#and before that I was working food service in my college town

[grassbreads]

I just got a verbal job offer for more money than I ever thought I'd be making in my entire life

[ravenslvt]

Hi! I saw that you're taking requests, so is it okay if I ask for a spoiled city girl! Reader x country boy! Leon?

Reader's father sent reader to spend the rest of the year at her grandparents because he's had enough tolerating her. Eversince she arrived, yeah, the whole town hated her alright. Her grandparents made her do errands and shit and she'd complain and do it lazily.

Leon on the other hand- who's been hearing rumors about this girl, didn't think that she was that bad until he encountered her himself. And hell, she was way worse that bad.

Possible virgin, kinda innocent (only when it comes to ykyk) reader and brat tamer Leon?

Ignore if you're not comfortable with the idea.

🎀 cowboy!leon s kennedy x f!innocent reader 🎀

cw: smut, implied virgin reader, brat taming, sort of hate sex, p in v, oral m! recieving, v fingering, degrating, edging, light spanking

of course there was no cell service in this shithole. you groaned, falling back onto the white sheets of the squeaky bed of the guest bedroom in your grandparents house.

you had taken a gap year off of college, wanting a break and hoping to ‘find yourself’, but you just got unmotivated. your father asked you for months to find a job in the city, but you’d talk your way out of it everytime. of course, enough was enough and when the time came, he had talked to his own parents and decided to send you over to a small little farm town where they retired to, hoping to shape you up a bit. they owned a quaint farm with chickens, sheep, pigs, all a cute little older couple could ask for.

but it was your own personal hell. having to feed, clean, and even pick up after the smelly animals. at least some of them were cute. no technology to ease your mind. it didn’t help your grandparents made you drive their shitty little red truck into town once a week to get supplies, since you were so ‘nimble’ compared to them. to say the least, the whole town was not fond of a bratty city girl storming irritatingly around. refusing to do work, and even when you did, you just half assed it to get it over with.

the local townies and shop workers alike always stared when you’d walk through town with your cute little purse and skirt that rode up your thighs. it was a hot town, what else were you supposed to wear? older women having to slap their husbands when they oogled for too long at the young woman walking into the supply store. that was until you’d start an argument with another customer. they’d either be judging you or too scared to say a word. sometimes both.

in one instance, there was only one stack of bird feed left, and you’d be damned if you weren’t gonna be the one taking it back to the farm. that was until a prudish older lady grabbed it at the same time as you. your eyes met, challenging each-other. she put on a fake smile. “oh sorry sweetie! need this food for my little chickies at home.” her high pitched voice irritated your head. “oh that’s unfortunate, i need it for the same reason. so if you could take your wrinkley little fingers off of it that would be great.” you yanked it from her hands before she gasped.

“what a disrespectful young lady…” she mumbled, turning around to the door of the door, looking down at her hands as she left. you mumbled a quick curse at her before walking up to the register to pay. the store clerk looked a little nervous, so he rang you up in silence in fear of you lashing out at him.

this was just one of the many incidents since you got sent here.

at least you’d found new hobbies. you started going to the small library whenever you were sent into town. there wasn’t many choices, but that along with a few of your grandma’s books from her collection, you were somewhat less bored. that and you took up sketching. sure this place was boring as fuck, but you couldn’t deny that the scenery was pretty beautiful.

it’s been almost a month since you’ve been here. you silently lounged in the room you’d been staying in, reading some god awful romance novel. you heard your grandma call your name from downstairs. you sigh before getting up. “what?” you yell back, annoyed you got interrupted reading your newly picked up book. she didn’t respond, another tindge of annoyance reaching your skull.

as you walk down the creaky wooden steps, noticing the front door open to find the older woman on the front porch. you heard a deep voice chuckling from outside. walking out, you were greeted with a handsome young man. he only looked two or three years older than you, but he was tall and had a good frame. seems like doing work on a farm for years really builds up muscle. the wrinkled woman calls your name, snapping you out of your trance.

“um, what can i help you with?” you reply, crossing your arms over your chest. the man gives you a smile before holding out his hand for you to shake, lowering his dark grey hat to reveal some of his dirty blonde hair underneath. “i’ve heard a lot about you miss, names leon.” his large hand extends towards you. you just eye it and roll your eyes. “hi? can i go now, nana?” you plead to the woman. she just sighs and puts a hand on your shoulder. “pop and i gotta go into town for a couple days for this chicken auction he’s been wantin’ to go to. our friendly neighbor here offered to help show you around the farm a bit. teach you a few things” she eyes you sternly.

“teach me things? i’m not twelve. i can handle myself” you retort, glaring at the tall man. he just chuckles. he had heard from around town you were feisty, but it was even better to see in person. he rests his hands firmly on his hips.

“promise i won’t get in your way, darlin’. we’re doin’ some renovations on my own house a few miles down the road. your kind grandmother here offered to let me stay in the guest house while they’re gone.” he smiles assuringly. you were annoyed. you had already spent the last thirty seconds planning on sunbathing or sitting in your room, free of any work on the farm.

“i just don’t think this is very necessary. surely you can afford a hotel?” you retort back. your grandma gives you a light smack on the back of your head. “sorry ‘bout her. not from here” she smiles kindly at the young man. you just pout. “yeah, thank god” you mumble, causing you to get another light smack.

“oh it’s no trouble at all. got myself a little cousin back home that’s a bit of a brat too.” he comments, his eyes never leaving yours. your face flushes. “excuse me? a brat? fuck off dude-“ you start. “language!” she scolds you. you mumble a small apology to her while still glaring daggers at leon.

leon just stands there, entertained by your little outbursts. he could tell you really did not enjoy being here, but he was ready to fix that. his gaze shifts down to your attire, you clearly didn't pack for working on a farm. always in cute little outfits that you'd always wear back in the city.

your grandma changed the subject, asking leon a few questions about his family and his own farm. you were lost in your own thoughts. at least you'd be stuck with a hot farmer instead of some old creep. maybe you could just fake flirt with him to get him to do all your chores for you. that should work, right?

after a few treacherous minutes of standing on the badly painted white porch, you said your goodbyes. leon gives your grandmother another respectful handshake and he just tips his hat at you while you just stare, giving a tiny wave before storming back inside.

about two days later you said your goodbyes to your grandparents, they gave you some hugs and kept repeating the list of chores they'd tasked you with. feed the chickens, take out the eggs, you really just blocked out their words from entering your head. you just smiled and nodded, waving at them as they drove off the property.

you gave a sigh of relief, leon wouldn't be here for another few hours so you thought you'd have some 'me' time. taking a long hot bath (your grandparents always got mad when you used up too much hot water), reading your romance novel while relaxing in the warm water. your cheeks flushed at a certain scene in the book. you didn't expect the library to carry a literal smut book. the main male character in the novel was going down on the pretty girl, the writing made your stomach churn in arousal. you'd never read anything so... descriptive before.

right before you could turn to the next page when things were getting more hot and heavy, there was a heavy knock on the door. you jerk up from your laying down position in the bath and sigh, leon was early. you lay your book upside down so you wouldn't loose your place, wrapping a small towel around your figure before fully stepping out, draining the bath. another knock and a familiar voice calling your name. "you home?" he calls. "yeah, hold on!" you scurry around, cursing yourself for not laying out clothes beforehand.

you carefully step downstairs and opening the front door, peeking out. leon had a duffel bag with him with his things in it. "um, yeah?" you say, trying to hide your toweled figure behind the door. he smiles. "just need the key to the guest house, darlin." oh right. you nod, grabbing the key hanging near the door and hand it to him, your fingers brushing slightly, making your cheeks heat up. before he could open his mouth to speak, you shut the door on him unremorsefully. "thanks." he chuckles out, turning to make the walk to the guest house about a hundred feet away from the main house. and of course you were the one who had to clean it up before he got here.

after putting on your favorite outfit and boots, you make your way back downstairs for some water. sipping from the clear glass cup, you notice leon outside the window. he was already getting familiar with the animals. he looked good in his light blue button up shirt, it really brought out his eyes. the way he had rolled up his sleeves so his veiny arms were on display. he was squatted down next to the new baby sheep and was petting her. you pouted, she didn’t even let you pet her. you sigh, placing your glass down before making your way outside.

leon’s head perks up as he notices you walking twords him. he gives you a charming smile, standing up from the baby sheep. you speak first. “she lets you pet her? everytime i come near she yells at me.” you cross your arms at the man. he looks back down at the small animal who gave you an angry look, running off somewhere. “you gotta' know how to approach em’. plus they sense your vibes” he adds, his eyes back on you.

“my vibes, huh? what’s that supposed to mean, mister?” your eyes squint at him, a hint of irritation in your eye. he doesn’t feed into your attitude. “leon” he corrects you.

“leon” you repeat. the way his name sounded rolling off your tounge made his lips quirk up in a small smile.

“now-“ he starts, grabbing a nearby bag and handing it to you. “- better start on those chores, hmm?”. you glare at him, scoffing. “you’re joking.” you retort. he just shakes his head.

“i’m here for a reason, darlin’. best get to work so you can get it over with faster.” he shoves the bag in your arms and you give him your best puppy dog eyes. “c’mon leon. you’re so big and strong, i’m sure you’d get it done a lot faster than me.” you bat your eyelashes at him. he seemed gullible enough to seduce. he just chuckles. “nice try, you’re cute” he says, walking off to leave you to your chores. you groan. “fine…” you mumble, walking off to to collect the chicken eggs.

over an hour later, you lie in the green patch of grass, playing with your nails. pouting that cleaning the coop made you chip one. you’d finished majority of your chores, hoping it was enough to get leon off your back. whenever you’d start to walk away from a task, he’d appear to show you what you did wrong and how to improve. you wanted to punch his pretty face.

you were snapped out of your thoughts as you heard a deep voice approach you. “takin’ a break?” he says, standing over you. you sigh, not even bothering to look up at him. “i finished for today. i’ll do the rest tomorrow or something.” you continue playing with your nails, still annoyed.

he crosses his arms over his strong chest. “you’re quite the lazy girl, y'know that?” you just scoff. “whatever, asshole” you spit back.

“you got a bit of a mouth on you, don’t ya’?” he squats down so he’s level with you. you finally turn to him, glaring. you angrily stand up, dusting yourself off before gasping. “fuck!” you yell, looking down. your favorite skirt had stains of grass and dirt on them. you didn’t realize the grass was wet before you sat down on it. “are you serious?! this is so gross!” you try wiping the stains off, but only making it worse by spreading them around. you notice leon laughing at you. you turn to glare daggers at the now standing man.

“what the hell is so funny?” your face has annoyance all over it.

“c’mon, let me help you get those stains out, sweetheart. wouldn’t want such a pretty skirt to be ruined” he starts to walk twords the guest house.

“i’m not your-“

“you want that skirt clean or not?” he sighs. you silently nod, following behind him. he opens the door to the clean little house, holding it open for you and shutting it once you were both inside. it was surely nicer than the place you were staying in. a big bed against the wall and a little kitchen table. you remembered staying in here with your father when you visited as a kid. you loved it here back then.

he sets his hat on the counter, finally giving you a full view of his parted hair. he was even more handsome without the hat. he caught you staring and you quickly look away.

“gotta' take the skirt off so i can run it in the wash for you before the stains seep in.” he says, leaning against the counter with his large arms crossed over his broad chest. your eyebrow quirks. “um, i’m not doing that”. he gives you a questioning look. “i’m not wearing anything under…” you add. you only wore your panties under, not wanting to ruin the outfit with ugly shorts. he sighs. a thought flickers in his mind of you taking your skirt off, your pretty ass on display for him.

“fine. you can borrow some of my sweats.” he walks over to his bag of clothes, rummaging through until he pulls out a pair of plaid blue pajama pants. you scoff. “these are ugly as fuck, this is gonna ruin my outfit.” you hold up the pants. they were way too big for you. but they smelled like him. woodsy and a hint of pine. he steps a little closer to you. “if you’d rather let that pretty little skirt get ruined, then be my guest.” he says. you have to crane your neck to look up at him. you sigh, taking your shoes off. “you could just change in the bathroom, you know.” he comments.

“well you could also just look away, pervert.” you say, carefully setting your boots on the floor. he puts his hands up in defense, turning and walks somewhere across the room. “y’know, some day that mouth of yours is gonna get you in trouble.” his voice is lower now, more serious than before. you roll your eyes, shimmying yourself out of your little skirt. “fuck off. you’re not my father.” you bite back, pulling the loose pants over your hips. “these are too big…” you say, holding the pants up or else they’d fall to the ground. he turns and walks up to you, inches away. he grabs the drawstrings, tightening them so hard that you let out a barely audible gasp.

your eye’s focus on his hands. the way they tied the strings perfectly, patting your hip once he finished. “better now?” he asks, looking down at you. you didn’t say a word, just nodding. he smiles. “no words for me from the mouthy girl?” he says. you huff.

“you don’t know anything about me, leon.”

“i know enough. i know you’re an entitled little brat who needs to be put in her place.” he whispered, leaning into your ear. his hot breath left chills down your neck. you could feel your nipples harden against your top. his arms trapped you against the counter.

your eyes finally pull to his, almost magnetically. “what’s your story then, pretty? refusing to work so your daddy kicked you out?” he guesses. you stay silent. he was right.

“what happened to that little mouth of yours? got nothin’ to say now?” he teases, leaning twords your face. fuck, he knew how to shut you up.

“you- i-“ you stutter, unable to respond. he just smirks. his hand slipping to your waist. “you talk all this shit, but can’t handle it comin’ back to you, can you?” god it was almost like he was getting off on seeing your flustered face.

“fuck you-“

“watch your fucking mouth, princess” he practically growls. his grip on your waist only tightens, making you almost whine. his demeanor completely changing from his lighthearted charming self. you felt yourself getting wet from his words alone.

“or what?” you spit back.

“you wanna find out?”

that’s how you ended up with your shaky knees, pressed against the hardwood floor, leon’s big veiny cock sitting right in front of your eyes. his hand was in your hair as your hands nervously reach out to stroke him. he could tell you were inexperienced.

“what’s wrong, baby?” he coos, looking down at you as your small hand wraps around the base of his large cock.

“i don’t- i’ve never-“

“never had a cock in your mouth?” he asks. you just shake your head nervously. he pulsed at the thought of being the first man to be inside of you.

“ever even kissed someone?” he tilts his head.

“just once…” you pout. you were getting tired of his teasing. he just gives your hair a light tug, making you whine. he uses his other hand to bring his thumb to your bottom, dragging it down. you respond, opening your mouth to suck on his thumb. he presses it into your tongue, you swirl your wet muscle around his finger. “good job, see? you got it” he encourages. he removes his thumb, a trail of spit between your lips and his finger.

“now just open your pretty lips…” his hand cups your jaw, you open your mouth. he slides the tip into your hot mouth before hissing. “no teeth, darlin’.” he warns. you nod, taking him deeper. only halfway in and you’re choking around him. he groans at the way your throat contracts around him.

“fuck, you’re a natural slut, aren’t ya?” he grips your hair, moving you up and down his cock. you whine around him, the vibrations sending more pleasure straight to his dick. he abuses your throat and mouth, watching you as tears well up in your eyes. “look at you. your mouth is so much better around my cock.” he lets out another groan when you suck your cheeks in, sucking him off completely.

“think you can swallow all my cum? or are you too good for that, princess?” his voice was horse and low. you just nod, a tear falling from how deep you were taking him. he curses as his tip hits the back of your throat, thrusting his hips to meet with your head. your nose burried in the base of his pelvis. you shut your eyes tight as you feel his warm release down your throat. after a few more thrusts, he pulls out a bit of a mix of cum and spit falling from your mouth. he cups your face. “swallow it.” you gulp, licking your lips and swallowing everything he gave you. you open your mouth to show him.

“such a good little slut, yeah?” he soothes your hair, wiping the remaining tears from your eyes. your cunt was throbbing with need. you look up at him through wet lashes, your mascara was probably running down your face by now. he grabs your arm to help you stand up. your legs were wobbly and hard to stand on. your panties were probably soaked at this point.

your eyes go to his lips and his smug gorgeous face. “you want a kiss?” he asks, you nod. he just chuckles. “too bad” he says, making you whine.

“leonn” you grab onto his shirt, pleading. he just shakes his head. “you need to learn how to be patient, gorgeous.” he warns, grabbing your wrists. “you and that fucking attitude. gotta do somethin’ about that.” his eyes grow darker.

he had a strong grip on your wrists, firm but gentle enough not to break you. it made you shiver knowing how easily he could. fuck it was hot. “i’m gonna fuck it right out of you. got that?” his head lowers to suck marks into your neck and collar bones, making you groan. he bit down in a particularly sensitive spot, making you cry out his name. he pulls away dragging you to the bed. “lay down on your stomach” he commands. your eyes grow wide, about to object until his brows furrow. you lie down on your stomach, your feet dangling off the edge.

you turn to look at leon over your shoulder, yelping when he drags you so your legs hung off the edge of the bed. he quickly pulls the string of your his pants before ripping them down your legs. you gasp at the cold air hitting your bare legs, your panty clad ass on display for him. he gives it a good smack, making you give another yelp into the sheets.

“you’re fuckin’ soaked through your panties. i’ve barely even touched you” he gives a small laugh before pulling your white panties off. his large skilled fingers run through your folds, making you squirm.

smack

“stop moving”

he admired the large hand print he left on your ass, feeling his dick harden again. he started with pumping one finger into your tight little hole, making you gasp. it hurt for the first few seconds, but eventually faded into throbbing pleasure. you let out mewls of enjoyment, crying out into the sheets below you as he jackhammered his finger into your sopping cunt, adding another finger to stretch you out.

“ohmygod leon!” you cry, muffled by the blanket. you’d never felt absolute overwhelming pleasure like this before. it was fucking addicting.

his fingers curled inside of you, hitting a spot that made your belly fill with a hot pleasure. you were so close, so fucking close. right when you were about to cum, he pulls his fingers out.

“leon!” you yell, looking back at him.

“told you i was gonna teach you how to be patient, didn’t i?” you wanted to wipe that smug ass smirk off his face.

you were practically drooling onto the sheets. tears falling down your face as leon edged you for the fifth, sixth time? you’d lost count after the third. “fuck leon! please please please let me cum, m’so close please!” you cry into the bed, resorting to begging. your attitude thrown out the window whenever he curls his fingers inside of you.

“since you asked so nicely…” his thrusts his fingers at a delicious speed, fucking you until you cried out his name. you clenched around his fingers, gripping onto the sheets as your vision blurs. his fingers fuck into you as you cum, coating the sheets and his hand.

“look at you. fuckin' dripping down my wrist.” he groans. he flips you so you’re on your back. you were panting, mascara completely running down your cheeks and a fucked out look on your face. he brings his fingers to your mouth and you immediately open them for him, licking yourself clean off his hand.

“that’s my girl” he praises, making you tingle. you were still coming down from your high, staring at him blissfully. his fingers leave your mouth with a pop. you watch his expression through your lashes.

“you’re so much prettier with your mouth filled.” he smiles, leaning over you. “i think you deserve that kiss now, don’t ya think so?” he asks. you nod. “yes please”

his mouth meets yours in a hot feverish kiss. his hand coming to grip your hair. he bites your lip hard enough to make you gasp. your pussy throbs with need of being filled by him. “leon, please” you beg through the kiss. he pulls away, looking at you.

“what is it, sweetheart?” he kisses down your jaw.

“i-i need you inside, please!” you beg, looking down at your bare cunt.

“aww, you just want my cock so bad, hmm? who am i to deny such a slutty girl what she wants.” he sits up, dragging his long cock up and down your wet folds. when his head caught on your clit, it made you shiver. he teases you, catching his tip on your hole before rubbing up and down again. you whine. he gives you a stern look.

“m’sorry” you pout. he chuckles, slowly dipping his thick head into your tight hole. he eased himself in, making your jaw slack open. once he was fully seated into you, your brows furrowed at the stretch. “hurts, s’too big!” you cry out. he tsks.

“you wanted this, didn’t you?” he pulls out just to push himself back into you with a powerful thrust. “fuck, you’re sucking me in, baby. must be so worked up. is this why you’re such a bitch all the time? never gotten dicked down properly?” he teases as he thrusts in and out of your abused pussy.

you mewl when his cock hits a deep spot inside of you, but it wasn’t enough. he sensed your need, grabbing your legs and putting them over his shoulders to thrust even deeper into you. the angle made you scream out. your fingers grip into the sheets again. one of his hands find your clit, pinching it.

“y’feel so fucking perfect. like you were made for me.” he groans, loosing his composure. his thrusts got more intense, faster, and sloppier. but still felt heavenly. the mix of his cock hitting your soft spot along with him playing with your clit, you squeeze around his cock, about to cum. drool fell from the corner of your mouth as your tits bounced in your shirt as you came closer and closer to the edge.

“gonna-gonna cum!” you scream. he only goes faster.

“gonna cum with you, baby. bein’ so fucking good for me.” he gets more vocal when he’s closer to cuming. he didn’t know what felt better, your hot mouth or your hot tight pussy. there was sweat dripping down his neck. you wanted nothing more than to lick it up, but didn’t dare move in fear of him not letting you cum. he was in full control. with a few final thrusts, you finish around him with a loud moan. he follows suit, his hot seed filling you to the brim.

you are both panting at this point, but he’s still half hard inside of you. you look at him with heavy, confused eyes when he doesn't make a move to pull out.

“oh, we’re not done until you’re begging me to stop, pretty girl.”

“wow! this place looks amazing! you guys did a great job around the farm!” your grandma smiles at the handsome young man. he gives her his classic innocent charming smile.

“can’t take all the credit, m’aam. your granddaughter did most of the work.” his strong hands rested at his hips.

“how in the world did you get her to do that!?”

you watch from the porch, wearing a sweater to cover all the marks leon had given you. everytime you’d complain about a task, he’d bend you over and fuck you until you were crying for him to stop at the overstimulation.

the older woman called you over to have you help with leon’s bag. you sigh, walking over as she walked away to talk to her husband.

“you still never gave me my panties back…” you lean against his truck, looking up at him. he chuckles, running a hand down your arm.

“think of it as your parting gift to me, darlin’” he says, giving your arm a squeeze before shouting a goodbye to your grandparents and giving you one last wink and a tilt of his hat before stepping into his truck.

maybe this town isn’t too bad….

masterlist

a/n: i got a little carried away with this i just loveddd this prompt. tysm for this request!!!

[sparklingcid3r]

ik we get ponyboys perspective of wut happened to darry after his parents died (most literally the book) but wut do u think was sodas perspective of watching darry before their parents died as the most popular guy in school/going to college then essentially have to become and be stuck as the one thing darry most obviously did not want to be (stuck in tulsa/ not gt college)

darrys life is underrated tragedy fr

Before I get into this complete devastation I want to direct you to this post! Not exactly the same, but it made me want to walk into traffic 🥰

So anyway, this was super interesting to consider. I imagine Soda definitely looking up to Darry as the stud, the golden child, literally just the coolest guy ever. He had Soc friends, he had greaser friends, and could square up with pretty much anyone who was dumb enough to want the equivalent of a baseball bat to the jaw.

And on top of that, Darry was on a one-track train out of Tulsa, heading out to college soon. In Soda’s eyes, Darry had everything and he was real damn happy with it.

So when all of their lives just crashed around them, Soda obviously had his own problems to deal with before he took notice of anyone else’s. But when his own dust settled and he could see a little more clearly, the change in Darry was definitely obvious. For the first month or so, Darry was just kind of numb. He went through all the necessary proceedings stoically, robotically, never let Soda in on anything regarding child services or the state or boys homes. Sometimes, when they were sitting at the table trying to eat Darry’s best efforts at recipes from their mom’s cookbook, and Pony was too stuck in his own grief moving his food around the plate with his fork, Soda watched Darry get a blank look in his eyes, like he’s staring at something that doesn’t exist, completely detached from reality.

(Soda’s always known that Pony and Darry are more similar than either of them think. Just not in the good ways.)

And for a little, it happened often. Darry comes home from work and sits down in their dad’s recliner, and Soda’s watching the television but in his peripheral he can see Darry drift off to someplace else, and all he can hope is that it’s someplace better.

Soda noticed all the little things. He didn’t smile to himself, didn’t laugh, didn’t tell Pony or Soda to put out their cigs around him, because it didn’t much anymore if he breathed the smoke in. He didn’t talk about his day more than a dismissive wave and that it was fine, he didn’t go out in the evenings.

Darry was against it the entire time, but Soda dropping out of high school seemed to be the thing that officially made him grown in Darry’s eyes. Darry finally pulled him aside when Pony was asleep and together they went through their grocery list, Darry teaching him how to shop cheap, but he always kept things like the bills far away from Soda’s eyes. Soda offered Darry money from the DX, Darry took it, and their lights stayed on and water kept running, but Soda doesn’t know what’s really going on with the numbers. Only Darry does.

Soda knows he’s always been protected by Darry. Since they were little, and even months ago, if Soda ever had any issues with anyone, Darry had his back. Soda didn’t think he was naive about much of anything, but he realizes pretty quickly that Darry will never let anyone have his back the way he does everyone else. Sure, Darry can lean on him, but he’ll be right back to the grind the second he can.

Seeing Darry go from wearing his college sweatshirt into town to his battered work clothes and tool belt placed a guilt in Soda’s heart that he couldn’t ever shake. The worst part was that he never complained about it, not to them. Soda’s beyond grateful to Darry, he’ll never make up for it for as long as he lives. But at the same time he just wants his brother back, and he knows it’ll never happen.

The more I write about Soda the more I love him, ty for helping give my guy some justice🙏 (i hope this is kind of what u wanted to hear abt, sorry if i just yapped in ur ear abt nothing lmfao)

[foreverrandomwritings]

Honey, Honey

Summary: Based off this ask for my Taste of Twenty-Five event. All the reasons Bob really loves his truck in chronological order.

Pairing: Robert "Bob" Floyd x Afab!Reader

Warnings: Reader has a service dog for unspecified food allergy. Illness, death(not Bob or reader), swearing, the training exercise accident and smut at the end. MDNI 18+ only!

Word count: 6,560 (I got a bit carried away)

Masterlist M's Taste of Twenty-Five Masterlist

Bob’s truck meant the world to him. He had been obsessed with it growing up. He’d ride around in the cab with his grandpa around town. They’d have the windows rolled down and would be listening to an old blues tape. The cup holders always had two cups of sweet tea in them. There was a picture of his nan in the visor and Bob always dreamt about having a picture of his future girl up there. His grandpa took great pride in his truck. Bob remembered all the times they would be in the garage with him handing him tools and turning over the key when he was told to.

“Can you hand me that wrench?” Bob grabbed the wrench quickly and handed it over to his grandpa. There had been a gurgling noise when they had run up town and when his grandpa asked Bob if he wanted to help find out the problem Bob jumped at the opportunity. 

“Bobby boy go ahead and turn it over for me.” His grandpa called from his place under the hood. 

“Okay pops.” Little Bobby wasn’t even tall enough to reach the pedals but he could reach the key. He jumped into the truck and pushed the key into the ignition. Excitement was coursing through his little body as he turned the key and the engine came to life. He loved that truck then because it was something him and his grandpa bonded over. 

Then eventually his grandpa got sick and wasn’t able to drive the truck anymore and it sat and sat and sat. Until his grandpa passed away at the beginning of his junior year of high school. His grandpa had left the truck to Bob in his will. So Bob got a job as a busboy up in town that he would juggle between school and helping out on the farm. 

He saved up all his money and during the summer between junior year and senior year he fixed up the truck. He had it repainted the vibrant green it used to be. He had a strict schedule written down in a little notebook he kept in the glove box on when to change the oil, the tires and all the maintenance he’d done. He loved that truck then because it was a small piece of his grandpa he’d always have with him. 

Then when he went off to college he had packed up the bed and made the solo trip with one of those old blues tapes and a glass of sweet tea in the cup holder. When nights would get stressful due to exams or work or missing home he’d climb into that truck and go driving, never having anywhere in mind. He’d flip that visor down and look at the blank spot where the picture of his nan used to be and dream of a day he could add his own picture up there. He loved the truck then because it was a piece of home. 

Eventually that truck moved to and from different bases depending on where he was deployed. He never owned much so it was always easy to pack everything up in the bed and take those solo trips. He’d occasionally look in the passenger seat and wish there was someone there enjoying the old blues tapes that filled the glove box. He loved the truck then because of all the possibilities it made him hopeful for. 

The first time he ever met you he’d been driving to the farmers market early one Saturday morning to get some groceries for the week. He always liked to be one of the first ones there as it was always quieter and he could go booth to booth at a good pace. There was also a booth with tea, coffee and baked goods that opened before all the others that he liked to go to first thing. 

He was only about ten minutes away when he spotted you. You were on the side of the road, phone pressed between your ear and shoulder staring at the smoke billowing out of your hood. He pulled over behind you and clumsily climbed out of the truck. He adjusted his glasses and made his way over to where you were standing. You weren’t alone either, you had a cute little gray and white pitbull sitting next to you that looked at him curiously upon his approach. One ear was mostly gone and its tail looked a bit short as well. Bob noticed he wore a service dog vest. 

“Please don’t put me on hold again.” Your voice was pleading but you let out a large huff of air, rubbing your fingers into your temple. Bob guessed whoever was on the other line had indeed put you on hold. Bob cleared his throat awkwardly and your eyes snapped open from where you had closed them. 

“Uhm. Hello?” You greeted him, he could see clear confusion on your face, which was very pretty he might add.

“I noticed you were having some trouble and I was wondering if I could help out in any way?” His hand was rubbing at the back of his neck sheepishly. 

“Oh. Do you happen to know anything about cars?” The look on your face now was pure hope. The dog beside you was wagging its tail but remained sitting in its spot. 

“I know a thing or two.” He responded and your eyes lit up. Something he decided he wanted to see again. When you started talking again he took that moment to take you in. You were in a pair of worn medium wash jeans with the ankles rolled up and a pair of mustard yellow vans adorning your feet. His eyes looked over your cream shirt where a picture of bees and a jar of honey and a honeycomb sat, with a logo on it; Honey Bee & Comb. 

“It started making a weird clunking noise and then it just started billowing smoke. I barely got it to the side of the road before it shut off. I’m on the phone with a towing company but they keep putting me on hold.” You looked utterly defeated. But Bob gave you a reassuring smile and told you to pop your hood. You did as he said and opened your door to pull the lever. He pulled the hood up, turning his face to the side as the smoke barreled out and fogged up his glasses. He propped it open and backed up a few steps where you were once again standing. 

“Looks like it’s overheated, I have a friend that owns a body shop. He could give you a tow. I can call him right now if you’d like?” Then there was that light in your eyes again. 

“Would you mind? That would really help me out. I’ve been on the phone with these guys for about thirty minutes now.” You waved the phone out in front of you dramatically. He assured you it was fine and pulled his own phone out and pulled up the contact. You hung up your phone and two rings later and the person on the other end answered. 

“Hey Shawn. Would you be able to head out here to Weston street? I have a woman here with me that’s got a broken down car.” You waited as the person responded, looking him over he was wearing a pair of dark wash jeans, worn boots and a navy blue ford t-shirt with a flannel over it. You thought he was the prettiest man you’d ever seen. 

“Alright, I’ll see ya soon.” You quickly looked away as the blonde hung up so he wouldn’t catch you staring. 

“He said he’ll be here in fifteen.” He informed you as he slipped his phone back in his pocket. Your shoulders sagged as you let out some of the stress. 

“Thank you so much….” You trailed off looking at him expectantly. 

“Robert.” He winced as he said it. Because he hasn’t had someone call him that in years. 

“Well thank you Robert.” His name rolled off your tongue and he almost groaned at how sweet it sounded. 

“I’m Y/N, this is Lewis.” You said gesturing to the dog who still sat in the same spot since Bob had walked up. Silence grew between you for a moment as you both stared at each other. 

“Where are you heading to?” Bob hoped you didn’t think he was a creep asking that. But you only gave him a smile and hooked a thumb over your shoulder pointing behind you. 

“Heading to the farmers market.” Bob lit up at the reply. 

“I’m heading that way as well.” You cocked your head and seemed to take him in once again. 

“Oh yea. I’ve seen you around. You’re one of the few early ones.” Bob nodded his head a blush dusting his cheeks and neck at the fact that you had noticed him. 

“Seems as though you are as well.” Though Bob hadn’t remembered seeing you before. 

“I have a booth there so it’s kind of implied that I get there early.” You didn’t seem disappointed that he hadn’t seen you. Which he was thankful for because he didn’t want to disappoint you. 

“What’s your booth?” His eyebrows furrowed as he tried to rack his brain. 

“I sell bee made products, honey, beeswax candles, chapstick and what not.” You waved your hand over your shirt and he finally made the connection. He’d seen your booth but had never gone over because his ma always sent him honey when she shipped him stuff from home. 

“Do you want to load your stuff into my truck? I can take you to the market since I’m already going there anyway.” He was really really hoping you would say yes. You fortunately told him yes and you both loaded up all your stuff into the bed of his truck. Lewis sat in the cab patiently as you loaded everything up. Shawn ended up coming shortly after and towed your car off. Reassuring you he’d have it looked at by the end of the day. In the ride to the market Bob informed you that Shawn was his front seater Michaels husband. 

After Bob helped you set up your booth even though you told him he didn’t need to worry about it. He offered to take you home as well, to which you thanked him and informed him that a friend of yours that had a booth would be taking you home. As you watched his face fall you had nervously asked him if he would like to go to dinner one night that week. He very quickly told you yes. You swapped numbers and then parted ways. He loved his truck that day because without it he probably wouldn’t have been able to help you. 

On your first date he picked you and Lewis up in his truck. Where he had jumped out and rounded the hood to open your door for you. He had given you a bag of treats for Lewis and a compliment on how gorgeous you looked. You spoke about random things including how you had rescued Lewis from a local shelter and put him through service dog training for your food allergy, until you got to the restaurant. Dinner went amazingly and before you both knew it you were in his truck heading back to your house. 

The windows were rolled down and you were humming along to the blues tape that was playing quietly. The cool autumn air was whipping through your hair but you didn’t seem to mind. Even when it got stuck in your chap-stick that coated your lips. When he came around to open the door for you again and you stepped out you asked him very sweetly if you could kiss him and he sheepishly nodded his head. Then he proceeded to lean you up against the truck and kiss you both utterly breathless. He loved the truck then because it was where he had found the feeling of home again in the form of you. 

You’d been dating a few months at this point. He had awkwardly asked you one day if you wanted to go steady with him. Your cheeks had gotten all warm and you gave him a sweet smile and a soft peck on the lips. Then you told him you’d love to go steady with him. The both of you had gotten into a routine of him coming to pick you up and take you to the farmers market on weekend mornings when he wasn’t deployed. 

This particular Sunday had been going like every other one had. You sat in your seat with Lewis between you though he was mostly laying on your lap. You’d picked out an old blues tape and had popped it into the stereo. You were petting Lewis on the head absentmindedly and occasionally sipping on your glass of sweet tea that was held in your other hand. 

You just passed by the spot you’d first met each other and a small smile formed on your lips. Your eyes turned to look at Bob to see him already glancing at you. Your eyes lit up and your smile got bigger and he felt his chest tighten and before he knew it he was spilling out three little words that made you feel like your bees at home were swarming in your stomach. 

“I love you.” He looked at you wide eyed once he realized what he had said. Was it too soon? Would you say it back? Would you leave him? Wait, why were you laughing? The sound of your laugh flowed through him and had him blinking slowly as he stopped at a stop sign and stared at you in bewilderment. 

“I love you too Bob.” You told him before leaning over and planting a soft kiss on his cheek. He took a deep breath and tried to hide the blush that was taking over his face by looking back at the road. But from the way you were looking at him he knew that you saw it. He loved the truck then because you loved him. 

You and Lewis came and picked him up in his truck after one of his deployments. Your car had been acting up again and Bob had insisted you use his truck while he was gone. You knew how much the truck meant to him so you made sure to take great care of it while he was away. You drove the three of you back to your house where Bob had moved into before he left for deployment. Lewis laid in his lap and he pet the dog on the head as he admired how breathtaking you looked driving his truck. 

Once you got home you and Bob reacquainted yourselves with each other before starting on dinner. You had thought you’d had all the ingredients for said dinner but had forgotten to pick up one thing from the store. Bob offered to run up the street to grab it and you told him you could make something else but he assured you that he was up for the short trip. Lewis went with him because he didn’t wanna leave his side. Plus in the safety of your home you didn’t need to worry about your food allergy. 

The sun was still shining so he flipped the visor down and was pleasantly surprised to see a Polaroid picture of you and Lewis in the bed of his truck. You had a large smile on your lips and Lewis had his head tilted to the camera in an absolutely adorable way. Bob couldn’t help the smile that took over his face. 

“I’m gonna marry her one day.” He told Lewis who responded with a soft bark and wag of his tail. Bob loved his truck then because he finally had a picture of you in the place he always wanted one. 

Bob had been super secretive and awkward for a couple of weeks now. You hadn’t thought much of it though, you trusted him more than you trusted anyone else so you figured he had a good reason for the way he was acting. When he asked if you would like to accompany him and Lewis on a secret date you had enthusiastically told him yes. So you had both driven out to a field that Bob had found one day on a hike that was accessible by vehicle as well. 

He made you sit in the cab as he and Lewis got everything set up in the bed of the truck. Why he needed Lewis’ help was lost on you but you just shrugged and took in the view around you. It was such a pretty spot and you understood why Bob loved it so much. You climbed out of the truck when Bob called for you. You gasped when you saw what he had set up. He had laid out a bunch of blankets and pillows. A variety of foods and drinks were spread around. He had lined the side rails with strings of lights. Bob asked you to sit next to Lewis so you did and then noticed he had something in his mouth. 

“What do you have there, boy?” You asked him, holding out your hand waiting for him to drop whatever it was. But what you weren’t expecting was a ring box. You turned to Bob with wide eyes only to see him down on one knee and a nervous smile on his face. 

“I have been completely head over heels for you since the first day I saw you on the side of the road. I couldn’t imagine my life without you honey. Would you go steady with me for the rest of our lives?” The flashback to him asking if you wanted to go steady had you giggling as tears streamed down your face. You couldn’t get any words out so you resorted to nodding your head frantically. 

He reached out a hand and you handed him the box. He opened it to get the ring out and you sobbed at how perfect it was. It was absolutely everything you wanted in a ring. He slipped it onto your finger and as soon as it was settled you were pulling him towards you. Your lips crashed against his and you could feel the mix of yours and his tears in the kiss but you didn’t mind.

“I love you so much Robert.” Slipped out of your lips when you finally pulled away. 

“I love you too Honey.” He whispered to you and then peppered your face in kisses. The rest of the night went by spectacularly, you had dinner and the three of you cuddled up and watched the stars for hours. Bob sat against the truck with you between his legs and Lewis between your own. Your head laid on his shoulder then your breath evened out and he loved his truck then because you said yes. 

You guys had decided to have a small wedding. It was his friends Michael and Shawn whom you had grown close to. Your friend who took you home that first day you and Bob met was ordained so they married the two of you. And of course there was Lewis. You decided for your honeymoon you’d drive up to finally meet his family. 

Which is exactly what you did. Even though you’d met them through FaceTime and phone calls you’d never met them in person. You knew how much they meant to Bob so you were buzzing with excitement the whole way to Lima, Montana. 

Everything was going smoothly. You left early Saturday morning hoping to get there by Saturday night. It was Bob's turn to nap so he was. His head was on a pillow leaning against the window on the door. Lewis had his head in his lap and was sleeping as well. Then suddenly Bob was being woken up with a gentle touch on his shoulder. He blinked his eyes open slowly and grabbed his glasses from the dash before finally focusing on you. When his eyes landed on your face he was suddenly fully awake. You had silent tears streaming down your face and looked at him fearfully. 

“What’s wrong honey?” He asked you softly, reaching out to grab your hand. When he got ahold of it he felt you shaking and that only worried him more. He looked around quickly and noticed you were pulled over on the side of a back road. 

“I’m sorry.” Was all you said with a sad voice. 

“What’re you sorry for?” You looked down at where your hands were intertwined and mumbled out your reply. 

“We have a flat tire and a large scratch down the side of the truck.” He furrowed his brow at you in confusion because when in the hell did that happen? 

“What happened honey?” He unbuckled his seat belt and scooted closer to you causing Lewis to switch him seats. 

“Just come and look.” You told him and opened your door climbing out and he followed you. When he got out and saw the large scratch in the green paint down the side of the truck he couldn’t stop the gasp that slipped through his lips. A sob left your own mouth and his eyes quickly found you again.

“I’m really sorry, I was following behind a truck and he had a bunch of stuff in his bed. I thought I was far enough back that if anything flew out I wouldn’t be within range of being hit. But a piece of barbed wire came out and I just couldn’t get out of the way fast enough. It popped the tire and scratched up the side.” You took a deep breath before continuing, your fingers danced along the scratched paint sadly. “I know how much you love this truck. I really love it too and I’m so so sorry that this happened.” 

“Oh honey.” He said softly, taking you in his arms and kissing your head. He breathed in the smell that was uniquely you and took a moment to gather his thoughts. 

“It’s okay honey, we’ll put the spare on and once we get to my parents we’ll go into town and get them to replace the tires. Then we’ll have Shawn fix the paint when we get home. I’m just happy that we are all safe, you handled the situation perfectly.” He ran his hand down your back as you calmed your crying. You guys then changed to the spare Bob had been thoughtful enough to pack in the bed. You got into town late and met his family who all completely adored you. 

The next day you went into town to the only mechanics there was. You paced the lobby until they came out with the keys and told you everything was taken care of and you were good to go. You practically ran out to the truck and Bob loved the truck then because you loved it just as much. 

When Bob had gone down in the training exercise with Phoenix he hadn’t planned on telling you until after the mission. Which may have sounded awful because you were his wife after all. But he just didn’t want you to worry over nothing. However what he didn’t know was that Maverick had called to inform you and that you were on your way up to see him. 

He was in the middle of a conversation with Phoenix, whom he was sharing a room with when he heard familiar tapping of claws in the hallway. Before he could process what exactly that meant Lewis came bolting into the room and jumped onto his bed. Then you came running in behind him. He stared at you with wide eyes as you ran up to him and cupped his face looking him over for injury. 

“Honey, what’re you doing here?” He blinked at you slowly as he started to pet Lewis’ head. 

“Someone named Maverick called, he told me your plane had gone down during an exercise today. I was worried and just needed to see you. I also figured you wouldn’t tell me until you got back home and I couldn’t handle waiting. I need to see with my own eyes that you were alright.” It was a light scolding but he still blushed nonetheless. Then you gave him a soft kiss and stood back up. 

“How’s Michael, Shawn and the babies?” You knew he was changing the subject to avoid you scolding him anymore. But you let him do it anyway. Plus talking about his previous front seater and his new family members would cheer you both up. When Michael’s contract came back up he had decided not to reenlist because he and his husband Shawn were in the process of adopting and it would be an easier transition if Michael was a stay at home dad. 

“They are doing amazing. Michael is slowly adjusting to no longer being in the service, Shawn is glad to have him home. The triplets have been a handful since they picked them up from the hospital. They are all absolutely adorable, especially Robert.” Your smile was bright as you told him a bit more about the family. They had named one of two boys after him.  Then when you stopped talking you finally turned to the other person in the room. She looked terrified when your eyes met her own. 

“You’re Phoenix right? His front seater for this mission?” She glanced between you and Bob and Bob gave her a small nod. 

“Uhm yes. I-I’m really sor-.” But before she could finish her guilt ridden apology you were right next to her bed. 

“Are you okay? Do you need me to call anyone for you?” She choked on air at the way you were now dotting on her. She looked at Bob and he had a wide smile on his face and adoration in his eyes. 

“I’m okay. I called my fiancé already, so she knows I’m okay.” Bob looked sheepish as you both turned to glare at him when she said that. 

“Can I hug you?” You were bouncing on the balls of your feet, you just really felt the need to comfort her.  

“Uh yes.” She stuttered out and then she was wrapped up in your arms. She hadn’t realized she really needed a hug until then. You held her until she let go. 

“Thank you for keeping my husband safe.” You told her after pulling away. As Bob looked at you he loved his truck because it brought him, you. 

A couple of weeks after the mission the dagger Squad were all given the option of moving to Fightertown permanently. They would be their own squad indefinitely. Bob had asked you immediately what your thoughts were. He wasn’t sure you’d go for it since your life was in Lemoore. But you assured him you’d love to move there if he would. Because he didn’t have a front seater in Lemoore. Plus from what he had told you the rest of the Dagger Squad worked beautifully together once they got over bad blood. 

So you guys took a couple weeks to pack up then you were heading off to Fightertown. You had your bees in the bed of the truck, a whole bunch of things in the U-Haul hitched to the truck. All the bigger items had been picked up by the navy movers. You’d decided to sell your junk ass car to Shawn who was gonna fix it up and sell it at his shop. You’d also promised to come back and visit them often, as well as your friends and family that lived there. Selling your house in Lemoore and buying a house with plenty of land in Fightertown had been surprisingly easy. 

“Lewis is gonna have quite the time getting to know everyone and getting allocated to a new home. You said that Mav’s girlfriend has a dog right?” The only part of this you were nervous about was Lewis. Since you’d had him you’d only ever lived in one place. He had made friends at your local dog park as well as other dogs that had been in your service dog training courses. 

“Yea, his name is Theo. I think they’ll get along great. Plus I think Lewis will love Paybacks kids. We could also go to one of the shelters in town and find him a friend.” Bob had been doing a search for another dog already but he just hadn’t told you. He’d even found a dog that you guys could go and pick up in a week. She was a pitbull lab mix that had been surrendered by her previous owners because they were moving and claimed they couldn’t take her with them. Funnily enough her name was Bee, which Bob thought you would absolutely adore. 

You started to excitedly rant about how amazing it would be to get another dog. Then about how excited you were to meet everyone. Bob glanced at you and saw the way the sun was shining through the window on your face. You looked like a dream and Bob couldn’t help but love that his truck was taking you both to a future that held so many possibilities for the both of you. 

Bob didn’t really understand what had gotten into you but you just couldn’t seem to keep your hands off him. You’d had dinner with Phoenix and her fiancé which had become a regular occurrence. Phoenix and her fiancé had taken extreme care in the food they prepared so you hadn’t worried about bringing Lewis and Bee. Your eyes however hadn’t left his form all night. Every time he’d glance at you he’d find your eyes already glued to him. When you were saying goodbye to the duo you’d made it quick and were dragging Bob out of their house.  

Now here you were with a hand down his pants slowly stroking his cock and sucking bruises into the skin of his neck. He was concentrating very hard on keeping control of the truck on the road. You weren’t very far from your house which he was grateful for. He let out a low moan as you ran your thumb along the tip of his cock and gathered the precum that was leaking from it. 

“Honey.” He muttered out, you nipped at his neck gently before pulling away and looking at him with lust filled eyes. He groaned as he took in the sight of your swollen lips. 

“We’re almost home Bob, just pay attention to the road.” So that’s what he did: he kept both hands on the steering wheel and both eyes on the road as you resumed your assault on his neck. Your hand continued to slowly pump his cock, your thumb brushing the tip every so often. A low moan would leave his lips every time. 

When he turned onto the long gravel driveway lined by trees that lead back to your house your hand slipped out of his pants, you unbuckled your seat belt and positioned yourself so you were kneeling on the seat. You worked quickly to unzip his pants and pull his boxers down enough to slip his cock free. Your hand then was replaced by your lips and he couldn’t help himself as one of his hands left the steering wheel and found its way into your hair. He helped guide you up and down his length. You gagged as he hit the back of your throat before pulling up and going back down. 

The truck came to a stop as he rolled up to the front of the house and his hand left your hair to shift it into park. He fumbled to snatch the keys out and slip them into his pocket. His head tipped back as your tongue swirled around his tip. He muttered your name quietly, not really sure what he was asking for. He felt himself getting close but he wasn’t ready for this to be over just yet so he gently guided your mouth away from his cock. When you were sitting up his lips met your own in a rushed pace, he was eager to taste your lips and moaned at the taste of him on your tongue as you slipped it passed his lips. 

“Bob, please.” The request was a whisper on your lips as you pulled away. He knew what you were asking for without you needing to say anything. 

“Take off your pants honey.” He slipped his cock back into his underwear but kept his pants unzipped. He fumbled while opening his door before stumbling out and watching with hooded eyes as you maneuvered out of your shoes and pants and threw them on the floor of the truck. 

He took a second to take in how pretty you looked, your hair a mess, lips swollen, a wet patch forming on your underwear from how aroused you were. The look of complete lust on your face had his control slipping. He grabbed both of your ankles and yanked your body toward him. Your ass was on the edge of the seat.  His hands found your panties and slipped them down your legs and tucked them into the pocket of his jeans. You were practically vibrating in anticipation as you waited for him to make a move. 

Right as you opened your mouth to beg for his touch he was on you. His tongue slipped between your folds, one of your hands shot for his hair, fingers tangling in the strands as a loud moan left your mouth. He was bent over at the hips and his knees were slightly bent but he didn’t care that he’d probably wake up a bit sore from the awkward angle. All he cared about was that you tasted sweeter than the slice of cheesecake you’d shared for dessert. Really you tasted better than anything he could ever imagine. So he told you so, pulling his mouth away he replaced his tongue with his fingers, slipping them in and out of you languidly. 

“Fuck honey, you taste sweeter than anything I’ve ever had before.” He sucked a bruise into your thigh leaving a feather light kiss over it. 

“I don’t think I’ll ever find anything sweeter than you. Love you so much. ” He sucked a bruise into the inside of your other thigh, running his tongue over the skin to soothe it. You weren’t sure if the cry of his name leaving your lips was because of the words he was whispering or because of the way his mouth found its way back to your cunt. His lips found your clit and sucked on it delicately. His fingers curled and found that spot in you that had you letting out a mumbled string of curses. 

“Bobby, feels so good.” You whined as his tongue flicked your clit. “So close, I-I-I’m so close.” The words were barely making any sense but you hoped he understood. Your fingers that were still in his hair gripped tighter and with one more curl of his fingers you hit your climax and felt like you were flying, your hips had a mind of their own as they bucked against his face. Your legs tightened around his head and he took his time cleaning up every drop of cum you’d given him. 

When your legs finally relaxed, your hand leaving his head he pulled away and gave you a soft smile. Your chest was heaving as you tried to catch your breath. He rubbed soothing circles on your thighs with his thumbs and was about to suggest going inside before you whined a request at him. 

“Need you inside me.” You sounded utterly spent but who was he to deny you what you wanted. So he pulled his aching cock out of his boxers, situated himself at your entrance and as your legs wrapped around him he sunk into you. You both let out equally blissed moans as you settled into the feeling of euphoria. 

“You feel so fucking tight honey.” His country drawl was thick as he groaned out the words. His hair was sticking up all over the place and his glasses were crooked, his lips and chin were still wet with your arousal and suddenly you couldn’t stand being so far from him so you quickly sat up and wrapped your arms around his neck. He wrapped his own around your thighs and pulled you out of the truck. You were thankful you’d kept your shirt on as he leaned you against the side of the truck all while staying seated inside you.  

“Gonna move now.” He whispered to you before burying his face in your neck. He pulled himself almost all the way out and then thrust back in. It didn’t take him long to find a steady rhythm that felt good for the both of you. Your clit was getting a delightful friction everytime he moved and you were squeezing around him in a way that made him feel a little dizzy. 

“Bob, Bob.” His name fell from your lips like a prayer and the glasses wearing aviator almost fell to his knees as you slipped a hand into his hair and brought his lips to your own. They meshed together in a familiar dance, soft and practiced, yet still taking his breath away like the first time you’d kissed. His hands were squeezing your thighs as your tongues met each other and he swallowed the moan you let out as his thrusts began to stutter. 

His lungs needed to fill back up with air so he pulled away from your lips, nipping the bottom one with his teeth as he went. A whine left you at the loss of him. But he soothed you with sweet nothings as he got closer and closer to his climax. His forehead rested against yours. 

“Honey. I’m gonna, oh fuck, I’m gonna.” He could barely get the words out, but he wanted you to cum first. He was already so close from the edging you’d given him on the way home. 

“I’m close bob, m’gonna cum. Wanna feel you cum.” Your words were breathy and sounded like a plea. Your walls squeezed around him and he couldn’t stop it as his orgasm ripped through him. Your own following soon after. The both of you stood wrapped in each other's arms for a few moments, soaking in the feeling of being with one another.

The barking of your dogs from inside had you finally separating. Bob hissed slightly as he pulled out of you. He reached inside the truck and grabbed your pants and shoes before closing the door of the truck and walking you up to the porch. He set you down and let you slip your pants back on and take your shoes. Then you slipped the keys out of his pocket and opened the door. He turned and looked back, one thought in his mind as he shut the door behind him, he really loved that truck.

A/N: Thank you so so so so so much for being so patient while I got this done. I had such an amazing time writing this! Might've been just what I needed to get back into the groove of writing!

Taglist: @wkndwlff @sylviebell @kmc1989 @teacupsandtopgun @eternallyvenus @loving-and-dreaming

[nutastrology]

Astrology Degrees

Ever wonder what those numbers next to your zodiac placements mean?

If you’ve ever looked at your birth chart, you’ve probably noticed a set of numbers on the right of your zodiac placements. These are degrees and are quite specific based on your time of birth. Accurate birth times are imperative for applying degree theory when studying your natal chart.

Degrees are important in astrology for accurate interpretation. Just as in Geometry, every degree of an angle counts.

A good way to understand this is by thinking of triangles. Obtuse, acute, and isosceles triangles are all triangles. But you can easily recognize their differences based on the apparent angle measurements. These measurements impact the way we calculate geometric shapes and their formulas. We wouldn’t get an accurate result for an equation using the wrong information. This same logic applies to calculating a birth chart — and again, this is why an accurate birth time is SO important!

Looking at my placements below, I have most of my degrees between 12 and 29. This means that for me, this life journey has been set in motion for some time. I’m “picking up” in many ways where I’ve left off. Completing some cycles, ending others. Interestingly, I have the same Moon sign and placement (Aquarius in the third house) and Rising sign as my mother. Though at different degrees (mine later than hers), we enjoy exploring these “cosmic inheritances” when discussing our birth charts. You may notice I have two placements at the 29th degree, aka the Anaretic degree. This marks an evolution of the soul as it’s the final degree before the reset of a cycle, signified by zero degrees. We only see 0° when a planet first moves into a new sign.

Each degree represents a different zodiac sign and energy, some more specific, positive, or challenging than others.

The energy of each degree varies depending on where it falls from zero to 29 degrees. For example, the “earlier” degrees (i.e., the 4th and 7th degrees) represent an “early” stage of maturity and soul development. The middle degrees (i.e., 15th and 16th) represent deeper integration with these energies and processes. As we approach the end of the degree spectrum (such as with the 28th degree) we have reached a karmic “endpoint” based on energies already set in motion — we’ve finally made it.

Below you will find the list of each degree and a (simplified) meaning of that degree.

Keep in mind, astrology has many layers to explore. This is a brief notation of each degree.

0° - Marks the beginning of a new cycle, start “all over” with relation to planetary energies and meanings, critical degree. 1° - Aries / Mars: car engines, abuse, sports/athlete, military, weapon, anger, business person, speed/quickness, the color red, coming first, “in front” arguments, war.

2° - Taurus / Venus: containment/small spaces, wealth, forest, trees, food, luxuries, voice, singing, the color green, earth.

3° Gemini / Mercury: two of something, siblings, hands, double, local, small town, neighborhood, groups, birds, tea, friends, the color yellow.

4° Cancer / Moon: mother, home, public, crowd, water, in the home, the color white, critical degree.

5° Leo / Sun: strong, royal, leader, high school, fun, athletics, gym/working out, outdoors, top of a hill, family, mountain, view, hair, ego, children.

6° Virgo / Mercury: health, “ex”, sickness/illness, work, routine, pets, hospitals, doctors, manual service.

7° Libra / Venus: beauty, luxury items, earrings/jewelry, fashion, couples, music, art, marriage, justice, associates, legalities, courtrooms.

8° Scorpio / Pluto: secrets, death, sex, insurance, taxes, jealousy, pregnancy/womb, someone else’s “things”.

9° Sagittarius / Jupiter: college, borders, professors, foreign, travel, archery, having a plan.

10° Capricorn / Saturn: public office, public official, public-facing, coal, slow, delay, the color black, shadow side, depression.

11° Aquarius / Uranus: interruptions, divorce, high places, flying, airports, high tech, engineers, helping others, friends, networks, organizations, electricity.

12° Pisces / Neptune: swimming, near water, disguises, illusions, missing, rain, flood, out of focus, misplaced, unclear, “foggy”.

As you can see, degrees 1 through 12 align with the zodiac calendar. Once you reach the 13th degree, you reset in the sign of Aries as you can see below:

13° Aries: critical degree.

14° Taurus

15° Gemini: assassinations or killings.

16° Cancer

17° Leo: critical degree.

18° Virgo

19° Libra

20° Scorpio: jealously or revenge.

21° Sagittarius: large road, new places, critical degree.

22° Capciron: destruction, critical degree.

23° Aquarius: “to cut”.

24° Pisces

25° Aries

26° Taurus: critical degree.

27° Gemini

28° Cancer

29° Leo: kingdoms, critical degree.

[writingcold]

Hi.  Welcome to the Epilogue.  It’s short, but mighty.  I truly, truly hope that you have enjoyed my Bootleggers and Wildflowers.  They have been so fun to write.  

If you are just joining us, you can find the Master List to the series here

Here’s the last time I’m going to say it: @lvnterninthenight, @gardensgatedaisy and @whitesuitjake thank you from the bottom of my toes to the tip of my head for your assistance, patience and talents.

This is a work of fiction, and is totally mine.  Please do not take it for your own personal use.  I’ve put in hours of research, hours upon hours of writing, re-writing, screaming, yelling and vomiting over this epic of a story.  But it is mine.

Content warning:  18+ only story.  Fluff.  Family.  Hardship of the 1930’s and the Great Depression.  But, mostly fluff.

Word count: approx. 3200

Epilogue - Cora

Summer 1933

     The hard times started one year and two months after their wedding.  Jacob and Cora had just welcomed their first child when it seemed the world went wild with grief and darkness.  For the honeymoon, they had gotten into his newest car - a cherry red Packard Twin Roadster.  Cora thought the car was wildly flamboyant.  Jake teased that he loved seeing her frugal and modest nature crumble the moment she slid into the passenger seat, feeling the suppleness of the leather and the smooth ride across the road.  And he was right.  There were little luxuries that he injected into her life that she could not be without - a pretty tea set, a soft bed, touches through the quality fabric of her dresses, a variety of food in her belly every night.  To see her family flourish in their new home was a blessing she promised to never take for granted.  

      If Cora had thought that she had gathered so much life in the two years she had lived before marrying Jacob, the first year of their marriage was like living life at a full sprint.  The Baras’ Brothers General and Mercantile Store opened for official business while they were on their auto touring trip.  Joshua, Daniel and Samuel launched the moment they could, offering Arbor Vitae their first real access to a wide variety of needs.  Within a month, Sam opened an auto garage and gas service station next door.  Molly carved out a bit of a tailoring shop on the opposite side of the street.  Rosemary found her hands needed as men streamed in from the logging camps, swamping Molly with so many repairs that she needed assistance right away.  Assistance that her mother was delighted to provide.  Cora took the job of accounting for all the family businesses - a job that she was happy to manage from the home that Jacob had built at the edge of town.

      She walked through the functional kitchen, a cup of tea in her hand.  The quiet of the house filled her as she sat down at the rich oak dining table.  Across the walls and sideboard, instead of art of a well-to-do wife, she had pictures of them all - all the family.  It was difficult not to be reflective as the children slept and her hand on her very pregnant belly as the next little one stirred against her.  Her smile tugged as she cooed down at the next blessing.  She had been feeling little flutters all morning.  Flutters she knew would make loud announcements in a short time to bring forth the next member of their family.  Blowing out a soft, cooling breath across her tea, she looked across to the last photo Joshua had taken of her brothers.

      Matthew, Jonathan and Georgie stood shoulder to shoulder with serious faces and crisp linen suits.  It was taken just a few days before Matthew traveled to the east for the Autumn term at the college where his namesake had once made home.  The eldest of her brothers had made quite the impression on his professors and had established himself amongst his peers.  He was settling in Boston after the university there invited him to teach.  Cora knew that their father’s spirit of sharing knowledge resided deep within him.  It would be a good fit for the young man seeking to set his roots.  Jon blossomed under Samuel’s tutelage, becoming quite the engineer and helping at the auto garage.  The young man showed more than talent, but a mind for innovation as well.  He felt strangled when he tried college, finding that he needed to be tinkering rather than pointing out the flaws in his professor’s methods and lessons.  After two terms of university, Jon was snatched up by a large car company and moved to Detroit.  Sam was as proud as he could be of his protege.  Georgie, the last of the boys to be home with Rosemary, was preparing to leave for college soon.  He would be joining Matthew in Boston, with a focus on the family business as his guide.  He had taken an interest in the management of the shops, to which Jake was quick to foster.  The Janas family lived a good, secure life.  Quite the opposite of their situation only seven years prior.  A blessing she held terribly close in her heart.

      Samuel’s service station was wildly popular with locals and tourists alike.  The first year without Susannah had been rough to aid him through.  The young man’s wounds were bone deep and bled often as he struggled to heal.  The station helped return his mind to normal.  His reputation of making cars go fast trickled through the various car clubs that traveled through town that first summer of business.  He was approached by a driver asking about what he knew about endurance racing.  The thought of traveling around the world to showcase his talent that had once been for illegitimate offerings was not lost on the young man.  He would spend seven months of each year on the circuit then return home to hearth and home, the conquering hero.  After the second season, he returned with a woman he had met and married in Poland.  The happiness that had jolted the man’s heart filled every room he graced.  It was another blessing that the family could count.

    Molly and Daniel had settled in a house down the road from them.  Pregnancies were hard on the sassy woman.  The grief over losses culminated in the decision to become a doting aunt and uncle.  Molly took pleasure in snuggling each child, but to have the ability to turn them back home when fussy was a luxury all its own.  Daniel and Jacob ran the shops efficiently.  Their partnership was close knit with more than enough work to go around.  Daniel shone in the community with his patient nature and level-headed decision making.  He had become a fixture on the town board with whispers of perhaps a mayoral term in his future.  Molly would cackle behind closed doors about a former bootlegger and dancing girl becoming respectable in society without anyone the wiser.  But she knew - it was a blessing.  All of it and in between.  A blessing afforded by sacrifice that was not willingly given.

     Her eyes traced to the numerous pictures of her and Jacob.  Her handsome husband and partner.  Matthew Kelly arrived a week before the stock market crash that  blackened October 28th, 1929.  He brought such joy to their home that Cora was sure would rupture it from its sheer capacity.  But then, tragedy.  Unlike so many in the community, the Baras’ family weathered the perpetual storms with restraint and bonds that were stronger than steel.  

      Next to the photo of Jake holding infant Matthew was one of the twins.  Stone faced, seated with bodies turned slightly towards each other, it belied the laughter that rang out once the camera flashed.  Joshua, though invested throughout the community, became restless shortly after the dark days began to unfold.  He was instrumental in immediately setting up aid to those who were affected, seeing to it that hungry mouths had food to turn to as well as having shelters built for families displaced from instant foreclosure.  Joshua’s spirit grew restless in the small community that held few options for him.  He drifted in his pursuits, moving further and further away from hearth and home, traveling the country in search of his niche.  Always graced with the gift of words, Josh had discovered an opportunity to delve into his love of film.  Instead of Hollywood, he found himself behind a camera, capturing the horrendous human suffering of the time.  He was able to put pictures and words to those who were too smothered to be heard and seen.  He became active in documenting atrocities of what would become a defining moment in history.  Though he was far from home, Joshua marched to his family’s heartbeat always.  Caring and sheltering those he could by bringing awareness to their strife.  Cora grinned at the photo, knowing that Joshua was a blessing to her in more than just offering her a glimmer of opportunity that was doubtful in the beginning.  Her husband’s brother saw within her something that could be pushed, nurtured and elevated to be a pillar of strength of his family.  For that, she would always be grateful.

      In the center of the wall, hung a beautifully framed photograph of the entire family, all together.  Rosemary and Dorothy were the center with both sides of the family fanning out behind them.  Though on the fringe, Junie could be seen holding the hand of Lucas for the very first time.  It was a moment no one realized until the finished piece arrived in the lovely silver frame.  Lucas provided her sister with the kind of quiet love Junie needed.  The young man held her with such tenderness, yet protected Cora Rose with a fierceness that rivaled the girl’s mother.  Lucas had started to expand on the little cottage next to Dotty’s, but the woman gifted the big house to them instead.  Cora Rose became sister to Ada Marie the following year and the house would become what Dorothy Baroski wanted it to be - a home for a family.  The shelter the woman had afforded Junie when it most needed, turned to the blessing of found family.  

     Cora’s belly constricted once more, hard, under her fingertips.  The air in her lungs burned as she tried to breathe through the stirrings.  Shifting for the eighth time in an effort to remain comfortable, her eyes strayed to the grand clock.  The fourth hour chime would fill the home with a tone that was meant to prepare for the evening.  However, she knew it would be a few hours yet before Jacob would return to her.

     Their twins, Sarah Jane and Junie Belle, arrived in March of 1931.  Tiny little things, the pair screamed their way into the home and their parents’ hearts.  The picture of Jake holding both babies while she held Matthew on her hip was one of her favorites.  A hint of a smile resided on her man’s face that happened to be there from the moment of the vows, never straying, never fading.  Her Jacob.  Her handsome husband.  He was a better father than she could have hoped for.  Echoes of her father resounded in her spirit as he would swish around holding the babies in his strong arms as they babbled and sang songs that floated out of the radio.  He read to them every chance he received, spinning tales that she was sure had been his favorites as a child.  He glowed in the presence of his children.  

     Though the dark did not seem to touch the Bara’s household, it ravaged their community.  It was not uncommon for men from all over the region to gather on the main street and wait for jobs in order to feed their families.  Men as far away as Eau Claire and Waukesha would show up and wait for the timber crews to glean from their numbers for logging to the north.  A few were brought on to the farms for day help, but that was mostly just in the Spring and Autumn months when help was needed.  Most were unsuccessful in their search for work, leaving an endless march of souls that were hungry and lost to the time at hand.

      Junie would drive into town four afternoons a week with Dottie, bringing in extras from the garden and donating time in the soup kitchen.  Jacob, on his walk home each evening after the shop closed at six, would stop in the kitchen to sneak in a ten dollar bill when no one was looking.  He would take a few minutes to play ‘Look what I found’ with a few of the children, pretending to find tiny bags of lollipops or hard candy or toffee treats to share.  He always felt he needed to give more.  More time.  More smiles to lighten the heaviness of the spirit of their community.  In truth, Cora knew the man would give every last shred to shield them all from this dragon that threatened them.  

     The flash of pain blazed from her core, spreading down through her legs and up through her chest.  She knocked her tea cup, spilling its ignored contents across the deep toned wood.  Gasping for breath, she fought to steady herself while her body worked to bring the baby forth.  The bloom rapidly subsided and she stood to retrieve a towel from the kitchen.  As she sopped up the mess, she could hear Matthew stirring in his room.  Shaking her head, she knew it was time.  Moving to the hall, she lifted the phone to first call the midwife, Mrs. Totts.  Next was a call to Molly’s shop to request one of them to alert Jacob and then to come and retrieve the children for the night.  It was a well run plan that they had planned out and executed.  As she hung the receiver, she bent, holding her belly and swallowing the pain the best she could so as not to worry the children.     

      Time ticked along with the mechanical sound of the clock that she stood beside with eyes trained on the door.  Each tick brought a pinch to her breath while each tock, the heat of her labor spread further around her back.  She could hear the girls waking in their room above her.  There would be no way she would be able to climb the stairs to comfort them, welcome them back from their slumber.  A soft gasp dripped from her lips as another flare struck her.  

     Her brain began to latch onto anything around her in search of comfort.  At the edge of the sideboard was a photo of Jake and her with Marcus.  It had been taken shortly after Matthew had been born when their dear friend passed through town.  The sight of the man who treated her like his own daughter soothed her.  Marcus held an orderly court in Iron Mountain as the waves from the Kiszka and Wagner reign blazed to a close.  He talked about how times were about to change once more.  The end of Prohibition would bring legitimate business back to the liquor trade, effectively cutting off revenue for ‘family ties’ as Marcus put it.  He had hopes of retiring.  He had hopes of finding a soft place to land amongst the trying times.  She had hoped that perhaps in time he would find his path back to them.  

      “Mama?”  Matthew called from the top of the stairs, his little voice filled with sleep and worry.

      She bared her teeth as she tried to move towards the foot of the stairs but a sudden flush of liquid between her legs stopped her immediately.  Her jaw dropped as her knees started to bend to lower herself to the floor.  

      “Stay there, Matthew,”  she managed, trying to sound normal.

      The screech of the screen door followed by the solid sound of the front door opening brought her heart a moment of relief.  Molly’s eyes grew wide when she found her in between the hall and the dining room.

      “Oh, Mama,”  she breathed.  “That close?  Let’s get you up, dolly.”

      Cora breathed out in pain as her friend helped her back to her feet and to a chair.  “Get the babies.  The stroller-”

      “I know where everything is.  Don’t you worry about a thing,”  she remarked as she turned.  “Jake’s right behind me.  You call Mrs. Totts?”

      Cora nodded in answer as her hands smoothed around to the base of her belly.  The door flew open once more, admitting Jacob with a worried look in his eyes.  She held up her hands to him.

      “I saw Molly-”

      “Up here,”  she called.  “Got a few things to do first.  Get her to your room.”

      He helped her to stand once more as a contraction struck.  She fell against him, but he held firm.  Breathing him in as her body struggled through the process, she could feel his heartbeat through the linen of his jacket.  

      “Ready?”  he whispered, his fingers pressing into her back.

      All she could do was nod.  He helped her into the bedroom.  “I left a mess,”  she said, feeling her cheeks blush.

      “Do not worry about that.  I’ll get it,”  he answered as he moved her to the side of the bed.  

      He proceeded to start in on the buttons of her dress before unhooking her stockings and taking off her shoes.  He reached for the nightdress that she had worn for all three pregnancies and wrapped it around her before helping her into the bed with a firm hand and gentle kiss to her mouth.  They heard Mrs. Totts walk through the front door with a knock as Molly worked her way down the stairs.  Jacob sat on the edge, his body a bastion of strength for her to hold to as the storm raged across her belly.  He whispered love and devotion into her hair as she tried to breath through the waves.

      “Mr. Bara,”  Mrs. Totts scolded as she made her way inside.  “That is enough of you.  Out.”

      He laughed through his nose as he leaned into her, capturing her gaze.  “I love you.  I can’t wait to meet our newest cherished one.”

      He pressed a gentle kiss to her mouth before the old woman could physically remove him from his room.  She watched him go and turn back with a wave before closing the door.  The labor was longer than with the others.  She could hear Jacob becoming frustrated as he waited in the dining room.  At times she could hear her mother’s voice.  Others, Danny and Georgie.  Just when she thought she was too tired to go on, she felt a calm wash over her.  It was a strange sensation she got with each of the babies - a calm that soothed her spirit and refocused her nerves just before they were pushed into the hands of Mrs. Totts.  Her heart grew quiet until the first note of a cry filled the room and relief filled every pore of her being.  

      The radiance of pure love was a welcomed friend in her family.  Cora, exhausted, watched as Jacob took their newest son, Jacob Thomas, Junior into his arms and held him close, kissing him on his forehead in complete happiness.  Mrs. Totts frowned as Jake maneuvered beside his wife as she left.  He cradled Cora against him as she brought the baby up to her breast to feed him.  It was a blessing that both would feel, together.  This idea of togetherness in their family.  The blessing of forever. 

The End.

So if you enjoyed my story, please please please, share it.  Reblog it.  Comment.  Let me know the good, the bad, the ugly, because I do love to hear every thought you have - it will help me to only get better.  I appreciate it more than you know.

Thank you everyone for being patient and reading along with the story.  I hope to have something a little different for you soon.  Something gothic for October.  🎃👻

@lvnterninthenight @doodle417 @luverleaver @jakesgrapejuice @fictional-duchess @whitesuitjake @milkgemini @positivegvfthings @songbirds-sweet @streamingcolors-gvf @gretavanbitches @samsurfgreenbass @gardensgatedaisy @babyhoneygvfarchive @myownparadise96 @josh-iamyour-mama @starcatchercarol @loveisonaroll @jakesstarlight @reesetrippingthelight @builtby-gvf @ignite-my-fire @ohgodthefeeling-gvf @wetkleenex-gvf @gold-mines-melting @starsasone @puzzle-gvf @mysticalstarcatcher @montenegroisr @takenbythemadness @way-to-go-lad @cal-a-bungaa @lightmylove-gvf @thewritingbeforesunrise @leftjudgeempathsuitcase @brokenbells11 @imborrowedshesblue @vanfleeter @sammysvanfeet @jakekiszkasbuttsweat @jaketlove @redsierra1960 @gvfmarge @becinabubblegvf @wildbluesorbit @sinarainbows

[artsynightowl]

Plauge of Consequences

Description: You're a college student living on your own for the first time. Everything seems to be moving so fast yet so slow. Learning to adjust to adulting is taking it toll. Now you're new job is either going to be your savior or worst nightmare. Being a janitor wasn't at a Pizzaplex wasn't your first choose in jobs, but seemed the best option with your new schedule need to a slightly above average job. Maybe it was because the bots put off questionable emotions. Almost made them seem sentient. Nevertheless, a job was a job and here you are now.

Chapter One: Claws Out

Word count: 5,934

1/? Of chapters

Gender Neutral

Adulting was already going to be hard. The apartment smelled slightly musty, paint was a light tan and bare. Furniture was lacking, a crunchy bean bag, as well as a new mattress, sat on the floor. The kitchen had a pan, and pot that could both be bigger. The two plates and two bowls were nothing fancy. They came as a weirdly cheap bundle deal at the thrift store down the road.

    Most of the stuff you got came from the thrift store or dumpster diving. The apartment deposit, rent, new mattress, and textbook costs a lot more than you had expected. It was a good thing I had gotten one of the many jobs you applied for. Anything was better than nothing right now even if your new workplace was across town and paid a little under what you were hoping for. Still, it was enough to get by plus some. How bad could it be?

***

    "Well shit." You stare dumbstruck at the building. Had you thought of working at the PizzaPlex through? Well, yea, to some degree, but it didn't hit you till now that you are picking up and cleaning all day. In a place that has hundreds of thousands of children.

    With a sigh, you made your way through the gigantic doors and into the front lobby. The place was popping. Families covered most of the floor. Most were parents following their kids around. Then there are the kids running around like chickens chasing each other.

    You simply ignored them and scanned the sides of the room. The administration office was almost completely covered by the lost and found. It was pretty tiny. As you made your way over to the desk your thoughts were racing, 'Was this a good idea? Maybe you could find another job making the same with a flexible schedule like this one? Nope. This is it. Hopefully the cramped rank bus didn't affect my appearance too much.'

    "H-hello, I'm supposed to be training for my new job as-" The bot you're speaking to stared at you blankly as you talked before turning around mid-sentence. When the bot whipped back around they shoved some clothes, a name tag/key card, a faz watch, and a mini faz tablet.

    "Welcome to Freddy's Mega Pizzaplex! The Glamrock family is thrilled that you. Scott sends his regards for not being able to teach you. He has assigned you a glamrock staff tablet and faz watch with instructions for you." He then grabs a map from behind the booth and opens it. "Please make your way to the customer service area here. Thank you again for joining the Glamrock family, (Y/N)."

    You grab the map and mumble thanks before following the map to customer service. Between you looking at the map making sure you're going the right way and fumbling to get faz watch to your wrist you almost walk into a kid and parent. In reality, the parent was dragging the kid in front of you not paying attention. How could you tell? The kid tripped over your shoe when you stopped and the mother paid no mind to what happened.

    Parents were probably miserable here considering they can't do anything besides paying for overpriced food, and merch that was of okay quality. Oh, and the obvious, looking after their children but I'm sure some wouldn't. Hopefully working with the bots will be easier than working with all the customers.

    You continue customer service. When there you approach the staff bot inside. They were the same model as any other staff bot just different colors. "Hi, new Janitor (Y/N)."

    "Your second task is now complete. Please turn on your faz watch and tablet in the break room and continue with your training." He swung his left arm and motioned to a down behind him." With a nod of thank you do as told. Though this whole situation did seem off.

    Once the tablet is turned on. It seemed you had to make a Faz Staff Account. You hastily fill out what you needed. Then the terms came up. It was over 400 pages long. You scrolled to the very end. Check mark what was needed. And just when you thought you were about to begin a video popped up. It showed a map of the groundfloor then a drawing of a bot popped up. "Here at the Mega Pizzaplex, your safety is our top priority. A safe worker is a happy worker and a happy worker is a hard worker. Here at Freddy's Mega Pizzaplex we only want the best for our best employees. That being said, please turn your attention to the red area on the map. That red area is the medbay." It flashes through the other floors showing all the medbays on each floor. One is on each floor.

    The video removes the maps and slides the bot to the middle. "It is important you have a map for your tasks throughout the day. Please turn to your faz watch now." The bot slides back to the side of the screen and a picture of the faz watch appears. "Hold the button on the top of the faz watch till I tell you." You do so. "You have now connected your faz watch and faz tablet. You can now do the same thing on your faz watch as you do on the faz tablet. Thank you for joining our Glamrock family." With that, the video is over. That was quite a boring experience. Thank God that was over.

    Looking down at the tablet revealed your first task. Change into work uniform if not done yet. It was a box at the bottom to check the mark when down. With a sigh, you turned to the clothes you had set on the scratched-up wooden table. Any and every work outfit looks horrible.

    To your luck, there's a bathroom inside the break room. You go and change. Taking a look at the mirror you didn't know how to feel about the outfit. You can understand wearing black pants, a black leather glossy belt, and a white long-sleeved undershirt. Not the shirt though, black was the main color then followed by neon blue, orange, and green. It was like they wanted you to stand out.

    Sat back down at the table in the flimsy chair and put your name tag on. You checked the task and an animation confetti blew up on the screen. The next task then popped up followed by the rest.

    You put your clothes in the lockers and follow the instructions in the description of the first task. Leading you to a large red door. As soon as you open it a musty, chemically, greasy, whiff smacks your nostrils. Inside was cleaning supplies on sleeves with worn-down boxes at the bottom. In the middle was a dusty go-cart. It was clear this closet hadn't been used much.

    You make your way to the side of the go golf-cart only to see a cart about the same size as the golf-cart. That'll make things easier to hall things around.

    The go-cart had baskets instead of the back seat. Some half empty bottles of cleaning supplies, with rags, toilet paper, toilet brush in a holder, trash bags, and a bucket that held a mop inside were all in the basket. Honestly, it was pretty nifty.

    Looking through the bottle you found the off brand lemon zest for multi use purposes. You douse both carts before taking multiple rags to dust them off. It took longer than expected with the dust being like a thick wrap you'd put on an actual vehicle.

    Once done you step back and take in the carts to actually paint. Of course it was brown with red trim and a neon blue lightning bolt on the front. The typical Glamrock Freddy color scheme.

    Confetti littered the tablet screen as you checked off this task. That was gonna get old and annoying fast. The next on the list in bold was LAUNDRY. In the description it explains the cleaning rags from last night were to be washed, dried, and placed in each janitor's closet for the staff bots tonight.

    You followed your map to an elevator not too far away. The inside was bigger than most elevators. Definitely oversized, perfect for bringing the carts down here later.

    The basement was dingy and smelled like the janitors closet, but without the burning chemicals burning your nose. That didn't last long through. Two carts in the corner were full of rags and towels. You get straight to work loading the washer. Loading all those crusty rags into the washer made you start to sweat. Good thing all you had to do was push start.

    Since you had some time on your hands in-between loading, and switching, the washer and dryer you had decided you'd clean restock the supply closets for the staff bots upstairs. You made your way through the hall to the storage.

    There you found a free cart and filled it with the supplies listed underneath its task. You then went back to the laundry to grab the bags. The cart was filled to the top once you throw the bags of rags in there. It took some effort to push but it was better than putting all those dirty rags in the washer. It was even going to be more of a hassle to take out the rags when they were wet.

    The elevator creaked as it moved up with you and the cart. Clearly this elevator needed some fixing up but I'm sure staff don't use it often. At least not living staff. Which led to a question, why had you not seen any other human staff member? Surely you couldn't be the only one. They were handing those fliers out like free samples at the mall.

    The elevator came to a jerking stop before the doors opened slower than before. Yep, differently not taking the golf-cart on this thing. You went to push the cart but it seemed to be stuck. The elevator door alarm started blaring after you pulled the cart back and rammed it into the door frame. Starting at the front wheels you pulled the cart all the way back till ramped it over the doors and frames. Thank goodness it stayed up right.

***

    Stocking up the closets was easy and only took 40 minutes so by the time you were done the washer was too. Moving the rags from the washer to dry was horrible. They were three times as heavy as before. At least they didn't smell strongly of chemicals now. They did however soak your shirt by the amount you took out at one time. Filling the washer now felt like a blessing of sorts. Even more so now that one cart was empty. Now it was time to find another task to do.

    You took the stairs back up to the ground floor. The thought of the amount of people you'd have to maneuver through didn't cross your mind at all. It was like trying to get through a maze. That golf cart is differently going to be around closing time. That was bullshit but you gotta take what you can get.

    The stairs were like waiting in line at a waterpark when trying to get through the crowd. Many parents shot you dirty looks as you passed by. You however just shrugged as they probably have not seen a human employee before. Though it was rather rude.

    At the janitors closet you detached the cart from the golf-cart after some fighting. You then took the basket off the golf cart and set it at the bottom of the cart as well as a wet floor sign. Then you head toward the restroom.

    People were heading in and out. Just like the other tasks this one had a description. But this one had in bold letters NOT to let customers in the bathroom while cleaning. You didn't question it and parked your cart in front of the entryway so people couldn't get in. Of course you moved it for people coming out. Nasty looks and a couple grumbles were thrown your way.

    You had just let the last person out and put up the out of service banner outside before heading back inside. Toilet paper littered the floor, trash can was overflowing, and soap was emptied onto the floor. This is what you signed up for working around kids and drained parents.

    For starters gloves are your best friend. The bathroom was rank it was definitely gonna take a couple of washes to get the smell out of your shoes.

    The trash can had paper towels rolling across the floor after some struggle to get the bag out. It was really packed in there. You set the first bag next to the entrance, put a new trash bag in, and started picking up the litter on the floor.

    Saying it was nasty was an understatement. Some pieces were fine while others were damp or drenched in unknown liquid. The guessing made it worse as did the toilet paper breaking apart. The slush sound when it hit the floor was revolting.

    As you go to put the other bag next to the cartsomething smacks right into your legs. It was a little boy with shaggy dirty-blonde hair. He takes a step back with a stunned expression on his face and shakes his head a bit.

    "Watch where you're going! You could've really hurt my son!" There standing behind the boy, the mother of the spawn. She had the typical bulb shape hair cut with mostly blonde hair with brown roots shining through. Don't even get started on the outfit.

    "Ma'am the restroom is closed for cleaning. I'm gonna have to ask you to leave." You state, setting down the bag of trash in hand.

    "Little Timmy just needs to pee." She buffs, pushing out her chest and grabbing her son's shoulder. He smiles at you brightly before running past you.

    "Hey!" Before you could do anything the boy's feet flew out from under him and hit his back on the wet tile outside a stall. You cringe back at the sight while Karen rushes to his aid.

    The boy didn't even make a peep while sitting up from the floor rubbing his head until mom wrapped her body around him. He wailed as the mom started raving at you. "My baby! My poor baby! How dare you do this! You should know better than to wet the floor at a children's facility!" She continues on getting more aggressive. You kind of just watched her not taking in anything she had to say.

    A cold pressure suddenly is placed on your shoulder. Glancing back you see none other than Glamrock Freddy. He didn't look at you but at the two on the floor. A light shines over the two from his eye. "No injuries are detected. Katherine Yardow for breaking protocol 9.3, and 24.7 a you are to be escorted off the premises. This area is off limits at the moment and isn't a safe play place for your son or you."

    Katherine dropped her child and stormed right up to us. Before she could reach us Freddy swiftly pushes you back as he moves in front of you. She screams profanities at him, jabbing her finger on his chest plate but that turned to hitting in a matter of seconds.

    It didn't last long before three staff bots rolled into the restroom. Two hastily grab her by the arms and lift her up to keep her feet from touching the floor. They then wheel her out while the other goes, picks up the child, and follows after them.

    "Are you alright y/n l/n?" Freddy asks, turning his attention to you.

    "Yea, thanks. That was crazy." You chuckle nervously, rubbing the back of your neck looking over your shoulder. That's when you noticed the cart. It had been moved about a 90 degree angle. "Did you move that?"

    "Yes, I had seen the child and parent walk through the front of the golf-cart to enter. I was going to wait outside the bathroom when I detected shouting that wasn't an opinion. I'll move it back now. You have a good rest of the day." He moves the cart back then bends done on the other side so that his face is viable through the cart. "Let any of us know if you need anything or have questions." With that he left. Leaving you alone to your thoughts and job.

    You didn't want to be in that bathroom any longer then you had to and quickly finished. Somehow getting completely disregarded made cleaning less miserable.

    An hour was all it took to clean all the public bathrooms in the building. It was nice to know that the cleaning and restocking wouldn't take long at closing time.

    The next task was to drop off wipes and soft chemical streaming supplies to the daycare as well as taking the trash out. As you drive up to the daycare door you see a child probably around ages 3 to 5 yelling and running around. They all seemed to be having a blast. The cart outside is parked next to the large glass window in front of a cloud, shoving the roll of trash bags liners into your back pocket and picking up the box of supplies the daycare required.

      Before you can open the door it slams right into you, knocking you and all of the soupy to the floor. You blink a couple times and rub your forehead, trying to get your bearings on what just happened. A repeated tapping was all you hear. Looking towards the sound you find the sun animatronic.

      Once your eyes meet his white ones he does a little wave before pointing toward the door. You follow where he was pointing to see a muscular middle aged fellow with a bushy beard, a black band tshirt, with a blue jean vest over top, and a black jean pants with a chain dangling on the loopholes.

      "Shit, you okay there kid?" He offers you a hand which you accept gladly.

      "I'll be alr-"

      "Here let me help you with this." He begins picking up the supplies.

      "Sir, it's really no big deal." You examine, wanting the awkwardness to just end already.

      "Nonsense, don't be so modest." He waved you off, picked on another thing of wipes before putting them in the box. You quickly reached done to help since he was insisting.

      It didn't take but 3 seconds to pick everything up and put them back in the box. He hands you a box and dusts off his hands before reaching for the door. "Again I'm terribly sorry."

      This is a completely different interaction from Karen in the bathroom this morning. It had you taken a back a bit. "Oh, it really is okay, thank you " With that you walked into the daycare. He smiled and with a nod let go of the door.

      You watch as the door closes behind you. Damn, how embarrassing to get hit by a door. Thank goodness it was a nice customer though. Inhaling deeply helps the embarrassment wash away, and body relaxes before turning around on your heels. White. That was all you saw making you freak out and jump back a bit. There in front was the daycare attendant bending down to your level.

      "Hello new friend! Are you feeling okay!? That was an awful hard hit to your noggin!" He talked rather quickly and bobbly. He needed that much energy to keep up with the little ones though. You didn't even have time to respond back he really was quick "Oh you brought the cleaning supplies! Thank you friend!" He takes the box and stands up. Man was he tall.

      "Just doing my job." Just then out of the corn of your eye you see a little boy squeezing a bottle of pink glitter glue into a girl's hair. "Ah," you went to say something but then you realize you didn't know what the animatronic's name was tell him what was happening. Though it seemed he got the hit from the sound you made as well as you looking back and forth in a panic.

      "Chase! Glitter glue is for paper! Never anything else!" He scolds the little boy, holding the box of supplies on his hip, arm around it. With his free hand he swipes away the glitter glue from the boy. .

      Meanwhile, Sally is grabbing at her long red hair with big watery eyes. When she felt the glob of glue she immediately became the great falls. Tears flooded down her little rosy freckled cheeks and her mouth gaps like a catfish as she whales.

      Something in you just seemed to snap. It could easily have been instinct but if it wasn't you maybe just didn't wanna hear her crying. It could break glass if any higher. You swiftly pick up the little girl. "Where's the bathroom? I'll try and get out the glitter."

      The animatronic's expression widens, "Right over there!" He points, giving you a nod as thanks before dealing with Chase, who ran off as soon as the daycare attendant was distracted by you.

      In the bathroom you were quick about getting Sally's hair soaking in the sink. The hot water seemed to make the glue dissolve. You ran your fingers through her hair a couple of times. When the glitter made a thin lining on the out rim of the light pink water to float up you unplugged the sink and ran water through her hair for good measure. It was surprisingly easy to get out after that with paper towels. Just a couple of stray sparkles left.

      "There we go." Through her sniffles she looks in the mirror and run a hair through her hair. Her emerald green eyes widen, she whipped her hair back and without warning leaps into your arms.

      "Oh thank you!"

      "It was no problem." Squeeze out. You could feel your shirt get wetter by the second. Should probably do something about the wet hair. You could dry it off with a shit ton of paper towel, but the smudged up hand dryer next to the door would do a better job.

      "Would you like to dry your hair?" Sally nods and you're quick to guide her over to the hand dryer. She appeared puzzled till you hit on. Her eyes lit up and practically danced under it followed by giggles. You rolled your eyes at the scene. Kids we're really something else.

      Little Sally skipped out of the bathroom, her dry wavy hair flowing behind her, with you following suit. It wasn't long before Sally spotted her friends and was climbing up the play structure.

      "New friend!" Your whole body spun around at the sudden voice. It's going to take some getting used to that amount of energy. " Ah! I didn't mean to scare you! I just wanted to say thank you! Chase has been picking on Sally for the last two days!"

      "Sounds like Chase is having a hard time adjusting." You state lean back on the desk

      "It's not that! He plays great with the other kids! Oh that reminds me!" He reaches around you, "Could you bring these down to the glam rocks." He beams, dropping a stack of drawing into your arms. With a stare at the papers for a good second then back at the bubbly yellow guy. His smile has widened and eyes now in the form of triangles.

      One of the tasks on your list was to clean out the trash in the glamrocks rooms anyways. "Sure thing. Let me know if you need anything else." You wave over your shoulder. Before you can open the door it swings open. Higher up on the door, yellow hand pressed.

      "I'll make sure to let you know if anything comes up."

      You put the stack of drawings in a cardboard box, don't want them falling over, or ever worse off the golf cart. The golf cart was coming in handy not trailing back and forth to each janitor's closet for supplies but the swarm of but with it getting closer to noon more people were rolling into the place making it hard drive through the crowd. Maybe that's why it had been covered in dust.

   You put the golf cart up in the end. It was just taking too long to get places and the customers didn't care that they're kids were climbing over it. This left you with a belt like a contraction work but instead of tools it held little bottles of chemicals and had a large Fanny pack like pocket with a couple of tools as well as a rag stored inside. If you needed a cart for hauling there was one in every closet.

      With the cart in toe that held the box of drawings, you made your way down to the glamrocks rooms. A green blur caught the eye making you slow down. Next to the bathrooms was Monty Gator. If he wasn't a robot one would think he was trying to scratch his back but the spot was just out of reach. He most have felt a presence in the force or some shit because his gaze spotted on you and he went straightened up. "What are ya looking at?"

      "I'm not sure." You lean against the cart. It was painful obvious he needed help with something. You had planned on asking but with the tone he used speaking to you it made you rethink that.

      The gator grumbles his way to you. Ah the tone matches the body language how interesting. "Listen here runt, ya didn't see anything-" You kind of just started tuning him out as your curiosity got the better of you. You took one large side step and bam the mystery was solved. On the center of his back was a piece of hard candy. "Hey! What do-"

      "I can get that for you." You hold up a rag and a bottle of clearer. He's joints lower and with a huff he exposes his back to you. The candy didn't budge till it was moist. When the sucker finally popped off you threw it into a nearby trash can.

      "I can't believe they hired another human after so long?" If we wouldn't have been so close to the gator while cleaning off the residue of candy you might of night heard him grumble that. You didn't think too much after all this place was run by mostly boys.

      "They're good as new." Monotony straightened up, crossed his arms, huff, and turned his head. His red eyes glanced at you through the side of his glass. They seemed too soft at the sight of you beaming up at him.

      "Thanks Runt." He finally says something normally, but his eyes left your gaze before he did. Weird.

      "No problem." You wave to him to continue on the mission at hand. Freddy was in his room messing with an amp. You didn't even get a chance to knock before you were greeted. "Afternoon Y/N."

      "Hello again, I'm here for any trash you have." He nods steps out of the doorway, motioning towards the trash can. The trash can was filled to the rim unlike most of the over trash cans, easy. "Thank you."

      "Wait one second," You drop the trash bag, and grab the drawings. Can't forget those bad boys. Freddy's eyes widened as you handed over the box. "The daycare attendant asked me to give you these."

      "Sundrop is such a nice fellow, I wish they'd come see us like they used too." He seemed to dent the box ever so slightly. What was that supposed to mean? They work together. Kind of.

      "Here." He hands you a stack of sticker sheets. "Have him give these to the kids." You agreed with a nod before heading over to chica's room. There was a tiny bag of trash outside her door. Guess she didn't want to be disturbed right now.

      "Ah more fans- oh you must be the janitor." She headed back over to her make up stand and started spray painting her hair. As you're pulling out the trash you stop at the studden bomb of the gray wolf's voice. "You must be an amazing janitor for them to hire you." You didn't know if that was a normal complement or a back handed one. Either way Roxy seemed busy, so you were hasty was putting a new bag in and getting the fuck out of there. Maybe Monty would be more welcoming than her.

      You weren't wrong but you weren't right either. Like Chica he had left the trash bag outside the door, but he was inside. His loud ranting and strumming of jagged notes was a clear indication of that. Hopefully he catches a break soon.

      The rest of the tasks were simple and easy, but there were many. Not to mention all the messes you had to clean up after parties around the stage. Customers were messy and acted as if it was a normal thing to not clean up after themselves.

      The last thing you had to do before clocking out for the day was bring the stickers to the daycare attendant. Darkness consumed the daycare with only the haze of the lights outside the daycare coming in through the window. All the little ones laid scattered on matts with tiny blankets that had glow in the dark stars on them. Swiftly you made your way over to the desk, set down the stickers, grabbed a sticky note, and wrote, "Freddy sent these as a thank you."

      Just as you were finishing up the note you felt the hair on the back of your neck rise. You whipped around to find the same scene as before. The more your eyes adjusted though you spotted something. Okay it was more of someone. Honestly, Chase did a good job at hiding underneath the play structure. If his little leg wasn't sticking out you would've never seen him.

      "Hey there," You greeted the blonde boy. He smacked his head back ahead of the pillar that was curled up behind. He quinces and with a sniffle rubs his snot on his arm. "Why're you crying?"

      He sniffled and sobbed, "I left my Roxxe plush in the tent." He then chokes on his own sob for a second. "Mr. Moon won't let me in the Castle to get her." He hugged his blanket and curled up into his knees.

      You scanned your surroundings looking for your target. The castle was next to the ball pit with about 20 kids inbetween you. Laying next to them are swords made out of pool noodles and shields made out of cardboard. "Come on," you nudge him. "Let's go get her back."

       He perks up immediately and his brown eyes sparkle. "Really!?"

      You shush him by putting a finger up to your lips. He slaps his hands over his mouth then opens them. "Really?" He whispers.

      "Yep we just gotta be quiet and sneak past the castle guards." You whisper, motioning him to follow you out from under the play structure. He scrambled out after you and quickly held onto your pants. His eyes search the room frantically.

   "Come on." You take a step forward. He follows your soft steps around his sleeping companions. For a kid who was causing chaos earlier he was surprisingly good at keeping quiet.

      When outside the castle you got this feeling like you were being watched and Chase wasn't helping calm your nerves with him now clinging to your leg. This was just a tent in a building that was freaking you out so badly. No wild animals were around unless you counted the kids as animals.

      With a small sigh you take Chase's sweaty little hand and lead him inside. The feeling subsided a bit. "Where'd you last have her?"

"Oh she was on the pillows. Over here." He tugs on you to the back corner. Sure enough upon her throne of pillows sat a Roxy plush. She has a couple sock puppet at the bottom pillow. "She's their queen." He giggles, picking up the plush before holding your hand and smiling up brightly. "Thank you."

      The smile on your face drop when you turn rn to exit the tent. You froze for a second before pushing Chase behind you. What greeted you at the entrance of the tent stood a tall shadow figure. One of its claws ripped the entrance of the tent with its grip while the other had them curl in and out at its side. Its hunched over torso and black eyes with a bead of electric red in the middle screamed not kid friendly.

      The creature's head spun along with its starry night cap as it crept inside. Something about that last movement was a lot more jagged than others. It sent you into survival mode.

      You grabbed the nearest objects in one scoop and chucked them swiftly at it. The animatronic wasn't fazed at all by the sock puppets. To make matters worse it is now inside, with its sharp smile widening. The lining of the teeth began to thicken. Desperate and backed into a corner like prey, you searched for anything in here to defend yourself again. That's when you saw it. A foam noodle sword.

      You sprung at the creature's feet, grabbed the sword, and rolled to the side. Just in time too. The creature's claws dug into the floor where you landed. Its focus was on you and face inches away from your's.

       A clank rang out throughout the tent and hit them in their faceplate. Its head spun around as its neck bent backward. You booked it out of the tent in a heart beat to the doors. They were locked and the jingles where getting closer. That's when you saw the light switch. The sign tapped above it that said lights on and the tape on the switch pulled down. Maybe just maybe.

      You reach for the switch on to have a claw grab your arm and yank you up into the air. "Naught, naughty~" It sang into your face.

      Its claws now dig into your arm. They twitched and loosen then tighten some more. Your eyes were glued to the free hand that's lifting up into the air. A blur and breezed passed your face.

      You tumble to the floor clenching your wounded arm as the animatic screeches and claws at its now yellow faceplate. Its eyes shift between black, red and white before landing on the all white one. Seven triangles pop out the side of its head and the hat is now to be found. In Front of you stood the overly bubbly day care attendant you had met only hours ago.

      He reached for you before but retracted his hand to his torso. "No! No! Not again!"

~A/N~

Please remember to comment and like I love feedback! It fuels my speed production for the next chapter

This chapter as been edited my a sleep deprived, dyslexic fool. It will be edited again in time my apologies in the mean time.

[ellipse-society]

whats ur job like? is it tough/hard (especially as someone who also has mental health issues, but like.... who doesnt XD)? what drew u to psychology/working in a clinic? is a psych bachelers worth it in ur opinion? (or at least worth witnessing the annoying ppl u might meet in college...) what did u do for ur bachelers degree? :-D

(my eyesight is kinda blurry rn sorry if any of these r wrong/feel free to skip or avoid any of these at all :'D i hope u have a good day!!!)

Well our job is client centered so each day can vary drastically as far as how hard it is. Some days five clients are in crisis simultaneously and others we only have maybe one or two of our easiest clients scheduled. Though the work schedule is also flexible which is a perk. They basically do not care when you are there as long as you have 40 hours by the end of the week. When talking to clients we(as in everyone at the company) basically just refers to ourselves as caseworkers(we have a fancier title but it seems to only be used by our company so we would prefer not to share it publicly) even though most at the company don't see that as 100% accurate it's just the easiest way to describe it. It isn't the perfect job but we get to work in a field we enjoy and get to make a difference in people's lives so it is fulfilling for us. Basically the job is working with lower income people with mental disabilities(almost always SUD but commonly also GAD, MDD, PTSD, and Schizophrenia/schizoeffective with a few other disorders here and there on a less frequent basis) and providing them with coping skills and access to resources in the community for basic needs like food, housing, work, access to medication, ect. Our goal is to help the client improve enough that they can be independent and graduate from services. We also regularly meet clients out in the community instead of at the clinic so a lot of driving is also involved which is sometimes good sometimes annoying depending on the area of town.

I don't think our mental health has really negatively effected us at our job. It has been a jumping off point for building rapport more than once though so it may be more of a positive. We have had more than one client relieved that we are autistic because either they have the disorder or know someone with the disorder and like that there is a level of understanding there.

I mean we were drawn to psychology due to our own mental health struggles and those of our family(also maybe a bit of autistic special interest lol). We have always wanted a job where we can help others and we were basically unprofessional councilors for our family and friends long before we had our psychology degree. It is just something we naturally do. We also switched majors in college(from secondary education theater and speech) and our general psychology teacher was one of our favorites. She made the topic interesting. When we were switching majors we took a bunch of classes in different fields we were interested in for a semester and psychology was the one that stood out again. We did a project on parenting styles in that class that made us realize a lot about our childhood and better come to terms with it.

I mean whether or not a psych bachelor's is worth it is based on what you want to do. There are many psychology jobs that are gatekept behind graduate school so you may not be able to get the perfect job with just a bachelor's. That being said most fields are looking for someone educated in psychology. It can definitely look better on an application than some other degrees as far as applying for jobs not directly related to the field. We had to go to one of our schools job fairs once(in a gym so sensory overload to the max) and almost every table called us over due to us majoring in psychology while we were avoiding as many people as possible while they were not doing that for people from some other majors that were more active about looking. It is basically a desirable major for many employers but getting an actual psychology focused job that accepts just a bachelor's may be hard to find.

We aren't sure what you mean by what we did for our bachelor's degree so if you want to send in another ask about that if we answer it in a way you didn't intend it to be answered feel free. Our school was very research based as far as how it taught psychology. Basically junior and senior year every student was required to run one study(junior year as a group and senior year solo) and a lot of general psych classes required study participation and other classes often provided extra credit so that people could get their participants. The solo one we did senior year was full of technical difficulties and the results would never be applied anywhere by any logical person so we don't tend to talk about that one but the one we did junior year we loved and it got us second place in our category when we presented it at our schools recheach symposium(and we were in the same category as the person who won best overall). Basically we were looking at how word bolding and amount of time with a piece of text affected memory. We found that(obviously) the more time someone had with the text the better it was remembered but the cool thing we found was that while if a word relevant to the memory quiz was bolded it improved performance there was no significant difference between the control and those that had irrelevant/distractor words bolded. Basically even if you were to bold the wrong words you aren't hindering ones retention so bolding words could only have a positive not a negative effect per our results. A lot of teachers were really interested in our results on that one and we are proud of it. Though not the most proud of our research paper on it because English has always been where we struggle most lol.

Oh and thank you for the questions. Hope you have a good day too.

[symphonic-scream]

👓

Hm sounds like Persona 4 to me

Since I'm putting off the Inaba AU fic lemme tell yall about everyone

So our Fool is Akira, his parents are on a year long cruise, haven't wanted a kid for years, and they're close to him being an adult and not their problem, so they went looking for someone to pay to house him for a year

That would be the Hierophant, Sae Niijima. She wants to use that money to help her little sister pay for university without using their parents' inheritance all up on it. She's very focused on them all working hard, to get above where the world has placed them. She's fought to be seen as equal in her workplace, and thinks of everything in the same light

Makoto is the Fortune, even though she's there from the start. Sae pressures her to study a lot, so she doesn't join in on shenanigans until much later. She babysits the Justice nextdoor, Akane Hasegawa, since her dad was friends with Niijima Sr. But yeah, a very lonely, quiet Makoto for most of the story, until she makes peace with herself and starts showing off her more rebellious sides

We've got Magician Ann, newer to Inaba, the older people in town really don't like her. Her parents helped sponsor Junes moving to town, but spend most of their time in bigger cities, so Ann catches the extra flack for it

Chariot Ryuji! Lives with his Ma, gets tutored by a kind third year student who's been like, his only friend before Ann moved. Loves action movies, but his injured leg means he'd never be able to be a hero, right?

Priestess Haru! She's Ryuji's tutor, and her dad runs a food truck in the shopping district. He wants her to be more than a small town, small truck, but. Haru loves Inaba, loves food service! She wants to expand Big Bang Burger Truck to have more offerings, but she's "accepted" she's going to go to college and get a nice job in a city

Emperor? Yusuke. Everyone thinks he's a Yokai, cause he appears all over, rarely blinks, says weird things. His mom is alive, sickly, but alive. She has an arts shop and runs art classes after school hours. Yusuke doesn't like worrying his mom. He doesn't care what people think of him, but he hates that the rumours and theories make her cry at night

And? Lovers Futaba. She's Hatsune Miku. And no I'm not changing that she's Miku. She moves in with her mom's former friend at first, but Sae ends up taking her in too when the privacy isn't enough, isn't safe enough. Futaba has a complex about people only liking her for Miku. That, no one would care if Futaba was gone, but they'd riot without Miku

Anyways. Yeah

Bits I have are, Haru rollerblades as the server for Big Bang! She wears a cute little retro American style burger girl uniform, and skates around the planet themed tables with food on trays. She genuinely enjoys working with her dad so much, guys. They're a good family here!

I have personas for them all too

Just. I have a lot of thoughts about Makoto in this. Going from feeling so alone and sad and unseen and- and after being saved? Having friends, and people who care and see her. See more than just, the act it's.

Well that's how it is for them all Makoto is just my favourite lmao

[allthingsfangirl101]

Just An Assignment–Steve Harrington

I woke up to the sun shining through the window. I looked over my shoulder to see Steve asleep. I slowly sat up, keeping the blanket wrapped around my bare chest. I looked down at Steve and smiled. That smile turned to a frown of regret.

Steve thinks I moved here with my dad who travels a lot for work. He thinks I graduated early and am currently a student at the community college outside Hawkins.

That's where he thinks I go every day when I actually go to Hawkins Lab and give them my report.

About three months ago, the doctors at Hawkins Lab sent me to town to keep an eye on the local law enforcement and make sure no one knew about the lab. My job was to distract them if they got too close to the lab. So far, they haven't noticed. I wasn't sure what kind of distraction the doctors at the lab wanted but I knew it had to be big.

I came here to spy on Hawkins. Instead, I fell for Steve Harrington. We met at a party that the lab wanted me to monitor. I didn't know why they wanted me to go to a high school party and make sure a bunch of teenagers didn't know about a super-secret lab outside of Hawkins.

I thought about that night, that party, a lot.

                                    ~•~

I was slowly drinking my beer as I watched teenagers drink too much. It amazed me how childlike teenagers acted. I rolled my eyes and they landed on a girl getting way too much punch. I watched as her boyfriend tried to get her to stop drinking. That ended the exact way I knew it would: her red drink spilling on her white blouse.

They went to the bathroom but the boy returned first. He instantly went for the table full of drinks. A few seconds later, the girl walked straight out of the party. As the kid threw his head back drinking as much of his beer as he could, I couldn't help but feel bad for the guy.

"You better slow down," I chuckled when he walked over and grabbed another beer.

"And you better keep to your own business," he drunkenly sneered.

"Classy," I scoffed. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the guy checking me out.

"No."

"What?" He chuckled.

"No, we aren't going to get back at your girlfriend for whatever she said in the bathroom."

"You saw that," he mumbled. He scoffed and chugged his beer. "She called it bullshit."

"What?"

"Us." He cleared his throat before whispering, "Me."

"I'm sorry," I whispered. "For the record, you're not the one who's bullshit. She is."

                                  ~•~

After that night, Steve and I ran into each other a lot more. Eventually, he told me that he and Nancy broke up. I helped him through his breakup. A week later, we were watching a movie, smoking. The stuff that we got was a lot stronger than we were used to. We woke up in his bed the next morning.

Instead of being awkward about it, Steve asked me out. We've been together for two months and he still doesn't know the truth about me.

"Hey, babe," Steve said sleepily as he sat up.

He wrapped his arm around my waist and leaned his chin on my shoulder. I closed my eyes, a moan slipping out as he started kissing my shoulder. Steve slowly moved up my neck, stopping at my ear.

"Baby," I moaned as he pulled me back down. Steve smirked as he instantly hovered over me.

"What?" He pouted. "You didn't enjoy last night?"

I slowly snaked my arms around his neck, pulling him closer to me. Our noses were pressed together as we breathed each other in.

"You know I did," I said, my voice low. He let out a deep chuckle as he started grinding his body against mine.

"Do you have to go to school?" I moaned when he started kissing my neck. I gasped when he bit my neck.

"I mean," he moaned, "I don't have to."

I giggled as he pulled the blanket over us.

                                * * * * *

We walked into town and overheard a weird conversation. Apparently, a local restaurant owner was found dead in his restaurant. No one knew what really happened.

All anyone knew was Benny had called social services because a little girl had run into his shop. She was stealing food but when he caught her, he realized that something was wrong. She was wearing a hospital gown and was acting as if she'd been abused.

When the police got there, Benny was dead and the girl was gone. The police were struggling to figure out what happened and who the little girl was that they were looking for.

I instantly knew what was going on.

She had escaped.

                                * * * * *

I walked into the house the lab bought for me and heard the phone ringing. I put down my bag and answered it.

"Find her."

I sighed as they hung up. Short and sweet. Like always. I hung up the phone and sat at my kitchen table. It would be easy for me to find her–which is why they called me–but what was I supposed to do when I found her?

I knew what they would do to her. She might be better off on the run.

I stood up and walked over to the sink. I turned it on before sitting back down. I closed my eyes and started searching Hawkins for Eleven. I saw Chief Hopper. I saw Mike and the others at school.

I smiled when I found Steve at lunch with his friends. Carol was complaining about some bruise on her ankle. She thinks it's frostbite from the late-night swim we all took a couple of days ago. One look and I could tell the bruise was probably from Tommy. He likes the ankles.

I looked over at Steve to see him rolling his eyes at Tommy and Carol. I wasn't sure why he was friends with them. I asked him once and he said they were friends when they were little and it was hard to walk away from them.

I quickly remembered why I was there. I reached out but stopped myself before I touched Steve's hand. He doesn't know I could do this. And he can't find out. I forced myself to go back to the search. The longer it took to find her, the more worried I got.

"Come on," I mumbled. "Where are you? I'm trying to help you."

I sucked in a breath when I found her. She was young, couldn't be older than twelve. She was wearing an oversized yellow t-shirt and her haircut was all too familiar.

She gasped when I came into view.

"It's okay," I said gently. "I'm not going to hurt you. I can help you. Are you hurt?"

The girl shook her head.

"I bet you're hungry," I smiled.

The girl nodded her head.

"What's your number, sweetheart?" I asked gently. It was clear the girl was scared. I smiled as I asked, "Can you show me your tattoo?"

I instantly noticed how badly her arms were shaking as she slowly showed me her arm. I smiled.

"Eleven," I chuckled. "I've heard a lot about you, kiddo."

I knelt in front of her and showed her my arm. She looked up at me with wide eyes when she saw the number. She ran toward me, instantly collapsing in my arms.

"Sweetheart," I whispered. "I'm not really here. But I will find you, okay? Just stay put."

                                * * * * *

I got out of my car and found the path. I groaned when it started to pour. I used my abilities to create a sort of force field/umbrella over me.

"Eleven," I called out. "It's me, sweetheart."

I turned around and saw her. She was drenched to the bone and was already shivering. I opened my arms for her which she instantly ran into.

"Everything's going to be okay," I whispered. "Let's get you somewhere warm."

I led her back to my car and helped her in. The second I got in and turned it on, I turned up the heat as far as it would go. As I turned the car around, Eleven relaxed into the seat. I reached over and grabbed her hand.

"You're going to be safe," I whispered. "I promise."

She fell asleep as I drove us back to my house. When the lab moved me here, they bought me a small house. It was in a quiet neighborhood that I would blend into without a problem.

I pulled in front of my place and threw the car in park. I glanced over at Eleven and smiled when I saw her asleep. I got out and walked over to her door. I knelt down and gently woke her up.

"Hey, kid," I whispered. I smiled and instantly soothed her when she jumped awake.

"Just me."

"Where are we?" She stuttered.

"We're at my house," I explained. "Come on, sweetie. Let's get you into something dry and I can make us something to eat. And then you are going to get some sleep."

I grabbed her hand and led her inside. After giving her a change of clothes, I made her some mac-and-cheese and showed her the guest bedroom I had.

"What's wrong?" I asked when she didn't lay down.

"Will you. . . Will you stay with me? Please?"

"Of course," I smiled. We crawled into the bed and Eleven instantly cuddled into my side. We fell asleep next to each other and I thought of all the times back at the lab that I'd do the same thing for her when she couldn't sleep.

                                * * * * *

Eleven's been staying with me for three days. They're still looking for her but they've slowly stopped trying. Ever since I found her, the lab has kept trying to contact me but I've ignored them each time.

We were walking through the store when someone said my name.

"Y/N?"

I turned around to see Steve walking toward me. He glanced down at Eleven before back at me.

"Where have you been?" He asked. "I've been calling you the last three days."

"I'm sorry," I stuttered. "I've been busy."

Steve glanced back at Eleven as he asked, "Who's this?"

Eleven tucked behind me. "This is El," I said quickly. "She's my cousin. She came into town a couple of days ago. She's been staying with me. That's why I haven't called you. I'm sorry."

"That's okay," Steve smiled. He leaned in and kissed me. I broke the kiss and smiled when I saw the way Eleven was staring at us.

"El, this is Steve," I introduced them.

"Friend?" She whispered. Steve and I shared a look before laughing.

"You could say that," Steve shrugged.

Eleven looked up at me and back at Steve. I turned toward her and knelt in front of her.

"It's okay," I whispered. "Steve is a very good friend of mine. He won't hurt us."

I stood back up and looked at Steve. "Sorry," I mouthed. Steve sent me a wink before smiling at Eleven.

"Why don't I take you both to lunch?" Steve offered. "You guys hungry?"

"We could eat," I chuckled.

Steve grabbed my hand that wasn't holding Eleven's and led us to his car. We spent the rest of the afternoon with Steve. Eleven didn't talk much. She was glued to my side. If Steve caught on to any weirdness, he didn't say anything.

After lunch, Steve drove us back to my house. When he put his car in park, he hesitated.

"El? Can you head inside?" I asked, turning in my seat. "I need to talk to Steve for a minute."

She looked between the two of us, nervous. "It's okay," I tried to soothe. "I'll be right in."

Eleven hesitated before finally heading inside. As the door shut behind her, Steve turned to me with a playful smirk on his face.

"Talkative kid, isn't she?" He laughed.

"She's been through a lot," I mumbled. I sighed before turning toward him. "I'm sorry I didn't return your calls."

"That's okay," Steve said, his voice dropping as he leaned in. "I think I know how you can make it up to me."

I smirked as I leaned in and pressed my lips to his. I felt him smile as he started to kiss me back. Our lips moved in sync, things slowly starting to speed up.

"Steve," I moaned as I broke the kiss. "I really wish you could come in but with El. . ."

"I understand," he smiled as he leaned back. "You can make it up to me later. Go inside and take care of your cousin."

"I'll call you later."

I was about to get out of his car, but he stopped me. "Everything okay?" I asked when I saw the look on his face.

"I love you."

My heart clenched. For two reasons. . .

"I love you too, Steve."

                                * * * * *

Things were getting too complicated.

I was still successfully hiding Eleven. People were slowly starting to ask more questions about her. She's been hanging out with this group of boys. Steve knew them. He actually introduced them to her.

Ever since Steve told me he loved me in his car, he's been coming over to my house a lot more. He'd come over after school, eat dinner with us, and watch a movie before heading home. He wanted to spend the night with me, but he understood why I couldn't leave El.

I sat on the hood of my car, waiting for Steve to get out of school. The bell rang and I sat up straighter. I rolled my eyes as one of Steve's friends came walking over.

"Hey, beautiful."

"Hi, Tommy," I sighed. "Have you seen Steve?"

"He'll be out soon," he smirked. "Want me to keep you company?"

"I'm good."

"You sure?"

"Tommy, I'm fine. Alright? You can go."

"Come on, Y/N," Tommy sighed.

"She said she was fine."

I let out a sigh of relief as Steve walked up behind Tommy. I jumped off my car and ran over to him. He laughed as he instantly pulled me into his chest and pressed his lips to mine. Before things could get too heated, I broke the kiss.

"I gotta go," I sighed. "I promised I'd take El shopping after school."

"How sweet of you," he chuckled. He grabbed my hand and we walked back to my car. As I drove him home, we listened to the radio.

"You okay?" I asked.

"How long is El staying with you?" Steve asked.

"I don't know," I sighed.

"What about her parents?"

"They're gone," I mumbled.

"Oh," Steve said under his breath. He reached over and grabbed my hand. We went back to driving in silence.

"For the record," he whispered, "she's extremely lucky to have a cousin like you."

                                * * * * *

Steve and I were out riding bikes with the kids behind us. I looked over at Steve and my chest tightened. It tightened more when I looked behind us and saw Eleven smiling and laughing with the boys.

"You okay?" Steve asked.

"I'm scared," I mumbled as I focused on riding the bike.

"Of what?" He asked as he rode closer to me. I glanced at Eleven before back at Steve.

"Of her getting too comfortable," I confessed. "I don't know how long she'll be able to stay with me. And what if she gets hurt? What if I'm not enough for her? There's only so much I can do, Steve. If they find out. . ."

I cut myself off, holding my breath in hopes that Steve didn't catch on to what I said.

"They?" Steve asked. "Is someone looking for her?"

"It's complicated," I said, clearing my throat.

"Complicated? Y/N, what's going on? Is El in some kind of trouble?"

I looked at him but my breath got caught in my throat when I saw a row of vans in front of the Wheeler house. Mike sped past us and started to go home.

"Mike, stop!"

Everyone stopped on their bikes and looked at me. I glanced at Eleven and she hopped off Mike's bike and ran to me.

"Papa?" She whispered so only I could hear. I glanced at the vans and she followed my eyesight. She gasped in fear, getting closer to me.

"It's going to be okay," I said gently. "They aren't going to get you. I won't let it happen."

"I don't want to go back," she stuttered.

"If they want you," I said, my anger rising, "they'll have to take you over my dead body. Hop on."

Eleven quickly jumped on the back of my bike.

"What's going on?" Mike asked.

"Who are they?"

"And why do they want El?"

"I will explain everything later," I said, cutting them off. "Right now, we need to get as far away from those vans as possible."

"Y/N, wait." Steve caught my arm before I could ride away. "Should I be worried?"

"It'll be fine," I smiled. "I can handle them. Believe me."

"Umm, guys?" Dustin said. We looked and saw the vans starting up.

"Let's go!" I yelled. I started peddling as fast as I could with everyone behind me. We tried to lose the vans, but there were a lot of them.

"What are we going to do?" Eleven whispered.

"Take out the vans," I whispered. "One by one and try to do it discreetly."

"I don't understand," Eleven whimpered.

"Follow my lead."

Without turning around, I flicked my finger. I glanced over my shoulder just in time to see one of the vans get a flat tire and spin out.

"Oh," Eleven said with a soft giggle.

"But remember," I said quickly, "be discreet."

I jumped when one of the vans exploded. "Eleven," I sighed. "I told you to be discreet."

"I don't know what that means."

"It means to be sneaky about it."

"Oh," she said under her breath. "Sorry."

"Shit!" Dustin screamed when a group of vans was suddenly in front of us. We had to quickly stop riding. We were trapped.

"Eleven, no!" I yelled as she got off my bike and ran towards the van coming straight at us. She reached her hand out and the van flipped. It landed behind us.

I looked around and saw that we were still outnumbered. Even with mine and Eleven's powers, there was no way we could take all of them. I realized where we were and how close we were to my house. I dropped my bike and ran over to Steve.

"Take the kids to my house," I started to quickly explain. "Leave your bikes here and go on foot. If you go through the woods, you'll be able to make it. Whatever happens, do not come back."

"Y/N," Steve stuttered. I cut him off and pressed my lips to his.

"Go," I whispered, breaking the kiss. "Get them out of here."

I pushed him toward the kids and turned back toward the vans. I glanced over my shoulder at Steve, El, and the kids. Steve led the kids into the treeline. They were hidden from Brenner's men but I could still see them.

Something behind me made Steve nervous. He tried to take a step toward me, but El stopped him.

"I love you, Steve."

I looked at El and smiled when I saw her looking between me and Steve. When she looked at me, her eyes filled with tears.

"Love you, kiddo," I whispered.

I turned back toward the vans, the men getting out. They aimed their guns at me, but he walked forward.

"Don't shoot her," he said. He walked toward me, but I didn't move. That is, until he saw Eleven behind me at the treeline. When he saw her, I stepped over to block her from his view.

"You've been hiding her," he chuckled.

"She's just a child."

"She's my child," he said, his anger building. "As are you."

"I am not your child," I said through my teeth. "I was your experiment."

"Enough of this," Brenner sighed. "Eleven, Six, it's time to come home."

"Six?"

I turned around to see Steve studying me. I could see the confusion in his eyes. I wanted nothing more than to explain everything.

"I'm sorry," I whispered. I opened my mouth to say more but I heard it.

I quickly turned around and used my abilities to stop the net they had shot at me.

"Really?" I scoffed. "I thought you knew better, Papa." I've never called him that so when I did, I said it in as mocking a tone as I could.

I gasped, dropping my hand when I felt something hit me. I reached up and pulled out the dart.

"What did you. . ."

Everything started to get blurry, eventually turning black. I felt my legs collapse as I was in and out of consciousness. I groaned when I saw Brenner lean down so he was the last thing I saw and heard.

"I do know better, Six."

Part 2

[killemwithkawaii]

Goretober 2022 Day 7: The Side of Caution

[BEGIN TRANSCRIPT]

The second time we met was during one of the few moments of peace I got to enjoy while wandering the void. In that timeline, by some miracle of chance, there was no cult, no demons, no haunted living arrangements, no cannibalistic neighbors, and very few ghosts. My mom had still died when I was little, I was still disfigured, and my dad had his usual vices because of it, but all things considered, it was one of the few timelines where my life in Nockfell was what you might consider ‘normal’. 

With the bullies in grade school being the highest level threat I had to deal with, I had managed to stick around in that universe until my early twenties. I was living with Larry, Todd, and Neil, and attending college with them and Ash at Henrys usual insistence, but I hadn’t really been going to class with any goal in mind. I neglected my school work in favor of hanging out with versions of my friends that had above average survival rates and didn’t spend all their free time doing cult sabotage… or being dead. I pretty much slid by with C’s across the board.

One evening, I was back at my dads place for dinner. Henry and Lisa kept giving each other these looks, and finally, Lisa said:

“Sal, we wanted to talk to you about something…”

They both suggested I get a part-time job for the summer- a ‘resume-builder’ that would ‘start me off on my career path’, whatever I chose for that to be. 

“You have a bright future in front of you, son. You can do anything you set your mind to, I know you can! You just have to be willing to put in the effort to do it.”

I tried and failed to hold back a snort.

“No, really! Everyone starts somewhere, Sally. It’ll be hard work, but I’ll bet you’ll love it once you get used to it!”

At this point, I’d never had an actual job before. I know, ‘Over 600 years old and he’s never had a job? What a loser!’ In my defense, it’s hard to have a decent work-life balance with school, cult sabotage, friend and family relationship maintenance, and ‘always dying young’ already on your plate. But, like I said, this time was different. I thought about what it would be like, being able to experience the fabled hum-drum daily grind of being a wage-slave in the service industry…. It seemed like torture for most people, but it sounded more like a vacation to me- a predictable and safe routine, normal-person problems, a bunch of normal people to bitch about them with, AND I’d get my own pocket money, too.

“Yeah! That sounds awesome, actually… did you guys have somewhere in mind?”

Robert- you remember Robert- is always a successful, self-made business man, but the kind of businesses he runs is almost random- real estate, tech, marketing, insurance, landscaping… whatever he thinks will be successful, he makes it successful. In that universe, he bought and ran one of the few restaurants in town after its previous owner, Terrence Addison (yes, that Terrence Addison), had announced his plan to retire, sell his various properties, and travel the world. The restaurant was a long-standing staple to the community that literally everyone in town ate at- The Nockfell Diner, a 24-hour greasy spoon that just so happened to be in need of a new dishwasher. 

Less than a week after that discussion with Lisa and Henry, I was in uniform, pacing around in the ‘dish pit’. All day, I sprayed the food scraps and grease from the plates, put them neatly in racks, slid the racks into the washing machine, took them out, arranged them back into stacks, and put them away so they could get dirty again. I did this over and over, for hours at a time, until my hands were red and pruny and my clothes and hair were soaked with dirty dishwater. It was a repetitive, mind-numbing, physically taxing (and sometimes nauseating) process, but I found a weird satisfaction in it that I couldn’t really pinpoint at the time. ‘Spray, load, wash, stack….’ It was simple, straightforward, and really obvious about its necessity in the process of the system- plus, I didn’t have to risk being killed or have to murder anyone. It was relaxing. It lulled me into a false sense of security. I wasn’t paying attention when it happened…

I rounded the corner into the kitchen on autopilot, holding a big, heavy stack of dinner plates.

“CORNER-”

I collided with something really solid. The tower of dishes I was holding started to teeter over. A pair of hands steadied the top as I steadied the bottom, keeping the plates from falling and shattering on the floor.

“Whew… Jeez man, watch it!! Didn’t you hear me say ‘corner’?”

I looked up at the man I’d run into, and I knew him. His dark hair and pale skin, those big eyes with the long lashes, a few crooked teeth, the button nose, his pierced lip… he was taller, more muscular, and a guy, but I recognized him instantly.... If it wasn’t obvious to me who he was, it was written right there on his nametag: ‘Mitch’ in big letters, ‘the bitch’ in small letters. I made a note to ask him about the second half later.

“Ah- no, I… wasn’t expecting you… to-”

He gave an exaggerated sigh, his shoulders sagging dramatically.

“Okay, who the fuck’s training the new guy…?” 

The cooks on the line shrugged. I hadn’t been trained, necessarily. Mostly, I’d been told where to stand and had otherwise been relying on trial and error and a little common sense to get the job done. ‘You’re a smart guy, you’ll figure it out, Sally…’ (Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?)

“So nobody was gonna bother filling him in on some basic safety shit? Hm? I can’t even buy the guy a drink before me and his ass get into a crash? Tsk, that’s just fuckin’ tacky, guys….“

“Bar’s open ‘til 2, you got plenty of time for another round, Mitch,” a waitress passing by chimed in.

“Oh, not with you here I don’t, baby! I got plans to-night~” he made kissy noises in her direction before turning back to me. 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t-”

“Nah, don’t worry about it, dude. How’re you supposed to know if nobody bothered to tell you?”

“Yeah, I guess…”

“‘Corner’ means ‘I’m around the corner, and I comin through! Get the fuck outta my way!’ Okay? Always listen for that- keeps everyone from ending up like roadkill during a rush, ya’know?”

He laughed with that signature lop-sided smile, clapped me on the shoulder, and passed by me with a wink. He shrugged his strawberry-print bag up on his shoulder, and there was a heart-print bandage on his wrist…

“Uh- okay, I’ll keep that in mind,” I nodded, “I mean, it would kind of be a shame… if I ended up roadkill before you bought me that drink, right...?”

"Ha! It sure would be..."

I couldn't believe it. I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eye. I’d found her! Er- him. Mitch. It was undeniable- it was them…

 just a little different.

[END TRANSCRIPT]

[zombiesun]

top 5 places that you carry with you at the back of your mind to treasure always

nogales, new mexico. a border town in arizona that I worked and lived in for three months during my time in americorp. we lived on a house on the very top of the hill that would let you watch the sun set over mexico. there was a courtyard with a fountain that I did yoga in with my team leader every morning and evening. we worked at the local food bank as one of our jobs and they gave us cases of starbucks coldbrew that we would keep outside so it would be chilled by the morning before we left for work. our job was doing community taxes and painting a neighborhood fence pastel pink. it was a lot of going over the border to get guavas and haircuts. riding in the back of trucks to see stars. falling in love with a town that very tenderly took us in. definitely the most narrative place I've ever lived. it's one of those things that wouldn't be the same (the team and friends I lived with, the time, the unique way we integrated) if I went back now but I do miss it.

a few years ago a bunch of my high school friends including my best friend at the time and his girlfriend (who I also was good friends with) drove up the mountains on a whim. it was past midnight and it was so dark when we arrived to a look out. we lit sparklers and ran around the darkness laughing. then everyone branched off to go look at the mountains alone. I remember stepping off the trail and walking to the very edge and seeing the whole of the valley twilight dark. it was a very spiritual moment for me. I've never wanted to be alone longer but there was that comfort of knowing when I went back there would be people I loved and who loved me waiting.

I did a solo hike in the rocky mountains in college. it was right after a big snow so no else was at the area I was. only car in the parking lot, trail fully covered only navigated by the trail of footprints people had left earlier that day. it was so quiet and so pure. the snow was blinding and it was crisp but not too cold. I walked for hours until it grew dark. it was terrifying finding my way back, realizing that I could get lost without any definitive trail to lead me back. though a part of me definitely did want to go further - to see world at night. when I did find my way back the drive down the mountain was harrowing. dark and hardly any service, just listening to amen by ritual over and over again until I found my way back into the cities. it was a good day.

the redwood national forest. I visited there with my family when I was fourteen. I don't have a lot of memories that are important to me from being a kid but there was something so spiritual and big about the redwoods that really resonated with me. in particular, the dancing tree that was used as a dancing floor with food scuffs all over it. I remember thinking that if I ever got married I would want it to be there.

the residential program I worked at in portland. in complicated ways, some bad and some beautiful. it's too private to really talk more about but the people I met, the roles I played, and the events I experienced engraved themselves into my soul. it's something I'll never forget and shaped me. but also is not something I would ever do again because it made me realize that I didn't want to work within a broken and abusive system.

[loveintechnicolor]

Wild Hope: Chapter 2

A month passed without any further correspondence from Brittany, and Santana had all but given up on hearing back from the blonde. In the end, she figured it was probably all for the best. Brittany was an intelligent, resourceful woman who knew how to take care of herself. She did not need the brunette’s help in keeping Pierce Automotive afloat. Santana was sure of it.

At least, that's what Santana told herself every time she remembered that day. The brunette could not help but kick herself for finally having an opportunity to talk to the woman she’d had a crush on since she was fifteen and then promptly blowing her chance to even simply befriend her. Regardless, she still preferred having offered help to Brittany and being turned down than to not and have her never know that Lopez Marketing Services was a viable option in the event that she actually ever needed them. Santana just hoped that Brittany did not feel as if she had overstepped or, at the very least, that the mechanic would not hold it against her.

Santana buried her face in her hands, realizing that she had once again found herself mulling over the memory of that day. Reflecting on that moment was something that had taken up the majority of her idle thoughts over the past several weeks, and she was still trying to figure out a way for her to hopefully move on and return to life before Brittany S. Pierce had stepped back into it. It wasn’t that Santana regretted seeing the blonde again after being away for college. It had just proven to be near impossible for her to get the other woman back out of her head after years of working to suppress the echoing thoughts of her woulda-coulda-shouldas. For the time being, she told herself there was nothing she could do to change the situation that caused her latest bout of mortification. Well, nothing outside of calling up the other woman and profusely apologizing, but she would never do that. Not after already embarrassing herself beyond belief.

Releasing a frustrated huff, Santana decided to put her thoughts of Brittany aside for the time being as she grabbed her wallet and car keys to once again pick-up her lunch for the day. On her way out, she stopped by her mother’s office and gave a knock against the open door to gain the older woman’s attention.

Maribel instantly snapped her gaze over to the younger brunette, giving her daughter a bright smile before greeting, “Hey, Sweetheart. What’s up?”

“I just wanted to let you know that I am heading out to grab lunch. Do you want anything?”

“Depends. Where are you planning to go?”

“Well, there’s that new bistro that opened up across town. Rach keeps claiming that their Italian sub is to die for, so I figured I’d find go out for myself.”

“In that case, grab me one, too.”

“Will do. Be back in a bit.”

“Okay, take your time,” Maribel replied with a wave of her hand as she watched her daughter turn to leave.

Santana returned a half-hour later with a bag of takeout in hand. After saying hello to the receptionist, she made her way over to her mother’s office to deliver half the food only to find the woman no longer there. Suddenly, the somewhat distant sound of laughter caught her attention. Narrowing her eyes in confusion, Santana slowly spun around and started following the unexpected voices coming from her own office around the corner. As she approached the room, she looked through the opened doorway to find Maribel leaning back on her daughter’s desk as she spoke to the woman seated a few feet away in one of the office’s guest chairs. Santana nearly shrieked in surprise as she realized that it was the same woman who had unknowingly maintained a near constant claim on her thoughts over the course of the past few weeks.

Not realizing her presence, Maribel continued, “Yeah, my Santanita has always been a little spitfire, but that’s part of her charm. I remember this one time when she-“

“Um, hello?” Santana cut in, refusing to allow her mother to tell Brittany any other potentially embarrassing stories about her life. She watched on as the pair each turned their gazes over to the brunette standing at the office’s entrance, mainly maintaining a subtle glare in the direction of her mother.

“Oh, hey, Santana! We were just talking about you. Brittany came in requesting to speak with you while you were out, so I figured I’d just keep her company until my favorite daughter got back,” Maribel explains and Santana instantly noticed a glint of mischief dancing behind her mother’s eyes.

“I’m your only daughter, let alone child, Ma,” Santana grumbled with an exaggerated eyeroll. She knew what the woman was doing, and although she most likely had her daughter’s best interests in mind, Santana refused to let her mother continue to try to talk her up to the mechanic. Fishing out Maribel’s to-go container, she held it out to her and added, “Here’s your food, by the way. Rachel said it tastes best when it is still warm.”

Catching the hint, Maribel clutched the box with her hand and replied, “Okay, great. Can’t wait to try it.” Glancing between the two women, she continued, “I’ll leave you two to discuss whatever matters Miss Pierce needs to speak with you about. It was good to see you, Brittany. Don’t be a stranger.”

“Yes, ma’am. Have a good afternoon, Mrs. Lopez.”                            

“You, too, Honey,” Maribel returned as she moved to leave, subtly winking at her daughter. Santana instantly shot another thinly veiled displeased look at the older woman, but her mother had already moved past the brunette before she even had a chance to see. It didn’t matter anyway. Maribel knew her daughter well enough to know how she felt about the matter even without meeting her gaze.

Releasing a quiet sigh, Santana put her exasperation aside and addressed the blonde with a friendly smile, greeting, “Hi, Brittany.”

“Hey, Santana,” the woman chirped back in return.

“What can I do for you today?”

“Well,” Brittany began before her expression turned a bit uneasy. “I, um- I was hoping to maybe talk a little more about your offer from a few weeks ago. You know, the one regarding you potentially helping the shop with some marketing-related things?”

Suppressing her surprise, Santana replied, “Yeah, I remember.”

“Well, I was hoping to maybe discuss my options if you had some time this afternoon. Sorry to just barge in like this, by the way. I thought about calling to schedule a formal appointment, but I was out on my lunch break and figured I’d stop by while I was in the area. Now, I’m starting to realize that you might have other meetings scheduled for this afternoon. If you are busy, I could just some back another time.”

“No, I’m free for the time being. You’re fine.”

“Oh, okay. Good, good,” Brittany hums out. Getting more visibly nervous, she adds, “I-I know I could have maybe talked to your mom about it just now, so I’m sorry about that. Like you said the other day, she’s been doing it for a long time now, which of course isn’t your fault because you have to start somewhere, just like she did at some point, but- I don’t know. This is something that is really important to me, and I just feel that I know you a bit better. I mean, we graduated together, and you’ve always been nothing but nice to me, and-“

“Britt-“

“I know, I know. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to come in here and immediately word vomit,” the blonde apologizes before taking a deep, shaky breath, tears visibly starting to well in her eyes. “Shit, I’m sorry. I-I thought I’d be able to keep it together. I-I’m just really terrified right now.”

"Hey, it’s completely understandable why you would feel scared. The shop is obviously very important to you,” Santana assures as she quietly shuts her office door to give them more privacy. “Please just take a deep breath for me, and we’ll talk everything through, okay?”

“Y-yeah,” Brittany complies as she sucks in another long, unsteady breath before breathing it slowly back out.

“There we go. Now, what’s going on?”

“Th-the auto shop hasn’t done much better since the last time we spoke, and I’m terrified that I’m going to lose everything. I-” she started to say before hesitating, almost thinking better of it before deciding to just speak her thoughts anyway. “To be honest, I’m starting to feel that e-everyone’s right, and I’m just an idiot who-“

“Okay, no. First of all, Brittz, you are absolutely the furthest thing from an idiot, and anyone with the nerve to insinuate that you’re dumb is the actual idiot, alright?” Waiting for Brittany to nod her head, Santana continues, “Good, I’m glad we can agree. Now second of all, you aren’t losing anything. Not over my dead body.” Placing her take out on top of her desk, the brunette slid into her office chair and pulled open her desk drawer to retrieve a folder that had Pierce Automotive written in neat cursive script before laying it on the desktop next to her keyboard. She then moved to log back into her PC as she adds, “I've actually given quite a bit of thought as to how we can maybe help you increase traffic to the shop on the off chance that you’d change your mind. Just give me a second to find the other document I have with my ideas."

While focusing on pulling up the file on her computer, Santana suddenly heard the sound of a loud stomach growl and looked over to find the mechanic with a deep blush blooming on her cheeks.

"Oh, God. This is so embarrassing. I'm so sorry,” Brittany apologized, her mortification clearly shown on her face. “I came right over at the start of my lunchbreak, and I was so worried and distracted that I didn’t even think to eat beforehand."

“Hey, it’s alright. You are more than welcome to have some of my food if you want."

"No, I’ll be okay. I can wait until after we’re done. Let’s just move past it."

"Britt, I genuinely have the stomach of a small bird and hate leftovers, so you'd actually be doing me a favor by not letting this food go to waste," Santana encouraged with a small, soft smile has she nudged the to-go box towards the other woman. "Seriously, please feel free to take half of it."

Another moment of hesitation passed before the blonde tentatively asked, "Are-Are you sure?"

A small smirk pulled at the brunette's lips as she flipped open the container for the other woman, revealing the contents on the inside as she responded, "I’m positive. Now just to let you know, it is an Italian sub on a ciabatta roll with provolone, ham, salami, pepperoni, red onions, tomatoes, lettuce, pepper relish, mustard, some type of Italian sauce, and-" Santana suddenly trailed off as she thought over the details of her order. After pausing for a brief moment to make sure she did not miss anything, she concluded, "Yeah, I think that's it."

"Sounds delicious,” Brittany chuckles as she reaches forward to grab half of the sandwich. “Thank you.”

"Anytime. Now, let me get back to pulling up that list of marketing ideas," Santana stated as she shifted her focus back to the computer screen in front of her. "Okay, so-"

"Wait, please eat your sandwich before worrying about the shop."

Glancing back at the other woman, Santana assured, "It's really no problem. I take working lunches all the time."

"Not this time, please. I really don't want my problems to cause you to get indigestion," Brittany pouted. "Lord Tubbington always gets super cranky when he has an upset tummy."

"Okay, fine. You win, but just know that I'm not aware of any time that working through lunch has caused me to have an adverse bodily reaction," Santana acquiesced with a teasing roll of her eyes as she reached for the other half of the sandwich. After taking the first bite, her eyes instantly widened in surprise before holding out the sandwich in front of her to take a good look at it. “Oh my God!” Motioning toward the sub still grasped in the mechanic’s hands, she encouraged, “Brittany, you have to try this.”

"Oh, okay,” Brittany quietly replied as she chomped into the sandwich. Giving a moment to process the taste, she suddenly released a long hum in contentment. "Wow, this is really good. The crunch of the toasted ciabatta with the melty provolone and spicy pepper relish work perfectly together. This was a fantastic choice."

"Right? I hate to say it, but Rachel has pretty good taste when it comes to food.”

“Apparently," Brittany agreed before glancing back down to take another bite. The pair continue eat in silence for a few minutes before the blonde asks, "So, how has your day been? At least, before I came in to ruin it."

“Oh, hush. You haven’t ruined anything,” Santana laughed. "It hasn’t been too bad for a Tuesday. I actually might even venture to say it’s better now that I get to see you."

Brittany’s face immediately narrowed her eyes at the woman as she teased, "You really don't have to sweettalk me, Santana. I'm already in your office with the intention of asking you for help."

"Oh, I know I don't have to say it. I'm telling the truth. You're a goddamn ray of sunshine, and it'd be extremely hard for anyone to not have their day brightened with you around."

"Aw, shucks. You must be really, really trying to butter me up."

Santana gave a little noncommittal shrug as a sly smirk pulled at her lips. Popping the final bite into her mouth, she dusted off the crumbs from her hands and returned her attention to the matter at hand. "Okay, so back to business. My initial thoughts involve three to five different ads across all local television, radio, and online ad services. I have also already scoped out a few potential billboard locations that we can go look at if you are interested." She then paused to look over at the mechanic, "Does the shop happen to have any social media pages?"

"No, not really."

"Okay, so there is room for expansion in that regard. We might actually be able to use that to our advantage. How do you feel about potentially holding giveaway packages to drive traffic to your social media pages and the shop, itself?"

"I don't see any problem with that. Honestly, I'm pretty much down for anything you think will help at this point."

"Great, but also feel free to veto any ideas that may not work for you or the shop. You are the expert here and will know better than anyone else what works for your line of work. I’m just an outside third-party who is trying to help.”

“Okay, I’ll let you know. Thanks, San.”

“Of course,” Santana replied with a wink. “So, I was also thinking about reaching out to the carwash located down the street from the shop to see if they'd be willing to try a mutually beneficial team-up. Basically, customers at the shop can have a free carwash after receiving routine maintenance services while people who purchase certain carwash packages can get discounts on oil changes."

“Oh, that’s a great idea.”

“Yeah, I thought so, too. Of course, we would still have to reach out to them, but I’ve been told that I can be pretty convincing when I want to be so I don’t think we’ll have a problem getting them to come to the table.”

For the first time that day, Brittany actually started to feel somewhat hopeful about her situation. That was, until she remembered that this kind of help came with a price. Getting a bit worried, she asked, "So just to clarify, are there various packages for these marketing options, or-?"

"All of this is typically included with our premium offer."

"Okay, so how much would all this set me back?"

"Absolutely nothing,” Santana answers in a matter-of-fact tone.

Brittany blankly stared at the woman for a long moment, looking at the brunette as if she just sprouted a second head. Slowly furrowing her brow with a clearly confused expression, as she hesitantly responded, “What do you mean nothing?"

Santana laced her fingers together as she leaned forward to rest her chin on top of her hands as she stated, "Brittany, I've already spoken to my mother about this, and I would like to personally pay for everything we help you with."

"What? Why?" Brittany questioned, her eyes wide with shock.

“Because I’ve caused a lot of bad throughout my life, and I would really like to use this opportunity to add a bit of good to the world.”

“But this would be a lot of money we’re talking about, right?”

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

Brittany balked, “Of course I’m going to worry about it, San! Are you kidding me?”

“Britt, you literally just tried to do the exact same thing for me not that long ago.”

“Yeah, and last I checked, you refused to let me give you free service.”

“Well like we discussed last time, I’m hardheaded as hell, and I won’t stop until I get my way.”

The blonde gives her a slightly skeptical look, not really sure what to make of the situation. Thinking over her options, she tentatively asked, "Are you're sure about this?"

Placing her hands down onto the smooth desktop, Santana met the other woman’s gaze and swore, "I've never been more sure of anything in my life. You happen to employ several people I have actively terrorized in the past, so I would like nothing more than to hopefully help them maintain their livelihood while also ensuring you don’t lose the shop."

"And you really want nothing in return?"

“Nothing at all,” the brunette assured before her lips pulled into a teasing grin, adding, “but I also won’t stop you if you want to name-drop Lopez Marketing Services in idle conversations and such.”

Brittany gave a light laugh as she sat back in her seat, a look of slight disbelief on her face. “It almost feels like an offer I can’t refuse.”

“You definitely can. I’m not here to try to pressure you or anything. Feel free to take some time and think it over. Potentially even discuss it with Kurt and any legal representation you may have. I can even have some paperwork drawn up if you’d like. That way, it is legally binding and ensures that I am not going to swindle you.”

Taking a moment to think it over, Brittany suddenly seemed to come to a decision as she held up a pinky toward the other woman.

Santana could only stare at the gesture, not really sure of the other woman’s intentions as she questioned, “Um, what’s this?”

“It’s a pinky swear.”

“And what would you like me to swear to, exactly.”

“Do you swear that you are telling the truth about everything we’ve discussed today?”

Finally understanding, a wide grin spread across her face as Santana reached forward to lace her pinky with the other woman’s, swearing, “I promise that I genuinely aim to help and that I will do everything in my power to help your auto shop become as successful as possible. Everything will be paid for by myself, you can decline any idea that is pitched to you, and you will ultimately have the final say in any business Lopez Marketing Services conducts on behalf of Pierce Automotive.”

Seemingly pleased with their deal, Brittany briefly tightens her pinky’s grip around Santana’s before letting it slip from her grasp as she affirms, “Then, I think you have yourself a deal.”

Santana’s face lit up with elation at the news as she cheerily replied, “Good to hear. I’ll go ahead and arrange to start having the official paperwork drawn up. As binding as our pinky swear may be between us, I unfortunately don’t think it’ll hold up as well in a court of law, and I want to make sure we go about this the right way. That way you can have full confidence in our work with you.”

“I already do, with or without the paperwork.”

“Then, it’ll be for Kurt, who I can guarantee will be wanting to see it.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.”

“I usually am,” Santana teased with a wink. “In the meantime, would you like to go check out the billboards I have in mind? That is, if you’re free.”

“Yeah, I think I can spare some time.”

“Awesome,” Santana states as she grabs her keys and opens her door for the other woman. “After you, milady.”

Read on AO3

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[crossbordernarratives]

Pressure Cooker: Milwaukee Braces For Trump Convention

Residents and volunteers were urging a lowering of tensions Sunday in Milwaukee as Republicans descend on the city for their national convention just a day after Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt at a campaign rally.

The lakeside municipality in battleground Wisconsin finds itself in the eye of a political and security maelstrom following the spasm of violence that has shaken the 2024 campaign and prompted questions about the country's political polarization.

Police were enforcing a buffer zone in the fenced-off blocks around Fiserv Forum, the sports arena where some 2,400 Republican delegates from around the country will gather, beginning Monday, to formalize Trump as the party's nominee for the third time since 2016.

And President Joe Biden, Trump's election rival, said Sunday that following the shooting he has directed the Secret Service, the agency which protects US leaders, to "review all security measures… for the Republican National Convention."

Several residents told AFP Sunday that they or their neighbors were nervous and on heightened alert, and were calling for an easing of the political pressure cooker.

"Tensions are high on both sides, and I think we've got to tone down the rhetoric," said 60-year-old Trump supporter Martin Kutzler, who was walking in downtown Milwaukee wearing a T-shirt that depicts Trump as 1970s movie character The Godfather.

"Calling any American officeholder Hitler just throws gasoline on the rhetoric, and calling a current president Sleepy and Crooked is not advisable either," said Kutzler, who works for Amazon.

He was referring to some of the ugly comparisons and nicknames that have been thrown around to describe Trump and Biden -- at times by the candidates themselves.

Resident Becca, 25, was walking her dog with her mother along the Milwaukee River when she paused to ruminate over the "kind of crazy" preparations for the convention -- and the passions that are driving US voters.

"It is scary that people are this heated about an election," Becca, who declined to give her last name, told AFP, recalling the trauma from Saturday in Pennsylvania.

"And with everything going on, like we're a little nervous." she added. "I hope that they don't take it and escalate it in certain ways."

Lynn Quirk, who owns multiple college housing units in town, stood somberly watching the proceedings at a security checkpoint outside the convention arena.

"Everybody I talk to is just really super shocked," the 60-year-old Milwaukee native said. "It's a crazy time."

"Talking with my neighbors yesterday, people are nervous," she added. "Some people were going to come down here and look around. Now everybody's like, 'Yeah, no I don't need to come.'"

High metal fencing rings the perimeter area and police vessels patrol the river. An employee of a downtown food establishment conceded that merchants have been meeting and coordinating with the Secret Service.

Security forces are believed to number in the thousands, including hundreds of police from states as far as California.

"Obviously, we're going to be more vigilant -- not that we weren't going to be vigilant before. But with yesterday's events, the security is going to be heightened obviously," said Captain Anthony Scott, one of 63 Indiana State Police officers joining the sprawling operation.

But for some, like convention volunteer and self-described "huge Republican" Becky Hawkins, who grew up in Milwaukee, the crisis of the past 24 hours has bolstered their resolve.

[dausy]

Well we went out of town this weekend to celebrate my SiLs birthday and celebrate her college graduation and we actually had a decent time. We wondered around Santa Fe and Albuquerque. I lived in ABQ a long long time ago so time has certainly changed it and I've heard all the negative things about it recently but it was actually ok. We had a good time...except...

like nothing can ever be simple. Its a holiday weekend so we expected things to be a bit crowded and busy and ofcourse saturday evening our truck started giving us service errors telling us to check the battery. This is pretty inconvenient because its a new battery and we need to drive 4 hours to get home in this truck somehow. My husband and BiLs are a bit mechanically inclined and they figured it was the alternator something or another but now we needed a new alternator and its a weekend in the evening and everything is getting ready to close and nothing will reopen until tuesday. Husband definitely needs to be home for work on tuesday. So we call a bajillion shops trying to find one still open and miraculously one guy said he could get the part for us ordered and it should arrive by 10:30am on sunday (yesterday). He said he'd leave a message for his boss and none of this is boding well to me. Ive heard this phrase "let me leave a message for my boss" before and its code for "Im going to forget and nobody will get the message". Alternately my SiL and BiL offered there car if we needed it and we could drive it back next weekend to switch it out and they'd get our truck fixed for us but just sounds super inconvenient.

also simultaneously, my FiL (who did not go on this trip) had to get sent to the ER and admitted to the hospital. So now my MiL and SiL (who were on this trip) were super anxious and that also dampened the mood.

and then! to top it off, we were waiting for 10:30 to roll around to call about this part when I got a phone call from the boarding facility saying my dog got caught in a brawl that broke out between several other dogs. It wasn't my dogs fault, shes just little and got in the ruckus and had to go to the ER for stitches. They actually had to do more than that, she got sedated, has an ugly frankenstein wound and a penrose drain sticking out. The bright side is so far the boarding facility has paid for everything. She has to go back in a few days to get her drain out.

but overall I had some nice hiking and shopping and got to go to a zoo and aquarium and botanical garden and eat too much food...would have been nicer without the stress lmao T_T

[nickgerlich]

Order Up

The idea of fast food is a truly American concept, one expanded upon and translated into many cultures around the world. As much as it is typically lacking in healthiness, it struck a chord with the increasingly car-centric culture that emerged mid-century. Just as our cars allowed us to get places faster, they also became our dining room.

We are most accustomed to seeing the suburban version of fast food these days, with ever-evolving stand-alone stores featuring drive-thrus, curbside, and—gasp—even a declining emphasis on dine-in, to shared space inside truck stops and c-stores. They are ubiquitous, and continuing to grow in number.

But what about fast food in busy urban centers? It gets a little trickier, because drive-thrus are usually not attainable. In fact, cars in general are a liability the closer you reach the center of town, and traffic becomes those on foot. Clearly, smaller spaces are needed, even to the point of minimizing or eliminating interior dining.

In this digital age, it leaves room for experimentation, like what Chick-fila-A is testing with a new digital-only pickup restaurant in New York City. But it requires diners to revise their way of patronizing.

The concept store does not allow for walk-up ordering. In other words, there is no room for spur-of-the-moment “Hey, let’s go to Chick-fil-A!” Customers must be more volitional than this, and have planned it out to the extent that they place their order via the CFA app before they head to the restaurant. Once you pick up your order, it’s “Off you go” (in my best Frasier Crane voice) because you can’t eat anything there. It is strictly pick-up and get lost.

And, as an extension of last year’s test of geo-fencing to help determine when app-ordering customers are nearing a suburban store for pickup, this one will lean heavily on the technology. As long as users have location services enabled, the new store will be able to track your presence once you pop into a predetermined “bubble” nearby. This will help in having orders ready about the time you arrive, rather than sitting under a heat lamp.

If the concept works, I suspect this will allow CFA and competitors who follow suit to shoe-horn many more fast food shops into increasingly crowded—and expensive—urban centers. I also ponder how something like this could work on college campuses, like here at WT. Imagine students in class ordering their lunch from their phone while the prof drones on and on. As soon as class dismisses at 12:15, they could run downstairs to the food court and go to a pick-up window.

While I doubt a complete pick-up-only model would be conducive to campus, a hybrid version might just work for those not wanting to stand in the long line that forms nervy day at about 12:16.

I also realize there will be naysayers and some folks left out of the equation with stores like the NYC test version, primarily because they have yet to adopt the digital lifestyle. Ordering from an app is something they would rather not do, even if it means standing in lines and having to interface with people. You know…like they have always done.

Ah, but change as we know it is sometimes a huge pill to swallow, one that requires a big swig of adventure and willingness to embrace the new. I like what Chick-fil-A is thinking here, even if it necessarily means the continued depersonalization of dining out. In the market reality today of small labor forces and increasing minimum wages, this push makes sense on more levels than just one. Those cows on the billboards urging everyone to Eat Mor Chikin are on to something.

Dr “Takeaway Only” Gerlich

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