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How They are Handling your Disappearance Pt. 3

MC Returns

Ahh you guys i'm so glad you are enjoying this little series! I wasn't expecting so many of you to like it! But as requested by many, here is part 3 where MC returns to the present day timeline and reunites with the 7 brothers. This is a bit of a lengthy one because like... we are home! It's a little less angsty, a little more happy this time haha. Anyways, please enjoy! Reblogs and feedback are appreciated as usual!

Read Part 1: Brothers

Read Part 2: Side Characters

Word count: 3,057

Rating: T, slightly suggestive.

Taglist: @amberrskiies @obey-me-posts @sassykattery @delphi-dreamin @bite-sized-devil @flemmingbamse @a-hidden-gem @otomefoxystar @siofrantic @todothedodo @ihatecorns @exrellian @vernith @sus0daddy

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rose divider by @/firefly-graphics

It feels like it has been forever since the day that you went missing, but the brothers never gave up their search. How could they when you were out there somewhere, possibly alone and scared? The thought of their little human wandering around the unknown gave them the motivation they needed to keep going. But after a long day of once again searching the Devildom up and down with no results, the brothers are settling down for the evening.

Lucifer

The Avatar of Pride is in his room getting ready for bed after a long day of searching for you. 

His wings are terribly sore from flying all day, so he lays on his bed sprawled out on his stomach, allowing his feathery wings to stretch out behind him.  

He rests his head in his arms, and sighs.

Yet another day of searching, but no results. 

Suddenly, he begins to feel a familiar tingling sensation of magic in the air that brings goosebumps to his bare arms. 

Before he had time to process what was happening, a flash of light filled his room, practically blinding him. 

After a few seconds, the light dissipates and there you are, standing in its place. 

Lucifer forgets all about his aching wings, and jumps up from the bed. 

At first, he hesitates, terrified that you’ll disappear again at any moment. 

“M-MC…? Is it really you…?”

His crimson eyes are wide as he takes in your appearance. 

You appear the same, but he's confused by the horns that now rest on your head, as well as a few other demonic attributes.

Just where did you disappear to?

Your face scrunches up and your eyes fill with tears. “L-Luci… yes, it’s really me.” 

Suddenly, his arms are around you, a million questions in his throat but unable to speak.

You whimper, taking in his scent. He smells freshly showered, the smell of his soap sending a wave of comfort crashing over you. 

“Luci… I missed you so much…I’m so sorry…”

His shoulders begin to tremble and he tucks his face into the crook of your neck. 

You feel wetness on your skin as he begins to cry. 

Have you ever seen him cry before?

Just how much have they all suffered while I was gone?

Your arms wrap themselves around his neck and you squeeze your eyes shut. 

You stand there in his arms, his wings wrapping themselves around the two of you protectively. 

He will never let you go again. 

After a few moments, he pulls away, staring into your eyes.

“MC, the days I've spent searching for you were endless… but never once did I give up. I’m very glad that I didn’t. Every second was worth my time.”

Suddenly his lips are on yours and you accept his kiss greedily. 

Kissing him was the confirmation you needed that you were home. 

“MC, please forgive me. You can tell me the details later, but right now I just need you. I need to know you are here and…real.” 

He spins you around, guiding you to his bed so the back of your legs hit the edge, causing you to fall back. 

He hovers over top of you, his crimson eyes full of love, adoration, and desire. 

You giggle through your tears, placing a hand on his cheek. “I love you so much, Luci.”

He smiles, tucking a stray hair behind your ear.

“Words alone cannot express my love for you, little one.”

You give him a peck on the lips again. “We have a lot of time to make up for you know… where should we start?”

Lucifer gives you a mischievous grin. “I have just the thing in mind, darling. Something that has been long overdue.”

Mammon

Mammon returned to his bedroom shortly after arriving home. 

He had to check on his ravens who were also out searching for you while they were gone. 

His wings were sore as shit, and all he wanted to do was shower and go to bed. 

But you are more important. 

Throwing open his window, one of his ravens glides down to greet him. 

“Damn, ya didn’t find anything did ya?”

The raven hangs its head sadly, and Mammon sighs.

“Thanks anyways, I appreciate the help.”

Suddenly the raven begins to flap its wings wildly, cawing at something behind him. 

Mammon spins around, and his golden eyes widen in shock when he sees just who is appearing in the middle of his bedroom. 

It was you, clear as day. 

He’s speechless, unable to find the right words even though he’s been playing them on repeat in his head since the day you left. 

“Mammon!” you shout with tears in your eyes. You begin to run towards him, but he meets you halfway, scooping you up into his arms and spinning you around.

He sets you down again, and hugs you snugly to his chest. 

“MC…I… Shit. I-I missed ya so damn much…” he says with a shaky voice. 

You inhale his scent as he hugs you, which smells of sweat and leather. 

You’re home. He’s your Mammon. Finally…

“Mams, I’m so so sorry… I’ll explain everything I promise…”

He pulls you away from him, his golden blue gaze staring intensely at you.

“Damn right ya will! But for now…I don’t care..I just… I need ya so bad… I mean this can’t be real, right?”

You give him a small smile, taking his hand in yours. 

“I’m real, Mammon. I promise.”

His tanned skin is flushed as he pulls you with him to sit on his bed, hoisting you up onto his lap. 

He can’t hold back anymore as he plants a firm kiss to your lips. 

You accept it eagerly. 

Your tongues intertwine briefly before he pulls away, breathless. 

“I love ya MC, I’m so sorry I couldn’t do a damn thing…” 

You silence him with a kiss to the forehead. 

“It’s not your fault, Mammon. Please don’t cry…”

He notices your own lip quivering, and let’s out an amused snort through his tears.

“Don’t you go cryin’ on me either!”

His long, slender fingers run through your hair and you sigh.

His lips are on yours once more, a low growl rumbling in his chest. 

You can sense his overwhelming desire threatening to take over.

“Mammon’s got ya now, treasure. You’re safe with me. I’m never letting you go again.”

Leviathan

Throughout the search, Levi has been exploring every inch of the Devildom waters. 

From seas to lakes, he still could find no trace of you. 

Levi heads back to his room, a towel around his waist after Lucifer forced him to strip in the hallway so he didn’t track water through the house. 

Once he’s dried off and dressed again, he sinks down in his gaming chair, sighing as his aching limbs are finally able to rest. 

Tears welled up in his eyes, disappointed that he let everyone down again. 

Especially you.

I’m so useless, he thinks. 

A stray tear rolls down his cheek, and he wipes it away with his arm. 

A flash of light appears before him, and it sends a tingling sensation up his body. 

Wait a minute…that’s…!

His eyes are wide and his mouth gapes open as he looks up to see you standing there right in front of him.

“M-MC, I-Is it really y-you?!” Of course he’s a stuttering mess, but he can’t believe it.

He doesn’t know when he stood up, but suddenly you are slamming into him, wrapping your arms around his torso. 

“Yes, Levi. It’s me.” you sob, burying your face into his chest.

Your voice has him melting in your grip. 

He finally fully embraces you, burning his face into your hair. 

Your scent is slightly different,  and he can smell other demons on you. 

This sends a wave of envy over him, but he ignores it. All he cares about is that you’re home.

He, however, smells of the sea. 

“Levi, I'm so sorry… I promise I’ll explain. I just really need you right now. I’ve missed you so much…”

Leviathan only nods, his shoulders trembling from the sobs that are escaping him. 

You stay standing there wrapped in his arms, gently rubbing circles on his back. 

After some time, he calms down. 

His eyes are red and puffy and his face is swollen. Your heart aches for him. 

Suddenly, he grabs your hand, leading you over with him to his bathtub. 

You climb in together, and you sit in his lap. His tail curls around you, holding you in place. 

“M-MC…can I um, k-kiss you?” he asks, his tear stained cheeks becoming flushed. 

You nod eagerly, and he places a soft, gentle kiss to your lips. 

Your lips are the same as ever, soft and sweet. 

Levi is overwhelmed with affection for you. 

“I love you, I love you, I love you…” he mutters, rocking you gently in his lap. 

He peppers your face with kisses and you giggle, wrapping your arms around his neck. 

“I love you so much too, Levi. I’m so glad to be home…” 

He rests his head on your shoulder, purple strands of his hair tickling your cheek. 

“Please don’t leave me like that again, MC. I-I was so scared…”

The tremor in his voice causes fresh tears to form in the corner of your eyes. 

“Never again, I’m staying right here with you.”

Satan

Satan steps over the pile of books on his floor before flopping down onto his bed. 

His bedroom is in quite the disarray due to his last tantrum. 

He can’t help that he’s just so damn frustrated!

They’ve practically searched the Devildom inside out, and still… nothing. 

He huffs, crossing his arms over his chest as he stares out the window, tears threatening to spill down his cheeks. 

He almost doesn’t notice the burst of light filling his bedroom. 

The air was practically vibrating with magic when he spun his head around to see the silhouette of a figure in the blinding light. 

He squints, trying his best to make out the form. Once the light dissipates, an unfamiliar feeling washes over him. 

Satan thought he’s finally experienced every emotion in his lifetime of being in the Devildom. 

But what he feels when he sees you standing there in his bedroom is indescribable. 

He gasps, immediately jumping up from his bed and hurrying over to you. 

Your eyes are locked on him, and he thought he noticed you flinch the moment he approached you. 

“MC… are… you okay? Where in the Devildom have you been?”

His voice is soft, but it trembles slightly.

He doesn’t expect answers right away, of course. 

Not when you are standing here in front of him for the first time in what feels like an eternity.  

You nod, trying to wipe away your tears. “Satan… It’s me. I-I’m home.”

The sound of his name leaving your lips after so long pushes him over the edge. 

He pulls you into his arms and he squeezes you tight, finally allowing his tears to fall. 

“M-MC… I'm so glad you’re home safe… I was so worried about you…”

You relax against his chest, finally processing the fact that this wasn’t the past version of himself.

After a few moments, you sniff, pulling away from him to gaze into his eyes. You notice a scar on his cheek, still healing from a recent fight he must have had. 

You gently trace your fingers over it, and he winces. 

“I’m so sorry Satan…the pain that I must have caused you all…” 

He shakes his head, glancing away. 

“I’m just so relieved you are home, MC. I don’t believe that whatever happened was your fault.” 

His fingers run through your hair and he kisses your forehead. 

“Can I…kiss you?” you ask, your cheeks flushing slightly. Normally you wouldn’t ask, but it’s been awhile. 

“Of course, kitten. But just know if you do, I may not be able to hold myself back from you much longer.”

You give him a smirk, and press your lips firmly to his. 

To finally kiss your Satan once more. 

He slips his tongue past your lips, and you groan. 

When you pull away, his emerald eyes are shining with passion. 

“Every book I read told me how to find you, but they never mentioned how to handle your return.” 

He moves you to his bed with him so you are straddling his lap.

“But I don’t believe I need any instruction as to what comes next. I love you, MC. Please allow me to express the longing I’ve felt for you all this time.”

Asmodeus

Asmo had made his way to his room for the evening with the overwhelming urge to climb into his silk bed sheets. 

But first he really wanted a bath. The thought of the warm water soothing his aching joints was very pleasant to him right now. 

He had made his way into the bathroom to start the water, the noise of the faucet drowning out the sound coming from his bedroom. 

Asmo thought he heard something, and he lifted his head to the door that connects from the bathroom to his room. 

He thought his eyes were playing tricks on him. 

Was that a flash of light just now? Is it storming?

He furrowed his brow in confusion, and stepped slowly over to peek through the door. 

Nothing could have prepared him for what he saw. 

There you were, standing right there in his bedroom. 

Your eyes were wide and looking around, still processing where you had appeared. 

Asmo gasps, forgetting about the bath and hurries over to you. 

“M-MC?!” he shrieks, pulling you into the tightest hug he’s sure he’s ever given. 

You begin to cry, tears falling down your cheeks and onto his shoulder.

“Shhh, MC. Don’t cry now, darling…” he coos, but his own tears are escaping him. 

He holds you close as you cry together. 

“Asmodeus…is… it really you? My Asmo?” you whimper. 

He’s confused by what you mean, but he doesn’t question it for now. 

“Of course my little lamb, it’s me. You’re home now…”

You sniff, pulling away from him slightly. “I’m so sorry Asmo, I swear I didn’t mean to leave you guys like that…”

Taking your hands in his, he shakes his head. “No no, hon, don’t blame yourself for this. I know there’s a very good reason, but you can explain later to all of us, okay?” 

You nod, wiping your eyes. 

“I was just about to get a bath. Would you care to join me, MC?”

The thought of taking a bath with Asmo right now feels…unreal. 

You couldn’t believe you were finally home with him. 

Smiling, he leads you into the bathroom. 

First, he steps out of his robe, and your face flushes. 

You’ll never get over how beautiful he is. 

Then it’s your turn.

You shiver as he begins to undress you, his fingers brushing over your skin. 

He smiles softly as he notices the goosebumps that begin to form on your body. 

“I’ve missed this so much. Let me get a good look at you, darling.”

His eyes tear up again as his eyes travel over your body, still in disbelief that you were standing right there with him again after so long.

“I need all the time I can get with you right now before my brothers find out you’re home.”

He takes your hand and helps guide you into the bathtub. 

You sigh as the warm water envelops you and he places you in between his legs with your back to him. 

You feel his arms wrap themselves around you and you blush.“I’ve only been dreaming of this moment with you, MC.” Asmo murmurs, attaching his lips to your shoulder. 

You whine as he continues to kiss up your neck. 

“I love you so much, Asmo…”

He smiles into the crook of your neck as he holds you close. 

“My dear, if anything came out of your disappearance, it’s how much I realized that I love you. Please, allow me to show you…”

Beelzebub and Belphegor

The twins were always together nowadays. 

They were both getting ready for bed in their room after their long day, neither of them wanting to speak about the disappointing results of the search. 

Belphie hugged his pillow to his chest as he climbed into bed beside Beel. 

He was struggling to stay awake, but he had a peculiar feeling in the pit of his stomach.

Of course, being his twin, Beel felt it too. It wasn’t hunger, or anything like that… It was…

“Belphie do you feel…”

Before he could finish, a burst of light filled the room, temporarily blinding them both.

The sensation of magic through the air sent shivers down their spines. 

Once the light dulled, they glanced up through squinted eyes to see… you. 

Wait, is that really…?

Despite the dull ache in their bodies, they both jump up.

“MC!” their violet eyes are wide as they gape at you, still trying to decide if this was real or a cruel hallucination.

But you seem just as surprised as they are. 

Suddenly, you feel yourself being pulled into a strong embrace. 

Belphie is squeezed into the hug next to you, and you both glance up to see Beel with tears streaming down his cheeks. 

“B-Beel… Belphie…I’ve missed you both so much…”

You sob, burying your face into Beel’s chest.

Belphie finally allows his tears to fall. I’m so lame, he thinks.

How dare you make him cry like this?

But he’s so happy. So relieved. 

Beel begins to move you both towards his bed, placing you right between him and his brother. 

You whimper as you feel their arms wrap around you. 

The thought of being able to do this again with them never even crossed your mind. 

You feel Beel nuzzle his face into your hair. 

You smelled…different. But there was no denying your familiar scent and it made his mouth water.

Belphie yawned, burying his face into your shoulder. 

“Beel and I had each other, but MC… you are our missing piece.”

His twin nodded, placing a soft kiss to your forehead. 

“Belphie is right. It feels right again with you here in between us.”

Your heart was so full. 

You smiled wide as you kissed both of their foreheads. 

“My boys…I love you so much.”

As you laid together, they took turns littering you with kisses and whispering sweet nothings into your ear. 

The feeling of their lips and their hands on your body has your head spinning, and you whisper their names between breathless gasps. 

After sometime, Beel turned towards you, a glint of mischief in his eyes. 

“I’m feeling a bit hungry…but for something different. How about you Belphie?”

Belphie immediately sensed where his twin was going and flashed him a smile back.

“I’m all of a sudden wide awake. What do you say you join us, MC? We want you to ourselves before we have to go back to sharing you.”

[fischyplier]

Misfits and Magic Season 2 Episode 2 "Magma and Mingle": My Thoughts and Analysis

So here are my thoughts on Evan and Sam. Am I the only one that doesn’t see their relationship progressing into romance? I can understand that in this season Brennan and Danielle are having more scenes together. At this point, Evan and Sam's relationship feels platonic to me, but who knows what could happen in the next few episodes. I prefer platonic relationships because they feel more interesting than just romance. Also want to take the time to say, I love and appreciate all the hard work that went into this and every season of D20. Thank you to the crew, the players and Aabria cause misfits and magic has become very near and dear to my heart!

Click below to read more, warning long post:

Anyways, Evan has gone through a LOT of traumatic experiences since childhood and continues to till this day. Evan's body is riddled with scars, broken bones that healed wonky, etc. He got stabbed on a bus at night trying to retrieve a talisman for Boodle 10 months ago. And I would not be surprised if he's been through more but hasn't had the opportunity to tell his friends or elected to say nothing. I can't help but to read too deeply into the quote "dream small". Is it cause I feel that Evan has learned to dream small in order to not get his hopes and expectations too high? Just a theory... A game theory! I'm sorry.

After 3 years of no contact the pilot project are back! But they haven't really had the time to sit down and catch up. In the video below, Sam says "I feel like there's a lot of things that when we talk you don't tell me." Which kinda leads me to believe, Evan doesn't want to worry his friends so he bottles up his feelings and doesn't open up. And when he does it's always with a smile and jokes to mask the hurt. He isn't just sad, he feels like a burden and tries to not take up space. I can really relate to this.

Even Brennan says Evan is in deep pain. The breakup he went through didn't help but there is more under the surface we as the audience still don't truly know. The experiences of being a lonely unhoused teen is the reason why Brennan chose "belonging" as Evan's ideal track. Because that is the one thing he's been deprived off, humans are social creatures and need to interact with others. What happens to a developing brain when that is taken away? When all you know is your shadow, loneliness and hunger? So when his friend says we can talk, he takes that as a serious invitation. Evan now surrounded by friends wants to do everything in his power to protect those he loves. He doesn't expect it to be reciprocal. You can see that when he says "if I've ever done a bad job about being here for you, I'm always here for you" after Sam says we can talk. When Brennan tears up with that incredible delivery of "I missed you"... I keep rewatching that part! Evan is always on the go, needs to be prepared, needs to be ready when shit hits the fan. Sam has created a safe place where he doesn't need to be hypervigilant and can relax, maybe open up and be a little vulnerable.

Sam is rightfully concerned that something deeper and terrible is going on with Evan.

When Evan continues kicking a half dead Salamander that isn't a threat to any of his friends, a darkness in him wants to kick it mercilessly for pure enjoyment. That even his eyes turns black. The first thing Sam does when she sees this is to attempt to drench it in water like Jammer did. Cause she said that this has become "unnecessarily dark" and that "this is freaking her out". That she'll even resort to spitting on the creature if it means that Evan will stop kicking that crap out of it. The water cools and stops the creature. Sam is a great friend that sees Evan do something twisted and wants to help so desperately. You do not have to be falling in love with someone to do the right thing! I still think they should just be friends.

I love that in this season we can really see their friendship blossom and not just be surface level chit chat. As they get closer hopefully they can help each other in ways they really need. In the preview for the next episode Evan says, "I don't see you the way you are afraid people see you." Sometimes it takes someone outside of your point of view to see aspects of yourself you are too close to see. And I think that's beautiful.

That leads into my next point, no I don't think the progressing of their relationship means that romance is in the air. I can't remember where I read it but another person said it best, intimacy doesn't mean romance. You can get close to someone, be a shoulder to cry on and depend on without developing feelings. You can love and respect your friend and keep it at that level but develop on that intimacy of a great friendship. I feel like it made the most sense for these two to get closer in this season because they have more in common now. Before it was just the fact that they were students learning magic at Gowpenny and being NAMPS (non magical person or let's be serious MUGGLES!). But now Evan and Sam have both underwent break ups and that's something they can really connect on. I really hope they don't get together right after cause that sounds like a rebound and to me, story wise pretty boring. And in my honest opinion, jumping into another relationship right after being with K is a little too soon. Evan needs a friend not a lover, at least for the time being. He needs to keep his inner darkness and insecurities in check. That or a therapist.

Hopefully this doesn't age like milk, and if they do get together I guess I'm wrong! :3

Thank you if you read till the very end, here is a gif of Brennan giving you a thumbs up!

Why? Cause you are pretty cool!

Please consider liking or reblogging this post if you liked what you read. And I'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode and if I should continue!

[pensat-i-fet]

All yours (Rúben Dias x Reader)

**So I got a couple of requests to write about being on holiday with Rúben after he posted some holiday content. And a more specific one involved this sort of fwb situation with some jealousy in the mix that inspired me a lot. And this is what I came up with. I always appreciate any feedback but this time it'd be interesting to know your thoughts since the tone and vibe (not the topic itself completely) of this is similar to a Rúben series I need to continue working on. So it'd be amazing to know how you guys feel about it. Enjoy reading!! ❤️**

Word count: 2947

Masterlist

Wattpad

"You're coming with us to our holiday, right?", asked Rúben when you got out of the shower.

"I don't know".

"What do you mean you don't know? You've travelled with us for the last 5 years. Do you have better plans?"

"I just…I don't know if it's the best idea now that…you know".

He got closer to you, smirking. "I might be having memory problems. Now that what?"

"You'll have other problems if you don't remove that annoying smug grin from your ugly face", you said, rolling your eyes and making him laugh.

When you tried to walk towards your closet, he stopped you wrapping his arms around your waist.

"Do you mean", he said, leaving kisses on your neck, "now that we stay in each other's beds instead of the guest rooms during our sleepovers? Because I only see that as a bigger reason for you to be there. I'm sure we'll find a way to have some alone time".

"But this is just something casual, Rúben. You’ve said it many times. What if I cockblock you? Or worse…you cockblock me!"

You noticed his arms holding you tighter for a heartbeat before he let go of you.

"We'll be fine. Please come with us, the boys always want you there. I want you there. You know that".

There was something in his tone that made you stop. Did he sound a bit…sad? But why would he? It’s just the summer holidays.

“Where are you going anyway? Same as always?”

“No, we’re going to Miami”.

He looked at your reaction, knowing you’d wanted to visit Miami for years. That was actually one of the reasons why he suggested that place as an option in the first place.

“I mean…”.

“I’ll send you the info when I finish booking everything”.

“I didn’t say yes, Rúben”.

“You said it with your eyes”.

“Oh yeah? What are my eyes saying now?”, you asked, glaring at him. “Stop smirking! You’re so annoying!”

"We are going to have so much fun!"

"Nothing is going to happen there. No one can know about this…arrangement. Or we'll never hear the end of it".

"Try and be a bit more quiet, then".

He was still laughing when the pillow hit his face and you took that opportunity to go get dressed. And to start planning what to pack for Miami.

                                      **

"I'm so hungover", you said when your little group of friends was waiting at the airport for your flight to the US.

"You sit with Rúben, then. He's probably still hungover too from the celebrations".

"As long as he doesn't puke again…".

"You're all so funny", said Rúben, rolling his eyes. He wasn't hungover but really tired after such a long season.

"You take the window seat. I'll be sleeping most of the time, anyway".

"Ok".

Trying to get comfortable, you started to notice it was a bit chilly on the plane.

"I need my jacket and your brother has my bag. I'll be right back", you said, trying to get up but Rúben stopped you.

"Just wear my hoodie", he took it off and put it in your lap, but instead of taking it you just stared at it. "What?"

"It's just that, wearing your clothes…that’s like couple stuff. And we’re not a couple".

"It's something you've done your entire life. Don't try to make it weird just because we are sleeping together now".

"Rúben!", your eyes widened and you also noticed the man sitting to your left staring at you two.

But he just shrugged and put his headphones on, ready to watch a movie. So you took the hoodie and put it on before trying to fall asleep quickly. But seeing Rúben sitting next to you made it harder to sleep. This whole friends with benefits thing was fun. I mean, it was Rúben you got to sleep with. But it was also…weird. You had always been friends and how were you supposed to go back to just friends once one of you found a partner? And why did that idea feel so wrong right now?

"Can't sleep?", he asked when he looked at you and saw you staring at his movie.

You shook your head, sighing.

"Come here".

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. Come closer so you can cuddle me. You'll fall asleep quicker".

"You think so highly of yourself, Dias…".

But you did as he said, moving closer so you could put your arms around his waist and place your head on his chest. His arm was around your shoulder and his hand kept caressing the top of your arm. And even if you were overanalyzing a gesture that was so normal for you two, in just a couple of minutes, you were already sleeping.

                                          **

Sleeping on the plane meant you were ready to enjoy the rest of the day once you landed in Miami. Everyone else just wanted to go to the beach and rest but you were itching to go out to explore the city.

"Come on!! It's so early. Let's go find somewhere to eat and then we can walk around the area".

"I'll go with you".

When Rúben spoke, everyone looked at him and you started to worry about them suspecting something. He was always volunteering to be with you, no matter what you suggested.

"Cool, Rúben can go with you and be your bodyguard for tonight".

"Bodyguard?"

"We aren't going to let you run around all alone in a foreign country…and at night".

"You don't even let me run around my hometown", you muttered, rolling your eyes at how overprotective they all were.

"You are like a little sister to us. We have to protect you. So off you go with big bro Rúben".

Shaking your head, you turned to leave the hotel, noticing Rúben right behind you.

For the first couple of minutes, you two walked in silence. You were too busy staring at your surroundings to say anything. And then you noticed Rúben putting his arm around your shoulders.

"What are you doing?"

"There are some weird guys looking at you".

"Thank you, big brother. What would I do without your protection?"

Rúben didn't find your sarcasm funny and when you were walking past an alley a couple of seconds later, he made you both walk inside it so he could push you against the wall and kiss you.

"I'm not your brother".

"You aren't my boyfriend either".

He shook his head, looking like he wanted to say more but not doing it. "Let's keep walking".

When you got back to the hotel, a part of you was hoping he would ask you to go to his room. Or that he would follow you to yours but he only wished you a goodnight and left you outside of the lift.

That's where you found him and the rest of the gang the next morning.

"Ready for today?"

"What's the plan?", you asked, hoping they didn't just plan on staying at the beach all day.

"Breakfast, beach, sightseeing and night out".

"I love that plan", you said, clapping your hands. "Maybe we can go shopping too".

After you had some breakfast, you moved to the private area of the beach so you could relax on the sunbeds for a couple of hours.

"I need sunscreen on my back!", you said, lifting your arm that held the bottle until someone grabbed it. You didn't even know who did, but when you placed your head on the sunbed, you saw Rúben sitting a couple of sunbeds away from you. So it wasn't him.

You closed your eyes, trying to relax. But anyone who bothered looking at Rúben's face would have noticed the tension in his features. He knew neither his brother nor his friends were interested in you in that way. They really meant it when they said you were like a sister to them. But still, seeing another man's hands on your body filled him with rage. He wanted to be the one putting the cream on your back and shoulders, leaving kisses all over your body while he applied it. But he had to look from afar. And it ruined his mood for the whole day.

By the time you made it to the hotel, you only had 30 minutes to get ready. But you already planned some cute outfits for the nights out so you ended up getting ready in less than half an hour.

"You're wearing that?"

His friend's words made Rúben look up.

"We are not doing this, boys. It's just a dress".

"One of us by your side the whole time, yeah", they joked.

"You'll have to catch me first!", you laughed, running outside of the hotel and making all your friends get up quickly to follow you.

You were so busy looking behind you that you didn't notice someone walking in front of you until you bumped into him.

"Oh my God! Sorry".

"It's ok", he said, holding your arm to steady you. "Are you ok? Were you running away from someone?"

His concern made you smile. And the fact that he was cute didn't hurt. "My friends but as a joke. They are alright…and right there".

"And they are all men".

"Yeah", you laughed. "But they act like little boys most of the time".

When they got to where you, and a stranger, were, they didn't know what to do. It was always hilarious to you how they didn't understand the concept of you talking to other men. You were one of the lads to them, but in moments like that, they realized you weren't a lad.

"We were going to grab a drink at a bar, do you want to come with us?"

"Sure", the guy, Sean, said. And you introduced him to everyone before making your way to the bar.

To say that Rúben wasn't happy would be an understatement. He just kept staring at you and Sean, while you were laughing and dancing. It should be him doing that with you, not a random dude whose last name you didn't even know.

"Another drink? How obvious".

"What are you muttering, grumpy?", asked his brother, who knew more than you and Rúben thought.

"Nothing…but I mean, what's that? The third drink he buys for her? We all know what he's trying to do".

"We are here to avoid that, stop worrying. No one is hurting her while we are around".

"I don't know. Maybe she wants it. Maybe she wants him".

Everyone could hear the bitterness in Rúben's voice.

"When she should want you, right?"

Rúben cleared his throat, not wanting to look at his brother after being so obvious.

"Do you think I don't know about you two?"

That made him look. "How would you…".

"You're not as discreet as you think you are but I get you wanted to keep it a secret so whatever", he shrugged. "What I didn't know was that there was more".

"More?"

"You couldn't be more jealous, Rúben".

"It's just something casual. But she's my friend…".

"No, she's my friend. That's why I'm careful to look her way every once in a while just in case she needs me. You are just looking at him and fantasizing about breaking his nose, probably".

Rúben shook his head and left to go to the bathroom. He just needed to splash some cold water on his face to hopefully get his common sense back. You were just friends with benefits. He didn't get to be jealous.

"Hey, bro".

Of course, it had to be Sean who he found in the bathroom. "Hey! Having a good time?"

"Do you have to ask?", he laughed, and Rúben didn't like that laugh at all. "Your friend is so hot. Is she good in bed too? She has to be, right?"

"How would I know? She's just my friend".

"Right…if my group of friends had a hot chick like her in it, we would all be just friends. Of course".

"What are you insinuating about her?".

Sean didn't realise how much bigger than him Rúben was until they were almost face to face.

"The way you all joke, the way she dresses…and she just invited me to buy her drinks before she even asked my name. Do you want me to believe you haven't all at least tried it once? I know girls like her".

Rúben pushed Sean against the wall, lowering his voice to try to not make a scene. But making sure his voice was menacing enough for Sean to get the message that he could break his nose, like his brother suggested, very easily.

"You don't know her at all. And what you're going to do is go out and excuse yourself and leave. Or you'll regret every word you've said about her…and all the ones you thought but didn't say out loud. Am I clear?"

Sean swallowed and nodded. And Rúben moved back just enough to allow him to leave the bathroom but to also take note of how strong Rúben really was.

He took a couple of deep breaths before going out and when he did, he couldn't believe what he saw. Not only was Sean still there, one of his hands was on your waist and he was whispering things in your ear.

Without saying a word to anyone, he walked towards you two and when Sean saw him, he just smiled.

"You don't want to make a scene here, do you?"

"What are you talking about?", you asked, looking from Sean to Rúben, confused about the whole situation.

"We are leaving", said Rúben, grabbing your hand so you can follow him.

"What? No! Why would I leave? I'm chatting with Sean".

"The guy who calls you a whore the moment you're not around? No, you are coming with me".

"He called her a what?"

All of your friends were now surrounding Sean. But you didn't care about any of them, tired of their overprotective nature towards you. So you let go of Rúben's hand and got out of the bar.

Rúben followed you, worried about your reaction.

"Wait! Stop walking. You're not even going in the right direction!"

"Maybe I'm going in the right direction because I'm going as far away from you as possible!"

"You didn't hear what he said about you. It was disgusting".

"If I want to be with a disgusting guy, it's my problem!"

"Now you're being ridiculous. Should we let you be taken advantage of?"

You finally stopped walking and turned to look at Rúben.

"What do you want from me? You are confusing me so much that my head is fucking spinning! First, you want us to just be fuck buddies and nothing else. Then you act all jealous whenever I talk to a guy but you keep on going out with girls so…how does that work? Do I get to be jealous too? Or it's only you who can?"

Rúben didn't know what to say. Because he was the first one confused by what he felt.

"What is it, Rúben? Because I don't know. And now you do what? Defend my honour? As if you were my boyfriend".

"You didn't hear what he said about you", he repeated, still mad at Sean's words.

"Let me guess. He thinks I'm fucking all of you, right? Like literally every man I meet that finds out I have a group of friends with only men in it", when you saw Rúben's face, you let out a sad laugh. "He was going to be a one-night stand, Rúben. Not my future husband. Who cares what he thinks about me?"

"I do! Hearing him say those things about you…".

"I said it the other day and I'll say it again. Rúben, you aren't my boyfriend. Stop acting like you are".

He swore under his breath when you started to walk again.

"Let's change that, then".

"Change what?"

"Let me be your boyfriend".

This time you stopped walking but feared turning to face him. Those were the words you had been dying to hear since the day you kissed while watching a movie months ago. You expected him to tell you he felt the same way about you. That he had been in love with you for years too. But he just proposed the stupid friends with benefits arrangement. And you said yes because at least you got to have him in some way. But it wasn't enough. You kept pushing him, telling him you weren’t a couple when he acted like your boyfriend. You wanted him to react. And he finally did.

"Don't just say it because you are angry at a dude calling me names, Rúben. You don't get to play with my feelings like that".

"I'm not playing. I thought I was scared of losing you as a friend but…I was just scared of facing my feelings. Of telling you how I felt and seeing you rejecting me".

"How do you feel?"

"I love you. And I know it's not the first time I tell you that but …I don't mean love as a friend. I mean, that too, of course. But I'm also in love with you. And I have been for a while"

He didn't know how to interpret the tears in your eyes. But a hug was always a good option, right?

"I love you too. But I need all of you, Rúben. Not just the little bits I've been getting these past months. It’s all or nothing".

"You have it all. All of it. I'm all yours. And I need you to be mine".

"I already am".

[valley-of-headcanons]

bachelorettes reacting to you getting hurt || headcanons

these bachelorettes vowed to stay with you, in sickness and in health! part two here!

warnings: you get hurt (obv) by: the mines, ocean, farming, tree, electrocution, and animals. if you're scared of that, don't read this :)

requested by: anon! thank you so much for the request! oh how i love comfort fics <3 it was kinda hard trying to figure out unique things that would hurt the farmer so pardon the slightly goofy scenarios 💀 had to screenshot anon message because tumblr hates my guts and won't let me post. anyway, hope you enjoy! :)

abigail

• You told Abigail you were heading to the mines, and it was rather late. She was worried, but she knew you'd be fine. You've done it several times, what would make this time different? Well, seeing as you didn't have enough food to keep your energy and help up ... uh oh. You weren't doing well, pretty beat up at this point. Tons of scratches and more blood than there really should be …

• Once it hit 2 AM, Abigail couldn't rest anymore. She was worried sick about you. Yes, you both were adventurous spirits, but everyone has their limits. So, Abigail got ready to head into the mines to find you. She descended through the floors, searching for you while slicing the monsters. She was more scared than she'd like to admit, and it was evident on her face.

• Once she found you passed out cold on a relatively low floor, she freaked the fuck out. She eventually got you to wake up through enough pushing and shoving. You looked to see your frantic lover's face for only a moment before she pulled you into a deep hug. She wasn't one to be emotional, she didn't like talking about that stuff, but when it came to you ... she loved you too much to hide it.

• “God- you had me worried sick! It's three in the morning- and you were- you were knocked unconscious and ... I was worried I lost you ... you can't do that to me, you had me so worried, I ... God, I sound like my dad ... just- please. Be more careful. I was worried I ... I was worried I didn't have the power to wake you up. Or ... anything did. I'm just glad you're awake, now let's get to Harvey's ASAP.”

• Abigail hurried with you to Harvey's, trying her hardest to stay calm with deep breaths. Despite the blood that was pouring on her clothes, her shaking hands, and her worries ... she stayed externally calm for you. She got you to Harvey's in no time, and he stitched you up with some warnings. Abigail made sure you stuck to them. Yes, she encourages rebellion, but not when it comes to health.

emily

• You decided to do some late night fishing. You had made kind of a big purchase today, so you needed to make up for it with some fish sales. Emily knew where you'd be, down by the beach. You go fishing all the time, it's not like this time would be very different. But when you hadn't come home, and the clock is striking 2 AM ... something was fishy.

• Emily made her way toward the beach, her intuition telling her something was wrong. Something didn't seem right in the slightest. But, she tried to keep her cool, as nothing that bad could've happened, right ...? She's one of the most calm and collected bachelorettes, despite her eccentric nature. She's truly the most emotionally mature. So ... why was she so nervous?

• When she saw you face down in the sand, it all clicked. She raced over to you, taking off her shoes and slinging them across the sand so she could get to you faster. She turned you over, trying to get you to respond. Worry laced her expression, trying to think of what to do. She had to learn CPR to work at the Saloon, so she decided to try it. She's out of practice, but ... when your eyes popped open, coughing up sea water and sand, everything seemed to be remotely okay.

• “Jeez- you had me worried for a second there! We've gotta get you to Harvey's tonight, you crashed out. I should've told you that something didn't feel right about fishing tonight, but I thought it'd be okay ... that's behind us. Right now, we've gotta get you back to health! Let's get to Harvey's. I'll be your crutch, 'kay?”

• As she helped you to Harvey's, she was a bit nervous but she knew you'd be fine. You were in good hands, and no matter what, something like this couldn't take you down. So, after getting to Harvey's, she sat by your side and held your hand as Harvey checked everything out. She trusted that fate knew what it was doing, and it did. She knew something this simple couldn't take you down.

haley

• Bright and early, you needed to do some work on the farm. Haley had opted to stay in the bed, claiming to need her beauty rest. Even though she didn't need it, you let her rest. You didn't need your partner sitting on the porch for you to do farmwork! It's not like you were a toddler who needed to be supervised, right? ... right?

• Haley woke up about an hour or two after you had, fixing herself some morning tea and admiring the scenery. She gazed out the window, looking at the beautiful life you two had created together. She was really proud of you, and the life you provided for her, even though she didn't say it nearly enough. She was shook from those thoughts when she noticed that you weren't tending to the farm like you normally were. You were laying in it. Not moving.

• Essentially launching herself out of the cabin in a robe, she ran to your side. Haley was screaming and panicking, dragging you out of the crops and sitting by your side. She shook you, trying her hardest to get you to wake up. She didn't know what was happening. Heat stroke? An undisclosed illness she didn't know you had? But then she noticed the already forming bump on your forehead ... you hit yourself in the head with your hoe? Really? Once your eyes began to open, she hugged you really tight before letting you have it.

• “Babe! How did you hurt yourself with a hoe?! You've got to be more careful! You're so- ... you're so stupid. I love you, you've gotta take better care for yourself! What if I hadn't seen you and you suffocated or something! I can't be around all the time! ... let's get you to Harvey's to get you checked out, dummy ... no, I'm not mad. My nerves are just super heightened now ... you know I worry about you, right?”

• Haley took you to Harvey's hoping that you hadn't done significant brain damage. When she knew that you were fine, she apologized for freaking out and giving you a kiss on the cheek. She'd still tease you about it, but she didn't raise any more hell. She was genuinely worried about you, and she doesn't respond to stress well.

leah

• Leah was hard at work on a sculpture, chipping away at the driftwood on the table in front of her. You wanted to do something nice for her: cut down a tree and give her the wood for her projects. She gives you so many things, so it's time you give her something in return! So, you set out on this journey, unbeknownst to Leah. She started to get a bit worried when you hadn't been around in a while, though …

• She had gotten so sucked into her work, she didn't realize that you had been gone for so long. It was getting pretty late, where could you be? She racked her brain for answers as she stood, calling out your name. She looked across the farm, not seeing you. Her last resort was to head into town, but she needed to drop by her old cabin for some materials. So, she headed through Cindersap Forest. She didn't expect to see you, helpless under a cut down tree.

• Leah's heart raced as she called your name, rushing by your side. Her first course of action was to pull the tree off of you, huffing and puffing but eventually getting it off of you. She looked over your body, seeing that you were mostly unharmed aside from maybe a broken leg. The tree must've hit you on the head on the way down. She dragged you to Harvey's without waking you up, she knew that this was probably dire. You woke up to Leah sitting beside you in the hospital.

• “Hey love, you scared me there ... I was worried I had lost you. What happened? ... ah, I see. Please, be more careful. I can lend you a book on how to more carefully cut trees? ... I love you. I don't say it nearly enough, even though I think I say it all the time. Please get some rest and get healed up, Harvey's gonna take care of you. No, don't apologize, you're fine hon.”

• After Harvey put your broken leg into a cast and explained how to properly take care of it, you looked over to Leah. She smiled at you softly, holding your hand. You knew that you were in safe hands with her. She was going to make sure you were taken care of, whether you liked it or not. She wasn't going to rest until she knew you were better.

maru

• Maru was working on a big project and needed some batteries. You were happy to provide! The lightning rods on your farm were the best way to go about it. Finally, you woke up to a rainy day! Maru was already hard at work in the home, so you went out to do your chores. Batteries were ready! You just had to grab them, and- pzzzt!

• She was very sucked into her work, not noticing that you had been gone for a remarkable amount of time. About midday, Maru got up to get herself a drink of water. She started to wonder about how you were doing and where you had gone, so she decided to step out into the rain to look for you. She didn't expect to find you laying in the dirt beside the lightning rods.

• Maru rushed over to you, pulling you away from the lightning rods and looking over your body. You were breathing, but you were definitely out. She tried to wake you up, but nothing. This was out of her nursing expertise, so she dragged you to Harvey's, slowly but surely. She got you there shortly, letting Harvey take care of you and helping him to the best of her ability. When you woke up, she was right by your side.

• “Hey hon, did you get electrocuted? ... yeah, I got you to Harvey's. Yes, you're fine, I assume you hit your head hard on the fall down. Is there anything else that feels odd? ... yes, you have a minor concussion, but I'll be home to help you out. You worry me, farmer ... I love you, though. You keep life interesting.”

• Maru followed Harvey's orders exactly, making sure you were on the way to recovery. She kept you fed and medicated for your pains. Taking care of someone is not something Maru normally does, despite her being a nurse. But she knows what to do and tries her hardest, giving you small little kisses in between your requests. She shows her love for you by doing everything you need.

penny

• You were going about, doing your daily chores while Penny was out with Jas and Vincent. This was the usual, despite your married life. You were working with the animals, as per usual. Tending to the cows and chickens was a daily chore, but it wasn't too bad! But sometimes, accidents happen. Sometimes you get accidentally kicked pretty hard by your cows. Y'know, it happens, right?

• Penny made her way home after working with the kids, waltzing into the cabin with a spring in her step. She didn't see you out on the farm, so she assumed you'd be home. She was surprised to see you not in the cabin, so she glanced back outside. She tilted her head, wondering where you could be. Well, in the meantime, she could go say hi to the cows! She loves the animals on the farm, and she can't wait to see them. She didn't expect to see you knocked out against the wall of the barn …

• Fight or flight mode kicked in on Penny. She stared at you for a moment, analyzing your breathing. You were alive, probably not too badly hurt, but definitely passed out. She shook off the panic, trying her hardest to push through despite the tears pricking at her eyes. She tried to shake you awake, but nothing. She knew she couldn't get you to Harvey's by herself ... so, she had to bring Harvey to you! She ran at full speed down to Harvey's, begging him to come visit the farm for you. She brought him to you, and he checked up on you in the barn. Penny sat right by your side as you woke up.

• “Love, I'm so glad you're awake! You had me so worried, I didn't know what had happened! I-I ... God, I'm so glad you're okay ... did one of the cows hit you, or something? ... hmm, I didn't expect that, that's really weird ... but, I will be right by your side until you feel better! Harvey said you had a broken rib, so I'll be taking care of everything that I can for you! ... just rest up for me, okay?”

• Penny stayed by your side for your entire recovery, helping you with anything you could ever need. You're so important to her, and it shows through every action. She would drop on her hands and knees for you if you asked. She cares so much for you, and she wouldn't dare put you in any discomfort! Penny is an incredibly devout wife.

[angelpuns]

Thinking about taking a break for like a week or two even though it will ultimately be more stressful cause I am significantly stressed out about other things in my life ( mostly driving. Almost exclusively driving. )

Like I have the first week of updates for the next mini arc ready and I'm nearly finished the the next page ( and its only 3 pages ) but jfc there's so much going on suddenly and it all kinda hit me rn. Conveniently the night before the start of my work week haha.

its a lot of miniscule silly things but unfortunately thinking about them all at once is making my brain explode a little ;-;

I don't WANT to take a break, especially because once I try to start again I probably won't be able to. I find it very difficult to stop when I have a set routine and then just...not work on something. Which is why some of the Kid Leo arcs in the past have had HUGE lapses in posting :/ I also feel significantly guilty when I take breaks cause I know I don't do as well after I take a break lmao. Breaks usually don't benefit me, which is why I don't take them like ever.

The next three weeks are like...gonna be super busy on the weekends and super stressful driving wise. Like I'm talking long long trips of me having to drive. And then the week after the long trip I am gonna be boothing at a local convention which is always stressful. And I still have to make things for it.

I don't know, I'll decide sometime tomorrow if I wanna go ahead and commit to posting the mini arcs or not. I do plan on taking a significant break after Chapter 12, but that's still a bit away and this is more of an 'emergency break' type situation. Even though its not an emergency. You get the idea.

I don't wanna say for sure if I'm going to take a break cause hey, maybe I'll wake up tomorrow and be like ' man those silicone fumes made me feel like the world was ending lmao' and I'll be fine but it's very much a ' we shall see' type situation. I'll still draft up the posts in case I do wanna post, but this is somewhat of a warning. I'll announce if I really am gonna take a break or not later. I'll probably still be posting regardless, but it won't be full updates or anything like that. Probably just sketches and maybe pics of the stuff I'm cooking up for this convention :)

Anyway TLDR: I MIGHT be taking a break. Hard to say right now.

EDIT: THIS IS ONLY SOMEWHAT RELATED TO THE CATHOLIC GUILT POST OKAY BUT DW I DONT FEEL TOO GUILTY FOR MAYBE NEEDING A BREAK JUST A SIDE NOTE I DONT WANNA WORRY ANYONE!

[johnslittlespoon]

thinking unholy thoughts of gale making john come untouched with only his fingers in the biker au… maybe john didn’t even know it was possible so when gale keeps going he gets confused and is like “i’m good im ready” but gale keeps going 😅

au post | ohhh man okay. yeah feeling super extremely sane and normal about this, never been better! thanks! ~2k words of nsfw filth below the cut sighhhh

okay, prefaced with a little more world building in my last post since we're really diving into this au now LOL. ofc things might change when i actually write it, but this is how i'm feeling things will go rn!

re: 'maybe john didn't even know it was possible'– like i said in the drabble before this, he's fooled around a little with curt, but nothing more than getting a bit handsy. he's had a girlfriend for around a year, so they were probably serious enough to get up to things too, but straight sex is very different from gay sex obviously.

the internet exists, and during the time john is pining(thirsting) over gale, he probably does his fair share of googling 'blond man with tattoos fucks brunet man', but really he's kinda intimidated by a lot of stuff, so he doesn't delve too deep into that world. when he and gale start seeing each other and john realizes they're gonna move past making out eventually (because gale is almost such a gentleman sometimes that john wants to bash his head in in his impatience), he probably psychs himself out a bit and gets into his own head and is like fuck.

gale's had years to gain experience and what if he's not good enough or does something stupid or or or, on and on. obviously these worries are completely unfounded because gale adores him and would never pressure him and doesn't expect them to just jump right into things; half of the reason he probably drags things out is because he wants to be absolutely certain things are on john's terms, and that john's not just being horny and impulsive.

john probably ends up trying to do some research so he can yk. pick up some tips, because he's got all the enthusiasm he needs when he thinks about getting to drop to his knees for gale, but he has no idea what he's doing and he doesn't realize everyone learns as they go because he's dumb (/fond) and overthinks everything. (whatever he ends up learning doesn't matter anyway, because all coherent thought leaves his head when they do start doing stuff together and gale is so encouraging and easygoing that he feels ridiculous for ever worrying.)

all that is to say that yeah, he's got like no firsthand experience when it comes to anything past the basics or anything he hasn't been doing by himself. everything is fresh and exciting and as much as he loves just hanging around gale, he's also always needy and horny (gets told he's "insatiable" quite a few times by gale) so they get up to a lot of shit and it's unfair how good gale is in bed and how he knows exactly which buttons to press to get john worked up.

at the time this incident happens, gale's already fingered john a few times, but it's always just as a build up/foreplay, usually followed or joined with gale's other hand or lips around john's cock. they haven't had sex yet, and it feels really nice when gale does this, but john always just kinda sees it as foreplay and it doesn't last for long.

so when gale's got john laid in his bed one sunny afternoon and they're making out and john starts getting whiny and squirmy from the stimulation of his fingers in him, and gale doesn't switch things up like he usually does, john's heart leaps because in his mind, surely gale's getting him ready for something else.

but he's frustrated because it feels like gale's purposefully avoiding hitting right where he needs him to, pants out gale's name against his lips, grasping the back of gale's shirt. starts rocking his hips down against his fingers, seeking it out, and gale rumbles out a "needy thing" before pressing a kiss to his cheek and crawling down the length of his body, settling himself between john's legs.

john props himself up on his elbows to watch, cheeks flushed and eyelids heavy, digging his fingers into the blanket instead. he lets out a little whine at the slow drag of gale's fingers, and that finally makes him cave, crooking his fingers just right, and john's lips part at the way the sudden surge of pleasure zings up his spine.

lets his elbows slide out from underneath himself, dropping back down into the pillow, satisfied he's finally getting what he's been waiting for since gale worked him open ten minutes ago. he waits for stimulation on his cock to join the fingers in him as usual, assuming that's why gale moved to lay there, but gale just keeps up the slow in and out and consistent brushes against his prostate and its embarrassing how much he's leaking all over his own stomach.

but then he has the thought that maybe gale's actually properly prepping him and his cock twitches and his breath catches and he props himself up again to find gale already watching him. he waits expectantly, too shy to ask, and gale doesn't offer him any confirmation, just pressing gentle kisses to his thighs and smiling when john's hips start to roll down against his fingers again.

john thinks that maybe gale's waiting for him to say he's ready, since he does often make him ask for what he wants, so even as his cheeks go hot, he gets out a breathy "gale, i'm– that's good, 'm ready."

but gale only chuckles quietly, nipping at his thigh to feel it twitch away, watching john in a way that makes him feel somehow even more exposed than he already is, and now he's even more confused and he feels like he's melting into the bed and gale's putting a little more pressure into each crook of his fingers and the sounds he's making are so whiny and high pitched that he wants to cover his own ears out of embarrassment.

"does it feel good, doll?" gale purrs, dragging john's eyes back to him, and he nods, twisting his hands in the blankets harder. it does feel good, enough so that heat is pooling in his stomach in a way that's both familiar and foreign, the sensation all different with no friction against his dick.

gale's working his hand a little faster and john's face burns at the realization that he's being finger–fucked like a girl and he drops back into the pillows, arms going too weak to hold himself up. his thighs are starting to tremble and gale murmurs that he's "making such a mess on yourself, baby, look at you" and john immediately reaches down to take his dick in his hand, but gale catches his wrist with his free hand, slowing his movements down, much to john's dismay.

"no hands today, john," he says gently, letting go of his wrist. "i want you to keep them at your side for me, can you do that?"

and john lets out a near hysterical noise but he obliges, grabbing fistfuls of the blanket again, head spinning at being given an instruction, biting down on the inside of his cheek when gale speeds his fingers up again with a "good job, baby."

the heat builds and builds as gale's fingers hit right where they need to each time, and it feels like he's just hanging on the edge of an orgasm for so long, unable to tip over that edge, eyes blurring over from how overwhelming the drawn out sweet–hot pleasure is. he's mindlessly rocking his hips down and panting out little "ah ah ah"s with each thrust of gale's fingers and he's so close to lifting his hand from his side when a sob of frustration slips out.

but gale presses his lips to his thigh again, sucking at the sensitive skin there, pulls back to murmur a stream of "c'mon sweet thing, come on my fingers, show me how good you feel, you can do it" and john chokes out a cry as he clenches around his fingers and comes so hard he nearly blacks out, back arching and hips stuttering up like he can get friction that way.

gale's hand chases his jerking movements, continuing to fuck him on his fingers as john paints his own stomach, cock pulsing, feeling like he's just going to keep coming and coming, mewling desperately and shaking like a leaf and seeing stars behind his closed eyelids.

he closes his thighs against gale's sides when it starts to be too much, hands shaking when reaches down to tiredly push at him, hips stuttering away from the stimulation, hiccupping as he tries to catch his breath. he can feel hot tears soaking into the hair at his temples, lips parted in surprise, shuddering when gale lets his movements slow down until his fingers go still.

john whines when he pulls them out, despite his efforts to squirm away from them moments before, and gale presses a kiss to his hip before he crawls back up his body, cupping john's face with the hand not covered in lube, and john's eyes flutter open, bleary when they focus in on the expression of awe on gale's face.

"fuck, john," gale sounds almost as breathless as him. "you're crying, baby. was that okay?" john nods shakily, tilting his chin up for a kiss, and gale leans down without missing a beat, kissing him so deep it feels like he wants to devour him. mumbles "you have no idea what you do to me" against john's lips, brushing his fingers over the tear streaks on either side of his face, peppering his red cheeks with light kisses before pulling back again.

"felt good?" he murmurs, and john chokes out a laugh at the understatement, draping his wrist over his forehead. "really good," he breathes out, flushing when he opens his mouth again, "didn't know that was, um. a thing." and gale half laughs, half groans at the admission, rolling his hips down, and john sucks in a sharp breath at the drag of his pants, cock twitching even after all that.

gale doesn't mind; he's more than happy to watch his pretty boy fall apart on his fingers, mouth, cock, as many times as john lets him.

[canonicallyobserving911]

Buck & Eddie: Buck is looking for answers!

Before 6x15 aired, I wrote a speculation post about Buck's "Therapy Uniform vs. his date clothes" (linked here) but everyone knows how the season ended with the showrunner pulling that BS by having Eddie revert back to being a giggly high school student who acted like an 18-year-old that didn't know how to ask a woman out on a date. And Buck literally made the same mistake by sleeping with a woman he just met who only wanted one thing from him but I digress. It still pisses me off, so I won't revisit it.

Also, I did a post after 6x13 aired (linked here) about Buck finding the answers (Eddie and Chris) because when he said he was the guy with the answers, he looked at Eddie.

Anyway, after TM (showrunner, GLAD HE'S BACK so KR can kick rocks and go write an episode) released more cryptic Buck, Eddie and Chris pictures at dark o'clock Saturday night or Sunday morning (depending on your time zone), I revisited my theory about Buck's therapy uniform but now I've revised it. He does wear one but the reason he does is a lot narrower in scope. Even though I still believe he wears specific colors or a "uniform" per say for certain things, I realized after doing some analysis that whenever he wears a Gold/Bronze/Burnt Orange/Dark Orange or a Brown shirt with navy-blue or dark colored pants, he's LOOKING FOR ANSWERS!

That's the difference between my original post and this one and I have photos from each episode to prove my updated theory. Before I delve into this, I need to mention there are two pictures from season 6 that contain the colors but BE WARNED, the pictures included deal specifically with the COUCH METAPHOR 🙄🙃. I know, I know... the season ended with Buck asking ND to help him find a couch but full disclosure, after I started working through my frustration with the way the season ended by writing a huge fanfic, I took a closer look at their whatever the hell they were doing (it wasn't a relationship) and I don't think it was meant to be interpreted that way. I won't go into it here in my CANON posts but if you want to know my thoughts on it, I've included them in my love for FANON writing in my multi-chapter fanfic titled "I'm still in love with you but... I needed to learn how to love myself too!".

Now, let's get into this topic and review Buck's looking for answers uniform.

In 4x2, Buck was looking for ANSWERS from Dr. Copeland and he said, "I think you were right when you said I hide my true feelings from others".

In 4x3 Buck told Maddie and Chimney he was seeing a therapist to help him find the ANSWERS and he started to find them but then everything went to $hit when the Buckley parents showed up.

In 4x4, Buck showed up at Maddie's and Chimney's apartment looking for ANSWERS about his parents and that's when he found out about Daniel.

In 4x8, Buck was lost and trying to find ANSWERS because guess who started dating again? EDDIE! And he was getting ready to introduce AF to Chris but Chris got upset and ran away and took an Uber to Buck's loft.

In 4x11, Buck and TK were FRIENEMIES (not friends even though he believed they were) so he contacted her and asked her for help because he wanted to find the ANSWERS regarding who hit Sue Blevins and ran.

In 4x14, Buck wore his "looking for ANSWERS" uniform twice and BOTH TIMES his quest involved Eddie! The first time was when he was packing more clothes to go to Eddie's house so he could keep taking care of Chris. That's when he got the call from AF after TK kissed him and ran so I've included two pictures so his shirt can be seen better while he's sitting at Eddie's beside. He was looking for answers about Eddie being shot in front of him and his heart being ripped out of his chest when it happened.

The second time he was looking for ANSWERS, he was in the hospital talking to Eddie during THE WILL REVEAL! 🤪😜

In 5x3, Buck was once again looking for ANSWERS about his relationship but reminder, he went home to an empty loft after he told Eddie during the blackout to break up with AF🤪.

In 5x4, he was looking for ANSWERS about Maddie and why she left him again even though she promised him she wouldn't in 3x16. Did she tell him she was leaving, YES! But reminder, she didn't tell him where she was going and all he told Chimney was "It's what she does, leave".

In 6x1, at the end of the episode, Buck was looking for ANSWERS again but this time it was about his couch or the lack thereof. At the beginning of the episode, he cooked dinner for him and his Diaz boys and they made fun of him for not having one even though THEY WERE SITTING RIGHT THERE IN FRONT OF HIM. He missed the fact that they were waiting for him and had been since he broke up with TK and he still didn't get it. The picture shows Buck carrying his armchair (which is the same color of the shirt he wears when he's looking for answers) and he moved it to where his couch once sat.

In 6x4, Buck was looking for ANSWERS again when he was trying to decide if he should be Connor's sperm donor.

In 6x12, Buck was lying on the couch looking for ANSWERS about his death but reminder, the color of the couch is close to the color of his armchair but it's hard to see. He's wearing a navy-blue t-shirt while lying on that uncomfortable orange couch his mother bought even though he told her HE'D FIND ONE ON HIS OWN.

In 6x15, Buck was looking for ANSWERS about the fact that he died but ND was fangirling over him so hard that he LIKED the attention she was giving him then he said that Bull$hit to Eddie about her seeing him and Buck and Eddie went back to making the same mistakes. Eddie let people (**cough** Pepa and **cough** Bobby) tell him he should date instead of finding his own way. And Buck tried to make another woman like him when in fact all she wanted was his "Firehose".

In 6x17, he was still looking for ANSWERS but this time it was answers regarding how to calculate the tip at the bar he took ND to and that's when LD showed up and insinuated, they hooked up when she knows they didn't. Reminder, Buck could only do math when he was with Eddie and Chris and the firefam but he couldn't calculate $hit when he was on a date with ND🤪🙃😁😉.

Finally, in Season 7 (TM didn't specify which episode the scene below will appear in his cryptic post), Buck's wearing his LOOKING FOR ANSWERS colored shirt again. The color pants he's wearing while he sits on Chris' bed can't be seen but based on 6x13 when Chris wanted Buck to give him the answers to his math homework and since Chris is clearly doing homework in the picture, it's possible he's asking Buck to help him but he doesn't have the answers anymore because his special skills wore off after 6x13 which just so happened to be the episode the Buckley-Diaz family was together 90% of the time.

What, if anything, does all this mean? I'm not speculating but will Buck finally find the answers in Season 7 or will it be more of the same, him looking for answers while Eddie tries to make another relationship work with someone he doesn't want to be with or will Buck and Eddie finally TALK about all their traumas and confess how much they love each other? Only TM, the producers and the actors know the answers to that question.

[kmigyubs]

[숭호, 동휸] — ₊˚⊹ ᰔ the newspaper boy, school president and I.

Pairing(s) : KIM DONGHYUN [Leehan] & PARK SUNGHO x [GN] reader

Genre : fluff, love triangle + a crap ton of drama.

Summary : Sungho is the boy who delivers the weekly newspapers to a small town in Busan. Donghyun was your typical school president, snarky and the top student (though it is barely mentioned). What did these two acquaintaned strangers have to common? They both liked [...]— they're in a secret competition where they both won (but not in the way they anticipated)..

Warning/contents : nothing much but a ton of mixed-feelings. there might be mistakes here + English is not my first language ^^ they/them used ! (+I might accidentally use the wrong prns and im sorry in advanced :)

a/n : ive wrote this about a month or two ago , and the plot isn't particularly the best. but i thought id post it for leehan day (love him sm). I wanna write smth for riwoo too but im tired TT maybe sometime soon

AUGUST 25, Wednesday

Birds were chirping, and [...] was awoken by the sunlight hitting their face through the windows of their room ...

They sat up in their bed, stretching their sore and numb body with a yawn, tired as fuck but still they have to get up anyway.

School didn't start until 8.30 AM, and it was only 7. They had all the time in the world before actually getting ready, thus they stood up from the bed and walked downstairs to where the kitchen was.

And there was food prepared for them, probably made by their parent as per usual before they had to go to work. Before that, they took a mug and began preparing a cup of coffee to start off the morning properly by being awoken by the aroma scent and caffeine from the coffee they were going make.

And there was a thud from the window- [...] smiled softly to himself, having quite the idea who was outside at the front of their house.

They placed the mug down on the kitchen counter, walking over to the front door and opening it, calling out to the person.

"Hey, Sungho !"

The news boy's eyes seemed to widen, even if they couldn't see it. He stopped pedalling his bicycle, looking back at the person that called out to him from the door of the house he just threw a newspaper to. He grinned sheepishly, waving at them.

"Hi, [...]-ah .."

[...] had known Sungho for quite some time now, ever since their parents decided to move here awhile back. Sungho would come by every Monday to drop by some newspapers, like he would do to every house.

But for whatever reason, that one time they invited him for a little bit inside their house because they made pasta, but accidentally made too much, so they insisted on Sungho to eat until he felt stuffed by the pasta. It was a bit akward at first, but they've gotten used to seeing eachother some mornings. That's kind of how they became friends.

"Would you like to come inside if you have time to spare ? I'm brewing some coffee." [...] asked him with a smile of their own inviting him in. Sungho politely declined with a head shake.

"No worries, I'm good ...."

"Oh ? Why's that ?" [...] asked him with a curious head tilt, acting as if he didn't have anything else to do.

"I have to head to school later, I just need to deliver these boys really quick." Sungho replied, gesturing to the newspaper on the wagon that was connected to his bicycle.

"Oh ...- huh, school ?" They asked puzzled. "I thought you do homeschool .."

"I do- I did." He said, pedalling back a bit so he could talk to the other easier.

"I just transferred to a school, you see. My mother has enough money to send me to school, now."

[...] cooed, nodding in understanding. "I see ... that's nice." They're happy that Sungho seemed to be thrilled of the idea of finally going to a public school, since he told them about how his family was struggling financially ... they wish they could do anything to help, but atleast he gets to go to a school now.

They heard a sound coming from their coffee machine, indicating that his coffee was done brewing.

"Well, hm. I guess you should go, I don't wanna hold you back." They said.

Sungho chuckled, waving his hand. "It's okay, I don't mind really.. but yeah, I should go. See you soon, [...]."

"You too, Sungie." They said with a wave, returning back inside the home and closing the door.

Sungho took a pause.. suddenly smiling giddily. Was that a nickname he heard ? That was cute.

He turned back forward, beginning to peddle again to deliver the rest of the newspapers to the upcoming houses.

———

[...] took their sweet old tome to get ready despot having an hour and a half to get ready ...

They got on their motorcycle, which was their father's. They tended to use it to get to school most of the time- when they didn't feel like taking the van they would usually go on.

So the moment they arrived, they were greeted by the school president. Stoic and super duper mature as per usual.

"Ehem, [...]-ah," he started, readjusting the from of his glasses over the bridge of his nose, folding his arms as he stared down at the other.

"You're late- again. It's the third time this week."

"I know, Donghyun ..."

[...] looked.up at him, puppy eyes. Arms clenched together. A big frown stuck on their face ...

".... But we're friends, Donghyun-ssi. Could you forgive me ?? Good people forgive ..."

"Blah blah blah, there you go again with your blackmailing." Donghyun snapped back at them. He sighed, and [...] tried their best to suppress the smile that crept onto his expression, knowing that they'd be forgiven. They stood up straight, giggling with a little 'thank you'.

Donghyun huffed in annoyance, annoyed with himself on how he'd let them get away with trouble again.

But, oh. The smile on their face was just so... irresistible. They looked way too cute to be a little troublemaker that got away with anything and everything.

Donghyun had an idea bulb turn on in his head- If [...] was going to blackmail him .. then so will he.

He then added, "But under one condition."

[...] wiped the cheeky smile on their face, now looking up at him with a soft hum of response.

They then groaned. "Eish ... fine. What is it that you need ?"

"Hm, see ... the principal assigned me to take care of a new student coming in today, but I have to assist some teachers and students for the programme on next Monday. Can you help the new student, perhaps ?"

[...] looked up at him, fortunately seeming a bit interested hearing about having to help a new student.

"Okay, kind of weird they'd join mid senior year. But sure .... What do I get out of this ?"

"My forgiveness and not punishing you for being late, obviously."

They rolled their eyes in response. "Okay, fine."

Donghyun looked at their expression, grinning from ear to ear. They were just so .... adorable. He just ruffled their hair up.

"Okay. Just wait at the principal office, he'll be there-"

He was suddenly distrupted by the sound of someone approaching, footsteps coming towards them.

"Is ... are you... Kim Donghyun?"

[...] was still facing Donghyun, not seeing the presence of whoever it was that was behind them. But something tells them that the voice was ... awfully familiar. Like they had just heard it ..... weird.

They turned around, surprised to see who was there - the newspaper boy was there, Sungho.

".... Sungho ?"

Sungho's gaze went to [y/n], his doe eyes widening in surprise seeing the person he just saw in the earlier morning.

"[...]... ? You go to this school ??"

Donghyun only stared at them while they conversated, pure confusion on his face.

"So ... you two know eachother or...?"

Sungho looked back at Donghyun, nodding in response to his confused question.

"That's right ... I see [...] when I deliver the newspapers in the morning, sometimes."

Donghyun nodded in return to Sungho, crossing his arms together once again (can you tell it's a habit of his by now ?)

"Okay, than it makes everything easier. [...] will help you around for today, since I'll be busy. Is that okay ?"

"Mhm .... that's okay. Thank you ...." Sungho mumbled to the other as he went away.

Sungho looked back to [...], a sheepish grin on his face. The one that he usually had whenever he was either akward, or excited. Not sure what it is this time.

"Well ... I guess I should show you around. Follow me, Sungie."

When they turned away to lead him to someplace else, Sungho couldn't help but smile giddily, just as he did earlier. Oh my .... [...] used that nickname again !!!! They were just so unbelievably cute to Sungho, he couldn't help it.

He snapped out of his thoughts when they called for him. Fumbling, he quickly followed them to get a tour of this place.

———

"Okay, just bring that over here and we should be all good ..."

The teacher instructed him, and Donghyun pushed the cheap foldable table over to the spot he was told. The teacher smiled in satisfaction.

"Thank you for helping the programme out, Kim. You're such a great student."

Donghyun sighed, smiling back at the teacher as he rested his hands on the table he had just pushed.

"It's fine, I'm free to help always. It's my job, is it not ?" The teacher chuckled. "I guess you're right ..."

The teacher was called over by some other students that were helping with the setup, thus she left Donghyun to go ahead and help them.

Donghyun was now left alone- well, with his friend Sanghyeok who was somebody of the student council team.

Sanghyeok was telling him about some crazy shit that he was reported by some students in the school, just yapping and whatnot.

He was barely listening to what the other was saying, just nodding along to whatever he was saying, until he heard him say,

"-Where's [...], by the way ?"

"Ah, [...]-ah. They're with Sungho."

"Sungho ...?"

"Yup. The new student."

Sanghyeok hummed. "I see ... if [...] wasn't doing so, they'd probably be following you around right now."

"Right .... he's like a little Adopt me pet."

"...???" Donghyun stared at him "You play that game too much hyeok."

Sanghyeok snorted. "I know, sorry."

Donghyun was staring ahead as Sanghyeok continued to speak to him about random things- he saw [...] with that new kid, Sungho.

[...] seemed to be thrilled by the new presence of Sungho in the school. They were chuckling contagiously as they chatted with Sungho, as they both walked past the hall Sanghyeok and Donghyun was in.

For whatever reason, Donghyun felt some sort of ... resent. Towards the way [y/n] seemed so comfortable with Sungho, to be exact.

[...] was his best friend, and they had other friends other than Donghyun himself of course and he was usually fine with it.

But for whatever reason, this time he felt some sort of uneasiness from the sight of the two together. Uncomfortable if you will.

Sungho was just a new student and Donghyun was fine with him. But knowing that he and [...] had some sort of friendship and connection before Sungho joined the school didn't sit right with him.

———

AUGUST 28, Saturday

One morning, Donghyun was making up a quick meal for himself before having to start of the day properly, a bowl of carbonara ramen. Just something simple nothing too special.

He heard the noise of something being thrown to the window of his house.

He raised a brow at the commotion. He turned and went to the said window, sliding the curtain aside so he could see what it was.

He seemed surprised to see the uhm- it was a newspaper, and it was sent by none other than the newspaper boy, Sungho.

Donghyun narrowed his eyes at the sight of the other. He went over to the front door and opened it to see him.

"Hey, you." Donghyun said, which made the other boy stop moving forward.

"Yes ?" Sungho asked, tilting his head.

"I .. you never delivered newspaper here before, huh ?"

"Oh, yeah I usually skip this street because there's already cable television here. But i thought you'd want one."

Donghyun seemed to be very puzzled, to say the least. It was oddly specific how Sungho started to deliver to him right after he transferred in .. maybe he just wanted to be acquaintances, or something.

Donghyun nodded, grabbing the newspaper that was laying right by the window.

"Right, thanks ..." Sungho nodded with a grin, pedalling away.

Donghyun brought that paper inside and tossed it onto the coffee table, knowing that he wouldn't read it at all.

He went back to get the bowl of ramen from the kitchen counter and eat it, but he couldn't help but overthink the whole encounter. It was strange, or maybe Donghyun was just more of an overthinking bitch.

..... It might be his overthinking again, but what if Sungho just came here to tease him and whatnot. Maybe he noticed that Donghyun was green with resent whenever Sungho was hanging out with [...].

But it's probably nothing. Sungho can't be that smart to notice how he felt.

Donghyun scrunched his face up in annoyance. Okay, he actually hates being an overthinking bitch.

He took the bowl of ramen to the dining table, and began nomming on his food as he tried not to think about it.

He fished his phone from the pocket of his pajamas to scroll on social media as he ate. He realised that he had received a couple messages from [y/n]. He opened the messages and read them.

'Hyunhyun, do you wanna hangout with me and Sungho? It's okay if you can't..'

...? 'It's ok if you can't?' Not 'want'? So they're willing to see me? They want me so bad.

Donghyun was clearly being delusional, but all he needs to do to keep his hopes high right?

He thought about it, before he wrote back a reply to them.

'Ok. When?'

'ill pick you up in 30 minutes!'

Donghyun gave their message a thumbs up. Donghyun practically got up almost immediately, abandoning his meal to go and get ready quickly, since he's aware that [...] was going to pick him up in half an hour- he didn't wanna be late.

———

Sungho was sitting in the passenger seat of [...]'s car whilst on the way to Donghyun's house, almost an hour later. He fiddled with his fingers awkwardly as they kept on talking to him about certain things. He just chuckled, and nodded if he needed to, to anything that [...] said.

[...] eventually looked over to Sungho once they reached a red light, cutting himself off when he realised how uncomfortable Sungho seemed to be.

Their expression softened, looking back ahead when the light turned green. "Hm ... what's up with you ?"

Sungho sighed, shaking his head. "It's nothing, it's ... kind of dumb."

"Oh .. just tell me, I won't judge."

Sungho tried go avoid looking at [...], instead looking at the view outside of the window.

"... I don't think Donghyun likes me that much .."

[...]'s expression was understanding, but they felt a bit curious.

"Oh ? How come ? I thought you told me that you saw him this morning."

"Yes, I did .. but he didn't seem to be liking me that much, you know ?"

[...] hummed in response as they listened to him. "Well, he takes a bit of time to get used to someone new. It's not you, it's just Donghyun ...."

Sungho nodded to what they said, but he still thought about how Donghyun had acted towards him in his first few days of school the week before. He seemed cold. Like he didn't like seeing Sungho.

He didn't know why he felt like he needed Donghyun's approval so badly- maybe because he's [...]'s friend ? Yes, that's right .... He wanted to be good with everyone [...] knows.

"I guess so ..."

They reached Donghyun's home eventually. [...] dropped him a message to let him know that they're here, and then comes Donghyun towards the car.

"Hello hyunhyun." [...] smiled at the rear view mirror, looking at Donghyun as he entered and settled in the backseat.

"Hey, [...]." Donghyun replied ... he looked to Sungho, and just said a simple 'hi'.

Sungho nodded at him to let him know he's acknowledging him, but Sungho still felt the sense of uneasiness in himself.

[...] began driving again, driving towards the mall. Donghyun was playing on his phone, while Sungho continued to stare out the window to avoid both of their gazes.

The trip seemed to be what Donghyun expected. [...] going to a shit ton of stores in the mall and buying almost anything relatively cute that they saw in the stores. And of course them making Donghyun carry out all of the bags from their shopping.

What Donghyun noticed though was that [...] was giving Sungho more of their attention, dragging them around the stores they wanted to go to while Leehan only followed them from behind.

....The feeling of resent he envy returned within him.

When they were on the way to a toy store, he involuntarily let out a huff of annoyance- loud enough for both [...] and Sungho to hear.

They turned around to look at Donghyun and began walking backwards, looking at him with a brow raised.

"Hah ? You okay ?"

They asked. Donghyun sighed, nodding to them. With a forced fakeass smile.

"I'm good. I accidentally hit my foot against a bench." He said, and that clearly didn't happen.

But it was believable enough for [...]. They nodded, smiling in satisfaction and turning back forward to continue their journey to the store.

But Sungho .. he had a tiny feeling that his annoyance was from him ? Sungho was just good at detecting how people felt, and thus that's exactly why he kept on thinking that Donghyun disliked him. He just didn't know why Donghyun did so.

They were there shortly after. [...] was rummaging and looking at the items in the toy store, looking for a set of furniture for their Calico Critters dollhouse ...

Sungho and Donghyun were waiting for [...] outside though, the akward silence between them was deafening for Sungho. He wanted to say something to Donghyun, but he already knew he didn't like him as it is.

He tried to muster up the courage to speak to the other, but not until he spoke first,

"So ... you met [...] through your job, right ?" Donghyun asked. Sungho was a bit puzzled as to why he was trying to conversate with him about how they met eachother, but he only nodded in response.

Donghyun's hand was clenched to a fist, as he tried to fight off the feeling within him. It felt so fucking stupid to resent the guy beside him just because of his God damn friend- he doesn't know why he's so protective of [...].

"... Do you like them ? [...]-ah, I mean."

Donghyun froze when Sungho asked him that question. It was an oddly specific question ... And Donghyun wasn't sure of the answer himself.

"... I guess I do. Why do you ask ?"

Sungho immediately stiffened up at the response to his question. He expected an explanation like, "I don't really feel comfortable with [...] hanging out with you because he's my best friend" or something. But he was probably thinking wrong. Maybe Donghyun liked them as a friend.

"So.. like, you like them as a friend ?"

".... No."

Sungho felt like he wanted the ground to swallow him whole. No way. That Kim Donghyun, a.k.a [...]'s best friend, liked him like that ?

.... He did too. This was bad.

"I never told that to anyone ... I just feel a bit confused on what I feel exactly. But I do know that I like them."

Sungho gulped. He shifted his weight from his leg to the other, feeling another sense of uneasiness.

But it wasn't because of what he thought Donghyun's dislike towards him ... He felt uneasy knowing that someone else liked the [...].

"... You like them too, don't you ?" He heard Donghyun ask so suddenly. He felt his heart pumping in adrenaline, but feeling obligated to answer it ... Truthfully.

"Ever since I first saw him when I was delivering once, like almost a year ago .."

Donghyun scoffed. He knew it.

Ever since Sungho transferred to the school he felt suspicious from the way he acted around [y/n]. And it didn't help at all after they told Donghyun about the friendship they had before he came to the school- it felt sickening.

Despite the fact he had said he was "unsure" of his feelings for [...], this was most definitely not fucking okay. He felt childish for mentally losing his temper and the way he had his arms crossed with scrunched brows.

Donghyun put the bags down by Sungho's legs. He turned and began walking away.

Sungho only stared at him, unsure of what to do.

"... Where are y-"

"Tell [...] that something came up. I want to leave."

———

AUGUST 30, Monday

Well, Donghyun had helped set up an for a programme for this Monday about the week before, remember ? The programme was basically just an early graduation event, it was about 3 months before they'd graduate senior year. Sanghyeok and Donghyun was helping out around the programme, but most of it was just Donghyun slacking off while he was stuck with his own thoughts.

Sanghyeok came to Donghyun's side once he finished with the duties he was assigned, looking over at the boy deep in thought with arms crossed.

"Wow, you really helped a lot. Thank you."

Donghyun looked up at him with a glare, sighing as he rested his head in his hand.

"Sorry. Truly."

Seeing the way he was acting, Sanghyeok began to feel concern for him. He took the seat next to him, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"What's up ? You can tell me."

"Well, it's just that .." Donghyun started, playing with the button of his uniform's sleeve.

"I like [...] ...."

"I know that—"

"But Sungho likes him too."

Sanghyeok murmured and inaudible 'oh!' once he heard what Donghyun said. They sat in a mildly akward silence as Sanghyeok thought of what he was supposed to say— I mean, what was he supposed to say to someone who was stressed over a crush ???

"... Uhm ! That's tough. But [...] is a charming one,, I'm not surprised ?"

Donghyun sent a glare to Sanghyeok's way, brows furrowed. "You're not helping."

Sanghyeok only smiled an akward one.

"Oh shit— I think a teacher's calling for me."

"?? There's no teachers here.."

But Sanghyeok had already left Donghyun alone, again.

Donghyun huffed as he leaned his back against the seat, slumping down the said seat.

"Hello.. ? Hyunhyun–ssi."

He heard someone call him while he was in a daze.

Looking up, he met with the eyes of [...].

"Oh. Hi [...]. What's up ...?" Donghyun asked them, as if he himself wasn't in emotional distress at the corner of the hall.

"Well, first of all. Sanghyeok told me to check on you because you seemed under the weather." They said, taking the seat that Sanghyeok was sitting at earlier. So Sanghyeok told them ... Oh he was so done.

"I'm fine. I've just been having .... issues."

"Issues ? Of what sort ?"

"I.. it's nothing, [...]-ie." Donghyun told them— but [...] couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle when he tried to explain. Donghyun looked at them, weirded out.

"Uhm, what's funny ?"

"'[...]-ie', you call me that whenever you're feeling vulnerable. Just tell me."

Donghyun tried his best to not flip out and [...]'s comment. Well ... They've been friends for a while, did Donghyun expect them to not know him at all or what ?

Donghyun sighed, burying his face in his hands. "... Fine. Don't tell a single soul, got it ? Well, maybe Sanghyeok is fine because that mofherfucker already knows."

[...] nodded with another chuckle, waiting him to continue on ... whatever he was gonna say and had been bothering him.

"... I don't like Sungho."

[...] almost choked on their own spit. Okay ... So Sungho wasn't wrong ! Donghyun really didn't like him. But the reason as to why Donghyun didn't like the latter was what [...]'s confused about.

"So ... Why don't you ? Sungho's a nice guy, trust me."

"I don't trust him! He's going to steal you away ...."

Evidently, [...] was clearly holding back snickers when they listened to Donghyun yap about disliking Sungho. 'Steal him away my ass'..

"Donghyun,, don't be ridiculous! Sungho will never replace my best friend, you know ? Besides, I can have more then one best friend can't I ?"

'Best friend.. oh, they don't know what I mean.'

"Uh, right. You're right, my bad." Donghyun replied back, hoping that [...] wouldn't notice the awkwardness that was washing over him.

"So ... are you gonna promise me that you'll be friends with Sungho ?"

"What—??" Donghyun asked them confused. Well, he knew he was gonna to be friends with him one way or another (did he?), but he didn't expect [...] to ask him to.

"Please ? I want all of us to be friends, not one sided hatred."

Is that what [...] saw it as ? I mean, sure, Donghyun was being a bitch for no absolute reason he knew that. But thinking about it now, he felt pretty guilty for being that way towards Sungho. He was generally a cold person, but he was extra, extra with Sungho.

"I don't hate him, I swear. I may dislike him but not to that extent."

[...] looked at him skeptical, before letting out a sarcastic 'ahhh'.

"Yes yes, I believe you .. then why are you not getting along with him, huh ?"

"What ? I— I am." Donghyun said defensively.

"Okay, then. Do you want to come over to my place to hang out with me and Sungho ?"

Donghyun sighed in reluctance, nodding in acceptance. "Sure, 'kay ..."

———

SEPTEMBER 1, Wednesday

As [...] said, now both Sungho and Donghyun were over at their place after school. And surely, the tension between them was heavy.

[...] was yapping about random shit, as per usual. Donghyun and Sungho both stayed silent as they kind of listened to them.

Sungho didn't take his eyes off the food that [...] had made while eating it, and Donghyun was sending looks his way as he himself ate.

Okay— he was being a bitch again. He told [...] he wouldn't ... he only realised so when they nudged his foot, giving him a look of their own for him to loosen up.

Donghyun let out a huff, looking back to the nervous boy.

"So ... [...] told me that you were into playing video games."

Sungho's face showed a look of surprise, probably because one— Donghyun was talking to him, two— [...] talked about him to their friends ? That's flattering.

"Yeah .. I do." Replied Sungho, almost feeling cringe at the shyness and awkwardness of his tone.

"Well, I bought my Nintendo and some games from home. I can connect it to the TV, and we can play."

Sungho's eyes lit up from the sudden and surprising invitation.

"Me ?"

"No, I'm talking to the fly above your head." Donghyun rolled his eyes. Sungho mentally palmed his forehead. He nodded in response to his question.

"If you don't mind .."

"I wouldn't be asking if I did!"

Thus, all three of them were in the comfort of [...]'s living room, [...] sitting comfortably on the sofa with a blanket over them while Donghyun and Sungho were sitting on the floor with pilliws and the blanket of their own.

They were just playing Animal Crossing, starting an island together and such.

Donghyun took Sungho for the super shy type, but while playing with him Sungho bickered with him a lot. Donghyun was surprised on how immature this dude could be aswell, getting excited when he captures an insect in the game and decorating their house.

Even during then, they chatted while playing the game, and they had multiple things in common, apparently.

"Sungho, why did fuck did you sell my statue ??"

"I needed bells. The statue was ugly as fuck anyways."

"Excuse me !?"

[...] was trying so hard not to laugh, but he bursted into little chuckles.

He got onto the floor next Donghyun, poking his side. "I told you you'd get along." They whispered.

Donghyun shoved their hand away, grunting in annoyance.

"Yes, you were right .... sorry." He whispered back.

———

SEPTEMBER 6, Monday

"[...]-ssi !!"

[...] heard someone call for them while they were walking through the hallway.

They turned back, to be greeted with a Sanghyeok running towards them.

"Uh— hi ?"

Sanghyeok and then weren't exactly close, not like he was with Donghyun anyway. They were more like acquaintances in a way.

Sanghyeok grinned at them, as if he was gonna like, about to do something devious— or something.

"I have a secret to tell you," he said, "but you can't tell anyone. Not even Donghyun or Sungho."

[...] raised a brow at him, skeptical. But they gave him the green light anyway, since he was curious.

"Okay. Go on."

Sanghyeok dragged him to the emptier part of the hall, which was by the stairs which anyone barely used.

"Okay, sooo ..." Sanghyeok leaned in slightly to whisper to their ear, his expression turning serious.

"Donghyun told me that ... Sungho likes you."

[...] narrowed his eyes. They thought he was like playing or shit, but Sanghyeok's face remained serious.

But there was more. "Donghyun likes you too. That's why he was so bitchy with Sungho at first."

...

[...] had to stop themself from having their jaw drop.

Donghyun and Sungho, their best friends .... they both liked him !?

It was flattering and all for sure, but— oh, how do they say this ...

"Hm, that's ... interesting, Sanghyeok. Uhm ... thank you ?"

[...] obviously didn't know how to react to that information, it was just so out of the blue ....

Besides, they've never seen signs from any of then. Unless, he was just too oblivious to it. They tried to recall it, but they really didn't remember shit.

Donghyun and Sungho were walking together in the halls, on the way to their lockers which were near eachother.

That was, until Donghyun took notice of Sanghyeok dragging to the staircase at the end of the hall.

Donghyun stopped Sungho's talking by tugging on his arm, pointing to the direction of [...] and Sanghyeok at the end of the hall.

Sungho squinted his eyes. He readjusted the glasses he was wearing and stared ahead.

"I ... who is [...]-ah with ?" Sungho asked out of curiosity.

"That's my friend from the counselling team, Lee Sanghyeok."

Sungho hummed in acknowledgement, looking at the both of them in the distance still.

"What are they doing."

Donghyun shrugged his shoulder. "I don't know ...

Ah, [...]'s coming— act natural."

And so they did, opening their lockers and fetching their books and stuff as if they didn't witness anything.

[...] came to them, though— they walked a bit slowly, feeling a tad bit lost and confused. Thoughts running through their mind.

When [...] saw Donghyun and Sungho, they smiled, but it seemed a bit weary. Just a bit off.

Donghyun froze in his shoes. He had a feeling what this was all about ... oh, he was 100% gonna commit battery on Sanghyeok.

Though, Sungho didn't see the look of stress that took over Donghyun's face. He tilted his head, asking,

"What did.. Sanghyuk tell you ?"

"Sanghyeok."

"Yeah, whatever, what did he tell you, [...] ?"

[...] dropped his shoulders, letting out a sigh. They folded their arms together, and went straight to the freaking point.

"Sanghyeok told me that the both of you like me."

Andddd, that's what Donghyun was expecting to hear, he turned away, banging his head against the locker in distress. It's just a him thing.

Sungho's mouth agape upon hearing what they said. A faint pink adorned Sungho's cheek, rubbing the back of his head.

"Well .... this is akward ?" Sungho grinned, nervous as hell.

Donghyun glanced back to [...] during his emotional distress, a huff escaping him. From the annoyance of being exposed, but also feeling ... well shit I don't know.

"[...], we can explain ..."

[...] knitted their brows together, but they softened up upon noticing the looks that washed both of Donghyun and Sungho's expression.

They dropped their arms to the side. "I would like an explanation, please."

They were seated at the very corner table of the cafeteria— or as they liked to call it as of recently, "the meeting corner". [...] thought it was incredibly immature but who are they to talk.

[...] looked over at Donghyun, waiting for him to begin.

"So ... basically, it's a bit complicated." He started, "[...] ... when we were hanging out at the mall, I ditched ya'll because I was ... jealous. Sungho was getting more attention when he arrived, so I just stormed off. It was childish, I know. I'm a kitten when it comes to [...]'s attention."

"Kitten ..?" Sungho raised a brow.

[...] couldn't help but snicker despite the attempt of seriousness of the conversation. They cleared their throat, wanting for him to continue.

"That was also when I figured that Sungho liked you too. Now that we're in this discussion ... it's a bit dramatic for me to act this way."

Donghyun admitted, his cheeks flushing as he looked away.

[...] sighed, resting his cheeks on his hand as he leaned towards them from the opposite side of the table.

"Yeah ... I've been thinking about it ever since Sanghyeok told me so, even though it was 7 minutes ago ... it's a bit tough for me to say."

[...] paused for a second, clicking his tongue as for the dramatic sequence of the conversation.

"It's flattering ... but I don't like you two like that."

Sungho felt like slumping away, being eaten by the ground whole out of embarrassment. He only felt so because it was a bit pathetic to think that [...] would like him ... of course not. They were much much cooler than him.

But he couldn't help but feel the surge of disappointment in his chest, but he had to accept it.

It was just a random crush that he suddenly developed after all, it wasn't like he expected for anything to happen further than that (?).

Donghyun, he felt pretty more than disappointed.

He was pull on frowning and pouting, crossing his arms as he turned his head away from [...].

"I didn't need your approval anyway, dickhead."

[...] and Sungho both giggled at the ridiculousness of Donghyun. He was acting so damn immature for someone who just got rejected. Well, at least he was fine, they hoped (?)!

Sungho lost the feeling of tension. Even if he got rejected ... atleast he was on good terms. He would've been devastated if [y/n] had left them right then and there.

"You don't hate us, [...]-ah ...?"

They chuckled, shaking his head.

"No, it's really okay. You can't control you feelings sometimes, and it's fine ... I just don't, reciprocate it I'm sorry."

"No, don't be sorry either ... you just said we couldn't control our feelings, you can't either so it's not your fault you don't feel for any of us." Donghyun stated matter of factly, finally finished with his childlike tantrum and leaned his arms on the table.

"By the way, enough chatting. We have to study for finals ...."

"Oh, but I'm clueless on what to study." Sungho frowned.

"It's alright. We'll help you out. Let's get to the library yeah." Donghyun got up from the table, and the two others followed suit.

"[...]-ah, I know this is weird..." Sungho murmured as they all entered the library and sat at a table.

"But .. can we all be friends, still?"

[...] looked at him with narrowed eyes, confusion apparent.

"I never said I wanted to end this, Sungho."

"Phew." Sungho let out a breath he didn't know that he was holding. Donghyun only rolled his eyes at his worry, arms folded.

Sungho looked at the both of them with his small, and subtle smile.

"Then, can we all be friends for a long time?"

[...] had to hold back a giggle, thinking about how adorable that suggestion was.

"Let's be together for... the next four-hundred and nighty-nine years, deal?" Donghyun piped in. Sungho nodded in agreement, a chuckle escaping him.

"So much happened in a month's span." Sungho said. "Two weeks." Donghyun corrected him.

[...] could only smile in satisfaction as they watched Sungho and Donghyun converse with one-another. It was nice knowing that they were finally getting along ...

— But, [...] didn't hear exactly what they were talking about.

"Don't think I'm still nod holding a grudge against you for liking [...]," Donghyun said to Sungho, a hushed tone as to not let [...] hear.

Sungho scrunched his brows. "Don't care ah... Anyone would pick me over your attitude anyday, Donghyun."

[captainpineappl3]

LEGO Red Dead Redemption is a game we need:

You might see a similar post from @phantom-of-the-501st because we were talking about this together!

Also spoilers for the RDR games.

Base Game Concept: We've all played a LEGO game and we know that they frequently make games for other franchises such as Star Wars. LEGO RDR follows the entire storyline from prequel of the second game all the way to the end of the first game. If the game is too big with all that then we remove the first game because RDR2 adapts much better (sorry).

The World: LEGO games have used a large scale open world before so we can assume the exact same for RDR. The LEGO Hobbit game I'm pretty sure used a massive scale map which admittedly you mostly fast travel around but you could walk around a lot too. Another good example is LEGO City Undercover, a very detailed world to explore.

(side note I only just realised the "i" in "CiTY" is the only letter that isn't capitalised)

Obviously including all of the side missions from Red Dead Redemption and Red Dead Redemption 2 would likely be too much for the game include so as an alternative, we reduce them down to character unlocks and small Easter eggs/tasks. Another good example of this is how it's done in LEGO Jurassic World where you can occasionally find sick dinosaurs and you have to search around the area to find what they need.

Now imagine this but with a random character from RDR/RDR2 like Albert Mason. You meet him, the coyote steals his bag and runs away, leaves it in a place that's difficult to reach. Now it's your job to work out how to get it back, perhaps using a lasso or hitting some targets or the good old LEGO building a small object to reach it.

Completing these small side missions can unlock the character for you or give you a red brick/collectibles perhaps (more on those later). Missions that can't be adapted very well can simply be turned into character purchases. Imagine wandering the bayou and finding that cabin with the poem about Jimmy Brooks, then you turn around and the good old Strange Man is stood in the corner ready for you to purchase him.

Unlockable characters also gives you easy opportunities for an Easter egg like Red Harlow.

The Story: The story is possible to adapt to a LEGO game form although obviously it has some significant difficulties we'll cover later. As stated above, RDR2 is our priority to include so the game of course starts with Colter, the whole gang is there in their beautiful LEGO form. Just like the original game, Colter is entirely used to teach the player the basic mechanics of the game. Here's an example of a few starting missions.

Outlaws From The West teaches you basic combat and you finish by unlocking Sadie as a character.

Enter, Pursued By A Memory teaches you how to do parkour and unlocks John (that or John isn't unlocked until the epilogue).

Eastward Bound where Arthur broke the goddamn wheel? Sounds like a great time to do some building, hitting targets and doing some parkour to go get the wheel and the rest of the stuff that fell off the wagon!

You get the point, the story is adapted into LEGO form making use of all the same stuff you've seen in LEGO games before. Some missions could probably be removed or several missions can be combined into a singular level. There's one massive problem you may have realised about this though...

LEGO is a very kid friendly company and well, Red Dead Redemption certainly is not...

How can we fix that?

Adapting Red Dead Redemption To Be Kid Friendly: Well obviously we have the simple steps of just... not including the murder dungeons? Head explosions via sudden increases in kinetic energy applied through double barrel shotguns wouldn't be a concern anyway since LEGO people literally explode into their individual pieces upon death anyway.

But then we have the big concern about the choice language in RDR.

Fixing Red Dead Redemption's Language To Fit LEGO: We all know where this is going right? An aspect of LEGO games that we all know and loved yet sadly hasn't been seen in ages. The non-verbal noises. We can probably steal a few sounds from the original games. Arthur has plenty of "argh"s when he gets shot that would fit perfectly with LEGO's style. But I think we also should still bring in the voice actors to make some noises for it.

In the event that we do keep a few voice lines, I personally recommend "LENNYYYY!".

But what about how this impacts the story? How will Dutch explain all his amazing plans? How will the Pinkertons threaten the gang? So much of the game relies on verbal communication to progress the story!

How To Replace The Talking: Our first issue is Dutch explaining all his plans. If he can't speak up then how could he get his points across about making a lot of money and leaving to Tahiti?

Simple! If you're not at camp, Dutch does an overly animated pause as he thinks before suddenly and excitedly reaching into his pocket and pulling out a hastily drawn diagram on a piece of paper illustrating exactly what to do.

If you're at camp then there's plenty of options available, my personal favourite being he wheels in a whiteboard and draws on it with his coloured pens whilst the gang all sits there on the floor with their legs crossed looking up at their great glorious leader.

It's the exact same for whenever the Pinkertons come to demand Dutch from the gang. They walk up and pull out a wanted poster of Dutch and angrily growl at the gang.

Also just to make sure Micah is still unlikeable despite not being able to insult anyone, we may just have to make him a bit of a bully. Stealing food, kicking and shoving people out his way, forcing others to do work for him etc.

Speaking of Dutch and his ability to manifest a whiteboard out of nowhere, it's about time we finally discuss characters.

Character And Their Abilities: LEGO games are known for their characters having different abilities and I think it's best we make the entire gang as playable characters of course. Maybe not all available at the start but they certainly are needed eventually. Here's the main ideas for the gang so far and their abilities. A lot of them are still yet to be worked out.

Dutch - Investigative (able to find details others can't that then reveal objects or their locations) Hosea - Disguises Arthur - ? John - ? Javier - ? Bill - Strong (able to break objects other's can't) Micah - Dynamite (can place it and thrown as a projectile) Charles - Tracker (able to see footsteps and follow trails) Sean - Pyromaniac (throws fire bottles like which cause splash damage on impact unlike dynamite which has a fuse) Lenny - Double jump/more agile? Sadie - ? Karen - Disguises/Distractions (able to lure NPCs away from places) Tilly - Double jump/more agile? Mary-Beth - Pickpocket? Uncle - ? but he has to throw out his back after any strenuous activity. Abigail - ? Susan - ? Pearson - ? Strauss - ? Trelawny - Disguises Swanson - ? Kieran - ? Molly - ? Jack (young) - Small and can go through crawlspaces.

Most if not all of them will also have some sort of ranged weapon depending on what they mostly use in game. Arthur likely with a revolver, Charles with a bow, Susan with a shotgun etc.

Some characters may also act slightly differently, a good example being brutes like Tommy in the Valentine saloon who is harder to fight and requires you to fight differently, like the stronger opponents seen in LEGO City Undercover.

Another important thing is collectibles.

Collectibles: Red bricks are obvious. They're in every LEGO game and there's always the obvious ones like stud multipliers. But we can also include ridiculous ones like: All horses become cars, Lawmen and Pinkertons have little police lights on their head, All guns become water pistols, Dynamite explodes in confetti, All guns fire explosives.

We could also consider other collectibles like special hats or weapons.

The final point I have to cover here is character deaths.

Character Deaths (obvious spoilers): The story has to reach some character deaths eventually... it's inevitable. But LEGO likely isn't going to be very comfortable with good ol' Sean Maguire getting the worst surprise party ever.

How do we fix this?

SLAPSTICK COMEDY!

We can't keep them around because the story doesn't make sense so we have to remove them in LEGO friendly ways. Here are my suggestions!

Jake Adler - Technically already dead but to avoid showing a corpse in the wagon we just go with a classic skeleton.

Sean - As you walk through the streets sudden swinging log booby trap flies down and absolutely punts Sean into orbit, never to be seen again before a the gunfight rolls out.

Kieran - Instead of being killed and rode into camp, a cutscene is shown where Kieran is on guard around the camp, caught by O'Driscolls and quickly tied up and thrown into a dingy which floats away before the O'Driscolls send a fake scarecrow copy of Kieran into camp which confuses the whole gang before the ambush attack.

Hosea - Instead of the scene that broke everyone's heart, Hosea boots Milton right in his little brick balls and jumps down a drain into the sewers.

Lenny - Whilst running across the rooftops Lenny is caught in a snare trap which quickly loops around his foot and lifts him away with party balloons.

Molly - Miss Grimshaw during the middle of Molly's rant pops Molly's head of just like a LEGO minifigure would be and boots it off into the woods causing Molly's headless body to go chasing after it. That or another idea which I think I prefer is Dutch and Molly have a dramatic argument in the middle of camp, once again someone gets kicked in the balls before Molly storms off, never to return.

Leviticus Cornwall - Whacked around the head with a frying pan by Dutch or Micah causing him to fall overboard from his boat and he is chased away by a shark.

Cold O'Driscoll - It may be best to change the story a bit here and instead of making sure Colm is hanged, you make to make sure he gets arrested by either leading them to the cops or leading the cops to them.

Eagle Flies - Instead of being shot he is whacked round the head with a frying pan and knocked out, almost arrested before Arthur saves him and you return him to the Wapiti tribe albeit a little dazed.

Agent Milton - Arthur, Abigail and Sadie beat him up, tie him up then shove him inside a barrel and stick it on a passing ship.

Miss Grimshaw - Tricked by Micah somehow (maybe by him pointing behind her making her turn away from him) before somehow she is dragged away perhaps by Micah typing her to a horse or something.

Arthur Morgan - Rather than Arthur dying, he helps John to escape (more on this later).

Micah - I'd love to kill this man but LEGO probably wouldn't allow that. I'm not sure how you work around that. Maybe you freeze him in a bit of ice and turn him in to the lawmen but honestly I don't know.

I don't know Red Dead Redemption 1 as a game well enough to discuss the character deaths in it as I have never played it through (sorry but I cannot ride a horse in that game) however with the death of John and Uncle, instead of being killed by the Pinkertons, in exchange for john's help capturing the gang, John, Uncle, Jack and Abigail are all rewarded with an all expenses paid trip to Tahiti. The final thing to note in all of this is what we see in the credits of the game and the thing I said I'd elaborate on with Arthur.

The Credits: Just like the original Red Dead Redemption games, the credits feature cutscenes showing the aftermath and current events happening once the gang falls apart. The cutscenes go like this:

Remember how Sean got launched into oblivion back in Rhodes? Well the first shot we see is of a nice sandy beach and who comes falling out the sky? The good ol' Irish legend himself! He's made it to wonderful Tahiti.

A little after Sean has set up his nice camp on the shores of Tahiti, who comes rocking up in a little boat still tied up by the O'Driscolls? That's right, it's Kieran.

Y'know it really is strange but did you know that the sewers of Saint Denis seem to connect up with the plumbing networks of Tahiti? It's honestly quite nice because it means Hosea was actually able to wander through them and eventually find himself with the others on the nice sandy shores.

Lenny! Whilst he's flying over the ocean looking pretty bored and annoyed that he got to miss out on all the fun back at that bank robbery, he suddenly notices Hosea, Sean, and Kieran all looking up at him from the beach and manages to untie himself from the rope of the balloons, dropping himself down to them where they all hug and reunite.

Turns out after Molly's breakup with Dutch she really just needed to get away from it all and clear her head. Good thing that she was able to afford a one way ticket to Tahiti!

Miss Grimshaw ends up their somehow I don't know.

Arthur. My sweet old boy. After helping John escape the gang and the Pinkertons he finds himself at a port, waiting for a boat. His brother John says one final goodbye to him and waves from the pier as Arthur pulls out a ticket from his back pocket and puts on his sunglasses and Hawaiian flower shirt and boards the ferry of too the wonderful Tahiti where he spends his days lounging around in a deckchair next to his horse (also in a deckchair), sipping his drink from a coconut through a straw with a little parasol in it as Hosea and Lenny come to sit by his side. Obviously because he's warm and relaxed his Tuberculosis heals too and he's cured. Amazing!

This concludes my 2395 word explanation of why we need a LEGO Red Dead Redemption game and the amazing ways it could be adapted. Come on, Rockstar, you're already a games development studio just get that partnership and work with Traveller's Tales and their experience to make this a thing!

[selfpositiveundertale]

Long post.

TW: car accident

Hey everyone. I'm not doing great.

I've already been having a hard time with migraines getting absolutely out of hand and interfering with literally everything in my life, but yesterday I had my first car accident. The meme I just posted is relevant. It was my fault but thankfully only me in the vehicle. Other than bruised knees(I'm short so I had the seat pulled up close so I could reach the pedals) and some mild rug burns where the air bag got me on my left hand and my neck (I had instinctively raised my arms to protect my face), I don't think I was injured in any way my chiropractor couldn't fix. Definitely jarred my entire skeleton and dislocated some ribs and messed up my neck but what else is new. I didn't hit my head and nothing hurts in any way I'm not already deeply familiar with. Surprisingly I haven't gotten a migraine yet but I'm fully expecting one soon.

Really good thing I wasn't wearing my sunglasses. I lost the pendent off my necklace though. It must have broken off when the air bag blew and then fallen into the road when I got out of the vehicle.

My vehicle is totaled. Not a great loss since the thing was on its last legs anyway but it sucks not having my own transportation now, even if I could only drive in town and couldn't leave town because it wouldn't make it far on the interstate. It would start shaking like a leaf any time I went over 50 mph and I didn't like that. I'm really sore and tired and shaken up but I'm getting through it.

My husband came immediately when I called him and he talked to the car insurance company and called his boss to take the rest of the day off work so he could be with me.

The people in the other car were mostly okay other than the man having a cut on his forehead and his wife having a scraped knee but both of their babies were completely unharmed, thank goodness. Nobody was mad at me, possibly because I was hysterical panicking inconsolable and kept apologizing and asking if they were okay. They were also on their way to the car dealership to see about getting a new vehicle anyway, so I think they'll be fine.

I made an appointment with my chiropractor this morning and he checked everything and basically said I was in pretty bad shape but not really any worse than usual, which was a great relief but not surprising. He fixed the ribs, my shoulder blades, neck, and hands and gave me some samples of a supplement he said might help the soreness. I'm also taking my painkillers, OTC pain medicine, and applying arnica cream to the bruises.

I've been so tired and sore and haven't been up to doing much of anything except eating my feelings but I'm making sure my pets get fed and helping my husband get ready for work in the morning. I don't think I'll be able to meal prep anything for him like I normally do and he says it's okay, he's not expecting anything of me if I don't feel up to it and he doesn't mind buying his breakfast and lunch.

I fear the financial repercussions of this, especially since things have already been very tight due to several sudden veterinary expenses. The cat gods looked at us and went "kittens upon you and your household" so in the last 4 weeks there have been 2 vet visits for a tiny baby runt of a kitten my husband found alone and abandoned at his workplace, one for a very pregnant stray kitty that followed a family member home and popped out 7 babies, and one for my dog when she caught a UTI. We think she's over it by now but I'm taking her back to the vet Friday for a recheck. It's been hard with her because she's been refusing to eat her dry food and we've been having to buy wet food as well as chicken breast and white rice and alternating between the wet food and a bland diet when the antibiotics made her tummy upset. I'm really hoping that by Friday I'll be brave enough to drive. The vet isn't far and my mom is going to let me take her old car for whatever I need until we manage to get me another used vehicle.

I know the car insurance is going to go up because of the crash even though now there's one less vehicle on it, and I'm praying to the heavens that I don't have to actually go to a doctor and get checked out because of the crash.

I need to see a doctor anyway about the migraines that are now coming several times a week and affecting me in unsettling ways like impairing my speech, making me nauseous when I use my eyeballs for their intended purpose, and even made me collapse once. But the clinic I usually go to because the price is income based is in the next town and I'd definitely have to have my husband take time off work to take me. I also fear they'll refer me to a neurologist. I'm certain I need to see one but since I don't have health insurance and the process for getting financial assistance at any given specialist office is (probably deliberately) incredibly difficult and tedious and almost not even worth the effort, it just doesn't seem feasible at this time.

I am trying to make things to stock my Etsy shop so I can make some money but at the moment I just don't have the energy for it. But maybe I should try anyway. The simple repetitive action of crocheting while listening to a book or Old Gods Of Appalachia might help me settle down and feel more normal. My hands ache but my compression gloves might help.

Things are just extremely scary and very painful right now. Staying determined is hard but I'm trying. I'm trying so hard.

❤️🧡💛💚🩵💙💜

[deadnatura11]

Remembering that post that said Tommy was interested in Eddie first and it got me thinking -

What if Eddie tries talking to Tommy about being attracted to men because a) he's his friend and b) he's someone outside the 118. So it's easier.

However, because he's tiptoeing around the point, Tommy misunderstands his interest in men to he interest in him, specifically.

Instead of telling Eddie he's flattered, he leans forward and catches Eddie off guard with a kiss.

A kiss Eddie immediately breaks because - because that's Buck's boyfriend why would Buck's boyfriend be kissing him.

"It's okay," Tommy says. "We're keeping things casual."

Eddie accepts it but he doesn't believe it. Worse, he feels awful being around Buck, hearing Buck talk about Tommy, knowing that he's been kissed by the other man. So he distances himself from Buck.

And it works. Until Buck corners him.

Buck digs, and he digs, and he digs, until finally he hits jackpot and Eddie admits what happened with all the speed power and intensity of a gushing oil well.

"I don't even know why I was being so weird about it," he says. "You two are seeing each other casually."

"We aren't."

Oof.

Buck leaves to confront Tommy, and Eddie can't help but feel that he ruins every good thing he comes across causing him to wallow and spiral further - compounded by the fact Buck now begins avoiding him!

He is at his lowest.

That's when he comes across Tommy at a bar and Tommy flirts with him again, confessing how he was interested in Eddie until he got the feeling Eddie wasn't interested. He says that they make more sense anyway. Eddie is disgusted. "How can you be talking about Buck so caustically?" "He's a cute kid, a good kisser. But we never seemed to click."

That pisses Eddie off so much that he slips into a tirade about how great Buck is, which leaves Tommy wide eyed, saying, sarcastically, "Sounds like if anyone should be with Buck, it's you."

Which... makes sense. To Eddie. He has an epiphany. All this time spent searching for someone, some woman, to fill the 'hole' in his life, and he already has it. With Buck.

He leaves and drives straight over to Buck's.

Luckily Buck answers the door, grateful to see Eddie, because he wanted to speak with him, too.

Eddie’s grateful - how perfect they both come to this realization, they both understand how important the other is in their lives and never wants to lose it. Like an ending ripped straight from his favorite telenovela.

And Buck starts by saying how stupid it was to be mad at Eddie for something he didn't do, that it was Tommy's fault and he's the one he should be mad at. That Eddie is a great friend and he'd never want to ruin their friendship over something stupid like a guy.

Eddie laughs, a little manically. "There'll be other guys. Better guys. Better than Tommy."

"Maybe," Buck shrugs. "But if there is a person out there for me I... I think I'm gonna have to make them wait."

"What?"

Buck is taking a break from dating to figure out who he is outside of a relationship. Realizes that he jumped into dating Tommy all too quickly after Natalia dumped him, and is going to focus on himself for a while. "We can still hang out though." Buck promises. "And the less dates I'm on means the more time we get to hang out together."

It's hell. It's torture. But it's Buck, so Eddie forces himself to look happy with Buck's decision and support him.

There'll be time, he thinks, hugging Buck. And when Buck is ready, maybe Eddie will feel like the kind of man who deserves a chance of love with Buck (he already is, of course, he just needs to realize it).

[bunitivity]

I really REALLY need to tell you my hc that Luffy and Usopp sleep in the same bed 98.37% of the time. They are EXTREMELY hard to seperate.

When Usopp first joins the strawhats along with Merry, the boys have to make do with what they have. And that includes taking turns sleeping in the hammocks. Now I'm going to reference that pic where Luffy is hanging down on Usopp's body from his hammock. Also the one where Zoro and Sanji sleep on the floor face to face. That one. One time Luffy actually falls into Usopp's hammock but neither of them realize it and in the morning the sniper might have hit his head when falling on the floor from the sudden surprise. But then it became a usual thing and both of them were becoming closer friends so eventually Usopp just proposed them sleeping together since they're gonna end up like that in the end. Of course the more they travelled, they got bunks for comfort, because sleeping on the floor/couch got annoying.

Then Water 7 happens and Usopp is devastated. He really wants to go back to them snuggling but he feels like if he offers it right after what happened to them it would feel like he didn't feel sorry at all, which is not true. And besides, Sunny has all the comfort you could ever want, so no more "well, if you're gonna slip into my bunk anyways, why not just share it from the start" excuse.

However, Luffy's thought process is a little different. He gets a little confused as to why Usopp still hasn't invited him over. Well, the sniper apologized, they had an emotional reunion, spent the rest of the day together and now they won't even snuggle like they did before? Something's gotta be up.

So as soon as Luffy makes his decision, he "slips" into Usopp's bunk and hugged the shit out of the sniper, making sure he wasn't going anywhere. Usopp let him stay. He wanted to anyways.

So since then, their habit of sharing one bed and cuddling was fully established. Oh boy, I sure hope they don't get seperated again only for a longer period of time.

No listen you literally read my mind! I’ve literally been thinking about this idea nonstop I’ve it written in my draft somewhere. Still think about that moment post dressrosa where usopp just goes to sleep right on top of luffy and no one bats an eye lol(really tried to find a pic of it but it isn’t in my tag ://) it was just business as usual for everyone but there’s no way that’s the first time that’s happened. They definitely sleep together all the time. It’s just second nature to them to just curl around each other and fall asleep.

And oh w7 ;-; the most devastating arc my beloved <3 neither of them sleeps during their separation(i dont actually have long they were apart but I’m pretty sure it was just one night considering how fast paced one piece is but it was a very looong night either way with Usopp staying up working on the merry while luffy just tossing and turning until he just ends up staring out over that rooftop where nami finds him the following morning telling her he was looking out for robin but really he was just looking out the sea to where the merry was docked🥲)

and ofc luffy would be the one to push past the awkwardness because once usopp apologized that was it he had already forgiving him the moment he saw usopp on that bridge screaming at him to keep fighting(still think about how ready luffy was to bring him to the crew immediately post ennies lobby until zoro knocked some sense into him lol) there was no way he was going another sleepless night without him

[kittyandco]

i actually have no idea what to do right now [more info and an insight into how i've been feeling lately under the cut].

i've been trying to find a job for almost 10 months. i'm tired of this. i'm tired of slogging through applications and unfair job descriptions, changing my resume for the 50th time (or not and just mass applying), writing new cover letters (or not and just using the same one), researching companies to prepare for interviews for hours at a time, scrutinizing my every move and breath because i know that they're already doing it and it still isn't good enough. i'm almost 250 applications deep. many interviews that never amount to anything. it feels like i'm running out of jobs to even apply for. [trying to move beyond retail but even those are hit-or-miss] thinking about job applications and employment is basically a compulsion at this point and i WISH i could get it out of my head.

i am bored beyond belief. i hate how much time i've had to fill with just scrolling my dash or my youtube home feed when it's the same stuff on it over and over and over and not even deciding on anything to read/watch. how much time i've spend just... laying there. there have been times where it's just so hard to take care of myself, where i don't have much of anything motivating me.

my life has amounted to absolutely nothing (i know that isn't TRUE but it feels like it right now); i won't even reach any semblance of independence that i so desperately need anytime soon. i thought i could. i really thought i could succeed. i can't seem to move forward in any way at all. my two options are standing still or moving backwards. idk what to do. i've tried everything i can think of

it's gotten to the point where i'm either angry, sad, uncomfortable, or guilty all the time and i hate it so much. the only time i don't feel that way is when i'm working on my personal projects, reading, or hanging out with my friends. that can only take me so far, too. because sometimes, especially with the reading and personal projects, it feels like an obligation to get my mind off stuff, rather than what i want to do. i just feel trapped in a small, small world.

i've just gone nonverbal for the past few hours. i can't even look my parent (the one who isn't constantly criticizing literally everything i do on top of everything going on and knowing how i've been feeling) in the face and say hello. i try. very hard. to not seem hopeless. but this happens a lot. i'm so irritated i just want to be ALONE for ONCE. i don't want to answer to anyone. i'm ready to just get away. i'm just so beaten down

i have editing and extensive writing experience so i've been thinking about opening paid requests to edit essays or other types of writing, or even fic commissions, but i know that it isn't even going to go anywhere. all anyone cares about is art anyway and i stopped posting my writing here long ago because of that. so i probably won't even bother

please don't comment with advice or questions about job applications or anything of the sort. no "something will come along" please... it's just so painful to hear now. when i say i've heard it all, TRUST ME. i do not want to hear it.

anyway i just wanted to get this out where others could see it but not in a one-on-one conversation, and not in the private pages of my journal. my journal is full of stuff just like this, and it makes me feel worse just continuing to fill it with spiraling of the same same same same same same because nothing ever changes for me

and finally, if one of you is going through the same thing, take solace. you aren't alone. you are loved despite how you feel

[dominimoonbeam]

Hi, first I wanted to say that I really love your writing and thank you so much for sharing it.

You're amazing and so talented and you made me addicted to your writing. The way you write characters is so real and your way of writing scenerios in general makes me so Invested in the story.

Another thing, I don't know if you accept requests and if you don't feel free to ignore it:

Can I please ask for Sam comforting darlin after a long week when they basically shut down from stress? (Can you tell I'm projecting?😅)

Please don't feel pressured to do it, I know you're working on a lot of stuff now too so maybe just keep the idea for the future?

Anyway I wish you a happy rest of your week, take care of yourself and rest if you need to!

Anon! Thank you so much for all the kind words! You're not the only one needing some comfort and care lately! I think something about this season has been rough for people for a bunch of different reasons, myself included. I've got you! Or at least, I tried. Hope you like it! And I hope things turn up and go smoother for you soon!

Sam/Darlin comfort fic below the cut. Will probably reread and post it on ao3 later on.

<3

They were tired.

Dead tired. Like they wished they were dead. No, no, that was bad. They didn’t wish that. They just… It had just been such a long fucking week and it felt like everything was going wrong. Nothing big enough that they could point it out or complain. Just, off. And they hadn’t been able to sleep. And it seemed like the longer it went, the longer they hid it well enough that no one pressed for an explanation they couldn’t begin to come up with, it got heavier rather than lighter.

When they got home that night from a job, they were actually relieved Sam wasn’t back yet. The last thing they wanted to do was to drag him down with them. God, he deserved so much better than them. They tossed their keys on the side table, toed off their boots, and hung up their jacket. The side of their face throbbed. They’d gotten hit with a fucking bat. David thought their cheekbone was broken and had only finally allowed them to go home because he knew Sam would take care of it.

Darlin sat down in the big chair, their favorite chair, and told themself they’d just sit for a minute. And then they’d shower, see if their face was really that much of a mess, and if it was, maybe they’d drag their ass over to the clinic and get a healer there to fix it. They felt bad making Sam patch them up all the time, but they also hated the idea of anyone else touching them let alone mending them.

They could put an ice pack on it. Maybe the swelling would go down on its own.

They sank back in the chair and closed their eyes. Just a minute.

-

Sam was still at the Solaire house when he got a call from David.

His heart always lurched high in his chest when he got a call from David, his first thought always that frantic fear that something had happened to Darlin. Why else would David call him instead of Darlin or instead of using the group chat?

Sam stepped away from the big table of squabbling younger vampires and a very amused William.

“David?”

“Hey Sam,” David said, voice gruff but easy, instantly relieving that tension in Sam’s chest. “I just wanted to check in and see how they’re doing.”

The tension was back. “What?” Darlin had been off for almost a week, barely talking but not willing or ready to tell him why. He wasn’t sure they knew themself, not yet. But somehow he didn’t think that was what David was talking about.

The pause stretched. “Are they not home yet?”

Sam was already grabbing his jacket and waving heading for the front door. “They might be, but I ain’t. Why?”

David sighed. “Sorry. It’s not an emergency, Sam. The job got rough and they took a bat to the face… I would have taken them to a healer but they insisted—”

“Yeah,” Sam said, nodding. Of course, they would. “I’m heading home now. I’ll let ya know when they’re patched up.”

He called Darlin in the truck but they didn’t answer, which conjured a mess of panicked thoughts. What if they’d passed out behind the wheel? The thought of his Darlin in a twisted wreck was hard to push away and almost immediately replaced by other tragic imaginings.

He exhaled small relief when he saw their car in front of the house.

The front door wasn’t locked. Darlin never locked it when they were home. And there they were, asleep in the big chair. He sighed and put his keys down with theirs. Another step inside and their eyes opened. Well, one opened, the other was swollen shut.

“Damn…” Darlin winced as he closed the door. They sat up with some effort. “Sorry, I think I fell asleep… What time is—”

“Don’t you dare stand up,” he warned when they were starting to tip forward. He was already in front of them, gently catching their shoulder to ease them back. He kept his voice in a low hush, thinking their head had to be hurting inside and out. “You shoulda called me, Darlin.” He knelt beside their leg, carefully fingering hair out of their face. The bruising was new, like it had only just begun, and the swelling was bad. It looked like their cheekbone was broken. “David said you got hit with a bat?”

Darlin sighed, shoulders slumping. “I wasn’t paying attention and this guy… Yeah.”

Sam clicked his teeth to keep from snarling at the idea of ‘this guy’ whoever the hell he was. He reached toward their face but they caught his wrist and pulled it gently down to their heart instead. “I’ll be gentle,” he promised, surprised.

Darlin smiled weakly, eyes already closed again. “I know. You always are, cowboy. But I don’t…” They sighed, their smile gone. “I don’t want to cost you anything right now, you know?” Their voice had gotten small, like they were far away inside themself.

Sam kept his hand to their chest, feeling their heartbeat through his palm. He leaned against their thigh, so they’d feel him right there next to them, practically leaning into the chair with them. “You never cost me anything,” he whispered back. “Healing you is a privilege. It makes me feel like there’s something I can do for you. I love you, Darlin.”

Their face pinched, not a wince but close, and he thought if they opened those eyes, they’d be teary. His other hand stroked up the side of their thigh, squeezing them gently. “Tell me what it is,” he said gently. “Tell me what’s going on in your head.” He said it quietly, like it could be just between them.

Darlin sighed and he heard all the exhaustion and strain in that breath. “I don’t know. I just… It’s been a bad week. It’s everything. I just feel… Everything. And I’m tired and I hate myself and I can’t… I can’t take things from you when I feel like I’ve got nothing to give.”

Sam watched them the whole time they choked out that barely audible confession. They’d never told him these things, but they didn’t shock him either. They hurt, because he never wanted them to feel like that, but they didn’t shock him. “Do you trust me, Darlin?”

That good eye opened enough to look at him, surprised. “Of course. I love you.”

He stroked his thumb against their collar, above their heart. “I’m going to heal you and then we’re going to take a bath. You can talk or you can relax. We’re going to get some well needed sleep and I’m going to order your favorite food. And every step of the way, I’m going to remind you that you’re incredible and all the reasons I love you, all the reasons your pack loves you, and all the reasons my clan loves you. You get to feel however you feel, Darlin, but that voice in your heart telling you bad shit, that’s asshole is lying.”

A tear rolled off Darlin’s lashes, even though their mouth was set in a stubborn line, like they refused to acknowledge it.

He reached up slowly, so they could stop him again if they needed to argue about this more, but he also couldn’t leave their face like that. His fingertips brushed the edge of the bruising and Darlin’s eye closed as that warm magic slid through their skin, spreading out. The delicate bone in their cheek healed and the swelling went down.

They exhaled relief when they opened both eyes and blinked at him.

He could see an apology building in their eyes, trying to form on their tongue. He took their face in both hands and leaned in, touching his forehead to theirs the way he’d seen the pack do. “Trust me,” he pleaded. “I ain’t ever going to lie to you, Darlin, and we’ll get through bad weeks together.”

Darlin stayed tense for another few seconds, like they might push this comfort away, but finally they sagged. Too tired maybe?

Sam smiled when they tipped their face into his, brushing a soft kiss against his lips. He kissed back and then pulled them to their feet to lead them to the bathroom. He had to make a dash back to his jacket to send a text off to David, telling him Darlin was fine but they were taking tomorrow off.

[chloecherrysip]

teeny, tiny mario & luigi post-movie fic snippet!

I want people to believe me that I really am working on this!! I'm just slow and busy and also this fic is going to be really long because that's just the way it goes with me!! So here is a little preview. BUT FIRST, SOME CONTEXT.

I think it's really fascinating to consider how the star power works and what exactly it can fix or not fix when used in the context of the movie universe. I really like all interpretations! My personal interpretation is that even after the invincibility wears off, it still gives the user(s) one heck of an adrenaline rush for several hours. Rest? Food? Water? Don't need it! Honestly, you don't even think about it! You feel ecstatic and on top of the world and ready to run a marathon. There's just boundless energy for whatever needs doing (which may include helping clean up a completely ravaged city block).

But at the end of the day, the star's permanent effects are not absolute. It WILL heal major injuries, but it can't erase the strain of dehydration, lack of food, lack of sleep, etc - it can only delay all that for a while with its surplus of extra energy. And when the rush finally, finally wears off for good? All of that hits HARD.

Anyway, snippet time under the cut. :)

+

+

Mario's loud, gasping breaths seemed like the only sound in the world, echoes bouncing wildly all around.

"Luigi," he finally managed to wheeze — very quiet at first, then again, much louder. As gently and carefully as he could manage, he scooted up into a sitting position and turned his brother over onto his back, cradling him. He was still out cold. Mario patted his face.

"Hey, Luigi. Wake up for me, all right? I'm here, Lu. I've gotcha." He patted a little harder, steadfastly ignoring the way his hands were shaking at that point. Every second passing with no change stretched on like an eternity and then some. "You're all right, everything's all right. Come on, Luigi, snap out of it..."

Up close, Luigi looked very pale, sweat beaded all along the line of his cap. How had Mario not noticed that before? He'd been too caught up in the rebuilding efforts, too distracted by Peach and Toad and the thought of that hypothetical house. How could he not see that Luigi was starting to struggle? What kind of brother was he?

The kind that does something really, REALLY stupid because of pride or "destiny" or whatever you wanna call it. The kind that not only drags his brother down with him to do the stupid thing, but almost gets him killed because of it. 

Mario's shoulders sagged. He gripped Luigi tighter, pressing his little brother's face close to the crook of his neck, if only to try and desperately ground himself in the knowledge that he could feel him breathing still, at least. Their injuries were gone, it was true, but for Mario, it was like the star had just shifted the pain around instead. He could feel it pressing up from under his skin, a deep well that was ready to split him open all the way through if he let it.

It no longer seemed like he'd just been in a magical world on a whirlwind adventure, or that he'd defeated a spiked turtle monster with anger issues and saved Brooklyn in a glorious, technicolor blur. Now, he was just a small, ordinary man in a dark sewer room underground, exhausted and terrified and unable to help the person he loved most.

[imabeautifulbutterfly]

The Gym Membership - Part 31 (Crosshair)

Summary: Layla tries to make amends

A/N: Hello Lovelies,

Thank you all for joining in on the 450 Follower celebration, so far it's been really well received. Which surprised me and really touched my heart. The celebration is still going, until April 2nd or until all the prompts have been used at least once. Anyway, I'm back to posting, and working on new fics and materials. Enjoy.

Love oo

Italics - inner thoughts

Warnings: Guilt, apologies, irritations, making amends. If I miss any warnings, please let me know.

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Waves of guilt hit me as he grabbed his cup and walked out, I closed my eyes trying to calm my racing heart. There were so many things I needed to apologize for; I’d been meaning to call him for a long time and arrange a time for us to sit down and talk. 

Even the girls really were trying to encourage me to lift up the phone and dial, Mel kept trying to tell me he wasn’t as scary as he appeared, and he’d even be more understanding than I expected. Which was true, something I realized the day we lost Avery, and realized how wrong I was about him.

Come on Layla, you gonna be a coward again and let your own guilty conscience beat you down? I grabbed my cup and rushed out after him. 

“Crosshair, wait!” I called out to him rushing after him towards the parking lot. Of course, as always when you’re in a hurry, that’s when everyone in the tri-state area feels it’s important to drive right in front of me. Through the myriads of cars, I could see him walking further away, I needed to apologize for my own piece of mind. I wanted us to be on better terms. 

“Crosshair!” 

I shouted at the top of my lungs, hoping my voice would carry over the cars driving past, God! Why were there so many cars all of sudden! I watched as he stopped in his tracks, turning back to look at me, a quizzical expression on his face. 

He’d arrived at his car, when he heard his name being called, he turned to see Layla jittering in her spot, waiting for the opportune moment to cross the street. He covered his mouth by taking a sip of his coffee, as a small chuckle escaped his lips. She really reminded him of a squirrel, the way she kept looking ready to cross the street and then holding back. Eventually, after moments of negotiating she managed to run across and catch up with him.

“I’m glad you waited” my words came out rather quickly, I wasn’t one for running, and I’d been out of my workout routine for several months now, but jogging across the street should not have caused me to run out of air that much. Lord, I needed to hit the gym again. 

“What’s up, Layla?” It’s not that he minded her really, it’s just his bad mood from that morning was still lingering, and the last thing he wanted to do was say the wrong thing, because he was irritated. 

“Right. Straight to the point. I …” I let out a chuckled sigh, my heart felt like it was going to pound its way right out of my chest. Okay, I get it. I gotta hit the gym, just calm down. I tried to tell my heart, and my nerves that seemed to be jumping out of their own accord, “I wanted to apologize to you.”

Cross shook his head as a smirk appeared on his lips, “Layla, you already got me the ice and a new cup of coffee, it’s all good.” He turned to open his car door when her hand slammed against the door. 

“No. I owe you a real apology for … for everything!” I looked into his eyes, hoping he could feel my sincerity. 

He leaned against his car, his hand carding through his hair, “Layla, what the hell are you talking about?”

I stepped closer to him, “For everything. For the way I treated you from the first day I met you, to every time I cursed you in my head. I know …” I cleared my throat as it started to tighten, “I knew it was never your fault with regards to what happened to Avery. None of it was your fault. I …” I rubbed my forehead, my well planned and thought out apology was quickly falling apart in front of me, “what I’m trying to say, is that I am incredibly sorry about everything. About how I treated you, how I made you feel, and about everything I’ve ever said to you. I know you loved my sister, that was very evident. I also know you were grieving and trying to deal with everything in your own way, I just … I never stopped to think about how you were feeling. I’m sorry.”

He leaned further against his car, he didn’t say anything as he let her words sink in, well if they were going to be doing apologies … he rubbed the back of his neck, tilting it from side to side hoping to uncurl the kink there. “Listen, you’re not the only one who should be offering an apology. I’m ….I’m sorry too. I was cold, distant and annoyed with you, partly because you weren’t her, partly because Avery was lying there, but mostly because I … I didn’t deserve to be there.”

“What! Of course, you did. You were her husband, you guys loved each other.”

“No. We … we may have loved each other as best friends, I mean I was always happy to see her, to talk to her, to touch her and feel her, but she deserved better than me. I think if she hadn’t been injured once we got back State-side we … we probably would’ve been divorced by now. Still on talking terms, maybe the occasional bed buddies, but not married. I didn’t deserve to be the one by her side, she deserved a better man.”

“Cross, did you make her happy? While she was alive, did you make her happy?”

“I tried my best to.”

“Then you are exactly the man she deserved. Even if you didn’t think you deserved to be there, she believed that you did.” 

I let out a sigh as I leaned against the car beside him, “I never told you, but she was excited to introduce you to me, she couldn’t wait to tell me all about this amazing sniper she was seeing.” Tears welled up in my eyes as I thought back to Avery, “Truth is, I was angry with you because you got to spend more time with her. Especially her last days. All my interactions with her, especially the last several months, were either letters, phone calls or emails. Even if she was going to be back State-side, she wouldn’t be by my side 24/7, she would’ve gone to see her friends, you … it’s just … our last conversation wasn’t much of a conversation. Not to mention, I kind of yelled at her.”

The warmth from the coffee eased the tension in my shoulders and heart as I took a look sip, “Listen Cross, at the end of the day we both loved her, and who knows maybe you’re right.” I shrugged, “Maybe you guys would’ve gotten divorced when you spent more time together in a more ‘normal-ish’ surrounding, but you were there when she needed you, and I’m glad you made her happy while you could.”

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