enjoy some mint tea with you, love. Just can't promise it'll be during the summer." You were glad it was dark as you blushed profusely.

After aimlessly talking for hours, Kyle closed his eyes and the silence was soon filled by his soft snores. As you drifted further into your slumber, you couldn't help but let a small tear fall. He would only see you as his childhood friend and nothing more.

When you woke up to your mom gently shaking your shoulder, you realized Kyle was gone. He was off to his life in Manchester.

[eaglesnick]

“Reform UK’s climate denial undermines democracy." – London School of Economics. (17/06/24

Nigel Farage is “incredibly popular” because he speaks "common sense" says Reform candidate Robert Barrowcliffe.

 Let's examine that statement a little closer, not by looking at Farage’s anti-immigration policies, his war against woke, or his Brexit credentials. Instead lets look at climate change and how Nigel Farage plans to protect us.

Only an idiot would argue the climate isn’t changing. That is now a given for all sensible people. From the 1300 who died during the annual Hajj in Saudi Arabia last week, where temperatures were 50 degrees Celsius, to the severe flooding across Europe this month where 120 people died and hundreds more are unaccounted for, the effects of climate change are all around us.

The Met Office says:

 “Across the UK, we expect to see:

Warmer and wetter winters

Hotter and drier summers

More frequent and intense weather extremes

Globally things are even worse.

“UN chief says world is on ‘highway to climate hell’ as planet endures 12 straight months of unprecedented heat."  (CNN: 06/05/24)

As food and water supplies fail across Africa, huge swathes of people will be forced to migrate as a matter of life or death, and the majority will be heading for the rich countries of Europe, including Britain.

What does Nigel Farage and his Reform UK Party  propose to do to help us adapt and survive these new changes to our environment? The first thing of note is that “climate change” is not mentioned once in the Reform manifesto and neither is “global warming”. It’s as if the problem doesn’t even exist!

 More concerned with saving money, than saving the planet, Farage promises to “scrap” subsidies for renewable energy development, to “fast-track” more licences for North Sea gas and oil extraction and to begin fracking.

When the tide of immigration to the UK becomes overwhelming, when peoples homes are flooded again and again, when the old and frail are dying of heat stroke let's remember the "common sense" attitude of Nigel Farage and the billionaire backers of his Reform UK  Party and give them the popularity they deserve.

[hypahticklish]

Mad Max and the Week Long Tickle War: Day Six

Summary: Where Steve seeks vengeance on Eddie, and gets a little help of his own. A collaborative project with @nhasablogg and @lesbian-byers Fandom/Characters: Stranger Things / Steve & Eddie (pre-slash), feat. Max Wordcount: 2k ish A/N: …I had to rip the narrative out of Eddie's nerdy metalhead hands before he ran away with it… and then I did instead. Anyway, fun fact: the album mentioned was basically a set of lullabies for baby me and was my favorite growing up…that it also lines up to be the most recent release prior to ST4 is such a wild coincidence 😅 ← What happened yesterday?

~~~

"Alright, Harrington," he said as they shuffled off their jackets in the living room. "Today we're continuing your education into Real Music."

"Goody me," Steve grumbled. The sound didn't match the fondness in his eyes.

It was Steve's turn to hang out at Eddie's. Last time it was just the two of them, they had gone back to his place at Eddie's insistence - more space, more privacy, heated pool - and he didn't hear the end of the rich boy commentary while he indulged in whatever Steve's folks kept in the house. Eddie said his uncle rarely was at the trailer between work and the bar, but the tape deck and cassette collection must have been his true motive. Not that any of that mattered to Steve; if Eddie could spark light to whatever room he was in, then his home was the breath of life in and of itself.

Eddie swaggered backward down the short hall. "You've got your pick between my two greatest loves: Iron Maiden or Metallica."

"However shall I choose between US long-hair band and UK long-hair band?"

"You should be groveling at my feet for the opportunity to be guided to Valhalla by yours truly!" said Eddie with all the indignation of a fussy tomcat.

Steve threw up his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay, let's go with Iron Maiden."

"Newest or oldest?"

"Uhh, newest?" Steve chuckled at Eddie's quick change to a cheshire cat smile and took a seat on his bed.

The usual cold weather in Hawkins was interrupted by unseasonable sunshine and borderline warm temperatures if it weren't for winter's breath on the breeze; a phenomenon so delightful that most of the windows in the town were left wide open. Steve could not be more grateful to have the day off from work to spend getting to know Eddie better.

And to test what Dustin had mentioned off the cuff yesterday.

"You are a lucky boy, Stevie, because I have, in my possession, the Live After Death tour on cassette." Eddie presented him with the small plastic box case as if it were a sword. "The single best heavy metal tour of all time."

Steve swallowed the butterfly shaped lump in his throat at the nickname and instead raised an eyebrow. "M'okay?"

The speakers crackled to life in what Steve could swear was a World War Two broadcast before a hair-raising guitar solo kicked off the album. Eddie dove onto the bed beside him, leaned forward, and yanked back on Steve's shoulders to pull him down. "Lay back, relax, and get ready to have your life changed," Eddie said, scooping his curly hair up from behind his back.

Everyone who took the time knew the man relished in having an audience. Amidst some rather boisterous bouncing early on, Steve had turned onto his side to watch Eddie's performance. It was bad enough that Steve was still figuring out the knot worrying in his stomach when Eddie was around, but laying in Eddie's small bed with Eddie's bicep pressed to his chest, and Eddie's knee knocking into his, while Eddie passionately sang along to songs he had clearly developed his own choreography to when he wasn't playing air guitar, was driving it home to Steve that he may have something down bad for Eddie. He could not help but be mesmerized.

Thirteen and a half minutes after Eddie announced it was the last track of side one ("It's an epic poem, pretty boy, now shh!") the tape deck clicked. Only the music of rustling leaves and wind chimes outside remained. Eddie was pink cheeked, wide grinned, catching his breath with his limbs akimbo. "Fuckin' amazing, right?" he asked earnestly.

Steve smirked to himself. "Yeah, think it's growin' on me." Eddie punched the air and threw his arms back over his head. His well-worn 'Rush' shirt lifted from his low-slung jeans, revealing a triangle strip of healed scars across his abdomen. Steve nonchalantly cracked his knuckles and looked out the window to focus on anything else.

Eddie sighed contentedly, and then with a twinge of impatience said, "Alright, mind flippin' the cassette already?"

"What?"

"Well A) you're closer and B) you're closer. Soooo let's goooo!"

Steve's brows knit together but once he saw the impish glee smeared across Eddie's face, he sat up with Dustin's words echoing in his mind. "And here I thought you were one of the smart ones." He barreled past the scoff and pressed a hand to Eddie's sternum to keep him down. "No no, don't get up, I'll get it. Matter of fact, why don't you stay right here."

His big, brown eyes blinked into a squint. "Fine by me."

Steve got up and made a show of popping out the tape, turning it over, and replacing it. He ghosted his finger over the play button.

And then Steve was on his knees, looming over Eddie, ghosting his fingers along his exposed stomach. Eddie's hands jumped to catch him but Steve smacked them away. "Ah-ah. Don't move. You didn't wanna get up, remember?"

A fraction of hesitation, then, "No problem-o. I am at peak relaxation." Eddie tucked his hands underneath his bushy hair. His right leg began to bounce.

"Sure thing, Thumper, now hold still."

Having spent the past few weeks with Eddie, Steve learned he was a very touchy-feely dude; constantly hanging off his friends and clapping his large hands to their shoulders or knees. Eddie would dramatically wrestle with the brats and snuggle into whoever chose to be beside him. And yeah, sometimes those touches did turn to tickling the utter daylights out of whoever held his attention for the moment. He also knew that Eddie was easily provoked and startled, meaning that any retaliation attempts often turned him into a hyper maniac. Steve was banking on Eddie's stubborn ego to keep the tides from turning against him and having a repeat of last night.

(The swoosh in his chest at that thought was a problem for future Steve to analyze.)

Steve touched barely wiggling fingertips to the skin at the edge of Eddie's pantline and was immediately rewarded with goofy giggles. "Wow, really?" Steve laughed. "That's pathetic, Munson."

"F-fuck off!" His leg bouncing got worse.

"I struck gold without even trying," Steve joked. He walked his slow spider to the nearest shiny mauve bite mark. "Thought you'd put up a bigger fight."

"Shit shit shit!" Eddie's body jerked around the torrent of squeaky laughter slipping through his toothy smile. His hands scrambled up to clutch the edge of the mattress on both sides of his head and erected a tent between his elbows to hide in.

"Aw, well now that's adorable." Steve skittered near the jut of his hip bones up under his shirt toward his waist. Eddie's feet drummed into the bed as a plethora of snorts and swears broke apart his giggles. "You talk a big game for someone so ticklish it's silly. Imagine if I was trying to get revenge on ya."

Eddie's neck and cheeks turned from pink to red. "You-you just gonna be a-a-a fuckin tease about it, huh?" He sucked in his stomach and squirmed away from Steve's fingers.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Steve mocked. He tucked his body defensively, stiffened his hands into claws and vibrated them into Eddie's abdominal muscles. "Is this better?" He had to shout over the unhinged, shrieking laughter shaking the walls of the trailer.

Eddie's hands gripped his shoulders. His feet dug into the bed. Both vain attempts to push and buck Steve off from his stable wrestling position and the seismic fingers drifted toward his lower stomach. When those attempts to dislodge failed, Eddie tried to curl around Steve's instead.

"Rookie mistake, Munson!"

A loud, wet noise ripped from Eddie's unprotected side. "Wh-WHAT-oh jesus fucking CHRIST! Are you TWELVE?!" Another raspberry to his hip sent him cackling hysterically.

The front door to the trailer opened and closed loudly, followed by rapid stomps in their direction. Steve scrambled to his feet, wiping his mouth on his henley sleeve. The anxious breath caught in his chest released when he saw a serious looking Max enter the doorframe. "Oh good, it's just you…what are you doin' here?"

"Dudes, the whole neighborhood could hear someone screaming," said Max, relaxing into a smirk. They both looked at the panting, sprawled out puddle that was Edward Munson before meeting each other's gaze again.

"So you ran toward it?" Steve asked. Max shared a soft, albeit secretive, expression of familiarity with Eddie and shrugged. "We have got to work on all your kids' self preservation skills." Dustin's friends had a unique gift of making Steve incredibly tired.

"Well," Steve turned to Eddie, hooked his hand behind the crook of his knees and gave a sharp tug to pull him down the bed, "wanna be an accomplice to murder instead of a witness?"

"Yeah, sure."

The giggles had already ensnared Eddie in response to being manhandled. "Fuck off - no, you stay out of this, Red!" His arms glued to his side and fists balled to his chest.

Max clambered on top of Eddie as though it were second nature and peered down at the bundle of sparkly nerves beneath her. "And if I don't?" She took a moment to move Eddie's hair from where it could accidentally be pulled and away from his blush coated neck. Eddie made a competitive growling noise in the back of his throat.

"You two get on like a kitchen fire," Steve commented as he lounged across Eddie's lap. "Bubbling oil," he tripped his fingers up the center of Eddie's quivering stomach. "And cool water." Steve chuckled at the irked expression that crossed Max's face and kept the sibling rivalry observations to himself.

"For fucksakes, get off, you guys are heavy," Eddie grunted with an exaggerated show of effort. His feet flopped, first as a joke and second more frantic in the realization that he was unable to find the mattress to kick off from and gain leverage. "Oh shit."

"What's the matter?" Max asked with a saccharine lilt Steve only heard when she was challenging the boys into doing something exceptionally stupid.

Eddie was twitching, and maybe hissing?, until he was practically vibrating. In fact, this was perhaps the quietest Steve had ever heard Eddie be since he's known of him. Max, however, was snickering with the same sort of delighted mischief he'd heard Robin use at work when stacking Red Vine boxes precariously tall. She was hunched over and quickly extending and retracting T-Rex arms toward Eddie's neck, ears and chin.

It was when Steve casually wrapped his hand just above Eddie's knee that his resolve broke. "Wait - shit, don't! Steve-MAX!"

Laughter filled the room like spun sugar at the county fair; imperceptible at first but quickly growing in beauty and volume until all you want is to indulge in the fleeting sweetness of it. Eddie jumped at each of Steve's soft knee squeezes and craned his head away from Max's fluttering nails at his throat and squirmed futilely from Steve marching his fingers back and forth between his hips. Between their dedication to tenderness and the afternoon sun catching the dust motes swirling over Eddie's head, Steve felt he and Max had come to an unspoken decision to prolong this moment for as long as they could get away with.

A few minutes after they had slid off him, Steve helped him sit up against the wall while Max went to grab some sodas out of Eddie's fridge. "You okay, chuckle chops?" Steve asked.

"From the bottom of my heart, fuck you."

"How sweet," Max said, passing out drinks and taking a seat next to Eddie.

"Oh, don't think you're getting out of this." Eddie gulped from the can greedily and, consequently, belched in a way that made Max's face screw up in disgust. "And you called me evil, Harrington."

Steve didn't even try to stop the small swell of pride or the sideways grin. Instead, he just pressed play on the tape deck.