Mini MacGyver Fic
(Look, ya’ll keep filling my timeline with irresistable prompts sooooo have sleepy, sick Mac just trying to take a nap mini fic!)
No one could find Mac. He'd been spotted coming in, spotted saying hi to Matty, spotted in the lab tweaking Sparky's joints, spotted in the gym repairing a treadmill rumor had it he’d broken... But all those reports were now hours old. No one was worried, they were just curious. Had he gone to fix something else for someone? Had he disappeared into the cafeteria? Was he busy inventing something somewhere? No one knew.
Well, almost no one knew.
Bozer's phone vibrated in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw Matty's name on screen. "Uh oh."
"What?" Riley asked, looking up from her screen in the tech room.
Bozer held out his phone. "Matty's calling."
Riley shared his alarm. "Okay, okay. Just stay calm and focused on the goal here, okay?"
"You just said okay three times," Bozer said.
"Answer it!" Riley hissed.
Bozer did as he was told. "Hey, Matty. Whassup?"
He saw Riley's barely restrained facepalm.
"Bozer, where are you?" Matty sounded suspicious. Then again, that wasn’t exactly new for her. She always sounded like that when she needed an answer.
'Breathe!' Riley mouthed at him.
Nodding, Bozer took a breath and answered Matty. "With Riley. She's been showing me a few things in the tech office."
Which was technically true...
"Is Mac with you?"
Bozer could do this without messing up. He could totally fool Matty. "Sorry. Still haven't seen him. You know what he's like when he's thinking."
"Yeah, I do," Matty said. "It's why I'm thinking of putting a bell on him."
Bozer snorted with laughter. "Riley and I will get right on that."
"She could go one better and track his phone."
"Isn't that a major violation of Mac's privacy?" Bozer asked, trying to keep his voice light.
"Unfortunately," Matty said. "So make me a bell, or better yet, find him."
"Is it urgent?" Bozer asked. “Y’know, the thing you need him for?”
"No," Matty said. "But it's starting to feel like he's avoiding both myself and Jack."
Sounded like Mom and Dad were worried. "I will keep looking."
"Thanks."
Matty ended the call. Bozer sank down in relief. "I think she bought it."
"Good," Riley said. "Because Mac needs the nap."
They both looked over to the tech room's couch. Mac was there, uncharacteristically oblivious to the world. He was fast asleep, resting on his side, arms curled in front of his face. His hair flopped over his face, his cheeks slightly flushed. Even from across the room they could hear the congestion in his breathing.
"Think we'll convince him to take an actual sick day tomorrow?" Riley asked.
"No," Bozer said. “Because Mac doesn’t catch colds. He is above them.”
"That is ridiculous," Riley said. Not that she sounded angry or frustrated. She was too worried for that. "Aren't guys supposed to get man flu? He should be at home complaining about how he has a little bit of a sniffle and acting like it’s the end of the world, not hiding in here. The fact that he is sleeping through all of this says it all! He’s sick. And if I catch whatever this is off him, I am going to confiscate every paperclip in LA."
"Getting Mac to admit he's sick is like getting you to admit Uncharted 2 is the best in the franchise," Bozer said.
"That's because Uncharted 3 is the best and I will die on that hill," Riley said. "And yes, I get your point."
"So we have two options," Bozer said. "Either we continue hiding him, or we wake him up and get him to Matty, hoping she doesn’t notice that he’s feverish."
Riley sighed.
Bozer sighed.
They shared a look. "Wanna go Rock, Paper, Scissors?" Bozer offered. "Winner makes the call."
"No way! Loser makes the call!"
"Deal." Bozer held out one hand.
Riley stood and held out hers. "On three."
Bozer nodded. "One." He slammed his fist against his open palm.
"Two!" Riley said, her fist hitting her palm.
"Three!"
Bozer: paper.
Riley: rock.
"Damn!" She groaned.
"Yes!" Bozer cheered. "The pressure is off."
"Argh!" Riley scrubbed at her hair. "Fine! I say we give him another hour. Then we wake him up and send him to Matty."
Except exactly five minutes later, Jack walked in. He looked pissed. "Hey! What the hell are you two - "
"Sssssssshhhhh!" Bozer and Riley ordered, pointing to the couch.
Jack looked to the couch tucked up against the back wall, and his expression softened. "Well, now, there he is." Jack looked over his shoulder. "He's sick, ain’t he?"
"It’s a cold," Bozer said.
"Mac Flu," Riley said. At Jack and Bozer's looks, she shrugged. "What? He should be resting at home but instead, to avoid calling in sick, he's taking a nap on my work couch! If that ain't Mac Flu, I dunno what is."
"Alright, I had a feeling something was up when he turned down a ride this morning. He thinks he’s so smart, trying to hide this from me," Jack said. "I'll let Matty know. You guys keep an eye on him. And under no circumstances is he to drive himself anywhere."
"Oh, he won't." Bozer held up both Mac's keys and his Swiss army knife.
Jack looked impressed. "Nice work."
Bozer nodded. "We've got him. You go tell Matty everything's cool."
"No need."
Matty entered the room. She took one look at Mac. "Blondie!" she bellowed. “Let’s go! Up and at ‘em!”
Mac jolted awake and fell right off the couch. Squinting, Mac stared at everyone gathered around him. “Uh…”
"Sorry, Mac," Riley said. "Bozer and I did our best."
"Yeah, you have been asleep for three hours so we did pretty good!" Bozer said.
"I will deal with you two later," Matty said.
Riley and Bozer fell silent.
"Mac, you're going home and you are staying there until you're well enough to be here," Matty said.
Mac leapt to his feet. "I'm well! I'm..." The colour flushed out of him.
"Whoa there!" Jack caught Mac before he hit the deck.
"Okay," Mac said, voice muzzy. "I'm okay."
"Yeah, that little blackout says otherwise." Jack helped Mac steady himself. " I can feel the heat coming off of you like –”
“Please,” Mac begged. “Do not finish that sentence.”
“Fine,” Jack said. “You need a trip to medical?"
"No," Mac said. "I just... I should probably go home."
"And that's exactly where you're going," Jack said.
Mac looked through his messy hair at Riley and Bozer. "Sorry I got you in trouble."
"Oh, don't worry, you're in plenty of trouble yourself," Matty said. "Just as soon as you can stand up without fainting."
Mac smiled ruefully.
"Take him home," Matty ordered Jack.
"You got it, boss."
Continues here!
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while the world ends around us (make believe with me)
5. We let the freckles on our faces make a million stars
AO3
When Jens’s phone buzzed late last night, he ignored it, simply glancing at the brightening screen before looking away, back at the video game he was engrossed in. Lotte and his mom were both in bed, probably snoring, but he couldn’t fall asleep, hard as he tried.
It was almost midnight when he finally took off the headset and shut off the tv, rubbing his sore ears and blinking in the dim light of the hallway seeping into the living room after staring at the bright, fluorescent screen for so long. As he moved down the hallway, it was like the music and booms and crashes of the game were echoing, rattling around in his skull, clashing with the deafening silence as he cracked Lotte’s door open and gazed at her for a second, his phone, notification forgotten, in the pocket of his sweatpants.
He’d left his light off when he threw himself onto the bed, the door shut gently behind him. The windows were cracked open, the pale yellow curtains parted to let light from street lamps leak into the room, the quiet city just out of reach as he stepped between the window and his bed to grab his earbuds from the floor.
He fell onto the bed, causing a quiet thump and he buried himself under his blanket, hiding from the soft breeze sneaking into the room. He finally pulled his phone out, struggling for a second before managing to plug in his earbuds, and he opened his phone, flinching as it shone too brightly in the dark. His eyes caught on a notification as the phone opened too quickly for him to read it beyond a phone number he didn’t recognise. He let out a quiet “Oh,” as he swiped on the screen until his messages were open, remembering suddenly, his heart picking up its pace until he could hear it.
l: hey this is lucas :)
Jens smiled, hurriedly sending a hey whats up?? before adding the number as a contact, as lucas :). (He’d used a smiley face in the initial email, so maybe it was a Lucas thing.) Before he could leave the app to open his music, Lucas had texted back.
l: not much just staring at the ceiling
Jens had laughed lightly, rolling over so he was on his belly, propping himself up on his elbows with his phone in front of him.
j: oh same
He paused before typing again.
j: sooooo how are you liking antwerp
He watched as a bubble appears, and then disappears, and then appears again.
l: im sure if i went out into the city and actually did stuff i’d like it more
Jens had chuckled, tilted his head understandingly.
j: very valid
j: it’s not the same rn bc of covid but there are still some cool places to see
He watched the bubble again.
l: i haven’t really left my apartment since i got here :( but i do want to go places
l: my friends are pressuring me to be adventurous
j: when it’s safe for people to meet up i can show you around
j: we can go on some adventures
After hitting send he paused, biting his lip, wondering if it was too… forward, straight-up, blunt. If it was too early, too soon for a let’s hang out invitation. But then Lucas responded with his little :)and it was fine.
Jens started getting sleepy as they chatted, as Lucas told him about Utrecht and about what he did with his friends.
l: we used to get fries a lot
l: too often maybe
l: no such thing
j: so we’re getting fries when we meet up it’s decided
l: a man after my own heart
j: stomach
l: oh yea
He wakes up to shifting on his bed, and his eyes open, just a bit. It’s still a little dim out, too early for him to be worried about missing a class, too early for him to be worried about sleeping through an alarm.
It’s the first time he’s woken up in the morning without earbuds tangled around him. He sees them when he opens his eyes, a fuzzy, white, tangled mess on the edge of his bed like he placed them there (maybe he did), and a part of him says huh, seeming to forget that it’s actually possible to fall asleep without his head full of noise.
He glances down, still too tired to really move, and sees Lotte crawling up his bed, a little blurry. He moves his arm so she can climb under it, and realises his fingers are resting on top of his phone, also dangerously close to the edge of the bed. He pulls it closer and slides it up to a safe place before lifting his arm up more, feeling Lotte’s small hands pull at his bicep until it’s in the air, and she flops down next to him, narrowly missing his face. He scoffs and pulls her close, resting his chin on her head.
When he wakes up again it’s brighter, and there’s a jolt in his chest before he reaches up, around Lotte (the arm she’s laying on it filled with static but he’s careful not to move her), and snatches his phone, bringing it close enough to his face to read the time. There are only a few minutes before his alarm is going to go off.
“Lotte,” he whispers, and she just nuzzles her face into Jens’s chest. “Hey.”
She groans quietly and furrows her brows, a hand coming up and curling under her chin softly.
“Lotte, I have a class soon.”
“I don’t wanna go,” she mumbles, moving closer, and he sighs, running a hand over her hair.
“Will you stay quiet while I’m in class?” he asks after a second.
“Mm-hmm.” She nods, moving closer, but Jens sits up, pushing her away, and she ends up with her head on his leg, seemingly undisturbed as Jens bends around her to pick up his laptop and set it in front of himself. She’s snoring softly by the time the video call is open, by the time Jens’s glasses are on his face, by the time the teacher’s droning voice is talking about the homework Jens did last class, still with a few minutes before class actually starts. (Chemistry. Jens suspects Mr Claes is just about as done with virtual learning as the rest of them. Classes are quick, just attendance and instruction. The minimal amount of learning Jens does in this class is through the assignments: YouTube videos and Google Forms. Modern education.)
Jens ends up running his hand over Lotte’s hair, waiting until Mr Claes dismisses them with too much time left over like usual so he can go and make breakfast.
As Mr Claes is talking to Mathijs (“Why didn’t you do last week’s assignment?” Jens winces in sympathy for him.), Jens’s phone buzzes, back on his bed where he had put it before Lotte crawled in and he leans back, pulling it close and looking at the notification, a text from Lucas :).
i: i have dupont first
l: any advice
Jens opens the messages, skimming the ones from last night, that took up too much of the night, that are probably the reason Jens’s eyes are struggling to stay open this morning more than usual, and types a response, lifting his hand from Lotte’s head to do so.
j: never had him :/
Lucas responds soon after a second.
l: ugh
l: disappointing
Jens scoffs, glancing up as Claes starts discussing the day’s assignment.
j: my apologies
j: good luck
He sighs, leaning back as he waits for a response.
“So,” Claes is saying, his voice echoey. “It’s the same as last class, just make sure to turn it in before three today.” None of the other students have their cameras on, and Claes stares blankly, waiting for a response, reminding Jens of Dora the Explorer. After a second, he gives up and says, “Okay, guys, I guess I’ll see you Tuesday.” A pause. “Or I’ll talk to you next Tuesday, I guess. Email me if you have questions.”
Jens’s phone buzzes in his lap but he ignores it long enough to lean forward and unmute himself to say, “Bye, Mr Claes.”
He shuts his laptop quietly when he leaves the meeting, setting the assignment on a to-do shelf in his brain, and lifts his phone to read the text.
l: ok he’s just telling personal anecdotes about his cats i think he’s bored
l: but i am too so what’s up
Jens smiles again, pushing his glasses up his nose and pushing his laptop away.
j: my sister is asleep on my leg and my teacher just dismissed us
j: so i’m going to make breakfast or something
Jens yawns after hitting send, arching his back as he stretches and hearing it crack softly, taking care to not move his leg and bother Lotte, who’s still sleeping peacefully. One of her hands is under her chin, her fingers pressed between her face and Jens’s leg, making her cheek squish, and Jens gently brushes her hair back.
l: wait that’s so cute how old is she
l: also what are you making can i have some
l: also dupont just dismissed us, do you want to call bc i don’t have anything to do
Jens grins, quickly reaching up to push his glasses again (they fall when he looks down at his phone; tightening them has been on his to-do list for a while), and responding.
j: she’s eight
j: eggs probably come on down
j: yes i’ll call you in a minute
“Lotte,” he says softly, clicking off his phone and tossing it away. He touches the top of her head, rustling her hair gently, and she lets out a disgruntled groan, turning her face into Jens’s leg. He laughs, rustling her hair again.
“I’m going to make breakfast, but you have to get off me first.” She doesn’t move. “Do you wanna eat?”
Her eyes open and she glares at him groggily.
“You can stay here if you want, I just have to get up.”
“But you’re so comfy,” she says, nuzzling her face into his leg again.
“Well so are pillows and that’s what they’re actually for.”
“Ugh.”
She finally moves, rolling off of his leg and squirming around like a fish until she finds the pillows, and she clutches the end of the blanket and she buries her face in them.
“I’ll wake you up later.”
“Don’t,” she grumbles into the pillow, and he almost doesn’t hear her.
Before leaving, he reaches over her, snatching his earbuds and pressing a chaste kiss to her head.
As he makes his way to the kitchen, he struggles to plug the earbuds into his phone, lifting it closer to his face to see and bumping into the doorframe of the kitchen, wincing as his shoulder hits a sharp corner.
He calls Lucas, hesitating for only a second to take a deep breath, as he opens the pan cabinet.
“Hey,” he says when Lucas picks up.
“You said you’re making eggs?” Lucas says, sans greeting, and Jens startles, snorting and trying to stifle a cackle as he flips the pan in his hand and turns on the stove. His voice is different than it was during class, over the video call. It sounds... closer. Softer, even though he’s speaking with his chest more so than he did when he was in class.
“Yes? What’s your problem with eggs?”
“I don’t have a problem, it’s just fucking gross.”
The laugh breaks through loudly as he sets the pan on the stove, leaning over the counter to grab the non-stick spray.
“This is not a conversation I was expecting to have today— Are you vegan?”
“No, I’m not vegan. Why, what’s your problem with vegans?”
“I don’t have a problem with vegans.” He spins on his heel to go to the fridge and pulls three eggs out of the carton, leaving two. He makes a mental note to get eggs next time he takes Lotte grocery shopping.
“Just like I don’t have a problem with eggs.”
“Listen… I respect veganism.” He cracks an egg.
“Did you… Just tell me to shut up so I could hear you crack an egg?”
“I…” Jens looks at the eggshells in his hand. “That was not on purpose.”
“The amount of disrespect.”
“I just said I respect vegans!”
“And I just said I’m not vegan!”
“Oh my god…”
Jens laughs as he drops the eggshells in the bin, turning back to twist the knob on the stove to turn down the heat.
“Anyway,” Lucas says lightly. “How are you today?”
Jens scoffs, grabbing a plate from the counter as the egg cooks.
“Fine? I’ve been awake for approximately ten minutes, so we’re going pretty good. You?”
“I’m dead inside, thanks for asking—” Jens interrupts him with a laugh— “But this class doesn’t seem too hard, so that’s nice.”
“Cool, which class is it?”
“Biology.”
“Oh, gross. I just had chemistry.”
“Biology is better than chemistry.”
“Incorrect,” Jens says after scoffing.
“Actually, I’m always correct.”
“I think your brain is broken.”
Lucas lets out a quiet laugh.
“Just a little bit.”
Jens laughs, carefully shimmying the spatula under the egg to flip it.
“What have you been up to other than classes?” He asks after a second, and there’s a slight pause before Lucas answers.
“Just hanging out in my room, I guess. I haven’t done much.”
“You said you’re an artist, right?”
“Uh— Yeah,” Lucas says, sounding hesitant.
“What kind of art do you do?”
“Visual,” he says. “Mostly portraits in pencil or pen, but I really like watercolour.”
“How come you don’t have art or anything on your wall?” Jens asks as he drops the cooked egg on a plate and sprays the pan again. “One of my friends is an artist and his wall is covered.”
Lucas sighs.
“I would, but I’m not allowed to put anything up.”
“Like your landlord won’t let you put pins or anything?”
“No, like my dad won’t even let me use tape, it’s ridiculous.”
Jens makes a face even though Lucas can’t see him.
“That’s stupid,” he says, cracking the other two eggs and mixing them together when one of the yolks breaks.
“He is stupid,” Lucas grumbles, and his voice has changed. It’s lower, less playful than when he picked up.
“How come you live with him?” Jens asks, something in him recognizing the result of divorced parents. Lucas doesn’t answer, though, and Jens regrets asking as he hears Lucas let out a quiet sigh.
“We can talk about something else,” he says gently.
“Thanks,” Lucas says softly.
“So you only do portraits?” Jens asks, changing his tone so it’s more conversational.
“Usually, yeah.” There’s a clicking sound on Lucas’s end, sounding like the mouse of a laptop. “Every once in a while I’ll draw something else, but it’s typically faces.”
“Do you do people from real life?” Jens asks curiously. “Or do you do like… I don’t know.”
“Both,” Lucas says. “I use references and I like drawing my friends with pictures they send me, but sometimes I just… draw whatever comes to mind. Random faces and stuff.”
“I wish I could do something like that,” Jens sighs. “My sister is the artist of the family.”
“I already love your sister.”
“Everyone loves my sister.”
“What do you do?” Lucas asks, and Jens shrugs, mixing the eggs around a little with the spatula.
“Not much. Before covid I went skating with my friends, I went to parties and stuff. Now I just play video games and play guitar on occasion.”
“You play guitar?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re an artist.”
Jens scoffs, laughing lightly, but Lucas insists, “You are! Music is an art and you make music. Artist.”
“If you say so.”
“I told you I’m always right,” Lucas sighs. “Ah, shit.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Dupont actually assigned homework.”
“He’s a teacher, Lucas, that’s what they do.”
Lucas sighs again, sounding forlorn.
“Yeah, but I was hoping he’d be easy.”
“It’s biology.”
Lucas groans loudly, and Jens winces, laughing.
“Go do your homework,” he says when Lucas stops. “I’m gonna wake up my sister to eat. Are you still coming by for breakfast?”
“If I’m ever going to your place it’s not gonna be for eggs. It’ll be to hang out with your sister, because she’s probably cooler than you”
“...Wow.”
“Did that hurt your feelings?”
“Little bit.”
“Good. Build some character.”
Jens lets out a laugh that sounds a little much like a giggle for his liking, and his face burns as he turns to pull the fridge open.
“Go do your homework,” he says as he pulls the orange juice out. (Lotte’s favourite. She would drink it like water if Jens let her.)
“I don’t wanna….” Lucas whines.
“My hands are full, you have to be the one to hang up,” Jens says, lifting a plate and trying carefully not to drop the juice.
“Are you already tired of me?” Lucas asks, and Jens can hear him stifling a laugh.
“I’ve known you for less than twenty-four hours.”
“And yet…” Lucas sighs forlornly. “I’ll let you go, I guess.”
“Text me later.”
“Will do. Bye-bye-e-e.”
Jens sets the other plate on the table just as Lucas hangs up, and he stops, his eyes stuck on the table in front of him. Lucas’s voice is still rattling in his head, a stark difference from the sudden silence of the flat. He sounded like he could be in the same room, right next to Jens, teasing him and laughing with him like they’ve known each other for years. Jens briefly wonders if this is how Robbe felt when he met Sander, but he shakes his head, dismissing the thought.
---
Jens twists his back, popping it, and winces in the bright sunlight streaming through his window that falls on his face.
“And I want you all to get some fresh air today too,” Ms Peeters is saying. Her hair is tied up today. Jens has never seen her with her hair tied up. He’s reminded that she does have ears, even though they’re typically covered by her curls. “Take a walk or open a window. It’s nice out today.”
“My window is stuck closed,” someone says after a second, the bubble with his initial in it moving as he speaks. Ms Peeters opens her mouth to say something before another student, Liam, interrupts, “Smash it.”
“No, I don’t recommend that,” Ms Peeters says, and Jens hears Liam’s snicker echoing in his speakers. Liam makes similar comments in class.
Jens laughs, glancing down to the little box with Lucas’s face in it and feeling a little rush at Lucas’s grin.
“Okay, anyway,” Ms Peeters says, and it takes a second for Jens to look back at her. “Matthew, don’t do that please. And if you do, I had nothing to do with it, I don’t want a phonecall from your parents. Anyway, you all remember what I said about a project, right?”
Almost every student throws their head back, rolling their eyes, and Jens sighs deeply, mentally adding the unexplained work to his to-do list.
“Well, you’ll be happy, because you can really do whatever you want.”
“Does that mean I can do nothing?” Liam asks, and Jens wonders if he leaves his microphone on just so he can cut in easily.
“Liam, I will fail you,” she dismissed him. “That means you can do an essay, a powerpoint, a poster, whatever. If we were still in person, I’d want you and your partner to present it to the rest of the class, but I won’t make you do that.
“Your assignment is to read a book. A classic,” she clarifies. “And to complete something, powerpoint, essay, whatever.”
“Are you assigning partners?” Ella asks after a second, and Jens finds himself glancing at Lucas's box again.
“No, you guys can pick partners yourself. No more than three to a book, and you can all probably find the books online as PDFs.” She pauses, her eyes scanning her screen. “Any more questions?”
“Uhm,” Ella says, looking hesitant. “When is this due?”
Ms Peeters sighs, looking away from her computer.
“I don’t know yet. We’ll see. Probably not for a while, I know you’re all busy with your other classes and, you know, the pandemic. Don’t put it off though,” she adds. “I don’t want you to skim your book and throw something together the night before it’s due. I want to see effort.”
“Also--”
“Ella, stop asking questions,” Liam interrupts, and Jens decides that he definitely leaves his microphone on just to be able to annoy people better. He wonders if he does it in any of his other classes. Maybe not. None of Jens’s other teachers are as patient as Ms Peeters.
“Someone has to,” Ella retorts. “Are we still doing poetry?”
“Yeah, we’re going to do poetry in class and your project you’ll have to do on your own time.”
“Okay.”
“Any more questions? Comments, concerns? Debates, disputes, dilemmas?” Ms Peeters asks, her trademark end-of-class questions. “No?”
Jens shakes his head, because he knows she can see him.
“Okay, well I want you guys to enjoy today, so you’re free to go. Pick your partners and book and email me so I can keep track. Cool?”
Jens’s phone buzzes not five seconds after he leaves the meeting. (Ms Peeters always leaves last. He doesn’t know why, but he suspects it’s in case anyone wants to stay after and talk. She seems like that kind of person.) He shuts his laptop, leaning over his bed and pulling his phone up.
l: partners? I might already have a book
Jens grins, immediately typing a response.
j: yea for sure
j: what book do you have?
He lays back on his pillows as he waits for a response, pushing one of them under his head until it’s comfortable.
l: the great gatsby? She never said it had to be a belgian classic
Jens scoffs, shaking his head.
j: You’re turning into Liam
j: but sure whats she gonna do, make us start over?
l: I can send her an email and ask but i’m pretty sure shes gonna say sure
j: sounds good
Lucas responds with his signature smiley face, and Jens smiles at his phone before adding,
j: i should warn you that youre making a mistake picking me as your partner though
j: im not a reade
After hitting send he tosses the phone across the bed, stretching his back again and looking out his window. From his room he can see the buildings across the street. The windows are all shiny, reflecting the sunlight brightly, like the sun is inside the building itself, burning everything up except the structure and glass. Jens tosses his blanket aside, stretching his legs out and sighing before spinning to sit on the edge of his bed. His eyes drift shut as he sits there, supporting himself with his hands by his legs, digging into the mattress.
It’s quiet, but he can hear Lotte’s TV show come through the walls and his door. The volume is low, per his instructions, and it’s just a gentle, inaudible hum. It makes him think of the music he’d be able to hear through the bathroom door at parties.
His phone vibrates behind him and he reaches back to get it as he stands, opening his door.
l: not to worry i like reading
l: and ive read the great gatsby several times already
what are we gonna do our project on, though? Jens types, making his way down the hall, doing his best not to walk into the wall or door frame of the living room. like a powerpoint or an essay or??
l: powerpoint sounds easiest
l: we can do like just a summary of it
l: or analyze gatsby or something
j: whatever gets us a passing grade
l: got it
“Are you done with class?” Lotte asks, looking up at him with a cereal bowl under her face. She’s cross-legged on the floor in front of the television.
“I’m done with that class,” he says, flopping onto the sofa. “My teacher let us out early so we can enjoy the weather.”
“Are we gonna go on a walk?” she asks excitedly, spinning around on the floor, nearly spilling milk on the carpet. Jens raises an eyebrow at her.
“We can if you finish eating first. And if you get dressed,” he adds, glancing at her pink pyjamas.
She eats her cereal as quickly as she can (Jens tells her not to choke on it.) before rushing off her to her room to change. Jens doesn’t bother changing out of the sweatpants and t-shirt he slept in. While she’s gone, no doubt wrecking her room by throwing clothes everywhere, Lucas texts again.
l: I found my copy of it
l: you should be able to find a pdf online but worst case
scenario i read it to you over skype or something
Jens smiles.
j: yea that could work
Lucas responds with another smiley, and Jens thinks about it.
He supposes he could do something while Lucas reads it, take notes or work on the powerpoint. But part of him (most of him) wants to just listen. Lucas’s voice sounded different over the phone than it did during class. Jens wonders if it’ll sound different when it’s just the two of them.
Just the two of them.
Jens’s stomach flips over.
He grabs a granola bar before he and Lotte leave.
---
He doesn’t bother putting in the effort to finding the PDF of the Great Gatsby online after Lucas says it’s a go. (Ms Peeters is indifferent. She says she just wants them reading.)
“Hey,” Lucas says when he appears on Jens’s screen, and Jens was right. He does sound different. He also, apparently, has freckles scattered across his nose, and a mole just above his lip that Jens can’t see when Lucas is stuck in a box as small as the one in class. After a brief pause, Jens turns up the volume a little on his laptop, adjusting his headphones as he sits back.
“Hey.”
“So. Storytime?” Lucas holds up the book, smiling. It’s dim in his room, like Jens’s, the setting sun making stripes on his wall glow orange.
“Yeah,” Jens says brightly, sliding down so he’s propped up on his pillows. (A stack of three. His mom hates it, but it works for him.) “Do you want me to take notes or something?” He has a notebook and pen next to him already.
“You can if you hear anything worth noting,” Lucas says, shrugging. “I already have a ton of annotations in here, so I wouldn’t worry.”
“Okay.” Jens leaves his laptop propped up on his legs and crosses his arms over his chest, burying his chin in his elbow.
“Okay,” Lucas says, smiling as he looks at Jens. There’s a long pause before he inhales sharply, looking away and opening the book. Jens’s face feels hot. “Okay. I’m skipping the preface because it’s like w quarter of the book and kind of unnecessary.”
“Do you have notes in that section too?” Jens says, and it’s meant to be a tease, but Lucas says, “Yeah,” and Jens snorts.
“It’s a good book, you asshole,” Lucas retorts, grinning.
“Proceed,” Jens says, gesturing politely with his hand.
“Dick,” Lucas mutters, and Jens snickers as Lucas opens and flips through the book.
“Okay. Ready?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice…”
Lucas’s voice shifts slightly when he reads. It’s lower, less him and more… Nick, Jens supposes. He can’t tell if Lucas is doing it on purpose. He doesn’t think he is. He reads a little quickly, but not so quickly that Jens can’t understand him.
Lucas reads.
And reads.
And reads.
Jens can tell Lucas loves the book.
He barely even looks up (which means Jens doesn’t feel embarrassed about how much he’s just staring at him (although to be fair he doesn’t have many other staring options)), completely engrossed in it, subtly shifting the octaves of his voice for the voices of Jordan and Catherine and Myrtle. Jens finds himself smiling.
The only time Lucas breaks character is to say, “This is my favourite line.”
“Tell me,” Jens says softly, almost holding his breath to hear it.
“Yet high over the city our line of yellow windows must have contributed their share of human secrecy to the casual watcher in the darkening streets, and I saw him too, looking up and wondering.” He pauses, taking a breath. “I was within and without, simultaneously enchanted and repelled by the inexhaustible variety of life.”
Lucas looks up, a small smile painting his face, and he looks almost proud.
“Wow,” Jens whispers. “Do you have that highlighted?”
“Underlined.”
Jens hums.
“Are you gonna fall asleep on me?”
He hums again, moving his arms out of the way and rolling his head.
“I’m sleepy but not like falling asleep, you know?”
“Mm-hmm. We can finish this chapter; it’s only two more pages.”
“How many chapters are there?” Jens asks, and he watches as Lucas flips through the book.
“Nine,” Lucas says after finding it. “And we have time, so…”
“Yeah.”
“Myrtle pulled her chair close to mine…”
When the chapter is finished, it’s dark out, and Lucas closes the book dramatically and sets it to his side with a flourish.
“To be continued,” he says.
“Spooky.”
“You’re falling asleep,” Lucas says, looking at him skeptically, cocking his head and smiling.
“...Yeah.”
“Didn’t know my reading voice was so soothing.”
“Oh, so soothing. You should do stuff for the Calm app.”
“‘Stuff.’ Very specific.”
“I just said I’m falling asleep, and you expect me to be articulate?”
“Well I never expect you to be articulate.”
“Oof…” Jens winces, looking away from the computer as Lucas says, “Hah hah.”
“You’re too quick for me,” Jens says, sitting up slightly and pushing his laptop away. Lucas raises an eyebrow. There’s a curl that’s fallen in his face, and for a second, Jens wishes he could push it away. “I’m gonna have to kill you. I can’t have any competition.”
“Social distancing,” Lucas says, holding up a finger. “Murder responsibly.”
“Of course. Always.”
“Okay, got to bed, Jens. You look like you’re about to pass out.”
Jens groans, shutting his eyes for a second, ignoring the strange flutter in his stomach.
“It’s only like ten.”
“Yeah, that’s bedtime by normal people standards.”
“Ugh. Fine. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
When they hang up, Jens finds himself smiling.
Again.
He lifts his eyes from his blank laptop screen after some time (he doesn’t know how long, and he can’t be bothered to look), and shakes his head.
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Best Friends Part 4 [J.W]
Y/n walks back inside to David’s house and Natalie smirks at her, “What took you so long love bird?” She teases sitting up from her laying position on the couch. “Just was giving him a little something to think about while he’s alone.” She confesses giggling. Y/n knocks on David’s bedroom door only opening it when he answers her. “Hey Dave, Can I borrow your camera? Nat and I wanted to film something and mines at home.” She asks sitting on his bed. David nods, “Yeah go for it, what are you guys gonna film?” He asks handing her his camera which she happily takes. “Natalie’s going to recreate a makeup look on me and we’re gonna answer some questions.” David nods, “You guys wanna film in here? I could use the company; I can ask you the questions.” Y/n’s eyes light up. “That would be great! I’ll go get everything so we can set up.”
The girls set everything the needed up in David’s bathroom, Y/n sat on a stool and David was sitting on the bathroom counter behind the camera. “Ready?” Y/n asks her friends before pushing record on the camera. “What’s up my babies! It’s ya girl Y/n! So today Natalie is going to be recreating this makeup look on me,” She poses showing her phone to the camera. “And we’re going to have David, who’s behind the camera ask us some questions that the babies send me on Twitter.” Y/n hands David her phone with the tweet pulled up for him to pick questions from. She looks at Nat and smiles, “Ready Nat?” Natalie nods smiling. “I think so, hopefully I don’t embarrass myself too much.” She says the girls giggle. “You might.” David teases smirking at them. The girls roll their eyes and Natalie starts doing her foundation. Y/n looks at David behind the camera as he scrolls through the questions, “So are Jeff questions off limit?” David asks and Y/n bites her lip. “Yeah for now, it’s too early.” David nods. “Ah here’s one! ‘Y/n would you ever start a podcast?’” David reads the question looking back at her, she hums and smiles while Natalie applies contour now. “I would yeah! I just don’t know if I would honestly have enough to talk about. But Jeff and I have talked about it before.” She giggles shrugging “So maybe one day. But only if Dave gives me advise.” She raises her eyebrows at him smirking. “I’ll think about it, but honestly it comes so naturally to me.” He teases looking back at her phone. Y/n closes her eyes once Natalie goes to her eyelids. “Here’s one for Natalie, ‘Natalie why won’t you just date David already?’ Yeah Natalie?” Natalie snaps her head glaring at David, who can’t hold back his laughter. “In your dreams.” She replies going back to Y/n’s make up.
David continued using her phone asking the girls questions even answering some himself and Natalie is finishing her makeup when David starts dying laughing. Y/n looks at him confused behind the camera. “What the hell is so funny?” She asks confused. David smirks at her, “I’ll show you once you end the video.” Y/n rolls her eyes and her and Natalie talk about the look and She smiles happily at the Camera. “Okay that’s it for today’s video babies and I will see you next week!” She coos before moves towards the camera making kissing noises. She turns off the camera and looks at David, “Sooooo?” She asks standing from the stool. David smirks and hands her phone to her showing her the text message she got from Jeff. She covers her face and chuckled, “Oh god, Sorry David.” she says shaking her head.
[Jeff]: I just thought that I should let you know that I fucking miss you and I can’t stop thinking about how amazing your ass looks in those jeans.
Y/n leans over and shows Natalie smirking causing her to shake her head. “He’s smitten.” She teases nudging Y/n. They talk about the video and David tells the girls some of the questions that people had asked that they would NEVER answer on camera chuckling with each other while Natalie and y/n clean up the mess they made in David’s bathroom. Y/n goes into Natalie’s bedroom to change into something more comfortable and take off the makeup before going back into David’s room where Natalie was laying in the bed next to him watching the vlog over. “Y/n, can you PLEASE watch this and tell him its good so we can go to bed.” Natalie wines causing y/n to giggle, she plops down on the bed on the other side of David, “Go on play it.” She mumbles to him getting comfortable and watching the video carefully, she knows how picky David can be and wants to make sure to give him her full attention and honest opinion or they would be there all night.
They watched the vlog a couple times, y/n gave suggestions on how to tweak a few things to make them flow better, David was touching up the few suggestions she gave, and Natalie was scrolling through her social media. Y/n on the other had was dozing off nuzzled against David’s side while he was editing. Natalie mumbled something about grabbing them waters before getting up and leaving the room but Y/n was now out cold buried in his blankets and against his warm body, as Natalie comes back into the room she giggles and snaps a picture of Y/n asleep on an editing David and sends it in their group chat. “She can’t hang.” Natalie points out to David smirking causing him to chuckle. “Jeff probably kept the poor girl up all night last night.”
The next morning y/n wakes up still in David’s bed with Natalie and David nowhere to be found. She groans stretching her stiff limbs, trying her best not to wake her sleeping friend. She climbs out of the warm blankets slowly and makes her way into the living room she needs coffee desperately. y/n was shocked to see a messy haired David sitting on the couch wrapped in a blanket, she smiles at him shyly. “Sorry I stole your bed last night.” She mumbles in a sleepy voice. David waves her off smiling “Don’t even worry about it. I would’ve stayed in there, but I didn’t want Jeff to kill me.” She giggles and nods her head. “Probably for the best.” Y/n walks into the kitchen and starts to make a cup of coffee for herself not bothering to ask David because she knew he wouldn’t drink it.
Once the hot liquid is finished, she carefully carries it into the living room sitting on the couch in the corner tucking her cold feet underneath her body. She sips the coffee humming happily, “So easily pleased.” David mumbles chuckling at her, she giggles and nods. “Always coffee. How did the vlog come out?” She asks turning her attention toward him, He pulls it up on his laptop letting her watch it while she sips her coffee. Once the video ends, she looks at David and raises her brows. “Way better, don’t you think?” She asks him happily; David nods and closes his laptop. “Yes, thanks again for your help, I appreciate it.” Y/n smiles and waves him off “That’s what friends are for Davey.”
Jeff groans waking up later then he would’ve liked, wishing y/n was in his bed. He told David and Y/n that once he got up and took care of Nerf her would make his way to David’s with breakfast and that’s what he did. He stopped at they’re favorite dinner and got everyone’s favorite meals before heading to the house.
Y/n is nuzzled into the corner of the couch editing the video from the night before when Jeff comes into David’s going straight to the kitchen putting all the food on the island. “Breakfast is here.” he calls into the house not noticing y/n on the couch. “Over here Sugar.” Y/n sang from her cocoon on the couch, causing Jeff to smirk. He made his way over to her kissing the top of her head chuckling. “Hi beautiful.” He mumbles into her hair. David comes out of his room sighing. “FINALLY! I’m starving! Thanks man.” David says rushing into the kitchen patting Jeff on the back as he passes him. “Want me to grab your food Doll?” Jeff asks pecking kisses all over her face causing her to giggle. “Please J, they’re gonna kill me if I don’t finish this video on time today.” She groans looking up at him pouting, he nods and leans down kissing her lips softly before moving into the kitchen to grab her plate.
Jeff, Natalie, David and Y/n all sat on the couch together y/n continuing to edit her video trying not to rush while her friends and boyfriend watched random videos and talked about plans for the week. Jeff explained how he was filming a few barbershop videos over the next few days but then he would be done filming for the week so this weekend he could do whatever with David and the group. Y/n sighs and lays her head on Jeff’s shoulder resting her eyes for a few minutes. “If I have to look at my face any longer, I’m gonna explode.” She mumbles causing everyone to laugh. Jeff wraps his arm around her shoulder kissing the top of her head. “You’ve got this.” He looks at the laptop and squeezes her shoulders. “You’re almost done.” “It’s also a bomb video.” David reassures her looking up from his phone in her direction, she nods and smiles tiredly at the two of them before putting her headphones back in and editing the rest of the video while Jeff watched over her shoulder kissing her head every so often.
After making sure to save the final video y/n jumps off of the couch before laying on the cozy rug on David’s living room floor sighing “Finalllyyyy” She moans stretching her stiff limbs from being in the same position for so long editing. Natalie giggles looking up from her phone and at her friend on her floor, Jeff smirks and shakes his head. “Told ya y/n/n.” She climbs back onto the couch and sets up her laptop in front of them on the coffee table. “This is going to be sooooo boring for you two, but I need Nat to watch this before I upload it.” She smiles apologetically to her boyfriend and David causing Natalie to smirk. “This is awesome.” Natalie mumbles while she watches the video causing y/n to sigh in relief curling into Jeffs side nuzzling her head into his neck continuing to watch the video, she didn’t want to leave anything in the she wasn’t supposed to.
Once everyone approved of the video Y/n uploaded it and sighs with relief, “I’m gonna just post a quick story fast and then we can live our lives.” She groans causing herself and Natalie to giggle while the boys shake their heads. “Hi babiesssss” She sings holding up her phone before bringing it closer making kissy noises. “I just posted the new video where the love of my life Nattie recreates a makeup look and we answer your questions...” She turns the camera to face Natalie across the couch, “How do you think you did Nat?” She asks her smirking behind her phone, Natalie smiles and shrugs her shoulders. “I don’t know, swipe up and watch the video to find out.” Y/n turns the camera to face herself again smiling. “You heard her babies, swipe up.” She kisses the camera before ending the video adding the link and throwing her phone onto the coffee table. “Finally I can relax and enjoy myself” She sighs snuggling into Jeff peppering his cheek with kisses, causing David and Natalie to roll their eyes turning their attention back to their phones.
It was about 2 when David and Natalie were getting ready for a meeting and y/n packed up her stuff making sure not to forget anything because she didn’t really want to come back tonight, David made it hard for everyone to leave once they were at the house. Jeff wraps his arms around Y/n’s waist kissing the back of her neck. “Don’t think I forgot about what you did Doll.” he mumbles against her skin before biting her earlobe causing her to whimper. “Then let’s get the hell out of here.” She whispers to him. “Bye guys! Thanks for last night! I’ll text you guys later.” Y/n calls picking up her bag heading toward the door. “See ya!” They yell too busy preparing for their meeting. Y/n heads out the front door smirking at Jeff as they make their way toward his car, Jeff shakes his head and slaps her ass roughly. “Get in that car.” he growls his eyes tracing over her body.
The whole car ride he didn’t touch her, he kept his hands on the steering wheel and eyes on the road, it almost made her nervous, but she knew that’s exactly what he wanted, to make her squirm and she couldn’t lie, she’s been dripping since they left David’s house. Jeff had so many plans for Y/n when they got back to his apartment and he was already hard against his jeans just thinking about her at his mercy. Once he was parking is his apartment parking garage, he grabs her bag from the backseat and gets out of the car heading to the elevator with y/n following close behind him biting her lip. They stepped into the elevator and she stood against the wall watching Jeff out of the corner of her eye, causing him to smirk and shake his head. “Yes Angel?” He asks his voice low causing her to bite her lip and shake her head looking down at her feet. “Good girl.” he says under his breath as he walks out of the elevator, she had no idea the effect those words had on her until they left his beautiful mouth and went straight to her core.
It had been 5 minutes now since they got into his apartment and she was sitting on his couch in her tank top from the night before that is a tad too tight around her chest and her jeans from the day before; Y/n leans down and rubs behind Nerfs ears smiling at him. “Miss me boy?” She coos as he wiggles looking up at her. “What about your daddy? Did he miss me?” She whispers smirking to herself. “Oh, Daddy definitely missed you.” Jeff says from the doorway causing her to jump a little thinking he was still in his bedroom. He smirks and hovers over her a hand on either side of her head on the couch blocking her in. Her breath hitches in her throat as she looks up at him. “I missed you too.” She whispers causing him to raise his brows. “Oh, you did? Even when you were in bed with David?” He moved his face closer to hers his voice getting lower and deeper “or Natalie?” He brushes his lips against hers causing her to whimper which made him smirk. Jeff obviously didn’t care about her being in a bed with David he just liked to tease her.
Jeff grabs her face gently and looks between her eyes and lips. “Why don’t I bring you into that bedroom and you can show me just how much you missed me?” He says it like a question, but she knows that he’s not taking no for an answer. Jeff grabs her face tighter before standing and lifting her from the couch, he only lets go of her once she’s on her feet and following him into the bed room. Jeff shuts the door and wraps his long strong fingers around her throat guiding her back against the bed. “Are you going to be a good girl Angel?” He asks in his deep smooth voice looking down at her wide pleading eyes. “Yes Daddy.” She whispers taking her bottom lip in between her teeth, Jeff tightens his grip on her throat and leans down his lips attacking hers. Y/n reaches up and wraps her arms around his torso deepening the kiss before biting Jeff’s bottom lip pulling slightly causing him to groan, he tightens his grip on her throat pulling her away from him making her moan. “I thought you were going to be a good girl. Tsk tsk.” He tosses her onto the bed before stripping himself of his clothes besides his boxer, Jeff stands over her watching as she squeezes her legs together trying to get some relief from the throbbing between her legs.
“Please daddy.” Y/n whimpers, she couldn’t deal with his stare boaring into her anymore, she needed him. Jeff held back a moan when the words left her beautiful swollen lips, He reached down and tore off her shirt and bra in one swift motion and then the same with her jeans and panties. Jeff grabs his belt from the ground and wraps it around Y/n’s wrists “Now Angel, you’re going to be a good little girl for daddy and hold these pretty little hands above your head.” Y/n nodded eagerly looking up at him with big eyes putting her hands above her head intertwining her fingers together, Jeff leans down and places a tender kiss on her lips. “You’re such a good girl baby I’m so proud of you.” Y/n smiles at him through hooded eyes, Jeff spreads her legs before getting on his knees and placing himself in between them. “Oh look how wet you got for me baby.” he mumbles kissing the inside of her warm thighs, he looks up at her as she’s already struggling to keep her hands about her head. “So good” He groans before burying his face between her soaking wet folds, his tongue lapping up her juices causing her to moan loudly and lift her hips which he used his arm to hold against the bed roughly.
Jeff hums against her folds his tongue circling her clit quickly, “Daddy.” She moans arching her back, Jeff looks at her through his lashes and smirks. “Wanna taste Daddy’s cock Angel?” Jeff asks kitten licking her clit. She nods quickly licking her lips, “Please.” she moans looking down at him, Jeff stands and licks his lips clean before kneeling on the bed next to her head. He brushes the hair from her face and leans down pecking her lips lovingly before kicking off his boxers. He grabs her chin making her open her mouth and she sticks out her tongue, Jeff slaps his hard cock against it causing him to groan. “Can I please use my hands Daddy?” she asks looking up at him with doe eyes, Jeff nods and takes the belt from her wrists. Her small hands wrap around his length and she turns onto her stomach to get a better angle before wrapping her lips around his red swollen tip. Y/n didn’t waste any time before taking him all into her mouth and bobbing her head quickly, it was the first time she was tasting his cock and she was hooked. Jeff took her hair in his hand keeping it out of her face looking down at her watching.
“You look so pretty with my cock in your mouth baby.” Jeff moans locking eyes with her, she hums happily making his eyes flutter shut and his mouth falls open, he was putty in her hands. When she took him all into her mouth his tip hitting the back of her throat Jeff couldn’t help himself, he moaned loudly and began to fuck her throat while rubbing her cheek softly with his thumb. “Oh god Angel, such a good, good girl. Uhhh- and sooo pretty.” He coos only pulling back slightly once and a while to allow her to catch her breath, but she was loving every second of it, one of her hands moving down to his balls massaging them, Jeff was a moaning mess, his thrusts starting to get sloppier. Suddenly Y/n had no interest in Jeff fucking her, all she wanted was him to use her throat and to taste his cum. She pulls away slightly catching her breath and looking into his eyes using her hand to stroke him “I wanna make you cum in my mouth Daddy.” She whispers before taking him all in her mouth again, sucking and bobbing her head sloppily. “If you wish Angel.” Jeff moans, barely able to get those words out without a stutter, He grabs her throat with the hand that isn’t full of her hair and thrusts into her mouth faster his eyes never leaving hers. All Jeff can do is moan, he isn’t even able to warn her before his thrusts get sharper and he’s cumming down her throat moaning her name loudly. Y/n swallows every drop, her tongue swirls around his length a few more times letting him ride out his high and cleaning him up at the same time.
Jeff can barely catch his breath as he pulls out of her mouth, he leans his forehead against hers smiling sleepily. “Wow...” He breaths closing his eyes. “You are SUCH a good girl baby. I’m so proud of my pretty little Angel.” He whispers before placing small soft kisses all over her face. Y/n smiles happily at him as he lays next to her wrapping his arms around her pulling her naked body against his. She runs her fingers through his hair and kisses him softly. “goodnight Jeff.” She whispers after pulling blankets up to cover their bodies, it wasn’t long before they were fast asleep in each other's arms.
A/n: Sorry this part is kinda trash
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What the unknown brings (1)
sooooo this is a story i write for @worm-in-a-book ‘s (now very much belated) birthday, but i can finally post it! on her request, it’s a fantasy story about like urban magic, but i feel like explaining too much would spoiler everything, so ill just leave y’all to it.
“A drop of water leaves a trail behind in the fogged mirror, with smaller specks of itself in its wake. The humid bathroom smells like cheap soap and toothpaste, and my own body still emits the odors I had so desperately tried to mask. The towel that hangs over the towel rack is damp, weak, useless. And while I stare at it, I know, I understand it perfectly, that that towel and I are one and the same-”
“Okay, you’ve made your point.”
“I’m just saying, Charles.” Lenora knew there was a somewhat evil grin on her face when she saw Charlotte rolling her eyes. “Literary novels aren’t that hard to make, you don’t need a whole study about it. Mystery novels. Now those are the real tragedy.”
“Shut up or three dozen professors will fight you.”
Lenora chuckled and turned her eyes back to the mirror, knowing that her roommate was eyeing her vengefully. She would probably say something snarky about Lenora’s study later, something like how sociology was the definition of a tragedy, but Lenora was too caught up in her eyeliner to worry about that at the moment. It required absolute concentration before Charlotte could put her claim to the mirror to an end. Probably the only thing for uni she ever put an effort into.
“Can you drive today or should I do that?” Charlotte asked in between putting in earrings.
“Since you sacrificed yourself, you should.”
“Ugh, when are they going to have those buses ready? I don’t want to have to pay attention on my way to school, I want to sleep while soaring over the morning traffic, is that too much to ask?”
Lenora’s face formed a small grin again. Charlotte had complained about that pretty much every morning since the government had made the announcement about a new line of buses. One that wouldn’t take part on the road, like you would assume, but instead fly over them. So you only have to enjoy the landscapes and wave the problems beneath you goodbye. Or at least, that what the ad said.
The discovery of magic had already changed quite a lot of things. When it was finally made public that many things science had managed to disprove these past centuries were actually possible, humans did with it what they usually do; explore the heck out of it. Not much was known yet, but there were already some improvements. Better wifi signal, more cleaning methods, a new way of breaking and entering but also new DNA analysis. All in all, not a bad track record. Not a lot of bad things had happened yet, only the expected panic that sensational news outlets had spread the second of the announcement. The worst had yet to come, but no one Lenora knew ever talked about that fact. So far, most responses she had heard were only positive. At least hers was. Because not only did it make living as a student in San Francisco a lot easier, it also led to the discovery of a certain type of animal.
“You won’t forget to feed Feeble today, right?”
“Just say it if you want to feed him, Charles.”
One of the most mighty, profound creatures of what was once thought to be fiction. Always depicted as terrifying, massive, fire-breathing beasts of destruction. Dragons, magnificent and menacing. And Lenora’s dragon, Feeble, was probably happily sleeping in her room at the moment. Small, a deep blue, nearly black color and spikes that traversed over his back onto his long tail. Exactly as usually described in stories, except the size that it could live cheerfully in a birdcage. Just one of the many things this world had told about, wrote about, fantasized about that had turned out to be true. Makes you wonder if the origin of those stories were actually fantasies to begin with.
“Len, are you ready? You’ve claimed the mirror for an eternity now.”
There it is.
“Tsh. Be patient. Do you want me to arrive at school with my eyeliner not completely pointy? You want me to look like a fool?”
“Yes, get out of the way.”
And with a last glare to the side, Lenora closed her eyeliner bottle. Threw her hair back, checked if nothing had secretly smudged while she wasn’t looking. She turned her head to the right. And suddenly she spotted something; three red dots, just on her temple. She was about to let out a sigh, annoyed that her body was still forming pimples even after she turned twenty, but then she realized they didn’t exactly look like that. Not bumpy or anything. Just red. Strange. If she hadn’t known any better, she would’ve thought someone stabbed her with a needle there.
“Is it still happening?”
“Sorry.”
With the thought that it would go away fast enough, Lenora stepped away from the mirror.
The first thing Lenora did after slamming the door to her room open was throwing her bag inside. It crashed against her bed and fell onto her pajama’s, which laid on the floor apparently, and made the wooden frame crack.
So. Done. With. Today.
Another essay. Another one. Couldn’t they give her peace for one freaking minute? Lenora felt that her heart was racing, probably way more than it should have at this minor inconvenience, but she wasn’t able to calm it down. Just the fact that she had to work again, that she had to pay attention to something and think about it… but then, she suddenly thought of something that was able to calm her heart down. Just at that moment, it croaked at her.
Lenora walked over to the birdcage on the drawer opposite her bed and bowed her head to look on it. Feeble laid curled up, his tail near his head like when he was sleeping, but his small, red eyes peered at her with an excited look. Lenora wondered why he was so happy, while the rest of the world was bowed under university work. But then she thought he just smelled the chance of his food being refilled.
“Can you at least pretend to feel bad for me?” She whispered while she looked him straight in the eyes. Feeble chirped, which sounded an awful lot like a groan. Lenora actually had no idea if Feeble understood her or not, but his look surprisingly seemed a lot less excited. Or at least, it looked like he pretended not to be. Lenora let out a sigh. What an unbelievable dragon she had.
“All right. You can support me more, come here.”
Lenora opened the cage and stuck out her hand. Feeble already stood on his legs the moment she had reached for the lock and hopped onto her palm in an instant. His paws were always surprisingly smooth whenever he stepped on her hand and he instantly began to curl up again. It was maybe nine months that she had owned this dragon, but she could barely even imagine what it would be like without him anymore. Dragons had always been her dream pet, but before the discovery of magic, that had only been a fantasy. So you could imagine how elated she was when she first held this little beast in her hands. The only thing missing from him was the building-destroying fire-breathing of death, but he was very capable of roasting popcorn. And he would make the most metal cigarette lighter, or at least in Charlotte's imagination.
She walked over to her bed and let herself fall down on it. She laid her hand on her chest and watched as Feeble looked up at her again, probably wondering what this sudden commotion was about.
“I wish I could be a dragon,” she said. “Why isn’t that a magical possibility yet? Then, instead of writing an essay, I could just burn everything.”
Feeble lazily stood up again and walked over to her stomach. He probably found that a softer spot. Lenora put her now free hand under her head to still be able to look at him.
“What do you think? Could you get a dragon transformer for me?”
Feeble chirped.
“Good, schedule them for tomorrow.”
The next sound Feeble made sounded more like a groan than anything else. Lenora smiled for a second and then turned her eyes back. She looked at the ceiling above her, smooth and white. A never-ending white, like all the walls around and everywhere else in the apartment. But today, it looked a little more peachy. Probably because of the sun, which was already hanging low, shining through the beige blinds. Lenora blinked, but her eyelids moved ever so slowly. She was going to fall asleep, wasn’t she? Yeah, she was going to fall asleep.
Something on the side of her head. Felt strange. Like pressure on some spot. Four spots. But, as the soft, warm blanket of sleep that laid over Lenora started to evaporate, she suddenly noticed that it didn’t feel like pressure at all. It stung, and it began to sting even more. And with the greatest of effort, she opened her eyes and forced herself out of her sleepy state.
The first thing she noticed was that Feeble wasn’t on her stomach anymore. Instead, he was right next to her face, hovering a few inches above her pillow. His wings were flapping furiously and even though it took a while before it completely got through to Lenora, the sound he made was something had never heard him make before. He was hissing, loudly, like an angry cat, but with some kind of a growl behind it. Lenora quickly lifted herself up, attempting to see what Feeble was hissing at, but before she could look around her room, she saw what was on her pillow. Blood.
Immediately she raised her hand to her head and as soon as she touched it, she realized that her head wasn’t only stinging, but it also felt wet. Her hand was shaking when she looked at it again, her fingers red from the blood it had touched. Lenora quickly scrambled to get out of her bed and pressed her hand against her temple. The blood was still running. When she stood up, she spun around and looked at her bed.
“Feeble!”
Feeble was still flying at that same spot, his hiss having even turned louder than before. Lenora tried to reach for him, but he moved out of the way. A small cloud of fire escaped his nostrils.
“Feeble, come here!”
Feeble immediately turned silent, but he stayed where he was. Lenora reached her hand out and tried to step forward, but almost fell when her knees hit the bed frame. A sharp gasp came out of her mouth when she did. And only then, Feeble turned around landed on her hand. Lenora securely closed her hand around and, attempting not to stumble again, started running to the bathroom.
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