#VERONICAS RUNNING ON RUNNING ON FUMES NOW

[h3xrts4-me]

me drinking hot lemon ginger tea and watching a bunch of clips of someone favorite parts of the heathers musical also hiii how are we :3

[oh-look-another]

yk that one part in yo girl that sounds like veronica is having a panic attack? yeah that’s me right now (and basically every day)

[silverisafukintrainwreck]

i think this is already a decently-known thing in the fandom, but can we PLEASE talk about the Yo Girl motif?? you ever wondered why the first time you watched the musical and that part started, you got chills down your spine? trust me, it’s not just because of how creepily heather, ram and kurt were standing and how dead their voices sound.

the instrumental part in the beginning has been played before a few times. All in moments of tension. currently the only one i can remember is back right before Shine a Light Reprise, when veronica gets anxious and pissed and accidentally tells everyone she killed Heather and the jocks. Coincidentally, Chandler shows up at this moment. So the musical subconsciously implanted into your brain that the motif+the ghosts means tension.

So Yo Girl starts. The start of the song already gets you on high alert. Martha is shown in a hospital bed. The ghosts’ voices get more exasperated. Veronica is now truly a heather. Suddenly, she’s back home and, oh god, her parents are talking about her depression and thoughts of suicide? Because of JD forging her handwriting on a Moby Dick book?

so much information thrown in within mere seconds, all while the tempo goes up. And the ghosts’ voices grow yet again, announcing JD’s coming.

Cue the most iconic part of the song, with “Veronica’s running on, running on fumes now”, shortly followed by JD finally arriving and having the most amazing bridge to Meant to be Yours, with one song being immediately followed by the other. The first time i watched, i barely realized they were two different songs.

Yo Girl is one of my favorite songs and it will forever give me the chills at how good it is at conveying the emotion Veronica was feeling: nervousness and the feeling of incoming dread.

[freakshowtwopointoh]

Doubt Comes In - All I've Ever Known Part 2

Is this a trap that's bein' laid for me? (The wind is changing) (Doubt comes in)

Is this a trick that's bein' played on me? (How cold it's blowing) (Doubt comes in)

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I’m not usually the kind of person who doesn’t leave well enough alone, and usually, I’m content to let others have their own secrets. I have other shit to worry about. But every time I try to ignore Maggie, she does something that throws me for a loop. She’s a whiz with computers and physics, which I found out when she came up behind me in class to correct my mathematics. Something that should have set her up for success at her old school. Why is she here? Why is she here now? 

It’s clear the administration was gearing up to slot her into a high rank position with her brother. I’d been thinking it before their interview, but after that it was crystal clear. I was going to lose my chance at number one because of some legacy bullshit. It’s infuriating. She has no qualifications, no experience... she was a mediocre student at a nerd school for two years and all of a sudden she’s a T.A. and a junior in crime fighting? She’s clearly smart.

But of course, I did reach out to professor Park for her application after Maggie so kindly instructed me to do so. And Park said she was “not permitted to share student records without a good reason.” Then, I reached out to Brink, who also gave me the run around. What were they hiding? I went to a third professor, making up an excuse about T.A. duties or whatever, and afterwards, Brink essentially told me if I kept poking around, he’d get in trouble. I burst into my childhood best friend’s dorm, fuming.

“I’m telling you Emma, there’s something off about her. Even Brink won’t let me see her applications.” Emma hummed in response, clearly not listening to me. “Emma, are you even listening?”

“Not really.” She admitted. “So, she’s got a sponsor or whatever. Why do you care?”

“Even the sponsored students have applications. Brink told me straight up that he would get in trouble if I kept pushing.”

“So why are you still pushing?” I sighed in exasperation. 

“Because there’s something fishy going on, and I’d like to know about it before it becomes a problem for me. I thought you, of all people, would jump at a new mystery, Veronica Mars.” She giggled at that, but her face turned serious again in a moment.

“It seems like it’s already a problem for you.” She said honestly, and I didn’t have a response for that. “Look, Jor, I understand why you’re concerned. But do you really want to stick your nose into something that could risk everything for you?” She held my gaze for a long moment, forcing me to get out of my own head. 

“You’re smarter than most give you credit for, Cricket.” I said, ruffling her short blonde hair and smiling. 

“You’re not going to let this go, are you?” She said, the mischievous glint shining in her eyes.

“No.” I said finally.

“Then just remember - this could be anything. It could be nothing, it could be... dangerous. For you, for her...” She seemed uncharacteristically serious.

“Do you know something I don’t, Em?” I said, eyes narrowing, searching her face for information I knew she didn’t have.

“No, but if Brink really won’t pull strings for you, there is probably something fishy. I’ll give you that much.” She said. “Now, can we do something fun before you wind yourself up into a tornado?” I rolled my eyes but smiled, settling in for a night of shitty TV, shitty beer, and not-so-shitty weed.

Emma’s words stuck with me as I tried and failed to put Maggie out of my mind. The way the school was pushing her through the ranks was really starting to get on my nerves, and when she broke the top twenty I talked Emma’s ear off so much she threatened to kick me out of her dorm.

I feel like she’d piss me off less if she didn’t act like she belonged at the top. At least Andre and Luke can acknowledge the bullshit system that lifts them up while leaving me in the dirt. But Maggie walks around like she’s been given the short end of the stick when she’s basically being escorted into stardom and celebrity. I have to get my head on straight. This is junior year - not the time to lose my head over some silly girl with secrets. I have a ranking to maintain, and I will not let her take my place at the top. No matter what the administration is trying to pull. 

-- One Month Later --

But somehow, here I am, riding Tyler’s dick in his tiny ass dorm room, and I can’t stop thinking about her. Her secrets, her smile... Fuck. Who is this girl and what the fuck is she doing to me? I could feel Tyler getting close and I was just glad it was over. Not like I was getting off anyways. He stood up and threw me a box of tissues, which I caught gratefully. Cleaning up quickly, I pulled on my basketball shorts and saw myself out. 

I had been planning on just heading straight to my room to study, but as I approached the kitchen door, I heard someone singing. It was beautiful, low and gravelly, but still distinctly feminine. It had to be Maggie - Cate’s voice is bright and higher. It was honestly entrancing - I was glued to where I was standing like a sailor hearing a siren song. Even when a leaf lodged itself in my ponytail, I was transfixed. But when Luke approached, I shook my head to clear it, making a move towards the door.

“Don’t go in yet, it’s Mags.” Luke whispered, stopping to stand next to me. “She is petrified of anyone hearing her sing. Cate caught her once and Maggie didn’t make eye contact with her for the rest of the trip.” Luke chuckled, but his eyes drifted away, the clear sign that Sam was involved in the story. Luke had always been hesitant to discuss his family, even before Sam died. And now that Maggie was living here, he basically acted as if he’d never had a brother, or any issues in his family at all. It’s a little sickening sometimes, watching him play at a happy family. He kept listening for a little while, and I almost thought I saw a tear in his eye. I shifted uncomfortably, unsure what to do with this information or his emotion. 

Finally, the song ended, and Luke crashed through the back door, purposefully making more noise than necessary. “Oh, hey Mags!” He said, and I pushed my way to my room, keeping my eyes straight ahead as if neither of them were there, making my way to my room.

I caught myself wondering why Maggie didn’t like people hearing her sing instead of studying. She clearly has talent, but as with most things about her, she kept it hidden away. 

But she was always on my mind, worming her way into my thoughts like an irritating pop song that starts showing up everywhere. The first thing I noticed, besides the fact that she’s faker than a Barbie doll, was that she keeps a strict routine. There hasn’t been a day of us living together that she isn’t awake before me, and I wake up at 6am. She’s always back at the house by 6pm, and in her room by 8:30pm. She is always on time to the weekly T.A. meetings, and every class. I keep looking for cracks in her facade, but I haven’t found any. 

I tried looking into her past, her old college - and there’s nothing. It’s clear she did attend the school for two years, but there’s no record of any classes even attended. And without her applications, there are no transcripts, no essays, no papers, nothing. It’s as if two entire years of her life were gone. The only other mention of her is in Sam’s obituary. Another thing that no one wants to talk about or look into.

Fucking Sam. What pissed me off the most about Sam’s death was how much it scared me. Any of us could have disappeared and presumed dead... and nothing would be done. How was anyone supposed to show any weakness at all if it could be used to cover up our own suffering? No body was ever found. No note was ever found. Nothing was ever found. And yet, everyone is so sure he killed himself that there was a death certificate a week later? Practically unheard of, but no one questioned it. They all just posed in fucking black designer clothes and moved on with their lives. No one says his name, no one wonders where he is... it’s almost been a year. What would happen if I vanished? Would any of them care to find me? Lord knows my parents would accept whatever bullshit Vought spewed... was Sam involved in something sketchy? Doubtful, he was so young. Whatever it was, he was a pawn in some stupid fucking game like the rest of us. Best to play along and get your share of the pie. Fuck that whole fucked up family. 

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edits by @barbieprincesshilton

[whumpdoyoumean]

Whumptober #18

xxx let's break the ice

It’s been close to two hours since Napoleon fell off the back of the yacht, leaving Illya to fight the THRUSH operatives on his own, and he’s already starting to tire. He’s always been a competent swimmer, but he hasn’t the practice, nor the build, that the Russian has. Kuryakin could have breakfast in France, swim the English channel, and be in Dover in time for afternoon tea. If it had been him that fell in, he probably would have caught up with the yacht and stopped it with his bare hands. 

But no. It’s Napoleon who’s been forced to take off his favorite steel-toed boots to keep from being dragged to the bottom of the ocean and tread water until help comes. He’d tried floating, but muscle is dense. And his lung capacity at present is shit which doesn’t help either. 

Probably has something to do with all the water he’d inhaled. Oh, and the fact that he was knocked off The Veronica by three bullets hitting him squarely in the chest. The new synthetic polymer vest Waverly had somehow got his hands on had done its job, at least. And the water is mercifully warm, so hypothermia should be a ways off yet. But breathing hurts and is taking a lot of energy--energy that would be much better spent keeping his head above water.

God but he’s tired, though. 

And Illya should be back by now. 

If he’s coming back.

Which he better fucking be, because death by drowning is not on the list of Napoleon’s ideal ways to go out. Not unless it was preceded by an epic fight at the top of a waterfall that ended with him taking his mortal enemy over the edge with him, like Sherlock Holmes. 

That would make Kuryakin my Watson, he thinks. It almost makes him smile.

Time passes. He’s contemplating trying to float again, just to give himself a bit of rest, when things go from bad to worse in the form of a muscle cramp, deep in his upper calf. The abrupt sharp ache catches Napoleon off guard and he barely has time to swear before his head goes under, the steady rhythm of his arms and legs suddenly disrupted. He comes up coughing and sputtering and hissing in pain as he tries desperately to stay afloat. 

Panicking would be the worst thing for him to do right now. Unfortunately, Napoleon is rarely the kind to do things halfway, and his already aching chest begins to tighten, his frantic movements doing nothing to keep him from going beneath the surface of the water again.

He’s under longer this time before he makes his way, flailing, to the surface again. He manages to stay up long enough that he can stretch his leg a bit, pointing his toes toward his knee and gritting his teeth against the pain until it subsides. He even manages to get his rhythm back and start treading water again.

But the damage is done. His already low energy reserves are all but depleted. He’s running on fumes now. His limbs ache from trying to stay afloat, his head pounds from coughing, his chest hurts from…everything. Mostly he’s exhausted, the kind of bone-tired that covers one’s brain in layers of cotton wool and makes eyelids grow heavy. The kind of tired that doesn’t care how much Napoleon Solo doesn’t want to drown.

And the kind of tired that doesn't hear the distant motor of a boat headed directly toward him. 

xxx 

It’s been close to three hours since Napoleon fell off the back of the yacht, and Illya is close to panicking. He and the back-up team that had finally arrived have spent half of one of those hours searching for Napoleon. 

“Agent Kuryakin,” one of them begins in his Australian accent. Illya knows what the man is going to say so he holds up a hand, not looking away from the binoculars he’s holding.

“We keep looking until I say so. Waverly told you I am in charge, yes? Then these are my orders.”

The man lingers by his elbow for a moment before muttering, “Yes, sir.”

Illya continues his slow sweep back and forth, watching desperately for any sign of his cowboy. Any other day, the clear blue sky and the equally blue, sparkling water might be beautiful. On this day, though…It looks like an endless, watery graveyard, stretching in every direction, interrupted by nothing, nothing, more nothing, except a single tiny black shape--

He turns, pointing, to the man driving the boat. “There! I see something!”

The boat turns and speeds up and Illya raises the binoculars again as they get closer to the black spot that’s beginning to look more person-shaped, and his heart leaps. 

“It is Agent Solo! Hurry!” 

It isn’t long (though it doesn’t feel that way) before he doesn’t need the binoculars to see his partner. He hasn’t seemed to notice the boat’s approach, and that makes Illya worry.

“Can you go faster?” he calls over his shoulder. 

“Nah, mate,” the man at the wheel yells back. “She’s already at her top speed.”

Illya hums in annoyance. They’re getting close now, and Illya can see that the American seems to be struggling, his arm movements sloppy and uncoordinated. His head briefly dips under the water and Illya’s heart jumps. 

“We’re getting close, I’m gonna slow the engines. Don’t wanna risk him getting caught in the propellers,” the driver says.

Illya barely hears him because at that moment, Napoleon’s head dips under the water again, and this time it doesn’t come back up. 

“Bozhe moi!”

His body is moving before he has time to think about what he’s doing, and he dives off the back of the boat, ignoring the shouts of the Australians as he swims toward where he’d just seen Napoleon disappear. He’d hated learning to swim as a child, and despised the exercises he’d endured as a young soldier, forced to swim the frigid waters of Lake Valdail in full gear.

He’s grateful for it now.

He’d been the fastest in his division. Even when the others removed their gear to give themselves an advantage, they had a hard time keeping up with him. So here, in this tropical water with no heavy pack on his back and much more at stake than his pride, Illya Kuryakin is more than just fast.

He gets to the place where Napoleon had been moments before, takes a deep breath, and dives. 

When he surfaces a few moments later, his arms are full of a frighteningly motionless American. 

“I have him!” he shouts hoarsely, swimming himself and Napoleon toward the boat. Two of the men are waiting with outstretched arms, and between the three of them they wrestle Napoleon onto the boat. 

“I don’t think he’s breathing,” one of them says, while the other helps Illya clamber aboard. 

“Move!” Illya pushes the one that had just spoken to the side, then falls to his knees next to Napoleon’s pale, unmoving body. A steady stream of every Russian swear word he can think of flows from his mouth as he feels for breath and finds none. He places one hand over the other and laces his fingers, then puts the heel of his palm in the center of Napoleon’s chest and pumps.

Raz, dva, tri…He counts to thirty and then tilt’s Napoleon’s head back, pinching the American’s nose shut before placing his mouth over Napoleon’s and trying not to think about how wrong this feels (he’s never known the cowboy’s lips to be so cold and uninviting) before doing two breaths.

There’s no response.

“Come now, Solo,” he mutters, starting compressions again. He does another rescue breath, and is getting ready for a second when a tremor runs through Napoleon’s whole body. Illya leans away just in time to avoid being hit by the violent expulsion of water and bile that erupts from Napoleon.

“Get him on his side!” someone yells, but Illya is already moving, rolling Napoleon onto his side and holding him as he chokes and gasps, his body trying to rid his lungs of sea water and fill them with air all at once.

“There you go,” Illya says quietly, patting Napoleon on the back and trying not to wince at the painful barking sounds of his coughing. “We need to get him back!”

“On it,” the driver calls, and the engines are turning over a second later. 

The man who had so helpfully pointed out Napoleon’s lack of breathing earlier disappears into the  cabin and returns with a blanket, which Illya accepts gratefully, draping it over the American.

The coughing finally dies down and Napoleon takes a long, deep breath, dark lashes fluttering, and then he grimaces, one corner of his mouth lifting as his brow furrows. His shivering arms tighten against his chest.

“Kuryakin?” His voice is low and raw and damaged sounding, but right now Illya wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. 

“How are you feeling?” 

“Like you broke my ribs. Hey, listen…” He opens those lovely, lovely blue eyes and twists his head to look at Illya.

“Yes?”

“Do you think…do you think maybe…”

Illya’s heart thumps. “What is it, Solo?”

“Do you think you could dive down there and get my boots?” He grins broadly, his stupid teeth chattering slightly, and Illya rolls his eyes, reaching down to the blanket it and throwing it over Napoleon’s face with a flick. He lets out an indignant “Hey!” in response.

“I should have let you drown,” Illya says, knowing full well that he would rather drown than lose the irritating, cocky, devastatingly handsome American.

xxx to be continued…

[meowydoe]

Now that my Heathers phase is coming back I’ve realized so many things that I didn’t even think about the last time it was around 4 me

like how the “Veronica open the door” - “Veronica don’t make me come in there” part of Meant to be Yours sorta kinda mimics the tune(?) of the “Veronica’s running on running on fumes now” - “Veronica’s trying to keep him out now” part of Yo Girl if you listen for it close enough

or maybe I’m insane

either or

[solis-nova]

VERONICAS RUNNING ON RUNNING ON FUMES NOW VERONICAS TOTALLY FRIED

[robby-bobby-tommy]

Since I'm in love with musicals, I heard a few songs that would make a beautiful Halloween animation/comics. One of them is "Yo girl" From Heathers the musical. There'll be some spoilers for this amazing musical, watch it pls

This song is about a girl named Veronica. She found out that her best friend tried to m3rder herself. Veronica is followed by the three ghosts of her classmates that she and her crazy ass boyfriend killed earlier. These ghosts mock her by saying stuff like "come join Heather in hell".

And, and imagine animatic about TGAA. After murdering Gregson, Seishiro tries to flee the country, while ghosts of Gregson and Genshin (and mb klint for some reason dunno) follow him around and scaring the life out of this man. Tobias and Asogi are mad, that this b killed them, so they mock him and insist that Jigoku's going to hell with them.

And in the end when music becomes scarier and faster and ghosts start to sing "Time's up!

Go say your prayers!

Veronica's running on

Running on fumes now

Veronica's totally fried

Veronica's gotta be trippin' on 'shrooms now

Thinking that she can hide

Veronica's done for

There's no doubt now

Notify next of kin!

Veronica's trying to keep him out now

Too late!

He got in!"

Seishiro tries to hide himself in the cabin, while Genshin and Gregson put pressure on him, singing that someone's chasing him. And then Herlock says :"Knock knock. Sorry for coming in without invitation, dreadful etiquette, I know".

It would be interesting, right?

[swinging-stars-from-satellites]

tagged by @davisbette to share the first 5 songs in my "On Repeat" playlist!

here's the Spotify-generated one, which is... interesting?? I put Yo Girl on and then skipped all the way to the end for the "Veronica's running on running on fumes now" bit bc it's fun sbsjsnssk

and also the one I put together for myself

this probably says something about me tbh

tagging @userdanascully, @ouroboroscully, @distance-does-not-matter, @contagiousgrace, and @imissthembutitwasntadisaster!!

[vraska-theunseen]

itsso sad that the heathers episode is bad bc riverdale is so heathers. i was thinking about this in shop all day bc i was listening to heathers yesterday while i was drafting and so sound bytes from the soundtrack kept playing in my head and bc i just watched that riverdale musical episode it was also making me think of it. guess who's right down the block (your problems seem like life and death!) guess who's climbing the stairs (i promise they're not) guess who's picking your lock (you don't know what my world looks like) times up go say your prayers! veronica's running on running on fumes now veronica's totally fried veronica's gotta be tripping on shrimps now thinking that she can hide veronica's done for there's no doubt now notify next of kin veronica's trying to keep him out now too late! he got in knock knock! get out of my house

[thecityofselcouth]

At the start of her shift, Fume and her subordinates were greeted by a larger than normal brunch crowd. She never could fully wrap her mind around why someone would want to eat ice cream so early, but the customers kept Danny’s business open and a small flow of income for her so she didn’t care. 

The one thing that made this afternoon’s crowd a small challenge for her was the fact that Ashley hadn’t shown up at the start of her shift. It wasn’t until Fume had zipped between five tables to write down their orders when the phone by the register rang and Ashley’s number appeared on the screen. Fume hadn’t memorized the girl’s number by heart but she was the only employee whose number had three sixes in a row in it. She found it very fitting for someone like Ashley. 

“Lane’s Sweets, how can I help you?” she answered, pinning the telephone between her ear and shoulder as she ripped off each page with a table’s order from her notebook and handed it to one of her coworkers who worked in the back. 

“Let me talk to Danny.”

“Okay. Who is this?”

“Ashley.”

 “Danny’s busy. Where the fuck are you?”

“Sick. Put Danny on the phone.”

Fume rolled her eyes. “Danny’s busy. I’ll let him know that you called.”

“Fume. I need to speak with-”

But Fume had already grabbed the phone and placed it back on the handset. She turned to Danny, “Ashley called out sick. I think she said she has crabs or something, I don’t know.” and then grabbed one of her table’s orders from the counter and walked away.

As she walked to the table, she noticed a familiar face in her peripheral vision. She glanced briefly in his direction, seeing Johnnie sitting with his brother Albert, and smirked before returning her attention to the table in-front of her.

“Here you go,” she said to the man and woman, setting their orders down on the table. After, she returned to behind the counter and waited for the rest of the orders to be finished.

--

Damian had managed to get an hour or so of sleep before waking up at the same time as Veronica. Once he was able to quiet his mind and replace his thoughts with the soft, melodic sound of Veronica’s breathing while she slept, he found it much easier to doze off. But Veronica was awake now, as was the rest of the household, so he decided to get up as well and try to take a nap later once he and James were home.

After Veronica finished in the bathroom, Damian stepped inside to brush his teeth, wash his face, and freshen up before greeting everyone else. Surprisingly, he made it to the living room before James, though he thought he had heard his voice earlier while he and Veronica were still in bed. 

Damian sat down in one of the armchairs, nodding his head to greet Collins, and leaned his head back onto the headrest. The morning sun had set in the sky but a layer of condensation remained on the windows, slowly melting away as the temperatures started to rise outside. The cool air could still be felt coming in from outside to where Damian was sitting, causing a chill to run down his spine and goosebumps to appear on his farms. He yawned, rubbing one of his arms with his hand to warm up. 

The sound of James' voice alerted Damian that he was in the living room now, and reminded him that he had not told his best friend that he would be spending the night with Veronica. He shook his head at James’ question, “Nel suo letto - In her bed,” he murmured, doing a slight nod of his head in Veronica’s direction while keeping his eyes closed.  But that was his first mistake, Damian realized, when he awoke to the feeling of a sudden burst of wind passing by him and opened his eyes to find James entering the living room again, but with a much different facial expression than he had earlier. I need to find a way to sleep more, Damian thought as he sat up in the seat and ran his fingers through his hair, pushing the longer strands out of his eyes. He was starting to feel uncomfortable, vulnerable in a way, though he could not pinpoint the cause of it, and stood up from the armchair. He looked at James and gestured towards the front door, “We gotta go.” and noticed James’ gaze fixated on Veronica.

Damian turned his head, seeing Veronica removing bottles of juices for everyone before turning back to his friend. “Volevi restare a mangiare? - Did you want to stay to eat?” he asked James, assuming his friend was waiting for breakfast to be finished.

-

Finn had Lily’s attention in every way. There were times during their conversation where she found herself gazing at him, her fingers laced underneath her chin, and hanging on to his every word. The way he explained things to her without patronizing her, and the way he told stories about his family’s history so vividly as if he had lived during those times, Lily could not stop the feelings that were starting to surface. But she didn’t know if they would have a night like this again, so she surrendered to her feelings for Finn for the night and put everything else in the back of her mind.

She didn’t want the night to end and felt relieved when Finn offered to walk her home. But she stopped him a few feet away from the house, ensuring that they were hidden on the other side of the privacy fence that surrounded their estate.

“Finn, I can’t thank you enough for tonight.” she looked up at him, a few strands of her hair blowing across her face from the evening breeze. She wanted to say much more to him, to tell him about how she felt like a prisoner in her own home. This was not meant to be her life — her father was in the business but she never wanted to be. And she wanted to tell Finn how this night meant more to her than he’ll ever know, and that she would listen to him talk about the weather if it meant she had more time to spend with him.

But then she realized that she had not said anything, and that it was probably better that way.

Lily placed her hand in his and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “Goodnight, Finn.”

She turned around and headed down the sidewalk until she reached the security gate. The man outside recognized her and opened the gate for her, but Lily could see him dialing into the main house. Manuel must be home.

Manuel stood in the foyer and felt his jaw tense after getting the phone call from the security at the main gate. He had started to call some of Damian’s soldiers, since neither Damian or James had answered their phones, to call off the search for Lily. But Manuel was angry — angry that no one could pick up their fucking phones, angry that he now had a mistress he needed to keep quiet, and angry that his wife decided it was okay to disobey him and stay out past her curfew without telling anyone.

Lily entered through the door, made eye contact with Manuel, and then closed the door behind her without turning her back to him.

She opened her mouth to speak, but Manuel knew Fume and Tony were home. Tony was outside in the guest house, but Fume was upstairs sleeping and he didn’t want her to see anything she shouldn’t be seeing.

“Come here,” Manuel commanded under his breath, reaching for Lily’s hair and pulling her in his direction. Lily dropped her to go box on the ground and grabbed his hands to try to alleviate some of the strength of his grip. But Manuel did not ease up, even as he opened the door to the basement and pulled her down the steps with him.

It was until he reached the exercise room, where the insulation provided some noise-cancellation to prevent alerting anyone upstairs, when Manuel released his grip on her hair and tossed Lily to the side.

“You were given clear instructions to come home right after the fair. But instead you disobey me? And humiliate me?” he placed his hands on his hips and stared down at her, “Where were you?”

Lily, who had managed to regain her balance and stand up, did not answer.

“And now I guess I’m talking to myself, hm?” he stepped closer until he was in her face. “Where. Were. You.”

She looked at him in his eyes and still did not say a word.

Manuel chuckled, running his tongue along his bottom lip. “Qualsiasi - Whatever. You don’t want to talk?” he nodded his head, “Let’s see if you feel the same way tomorrow.”

With that, Manuel grabbed her arm and led her towards the closet with the boiler in it. Lily’s eyes widened, her fingers scratching any and every part of his body but it wasn’t enough. Manuel pushed her inside, closing the door behind him and locking it from the outside.

At first, as Manuel started back up the stairs, Lily banged on the closet door but after a few moments the banging stopped. He wondered why she didn’t scream, or continue to hit the door, but it was one of his least concerns.

He closed the basement door behind him and finished his previous task — gathering more clothes for his private home where he had taken Delilah last night. One or two nights of peace and quiet would be good for him.

But when he returned, pulled into the driveway and saw Delilah in the kitchen through the glass windows, he felt a mixed feeling of annoyance and lust.

“What are you still doing here?” he asked her, letting the door slam shut behind him.

He walked up the steps and towards the kitchen, removing his suit jacket and then working on his shirt and tossed both to the side. His eyes lowered down her body and a flashback of their previous night together appeared in his mind. “Never mind,” he said, removing the kitchen utensil from her hand and then placing his hands on the hem of her shirt. “Undress for me.”

--

Matteo woke up to the sound of two, light knocks coming from the front door. He lifted his head, a piece of paper stuck to his cheek, the muscles in his neck tense from sleeping at his desk overnight. “Tob-” he started, his throat dry and his voice coming out raspy. Matteo cleared his throat, blinking a few times as his pupils adjusted to the blinding sunlight coming in through the windows. 

Pulling the paper from his cheek, Matteo stood up from his desk and called for Tobasco again. The cat appeared a few moments later and followed Matteo to the front door. Holding his breath to prevent alerting the person on the other side of the door of his presence, Matteo peered through the peephole and saw Janey’s face.

Though his breath caught in his throat, Matteo remained silent as he moved away from the door and looked down at Tobasco. He lifted his index finger and pressed it against his lips, indicating to the animal to stay quiet. 

As for him, Matteo walked out of the foyer and further down the hall. He needed to weigh his options – what would happen if he answered the door? She could have someone with her but that didn’t seem likely. Or she could have an ulterior motive? But he doubted he had any enemies in a religious cult from Utah. 

Sighing, Matteo stepped into the hallway bathroom to splash cold water on his face. He decided not to keep Janey waiting for much longer and walked to the front door. Clearing his throat, Matteo unlocked the top lock and opened the door. 

“Hello.” he greeted her, Tobasco appearing at his feet. “Can I help you?”

[penny-nichols]

VERONICA’S RUNNING ON RUNNING ON FUMES NOW

VERONICA’S TOTALLY FRIED

VERONICA’S GOTTA BE TRIPPING ON SHROOMS NOW THINKING THAT SHE CAN HIDE

VERONICA’S DONE FOR THERE’S NO DOUBT NOW

NOTIFY NEXT OF KIN

VERONICA’S TRYING TO KEEP HIM OUT NOW

*too late* he got in

[vote2]

yo girl through i am damaged is the best four songs one after another in any musical ive watched a total of five musicals i can make this claim

[chibipeachu]

Beauty & The Seven Foot Frame

Villain!Bruno X Reader

Chapter Six

In case you missed chap 5

CHAPTER SEVEN OUT NOW!

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

After y/n left casita, she went to her family’s home where a sleepy Victor opened the door “Y/n what are you doing here?” he asked as he let her in the house “um..can I stay here for the night?” Veronica came out of her and Victor's room “of course you can!” y/n followed Veronica to her old room. It felt cold in her old room “you wanna talk?” y/n sat down on the bed “not really..” Veronica nodded and left y/n to sleep.

The next morning y/n got up and got ready to go to the bakery. Once there y/n decided to help her family make some concha’s. While y/n made concha’s with victor they heard the bell above the door ring they both ignored it till veronica came running toward the two “umm..I think someone’s here for you y/n!”

Y/n’s thoughts went to Bruno, she quickly wiped off her hands on her apron, she walked to the register where…he stood.

“Y/N!” The man had a smile on his face.

“Dante? What are you doing here?” y/n gave him a confused and painful smile. “I came to see you mi cielito!” he hugs y/n who stood there shocked at the man hugging her. Behind the pair the bell rang.

“I came to ask your mama for your hand!” Dante moved back and smiled down at y/n. “Umm dante i’m already- Julieta!” y/n cut herself off as she looked behind dante and saw julieta and luisa standing there confused at the man smiling at y/n. “Y/n everyone’s been looking for you!” Julieta moved past Dante and hugged y/n.

“I’m sorry for worrying you all julieta!” y/n hugged julieta back “i’m so sorry for my brother’s temper!” Julieta apologized. Y/n noticed Dante's confused expression.

“Oh Julieta meet Dante, Dante this is Julieta and her daughter Luisa!” y/n introduced them to each other. “I’m Dante Sanchez. Pleased to meet you two!” Julieta shook his hand and so did luisa. “Um julieta i’ll be back at casita later today.” y/n told the pair so y/n could tell Dante in private he was too late to ask for her hand in marriage. Julieta got the signal and said goodbye to everyone and left with luisa behind her.

Y/n sighed and turned to Dante “just like a bandaid..you gotta rip it off!” y/n thought to herself “Dante..i’m already-!” y/n was cut off by the bakery’s door swinging opening “She’s married to our tio mister!” y/n turned her head to see a wide eye dolores and a fuming isabela. “What?” Dante chuckled thinking the girls were just making up stuff “you heard me!” isabela walked closer to y/n and dante. For a six year old she was pretty intimidating or maybe it was the thorny vine she had in her hand that made her intimidating. Y/n turned back to Dante “I’ve been trying to tell you that I'm already married!” she explained.

Dante had a look of disappointment for a moment before he looked back to being happy like when he first walked into the bakery.

“You know what, I'll convince you and your whole family that you should be married to me instead of whoever!” Dante walked out the bakery’s door with a determined look. Y/n had to hold isabela back from attacking dante as he walked out, dolores rubbed her arm as y/n guided the girls outside the bakery.

They both avoided looking at y/n thinking she would yell at them. What they didn’t expect was for y/n to let out a relaxed sigh and chuckle a bit “I’m not gonna scold you two…but thank you though” y/n laughed as the girls sighed in relief “but I am gonna have to tell both your mamas” y/n laughed as both girls tensed up and got ready to run away from y/n “I’m kidding, that’ll be our secret! Got that a secret” both y/n and isabela looked over to dolores who pretended to zip up her mouth and throw the key away somewhere behind her.

“Okay I think it’s time I go back, don’t you think?” the girls nodded at y/n who dusted off her skirt as she watched dolores and isabela walk towards casita. She got ready to go back into the bakery but stopped. “Hey you two want conchas?” She called out which caused the pair to stop walking and came running back to y/n. 

It was around the late afternoon when y/n decided to go back to casita. She went to knock but casita opened the doors for her and in the middle of the courtyard stood Alma and Pepa, they stopped talking and ran over to y/n and hugged her “You made us so worried!” Alma said as she looked y/n up and down trying to check if she had been injured or anything.

“Y/n don’t do that again I almost caused a hurricane! Dios mío” pepa told y/n as she hugged her tight as she could.

After Alma and Pepa had made sure y/n wasn’t injured, y/n had walked to Bruno's tower. She took a deep breath before opening the door. When y/n opened the door she wasn’t expecting his room to be completely torn apart.

The nightstands look like he threw them against a wall, the dresser was thrown in the middle of the room. y/n noticed he left her stuff alone, she saw his vision cave door was wide open. She walked up the stairs and went to close the door but saw Bruno hunched over in the middle of the room with something in his hands. Not wanting him to be upset at her again she decided to leave the room and go help Julieta cook dinner for the family.

While cooking y/n heard augustin and bruno come down stairs to keep julieta company in the kitchen total not because bruno needed advice about his and y/n relationship. “I just need advice about y/n! Do I just go up to her and say “hey i’m sorry for being a huge pain in the a-”  “Y/N!” Augustin cut Bruno off as he spotted y/n.  

Augustin ran over and hugged her “are you hurt?” he started checking her for any injuries “no I’m fine augustin really!” y/n reassured him. Julieta had augustin “help” her with getting something last minute for dinner, both y/n and bruno knew she just made that up so they could talk alone. “Umm so I just-” “Y/n don’t-” they both stopped talking to let the other speak first but everytime they did so they would both start talking.

“I'm sorry, you first.” y/n told bruno

“Don’t you ever go in my vision cave again!” 

Y/n opened her mouth to speak but got cut off by pepa calling her name, y/n left Bruno in the kitchen and walked into the courtyard thinking about what Bruno had said to her in the kitchen. “These we’re left for you” Pepa handed y/n a small boutique of primrose flowers, y/n opened the small card “my heart feels full of flowers when I think of you!” y/n crumpled the card and threw the card away.

“Those are terrible flowers, who gave you those tia?” isabela asked as she walked into casita from playing outside “No one, um go get your cousins and tell them to wash up, dinner’s ready!” damn dante y/n thought as she sat down for dinner.

Taglist (OPEN) ❣ : @elfwoodfae @rhys-cosmos @diasnohibng

A/N : I hope you all enjoyed this chap! Please give me some feedback on this on series!

[ladyofscreenshotsmiraboo]

Encanto Au

Why Do You Say The Things That You Say?

Summary: Dolores and Mariano who are envious of Mirabel and Raaj and their baby, resume trying for a little one of their own. Mirabel makes a discovery and Bruno and Veronica....well you'll see.

One warm sunny morning sweet giggles were heard all through out the enchanted house, the sweet giggles of a 1 year old baby boy who just starting walking. "¡Come on, pequeño tigre! Come to Mami."

Delores still sleepy came down stairs too see a wonderful site her prima Mirabel with her boyfriend Raaj and their adorable baby Carlos who was walking to his mother happily.

"Sí Carlos, over to Mamá that's it." Mirabel encouraged Carlos as giggled his way over to her but the baby fell onto his mother's lap making both parents exclaim in worry but Carlos lifted his head and smiled. Mirabel scooped up her son and kissed him on his chubby cheek, Carlos continued to giggle as Raaj gazed lovingly at the child and his mother.

It was a moment that should never be interrupted ever a moment that made the sun shine brighter, a moment that they may be forgotten in a a couple of years but still special. A moment Dolores and Mariano were desperately trying to receive but to no avail.

Delores exhaled considering if she should just go back upstairs and leave the little familia be, uninterrupted and nonchaotic but Camilo came in doing just that.

"¡Good morning familia!"

"Hola Camilo, how was you're morning run?" Mirabel asked as she bounced Carlos in her arms. "Finally lossed some weight Cami?" Raaj said rudely poking unnecessarily at Camilo's weight.

"As a matter of fact yes actually. I've lost 12 pounds and I feel great and productive. Unlike you bumming around Casita all day." Camilo ramped back and it would've have continued if it weren't for Mirabel sending daggers at the both of them.

The impertinent exchange ruined the warm atmosphere so Dolores decided to come down stairs and just like that the moment was gone and the sun didn't shine as bright, it was now just another morning with Raaj around.

The morning progressed and Julieta came down stairs with Agustin who was sporting a broken nose. "What happened Papi?" Mirabel asked not surprised just curious. Agustin nose ached to the point he couldn't talk so Julieta spoke for him.

"Bee got it through the window and in trying to avoid it your father fell flat on his face and broke his nose." Julieta said gently forcing a arepa into her accident prone husband's mouth.

"At least i didn't get stung this time." Agustin happily chewed turning his attention to his babbling grandson Carlos who being held by his father. Dolores was sitting at the table watching Agustin playing with the chubby child, wishing it was her father playing her and Mariano's child instead. Just then Mariano finally came down to the kitchen to greet everyone that was up it was one of those mornings where people could occasionally sleep in.

"Good morning everyone." Mariano said heavy-eyed.

"Good morning Mariano." Everyone replied Julieta turn around from making breakfast to see Dolores and Mariano looking like they didn't get any sleep she walked over to the two of them concerned.

"Are the two of you alright you both look exhausted"

"Juli is right you two look haggard!" Raaj remarked chuckling lightly "Especially you Mariano. What? Was Dolores jackin the jackhammer all night?" Raaj laughed out earning loud and shocked

"RAAJ!" Mirabel shouted make everyone but Raaj flinche. "Baby, what? I was just asking."

"Out! If your gonna be inappropriate find someplace else to eat breakfast." Mirabel said pulling him by the ear and shoo him out.

Dolores and Mariano were bright red, Agustin cringed and Julieta faced palmed wondering where she went wrong in raising Mirabel to make her choose a man like Raaj.

"Alright, Alright. Really trying to make good on that bet huh? Well you're gonna have to work harder!" Raaj yelled at he was out of Castia.

Dolores fuming at this point. "Ugh i can't stand that that Insecure bum i can't wait till I'm pregnant so I can win this bet and throw him out." Dolores never got really mad like that but Raaj really pushed her buttons but then again he pushed everyone's buttons even Julieta the most slow to anger person in the whole world.

"Honestly Mira what do you see in that guy?" Camilo questioned like he wouldn't have made a similar joke like Raaj.

"It's simple." Mirabel said as the family awaited her answer.

"He makes me laugh."

Mirabel laid down on her soft comfortable mattress exhausted. It wasn't like her to take naps especially not since she became a mother, it always made her feel like she missed half of a day. But today while her primo Antonio was watching over Carlos she was gonna nap. But then she heard a voice and then door slam.

"Forget It!" SLAM!

Mirabel jumped out of bed to see what was causing the problem. "Uh oh." Mirabel and Luisa both stood out for their rooms to see Veronica Bruno's girlfriend storming off out of Bruno's tower with a suitcase. Anger filled her eyes, her fists were clenched and Bruno soon walked out of the tower after her.

"Damn not even here two weeks and she's leaving. I guess Abuela was right." Isabela came out of her room looking at the chaos unfold with Luisa and Mirabel.

"That's not nice. I'm sure there's a good reason why she so upset." Luisa said trying to be optimistic to which Isabela replied with "You can't be serious, you know how Veronica is she gets upset over the littlest things!"

"I HEARD THAT!" Veronica yelled from downstairs.

Mirabel and Luisa both shot in opposite directions and Isabela stayed there.

Mirabel made her way to kitchen where she could overhear the shouts of Veronica.

"I knew your mother didn't like me! i knew it, but you lied to me and said that she did." Veronica yelled at full volume.

"I didn't want your feelings to be hurt, but it doesn't matter. What matters is that i love you, so you don't have to leave." Bruno replied trying to be reasonable.

"How can I do that to you Bruno!? I don't want you to have to spend the rest of your life trying to keep the peace between me and your mother. You deserve better. SO I HAVE TO GO!" Veronica tried to storm of but her lazily packed suitcase fell open with all her belongings. She groaned in frustration and Bruno quickly went to help her which she refused. "Why would i 'deserve better' if. I already have the perfect woman?" Bruno said underneath his breath.

[sparring-hyena]

again and again.

i think this kinda counts as a groundhog day-esque AU with some quirky time travel mixed in for fun. is that even a thing? idk.

OR, time is complicated, and so is love. here’s a story about both.

-

“i will destroy you,” Poppy says, her tone razor-edged and precise. she feels a pulsing thing beneath her skin. something that warns her to tread carefully in a manner that’s much too pleased for the situation at hand.

“good luck with that,” AJ answers, her tone somehow daring to be amused.

and then a beat. a moment that exists only between the two of them. it rings loud in Poppy’s mind. thrums along in time with that pulsing thing beneath her skin. it’s warning her about something. telling her to make the right choice, as though it’ll be forced to do something if she doesn’t do this right.

pshhh. ridiculous.

“i hate you.”

and that’s the last thing she says before the pulsing thing expands and consumes her whole. it drags her away from the fountain and AJ and that clear night in May, and drops her in bed just as her alarm to wake up goes off.

Poppy sits up in bed, her hair a tussled mess, and watches as her phone buzzes and plays that horrible alarm tune on the nightstand.

strange, she thinks, reaching out to silence the damn thing. she checks the date, which is right, but the time is, decidedly, wrong. it was well after ten at night the last she checked, only now her phone is telling her it’s nine o’clock in the morning. she pads to the windows and peers outside, and sure enough, the sun is in the sky. it’s morning.

a dream then, right? it must’ve been. her loss and meltdown and run-in with AJ at the fountain, it was a dream and now she’s awake. good, she didn’t really lose to AJ-fucking-Hughes.

-

she showers and dresses and heads downstairs in search of something quick to eat. Veronica is in the kitchen, scrolling through her phone as she waits for her coffee to brew. she looks up and nods in greeting, and Poppy’s suddenly hit with a very strange sense of déjà vu.

“you ready for tonight?” Veronica asks, head still buried in her phone.

Poppy hums and then, unsure of why, she says, “i had the strangest dream.” the pulsing thing returns. a warning. a caution. a very much not-exclusive-to-dreams thing.

be careful, it sing-songs.

“oh yeah.” Veronica looks up, suddenly curious.

“yeah, it was…” she’s actually not quite sure of what to make of it. of what hidden insecurity it sheds light onto. maybe she shouldn’t say anything then. best to keep her cards close to her chest—they are competing against each other after all. “nothing. it’s nothing. never mind.”

Veronica shrugs and returns to her phone.

her day carries on as it usually would and before she knows it, she’s stepping onto the red carpet for the awards show. cameras flash and she smiles as she presses through, as though feeding off the attention.

and then the end of the night comes and— AJ wins. AJ wins. AJ-fucking-Hughes. Poppy’s shouting and cursing before she can stop herself. she’s peripherally aware of her parents calling out to her, begging her to stop, but that pulsing thing beneath her skin hums with energy. it tells her this is right. that this is how it needs to be. so she doesn’t stop.

she doesn’t stop until she’s out of breath and finally realises what she’s done. and then she slips outside and tries to disappear for a moment at the fountain.

she takes deep breaths, paces back-and-forth, and tries to figure out where it all went so wrong. and how— she’s back at the fountain. the same fountain she was at in her dream. how the fuck?

second time’s the charm, right?

and— what? second time?

yes, do try and keep up.

“fuck you,” she thinks, she says, speaking aloud into the world.

“you say the sweetest things to me,” a voice, it’s AJ’s voice.

Poppy spins around, absolutely fuming, and with déjà vu sitting heavy in her mind. this is just like her dream. how the fuck can this be just like her dream?

the pulsing amps up, thrumming along her veins. this is it, it says, excited and breath held in quiet anticipation.

it? what the fuck does that mean?

there’s a moment where it looks like AJ is about to extend an olive branch. where she offers one of those small and hesitant smiles that asks for a do-over. but Poppy’s learnt her lesson. she knows that branches almost always have thorns. so instead of accepting AJ’s hand, she slaps it away and says something cruel. something prickly and sharp that slices at skin and won’t ever really heal.

“i hate you,” she spits, just like in her goddamn dream.

the pulsing thing doesn’t like that. it tells her no, you’ve done it wrong again, and then rips her away and throws her back into bed as her alarm to wake up goes off.

-

she sits up in bed and is more pissed than anything else. her alarm is still ringing and vibrating like everything’s okay—everything is not okay. because she’s in her bed again and her alarm is vibrating and it’s somehow morning again.

she gets out of bed and marches downstairs, more determined than ever to finally get some answers.

she finds Veronica in the kitchen, just like in her dreams that didn’t at all feel like dreams.

“you ready for—”

“what the fuck is happening right now?”

Veronica blinks. takes a second to properly wake up. “uh, what?”

“this.” she gestures widely to everything and that little pulsing thing warns her again. “what the fuck is this? what is happening?”

“are you high?”

“what? no, i’m not high. i just want an answer. why have i already lived through this morning twice?”

and she never does get an answer because the pulsing thing yanks her back and drops her bed just as her alarm is going off. again.

-

Poppy screams into her pillow and the pulsing thing says sorry, but you broke a rule, i had to pull you back.

and suddenly Poppy’s demanding answers from this stupid pulsing thing, but it remains silent.

so she pulls herself out of bed and tries again.

-

attempt number four goes wrong around noon, and attempts five through nine are all spectacular disasters because Poppy decides that she just does not give a fuck.

if some cruel force of the universe wants to lock her in this never ending purgatory, then so be it. she’s done enough shitty things in life and probably deserves it.

-

attempt number ten goes better. it still goes wrong because she got into a fight with AJ and apparently that’s not how it’s supposed to go, but she overhears a conversation between Chloe and Veronica and realises just how horrible she’s been to them.

-

she stays in bed for the entirety of attempt number eleven.

the pulsing thing begs her to get up, says please, i only want to help. but Poppy doesn’t buy it. who would want to help her?

the pulsing thing goes quiet and gently pulls her back until it’s 9 o’clock in the morning and her alarm is going off again.

-

c’mon, one more time. please? the pulsing thing asks as soon as attempt number twelve starts.

Poppy sighs but gets out of bed anyway. she can do this one more time. she finds Veronica in the kitchen just like the last eleven times and feels strangely compelled to say something new.

“i wasn’t a very good friend, was i?”

Veronica looks up from her phone, wary but curious.

the pulsing thing says no, not yet. but Poppy ignores it and pushes on. and as soon as she gets to the end of her apology, the pulsing thing pulls her away and drops her back in bed just as the alarm is going off.

not yet, it says.

“then when?” Poppy shouts at the top of her lungs. “when do you want me to start being better?”

she gets no response from the pulsing thing, but Chloe does knock on her door and ask if everything’s okay. she snaps at Chloe, tells her to go away, even though she knows she shouldn’t and wishes she didn’t.

she decides then that she’s done playing this stupid game.

-

she shaves her head during one version of the day and streaks across campus in another version because fuck it, no one will remember.

-

it’s during attempt twenty-one that she accidentally bumps into AJ on some quiet part of campus. they sit together and talk and the pulsing thing tells her to be careful.

“can i ask you a question?” AJ says.

“sure.”

“did i ever mean anything to you?”

“yes—”

the pulsing thing tells her to stop.

“—i think i was scared because i knew i could lo—”

the pulsing thing rips her away.

-

Poppy can feel it in her bones that this is it. attempt twenty-two will be the one to break this cycle.

she plays through the day as she usually would, making only small changes that she knows are the right thing to do. then comes time for the award show and it’s just before the winner is announced that the pulsing asks if she knows what has to be done.

yes, she does know.

AJ wins and Poppy’s strangely okay with that, but the pulsing thing tells her now, go, you have to do it. so she does. she shouts and she curses and is vaguely aware of her parents begging for her to stop.

she runs off outside and finds herself at the fountain again.

she doesn’t have to wait long until AJ sits down beside her and Poppy looks up at her and smiles, waiting for AJ to accept the olive branch she’s extending.

“i’m glad you won,” Poppy breathes, almost like a sigh of relief.

and she feels something in the air shift then. it’s small, barely noticeable. but she knows that something is different in the way that sometimes you just know something even if knowing it has no rhyme or reason.

“really?”

Poppy hums. “you deserve it.”

the pulsing thing says i’m proud of you.

and Poppy wonders if she’ll be okay without the constant nagging, because this is the furthest she’s ever made it before and she has no idea what comes next.

that’s the point.

what if i screw up.

then you fix it.

what if i can’t.

you can.

“you alright?” AJ asks, breaking Poppy’s trance. “you just kinda zoned out for a sec.”

Poppy smiles and finds AJ’s hand with her own. “i’ve never been better.”

-

time is linear, Poppy firmly believes. like dominoes in a line, stacked neatly in formation, and all tumbling one right after another when nudged.

time does not repeat. it does not offer do-overs. except maybe when it does. which might be complete bullshit, Poppy thinks. but years—decades even—after that day she lived through twenty-two times, she’ll listen as AJ recites some corny pickup line in their kitchen.

“i can’t believe i married you,” Poppy will say with a smile.

“tragic, isn’t it?”

“couldn’t agree more.”

“good.”

and then AJ will swoop in and plant a kiss on Poppy’s lips. and it will be in moments like those that the pulsing thing will hum and ask aren’t you glad you finally listened to me?

and yeah, maybe she is.