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bluehoodiewoozi · 6 months

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Happy to Help

Xu Minghao x GN!Reader

Genre: sickfic, fluff.

Word Count: 8k

Warnings: adult language. food mentions. mentions of death/funerals (no one even comes close to dying though). a very bad case of the common cold.

[Series: Serenity Street 17] The heating in your apartment is broken and the landlord is not in a rush to fix it. By the time you gather the courage to ask your neighbour for help, you’re sick and now he’s stuck nursing you for a week.

note: Serenity Street is back, y'all!

For four whole days, you had gritted your teeth and smiled when Jihoon promised to get your heating fixed. For four whole days, you tried ridiculous Tiktok hacks to warm up even just your bedroom, and when that failed, wrapped yourself in three blankets and drank all the tea you could afford.

But everyone has a limit, and you finally met yours.

“Listen, I am only one man,” Jihoon told you – and frankly, he seemed to be on the verge of crying as well – when you practically broke into his apartment in search of justice, “and I do not know anything about heating systems or why yours specifically has broken.”

“Then tell someone else to fix it,” you complained, completely sick and tired of this treatment. “There has to be, like, a million people out there who could fix my heating.”

He sighed. “My parents have a contract with one specific company. Unless you want to pay for a breach of contract, you’ll have to wait until they get here.”

“It’s been four days already,” you spoke through gritted teeth, wrapping your coat tighter around yourself. “My apartment is colder than the basement right now. It’s February – do you know how freaking cold it is outside? Are you going to pay my funeral fees?”

Jihoon raised a brow – half in concern and half in annoyance. “I don’t.. I don’t think it’s that bad…”

You countered with an eyebrow raise of your own.

That seemed to do the trick: he sighed and sat up straighter, reaching for his phone. “Fine, I’ll give them another call. Maybe they’ll come quicker if I offer an extra fee or something, I don’t know. Just… hang on until then.”

Scoffing, you stared at him. “And what? I’m just supposed to go back to the Arctic and pray that your handymen will come before I freeze to death?”

He frowned at that. “You’re not going to die. It’s only been four days.”

“You try turning your heating off for four days in winter and tell me how you feel after that,” you practically growled, challenging him.

Jihoon rolled his eyes and ran a hand through his hair. “Just go stay with someone on your floor. Minghao has a spare bedroom. I’m sure he’ll share if you asked nicely.”

You wanted to physically fight him at the mention; not because he was wrong (god knows Minghao wouldn’t hesitate to let you take over his spare bedroom if you, or anyone, just asked nicely), but because he knew what you felt for Minghao.

As one of your very few friends in the building, Jihoon was more than aware that you had been harbouring a crush on your quiet artistic neighbour. You had had your eye on Minghao ever since he brought you a package – the mailman had mistakenly delivered it to his apartment and Minghao brought it to you with a heart-melting smile.

A whole year later, your knees still felt like jelly every time Minghao smiled at you in the hallway and you had to refrain from squealing out loud every time he spoke to you. You were, as the youths would say, ‘down bad’ for your neighbour.

And that’s why you couldn’t bear the thought of asking him for help in this situation.

When you didn’t reply to his suggestion, Jihoon sighed. “I’ll give him a call–”

“Don’t you dare!” you threatened. “If you as much as tell him my heating’s broken, I will kidnap Peaches.”

“Peaches?” he wondered, blinking at you in confusion before glancing back at where he last saw his fluffy cat. Once he was satisfied to find his pet snoring away in the armchair, he turned to glare at you. “I’m just trying to be a good friend and you’re threatening my child?”

You gave up then and there, turning on your heel and marching back to your apartment.

The next morning it appeared that Jihoon, as magnificent and powerful as he was, unfortunately had no power over the heating company. They rejected his attempts at bribes and offered him what they called ‘a tentative date’.

The problem? It was a whole week away.

[i asked my parents if they’d let you stay in 5a until then, but apparently they rented it out just a few days ago. the new guy’s coming tomorrow. nothing i can do. srry.]

You sniffled as you read the messages on your phone, hidden under three blankets and two sweaters. Groaning at your bad luck, you got off the bed and stumbled towards the kitchen to make yourself some tea. The hot drink was the closest thing you had to heating at the moment, besides a tiny and barely useful (and frankly one step from being a fire hazard) space heater Jeonghan and Sunny had left behind your door the evening before.

As you walked, you concluded you were a little dizzy and your nose wasn’t letting in as much air as it should have. While the water boiled, you also realised your throat was strangely scratchy. It didn’t take much to figure out the lack of heating had finally defeated your immune system.

Frustrated at the realisation, you pulled out your phone again and sent a text back to Jihoon.

[u owe me cold medicine]

The reply arrived just as you began pouring hot water into your mug. The soothing smell of tea filled the kitchen and you couldn’t help but lean a little closer to the heat of both the kettle and the mug as you read his message.

[you’re sick???!]

You chose to not entertain his much-too-late worry spree. After all, had he worried a little sooner, you’d probably have a warm apartment by now – or so you bitterly chose to believe as you shuffled back towards the bedroom.

But before you could even make it out of the kitchen, a knock sounded on your door.

Burdened by the onslaught of what appeared to be the common cold, your brain failed to realise opening the door usually meant a whole new set of problems.

You put your mug down on the counter and went to open the front door, revealing the one person you wanted to see the least in your condition.

Minghao couldn’t even muster a smile when he saw you. “Are you okay?”

You blinked at him. “Why?”

“Jihoon texted. He said your heating’s broken.” (You made a mental vow to find and kidnap Peaches the Orange Cat – full government name and all.) “How bad is it?”

“I’m fine,” you lied through your teeth. In retrospect, this was not one of your brightest moments. “It’s just a little chilly. I manage.”

He gave you a once-over, growing more confused and concerned by the second. “How many blankets is that?”

“Three.”

His eyebrows rose. “... You manage, huh?”

“One hundred percent. You don’t need to worry about me,” you confirmed with a smile and tried to shoo him away. “I’m sure they’ll fix the heating soon.”

“Well,” he took a deep breath, as if hesitating, “if you get too cold, you can always come over to my place. My apartment’s warm.”

You shook your head even as your freezing body screamed at you. “I wouldn’t want to be a bother.”

“You wouldn’t be–”

“My tea’s ready, so I should go,” you interrupted him and waved him goodbye before closing the door.

Once you were no longer confronted by his worried eyes, you sighed in relief, before cursing yourself for damning your body to another week of frost.

Your bad luck just never seemed to end.

What you thought would be just temporary discomfort was quickly turning out to be the worst cold you had suffered in years: sniffles quickly began to look like needing to go to the store to buy a few more boxes of tissues, your scratchy throat turned into a near-complete lack of voice, and you didn’t need a thermometer to know you were too feverish to really leave your bed.

You sent a mostly typo-free text to Jihoon to inform him that this was all his fault and burrowed back into your blanket cave. All you wanted to do was sleep – and sleep you would.

In your feverish and sleepy daze, you failed to register that someone was knocking on your door until you heard a familiar voice call out, “Hey, are you home? (Y/n)?”

You contemplated if opening the door was a good idea in your state. After all, one can only imagine the kinds of things you could accidentally confess while in a paracetamol-induced daze. So, you told yourself, Minghao could wait another day.

Except – as you’d soon realise – your body refused to acknowledge that decision. Like a drunken sailor following the call of a cursed siren, you stumbled out of bed and just about dragged yourself to the front door. You had half a mind to wipe away your snot before unlocking the door, revealing a distraught Minghao.

He had his phone pressed to his ear, a muffled voice sounding from the speaker. His eyes lit up at the sight of you. “It’s okay. I’m here. I’ve got it.” He rolled his eyes at whatever the person on the other side of the call was saying. “Yes, they opened the door. I’m going now. Bye.”

Finally, he turned his attention to you. “What were you doing? We’ve been trying to reach you for hours.”

“Why?” you wondered all the while trying to force your eyes to focus enough to admire his pretty eyes. And his hair. Had he dyed his hair? You were sure it was blonde yesterday, so how was it brown now?

“Because Jihoon thought you were dead,” he deadpanned, reaching to place his hand on your forehead. He sighed at the touch, disappointed but not surprised. “You’re really sick, you know that?”

You snorted out a laugh – and quickly came to regret it when you almost choked on it – before croaking out, “Of course I know that. I’ve been trying to sleep it off.”

“I don’t know if just sleeping will–”

“It’ll be fine,” you chuckled and reached over to pat his hair, silently marvelling at how soft it was to your touch. Reality called you back soon enough and you reiterated yourself under his disbelieving gaze, “Yeah, I’ll be okay. I just need to sleep, drink a lot of tea, and take some more medicine and then I’ll be good as new.”

He was still struggling to take your reply seriously. But finally, under your unrelenting smile full of content, he agreed. “Right, take good care of yourself. Sleep is good. Do you–” He hesitated for a moment. “Do you need anything from the store? I can get it for you.”

“Nah, I’m fine,” you told him and waved before closing the door. “I’ll see you once I’m better.”

And with that, you made your way back to your tiny somewhat warm base in the bedroom. A nap would soon claim you once again, your dreams filled with Minghao’s smiles and soft voice.

You sat up suddenly just as you were about to fall deep in slumber, eyes widening: you could’ve asked him to buy you more tissues. You groaned and fell back into your nest – snotty noses are a curse.

Hoping some fresh air would clear up your nose and the headache your condition had brought along, you went to check your mail in the morning. ‘Went’ might be a bit of a strong word, you’d soon realise, as you nearly blacked out just crossing the doorstep. ‘Attempted’ – that might be a better word.

As you gave up on your mission – after all, how would you go down a whole floor if you couldn’t even get out of your apartment without nearly fainting? – you noticed a bag on your welcome mat.

Suspiciously squinting, you picked up the bag. The squint quickly melted into a grateful smile when you recognised Minghao’s name signed on a note on the very top of the goodies.

Suddenly filled with a much-needed extra ounce of energy, you took the bag to your kitchen and began unpacking it. You found various cold medicines, a large pack of undoubtedly expensive tea, and some snacks, tissues, topped off with a bright-yellow post-it note from your neighbour.

Please take good care of yourself and get better soon. You can always come to my place if you need anything at all. – Minghao, 2B.

A giddy smile appeared on your face as you hugged the note to your chest. You rushed to find your one heart-shaped magnet before using it to stick the note onto your fridge, right in the centre. You’d cherish this note for as long as your crush would last – you knew this even in your feverish state.

But before long your joy was replaced with annoyance and despair as a cough fit paired with cold shivers up your spine shook your body. Your rational brain came back online soon after. Perhaps it was the words on the note, or perhaps you were finally just defeated – either way, you reached for your phone.

[hey, this is weird to ask but… can i come stay over for a while until my heating gets fixed?]

“Are you awake?” you heard Minghao ask as the door of his room creaked open. Too exhausted and relaxed to move or even speak, you only let out a throaty hum. His face – albeit a little blurry – appeared in your line of vision. “How are you feeling?”

Your reply was not legible to Minghao.

“What?”

You sighed and cleared your throat the best you could before repeating, “I feel as awful as yesterday…”

“But?”

“But way warmer,” you mumbled and burrowed back under the blankets he had wrapped you in the night before when you arrived at his door. “I missed heating.”

He chuckled sympathetically at that and placed his hand on your forehead like he had the day before (the touch made you feel just as giddy as it did back then too). “Heating’s nice, isn’t it? I hope yours gets fixed soon too.”

“Me too,” you whispered, closing your eyes as you basked in the warmth.

“Your fever’s still pretty bad. I guess the medicine’s worn off.”

He sighed and gently brushed your cheek with the back of his hand. (You couldn’t help but imagine the touch as that of a caring boyfriend rather than just a concerned neighbour.) Feeding your fever-induced delusions, he kept stroking your cheek as he stayed in front of you, contemplating his options.

“Do you want some tea?” he offered after a long minute of thinking. “I think someone said lemons and honey in tea help.”

“I’ve had so much tea though,” you croaked.

“Clearly not enough,” he joked. “Stay here, I’ll go make you some. Maybe some food too? I made waffles earlier, if you want any.”

You smiled at the thought, sighing dreamily, “Waffles and tea...”

“Right?” he chuckled and gave your cheek one last affectionate pat before walking out of the room.

When he returned, he was carrying a tray. He carefully placed it on the bedside table before handing you a steaming mug, a plate of waffles and a handful of cold medicine pills.

“I don’t know how sweet you like your tea, but it has a lot of honey,” he warned gently, smiling proudly when you took a sip and hummed happily. “Is it good?”

“It’s better than what I’ve been drinking so far,” you told him with a raspy chuckle.

He wasn’t entirely sure what to make of that, but he did feel a slight concern over your tea preferences. Wordlessly, he reached for the second mug on the tray and took a sip. His confusion only grew: this wasn’t his best attempt at making tea at all. In fact, he’d argue he hadn’t made tea this bad in years – maybe he was just so worried that it was affecting his performance.

“Drink your tea, eat the waffles, take your medicine,” he sternly told you instead of thinking about it any longer, “and then you can go back to sleep if you want.”

“I do love sleep,” you mumbled before taking the medicine, barely aware of what you were saying in your feverish state. You took a bite of a waffle to wash away the bitter aftertaste. “I love you, Minghao.”

He snorted and took another sip. “Sure.”

“I mean it!” you decided to declare, glaring at him for not trusting you. “I love you so much. I’d do anything for you.”

Dumbfounded by your confession, he blinked. “How about you just get better quickly, hm?”

You hummed. “Will you love me back then?”

He chose not to answer that.

Jihoon had more important things to do than nurse a sick neighbour back to health, but he felt he had no choice when Minghao practically dragged him to the apartment by his sleeve.

“Why me?” he wondered groggily, barely awake enough to even take care of himself. “Why can’t you take care of them yourself?”

“Because I have an actual job,” Minghao pointed out with a roll of his eyes. “Just make sure they don’t leave and that they take their medicine. Remember, they have to take these pills every four hours.”

Jihoon’s eyes twitched as he tried to blink. “Why me?”

Minghao was tempted to just lock him in the apartment and not share a word of explanation. But he supposed he owed him that much. He sighed. “Because you’re their friend and they’re completely out of it – I can’t leave them alone.”

“They’re a grown adult.”

“Poor (Y/n)’s very sick,” he said with a worried look in his eyes. “They must be hallucinating or something too, because they said they loved me? Can you imagine?”

At that, Jihoon’s jaw dropped. Then, he began laughing – not just giggling or chuckling, no: fully cackling.

“Don’t be too entertained by my misery. They’re your problem now,” Minghao deadpanned, arms crossed over his chest as Jihoon all but folded over the sofa’s backrest in his fit of laughter. As the man finally calmed down, gasping for air but laughing no more, Minghao sighed and asked, “So, will you watch them for me?”

“Can I bring my cat?”

“Hi, Peaches!” you cooed a few hours later, the cat snuggled in your arms. She purred loudly in reply, kneading at the blankets you had piled over yourself. It was a welcome sensation, you decided.

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Jihoon leaning against the doorframe, smiling in a way that seemed just a bit too smug to be well-meaning. Your eyes narrowed at the sight.

“You’re not Minghao,” you deadpanned.

His smirk widened. “Yeah? Too bad you can’t confess your undying love for me then.”

You groaned. “Fuck off, Jihoon.”

He let out a hissing noise. “Can’t do that. Minghao asked me to look after you for a bit.”

“So no Minghao?”

“Only your best friend and a cat.”

You snorted. “For a cat, you sure are talkative.”

Jihoon only sighed at that. “I think that means it’s time for you to take your medicine.”

“I feel fine though.”

“But you’re talking nonsense.”

You chuckled and hummed in agreement. “You brought Peaches. You never bring her to my place. I’m a little offended.”

“Stop being so dramatic,” he joked and handed you the pills and a glass of water. “I just brought her over so she wouldn’t be bored.”

“I bet you were worried about me,” you teased and took the medicine, groaning at the stupid bitter aftertaste. “Those pills are so gross. Why can’t medicine taste more like candy?”

“How would I know?” He placed the back of his hand on your forehead. You silently sighed at the realisation that it didn’t feel half as nice as when Minghao did it.

Jihoon pulled his hand away to glare at you. “You don’t get to diss me just because you’re sick and I’m not Minghao.”

Your eyes widened. “I didn’t– Did I think out loud?”

He stared at you for a moment before blinking and looking away. “I’m starting to think that medicine is not very effective.”

“It’s kept me alive this far,” you shrugged.

“Alive and loopy,” he concluded with a defeated nod before smirking again – god, you hated it when he did that. “I heard you confessed to Minghao.”

“I did wHAT?!”

Peaches startled at your sudden rise of volume before settling back into her oddly cat-shaped hole in the middle of the bed, but you did not care. You had more urgent matters to worry about than the comfort of a spoiled orange cat.

Confessed to Minghao? You? There was no way. Surely Jihoon was lying – right, he did that sometimes, after all.

Jihoon only laughed though. “What? You didn’t even know?”

“I didn’t– There’s no way I could have, right? I’m not that out of it?” you reasoned.

“I don’t know,” he shrugged nonchalantly as if you weren’t going through an actual crisis right in front of him, “he seemed kind of distraught when he told me this morning. Thought you were hallucinating or something.”

You could only pray the mattress would swallow you whole before Minghao’s return. Either that, or maybe the universe could send a sign that Jihoon was indeed lying. You were half-sure he was anyways – he probably thought it would be funny to see your reaction. Right. That had to be it.

But, as always, your prayers were met with disdain and spite, and the front door opened. Wordlessly, you begged Jihoon for mercy as Minghao’s voice echoed from the hallway.

“Are they awake yet?”

You shook your head and clasped your hands together and tugged at Jihoon’s sleeve, but he seemed to be dead set on causing you more misery. “They’re awake! Just took the medicine.”

Minghao appeared in the doorway, a relieved smile on his face. “Oh, good. You look a lot better today than yesterday– Not that you ever look very bad, but–” he seemed to panic and it was an odd sight because this was, after all, the ever-so-calm Minghao. He cleared his throat and smiled again. “You look healthier!”

“I… feel… healthier,” you slowly said, trying to take all of it in.

“You’re home early,” Jihoon noted, already gathering the orange loaf of a cat in his arms.

Minghao’s ears seemed to go a little more red at the mention. He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. “Ah, yeah, I– I left work early. Got worried.”

Jihoon smirked and leaned closer to you to whisper, much like a co-conspirator when he was the villain of your tale, “He got worried.”

“Count your days, Lee,” you told him with a deadly glare as he backed away, a carefree smile on his face.

“I’ll see you guys later then,” Jihoon announced and waved. “Get better soon!”

“Kim Mingyu, I swear to God— No, I know I asked for the recipe— But that doesn’t mean— Mingyu, I asked for a soup recipe not for your grandmother’s life story!” Minghao argued with his friend on the phone. His attention was soon diverted though, just to glare at you. “You should be in bed! –no, not you, Mingyu– Why are you up?”

“I feel better,” you croaked. While your body didn’t feel like it was made of lead-filled balloons anymore, your throat still hurt and the sniffles and coughs weren’t really helping with that.

Lowering his phone, he rolled his eyes and pointed towards the sofa. “You’d better lay down.”

“I’m fine–”

“I can see you struggling to stand upright from here,” he deadpanned before lifting his phone back to his ear. He sighed right after. “Yes, you did tell me about the time she went to Tokyo already, Gyu. So about that soup–”

When you still didn’t budge, choosing to admire the decor instead of following his directions, Minghao grabbed your hand and led you to the sofa himself. You were practically forced to lay down, a blanket thrown over you with care, the cushion fluffed for your ultimate comfort. With the phone still tucked under his ear, he pointed a warning finger at you and slowly told you, “Stay right here.”

“But I feel fine?” you mumbled but made no attempt to escape your fate. The sofa was nice enough you concurred and melted into the cushions, pulling the blanket further up your chin to hide your fully rubbed-red nose.

Just as you got comfortable in your new spot, listening to Minghao’s desperate attempts to pry a soup recipe from Mingyu’s mind, he appeared in front of you again. You were handed a mug full of…

“Tea? Again?” you groaned softly, but he silenced you with a warning glare and put on the TV instead of addressing your complaints. It was enough, you decided, as a drama rerun played.

After what felt like forever, Minghao’s arguments with Mingyu quieted and all you heard was the TV, the simmering of something in a pot, and your temporary roommate’s humming from the kitchen.

“What are you making?” you asked him when he came to check on you.

His hand on your forehead just like many times before, he smiled. “Some soup. It should help your throat. How are you feeling?”

“A little chilly,” you half-joked. Half because it was still a relief from the freezing temperatures in your apartment, but the living room area was still much colder than the bedroom Minghao had set you up in. It wasn’t meant as a complaint, but, judging by his deepening frown, Minghao seemed to take it as one.

“You’re cold?” he worried and, to your surprise, straightened up and reached over his head to pull his own sweater off.

Thoroughly confused, you watched as he shook the clothing item a few times before handing it to you expectantly – as if you were supposed to know exactly what to do with it.

(Newsflash: you had no idea what to do with it. Your brain was running at 20% power and still stuck on the fact that he had taken off his sweater in front of you – and looked so damn attractive doing that.)

When you made no move to grab it from him, Minghao’s frown only deepened even more. He sighed softly and took the matters into his own hand: he shoved the head hole over your head and guided your arms into the sleeves before rolling the hoodie downwards until it covered your torso.

To top it all off, he adjusted your blanket to make sure not a single gust of cold air could get you. Once he was done, he offered a sweet smile and patted your cheek as if you were a beloved household pet. “Better?”

You could only stare at him in response and dumbly nod.

“Good,” he nodded and smiled wider before glancing at the clock. He hummed in thought. “The soup needs to simmer for another 15 minutes. If you’re still cold…” He hesitated, eyeing you almost shyly and averting his eyes when your gaze met his. He cleared his throat. “If you’re cold, we could cuddle. You know, to share the warmth.”

Embarrassingly enough, it only took you half a second to agree. But thankfully, he didn’t seem put-off by your sudden enthusiasm. Ears reddening as he shuffled closer, he reached over to wrap an arm around your shoulder and pull you to rest your head against his chest instead of the pillows.

To this day, you’re half sure you hallucinated the entire thing (and that he definitely didn’t go to check on the soup at the 15-minute mark. You had no memory of having that soup at all).

Your barely blissful sleep was interrupted by a vibration under your pillow. You startled awake and looked around until you found the source of your disturbance – the phone under your pillow, Jihoon’s name flashing on the screen.

“What?” you grunted into the phone after swiping to answer the call. No sooner had you spoken than your head slammed back into the pillow — you had no interest in fighting gravity today.

Jihoon snorted at your response. “Good day to you, dear neighbour. Glad to hear you’re better.”

You had no interest in small talk when dreamland was still at hand’s reach. “What do you want, Ji?”

“The handymen finally came. I just wanted to ask for your permission to enter your apartment.”

“Handymen?”

“To fix your heating,” he reminded you softly. “This cold really took you down hard, huh?”

“Oh, the heating!” you perked up, sitting up again. “Of course you can go inside. Should I come too?”

Jihoon hummed in thought before concluding that “Minghao probably won’t let you leave his apartment yet.”

“I’m an adult!” you argued. “He can’t keep me here against my will.”

“I think you’ll be surprised at how convincing he can be,” he laughed, “but I guess you can try. I’ll leave the door unlocked.”

But when you went to tell Minghao about your plan, he proved Jihoon’s point a little too perfectly.

“No,” he told you sternly before you could even put on your shoes. “You’re still sick.”

“I’ll just be next door,” you argued.

He was having none of it. “Two days ago you almost collapsed on your way to the bathroom – that was even fewer steps away! You’re not going.”

“Why not?” you whined, frowning at him. “I’m fine! I’m standing up, see?”

His stare was one of disappointed disbelief. “You’re leaning against the wall, (Y/n).”

“There’s walls in my apartment.”

He sighed. “Please just go back to bed. I’ll go myself.”

“But I wanted to get some things–”

“Send me a list and I’ll bring them to you,” he solved your problem easily and you had no room to argue.

Minghao had never actually been in your apartment – not since you actually moved in and packed your things anyway.

He knocked softly on the door before walking in to see Jihoon and a pair of handymen chatting away. The former offered him a polite smile and a nod before returning to the discussion.

Minghao took that as a sign to look around. He took a deep breath and found himself shivering, his breath fogging up in front of his very eyes. How you had survived in this apartment so long without getting frostbite was beyond his comprehension so he decided to not think about it anymore – the idea of you shivering in your bed, desperate for warmth, upset him anyway.

He shuffled into the kitchen where he quickly found the phone charger you had told him to get. He also found a familiar bright-yellow post-it note on the fridge, his hand-writing proudly on display under a heart-shaped magnet.

He scoffed before smiling at the sight; why would you keep that? It’s just a note? He hadn’t even spent a full minute on scribbling it.

Did you actually like him? He shook his head – there was no way. You were too good for him anyway.

Without another thought, he opened the list you had texted him and began gathering the belongings you so dearly missed: some sweaters, shirts…

A single small plant stood in the middle of your bedroom, somehow still green (if not a little droopy) and not frozen over like its compatriots on the window sills. He picked it up – perhaps having even this tiny plant survive would cheer you up, he reasoned.

As he looked at the other, less fortunate plants, Jihoon wandered into the room.“That thing is still alive?”

Minghao hummed in agreement. “It seems a little frostbitten, but it’s still alive, I think.”

“I think they’ve had this thing for ages,” Jihoon told him with a chuckle, leaning forward to inspect the plant. “Who knows? Maybe you can bring it back to life.”

“I sure hope so,” Minghao whispered in response before offering him a smile. “So, what’s the latest on the heating?”

Jihoon grimaced. “They said the system is entirely screwed. They’ll have to replace most of it – might take a few weeks.”

“Weeks?”

“At best.”

Minghao was already mentally drafting the best way to deliver the news to you – he didn’t see it going very well either way. “I guess I will have a roommate until spring then.”

“I’m sorry about that,” Jihoon sighed. “I know they’re a lot to deal with – especially when they’re sick.”

He felt insulted on your behalf. “They’re a delight!”

“You’re lying,” Jihoon laughed. “Mingyu told me how you had to scold them to lay down yesterday.”

“They're just a little stubborn,” Minghao defended you to his best ability, trying to limit his lying.

“If you say so.” Jihoon nodded at the bags at his feet. “Do you need help getting all that to your apartment?”

“No, I’ve got it,” Minghao told him with a reassuring smile before picking everything up. Sure, he struggled, but he’d struggle even more if he hurt his pride by asking for help with something this easy.

Even if getting back to his apartment took him a little longer than he’d like to admit, he still made it all on his own. And he was decently proud of that.

“Minghao?” you called out his name the moment he opened the door.

Oh, what he’d give to hear this every time he returned home. He froze at the thought – he was starting to become delusional and that was not his brand. No, he had to get himself together – you were just a friend staying in his spare bedroom because of an emergency. Yes. So it was.

But he couldn’t help but feel a little deluded when he spotted you sitting on the sofa, his white hoodie around your frame, smiling at him hopefully. His heart was about to fail him.

He didn’t even have to try hard to smile – it came naturally at the sight. “I got everything you said.”

“Oh thank god,” you breathed out in relief before sneezing. “No offence, but I miss wearing my own clothes.”

He laughed. “I’m sure you do.”

Your smile faded a little as another thought came to your mind. “Did they say how long the repairs will take? It shouldn’t be too long, right?”

“Jihoon said they have to replace the whole heating unit,” he regretfully told you. “It’ll take a few weeks.”

The remnants of your smile disappeared. You threw yourself backwards on the sofa, pulling a cushion over your face to scream into it in frustration. After a beat of silence, you removed the cushion and stared at the ceiling. “Where will I go?”

“You can just stay here,” he suggested, a little too enthusiastically perhaps. “You’re already settled in.”

“I don’t want to inconvenience you–”

“Nonsense,” he reassured you with a laugh and held something out for you to take. “You and this little guy can have the spare room.”

“Little guy?” You sat up to look at the item in his hand – the small flower pot he had brought along. Your eyes just about started watering at the sight. “It’s still alive?”

“I think so.” Minghao shrugged and gently handed the pot to you. “It looks like it could use a few days in a warm spot in the sunlight, but the other plants looked a whole lot worse.”

You sniffled – from tears or from your health conditions, you weren’t sure. “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.” He gave your head a gentle pat. “I’m just happy to help.”

To say you were growing a little annoyed with your health would be an understatement. A whole week of sniffling, coughing and sneezing had passed, but you felt only marginally better.

“I’ve never been sick for this long before,” you complained to Minghao as he handed you a cup of tea and placed a bowl full of snacks between the two of you on the sofa. There was a drama playing in the background – you both agreed to watch it but, to tell the truth, neither of you was particularly invested in the plot.

You took a sip of the hot beverage, hummed in appreciation, and continued your rant, “It makes no sense. I should be feeling better by now.”

Minghao chuckled. “Well, you were pretty sick when you came here, all feverish and snotty. I think you’ve gotten a lot better since.”

“My doctor still won’t let me return to work though,” you groaned. “How am I supposed to pay rent if I can’t work? It’s not living in this building is cheap.”

“Can’t Jihoon lower your rent until the heating gets fixed? It would seem fair.”

You froze. Why hadn’t you thought of that? “Wait, you’re right! Why am I paying full rent when I can’t even live there because of the temperatures? And it’s not even my fault?!”

Before you could get more fired up about it and start harassing your landlord, Minghao changed the topic. “Do you need anything else? Are you warm?”

Snapping out of your rage, you offered a sheepish smile. “I’m a little chilly actually.”

He sighed and reached over to once again place his hand on your forehead, as he often did. It was almost a routine at this point – not that your heart could ever stop fluttering at the simplest of physical contact with him.

“You’re not running hot today though,” he worried but picked up a blanket anyway and threw it over your lap. Then, uncharacteristically, he hesitated for a moment. “Do… Do you mind if I–?”

He lifted the corner of the blanket and shuffled under it as well, pulling his feet under the blanket for extra warmth.

“You’re cold too?” you wondered.

He offered you a funny look – as if you had asked him if unicorns exist. “Do you think you’re the only one who feels cold sometimes?”

You blinked. “Well, no, but–”

“Then stop asking dumb questions and watch the drama,” he told you and forced himself to do just that. But if it hadn’t been for the sudden red-ish tint of his ears, you wouldn’t have questioned him to begin with.

Instead of asking any further questions, you decided to settle further into your (by now designated) spot on the sofa, engulfed in the warmth of the blanket and Minghao.

You fully planned on blaming your illness for the way you leaned further and further into his space as you slowly began dozing off to sleep – even if it was fully intentional. Who could really blame you? You were sick, tired, and sitting next to your crush of god-knows-how-many months.

And so, inch by inch, your head lowered not in the direction of the head- or armrest but towards his shoulder. Finally, your eyes closed as your cheek pressed against the fabric of his cardigan.

It was a little rough from the wash, no longer as soft as it had once been, and you’d be lying if you said it felt comfortable against your cheek, but it was a sacrifice you were willing to make for just five minutes of something akin to affection from the man of your dreams.

You fully intended it to only be five minutes – just a short moment to bask in your delusions. But then you felt his arm shift under your body, lifting to rest around your shoulders. He pulled you closer and rested his cheek against your head and before the fourth minute passed, you were more than halfway into Dreamland.

“I wish this happened more often. I really like you, Minghao.”

(And maybe if you had been more awake, you would’ve noticed the way his breath hitched and his smart watch vibrated to warn him of a sudden spike in his heart rate.

Maybe you would’ve noticed the way his embrace tightened just the slightest bit and he pressed his lips against your forehead in a careful gesture of reciprocation. And that his world got a whole lot brighter at the idea that perhaps this time you knew what you were saying and that maybe, just maybe, your feelings were mutual.)

You couldn’t believe you almost squealed with joy at the prospect of going back to work. You loved Minghao – really, you did, in many ways – but being stuck in an apartment with him for almost two weeks turned out to be your shortcut to insanity.

So, of course, you took the very first chance to return to work. And of course you hated every second of it – reality really is much less rosy than daydreams.

“Minghao, I’m back,” you called out as you returned to the apartment exactly 20 minutes after the end of your workday. Frankly, you weren’t expecting any kind of answer – you had just spent the past two weeks fantasising about calling out that specific phrase to feed your delusions.

You just had to try it out once, or maybe twice. Who knows what tomorrow brings.

But, just as you started to accept that it was dumb and not as much fun as they make it seem in those sitcoms, you heard a cough and a raspy, “I’m here” from his room.

You froze at the sound. A glance at the clock said that Minghao should still be at work. The art museum didn’t close until late at night so…

“Minghao?” you called out again just to make sure you weren’t hallucinating. Perhaps you had already come down with a new fever and weren’t even aware of it.

Another cough. Now you were sure you weren’t imagining it.

You headed to his room, finding the door ajar and a Minghao-sized lump curled up under a pile of blankets. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” you heard a muffled croak and you wondered exactly how high his fever must have been for him to think it sounded even remotely convincing. “Just had a rough day.”

You pursed your lips in thought before approaching the bed, sitting on the edge of the mattress near him to gently peel the covers off his face. His eyes narrowed into an accusatory glare at the sight of you and the light flooding his room.

“Yeah?” You laughed at the sight of his reddening nose. “You sure it’s not the sniffles?`”

“Who even says ‘the sniffles’ anymore?” he mocked and buried his face in the pillows. Like a sulking child, he sharply pulled the blankets from your grasp and pulled them over his head. His voice once again came out muffled, “I’m fine. It’s just a little cold. Can you turn up the heating while you’re here?”

You went to do as he said but were taken by surprise by the thermostat. “It’s already maxed.”

“Is it?” he wondered, one eye peeking out from under the covers. “I don’t remember doing that.”

“I think you’re not that fine,” you realised and went back to him to check his temperature as he had done to you just some days ago. “Hao, you’re burning up. Have you taken any medicine yet?”

“I don’t need medicine,” he whined. “I need a nap and more blankets… and to get rid of this stupid cough.”

“So,” you concluded, amused all of a sudden – is this what he had been dealing with all this time with you? – , “some cold medicine?”

“... I don’t want to bother you.”

You let out a scoff. “Dude, I practically moved into your apartment when I got sick and you’re worried taking care of you will bother me? If anything, I have to do this to pay back the favour.”

“Can’t you just do it because you love me?” he wondered, drowsy and barely lucid.

You froze. “Because I— What?”

“Because you love me,” he reiterated, turning his head to pout at you. “You said you loved me and if you loved me, you’d take care of me because of that and not because you’re paying back a favour.”

“When did I–” Your breath got caught in your throat – so Jihoon hadn’t lied after all. “Did I really say that?”

“You did – twice,” he declared, “I heard it myself.”

As you prepared to apologise, he added, “But it’s okay because I love you too. So, now you have to take care of me, right? You’re, like, legally obligated.”

A part of you was screaming on the inside, kicking and jumping and squealing and dying all at once. The other part was wondering how he had gone from “I’m fine, stop worrying about me” to “you’re legally obligated to care for me” in two minutes. You weren’t entirely sure which part of the situation worried you more.

Eventually, you decided that the second part was far more worrying.

“Let’s get you some medicine and we can discuss the legal aspect once you’re better, okay?” you told him, gently stroking his hair off his (admittedly gross) sweaty forehead.

He hummed in agreement.

But when you went to leave his room to get some comfier clothes and medicine, his fingers wrapped around your wrist. You looked back to find his eyes squinted open, an accusatory sparkle shining in them. “Where are you going?”

“To get you some medicine–”

“Stay.”

“Hao, I have to–”

“Stay,” he told you a little more assertively. The gentle pulling at your wrist contrasted the force of his demand. “I don’t want you to leave.”

Begrudgingly, you sat back down. You could use a few minutes to process the information anyways, you decided, and reached up to play with his hair. Before long, his soft snores filled the room, yours joining not too soon after.

Days passed by and Minghao was recovering way faster than you – probably because he had half a mind to not stubbornly spend the first couple of days of his ailment in a freezer-temperature apartment. That’s what he told you anyways when you went to bring him tea and check his temperature one morning.

“It’s not like I did it on purpose,” you argued under your breath as you tilted and rotated the slowly-dying thermometer to see what numbers it was displaying. “Your fever’s gone at least.”

He sneezed and groaned right after your comment. “I wish everything else went away too.”

“At this rate, you’ll be back on your feet and bossing me around by tomorrow,” you joked to placate him (because realistically he would spend another three days feeling like death itself, as per your own experience) and fully sat on his bed. “Any plans for when you get better?”

“So many,” he admitted with a slow grin which dropped soon after in a near-comical manner, “first of which is to go to the tea shop because I’m pretty sure you’ve cost me most of my supply.”

“Fair,” you sighed and leaned against the headboard. “I’d bring you some tea myself but–”

“Please don’t,” he all but begged. At least you both agreed that your tea tastes and knowledge did not align. He then sighed dreamily, “And when I’m done with that, I’m going to work on my paintings, and maybe redecorate, and take you on a proper date, and–”

Your jaw dropped. “You what?!”

He blinked. “Do you… not want to…?”

You could only blink back – baffled, befuddled, bewildered, dumbfounded, stunned.

Like a normal person, he took your lack of agreement as rejection. Clearing his throat and twiddling his thumbs, he avoided your eyes as he admitted, “I just thought that since you confessed, and I confessed, and– Actually, nevermind, maybe the thermometer’s wrong and I still have a fever–”

“I’d love to go on a date with you, Hao,” you whispered just as he began his downward spiral.

“–maybe I do need to go to that doctor Junhui suggested and get my head checked and– Are you serious?” His apologetic wide eyes widened some more as they snapped to meet yours. “You– You want to go?”

“Well, yeah,” you shrugged, ears and cheeks burning and, damnit, were those butterflies in your stomach jumbo-sized?

His lips spread into a wide, relieved smile. “Oh thank god. I almost had a whole breakdown.”

Too busy trying to take in the situation and calming the butterflies wreaking havoc in your stomach, you found yourself jumping in surprise when his fingers wrapped around your own.

And suddenly it hit you – this was your reality. Daydreams full of his smiles, long nights wishing he held your hand, sick days spent longing for the tender care of a lover – it was all real now and you no longer had to wish.

All because of broken heating and long weeks of recovering from a cold from hell.

#seventeen scenarios #seventeen x reader #minghao x reader #xu minghao x reader #the8 scenarios #the8 x reader #svt scenarios #seventeen fic #minghao scenarios

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olenvasynyt · 4 months

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I have always been uncomfortable with the SF scene where Cassian takes Nesta on the hike, but I didn't fully understand why until my most recent reread. And it is one of the reasons why I am anti-Nessian.

This is a summary of my tiktok video, feel free to check it out, and follow me over there as well if ya want.

So this hike was right after Nesta lashes out and tells Feyre that the baby was going to kill her during the birth, and this was because of her frustration and hate towards Rhys and the IC and how she has been treated.

Chapter 46 of ACOSF: “Is it respect that she offers you?” Nesta spat. “Is it respect that your mate offers you?” Feyre went still. … “What do you mean?” “Have any of them told you, their respected High Lady, that the babe in your womb will kill you?” “…I do know that your mate ordered everyone not to inform you about the truth. Did you all vote on that too? Did you talk to her, judger her, and deem her unworthy of the truth?”

It broke something in Nesta—broke that rage, that roaring—seeing those tears begin to fall, the fear crumbling Feyre’s paint-smeared face. She had gone too far. She..oh, gods.

But as Feyre and Cassian both point out, she saw the parallels between Feyre’s situation and her own, and decided to avenge both of them. Rhys and Amren were hiding the truth about Nesta’s powers, she knew that a lot of them did not trust her to know the truth about her own body.

Chapter 47 of ACOSF: I think she saw the parallels between your situations, and, in her own way, decided to avenge both of you. That’s my feeling too. Rhys disagrees.

I think Feyre’s situation was much more serious than Nesta’s powers being kept from her, but that is also why it was good for Feyre to find out the truth even if the situation was upsetting.

Cassian was like oh "I’m sorry you found out the baby could kill you" and Feyre was like "I’m not. I’m mad at you guys for not telling me. Nesta was the only one brave enough to."

Chapter 47 of ACOSF: “I’m sorry you had to learn of it.” “I’m not. I’m furious with all of you, I understand why you didn’t tell me, but I’m furious. Well, we’re furious with Nesta. She had the courage to tell me the truth. She told the truth to hurt you. Perhaps. But she was the only one who said anything. — I wish you’d found out a different way. Well, I didn’t. But we’ll face it together. All of us. — I want you to come back home. Both of you.

I love how Feyre, who is the one was the victim in this moment, was like “I’m not sorry this was how I learned about the baby but I’m glad someone told me. Rhys overreacted, I calmed him down and I want both of you home.”

Rhys overreacted. He completely and utterly overreacted. — Rhys had no right to chase you from the city, or threaten Nesta. He has realized that, and apologized. I want you to come back home. Both of you.

Now kind of going off topic with Rhys threatening to kill Nesta: people get mad at Cassian for not standing up for his mate. And I can understand that, I also think that’s frustrating and Cassian not standing up for Nesta is something we see often, including the Ember and Randall bonus chapter in HOFAS. But it can be complicated because a lot of people will defend Cassian like this: Rhys is high lord and it will be very hard to stand up to him as someone who’s not on his level, so of course Cassian couldn’t do anything to defend his mate in this situation. And yes this is true, and we see a very similar situation between a High Lord and their superior with Tamlin and Lucien in ACOMAF. Lucien tried to stand up for Feyre but couldn’t, and was shut down and abused.

But if people are going to use this idea to defend Cassian, that he couldn’t stand up and fight his high lord, we have to make this comparison between Rhys to Tamlin. And a lot of pro-Rhys people don't like that conversation.

But anyways, this argument cannot be applied to this hiking situation at all, because Feyre mindspeaks with Cassian and says that Rhys overreacted, she isn’t mad at Nesta, all of those things I talked about before. Feyre says that she wants both of them home but Cassian still brings Nesta to a hike and says he’ll call it a punishment to sort of appease Rhys because he knows Rhys is still mad about the situation. “Tell Rhys it’s a punishment.” Rhys was not the victim in this situation, Feyre was, and she was like fuck Rhys! He was wrong for overreacting! Nesta was braver than you guys and I want her home.

Where did you even head off to? The wilderness. I think we’ll stay out here for a few days. We’re going on a hike. Nesta has never been on a hike in her life. I guarantee she will hate it. Then tell Rhys this is her punishment. Because Rhys, despite apologizing for his threats, would still be furious. Tell him that Nesta and I are going to hike, and she’s going to hate it, but she comes home when I decide she’s ready to come home.

But Cassian still brings Nesta on the hike.

And he was definitely doing it for Nesta and to help her work out her thoughts and not solely because of Rhys, but this hike is a terrible way to help a suicidal person work out their thoughts.

This hike pisses me off so much. The way the IC decided to “rehabilitate” Nesta in general pisses me off. I liken Nesta’s “rehab” to those therapy wilderness camps where people get kidnapped and brought to the middle of the mountains for. Those rehab camps revolve around forcing people to get to their lowest to rehabilitate, to acknowledge their mistakes, and it is a horrible, abusive system and very often results in resentment at best and death at worst. And I think Nesta being locked up was the same thing and this hike is the same thing. One of the several things those rehab boot camps do is force their patients to go on strenuous hikes for multiple days, and when it’s beyond their physical capacity. It can lead to exhaustion, dehydration, injury, and death.

And one of my least favorite things in this entire book is that when Cassian realizes that Nesta is suicidal, he continues the hike up the rocky cliffs of the Illyrian Steppes with barely any food and even less talk. He doesn’t look at her or speak to her in days.

It is to force Nesta to get to her lowest moment so she’ll break down. Exactly like what happens during those rehab camps. It is forcing her into this breakdown in an unsafe place with no professional help.

Cassian knew that Nesta often hated herself. But he’d never known she hated herself enough to want to…not exist anymore. He’d seen her expression when he mentioned the threat of falling. And he knew going back to Velaris wouldn’t save her from that look. He couldn’t save her from that look, either. Only Nesta could save herself from that feeling.

When I read SF for the first time I was so weirded out by this hike and I couldn’t figure out why. I do not find these chapters moving or inspiring, I thought they were toxic and sad and I still very much do. And if I’m going to be honest I felt like I was also being manipulated into getting emotional like how Nesta was.

And this is where I’m going to get into my criticisms for SJM.

I don’t know if she realizes this comparison between Nesta’s rehabilitation in general and the boot camps and just, bad, toxic therapy in general. I wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt because I think a lot of Silver Flames is about how the Valkyries helped heal Nesta and SJM and their hike during the Blood Rite was so much more inspiring at least for me and was definitely the climax and resolution to Nesta’s healing journey. SJM illudes to the IC’s biases very often in SF and I thought she was making Nesta’s rehab toxic on purpose, but the reason why I struggle with giving SJM the benefit of the doubt is because she said in an interview that that hike Cassian took Nesta on was inspired by a hike she and her husband went on during a vacation.

I also hate how she adds the idea that the mountains are healing, and there is a voice telling Cassian to keep pushing Nesta forward, “just one more mountain”. Like no. This again adds to the comparison of the fucking bootcamps because that is also a tactic they use.

Chapter 48 of ACOSF: The peaks weren’t as brutal and sharp as those in Illyria, but there was a presence to them that he couldn’t quite explain. Mor had once told him that long ago, these lands had been used for healing. Perhaps that was why he’d come. Some instinct had remembered the healing, felt this land’s slumbering heart, and decided to bring Nesta here.

This is fantasy, of course, so I am fine with this element of a higher presence that is healing to the characters who are struggling. And there is the symbolic element of climbing your mountain. But I need people to stop saying that this is a realistic way to treat people with actual problems in the real world, not only with this hike but also with all of the rehabilitation the IC made her do by locking her up. I might make a whole other video on that but if Nesta was in the House of Wind because she was addicted to alcohol and fucking strangers and spending money, this is not the professional way to go about it.

I like a lot of parts during this final breakdown where they talk about forgiving yourself, leaving the past behind. But I did not like the journey they made Nesta take to get to this point. Nesta could have very well had this breakdown not on this hike.

And this part ends with Cassian comforting Nesta.

“I’ll be with you every step of the way,” he whispered into her palm. “Just don’t lock me out. You want to walk in silence for a week, I’m fine with that. So long as you talk to me at the end of it.”

Like I appreciate this sentiment.

But, another thing that annoys me is Cassian’s conclusion after this scene

Chapter 50 of ACOSF: “She’d been suffering, and he’d had no idea how much it consumed every facet of her life. He’d seen her self-loathing and anger—but hadn’t realized how much she’d been aware of it. To know she’d hurt this much, for so long.

First of all, how would Nesta not know she was aware of her self-loathing and anger? She had actively talked about it before this moment??? She fucking has. And how did Cassian not know that she had been hurting this much for long long? I thought he was her mate who understood her? He talked about her traumas before in ACOWAR. Plus, I thought she was being rehabilitated. Helping her get not addicted to alcohol and spending money and having sex?

There is such a lack of awareness when it comes to the IC and this situation and I get frustrated when readers don’t understand it. People say that Nesta’s rehab was very serious and complex but no. It wasn’t. It is a terrible way to help anyone.

I think Nesta and Cassian still have to work on a lot to be an actual healthy relationship. And we saw the issues they still have in the Randall and Ember bonus chapter so I am very curious to see how SJM resolves their issues in future books, if she does so at all.

#anti inner circle #anti nessian #pro nesta #pro nesta archeron #nesta archeron deserves better #anti ic #anti sjm #sjm critical #dana metas

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thebluester2020 · 4 months

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[SDV] Infection AU

Summary: It was supposed to be another day on the farm. You'd wake up, check the mail, feed the animals, maybe even go into town to pick up some new seeds! But...when the wizard suddenly appears at your door to tell you that a mysterious plague had fallen upon Pelican Town and Ridgeside Valley, causing the townspeople to morph into hideous flesh-eating creatures while also emboldening the monsters of the Mines and Ridge to come out and attack all who aren't affected, you and your spouse stand as one of the few who aren't amongst the affected but...how do you both survive such a horrid new reality?

Warning(s): Some explicit character death (I've played Dead Space y'all, I'm not holding back on kids being man-eating monsters), Some good ol' angst, the Farmer really shines as a monster-slayer here, Y'all are gonna hate me for Shane's part and I'm not elaborating on that,

Note(s): I've been CRYING out for someone to make an Infection AU of Stardew ever since I saw it trend for MLP on TikTok. But hey, as they say, want something done? Do it yourself ig. I decided to only include three bachelors because A. I want to make a part 2 sometime since it's way too long as it is tbh and B. I NEED TO MAKE FANART OF THIS AU DUDE. I LOVE ZOMBIES AND DEAD SPACE MONSTERS

MINORS AND AGELESS BLOGS DNI

°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ

About a week ago, Marlon had told you that an emergency commission had come up, one that was apparently so important that it needed to be put as your main priority over any other commissions you may have had at the moment. At the time, you didn't have a mind to think much of it when he explained the nature of the commission, that it was brought forth to him by an anonymous source. The commission spoke of a monster, one that displayed an "Alpha-like" nature over the rest of the monsters and was far more aggressive than the others.

Since the moment you took on this commission and began searching for this mysterious creature, you had a mind to think that Marlon was finally beginning to lose his sanity as you hadn't once spotted this mysterious creature...at least, until it was too late.

°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ

Sebastion : "The Long Walk Home"

You couldn't sleep.

You had been tossing and turning in your bed for hours before you finally decided to get up and go to the mines. And the culprit for your sleepless night? The emergency commission that was thrown to you by Marlon around two weeks ago. The fine details of the commission were forgotten by you by now but basically, the older man had went on and on about how this creature was a major threat to not just the region of Stardew Valley but potentially everywhere close to it!

The monster was described to be as big as a fully-grown Pepper Rex. Thankfully it was unable to breathe fire but it came with a different quirk, which was the fact it had a disgusting ooze about its skin. One that was rumored to make you dizzy and eventually burning with rage if you breathed in the smell for too long.

If you were to be honest with yourself, you thought Marlon was exaggerating a little.

And that thought only grew more and more as you continued to search through the deeper levels of the cavern with your poor spouse trailing behind you.

"What's this monster called again?" Sebastion said from behind you.

The two of you had been searching for hours now, looking under every rock and peeking into any crevice you could find in hopes of at least getting some type of hint as to what this creature was and where it may have been. "Don't know," You yawned. "Marlon didn't give me a name, just a description." You said, patting your cheeks to try and keep yourself awake as you started to feel a bout of sleepiness wash over you.

"It's really important and really dangerous as well." You added on before you looked behind you. "You know, you didn't have to come...you know that right, Sebby?"

Your husband flashed you a shy smile. When he had drowsily woken up to the blurry sight of you putting on your boots and clothes, grabbing your weapon from the weapon's rack. He stopped you and insisted on coming along with you. It wouldn't have been his first time venturing into the mines, especially in regards to the deeper levels, and he was good with a sword as well! But, more than anything? If this creature was so dangerous...he couldn't bear the thought of you facing it by yourself, even if he wasn't up to your level in terms of swordsmanship.

He at least wanted to offer support.

"I didn't have to but I wanted to. I won't let my spouse face a boss-level monster alone." The joke made you giggle a little before you stopped in your tracks and sighed.

"Well..." You took out your phone to check the time.

It was going on three in the morning and you had a busy day tomorrow. You had planned to visit the Skull Cavern in search of more iridium as well as buy some more Starfruit seeds from Sandy! "Think we should call it a night? I'm getting sleepy and I want to take a shower."

Your husband's brow rose a little. "You sure? You've been at this commission for around a week now, right? Maybe tonight is when you can finally finish it."

As he sheathed his sword, you snickered teasingly as you pinched his cheek, resulting in the man's cheeks beginning to tint ever so slightly. "I've taken longer on other things, besides, I feel bad making you trail after me. Plus, I don't think it would be a good idea to face a boss level monster while we're both tired as shit, right?"

Sebastion nodded his head in agreement before the two of you started off in the direction of the ladder. He never minded following you, no matter how long it took, in his eyes? Spending even a single millisecond longer around you was much more preferred compared to spending that time all by himself similar to how he did in the basement. But, once the two of you were out of the mines and felt the cool night air on your skin once again...immediately, you felt that something was...off.

When things suddenly became too quiet in the mines, you knew that there was something dangerous in the air.

The same could be applied to the outside. More or less, you don't think you'd ever felt unsafe out in the town but...tonight was different.

So, you slowly unsheathed your sword. "What is it?" Sebastion said.

"Something's not right- GAH!" You suddenly shouted and dropped your weapon when the wizard suddenly appeared in front of you, making you fall to your bum as your chest heaved up and down in fright.

But as you quickly picked up your sword and got up, about to tell the man off. Your words caught in your mouth when you noticed the wizard's appearance. He looked...bloodied and bruised, scratched in some places too. A stark difference from the typically noble and wise air he gave off. "Farmer, are you and your spouse okay?" He quickly asked as he checked you over.

Your eyes widened as he took your arm and looked you over. "W-We're fine..." You answered before he then walked over to Sebastion, looking over him like a worried mother hen. "Why? What's wrong? Why are you bloody?"

"Something's happened," He said. "The townspeople...they're-"

Your blood ran cold. "What happened?" Sebastion asked for the both of you.

"The townspeople-" A shrill yet guttural howl rang out through the air, interrupting the wizard and causing him to suddenly raise his hand before a strange see-through rune appeared out of thin air near the entrance into the mines.

"Why did you-"

"Half of the town is dead," The wizard said, a little bit more quietly this time. "There's some type of...virus going through the air. It's turning the townspeople into twisted versions of themselves."

Your breath caught in your throat as your mind immediately went to the monster you and your husband were just searching for a few minutes ago. "I-Is it...is it related to the-"

"No," You let a sigh of relief. "The virus is related to the Shadow people, however, that creature that you were tasked to kill may have been a variant of them."

A guttural roar from outside made all three of you jump, your heart pounding in your chest as you took Sebastion and tried to lead him to the train cart. "Well then, as fun as it is to talk to you wizard...we need to go-"

"I wouldn't recommend the train cart." He said.

Sebastion looked back. "Why?"

"Because the creatures are fast enough to keep up with a moving train cart."

You clenched your free hand, exhaling through your nose. "Then what do we do?"

"You sneak back to your farmstead. I have placed a barrier around your farm, protecting your animals and eventually you and your spouse's until you return."

"What about the monsters?"

"The barrier seems to have made the area invisible to their eye. So far, they haven't gone near."

Your attention then went to Sebastion as the prospect of sneaking back to your farm to avoid a horde of monster-turned-villagers was...frightening to say the least. Sure, you've had moments in the Mines where you've snuck past monsters and managed to somehow fool ghosts but this? You couldn't help the chill that went throughout your body, especially seeing as your spouse was going to be right there beside you. "Sebastian." You said.

Although he didn't look at you on account of looking down at the ground, his brows furrowed in thought. He at least hummed in acknowledgment of his name. "What are you thinking?" You continued.

"This is dangerous."

You scoffed, that was putting it mildly. "No kidding, but...I'm worried about you. The quickest way back to our farm is past your family's home and-"

Although you didn't continue with your sentence, Sebastion understood what you meant. You were afraid for him, you were afraid for his family and the potential happening that they were...not human anymore. You didn't wish that type of pain upon anyone, especially your husband. And if the both of you needed to take a longer, more dangerous route to hopefully keep his sanity safe. You were willing to make that sacrifice.

Eventually, Sebastion sighed. "I'm fine," He said before fully turning to you. He rubbed his hands up and down your arms. "Right now? You're my most important family, so long as you're safe? I'll live, I'll be okay."

"That's not what I meant-"

"You two," The wizard interjected gruffly. "The night wears on, it grows more dangerous by the minute and I need to try and secure as many more areas as I can. You must leave."

You both nodded in his direction before you looked back at Sebastion. "Ready?"

"No," He dryly chuckled before his hand rested on his weapon. "But, I have your back."

"Good luck you two, I'll make sure to check back in with you both in a few days."

When the wizard disappeared, so did the rune that was on the exit of the cave. Allowing you and Sebastion to quietly tiptoe out of the cave and...out into the silent night.

And by Yoba's name, it was eerie. You wanted to suspect that the Adventurer's Guild would be hustling and bustling by now, maybe Marlon would be attempting to gather as many weapons in a bid for them to be readily available for anyone who would need them. Maybe he'd be trying to make sure Gil was safe but...as you slapped a hand over your mouth to withhold a gasp, you saw the blood splatters on the ground.

Had he...

Sebastion came up behind you to gently shield your eyes away from the sight, gently urging you to keep walking. "C'mon," He whispered as the two of you made your way to the steps where the blood splatters continued to grow in frequency as well as the amount of blood that was shed until...you started to spot oddities with the blood.

On the side, there was purple blood, the stench was terrible. Like cow dung mixed with charcoal. A little further up near the curve of the path next to the bridge that lead over the small stream was a weapon, Marlon's sword no doubt, before more blood splotches started to appear again only...slowly but surely, they morphed into a more purplish color- "Hide," You whisper-yelled as you dragged Sebastion into some bushes the second you heard a deep clicking from up ahead.

Quickly the two of you crouched down, you took up the task of just barely peeking out from behind the bushes to get a good look of what was making the sound until...you saw it.

Easily, it stood as tall as a fully grown Pepper Rex and it walked on four legs like one too.

Its entire form was the shade of a raven's feather and it hulked with muscle lurking underneath its seemingly armored skin. Yet a peculiar detail to note was its lack of a mouth before your eyes trailed down to its paws where claws as long as your forearm lay, bloodied and some even having remnants of skin still stuck to the tips of them.

But...when you looked back at the face of the stalking creature.

Then you noticed the scar over one of its glowing purple eyes.

'Marlon...' You thought as your eyes started to brim with tears.

But the creature- or...Marlon didn't stay around for very long. He only looked side to side with a hiss before it stalked onwards, its thudding footsteps slowly fading away.

You and Sebastion waited a few more minutes until you finally decided it was safe enough to keep moving. Your hearts pounded in your chests as you made your way across the small bridge, each squeaky step setting off an alarm bell within you that screamed out that you were going to get caught any second. But, thankfully, the next long stretch of road was where Robin's home was.

Maybe- "Hey," Sebastion whispered before he pulled you to the side, around a corner where you both were decently hidden from sight.

"Should we stop by my mom's house? Maybe-"

"Of course," You didn't have to be convinced to see inside your in-laws house. Though, for whatever reason Sebastion wanted to, you yourself just wanted to check up on his parents and his half-sister. If everything hadn't gone to complete shit yet then...they'd still be alive and you could take them with the both of you and let them live on your farm.

"We'll need to be careful though." You sighed as your mind flashed back to Marlon, taking out your weapon.

"Y/N, they haven't-"

Your eyes narrowed. "I thought that way too, with Marlon." Sebastion huffed. "I'm keeping the weapon out," You pressed before you resumed taking the lead, your weapon out in front of you as the two of you lightly jogged until you were at Robin's house where...everything seemed to be fine.

Aside from the lights being out that is.

"Maybe they're sleeping?" You said, hopefully.

"We can go in through the garage." Without another word, your husband crouched down and tried to gently open the garage, the harsh squeaking making him and you freeze in your places for a second before he continued a little more until it was high enough for the both of you to squeeze under. But, once the two of you were in you slowly opened the door to the inside of the house.

Still, it was so eerily quiet...like death was waiting just around the corner.

"Get some food from the kitchen, I'll watch-"

"I'm fine," Sebastion said, gesturing to the sword on his hip. "I'll see if there's anything just...please, make sure my mom and sister are okay. Wake them up, anything."

You nodded your head before you walked off and looked around the house.

Your first stop was Sebastion's old room. You slowly creaked open the door and all you saw was nothing, nothing but Sebastion's old things and the smell of growing dust in the air.

So, you turned your attention to upstairs.

All before you stopped the second you heard dripping sounds upon the wooden floor. Your breath caught in your throat and your mouth went dry the second your mind immediately flipped back to Marlon and his monster-turned state, if it could happen to him then...it was obvious it could happen to anyone. But, for the sake of your husband? You prayed to whatever god was listening to you at this moment that his family hadn't experienced a similar fate.

Yet as you followed the noise all the way until you reached the end of the hallway, where you could see Robin and Demetrius' door slightly ajar. You tried to quietly tiptoe your way to the door before your jaw nearly dropped to the floor. An organ hung from the top of the door, the dripping noise being the- the blood...a gorey trail of flesh, blood, and even more intestines trailed all the way to the bed where...there Robin and Demetrius' bodies lay as a monster feasted upon whatever was still left inside of their cracked open stomachs.

What do you tell Sebastion?

Do you even tell him at all?

He couldn't know about this...you saw it in his eyes, the worry and concern he had for his sister and mother.

He'd be beyond heartbroken and you didn't think you had the strength to tell him, not right now when...maybe, j-just maybe you were seeing things. And you, oh so desperately, tried to convince yourself that you didn't see Robin and Demetrius' crops as you slowly continued to back up until you were in the kitchen once more where Sebastion was currently putting different canned foods in a backpack he must've taken out from his room.

"Did you see anything?"

You immediately tried to wash off the horror on your face. "N-Nothing," You stammered. "Just...nothing, it was dark."

As Sebastion slung the backpack over his shoulders, his brow quirked up a little. "Are you sure? You look like you saw something, you can tell me."

You shook your head again, placing your hands on his arms before you gently leaned your forehead into his chest. A heavy sigh escaped your lips as you shook your head. "No...I-I'm fine, I promise. I'm just still- I'm still thinking about e-earlier, M-Marlon and all."

"Oh," He gently rubbed his hand in a circle on your back. "Everything's going to be fine." He said. "We'll always come out on top, okay?"

Although you nodded your head to try and get him to follow you out of the house quicker, you couldn't help but doubt him just a little.

Robin and Demetrius were gone and his sister was turned.

You don't think that image would ever leave your head, those familiar traits of Maru still present despite her warped form. Like how Maru's form still had traces of that familiar purple undershirt she'd wear over her overalls or how there seemed to be cracked pieces of glass on her face, illuminated by the faint light of the moon.

However...one day you'd gain the courage to tell your husband what you really saw, for as you slowly approached the end of the path that led onto the farm.

Your only focus was making sure the two of you survived from now on.

°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ

Sam : "Pack Starter"

How did the apocalypse start?

A seemingly simple and straightforward question. But in truth? Depending on the person at least, it was rather broad and filled with so many possibilities, all depending on where you were personally from the start.

For some? They may have not first noticed that anything was amiss. Perhaps they were out in the woods taking a hike or maybe at home sleeping, looking at a movie rather than trying to watch the news! It would be a normal day or not until all they saw was...carnage.

Others, their start may have been more brutal. Being out in the city or in a place where a lot of people gathered was a rather "in your face" start to the end of the world. People would be screaming in terror as they ran for their lives, trampling happening at every turn as everyone would quickly turn to making sure they stayed alive and worried about other people last.

Perhaps some would take the new world and quickly decide on doing the essentials.

Rushing for weapon stores and grabbing anything that they could.

Food.

Maybe even to see their families.

All valid but...completely unlike how your introduction to the end of the world was for the apocalypse came to you last. It was peaceful in Pelican Town, about a few hours away from the nearest city! Nothing extreme happened here unless you wanted to count your trips to the Mines, the Skull Cavern, or even Louis and Marnie's not-too-secret relationship.

Of course, that was until tonight happened.

Where you were rushing door to door with Marlon after he woke you up by pounding on your front door and screaming to get up and grab your weapon.

You didn't need to be told the exact details to know that it was bad.

Despite your groggy, freshly awoken state. You made the immediate moves to barricade and secure your farm from whatever threat made Marlon's hair turn grayer than gray, but...when you had spotted one of the monsters outside of your farm. Your memory of your commission flashed back to you, of what you were supposed to do but the monster was as elusive as a slippery fish. The creature seemed to size you up and down almost, all before it slipped away and rushed to terrorize someone else.

"Fuck," You had whispered after locking the last barn door before your legs carried you back to your home to see if your husband, Sam had waken up yet. "Sam!" You cried out as you slammed the door open, expecting him to still be deeply asleep in your bed, ready to be woken up by you until...he wasn't.

Panic immediately filled your being as a cold sweat broke out on your forehead.

He was just here.

The both of you were cuddled up beside one another until you got up to open the door.

"Sam?" You went to another part of the house, upstairs this time. "Sam!? Sam! Where are you!?" You cried out. As you rushed all around the house like a headless chicken, you felt like a madperson. You were cursing at yourself, you should've checked on him first before anything else! Yet as you tried to slow yourself down and think, consider the options of where he may have gone, your mouth became dry inside of your mouth as you thought of the one place you knew he'd most likely immediately go the second anything went wrong in this town.

Home.

And with your answer, you took the extra few minutes to shuffle into clothes more suited for running rather than your bedtime clothes before you dashed in the direction of town. And when you arrived...the sight of multiple fires and the scent of ash filled your senses as you looked around.

Monsters that resembled four-legged versions of shadow people roamed the cobblestone streets. Howling in triumph as some carried bodies within their large jaws whilst others tried to scratch and claw their way into homes that seemed to be locked and barricaded securely. However, as you quickly crouched behind a bush, a creature stomped its way by.

You got the faintest peek at its claws.

Like daggers, you thought. Sharp enough to cut straight through a tree without even breaking a sweat. And as your eyes continued to tail the creature, it walked through fire without even seeming to let out a noise resembling pain.

The lava katana that you tightly gripped within your palm.

You couldn't help the slight feeling of fear that began to grip you at the thought that a powerful weapon like yours couldn't even think to burn it at the very least.

But, you shook the thought from your head as you pressed forward, sneaking down the same path you would've usually taken to get to Sam's house until you heard a shrill scream, causing you to pick up the pace every so slightly until...your stomach lurched at the sight of blood and innards.

Blood flooded the once heavenly green grass and intestines littered the streets, walls of homes and dangled from the tops of fences. Effectively turning the town into hell on earth until you finally reached the street Sam's home was on, causing you to stand up straight and- "Sam!" You screamed before you could think when you saw him kneeling, his body shaking ever so slightly here and there until you quickly slowed down when...

When you saw Jodi, her ribcage was exposed and cracked open as she was feasted upon a smaller version of the monsters you saw earlier.

Yet...you recognized that yellow and red striped shirt- or at least, the tatters of it that hung off from the creature. Its smaller yet nonetheless sharp claws bloodied as the body of Kent lied not too far away from his wife's.

"S-Sam..." You said gently, almost a whisper as you both tried to get to him first as well as not disturb the monster from its meal. "Honey, l-let's go. Please."

"Vincent..." Those were the first words he uttered, his voice shaky and clearly holding back a sob. "Vincent." He repeated.

This time, the creature looked up with a tilt of its head and a strange insect-like chitter. All before it slowly moved away from its meal and started to stalk towards Sam.

You readied your weapon, your eyes narrowing as you recognized that hunter-like crouch from similar monsters, both in the Mines and the Skull Cavern.

"B-Buddy?" Sam said, hopefully. "Vincent, we can fix this. Y-Y/N can help fix you, they know a lot of things! They can help, we can bring Mom and Dad-" Before you knew it, the monster launched itself towards Sam with a high-pitched snarl, causing you to spring into action and shove Sam aside before you swung your sword.

"NO!" You heard Sam scream from the top of his lungs, your eyes wide and your sword dripping with black blood as the monster hung off the end of your sword for a moment before...it fell to the ground with a heavy thud.

Still.

Dead.

"S-Sam." You said once the shock started to wash off from you. "Honey, that-"

Sam answered with a sharp inhale as you could've sworn his normally soft blue eyes turned red when he glared at you, tears streaming down his face before he looked back at the creature. You were about to crouch down and try to comfort your husband, make him see where you were coming from and your reason for doing what you did until...you heard snarls from the distance.

You'd have to put your emotions to the side for a little while longer.

Sam, he was allowed to be upset at you for as long as he needed to until he understood.

And until you both got out of this situation alive.

°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･°❀⋆.ೃ

Shane: "Supplies"

It was a hot summer's day today. The sun was beaming down upon you and the cicadas were screaming out for water like they've never had before, but while you would have welcomed the arrival of summer in the past. Nowadays? You couldn't help the sour taste it left inside of your mouth! It was harder to grow stuff, crops were dead and there was no longer a place to readily buy season appropriate seeds.

You had to make weekly rounds back to the old supplies store just to try and keep your family of three, plus the pets alive and that alone was a trip!

The monsters that had arrived a little over a year ago were vicious, hungry creatures that spared no mercy whether or not you were a child or an adult.

Too many times did you toss and turn in your sleep at night when you remembered the scratched up and limbless body of Vincent outside of Sam's house on the night everything started, how he cried and begged for his brother to wake up despite...well...everything.

Since then, you haven't seen Sam in a while.

Or anyone else for that matter.

The town was quiet as there was nothing but abandoned buildings and homes. Everyone had already left a while ago, hoping to escape the monsters and their terror but you- well, your spouse insisted on staying, stating that the two of you had a lot to live for here and that there was no point in moving away from everything you had worked so hard for! And to a certain extent? You agreed with him, your farm and animals provided more than enough food for the both of you.

There was still plenty of supplies to be had so long as you knew where to look and every now and again? When you went to the Mines, you were able to find lost items that helped in fortifying the area around your farm just a little bit more from the creatures!

But then again-

"Y/N," A voice chirped from below. "It's hot."

"It really is, isn't it?" You agreed with a sigh before you took off your sun hat and handed it to Jas. "Maybe this will cool you down? Sorry I don't have anything better Jas," You smiled sheepishly, the little girl only smiling gratefully in return as she proceeded to put on the hat that was far too big for her then.

Then again...Jas was still here.

Marnie died at the beginning of the attack upon the town. When you had defeated the monster, Shane had rushed into the farmstead and found Jas hugging her stuffed animal in the corner crying and wondering where Marnie was, from what he told you. And although the little girl had her moments of sadness...all things considered, she was taking things well.

Her new reality with monsters and not being able to go outside as she pleased anymore, at least, beyond the boundaries of your farm, she was taking it well.

"Alright Jas, c'mon." You crouched down to allow the girl to climb onto your back before you carried her the rest of the way to Pierre's shop. It was both a way of making sure she didn't get tired as well as a way that...if something was here, you'd be able to run as fast as possible without worrying whether or not she was keeping up. But, thankfully, the two of you reached Pierre's abandoned shop without too much of an issue, causing you both to go in through the broken window you've both been using for a while now before you rummaged around the shop.

Although it was easy to take as much as you could from the store and haul it all the way back home, safely avoiding multiple trips off the farm.

You thought it would be good for Jas, now that Vincent was no longer around due to...reasons. It was good for her to get off the farm once in a while with supervision. Not to mention, after you finished your "shopping", the two of you made it a routine to go the beach if you could! Anything to hopefully keep Jas' childhood as intact as it possibly could be.

"What do you want to eat tonight?" You asked after letting out a frustrated sigh after seeing the summer seeds in the back of Pierre's supplies were all crushed.

"Pizza!"

Did you still have tomato seeds? You were growing some in your greenhouse so there wasn't too much of a fear of running out of the produce anytime soon but...

"Alright," You eventually caved in after deeming it not too much of a waste of resources to make the item.

"I think...I think pizza would also make Uncle Shane happy too."

You sucked in your bottom lip at the mention of your husband. Before everything went to hell, you and him were dating, the two of you even discussed getting married at one point! Shane was getting help for his alcohol addiction and was going to therapy regularly! Everything seemed to be going nowhere but up for him and you couldn't be happier, yet...as of lately? He had been in a stump.

There was no more therapy.

No more avenues to find a healthy substitute for drinking.

You'd never seen someone crave the taste of a beer like Shane had and it was only your luck that you had a few forgotten cans in your cellar. It was keeping him sane for now but, you worried for him. You'd have to figure something out quick, for all his hard work to be crushed just because the world decided to end at an inopportune moment...not only would it crush you, you knew deep down that it would silently crush Shane as well.

Yet, you tried shooing those thoughts away from your head as you zipped up your backpack and waved your hand for Jas to follow you. "Good idea Jas," You smiled. "I'll make you and Uncle Shane the best pizza ever!"

You were glad that Jas had gotten distracted by a mother hen and her chicks when the pair of you arrived back to the farm.

You planned to call her back inside when dinner was ready.

But...as you gently closed the front door behind you, your eyes trailing over the path of destruction inside your house. The worse immediately came to mind.

A monster attack possibly, but...there would've been blood and most smashed items rather than just bottles.

Shane wasn't exactly the type to leave your home a mess, he was good at cleaning to the point you joked about him being better at cleaning than yourself!

So, as you flicked on the lights downstairs. There was only one possible answer- "Where is it? Where'd they put 'em?" You could hear Shane mumbling as he searched the corners, nooks, and crannies of the cellar.

The scent of alcohol was heavy in the air as the spilled contents from the kegs were all over the ground. Shane's speech was slurred and as he moved around, not even taking the time to notice your presence, he more so limped like a shot dog than walked! You tried to cool your simmering rage, biting your lip and clenching your fists as you wanted to scream every possible curse word in the book at him.

He destroyed weeks' worth of supplies.

Ruined the house.

Ruined your hard work in this cellar...

All for a drink.

"Shane," You said.

No response.

"Shane." You said again as you slowly began to make your way to him.

Still, he didn't dare to give you a response. Not until you stormed the rest of the way to the man and slapped a hand on his shoulder to get him to pay attention to you. "Shane!" You screamed into his ear, your chest heaving up and down as tears brimmed your eye line."

"H-How could you?! Our- my hard work...everything, why-"

Shane grumbled as he half-hazardly pushed you away. "Where did you put it?"

"What?"

"The rest of the drinks, I need a beer."

"Shane, please." You begged as you followed him around the room, both trying to control your surging temper as well as to get his attention. "Fucking goddamn listen to me!" You roared, your hand grabbing his shoulder and forcing him to turn around.

"Why, fucking goddamn tell me why you did all this!?"

"I need a drink." He repeated, slower than last time.

"You already tore into my kegs!? How much more do you need?!"

He didn't respond, going back to ignoring you but instead opting to go upstairs.

It seems that the end of the world had taken more from you in this very moment than anything else had in your entire life. Supplies, as well as a partner you thought you'd call your husband one day.

#stardew valley #stardew farmer #stardew #stardew sebastian #stardew shane #sdv #sdv farmer #sdv sebastian #sdv shane #sdv harvey #sdv 1.6 #infection au #stardew infection au #stardew valley infection au #sdv infection #sdv infection au

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blackwidownat2814 · 9 months

Text

Merry Christmas Lieutenant (J.Seresin)

Pairing: Jake Seresin x female reader

Word Count: 1440 (ish)

A/N: Written for @sailor-aviator’s Christmas Writing Challenge. My word was candy cane. To be super honest, I completely forgot I had to write this until last night and went through about 5 ideas before I landed on this today. Thanks to @buckysdollforlife for the quick beta-ing they did earlier. Part of the Jake & Dewey ‘Verse. GIF by @babyrooster

Dividers by: @saradika (Go check out her others, they're awesome!!!)

Warnings: Super fluffy and honestly? The most suggestive thing I’ve written…ever. So yeah, implied future smut I guess?

Masterlist

MERRY CRISIS EVERYONE!!!

When you’d told Jake that your favorite thing about Christmas was candy canes and other peppermint flavored things, you didn’t think he’d go this hard with it.

On December 1st, you shambled into the kitchen to see Jake standing at the island with a steaming mug in his hand and a big smile on his face.

“Merry Christmas sweetheart.” He leaned down to press a kiss to your lips and when you pulled away, you took a sip of your coffee.

“Jake! You made me a Peppermint Mocha?!”

“Of course I did, it’s your favorite.”

“Maybe you should change your callsign to 'Starbies'.”

On December 2nd, you woke to find a big bag of the Ghirardelli Peppermint Bark Squares on your nightstand with a short note I love you so much baby. Enjoy your minty snack!

You took the bag with you to work and shared the love with your coworkers. On your lunch hour, you headed over to the Exchange to meet up with Bob for lunch and shared some with him, giving him extra to share with the other Daggers.

“Hey Bobbers? Could you give Jake something extra for me please?”

“Sure Dew, what is it?” You planted a kiss on Bob’s cheek and he turned red and smiled. “I can’t guarantee he’s going to appreciate it as much since it’s not coming from you.”

It went like that for the next week or so. Candy cane themed gifts for you every day. Knee high socks covered in candy canes, some earrings you’d seen on TikTok, all kinds of candies that were putting out their peppermint flavored things.

Two weeks before Christmas, Jake came home with news that he and the other Daggers (Mav included) were going to be gone until a few days before the holiday to several Naval Air Stations starting in New Jersey and ending back home in San Diego. You didn’t know all the facts, because all Jake could tell you was that it had to do with the Uranium Mission (since you were Mickey’s only family and Jake’s partner, Mav had said that all you could really know was that it was dangerous and that the squad called it the Uranium Mission).

Jake promised his gifts would keep going in his absence, even when you told him they didn’t need to.

The first day he was gone, you went to the Hard Deck to have dinner with Halo, a recent friend. Halo waved when she saw you walk in and you joined her at the end of the bar, where you greeted Penny.

“Hey Pen, missing Mav already?”

“Always do”, she replied with a smile. After you and Halo gave her your dinner order, she placed a glass down in front of you.

“What’s this?”

“Hangman asked me to get you a peppermint flavored drink every time you come in while they’re all gone.” She pulls a mini-candy cane from under the bar and sticks it in the glass. “This here is a Peppermint Piña Colada. Enjoy.”

“What’s with all the peppermint?” asked Callie.

“Last month, I told Jake that one of my favorite things about Christmas was candy canes and peppermint flavored stuff. Since December 1st, he’s given me something peppermint flavored or candy cane themed every single day.” You took a sip of your drink, “Oof…that’s actually better than I thought it would be.”

“Oh. So that’s why Hangman asked me to give you this.” Callie pulled a small red and white gift bag from the bar stool beside her and slid it your way. “He said to tell you not to open it until tomorrow though.”

“Ugh! But I want to open it now!”

“He said, and I quote: ‘One a day Dewey, that’s the rule. Be a good girl and follow the rules.’” Callie made a face like she wanted to vomit. “I don’t kink shame, but I did not need to know that.”

You’re not sure how long you laughed after that.

The next day, Callie came to visit you at the library.

“So, what was in the bag?” she asked. “Wait. After that message, I’m not sure I want to know.” You gave a small laugh as you placed two small spray bottles on your desk.

“He got me hand sanitizer spray in Twisted Peppermint from Bath & Body Works. One for the office and one to carry in my bag.”

“Can I have some?”

“Sure!” You give her a couple sprays and she rubbed her hands together.

“This smells awesome. Like I’d dipped my hands in Christmas or something.”

While he was gone, Jake had cookies from Tiff’s Treats (a dozen minty chocolate) delivered, a box of only peppermint chocolates from Copper Coast Confections, a new red and white striped apron from Hedley & Bennett with your name embroidered on the front. After watching Next Level Chef a few months ago, you’d expressed to him how you wanted an apron from H&B one day and that it might take you a while because they were pretty expensive. You couldn’t believe he’d remembered. After that, when you invited Callie and Penny over and the three of you would cook or bake together, you smiled big as you sported your new apron.

Finally, the day Jake and the rest of the Daggers were due home arrived. They weren’t due until late afternoon, so you changed in your office at the library. You wore your candy cane earrings, striped Santa hat, bright red lipstick with peppermint gloss, and made sure your new manicure (candy cane themed of course) shone brightly.

You stood with Penny and the other families that waited for their sailors. You hugged Bob and Phoenix when they walked over to you guys and when Reuben and your brother arrived, they both gave you a big wet kiss on either cheek. Distracted as you were wiping your cheeks off while laughing, you didn’t see or hear Jake approaching.

“What are you doin’ givin’ my girl kisses, Payback?”

“JAKE!” You whirled around with a scream.

“Hey sweetheart.” You practically jumped into his arms and pulled his face to yours (thank goodness for long lasting liquid lipsticks!). Jake took it a step further and dipped you backwards while still kissing you…like that sailor kissing a nurse in New York City on VJ Day in 1945.

“What am I?” you heard Mickey ask. “Chopped liver?”

Later that night, you were in bed reading while Jake finished his shower. You could smell the shower gel he used because it was one he’d gotten you while he was gone (a delicious pepperminty scent from LUSH), and he finally emerged from the bathroom in a peppermint scented cloud.

“Boy, am I happy to be home.”

“I’m glad you’re home too, Jake.” You pecked him on the lips when he leaned down over you. “I missed you and even though I loved absolutely everything you got me--especially the candy cane themed flower bouquet--none of it replaces having you here with me.”

“You sap.”

“Shut up. You love how sappy I am.”

“True.” He put on his sleep pants and got in bed next to you. “Do you want today’s present?”

“I thought you were today’s present?”

“I’m just the bonus”, he said with his traditional Jake Seresin smile (it was your favorite of his smiles).

“Then gimme!” You put your book down and made grabby hands at him.

“Here you go m’darlin.” He handed you a small box with a red and white bow on it.

“Jake. Jake. This isn’t…?”

“No, it isn’t. I wouldn’t do that without Mickey being present.”

“Oh okay. It’s not that I don’t want to…”

“Baby, don’t worry, I understand.”

“I love you.”

“I know.” He winked at you and you couldn’t help but roll your eyes.

“Nerd.” You turn back to the small box and open it. Inside was a necklace with a small ruby and diamond encrusted candy cane on it. “Holy shit.”

“I take it that means you like it.”

“I love it Jake.” You settle onto his lap and kiss him. When you pull apart, he takes the necklace from the box and moves to put it on you. “Thanks cowboy. I think this is going to beat one of my gifts to you for sure.”

“Oh? Do tell.” You hop off his lap and run into your closet. A few minutes later, you emerge wearing your new candy cane themed robe and your necklace.

“I wanted to put on my necklace and see what you think about how it looks.”

“Let’s see it.” Jake’s jaw drops comically when you throw off your robe, because standing in front of him is you. In your necklace.

Just your necklace.

“Merry Christmas Lieutenant.”

#Jake Seresin #Jake Seresin x you #Jake Seresin x reader #Jake Seresin x female reader #Jake Seresin x plus size!reader #Jake Seresin x Garcia!reader #Jake Seresin x latina!reader #Jake Seresin fluff #Jake Seresin fanfiction

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queenwille · 8 days

Note

IDF: Israeli Defense Forces

Defending themselves from what? Displaced Palestinians hiding out in buildings? The children?

Cause last I saw, Palestine weren’t the ones with white phosphorus missiles bombing Israel every other day and wiping out the population,

wait wait wait, let me start at the very beginning- your question about what does israel have to defend itself a is joke, right…? please tell me you did not come in here to waste my time without doing the bare minimum and research something. you owe me that much if you’d like me to take you seriously.

look, idk at which point did you tune into the west’s favorite reality show which is the middle east crisis, but i honestly don’t have the time nor the patience to catch you up in all of the episodes you’ve missed up until now and that’s even if we only focus on the gaza area. what can i say, some of us were just lucky enough to be born into this. others, such as yourself, have the world wide web for free, go wild.

mmm values. that’s the thing, all those spicy stories you’ve mentioned there? y’all know about them, but you people never catch up about how the IDF took them one by one to military trail for misconduct. nah, why should you care about that part? it ruins your whole immature narrative about the bad guys, huh? y’all would rather stick to the pathetic narrative where this is a fairytale where there are big bad IDF monsters and poor little princesses to save. well, sorry, but life’s more complex than that. yep, the good guys can do bad things and the bad guys can actually not be just bad. it’s called real life. not one angry anon, like yourself, has ever asked me, or any other identifying zionist, what we think about any of those morally questionable issues, y’all just keep assuming what we think and dehumanizing us, but somehow we keep being labeled as the bigots over and over again.

i’m glad you’ve mentioned those tiktok dances because those are usually soldiers who don’t even fight in combat and y’all like to attack them online so much. many of them are not even armed. you know which other soldiers were unarmed? the female soldiers murdered (16, one of them by a doctor in captivity in gaza) or taken hostage (7, one rescued, one murdered, 5 still held hostage to this day) on october 7th. shocking, i know, but not all IDF soldiers are armed. did it matter?

me signaling? do you see me giving out random twitter posts by FUCK KNOWS WHO as valid sources? no? so no, i don’t take it as a valid source. sorry, friend. and my best bud al jazeera? besides the fact that they’ve been proven and, i believe, even admitted to exaggerating with their death tolls, they’re funded by the qatari government. i’ll let you google who qatar used to house before israel —— him and who else it supports financially (spoiler: both start with H). other than that, for good measures, when i’d like to give out a source, i usually avoid using, not only israeli sources, but also jewish ones. just looking out for all of my antisemites out there. 🫡

when did i call it an accident? find me one time time i referred to a palestinian death as an accident. go on, i’ll wait. that’s right, i didn’t. there is though, a difference i make between the people massacred on october 7th and people who get killed as a result of war and y’all never seem to like that. don’t get me wrong, i find both to be horrific, but there’s a very clear difference between being gunned down, raped, abused, mutilated, tied down with cables and more to getting hurt/killed as a result of being unfortunate enough to live at an active warzone. i say this btw about israelis who, unfortunately, got killed/hurt from the missiles fired from gaza during this war as well… and soldiers. it’s just not the same, i’m sorry. what happened on october 7th was purely dystopian and the fact that so many of you keep trying to deny/ignore/justify/compare it to anything else, despite hamas (unlike the nazis) not covering even one drop of blood shed or even part of their intentions, is really baffling. even more so in the 21st century when literally everything is at the palm of your hands. it truly is amazing how much you’re willing to ignore just to feed your white savior complex by patronizing and forcing your western white ideology on terrorist organizations such as hamas.

never have i said to mind your own business. i personally believe that it’s important to be informed and get engaged outside of your very own bubble. hell, i’m a SW student who majors in community work/activism. i do have a few questions though. do you do it cause you’re entitled to? i mean, because your taxes paid for it? so like, you paid a ticket for the show and now you deserve in? like when you vote for your favorite singer on the the voice? that’s the thing, many of you come in here, wanting your slice of the matter, while thinking that reading a little on social media is enough. it’s not. be respectful.

#ask #anon #israel #antisemitism #palestine #please read #this took forever

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niiine · 1 year

Text

𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐄

Characters. Kazuha, GN! Reader.

Synopsis. Only when you're invloved that Kaedehara kazuha can show a few things that he's usually not—like possessiveness for example.

Fluff, jealous Kazuha

Inspired by this. (With permission) Check this, it's soo cute.

Mentions of "Beautiful", and Kazu's jealous of a man.

NOT PROOF READ!!!

Saw this pictures from Mei_xxy! on tiktok and thought, I want a whole scenario with jealous Kazuha. Kazuha babyyy be home next patch alrightt? And also, 500+ followers 😳 Thank you for reading my trashes peeps. You make me happy!

“Ahh, the wind is telling me that we ar—”

“Kazuha if you don’t shut up, I swear I’m going to throw you out in the sea.”

The gentle lad sighed at his crewmate’s outburst—he can’t blame him though; he had been pestering him about just how far more it would take before the Crux reach Liyue for the past three hours now. He can’t help it you know; he misses you so much and for him, it’s nothing but agonizing.

Dragging his feet up the crow’s nest where he plans to spend the rest of the day before he can see you again, his heart sinking even further at the thought that it wouldn’t be any time soon. He drifts into a light slumber, begging for his dreams to about his beloved.

“Kazuhaa!” Beidou’s shout wake him from sleep, eyes fluttering open and somehow, sleepiness’ still vivid in the way he lazily closed them again. That is, until the captain announced their arrival at the land of Geo. A flash of silver plunged as he jumped from the Crow’s nest, his ever-calm face now adorned with giddiness. “Captain! I’m gonna go see (name)!” and he’s gone even before Beidou could wish him a safe trip. The wandering samurai can’t wait to be home.

The streets of Liyue’s still as busy as ever. Usually, he would stay away from rowdy environment. The excitement and chaos clashing in his calm demeanor, but right now, the idea of melting in your hands just seems stronger than any uncomfortable conditions. The image of him planting his face into your presence brought a serene smile into his porcelain face—really, only can bring out this side of him.

His eyes darted forward; he wants to buy something from Wanmin to bring with him for you. And that’s when he sees you, as dazzling and beautiful as ever—and…him. You’re talking with a man so happily, present as you exchange words that is inaudible to his ears. A frown decorates Kazuha’s face as an unfamiliar emotion tugged at his gentle heart. His feet move towards your direction, hoping to gain your attention. Surely you will be more excited and happier to see him than to talk with this guy, right? But his advances are drowned in the noise of the crowd, and probably because you and your companion are facing the restaurant, thus he remained unnoticed.

He cleared his throat, hoping once again trying to snatch your gaze. No avail.

His lips quivered. Come oon, your boyfriend’s here you know!

“Hello, Sir…” He trailed off, eyes drooped and an annoyed expression resting on his face. He wasn’t always like this, but he hadn’t seen you for days and now it looks like you’re not in love with him anymore (I live for dramatic Anemo boys supremacy. Regardless if it’s the ever so collected Kaedehara kazuha).

It even sends him in more turmoil as the man you’re talking to doesn’t listen when he called him out. The guy left him no choice. He huffed exaggeratedly as he caged your form between his strong arms, earning a cute squeak from you.

He looked over your shoulders and glared at the man, “Excuse me. They’re my partner, return them to me now please.” Before burying his red face in the crook of your neck. You understand right away what’s happening, your hands finding its way to your lover’s silver locks. A soft, gentle laugh escapes your lips.

“Kazuha, he’s my brother”

“What?”

#genshin kaedehara #kazuha kaedehara #kaedehara kazuha #kaedehara kazuha x reader #kaedehara x you #kaedehara x reader #kazuha #kazuha fanfic #kazuha x reader #kazuha x you #kaedehara kazuha x you #kazuha x gender neutral reader #genshin impact kazuha #kazuha x y/n #yaepublishinghouse #yae publishing house #genshin impact headcanons #genshin kazuha #genshin impact x reader

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cookiesupplier · 10 months

Note

A request based off of this tiktok 😮‍💨 /// doesn’t matter which guy

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT8P3mwxq/

You guys go for a ride on his bike but seeing him drive turns you on

I had to go with Folio for this!

I hope you come back to find it again anon, and enjoy it!

Fuck, she loved seeing him wearing his leather jacket and ready to ride. She would say she loved riding with him just as much but it always made her a little nervous at the same time. Okay that was a lie, it terrified her actually. It took her years to learn how to ride a bike as a kid and to be honest she had never been confident in it, she still wasn’t. Didn’t like getting on one on her own, and didn’t to this day. When she admitted that to her boyfriend though, he hadn’t laughed at her, he had smiled. It wasn’t a smile that suggested he was making fun of her, it was the smile that she loved, that smile made her want to cup his cheeks in her hands and press his face together and kiss him until he couldn’t breath when he told her it would be okay.

She would be okay. He was going to be driving the motorbike and he wouldn’t let anything happen to her.

Oh, she knew he’d had an accident before, and sure, anyone would think that would make her fear even worse, but it didn’t, it actually helped, because it told her he knew exactly what not to do. Especially when she was going to be riding with him now.

Folio had been planning to take her out for a ride for awhile now, and whether it was because of her nerves, or because of the tour planning, band practices, and studio recording taking up so much time, it just never seemed to happen, until today. They’d agreed to meet up for coffee after he spent the morning in the studio with the guys, what she hadn’t realised was when he said he’d give her a ride home, he’d meant on his bike, and not in a car, and leaving the cafe, she saw his motorbike on the curb and instantly, a shudder ran down her spine.

Just watching him reach for his leather jacket to pull it on had her pausing a little. Folio glancing back to her, maybe misinterpreting her hesitation,

“Baby, if you don’t want to ride, we can call a cab?”

Her eyes flew to his instantly, hoping he didn’t see the way her thighs pressed together a little as he finished doing up his jacket. Swallowing,

“No, its alright, you promised me a ride remember, thought I don’t have a jacket?”

His smile was bright then, as he reached for the back of his bike where he kept the spare helmet and brought out the jacket he’d also gotten her, along with the riding gloves,

“For you, Baby.”

Despite the fact she was nervous, and no matter how excited she was, she absolutely still was so very nervous about getting on that bike. She knew he could tell with the way he pressed his lips to her cheek when he held up the jacket to help her put it on, one arm at a time. Once it was settled on, and zipped up carefully, Y/N pulled on the gloves carefully, and then watched as Folio climbed onto the motorbike, and just like that, her mouth was dry.

Fuck. She always did love seeing him on his bike.

Honestly it was the main reason why she wanted to ride with him. As it was, she was so distracted by the way she looked at him, she almost completely missed the way he was looking at her right now as she prepared to pull on the helmet. “Look at you, my gorgeous little bad ass of a girlfriend.” The smile on his lips wasn’t remotely taunting either despite the fact that he knew how she felt about riding bikes, no, it was nothing but sweet, his tone fond and all kinds of delighted that she was joining him. Folio was so far gone on her that it felt like there wasn’t a single thing she could do that would put him off of her at this point, even her worst moment and he wouldn’t care. She was right here, trusting him, despite knowing he’d already gone down on his bike once. “Only you get on, hold on to me as tight as you like, okay?” Nodding, once her helmet was on, he helped her onto the bike behind him and pulled his helmet on too. Knowing how nervous she was, Folio pulled her arms around his middle. Holding onto him tight, her knees against his thighs, her chest against his back, letting his warmth wash over her body with the way she pressed right against him as she is.. And they were off. The power of the bike, the power of him thrummed through her, and everything she felt before just watching him get ready to ride was just magnified now. Y/N knew she needed to keep her hands to herself though, not distract Folio, her boyfriend was the in front riding, controlling the bike, not wanting to wreck them and all…

Y/N presses her hand’s flat to his middle, holding onto him tightly as they pull up to a set of lightly and they relax a little. She almost moaned as she breathed in and caught Folio’s aftershave and mixed with the rumble of the motorcycle engine between her legs, her body pressed right up against his, she could feel her thighs, her pussy clench so tightly.

Distraction, she needed a distraction, and she found it in her boyfriend’s jacket. Before she did something stupid like cause him to run the bike off the road, her fingers were running lightly down the zipper of the jacket lightly, that was alright, wasn’t it? It wasn’t a problem? Just down, and up, and back down again..

Of course, then her hand moves to his thighs without thinking, rubbing against his pants, her chin resting on his shoulder as her chest pressed right up against his back, thighs squeezing around his hips.. And she heard it..

A low groan muffled through his motorcycle helmet…

“Y/N, wait till we get back to your apartment Baby.”

Okay, so maybe she was the distraction.

#anon request #bad omens #fanfiction #nick folio #folio #nick folio fic #nick folio x reader #bad omens band #bad omens cult #smidge smutty #tease

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nekoannie-chan · 1 year

Text

Huge mistake

Pairing: Steve Rogers X Avenger!Mutant!Reader.

Word count: 1187 words.

Summary: Steve realized the mistake he did, he returned hoping you forgive him.

Warnings: Stupid Steve, fix fic, angst.

A/N: This my entry to @natashxromanovf 1K Followers Writing Challenge with angst prompt #3:

"This is not how family is supposed to feel."

You can read it on Wattpad and AO3 too.

@saiyanprincessswanie

My native language is Spanish so I wanna improve my writing skills in English if you notice any mistakes, please let me know and I will correct them.

I don’t give any kind of permission that my fics to be posted on other platforms or languages (I translate myself my work) or the use of my graphics (my dividers are included in this), I did them exclusively for my fics, please respect my work and don't steal it. There are some people here who make dividers that anyone can use, mine is not this type, please look for the other's people. The only exception is the ones I gifted 'cuz now belong to someone else. If you find any of my works on a different platform and are not one of my accounts, please let me know. Reblogs and comments are always welcome.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Marvel's characters (unfortunately), except for the original characters and the story.

Add yourself to my taglist here.

My other media where I publish: Ao3, Wattpad, ffnet, TikTok, Instagram, Twitter.

If you like it, please vote, comment, and give me feedback to improve my skills and reblog.

Tags: @sinceimetyou @unnuevosoltransformalarealidad @navybrat817 @angrythingstarlight @shield-agent78 @charmed-asylum @pandaxnienke @real-fbi @smokeandnailz @white-wolf1940 @tenaciousperfectionunknown @xoxonotme @bluemusickid @leyannrae @harrysthiccthighss @marvelatthisone @caplanbuckybarnes @sapphire-rogers @lizzieolseniskinda @notyourtypicalrose @hallecarey1 @nana1000night @talia-rumlow @writingshae @alexxavicry @azulatodoryuga @daemonslittlebitch @chaoticcollectivenightmare @endlesstwanted @chemtrails-club @marigoldreamer @whiskeytangofoxtrot555 @here4thefanfics @theestorm @patzammit

1951

Steve looked at the calendar; it was only a few weeks until his second wedding anniversary with Peggy; however, a strange feeling had come over him.

There was none of the laughter, none of the fun, and none of what he had experienced with you and your children.

He was even beginning to notice the strange Peggy behavior had had last weeks.

He saw the picture of you, Sarah, James, and himself; the picture was from when Sarah had just been born, and he was beginning to miss you.

Maybe he made the wrong decision.

"This is not how family is supposed to feel," was what Steve thought.

He was afraid too; if he went back... if he stayed... no, he had to go back; he made a mistake... would you forgive him?

Now his fear was losing what he had had if he hadn't already lost it, if so, he hoped somehow he could get them back.

2023

The last few days had been complicated; a few hours before Steve left, they had argued, but fortunately, the kids didn't hear anything. Overcoming the pain you felt was difficult, but you forced yourself to do it because what mattered most to you were your children.

To keep them distracted, you decided to make pancakes for breakfast.

"Mommy, is Daddy going to be long before he gets back?" James asked as he put more whipping cream on his pancake.

"Dad's on a mission, you know how it is, and I don't know when he'll be back," you replied, taking the whipped cream jar from him. You knew your son was capable of emptying the whole jar into one pancake. "Or if he's ever coming back," you thought.

"Strawberries, daddy," Sarah said.

"What? "You turned in confusion to look at the girl.

"Sarah asked if Daddy was going to bring her strawberries when he comes back from the mission," her brother explained.

"Well... "I don't know, you'd better hurry up and eat your breakfast, or we'll be late," you said, ending the conversation.

You had not dared to tell your children that maybe their father would never come back and that he preferred not to be with his family.

You hoped that maybe Sarah, being so young, wouldn't remember him, although the only problem would be in a few years when James would keep asking questions about Steve.

What hurt and worried you the most was how they would take the news when they were older and found out what had really happened.

Sarah was four, while James was six; How long would it be before they found out the truth?

1951

Steve realized the grave mistake he had made. He had to go back. He saw the capsule with the Pym particles; he would use them to go back.

He would take nothing as a souvenir of his return. He would start over again, but with his real family.

"This is not how family is supposed to feel like" was the last thing Steve said to Peggy before he left.

2023

They had finally defeated Thanos; it seemed to have worked, but they weren't sure what the consequences would be.

"We have to go home... If Sarah or James...

"Steve, I'm sure they're fine, but first you have to get those wounds healed.” You don't want them to see you like this; they're going to freak out.” We also need to get cleaned up; we look terrible."

Now it was Steve who practically ran into the house. The two children were playing peacefully, oblivious to what had happened a few hours earlier.

You thanked Clarice for hiding when everything was back to normal; she didn't want to scare the kids either, and realizing how long it had been, she thought maybe James wouldn't remember her, although she didn't know the other girl either.

2018

You saw Steve, and you couldn't understand what had just happened before your eyes, but immediately terror came over you, Clarice had been left looking after your son and the idea that the same thing had happened to her...

You saw Steve; he was scared too. If something had happened to your little James—if he had suffered the consequences—you couldn't bear it.

You burst open the house; the only thing you cared about was...

You held your breath when on the floor you saw the dust, you approached carefully... it was Clarice who had disappeared, James was still asleep.

A few seconds later, he woke up, and you hugged him as tight as you could because you needed to confirm that your son was still there.

2023

You had finished reading a story to your children and tucked them in. Now that they were sleeping soundly, you went down to the living room. That afternoon, Bucky went to visit them to tell you that the rest of the team wanted to talk to you the next day. You knew what it was about, or rather, who they would talk about.

Around ten o'clock at night, the doorbell rang, it seemed strange to you, you opened the door and your anger increased when you saw who it was.

"What are you doing here?" you said, annoyed.

"May I come in?" Steve asked, and you could see the bag with gifts he was trying to hide.

"No," you answered sharply, and you tried to close the door, but he stopped you.

"Y/N, please, we have to talk." I have made a terrible mistake. I need you to forgive me. You have no idea how much I regret it. "I will do anything to earn your forgiveness."

When you realized, he was on his knees still begging for forgiveness and how sorry he was while hugging your legs.

He seemed honest, you caressed his cheek, maybe you should give him a chance, you could tell his regret was real. You let him pass, but not before demanding that he tell you everything that had happened.

"You can't stay here tonight; the children would ask too many questions and be angry because I didn't wake them up when you arrived," he said when he finished explaining.

"Could you forgive me?" he repeated again, and you nodded. "I understand. It's okay. You need time. I understand. I'll do whatever it takes. "I just want us to go back to being the happy family we've always been."

"I... I told them you were on a mission and I didn't know when you would be back; I didn't dare tell them the truth, Steve," you replied.

"I can come back tomorrow morning and tell them I was on a mission on the moon."

"Strawberries," you said suddenly.

"Excuse me?"

"Sarah asked me if you would bring strawberries when you got back, so bring them tomorrow," you asked.

"Are there strawberries on the moon?" Steve asked in confusion.

"No, but she thinks there are, so bring them; they won't even notice what happened."

He nodded; he wouldn't just bring strawberries; he would bring more things, whatever it took to make up for his mistake.

#tajas1kfollowerswritingchallenge #steve rogers x reader #steve rogers x you #steve rogers x y/n #Steve Rogers #steve rogers fanfic #steve rogers fic #fix it fic

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bangobeep · 8 months

Text

A Love Letter to Jazzpunk, by Ed

It's crazy how fast time can go by when you're enjoying yourself. It's been about three years since I first encountered this game, and I could not be happier with where it's brought me. I've learned so much and met so many wonderful people through it.

For a game that can be played in 2 hours and a half, it sure is complex; so full of jokes and content that can take literal hours to be taken apart. It's brought me closer to an appreciation of things like abstract art, the cyberpunk genre, analog tech, vintage clothing, suits, among a few others.

I remember my first interaction with the game. Funnily enough, it was not through Ranboo like what I usually tell. Back in the day, 2021, I was a mere high school student who, to cope with the horrors of the pandemic, used to be into the DSMP. Woo. Yeah. No shame in admittance. Well, only a little bit.

There was this one cosplayer I used to follow on TikTok (if I recall correctly, their name is Fern [they/them]); mainly because of their c!Foolish cosplay. I was drawn to them and their energy and the way they portrayed characters! So, naturally, I followed them and interacted with their videos every now and then.

On the 23rd of June of 2021, I found myself doom-scrolling on the app (as one does), and I came across one of their videos, though this one was not from any media I knew or was used to watching from them.

The song spy? by WHOKILLEDXIX started playing, and there he was. Glasses and (makeshift) orange tie. Business card. Coat. A little unhinged, yet classy. The Editor.

I feel as if I was so drawn to him because of what I wanted to do after high school. I wanted to study literature in college to become an editor myself! I wanted to correct people's texts, be annoying about it and get paid for it! And would you look at that, the name of the guy is quite literally The Editor. LOL.

As the days went by, I found myself going back to the video, waiting for them to upload more, to feed into my curiosity. I loved the video I saw so much I saved it to my gallery the exact same day I saw it.

Then came the second one, with actual footage from the game. "Quick, look behind you." The Director says, and the camera cuts to the ground, and Fern's shoes. I heard their voices for the first time. "Improvise, I know you'll do well by me." He says again, and I grow ever so drawn to it. Five videos are more than enough. And while I don't look it up just yet, it's in my head.

Until the 25th of July 2021! Like I said, I used to be into the DSMP, though by then, the fixation was fading, and I found myself in that limbo where nothing quite caught my attention. On that day, Ranboo tweeted something about a Jazzpunk stream, and it instantly caught my attention. I was quick to put down anything I was doing to find out what it really was.

And though I was not particularly interested in them, or their streams anymore, I was hooked! I was not the kind to stay for an entire stream, yet there I was. Two hours and thirty something minutes of being beamed in the brain with pure madness.

And then it was over. And I found myself gripping every single piece of fanart I could find with my bare hands, screaming because there had got to be more, right? There had to be more.

And there was! That's when Tumblr became my main form of internet presence. First was Instagram, then came Twitter, and well, would you look at that, I made it here.

I started drawing. I must admit, my first few drawings were atrocious, but looking back on them now, I feel proud. People say that when you fixate on something, your art develops as you go, and they're right!

A year and a half are all my prior account lasted. By the same name. I made a stupid joke to my boyfriend, sending one (1) spam message in their ask box and it was gone! And so, bangobeep 2.0 came to fruition. But that's not the point.

Back when I first got into the game, the need for connection was strong. I found myself craving the partnership; the long, late-night talks about little details of the game, the roleplaying, the scenario thinking, and so the Jazzpunk server came to life on the 13th of August 2021. Named Jazzpunk Moment. I sent a DM to the people I saw most often in the tag back then: Pangolin-404 and Vendotlover, both of which I admired very much!

I remember looking at their art and reading their fanfics and thinking to myself: 'Wow, what I'd give to be able to talk to the cool kids!' And well, I did! I talked to both, and they both agreed to give me their discord, after which they (and a few others with time) joined the server.

Some time after that, I befriended them personally through our mutual love for the game and similar interests, as well as through general chitter chatter about me being hyperactive when on caffeine, 404/Caligula telling me about Sammy Lawrence from Bendy and the Ink Machine, and Ven telling me of xeir OC whose name came from Gaslight, Gatekeep, Girlboss. I’m happy to say nowadays I still talk to both Caligula and Ven very often. In fact! I consider Cali one of my best friends, and I am kinda gay dating Ven. So, you know. Fun things bring fun people together. :)

Then came around people like Jazz Jazzanon, Zippy Zippycup, Jazzhands, Noah, Wither, and a couple others that, while I won’t mention, made this experience something wonderful for me.

I can’t quite find the words to express this something so dear to me. Jazzpunk, as short as it is, changed my life in ways I could’ve never imagined. I’ve started researching things I thought I’d never be into, started books I loved, got into music I had never listened to before, and it all helped build me as a person these three years. It’s brought me unimaginable amounts of comfort and joy, and I don’t think I’ll ever find something else that will make me feel this whole.

I could go on and on about how I have projected so many little aspects of my life onto my interpretation of it. About how the way I interpret Polyblank is highly influenced by those I love. About how the paintings in The Editor’s house fit him and his personality, but those are topics for another day.

The world out there is wacky and crazy, and Jazzpunk does a great job at feeding into the fact it can be strange, it can be difficult, and it can be fun.

So, to 10 years of community, 10 years of happiness, 10 years of a game that will stay with me forever, and many more to come!

Thank you, Jazzpunk.

#jazzpunk #jappy jazzpunk janniversary :^)

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thecameronchronicles · 2 years

Text

Thinking of You

TW: Smut. Dark/Dominant/Possesive Rafe. Language. Rough sex.

This is a unified response to a few requests of wanting more toxic Rafe and a specific request from a TIKTOK, I hope this pleases both of the anonymous readers who sent them in :)

SUMMARY: Rafe can tell your distant despite his attempts, his patience runs thin as he sets out to prove he’s all you’ll need to get over your ex, JJ.

WORD COUNT: 1600

*Requested*

Thinking of You

Your relationship with JJ Maybank was always destined to fail. It was a classic case of opposites attract having indulged your ‘daddy issues’ and curiosities, only to end with the understanding that you couldn’t be any more different. But even as you’d attempted to move on, well aware that the only thing that would benefit from returning to him would be the silence of those continuous thoughts gnawing at you to ‘what-ifs’ and ‘if onlys’, you couldn’t get him out of your head. More specifically how his touch was incomparable and everlasting in contrast to anyone prior or following him. Including your recent boyfriend, Rafe Cameron.

You should have been able to find a distraction in the way he lived his life in excess. Parties, drugs, fortune, and favor. But no matter the attempts made, the only thing your mind would resort to had been the echo of the forbidden pogue still playing with your heartstrings. A summer fling that conjured potential scenarios of him rescuing you now from the most recent gathering of kooks.

“Hey-” Rafe’s voice now pulled you from your thoughts, cheeks blushing with embarrassment as you were grateful he couldn’t read your thoughts.

“What’s going on with you? You look so…miserable…” Although his words seemed crafted from care, they were spoken more in aggravation than compassion, a contrast to JJ, who was always compassionate to all your feelings, intuitive to you to a fault-but too indebted to his own demons to silence your own.

“You look like you want to be ANYWHERE else…” You looked away, legs pushed up to your chest to try and offer yourself some sort of comfort in where you were torn. The truth of the matter was that you and Rafe Cameron made sense in every way on paper; the same upbringing constantly keeping you together, a picture perfect couple despite the many differences that came together beneath lust, and the understanding of a life that pogues like JJ could never comprehend. But it was also this pressure to keep this ‘perfection’ that made the idea of escaping with the prohibited Maybank that much more appealing.

“You’re thinking about HIM…aren’t you?” Your eyes suddenly shot up to him, your lips parting in immediate rejection as you knew Rafe was not just the jealous type, but the possessive jealous type. He would bust his knuckles against the jaw of anyone looking at you twice, let alone someone that you thought of as you did with JJ, who he’d beat to a bloody pulp just for being a pogue. So for both JJ’s safety and that of your own as you weren’t aware what lines he wouldn’t cross, you took the case of indifference and decided to simply deny, deny, deny.

“No, of course not-”

“Really? Because ever since you saw him again, you’ve been distant…”

“No I haven’t…I just…”

He cocked his jaw, moving closer to you as you pulled yourself away from him, almost as if his fingertips themselves were composed of ice itself.

“Wanna try and be honest with me now?” But to this, you’d only clench your jaw. You weren’t completely heartless, you cared about Rafe, you had fun with Rafe, but it didn’t feel emotionally charged as it had with JJ, which was where the divide remained.

“Can we just go dance or-”

“No. We’re gonna fix this-” Before you could respond, he had you on your feet and into the direction of the house, the closest room suddenly enclosing you behind a slammed door as he threw you onto the bed.

“I’m going to fuck you so hard until you forget you ever met that dirty pogue-” His hands were quick to your shorts, pulling them until all that remained had been a pair of black lace panties that drove a nearly primal growl from behind his imprisoned lip captured behind his teeth. But where Rafe was usually one to take his time to ensure your pleasure as he didn’t want you to complain of his selfishness as you had when you were first together, he was now devoted to one thing and one thing only. Proving his point.

“Think anyone can compare to me, huh? Think anyone else can fuck you like this?” He asked, hiking your thighs to his hips as he’d dismantled his trunks until he was revealed to you. This had been the one thing that JJ wasn’t able to compare to. Rafe was big. Where JJ made up for this in other ways to where you wouldn’t notice the difference, the intimidating girth and length of the blue eyed pogue prince was enough to make you forget of your confusion and focus on him-at least for now.

“Fuck-” You grunted, the unkind thrusts offering no time for adjustment as he began his pace. Ungodly and brutish plunges accepted and clenched by your greedy cunt, slick with approval but tense with his force as he scoffed beneath you.

“Feel good, huh?” You nodded, your hand in a claw at his abdomen as you moaned beneath him. “Then fucking tell me! How else am I supposed to know?” He was cold and dominant, his desire to prove his point taking over any compassion he held for you.

“So good! SO fucking good!” You cursed, whimpers coming from beneath your attempts to breathe as he smirked with pride.

“Bet he never made you come like this…” You were suddenly positioned on your knees, guided upwards until your back aligned with Rafe’s chest, the hammering of his heart felt against your back that was nearly synonymous with his thrusts now returned to you. With one hand set in a sash across your chest, stationed in a wrap around your neck, the other attacked your clit, desperate for you to learn who controlled your pleasure and who could never rival him.

“He ever make you squirt? You know I can-” Your eyes rolled back at the thought, an action indeed left unexplored as everything with JJ was more tender-passionate, but never pushing limits such as that. Because of your silence, Rafe set a new course to make this a reality. Even if JJ had been your first, even if you’d thought of him whenever your eyes would drift away, you wouldn’t after this-at least not without comparing him to the same degree as Rafe.

“I know he hasn’t…but you will for me, right?”

“Rafe!”

He tightened his grip around your neck.

“RIGHT?!” You groaned, a lengthy whimper in suit as he kissed into your neck.

“You’re already marked with my kisses…my scratches when you rode me last night, but apparently you need to be filled with my cum to keep him out of your head.”

“Please-” You whimpered as he'd edge you, feeling your tremors, only to release you.

“Not until I’M ready for you to…Gotta fuck him out of your head-”

“It’s you! You, Rafe!”

“You were wet before I even touched you…so stop fucking lying tome and take it until I’VE had enough!” He grunted, bending you forward and withdrawing his fingers from your clit completely to devote his grip to your hips. The most painful of thrusts extended into you, his animalistic moans sounding out behind you as you could only utter his name, broken but audible, before he'd decide to take sympathy on you.

“I am the ONLY one who you think about-Or so help me God, I’ll make you come every hour on the hour until you understand that-in public, in private, I don’t fucking care!” He broke his speech for a moment as he pulled you up by your hair to return you against him.

“Maybe I’ll drive to The Cut, take you where he can see you, knowing how deep you take my cock-knowing he’ll never have you again. Maybe record you and send him proof of how you come for ME-”

“Rafe-”

“Or maybe I’ll just breed you until you’re so fucking pregnant that I won’t have to mark your skin, but you know I still will-”

“FUCK! RAFE!”

“So fucking come, you brat!” And you did. Harsh. In excess. Coating his fingers with the spray of a squirt that pulled every ounce of tension along with its release. But he was not done with you yet, turning you to face him, before he plummeted back into you.

“You watch me come-You watch me come in your tight little pussy, taking me so deep…” He took hold of your hair, a cruel kiss stealing your breath, before he’d keep his forehead pressed to yours.

“Tell me you’re mine-Tell me nobody fucks you like me-”

“I’m yours-” You breathed, cut off by his thrusts but appeasing him in desperation to please him. “Nobody fucks me like you…”

“Good girl…Good fucking girl.” He grunted, your nails eating into his skin adding to his sadistic pleasure of this mixed with pain before he finally expelled himself inside of you, the warmth of his release as evidence of a point made well.

“I so much as see you drift off in thought again, I’ll fuck you stupid until all you know is me…” He abandoned you following a possessive French kiss as you nodded in understanding, unable to truly forget JJ, but finding Rafe as a willing distraction to quell your heartache…

Taglist: @hopebaker @iovdrew @penny4yourthoughts @magnificantmermaid @pickingviolets @lovedetlost

#rafecameron x reader #rafe cameron #rafecameron #rafecameronfanfiction #rafe cameron smut #outerbanks #obx #obx fanfiction #obxsmut #outer banks smut #netflix #drew starkey #outer banks

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liltaz-asatreat · 2 years

Note

Ask game! Ask game! Ask game!

"Fire" for the WIP asks please

You can find the ask game here! :D (Feel free to send a word in! I probably won't get to it until tomorrow though lol)

(And don't worry, Noodyl, I saw your other ask too, but I have multiple works with "fire" in it, so I'm gonna do both :D lol)

I don't remember if you've seen the few posts about this wip either, but this is from the new long term wip I'm writing called Double Troubles! If you haven't heard of it before, I can send you a link to where I talked about it more in depth :)

Anyway, here's the exert, and I'm adding a bit more than what I've been sharing with the other asks (like, a lot more, so much that it's the length of most of the Julia exerts I've posted lol) because I haven't shared a lot of this one, and I'm excited about this whole scene (it's gotta go under a readmore though):

(Also, credit to @institute-of-planar-shitposts for letting me use her taz OC, Sunshine, in my story [only in this bit she's only referenced as the half-elf bard Meadow saw in a tavern in the past] and the song Meadow sings is Could Have Been Me by The Struts [which I first learned of this song by watching Sunny's Sunshine tiktok using the song here] And you should totally check out the stuff Sunny's shared about her story she's writing about Sunshine!! I think she has it tagged as "Sunshine" on her blog and I have all the reblogs tagged "Sunshine tag! :D" on mine)

Meadow grabs Magnus' hand, and he helps him out of the well and onto solid ground. He looks around, still trembling, and...

It's just gone.

Everything is... it's just gone.

The only things left where Phandalin once stood are the charred remains of buildings standing at the very edge of a perfect circle of black glass and, in the epicenter of the circle, a burned out dwarven figure standing with his right arm raised in the air and on the end of it is the silvery gauntlet.

This has got to be enough evidence to know that he's cursed, right? Would this still have happened if he hadn't been anywhere near this?

“Meadow, I– I know, but I need help getting the others out,” Magnus says, disrupting his thoughts and delaying the inevitable doom spiral that he surely will go down later.

“Right. Yes, of course.” Meadow mumbles, and he grabs the part of the rope Magnus offers him before Magnus gets behind him with the end of it to act as an anchor.

Together they manage to help the other boys out of the well, and then all four of them work together to pull Killian out too. After they drag her a few feet away from it, they all stop and look at each other in silence.

“So what now?” Taako asks, and Meadow laughs a little hysterically.

“I have no fucking idea.”

“Well, we can't leave the gauntlet here,” Merle says as he looks over at it with his hands on his hips.

At this rate, Meadow's going to become a Pokémon master of super powerful, indestructible artifacts because he has a funny feeling that the gauntlet is going to be just as resistant to everything as the amulet is.

“Killian was looking for it and knew what it was, so she must have some sort of way to contain it,” Magnus says.

“I don't trust her to take it no matter if she has something to contain it or not,” Meadow says immediately.

The others look at him questioningly. “Why not?” Merle asks. “She definitely knows more about it than we do and wanted to avoid this happening.”

Fuck!

“Uh... Because I–” Meadow sighs. “I've seen something like this before.”

“Wait, you have?” Magnus asks incredulously.

“Well, why didn't you tell us what was going to happen then?!” Merle asks angrily.

“Yeah, any information could've helped, Dow!” Taako agrees, and Meadow winces.

“I– I didn't know this was going to happen!” he says defensively. “I didn't even know it was like the– the other artifact I saw once a few years ago until it was too late!”

Taako and Merle scoff, but Magnus' face relaxes slightly. “Do you know anything about it that could help us now?”

Meadow licks his lips nervously and nods slightly. “Yeah, uh... the other artifact like it... It takes over the will of whoever is using it like the gauntlet did with Gundren. And it's really powerful and really hard to beat the temptation to put it on and use it; I... I'm the only person I know of who's been able to handle something like that without using it.”

“Well that's convenient,” Taako says sarcastically.

“I mean, it's true!” Meadow says desperately. “I'll even say it under a Zone of Truth spell if I need to! Look–”

He takes a deep breath, his heart hammering wildly as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out the amulet. It's a deep green emerald shaped into a teardrop with silver trim, and it's set on a thin golden chain. He holds it up by the chain to let the boys look at it, and it starts whispering again.

“What the hell?” Merle asks quietly. He reaches out to grab it, but Meadow yanks it away.

“No! You can see it with your eyes, but don't– don't touch it.” he says in a panic.

“What did that do that was just as bad as the gauntlet?” Magnus asks, tearing his eyes away from the necklace to look at him.

He fights the urge to look away from him, mostly because he needs to keep an eye on all of them to make sure they don't lunge for it. “I... I don't want to talk about it,” he says quietly. “Please just... just know that... it was bad, okay? I've been trying to find a way to destroy it for years now, and nothing's worked, so I have to keep it on me. And I guess– I guess also that gauntlet.”

Meadow stuffs the amulet back into his pocket, and Taako eyes him warily.

“Don't you have a spell that identifies what magic objects are?” he asks. “You were buzzing to cast it on the umbrella and the gauntlet before Gundren took it. Do you think you'd be able to figure out anything else about the glove?”

“I can give it the old college try,” Meadow says with relief. “To be honest, I don't know if I'll get any more useful information from it though if it's made by the same person who made the amulet because I tried casting it on that too, but all I got from it was a really intense headache.”

Taako frowns. “Weird. You sure you were casting it correctly?”

Meadow rolls his eyes. “Yes, Taako, I was casting it correctly. It's not like that was my first time casting the damn spell.”

“Well, while you go do that, we'll tie up Killian, so that when we wake her up, we can get more information from her about what she was doing here in the first place,” Magnus says.

“Yeah, good idea!” Merle says. “I can heal her after you do that.”

“Is it alright if I come with you to the gauntlet?” Taako asks, and Meadow's shoulders tense up again before he quickly adds, “I'll give you space, but I figure just because you were able to pick up the necklace without putting it on, that doesn't mean the glove wouldn't be different.”

Meadow relaxes again as much as they can in this situation and nods. “Yeah, if I start to put it on...” they swallow hard. “If I start to put it on, don't hesitate to kill me, okay?”

“Are you sure?” Taako asks slowly, and they immediately nod.

“Positive. I'd rather die than be allowed to use that thing.” Even if it means they'd die in the Plane of Logic too. They still don't know how that works.

The two of them walk toward the gauntlet, and as they do, Meadow looks around the area more carefully. They were convinced while being awake in the other plane that Barry would be okay and able to talk to them after he died, but he's obviously not here anymore. They have no idea what they meant by that or what they should even be looking for, but if Barry was a ghost or something, he should still be here, right?

Taako peels off to the side as Meadow gets within five feet of the glove. They stop walking and look around the empty field of glass one last time.

Just more proof that they don't know what their talking about up in that other plane.

Meadow sighs and focuses back on the gauntlet. They take a few tentative steps forward when it starts speaking in their mind.

“Heeeyyy, buddy! Hey, buddy, put me on! Haven't you ever wanted to control fire? To know how it feels to hold that kind of power? I can help you defeat your enemies and protect the people you love!”

Meadow snorts with scorn. “I don't have anyone left on this plane that I love, not anymore, and I don't have any enemies either,” they say quietly, so that Taako doesn't hear. “You can fuck right off.”

They feel a wave of desire and enchantment magic wash over them, but they resist it with relative ease. After the wave passes, the gauntlet becomes quieter, and they feel more confident walking up and grabbing it.

They look over at Taako who looks tense with his wand out, and they give him a thumbs up. “It's all good!” they call out. “I'm gonna cast the spell now, but it's gonna be about ten minutes.”

Taako looks both a little relieved and a little annoyed. “You're casting it as a ritual? Just use a spell slot on it, we don't have all night!”

“I don't have any spell slots left,” Meadow says helplessly. “I only get mine back after sleeping and resting for about eight hours.”

Taako shakes his head and sits down on the ground. “Well, I can't leave you here by yourself, so start casting I guess.”

Meadow sits down too and holds the gauntlet in one hand as they go for their bag before they stop themself and put their other hand back down on their knee.

They can't play their clarinet one handed, so it looks like they're going to have to sing.

They mentally shuffle the songs that they know that are somewhere close to the forefront of their mind, and they settle on a song they first heard a half-elf bard sing in a tavern close to the Fountain Pens and Silver Ink guild hall. Makes sense that would be the one to come up considering the situation, and gods do they need the pick me up.

“I don't wanna live as an untold story,” they begin singing quietly. “Rather go out in a blaze of glory. I can't hear you, I don't fear you–”

“Are you going to start casting yet?” Taako calls out to them, and they stop singing and sigh in frustration.

“I mean, I already was until you interrupted me!” Meadow calls back, and as they do, the faint glow of golden light that was starting to surround the glove fades away again.

“I thought you cast spells with your clarinet or whatever,” Taako says.

“Yeah, usually! But I can't exactly play it one handed, so I'm singing!”

Taako frowns. “You are? You're not that far away, and I couldn't hear you.”

“I don't like singing in front of people; I told you that already. And I don't need to sing loud for it to work.” Meadow says irritatedly.

“You were singing Bohemian Rhapsody just fine with us in the cave!”

“Because everyone who knows that song sings it at the top of their lungs whether they sound good or not. It's literally impossible to not sing that one quietly!” they say as they roll their eyes.

“You didn't even know everyone knew it until Magnus told you that and Killian recognized it!” Taako says exasperatedly.

Meadow's face heats up in anger and embarrassment. “Do you want me to fucking cast this spell or not?”

“Yeah, fine, do your thing.” Taako waves them off, and they roll their eyes again.

“I don't wanna live as an untold story. Rather go out in a blaze of glory. I can't hear you, I don't fear you! I'll live now 'cause the bad die last. Dodging bullets with your broken past. I can't hear you, I don't fear you now!”

Meadow continues singing as the gauntlet begins to glow gold again, and as they sing, the light gets brighter and brighter until it steadies out at about the brightness of a halogen light bulb. They loop the song a couple of times until the spell is complete, trying to take to heart the fact that they can't hear the gauntlet nor fear it and ignore the fact that they are very much wrapped up in regret, and all at once, they're bombarded with what could only be described as static.

Their vision goes gray, and not in the way where everything turns gray-scale. Literally all they see is the color gray with different shades of it moving around like the static on a TV when they switch to the wrong channel. They can also hear that TV static noise loud in their ears, and they yelp in panic as they drop the glove and cover their ears instinctively. Their brain feels like fuzz, and they get slammed with a massive headache.

They squeeze their eyes shut tight and rock back and forth, still covering their ears and trying not to cry at how overwhelmingly loud, overstimulating, and painful it all is.

After about a minute, everything slowly starts to fade again, and it leaves their ears ringing more than usual and their heart still thumping wildly with anxiety.

“Meadow? Can you hear me?”

They feel someone put a gentle hand on their arm, and they jump in the air so bad as they recoil that they tip over and fall on their side.

Their eyes snap open as they see Taako standing over them looking worried.

“Sorry, it's just, you screamed a little and started... doing that–” He gestures at them helplessly. “–and then you didn't respond.”

“Oh, yeah, um... sorry about that,” they mumble, face heating up a lot as they push themself back up into a sitting position.

“Are– are you okay?” Taako asks. “Did the gauntlet do something to you?”

Meadow shakes their head. “No– I mean, yes, I'm okay, but no, the gauntlet didn't do anything to me exactly. I just... I didn't get anything from the spell except static. A lot of it. And it was painful.”

Taako frowns. “Like how we can't hear Killian static?”

Meadow thinks about that for a second. “Actually, yes. A lot like that.”

#thank you for sending this in; Noodyl!! :D #Gab gabs #ask game #written works of Gab #Double Troubles

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