#anyway. ya jump up superstar is the song of ever

[puckhq]

yeah, i love how it feels right now, this is the life || THROUPLE

tagging: Morgan Weston ( @morgan-weston ), Eva Anderson ( @anderseva ) and Noah Puckerman

date & time: August 24, 2024 after the Zodiac party

location: Morgan's place

warnings: none I think

summary: During the Zodiac Party Puck lowkey missed his lovers, and maybe his lovers missed him. Mostly, they end up talking about what the fuck they're doing and despite barely answering that question, they fall back into bed.

MORGAN The opening credits had rung out that catchy drum intro, Dolly Parton had guest-starred, and Miley had fallen in love with egocentric superstar Jake Ryan. That was the basic run-down of the Hannah Montana episode that was currently playing on the TV, in the dark living room at Morgan's ranch. After a day spent with Eva, he couldn't picture a better way to end it, than to be on the couch with her, blanket draped over them, and a half-eaten bowl of popcorn in front of them, watching a show that Morgan clearly had grown obsessed with, thanks to the beauty next to him. "Y'know," Morgan started softly, not wanting to surprise Eva with his sudden voice after the quiet. "I have to admit something to ya..." Morgan reached over for the remote and paused the episode, just as Miley stopped playing her acoustic version of 'If We Were A Movie', that Dolly had sneakily listened in on. "I've secretly been listening to her albums in the car."

EVA While Eva would never turn down a Hannah Montana binge, she was ecstatic to see that Morgan was now equally obsessed (or maybe more so than her) with the show. She'd lost count of how many times she'd seen most of these eps but she was close to reciting every line, but especially with this one episode, which Morgan was zoned in on. It was so adorable that she found herself studying him more than the screen, so she wasn't startled at all when he spoke up. She was caught off guard, however, when he paused the show, though it quickly went away when he opened his mouth again. "Why is that a secret? I used to do that all the time." She admitted and shrugged. "But let me guess: you've learned the lyrics now and can't get them out of your head?"

MORGAN "Yes!" Morgan exclaimed, sitting up slightly to get a proper look at Eva. How was she so good at just knowing those things about him? She'd been, ever since the mixer, and it astonished him how well in tune she was with him. "They're so catchy!" Morgan jumped up from his seat on the couch, knocking over the leftover bowl of popcorn, and landed on the coffee table in front of them, almost slipping on a fruit bowl. "If we were a movie, you'd be the right guy," Morgan started singing, loudly and incredibly bad. "And I'd be the best friend that you'd fall in love with," remembering the remote in his hand, the cowboy pretended to use it as a microphone, continuing to pour his heart out in the song. "In the end, we'd be laughin', watchin' the sunset" He pointed to Eva, making eye contact and grinning at her, "Fade to black, show the names, play the happy song." He finished and jumped back down again, kneeling in front of Eva. "How can I ever thank you for introducing me to such an icon?"

EVA Eva's eyes widened at his excitement. It had been a fair guess really, but she didn't fault him for still being stoked over her figuring out where he was going with this. "They are super catchy, which is probably why—" Her words were cut off at the sudden commotion, and she barely fought to contain her laughter in response. She wasn't even expecting him to get so carried away with his reaction, but it was still kinda adorable anyways. Before she could say anything else, he was belting out the lyrics to the song, and Eva went from gasping to trying not to scrunch up her face in response to how off pitch her was. She couldn't knock his attempt though, and once he finished, she simply smiled as she reached a hand out and gently cradled his face in said hand. "Oh, that performance was more than enough, babe." She giggled. "But if you must reward me somehow, I think we still have like fifteen horses to go, so let's add in a few more orgasms to go along with those rides, and we can call it even."

MORGAN This was so unlike Morgan. He had barely been the type of person who'd date, and nevermind belt out into song, but here he was, doing just that. And it was all for Eva. He felt like he could act silly around her, and if that warranted a laugh, then he was thrilled. Grinning from ear to ear at her reaction, Morgan felt his heart skip, as if it was jumping from cloud to cloud. The feeling of her hand on his cheek, and the way she giggled was enough to have Morgan's knee shake under him. He nodded eagerly at her proposal and chuckled. "If that ain't a done deal, then I don't know what it is," He said and moved in, pushing Eva against the backrest of the couch, his eyes closing and his lips pressing against hers softly. Hannah Montana could wait, they were busy now. Until Morgan's phone vibrated and lit up on the coffee table. He groaned at the interruption, and pulled back from the kiss, his forehead moving to rest against Eva's temple. "Do we think it's important?"

EVA By now, Eva was well aware that Morgan (and Puck) would pretty much agree to anything she asked, so she hadn't expected anything less than him nodding and agreeing to her request. It was quite the arrangement, in her opinion, and it was a win win for them both. She smirked at the verbal confirmation, and then she was being pushed back against the couch as Morgan leaned in to kiss her, and she instantly returned it. With how things had been progressing lately, one kiss never stopped there and she was prepared to let things progress further than that until she heard the phone on the coffee table, followed by a vibration just inches away from her own phone that was somewhere on one of the couch cushions. At Morgan's question, she nodded. "That was both of our phones so unless we're in an episode of Pretty Little Liars and that's A sending some cryptic shit, I'm gonna assume that was Puck drunk texting the group chat." She hummed, and considering no one else would text them both at the same time, that was the only explanation. Reaching her free hand over to grab her phone, she used her face to unlock it and sure enough, it was their third. "Just like a man." She teased as she spun her phone around to show Morgan the text.

MORGAN As soon as Eva started speaking, Morgan pulled away slightly, leaving only a tiny gap between them, but it was enough for him to take in her beauty as she spoke. He really hadn't been joking when he'd called her a goddess. Her lips moved with every syllable, her tongue hitting her teeth every now and then, and the corners moving up and down ever so slightly. As her words came out he registered them. "That's another show ya gotta introduce me to," Morgan grinned, and moved slightly as she got her phone and showed him the text. That's my boy, Morgan thought to himself with a smirk on his face, and took the phone out of Eva's hands, typing up a reply. 'Waiting for you' and sent it, on behalf of Eva and himself. "And now we kill the waiting time," Morgan said, losing the girl's phone in the couch cushions, grabbing her under her thighs, and pulling her down under him, so she was flat on the couch and completely covered by him, and he could go back to hungrily kissing her.

PUCK It took no time for Puck to excuse himself from the party once he got the 'waiting for you' text. For some reason getting hit on by two dudes and thinking for a hot second a threesome might have been on the table, just made him want Eva and Morgan. Being with them was like making art, or at least what Puck imagined making art was like. Hard, creative and satisfying in the end. Thankfully he wasn't drunk, hadn't even bothered with the drinks because he'd been so distracted by the food. Some of which he was bringing with him, because he wasn't sure if they had eaten or not and he wasn't going to think to hard on why he even cared. Not too long after he got in his truck, he was pulling up to Morgan's place, food in hand and pleased when the door was unlocked. Going to the kitchen first he put the food down, and then went to find his lovers. It didn't take long to see them getting into it on the couch. He watched for a moment. God damn! He thought to himself. Never had he deen two more beautiful people and fuck did they look good horizontal on a couch, two seconds from dry humping. Clearing his throat, he almost hated to break it up. Almost. "You got room for one more or you want me to come back later?..." He asked with a smirk on his face.

EVA After Puck's birthday, it was safe to say that her relationships with both men had shifted, and Eva couldn't even handle a simple make out without needing more. Her body just instantly reacted as soon as Morgan dove right in, arching into his hold as they kissed. She was so wrapped up in trying not to rip her clothes off, along with his, that she hadn't even remotely heard a sound as Puck came in. It wasn't until his signal that she finally broke the kiss and glanced his way. "You know we have room for you, babe." She stated as she smirked over at him. "What's the crown for? Were you the hottest guy at that stupid party and someone gave you a crown for it? Or did one of your admirers give it to you in hopes of sucking your dick on one of those upper levels?" Eva questioned curiously.

MORGAN It was almost like Morgan was constantly insatiable whenever he was around Eva and Puck. He got satisfied; there wasn't a problem there, at all! But he could never have enough of them, for some reason. He wanted to stay in those moments with them forever, when he finally got them. Before he found out that his work had been taking his time, he never would've felt like this. But now, it was like he had so much to catch up on, and he only wanted to catch up with those two. That was why he, once again, groaned as Eva's lips left his, this time with him not being in charge of that choice. He'd been kissing her lips to feel that softness and kissing her neck to hear that breathlessness, had felt the curves of her thighs, ass and waist with his hands, was ready to start causing some friction between the two of them, and had gone back to feeling the softness of her lips again, when Eva had pulled away, and Morgan belatedly took in the fact that it was Puck who'd interrupted, like he was told to do anyway, like the good boy he was. Breathing heavily, Morgan sat up on his knees and took a look at Puck as he stood across the room, and the light from the hallway lit him up. God, what a sight. Eva questioned Puck out for this event, and when the last question rung out, Morgan immediately spoke up. "It better only be the first option. Come 'ere if it is," Morgan motioned for him, and moved to the side, so there was room for Puck too.

PUCK The correct reaction to Eva's questions would be to tell her it's none of your business and I'm here now and why don't we focus on the here and now. Instead, he was smiling because it felt good that she might be a little jealous of these admirers of his. Felt even better to have Morgan confirm he didn't want anyone else on Puck's dick but them. Truthfully, being at that party without them had felt kind of lonely, even though he did connect with a decent amount of people when it came to hooking up or even flirting it just didn't feel right. But being here, squeezing himelf between them on the couch, that felt right. Leaning over to Eva, he gave her a sweet kiss, before turning and doing the same to Morgan. "It was a zodiac party, not the killer, the signs. I wore a crown 'cause i'm a king, baby." He put an arm around the back of the couch, across Eva's shoulders. "I've only got two admirers I let suck my dick these days and they wren't there." He leaned into Morgan. "Is that Hannah Montana?" He asked looking at the TV.

EVA Eva wasn't the jealous type, as if she'd ever had any reason to be anyways, but she also knew that all three parties of this throuple had admirers and if the last PSU event had been anything to go by, she was sure that most people in attendance were drunk and horny. She wouldn't have even blamed them for wanting to be all over Puck, since that was what her and Morgan wanted too, but she wasn't pressed about it either. But Morgan seemed to be thinking the same way that she was, so she simply giggled as she sat back up on the couch just in time for Puck to come over and kiss her. "Wait, did you think it was a zodiac killer party?" She asked, though she was sure the answer was yes. Leaning into the arm now around her shoulders, Eva shrugged. "Nice save. But duh, it's Hannah Montana. Which might not be your thing, and if it isn't that's fine, but our boy Morgan here is addicted now. You just missed his..interesting performance of one of her songs. He got the lyrics right, but the keys? Not so much." She giggled before she glanced over at Morgan. "It was still lovely though, cowboy."

MORGAN Morgan kept his eyes on Puck as he watched him make his way over to the other two on the couch, and he smirked. That was all he needed to know, in terms of Puck not being with other people. The three hadn’t exactly made this whole throuple situation exclusive, but Morgan wasn’t flirting or even seeing anyone else but those two, and he was hoping that they’d accepted that silent agreement too. Furrowing his eyebrows as Puck kept explaining, the tall cowboy couldn’t be any more confused. “So, it wasn’t some kinda murder mystery party? Not that it could ever beat this company,” Morgan said, referring to Eva, “but I do love me a good murder mystery.” Morgan grinned and laid down, putting his head next to Eva’s. He could smell her sweet shampoo from there. Chuckling at her comments about his spontaneous singing-outburst, Morgan shrugged his shoulders. “Hey, I never claimed to be a professional troubadour! Just a professional Hannah Montana fan.” And he wasn’t embarrassed by it either. Humming, Morgan turned to face Puck again and he reached over, poking at the crown. “So, you decided to ditch their party to join ours? Why?”

PUCK "Yup." He answered Eva, getting more comfortable on the couch. "Almost went there with fake blood on my shirt for the vibe but last second Maya was like, 'It's a zodiac party' and I'm like yeah kid, I know and she was like 'Zodiac sign, not killer'. So thank God for her." He laughed at the memory, truly he was lucky one of them was smart. "But there was a dude there dressed as Mark Ruffalo's character in Zodiac so it wasn't just us." He said more to Morgan, since apparently they'd both thought the same thing. Listening to Eva and Morgan talk about their night, he smiled, it sounded nice. For the first time in a while he thought it might have been better to just hang with them in the first place than go to the party. "It was If We Were a Movie wasn't it?" He guessed, because it was the song that usually got stuck in his head, unless you count the little riff Miley does for the transitions. Until Morgan poked it, Puck had forgotten the crown was even on his head, which was probably a very Leo thing of him to do. Shrugging, he wasn't sure he wanted to share the real answer, seemed like too much for whatever this trio was doing. "There was just too many people trynna suck my dick, it was overwhelming, didn't know where to start." He smirked like the fuckboi he use to be.

EVA Honestly, Eva should have expected men to assumed zodiac meant the killer and not the actual signs, but she was still extremely amused by this anyways. "Y'all know women are all into that astrology shit nowadays, but I can see why y'all would think it was a murder mystery party." If it had been that instead, she probably would have been more inclined to attend, but it being the signs was exactly why she hadn't bothered. She smiled when Puck, who apparently claimed not to be as into Hannah Montana as they were, knew exactly what song Morgan had been singing. Maybe it was just that easy to guess? "It was exactly that song, and it wasn't horrendous, just pitchy. But then again, I do come from a musically gifted parent, so maybe I was just judging you too harshly, babe." She decided, and that could stick for now. She glanced at the crown briefly before rolling her eyes playfully as Puck admitted what she'd already suspected. Of course that party was just another fuck fest, hence why Eva had opted to sit it out. She had two dicks she could alternate between so it hadn't been appealing to attend this party. "Yeah, once the drinks start flowing, so does the hormones." She hummed. "But hey, other than what you just walked in on, we've been binging Hannah Montana and hanging out, so like it's much less stressful and thirsty over here." She beamed.

MORGAN It felt really nice to be in a situation where Puck felt open enough to share things about Maya with the both of them; he didn’t know if that was a common thing for him to do with Eva, and if Eva had even met Maya yet, but he wasn’t going to put too much thought into that right in this moment; the important thing for Morgan to note, was that he felt comfortable enough to do it, given his recent observations with the other man being a bit more closed off than himself. He couldn’t help but let out a laugh as Puck kept telling about the party, and how ridiculous it all sounded; it wasn’t his type of crowd, and it would’ve taken something special, for him to go. Especially when Eva started bringing up the hormones, and how it had seemed like the mixer had become a bit of a flirt-fest; he could testament to that, with Eva. Morgan kept quiet as the two talked, admiring their energy and chemistry, and how well they played off each other. He hummed along as the girl told the other man what they’d been up to, and he sat up, his long legs moving over the backrest of the couch to stand on the floor, and move to get the remote. “Speak for yourself, gorgeous,” Morgan smirked, talking to Eva, and turned the TV off, before kneeling back down on the floor, in front of the couch again, like he’d done before. He crossed his arms on the cushion, and rested his chin on them, looking at the two beauties in front of him, admiring them. “I feel like I’m always thirsty with the two of you around.”

PUCK "'Course I know that. How do you think I found out my sign in the first place. Some chick with beads in her hair did a whole chart thing." If you ask Puck, it should have been a murder mystery party, that would've been dope. He should see if there was one of those places around here, maybe it could be a date for all of them, or an escape room. Or both. Something told Puck he'd be hearing Morgan sing something off key and adorably some day and he was already looking forward to it. "It's the song that gets stuck in my head so gotta get stuck in other people's." Normally, he'd sing it because he'd ridiculous but he kind of hated singing in front of people that were his mom or Maya. Laughing at her commentary on the PSU events, because it was true. Damn did folks get horny with a drink or two in 'em. It was something else. "I don't know, y'all looked pretty hormonal over here. Felt bad inturupting, wanted to see how long it'd take ya to notice me." Usually, Puck wasn't much of a voyeur but you'd want to watch them fuck too, if you could. Watching Morgan as he moved and turned the TV off, he had to admit he liked the sight of him kneeling in front of them like this. "I ain't thirsty, I just appreciate the art that is y'alls bodies and the music those noises i get out of you make."

EVA "Someone with beads in their hair?" Eva repeated, but then decided that she didn't even need to ask any other questions about it. Whatever went on at that party was probably off the walls, so she didn't need to know anything else. She smiled as Puck confirmed that the song got stuck in his head, and now she knew what to play the next time she was in the car with him. "I'll expand that discography one day, don't worry. Both of you are gonna be doing the Hoedown Throwdown with me on Instagram or TikTok soon enough." She warned, and while it wasn't the usual content she put on her socials, there was no way in hell she wouldn't have them both in cowboy boots and hats doing the dance one of these days. Blushing as Puck called them out, she playfully swatted his arm. "We had to do something while we waited for you but in our defense, you could've skipped the party altogether and been here this whole time, so that's on you." She shrugged as she watched Morgan get down on his knees again. Leave it to them both to be thinking with their dicks the first time they were all in the same room again. "You're both thirsty, as you should be — but hold up. Are we making this a thing? I mean, I know I've talked to both of you separately about the fact that we liked the threesome, and we all have our own relationships with each other outside of this, but we are all on the same page, right?"

MORGAN There were still so many things that Morgan deemed incredibly 'Los Angeles' - a girl with beads in her hair was something he pictured his grandparents would've dealt with, back in the 60s and 70s, but then again, it was absolutely plausible that it'd take place in LA today. Instagram and TikTok were other things that, to Morgan, just felt more 'LA', despite knowing that it was universal. He himself didn't have accounts on social media - he was too busy for that. But he always enjoyed hearing about the latest trends; it was almost like hearing about a fun bar fight, but thankfully not having been there himself to have gotten injured. "Hoedown Throwdown? Sounds like I could get down with that." Morgan mused with a soft smile on his face - at this point, participating in those things meant he got to be around either one or both of them, and he for sure wasn't gonna say 'no' to that! As Eva asked about the threesome, it was clear in Morgan's brain what the answer would be, but it was also really nice knowing the two of them had discussed it on their own, and had even enjoyed it enough to not be declining the invitation to another; the flirting with each other was confirmation enough for that, let alone Puck being okay with watching Eva and Morgan. "Mhmm, I personally wouldn't hate it," Morgan said, his voice soft as he was feeling the other two out. He'd also pretty much given up flirting, and he definitely made sure not to see anyone, outside of them - not that they were exclusive, but he felt like he at least owed it to them to be more or less just focused on them. "I mean, if y'all are up for it? I know that a team of wild horses couldn't tear me apart from an opportunity like that. Have ya seen the two of you? Damn! And y'all know how much a good time I had on Puck's birthday!"

PUCK Just the thought of having to do that dance was making his shoulder and knees act up. Even though Maya should have been too young for Hannah Montana, Disney Channel use to play reruns and let's just say the Hoedown Throwdown was a staple in the Puckerman household for months. But he figured he'd let Eva 'teach' him because he liked being bossed around by beautiful women. So he just smiled at her and silently agreed to dance whatever and film whatever she wanted. Listening Eva and Morgan talk about what they were doing was starting to make chest feel tight. It wasn't, but it sounded a lot like the,'what are we?' talk and Puck had never been a fan of that particular question. It put a lot of commitment on him and he was a father, who made his kid his priority even if she was a bit to old to use as an excuse for non-commitment and whatever this thing was, a poly- poly something, wasn't traditional and he struggled to commit to one person let alone two people. But it was fine, he could breathe because this wasn't that talk, this was just them establishing that they like the whole threesome thing, which he did, so they were all on the same page. It wasn't just sex though, and that's what had Puck pausing for so damn long, because if it was just sex, he'd have hooked up with someone at that party instead of feeling kinda guilty for getting some numbers. Shit, he should probably say something. "I'm never gonna say no to a threesome with two tens. As a seasoned threesome guy, I've never had better than this." And that wasn't just a line.

EVA While Eva wasn't exactly doing the influencer thing anymore, she still had quite the following and still did a few things here and there on them, so why not record a video of her and her boys doing a Hannah Montana dance? She smiled as they both seemed to be agreeing to it, though she wasn't sure how good either one of them would even be. "Great, so next time we're all together like this, pre-sex, I'm teaching y'all how to do it." Even if they ended up being horrible at it, it would still be fun and it would be something else they all did together, so she was all for it. While her question hadn't been the serious one, she could at least tell from Puck's extended pause that that it thrown him for a loop, or scared him, while Morgan just seemed to agree with not much hesitation. Eva would unpack both of their reactions if she were the type to do the feelings thing but since she wasn't, all she wanted to do was be sure they were in sync about the threesome aspect about whatever was happening here. "Sounds like we're all on the same page, but..it also doesn't always have to be sex. We can all binge Hannah Montana or 911 or something together, go on a date or something close to that, ride horses together — I can spend time with you both separately but I'm game for us just doing some chill shit altogether too. Just so we're clear." She shrugged.

MORGAN There was a slight confusion still lingering for Morgan. Was this just about sex, or were they actually gonna try and commit to each other? Because he was pretty sure that it was gonna be latter, given that he'd stopped being any type of way with other people. Andy had obviously come into his life again, but it didn't seem like they wanted anything to do with him, except to visit the horses for their kid, so even whatever lingering feelings that were still there for them had been pushed aside and been pretty much forgotten about. But as Eva continued to list activities and things that they could do together, Morgan got confirmation. It sounded pretty exclusive to him! He smiled, delighted at the deal, and that Puck had somehow confirmed too, in his own Puck-way, that he wanted to keep this going, and moved in to give first Eva a peck on the lips and then Puck. "I like this deal, a lot." Morgan started, before putting his chin back on his arms. "So, are we binging stuff tonight, or do we wanna..." Morgan gestured upstairs, a smirk growing on his face as he thought about what the throuple might get up to in his sleeping quarters. His eyes moved between the two, waiting for an answer.

PUCK It was comforting to know he wasn't the only one who just liked spending time all together. Sex or not, romantic whatever or not, Puck just thought Eva and Morgan were cool people who he vibed with. Maybe he wasn't ready to tackle any other feelings but he had long since admitted to wanting to be their friend. As lame as that fucking sounded. So he just nodded at Eva's words and made a mental note to text them all the shit he wants to do with them in the group chat. He wasn't sure how three-way dates went but he was down to find out with these two. Puck licked his lips after Morgan kissed them and was on his feet before Morgan even had time to finish his not so thinly veiled suggestion at another threesome. Offering a hand to both Morgan and Eva, his answer was pretty clear but just in case. "I don't know if it was the insane horniness of that party or if I'm just always half hard for you two, either way you'll be lucky if we make it upstairs." he said with a smirk.

EVA Sure, part of Eva knew that just carrying on without a clear understanding of what this was wouldn't be a good thing in long run, but she wasn't about to kill the mood with that now. In fact, she didn't even know if she were ready for anything this serious, so she was content to just frolic along and play things by ear with her boys. Smiling at the chaste kiss from Morgan, she wasn't even surprised that the cowboy was suggesting both binging or moving things up to his bedroom, just as she wasn't surprised when Puck stood up and made his decision clear. "Baby, you're literally always hard. It's okay to admit that." She shrugged as she hopped up from the couch and took one of Puck's hands into her own. "But we're making it upstairs. I have a work thing this week and I don't need any sex bruises from the staircase showing in any photos I take." She teased.

MORGAN Morgan had always been a very restless man, always needing to do something, always up and running about, always finding things to be busy with. He couldn't sit still, unless that was the activity that had been set for him. But that had been true to his sex life too. He liked to think that his stamina was decent, he could hold out for quite a while, and it always felt like he could go for another round pretty quickly after. And he was grateful that Puck and Eva seemed to be on the same page with that. There was a need, a hunger for them. Like a bad drug, he wanted more and more. So when they agreed, and he watched them stand up with the same kind of eagerness that Morgan felt inside, that was when he knew he was around the right kind of people for his sex life. He got up on his feet, and slapped Eva's ass teasingly, before leading the way up. "So does that mean no fun hickies?"

PUCK "That's not true. I spend a lot of my time soft, I'm just always hard for you." He said like it was a sweet sentiment, even gave her a kiss, before winking at Morgan, as if he was the smoothest mother fucker on planet earth. Which, if you asked him, he was. Smiling at Morgan's playfulness, he really felt like all of this, whatever it was, made sense. They matched each other's freak, both in and out of bed. There was no jealousy issues between the three of them and it just seemed like the shit was natural. So when Morgan started leading them upstairs, Puck enthusicastcally followed, his hands on Eva's waist as he followed her up. "I can't help what happens when Puckzilla comes out. You know that." As he reached the top with them, they continued into Morgan's room. "Plus it'll be good for your little students to know they ain't got a shot."

EVA Eva was sure that between the two of them, she teasingly rolled her eyes more times than she could count because of their antics. Not that she was complaining, but still. She had just rolled her eyes at Puck's words before he kissed her, which made her smile in response. "Both of you are cheesy as hell sometimes." She teased. "And Morgan, one or two hickies will be fine, but keep them small, and out of sight." She warned as they headed up. Puck referring to himself, or his dick, as Puckzilla shouldn't have been as amusing as it was, but Eva simply shook her head as she walked into the bedroom and wasted no time starting to strip out of her clothes. "I wouldn't sleep with my students anyways, but I'll be sure to let them know that I'm currently being fucked by two of the best men that I know, and none of them can have me. Does that work?"

MORGAN Leading his two lovers into his bedroom, Morgan unbuckled his belt around his waist, and smirked. He'd happily take what he could get, and when Eva said he was allowed one or two hickies he had a small party on the inside. To him, that was like reading a recipe that required one or two cloves of garlic. He always put double the amount in. Besides, he figured he'd get the chance to leave some marks on the inside of both Eva's and Puck's thighs. He continued to remove his t-shirt, throwing it onto the floor, and moved to help Puck off with his too, making sure not to push the crown off of his head. "I ain't worried about your students," Morgan started, his eyes turning dark with lust for the two people, as they got progressively more naked. "I know for a fact that they'd never be able to compare to us." Was he confident? Sure. Maybe a little too much. But he was also aware of how good Eva and Puck made him feel, and it only motivated him to be the best for them too. He sucked in a deep breath and unzipped his jeans, his eyes staying on theirs, switching every few seconds. His voice was low, almost like a growl, and he could already feel himself throbbing at the thought of what was to come with the two gorgeous people. "Now both of you, get on your damn knees and show me what your pretty mouths can do, before I fuck you senseless."

[caruliaa]

jump up superstar btw. if you even care.

[5-jorjas-in-the-fence]

Fearless (Taylor’s Version) as Newsies

Fearless: Romeo. Yes I know you think he’d be love story but he’s such a hopeless romantic I can guarantee he lives for the whole ‘take my hand and drag me head first fearless’. Plus he’s a pretty timid guy, so him being fearless is just *chefs kiss*

Fifteen: Davey. I feel like he’s made some bad choices which is why he’s so careful. He definitely lives by ‘I found time can heal most anything’

Love Story: Race, the dramatic little f*cker, lives for Love Story. Don’t act like he won’t speed down a freeway screaming at the top of his lungs while whoever is in the passenger seat (usually Albert) looks at him with great concern.

Hey Stephen: Les. He probably has written poetry for some girl in his class. Plus it’s such a wholesome song, I’m just imagining his little voice in the back seat of the car singing ‘I CANT HELP IT IF YA LOOK LIKE AN ANGEL, CANT HELP IT IF I WANNA KISS YA IN THE RAIN SO COME FEEL THIS MAGIC IVE BEEN FEELING SINCE I MET YOU’ and then Davey (who’s driving, he doesn’t trust anyone else to give Les lifts unless it’s Jack or Sarah) Just turns it up so he doesn’t have to hear Les’s screeching

White Horse: oh boy time to ✨cry✨ and you know who relates to this song? Albert. Not sure why, he has a lot of feelings so for him a song about pure hurt is up his ally. He loves all the lyrics and ‘I’m gonna find someone some day who might ACTUALLY TREAT ME WELL’ he screams a little too passionately and then race is there like ‘am I a joke to you 👁👄👁’

You Belong With Me: Crutchie lives for this song. It’s so fun and he loves humming it and he just- he loves a good classic. He definitely has a Junior Jewels shirt that he got all the newsies to sign. It’s his favourite pyjama shirt.

Breathe: Elmer. Probably cause he has nine siblings and he had to leave them, he was hella close to them so now he’s alone... I’m fine

Tell Me Why: Henry. ‘CAUSE YOURE THE ONLY THING ON MYYYYY MIND’ he does that and points his finger dramatically. I have this weird head canon that he takes SO LONG in the bathroom so he sings into his shampoo bottle and looks in the mirror... yeah it’s a lot.

You’re Not Sorry: Specs. It slaps. So does Specs. In conclusion: yes.

The Way I Loved You: Jack. Now The Way I Loved You is about two people. The one they’re currently with, and the ex. So for him I feel like he’s not really sure what his feelings are doing, so he misses his ex while he’s with his current partner... yikes. Someone get the boy some therapy he needs it.

Forever and Always: Spot. He’s angry. He’s going feral. ‘OhhhHHHHH AND IT RAINS IN YOUR BEDROOM EVERYTHING IS WRONG, IT RAINS WHEN YOURE HERE AND IT RAINS WHEN YOURE GONE’ yeah he’s really into it... like he’s popping off. Specifically that part where Taylor is full on P I S S E D and that high note comes up.

The Best Day: *don’t touch me I’m crying* Katherine (pt 1, yeah she has two songs stfu like you didn’t see that coming) k so she loves the best day cause she ✨lost her mother✨ when she was 14 so uhhh, she just likes it cause it reminds her of her... which is sad... oh fearless OG came out when her mum was around as well, so when she lost her she probably played The Best Day to cope.

Change: oh all of them I mean have you HEARD it??? ‘It was the night things changed, I can feel it now, all the walls that they put up to hold us back will fall down itS A REVOLUTIONNNNNNNN SO THROW YOUR HANDS UP CAUSE WE NEVER GAVEEEEE INNNNNNNnnnNn *inhales* AND WELL SING HALLELU-‘ yeah it slaps.

Jump Then Fall: SARAH JACOBS!!! It’s so soft and I can BET she kinda sits there quietly watching her SO and then is like ‘holy shit- fuck their laugh- oh my god’ and has moments where she’s like ‘my gosh I love them’ and she’s so comforting and warm. So the whole line ‘I’ll hold you through the night until you smile...’ cause she knows that she wants to fall in love so bad but she’s also like ‘please don’t be afraid to fall please just love me holy shit I love you’

Come In With The Rain: gosh idk they all scream the chorus at the top of their lungs (there are so many tracks on this album I’m just going to have to skip songs where I can’t think of anyone 🧍‍♀️

There’s also probably gonna be a few repeats

Superstar: Pulitzer thinking about Teddy Roosevelt 😏

Today Was A Fairytale: Albert, he deserves a happy song. After a happy date he dances around the room singing it, until someone knocks on the door and he’s like ‘shit they heard me’

Mr Perfectly Fine: ohhhhhhhHHHH KATHERINE MY QUEEN. She’s p i s s e d. She’s m a d. She’s p a s s i o n a t e. She’s also still with Jack at the time so he’s like ‘wtf’ scared for his life- then he uhhhh breaks up with her... cause of valid reasons and is ok but still broken and that takes her love for the song to a whole new level cause she always got it but never got it. Not she’s on the verge of smashing a vase as she screams it.

We Were Happy: ✨newsbians✨ just for the line ‘talking bout your daddys farm we were gonna buy some day’. Idk if I ever like- posted about it but Chandler @tarantulas4davey and I had a wholeeee thing for cottage core Kath and Sarah so yk

Don’t You: Jack. He’s a mess. Wbk.

Bye Bye Baby: Race. he just wants to live that main character life cause he’s dramatic so... ‘it wasn’t just like a movie, the rain didn’t soak through my clothes, down to my skin’ honestly same. What a mood.

Love story Remix: THEYRE ALL VIBING

Anyway, in conclusion: yeehaw.

Stream Fearless Taylors Version. Please send in asks asking to elaboration or something if you want to :)

[lucarioisinthevoid]

Oh god, oh fuck, what did you ask, why did you ask this, this is instantly growing out of hand- I legally have to put it behind a “read more”. Sorry, but this gets really long for no good reason. I’m so sorry, when it’s about music, I just lose it-

- Mike scoffed. “This ask was clearly asked by someone who doesn’t listen to music. Asking for a favorite songs as though there is ANYONE on this fucking world who would go “ah yes, I have ONE song for every event that I ALWAYS want to listen to, no matter my mood.” That is absolutely ridi-“ “FREDBEAR AND FRIENDS THEME SONG!” Jeremy instantly screamed, a big smile on his face. “It’s so cute! So happy! I love it so much!” I’ll be your friend, right to the end! Join the party! Don’t be afraid, we’ll find a way! Join the party! Follow the pack, we’ll have a blast! Join the party! I’m here for you, we’ll make it through! JOIN THE PARTY!

Irritated Mike glared at him. “Is that even a song? Technically speaking? It’s a fucking INTRO.” This disagreement was quickly dismissed by Jeremy. “No, it is a song that I love very much.” There was an annoyed sigh, but not much pushback. “… fine. I have a SHITTON of songs I like, but… I think my currently favorite song is… ULTRAnumb by Blue Stahli. I don’t know. It hits just right.” VIOLATED! SO DEGRADED! The show has just begun! (Three, two, one!) DOMINATED BY ALL YOU HATED! This will make you ULTRANUMB!

Phone Guy seemed a bit embarrassed. “U-uhm… I don’t, uh, listen to much music. I really like the stuff they put in the background of documentaries is actually pretty impressive stuff. I like that, but I can’t really… access that? I mean, I don’t know how to. But I like having something calming in the background.” So… soundtracks, huh? There are pretty good soundtracks, like “Winds over Neo Tokyo” from the movie Akira- “I think though as a SONG, I really like… a bit dumb probably, but “Feel Good Inc.” by Gorillaz? It’s probably pretty standard… but, uh. I like the light distortion. Makes it easy to sing along. And I kinda, uh- relate to the feeling of hopelessness in it…” Windmill, windmill for the land… Turn forever hand in hand! Take it all in on your stride, It is ticking, falling down Love forever, love has free, Let’s turn forever you and me! Windmill, windmill for the land Is everybody in…? “Uh- I know the song is probably about something completely else, but I just-“ Scratching the back of his neck, Phone Guy looked away. “I don’t know. I’m sorry.”

Materializing out of thin air, Nemo proceeded to T-pose. “YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT MUSIC. YES. MY TIME HAS COME. I have the best taste from everyone here. I have the EDGY music.” Getting out his MP3-player, he began searching through the music library. “Ah, there we go. This one. “Arrested Youth” – The Kid I Used To Know. That the one!” Life is a voyage some people try to avoid it- I seek to try and destroy it, I swear I feel like a toilet bowl, Shitting on everything I’ve ever said or I’ve done You told me this should be fun! Thanks for the talk, are we done?! This is my masterpiece, a tragedy, I wrote it myself, It’s full of irony and blasphemy, it’s practically hell, But the perfect part about it is it’s all that I’ve got! I’m over wasting time in life trying to be something I’m not!

‘Cause fuck that shit! Yeah, I don’t want be that kid. No, I’m not going to hang my head, And be another accident!

So long to the kid that I used to know! So long to the place that I used to go! I’m not an R.I.P. I’m not another sick, sad tragedy! “The song is great, I absolutely relate to it.” The teen laughed. “Especially the tone of the singer. Really fits me. I could imagine writing songs like that myself!” A bit too excited, he began oversharing. “I always wanted to write songs. And I did! A lot, kept them in a little book.” His expression broke a bit. “… then I lost it. At home. Somehow.” He turned a bit bitter. “Yeah. Asked mom. She didn’t see it. Asked dad. Of course, he had NO idea. Anyways.” He threw his bitterness away with a shrug. “Now you know the reason why I’m actually not rich and famous yet. I lost like… 3 years of absolute riches to that setback and I feel stolen from. The world OWES me and castle and I WILL get it. But until then, I guess I listen to other artists like me!”

Dave was jumping up and down excited. “Oh, oh, Anon Sport, you don’t even KNOW how many I have! Like everything Sportsy whistles! And Rasputin- that one- oh, oh, no, in one car I stole there was a CD- and they had a group- Royal Republic? Funky songs, pal, lemme tell ya. Listen to it while rushing down the highway, it made it some of my favorites! The best is “Good to be Bad” though, no contest!” Oh lord come help me die! I can’t believe my eye! I’m not the same that I was when I got here! I´ve made a dirty mess, My lord I do confess, I know I’ve been bad, So bad! I’m not the only one! I’m not the bastard-son! The other kids made me do things that I don’t usually do… Misunderstood, I’m the plague of the neighborhood! And it feels so good! So good! “Seein’ Sporty making a flip in the running car while this was playin’ was somethin’ MAGICAL!”

Marion scoffed. Was he even included in “the gang”? Well, if Jeremy was, so was he. “Seeing as I never had much choice in listening to the music I could like, I don’t really have a taste. Everything that isn’t nursery rhymes made into songs is GREAT. Especially if it has nothing to do with music boxes.” It still calmed him down to hear music like that, but he developed a bit of a grudge against it. Sure, he and Jeremy were working on that, but he really couldn’t call it his favorite kind of music. “… well, Dave oftentimes played the CD he just mentioned while transporting me. I guess I liked a few songs from there? Somewhat? “Everybody Wants to Be an Astronaut” was pretty good.” I can feel my body shiver, the lights are everywhere! They marvel at my heartbeats inside the atmosphere… And I’m looking at the world, in a way you never could! I knew I’d be a traveling man, but I misunderstood… So tell me, why is it we’re never happy?

‘Cause everybody wants to be an astronaut! And take the long tall trail into the stars! Everybody wants to show a brother what they got! Everybody wants to be an astronaut! Marion looked away. What he kept for himself was that he really disliked the last line. Everybody wants to be a superstar! No. None of the kids wanted to be a superstar. … ‘cause everybody’s happy when they’re playing the guitar! Everybody but them. Everybody. But them. So tell me, why is it we’re never happy?

Old Sport smiled, for a moment a bit sadly. “Oh, it used to be “Not too late” by Lemaitre.” Not Too Late my friend! Take it up and try again! I’ll stand right here… While you walk to face the end, As the skys clear up again I’ll disappear- And have a go again… Snapping out of his emotional side, he laughed. “But now I actually have TASTE, thus it’s TAYLOR SWIFT’S “Look what you made me do”, RIGHT MIKEY-“ “YOU HATE THAT SONG TOO, ADMIT TO IT. YOU FUCKING HATE IT. ESPECIALLY THE REFRAIN. IT’S ALL SUCH UTTER SHIT, YOU ONLY PUT IT ON TO FUCKING TORMENT ME. FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU!” “Like clockwork. It’s a thing of beauty.” He laughed until Mike quieted down from the back, then looked back at the Anon. “But seriously, why did you even include me. You know what it is! THE CLASSICS! “All Star” and “Never Gonna Give You Up”! Well, maybe with a dash on “We are number one” for good measure. You know, the songs people with TASTE listen to.”

Ethan was sitting in the back, looking at the golden guard badge he had received for signing up with the company. Quietly he sung. “Sven Korner was in the newspapers this Monday Big picture from a time he danced the waltz Yes, he took the life of Victoria Come home, explain to Christiania “Come here, officer, here are thousand bucks I’ve saved” And give me Korner, and give me him soon!” He closed his hands around the badge. “It’s a song by Kaizers Orcherstra. I just happened to stumble over it- originally it’s in the Norwegian language- I do not even know how I found the translation. But I like it a lot. It helps me work.” He hadn’t found her. He wasn’t even quite sure in what kind of afterlife he was. But it gave him great satisfaction to know the man who did this to his daughter was in a far, far worse place. “I know what’s in store for you… I know what it is you’re hoping for, I know what’s in store for you.

Oh, you have a tune you think everybody will follow! But I wouldn’t follow that tune, not on my life! We’re playing poker with a revolver, Having no respect for Fredrik Meltzer… Now you shall dance to our tune 'till you bleed! You shall dance Ompa 'till you Die!

Think about it, Sven, how good it will be in Heaven… I hope you fold your hands before you go to bed… Cause it can get hot down here. It can be hot down here. Sven, it can get hot as hell down here!” -

Henry leaned back bemused. “The best thing about this ask is certainly that everyone now knows what a horrible taste you have.” Says the guy who has his head so far up his ass that he basically only listens to classic. “Oh, no. I listen to everything. But at least I acknowledge that everything I hear has some form of merit, even if it is not my taste. You however, do not, thus you can be shamed for your taste.” Screw you.

[incomprehensiblelentils]

I did not get around to this yesterday but, a short selection of fictional things that meant a lot to me over the last decade! ...it is going under a cut bc it is Too Long sorry lmao.

Books

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng: this book came out in September 2017 and I have read it four times already. It’s the kind of book I want to write but I’m not sure I’m clever enough to: every event and every character is so purposeful and you won’t catch everything the first time through. Every time I reread it I find something new to marvel at. I hope the Hulu series is half as good

Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng: this was the first piece of fiction I ever found with a family with a Chinese father and a white mother. This family is a lot less functional than my family, but I've read this three times because that means the world to me. 

Ash by Malinda Lo: I discovered this in 2011 and it was the first f/f novel I ever read, and as I would later learn, one of a handful with a happy ending at the time, particularly in YA fiction. For a long time, I reread it every time I felt hopeless. I just reread it again last month and it is still as beautiful and meaningful to me as in 2011.

Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan: This is an Asian-inspired fantasy (becoming more common now, but still irritatingly rare) written by a queer Asian woman, with f/f. I think it is only the second one of these, after Ash? It is frustratingly rare, anyway. The worldbuilding is incredible also.

The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan: We are getting more stories about biracial Asians, but they are still pretty rare and I treasure every one. This one felt so real to me.

The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth: The first half of this book captures so beautifully what it’s like growing up queer in a religious environment when you don’t even have the words or self-awareness to know what you’re feeling. This was another one I read over and over again when I was feeling low.

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater: this is just a book for horse girls. I don’t know how else to describe this lol. I also feel like the romance is super downplayed until the very end, and honestly barely feels like a romance to me, so that’s refreshing!

Movies:

Pacific Rim (2013): I remember having this weird feeling when asked to give my top 3 movies once in high school, like maybe my favorite movie hadn’t come out yet so I couldn’t answer properly. I was right; this is the movie I was waiting for. This is my favorite movie. The feelings this movie gives me is the standard I hold all movies to.

Terminator: Dark Fate (2019): but Megan, didn’t this just come out? Yes, and it’s my other favorite movie now. I love (almost) every second of this movie. This movie made me feel a way that I thought maybe I might never feel again, after a certain other franchise movie this year took a dump on my heart. I don’t care that we’re never getting a sequel, we got this and that’s enough for me.

Thor (2011): Those of you who have been around awhile know that I really love this movie. I loved it before we all jumped on the Thor train after Ragnarok and I will continue to love it probably my whole life. It just makes me happy.

Aquaman (2018): This is Thor but underwater and with a biracial hero. It made me cry in the theater and I do not want to hear any negative opinions about it, I find them personally wounding.

Belle (2013): The fact that Gugu Mbatha-Raw isn’t a superstar is tragic, and this movie is gorgeous and lovely and made me feel a lot of things as a biracial person.

Mad Max Fury Road (2015): I remember seeing the trailer for this in the theater and going “yikes that looks like a thing I would never watch.” Joke’s on you, past me!!!! I find this a deeply stressful but glorious film that I can only watch like, once or twice a year.

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010): I do not need or want to hear about how this movie is Problematic, I know all of its issues, and yet. It brings me joy and it was one of the first movies I saw when I was just starting to break out of my religious upbringing and I laugh until I cry every time I watch it.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015): I am starting to realize that I am not and never really was a Star Wars Fan, which is to say that like...I love this movie specifically, I love the characters, I love the interactions, I love the stuff that happens. I do not so much love Star Wars as a whole? I like it fine! But this movie is the only part of the franchise to really make me go “oh, I get it.”

Professor Marston and the Wonder Women (2017): This was a weird little movie that nobody saw and nobody talked about, but I adore it because it’s so gentle and romantic. I don’t know how accurate it is to history and frankly I do not really care.

Big Hero 6 (2014): are you tired of me mentioning I’m biracial yet? This movie has biracial protagonists and a cute squishy robot and no romance and superhero stuff and I love it so much.

F8: The Fate of the Furious (2017): I went to go see this on a whim with my wife and it was one of the most joyous theater experiences of my life. I don’t know, I just love everything about it.

TV shows:

Community: This only kind of counts because it started in 2009 but I started it mid-s2 so eh. Seasons 1-3 of this show are written on my heart, I can quote a ridiculous amount of dialogue from them and these characters will stay with me forever. Warts and all, this is my show.

Dollhouse: Another technicality but like, I met my wife because we both loved Bennett Halverson so I gotta put this on here. It’s pretty significantly affected my life! Also I find that it holds up fairly well, if you’re down for the admittedly iffy premise and an ending that’s a bit of a mess narratively due to sudden cancellation.

Agents of SHIELD: I would never claim that this show is “good” but I do think that it has mostly figured out what the hell it’s doing. And it has been a pretty significant part of my fandom life for the last 6 years, so to leave it off this list would feel wrong. It gave me Daisy Johnson, first canon biracial superhero as played by a biracial actor, and for that i will always be grateful.

Warehouse 13: I could not tell you why I fell so deeply in love with this dumb, badly written show that shit the bed in the final episode more spectacularly than I could have imagined, and yet I did! I think probably it is because I love found family so much, and also I find goofy camp charming more often than not. And of course, there is Bering and Wells, the femslash ship that fandom forgot. I will never be over how no one knows what we have suffered!!!!!

Runaways: wow was this a surprise! The Runaways comic is my favorite comic besides Marjorie Liu’s X-23 run, and this show has basically nothing to do with it, and normally that would piss me off but they got my kids’ personalities down so well and all of the actors are so perfect that I really can’t complain. And also, this show has canon f/f and neither of them die at the end! Which is...better than some other shows I could mention!

Doctor Who series 1 and 5: I had a very intense Doctor Who phase in college, and after all was said and done and I quit the show for a time, I realized that although I love a lot of the characters, and Thirteen’s run is pretty good so far, what I really loved was Nine’s run and Eleven’s first season. That is the show at its best to me. Eccleston is my Doctor and Amy is my favorite companion.

Legends of Tomorrow: Look, I am as shocked as anyone that this, the scrappy underdog of the DCTV lineup, is the one that’s most emotionally competent and has the best character arcs! But here we are. Season 4 was some of my favorite TV I’ve seen, uh, ever.

Albums

Dirty Computer by Janelle Monae: I listened to this for basically a year straight after it came out. It’s just ridiculously good.

Something Fierce by Marian Call: This was my on-repeat album in college. i drew a lot of strength from it, and I think that it’s still the best album to recommend to people who ask me about her.

Standing Stones by Marian Call: I heard most of these songs live at concerts before they were quite done yet, so it was really special to get to hear them all collected together like this. I’m going to get a tattoo with a lyric from one of these songs because no one’s quite been able to put my basic philosophy into words quite like Marian.

Heartthrob by Tegan and Sara: Hot Take, I know, because a lot of people hate this album, but it was so affirming to go out and buy A Lesbian Album from A Lesbian Band in 2013.

The Rent movie soundtrack: I know, I KNOW, but in my defense, my parents got me this for my birthday my first year of college and I needed it so desperately. I can definitely still do “La Vie Boheme” from the beginning and probably most of the other songs too.

In the Heights OBCR: I can only listen to this when I want to cry, but it’s my favorite musical. I got to see the show in 2018 and it was incredible. I think it’s better than Hamilton and I can’t wait for the movie to come out.

Trouble by Natalia Kills: this album is really great and also it says fuck a lot, which I used to be very nervous about hearing or saying, and this helped immensely!

[finnyboywolfhard]

The 4:11 Train pt7

summary: Train Number 9547 boarded at 4:11. A girl got on the train to escape her parents pressure. A boy got on the train to escape his superstar reputation. It was a train ride to remember.

part 1 part 2 part 3 part 4 part 5 part 6 part 8

word count: 1,047

Devon

The girl sat there and she wanted to read the letter from her grandmother to him.

"Hey finny? Can I read you something?"

"Yeah of course."

"So this is a letter from my grandmother. She wrote it to me before she passed." The girls eyes began to well with tears and she shakily unfolded the letter that was previously in her wallet.

The girl began reading the letter.

"My dearest Y/N. Hello my sweet girl, when you're reading this you'll probably be very sad, and I don't want you to be sad. I know that I'm gone, but I'm still right next to you. You're probably wondering why I'm writing you this. It's to tell you to not give up no matter what. I know that you wanted to make movies, and be a go getter but your parents are trying to decide what you're going to do. Now listen to me. I see the way your eyes light up when watching and talking about a movie. I see the way you jump with joy when you get a new ticket stub. I know you keep every ticket you've ever gotten in a jar, and I don't want you to ever stop. Y/N, I believe that film is your destiny. It was mine and I am so pleased to pass it onto you. I'm leaving you money for film school, but keep it a secret from your parents. I'm also leaving you our movie collection, you'll want it. Although, it will be in storage until you have your own home. Y/N, my love, you have been the brightest little light in my life and I love you so much. Bring that bright light onto screens everywhere, win an Oscar, become the best female filmmaker in the world. Make your mark my dear. I believe in you and I will be right next to you the entire way. I love you, I love you, I love you my beautiful girl. Stay bright. With love and adoration, Your Grandmother. PS, you're going to read this to someone one day, and they should know it's because you trust them. " the girl laughed reading the PS out loud.

The girl silently wiped away the few tears that fell. Her grandmother was her best friend and she loved her so much.

And then the boy was overcome with guilt. The girl trusted him but he's been lying to her about who he was the whole time. And the boy decided he was going to be honest, he needed to be.

Berwyn

The girl noticed how quiet the boy had become. She began to worry. What did she do wrong? Did she say something to make him mad.

"Finn, are you okay?"

"Y/N, I need to be honest with you." The boy took a deep sigh in. "I'm not a photographer."

"Okay big deal, what do you do?"

"I'm an actor, and I have been since I was young. I was in Stranger Things and the 2017 adaptation of IT. I was in a mass amount of other movies. And I'm also in a band. A band that we have talked about today. You know Calpurnia, ya know City Boy?" The girl nodded her head slowly. "I'm the singer and I'm playing guitar. I'm so sorry for lying to you Y/N, I was just scared you'd treat me differently because I'm famous."

The girl sighed slightly, and took a deep breath in.

"You waited this long to tell me? Tell me again what you were in."

"Stranger Things, which was one of the top Netflix shows. The 2017 adaptation of IT by Stephen King, one of the top grossing movies of the year. I was in Dog Days with A few famous people. I was in The Turning another horror movie. I was in the Goldfinch, based off of the book. And a whole bunch more, but Y/N listen to me, I didn't mean to hurt you. At least I was honest about knowing Calpurnia and them writing good songs, I mean hell, I wrote them for gods sake."

The boy became exasperated trying to please her, he just wanted her to understand what he was feeling. He wasn't trying to show off or anything. He was just trying to help her understand.

"Finn, you said you weren't trying to hurt me. But you did. I trusted you, I've known you for literally an hour, and I trusted you. So much."

The girl was hurt beyond words.

The boy just wanted to help her.

Daylesford

The girl stood up and moved to a different seat. She was furious, and sad, and confused. She was overwhelmed with emotion.

Why did he do that to her? Is what she thought, and then she made up her mind.

He did it because he wanted her to see him as him, but she was going to see that no matter what. She wasn't greedy, she was vulnerable to him. She just wanted a friend. She understood where he was coming from, but how cliche of him.

The next thought she had was, is he really sorry.

That answer was easy for her. Yes. He's was obviously overcome by guilt about it.

Did he mean to hurt her?

No. He didn't mean to, it just happened, he didn't think about it.

What made him confess?

The letter. The PS struck him that she trusted him, and he felt guilty enough to open up. That shows a lot of his character.

And finally the biggest kicker of her questions.

Could she forgive him?

She wanted to, she really did. But was there anyway for her to fully trust him again? Of course there was, or at least she thought there was. He did care about her, it was clear to see. And she cared about him. She understood why he did it, and if he was willing enough to open up, he would be willing again.

The girl sat in that new seat for an entire stop. She processed everything. And the more she processed the more relaxed she became.

The more she sat there, the more he worried. He gave her space, she would need time to think.

That was until he walked over to her.

[seriestrash]

You Me Her

1 || 2 || 3 || 4 || 5 || 6 || 

Chapter Seven: New Beginnings 

Word Count: 5978

↠ ♥ ↞

After what had been an incredibly stressful six months after Thanksgiving Riley feels as though she’s gained a little more control over her life. In that time, three new relationships blossomed. The first was between, Riley and Noah.

Since their brief encounter back during the auditions for Grease, Riley began interacting with Noah more often. Not in a romantic sense by any means but they’d share small smiles if they passed each other in the halls and they’d chat before and after English. Noah even started to frequent Topanga’s during summer vacation along with a few of his football teammates. Riley began to pick up on something that Kai was otherwise oblivious to. 

During that Summer - before the storm of Thanksgiving - Riley earned herself a nickname. It was ten minutes past closing time at the bakery and Riley finally found the courage to ask a few students from her school if they could leave so she could close up. When the bakery was empty Riley locked herself in and began to clean up. 

Riley turned up the radio hoping the music would help melt away that anxious feeling she gets when left alone at the bakery. The upbeat opening of a familiar song began to play. Riley had heard it dozens of times before and had bopped along happily to it but now the first line earned an eye roll from the brunette. 

♫ “I used to think maybe you loved me, now baby I’m sure...” ♫

Riley wondered when every song in existence would stop sounding so ironic to her or when lyrics would stop feeling like personal attacks on her feelings. 

Even with the irony and sarcastic mumbling through the first verse, Riley still found herself warming up the the song. By the chorus Riley was fully into it, loudly singing along as she goofily swept the floor. 

♫ “I'm walking on sunshine (Wow!), I'm walking on sunshine (Wow!). And don't it feel good.” ♫

Someone clearing their throat made Riley jump and completely tense up with fear. Riley turned slowly to find Noah standing by the bathroom doors looking like he was just as scared as her.

“Noah!” Riley tried to steady her breath. 

“I didn’t mean to scare you,” Noah said quickly. “I was on the phone in the bathroom-” 

“Which I didn’t check were empty before I locked up..” Riley palmed her face for forgetting. 

“I heard the music and I didn’t want to sneak up on you and well I scared you anyway. I’m sorry.” Noah said genuinely. 

“That’s okay,” Riley gave him a small smile. “I’m super jumpy doing these closes by myself anyway.” 

“Since I’m already here I could wait with you?” Noah offered. “And walk you home after?” 

“That’s alright, you don’t have to go to the trouble.” Riley shook her head. “I only live around the corner.” 

“Well if it’s only around the corner then it’s no trouble.” Noah smiled as he reached for the broom in Riley’s hand. “I can help you finish out here and you can do whatever you have to behind the counter.” 

Riley’s brows remained crinkled for a moment. This boy was so sweet but that’s not what sees her frozen in thought, her confusion was directed at Kai’s irritation with Noah. Even if Noah did like Riley romantically - which she knew he didn’t - Riley felt as though she’d be extremely lucky to be on the receiving end of his affection. 

Riley finished closing the register just as Noah finished wiping down the table tops and bringing the outside chairs in. Riley met him by the door with her bag hung over her shoulder and a paper bag in hand. 

“Thank you.” Riley said as she extended the bag to him. 

“What’s this?” Noah smiled as he took it. 

“It’s one of those Maple danish’s you always order.” Riley smiled. 

Noah’s eyes lit up and he inhaled a whiff of the sweet scent. “Thank you!” 

Riley locked up and Noah escorted her home. As they were parting ways out front of Riley’s building Noah waved his half eaten pastry about. “Thanks for the danish, Sunshine.” 

Riley coaxed her head to the side, questioning his last word.

“Wow!” Noah sings goofily like the song he’d caught her singing along to. A nickname that would be used by Noah more than Riley’s actual name. 

Come sophomore year Riley and Noah had three classes together; English like the previous year and now Chemistry and Physical Education too. 

The two certainly had the foundations set for a proper friendship. Since Grease, they were the kind of people to share pleasantries when they saw each other and after that night in the bakery they became more casual friends but the real solidification of their friendship - the moment that sparks a realisation in a person when they realise just how much they care about someone - came two weeks after Thanksgiving.

After receiving yet another low grade in English, Noah approached Riley very sheepishly and asked if she’d help him pick up his grades. He was very embarrassed by it and felt as though he knew Riley well enough to get her help without the judgement. Football is very important to Noah so maintaining his grades is something he’s serious about as it means he can keep his place on the team. 

Happily, Riley agreed to help Noah with his assessments. The first unit assigned to the class after Noah asked for Riley’s help was an oral presentation on a book they were reading. This sparked instant dread in Noah as he’s admittedly a terrible public speaker. Riley gently encouraged him through it and as a result she really helped Noah with his public speaking. She had definitely struggled with insecurities herself but ultimately Riley thought she was a confident person so she tried to use this to help Noah navigate through some of his anxiety. 

The more time that Riley spent with Noah the funnier she found his personality. Not that it was funny ‘ha ha’ but it’s as if Noah wass the embodiment of everything you’d think Kai would be at first glance. 

Riley loved how confident Kai was in his cute boy glasses look. It had Riley wearing heart eyes for her friend on the daily. Then there’s Noah who is a ridiculously good looking boy. Tall, muscular and wow but the superstar jock was really just a shy puddle of nerves with the kindest heart. Riley melts in his presence just based on how genuinely sweet he is. 

It’s like both the boys switched persnoalities if you bought into that whole ‘judging a book by it’s cover’ thing. Which Riley didn’t but she couldn’t ignore the funny side to it.

It’s during the period of time where Riley was helping with the oral assigment that Noah accidentally stumbled upon Riley when she was trying to have a quiet emotional moment. They were set to meet out in the courtyard after school when he found her visibly upset. Panicked and genuinely concerned for his new friend Noah tried his best to guide her through it. 

Embarrassed, Riley pleads with Noah to keep quiet about this to which he agreed but he tried to urge Riley to confide in Kai if she hadn’t already since they were sort of best friends now. Riley shook it off and said she was fine and preferred to leave Kai out of it. 

It was only three days later that Noah’s concerns for Riley became too much and he found himself in the most unlikely of places. No one was more surprised than Kai to find Noah nervously fidgeting in the doorway of his bedroom. But instead of shunning him like he usually does Kai heard him out and his genuine concern for Riley touched him. Kai was really appreciative that Noah confided in him even though he was clearly distressed about breaking Riley’s trust. So much so that he defends Noah when Riley expressed how she felt betrayed by him sharing her secret. Kai also gave Riley a light lecture about how their friendship works and hiding her feelings might have cut it with her old friends but not with him. They get through each day together. Riley realised he was right and she did feel immediately better once someone knew what was going on with her. Even though it took many more months to properly get past it completely. 

The day after Riley found out that Noah shared her ‘secret’ with Kai she avoided him at school but eventually he caught up with her and apologised profusely. 

“Worst secret keeper ever.” Riley huffs as they walk. 

“I know but you have to understand that it came from a good place. I told someone you trust because I was scared I couldn’t help you.” Noah was genuine.

“I know.” Riley softened. “I probably would have done the same thing if I were you...” 

“So am I forgiven?” Noah asked. 

“There’s nothing to forgive.” Riley smiled. “You’re just lucky I’m a better secret keeper.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Noah chuckled nervously. 

“Look, I made a promise to myself that I would never tell someone how they feel ever again.” Riley shook her head. “But It’s okay, you know... to feel whatever you feel for whomever you feel.” 

“You know?” Noah lowered his voice to a whisper. 

“I’ve had a suspicion.” Riley shrugged a shoulder. 

“Since?” Noah questioned. 

“Not long after the auditions for Grease.” Riley admitted. 

It was like all the colour left Noah’s face and he entered a state of panic. 

“It’s okay, it was a completely silent observation I made.” Riley tried to calm him down.

“I just haven't told anyone, ya know? I’m not even sure I know how I feel...” Noah gave Riley a look and she nodded in understanding. 

“I didn’t mean for it to seem like I was pushing for a ... confession, for lack of a better term.” Riley frowned. “I’m sorry, I just know that feelings can suck. I mean you saw me feeling it all a few days ago. I just want you to know that if things suck for you too then I’m here to listen.” 

“I’m supposed to be giving you the pep talk.” Noah frowned. “That was part of my apology.” 

“Well it works both ways doesn’t it?” Riley gave him a small but sweet smile. “Friendship and all that?” 

“I suppose you’re right.” A wide smile crept upon Noah’s face. 

Quite quickly Kai’s animosity towards Noah faded completely. The moment he saw the genuine concern Noah had for Riley, Kai’s opinion of him changed entirely. The two boys had joined forces in assuring Riley’s wellbeing. It’s like they both became babysitters for Riley’s emotions, which at times got frustrating but nowhere near as much as when her old group of friends were asking if she was okay every five minutes. Riley understood now that she needed to lean on her friends to heal, so she did. 

It had been three weeks since Thanksgiving which sparked the emotional storm within Riley. The pain caused by cutting off ties with her friends loomed over her. It had been one week since Noah stumbled upon an upset Riley in the courtyard and the three new friends find themselves in Kai’s living room watching movies together. Riley was the first to doze off and semi awkward tension lingers between the two boys as Riley acted as a buffer between then usually. 

“Did she fall asleep?” Noah whispered as the end credits of the movie play. 

“Yeah, she always passes out before ten.” Kai chuckled. 

“Maybe I should go.” Noah continued to speak softly. 

“You don’t have to,” Kai said. “And you don’t have to whisper, Ri sleeps like a rock.” 

Noah gave him a shy nod and Kai pressed play on the next film. The two continued to awkwardly side glancing each other. Noah was self conscious about his laughing and Kai whom is normally an outgoing person fell victim to the tension in the room. Not being able to bear it any longer, Kai hit pause on the movie. 

“This is super weird.” Kai expressed loudly. 

“I can go.” Noah panicked and stood from his seat. 

“I didn’t mean, go,” Kai laughed as he griped Noah’s wrist and pulled him back down. “I just mean that you have to admit us hanging out is strange, right?” 

“I guess,” Noah nodded. “But social discomfort is my default setting so the weirdness is probably my fault.” 

Kai let out a soft chuckle at how adorably shy Noah was. “I feel like I owe you an apology.” 

“What for?” Noah scrunched up his face in confusion. 

“Misjudging you.” Kia admitted. “I lumped you in with a few choice jocks I’ve encountered in the past. I let their jerky behaviour speak for all, including you.” 

“That’s alright. A couple of the guys on the football team are a little...” Noah grimaced, allowing Kai to fill in the blank. “But we’re not all bad.” 

“I’m sorta disgusted at how close-minded I was.” Kai crinkled his nose. “That’s not what I’m about at all.” 

“Well you’re getting to know me now.” Noah fidgeted in his seat. 

“Yeah, it’s nice to know your intentions with Riley are genuine.” Kai said as a thought spoken aloud. 

“What?” Noah frowned.

“I thought when I saw you at the auditions for Grease you were trying to hit on Riley.” Noah had no choice but to explain himself. 

“What?” Noah squeaked, almost loud enough to wake up Riley. The brunette stirred but remained asleep. 

“After the thing with Lucas I heard gross chatter in the boys locker room about her being fair game.” Kai explained. 

“And you thought I sat with Riley in an attempt to... conquer her?” Noah looked disgusted and Kai misinterpreted his reaction as him being grossed out by Riley so he jumped on the defence. 

“You’d be lucky to have Riley.” Kai snapped. 

“No arguments here.” Noah frowned. “I’m disgusted that you’d think that’s why I was there. I didn’t even know Riley was auditioning for the play. I sat with her because I know she’s friendly and I didn’t want to be weird and sit alone.” 

“I told you I misjudged you, I’m sorry!” Kai said defensively. 

“Riley doesn’t think I was using her does she?” Noah softened and is concerned his new found friend might have thought he used her. Not for the reason Kai thought but for another.  

“No she’s always telling me I’ve got the wrong idea about you.” Kai let out a sigh. “But I’m stubborn and didn’t believe her when I should have.” 

Noah let out a breath of relief. Kai shifted his position and coaxed his head. “So if you didn’t go there to seek out Riley, why did you?” 

“I told you I was just watching.” Noah tensed up. “Are we going to watch a movie or should I just go home?” 

“Calm down.” Kai chuckled, amused by Noah’s huffy reaction. “You can pick the next movie.” With that the glasses wearing boy playfully threw a handful of popcorn at his new friend causing the taller boy to break with a smile.  

After owning up to misjudging Noah a second friendship is born between him and Kai. Only this one surpassed friendship rather quickly. Again, no one was more surprised than Kai to find Noah’s lips on his. The shock quickly turned into exhilaration and an undeniable sense of rightness.

This surprising development came as no surprise to Riley as her silent suspicion had been proven right. Noah was hanging around for Kai, not her. 

Noah’s infatuation for Kai sparked a few weeks into freshman year. One afternoon Noah was leaving school after practice and he heard laughter coming from one of the classrooms. It was the drama club meeting, they were brainstorming ideas for the winter musical. Noah stopped as he caught glimpse of a boy he hadn’t seen before. Kai was sitting on top of his desk with crossed legs as he captivated the room with some story. It wasn’t long into Noah’s sheepish gazing through the window that a few of his football friends caught up with him and loudly made their presence known causing Kai to look over with an eye roll thus forming his misguided opinion of Noah.

This was the first time in Noah’s life that he’d ever felt that way about someone. For years leading up that moment Noah’s mind was clouded with a frustrating confusion when it came to romance. He had no idea if he liked boys, girls, or if he was interested in anyone at all. It was as if he had a serious disconnect with it came to romantic feelings which was something that bothered him a lot growing up. Embarrassed by his confusion, Noah kept to himself about it. Unsure how to broach the subject with his family members. Noah had two older brothers, one and two years older than him, both very interested in the ladies also both very interested in Noah’s love life. 

Unsure exactly what that something was that Noah felt for the stranger almost made it more exciting and he decided to make a quiet effort to work it out. Not knowing the boys name he came up with the idea of quietly slipping into the drama auditions where he could maybe find that out, amongst clearing up some other confusing thoughts in his brain. 

Noah almost didn’t enter the auditorium that day, but he sucked in a deep breath and quietly walked inside. Once he spotted Riley, Noah found himself walking over to her. They hadn’t really spoken before but he knew she was definitely kind. Once Kai approached them Noah had never felt more anxious in his life and he was anxious all the time so the overload was almost too much and he bailed quite quickly. 

After that Noah was still confused about a lot of things but for whatever unexplainable reason he knew he liked this boy. Noah became harmlessly fixated on Kai. It wasn’t extreme stalking but there were definitely some strategic manoeuvres that saw the two of them in the same place, like Topanga’s bakery for example. 

Being too shy to do absolutely anything else, Noah came to accept that he’d just have to admire Kai from afar. So, on the night that Noah first approached Kai about Riley’s episode he was terrified about it completely but for the sake of Riley he knew he had to put his own worries aside. 

After Noah and Kai’s first kiss, more were quick to follow. Riley knew immediately before they even said anything what had happened. The brunette tried to keep her distance and let them explore the new territory but both of them were still very invested in making sure Riley was okay so the three became practically inseparable during this time. 

Things for Noah slowly started to make more sense and quite quickly he found the confidence to tell people about his relationship with Kai. In his eyes it wasn’t that big of a deal, it was just am easy “Mom, Dad, I’ve started dating a boy” followed by a simple hand hold down the hallway at school. 

Once Noah owned that part of himself it’s like his confidence soared. Yes, he was still quiet and at times bashful and a lot of the times confused but it was like he was finally okay with his feelings, confused or not and being okay made him a great deal less anxious. 

The third friendship came three months after Thanksgiving. Noah and Kai had been openly dating for almost a month. Riley approached her now usual lunch table, Riley spotted Noah and Kai being their ridiculously cute selves and the back of a girl that Riley couldn’t place the identity of. She walked up to the table with a warm smile but let out squeak once she realised who the mystery girl was. The girl with mousy brown hair let out a chuckle seeing that things haven’t changed much about Riley since their first encountered each other freshman year.

“Ri, you know Caitlin, right?” Noah fought the urge to laugh at her response too.

“She don’t like me!” Riley shrieked. 

At this point they were all laughing at Riley’s goofy response.

“Told ya she’d freak.” Caitlin smirked.  “Relax Matthews, I came here to speak to you.” Caitlin pulled out the chair next to her for Riley to take. Once Riley sat Caitlin continued. “Sorry if I was a little catty to you last year I was in a fight with my now ex-girlfriend and I may have taken it out on you a bit.”

“So it wasn’t me you didn’t like?” Riley wore hopeful smile.

“It was a little you..” Caitlin laughed and Riley pouted. 

“Did you just come here to remind me that you don’t like me?” Riley frowned. 

“No.” Caitlin shook her head. “I wanted to ask your help with something. I’ve approached the principal about restarting the school’s newspaper, even if it’s only an online version so I can showcase my photos.” Caitlin paused for a moment to wave the camera around her neck. “But I suck at the writing aspect of things.”

“Where do I fit into this?” Riley coaxed her head.

“I was speaking to Noah after class yesterday and he mentioned that you’re really good in English. That got me thinking that you could write the articles.” Caitlin explained. “This kind of stuff is really impressive on college applications.”

“Did you know about this?” Kai whispered to Noah but the two girls still heard him.

“No, I was just talking about how Riley helped me go from a C- to an A- in a few months.” Noah explained.

“This would be a lot of work wouldn’t it?” Kai looked concerned as he addressed the rest of the table again.

“A bit, I guess.” Caitlin shrugged. “But we could start small, just a couple articles about school events and eventually, hopefully more people will join the project.”

“Riley, I don’t know...” Kai remained concerned and so did Noah. Both of them had just spent months with an overworked Riley and were worried about her piling on more just when she got things on track again.

“Riley���s a big girl,” Caitlin gave Kai some sass as she was unaware of what warranted their concerns. “She can decide for herself.”

Riley appreciated the boys caring for her but she wanted to prove to them and to herself that she was more than ‘the storm of thanksgiving’. She was ready to be okay.

“Sure.” Riley said with smile that slowly grew wider. “Let’s do it.”

In the weeks that followed that conversation Riley and Caitlin worked really hard on relaunching the newspaper. They’d attend any school events and Riley would take notes whilst Caitlin snapped away with her camera. Caitlin suggested they start with 'puff pieces’ in order to get the green light from the school and eventually they could work up to more hard hitting stuff. The plan sounded perfect to Riley and she happily obliged.

Riley even enlisted the help of Smackle to give Caitlin and her a tutorial on web designing. At first the genius was really sheepish about it as things were the weirdest they’d ever been with her friend circle. Maya came back to school after thanksgiving and snapped at everyone when asked about Riley. All she offers up is a simple. “I don’t care what you do but Riley and I aren’t friends anymore.” No explanation. Nothing just a blunt statement that left everyone confused.

The hour Isadora spent with Riley made them both realise how much they missed each other and a pang of guilt hit Riley because when she broke things off with Maya she really was abandoning other great friendships in the process.

Both girls wanted to express how much they missed each other but neither knew how. Smackle nervously offered regular assistance to the girls. Her olive branch of sorts and Riley accepted. 

Up until that moment Riley thought that she’d have to have one or the other but being with Smackle made Riley realise that she didn’t want to completely let go of her old life. Part of her felt guilty for not valuing her friendship enough in the first place. Issy was possibly the only tether to her old laugh that Riley could manage. Her friendship with the genius didn’t cause heartbreak like her friendships with everyone else. Farkle trudged up some pent up anger Riley had, Maya and Lucas broke her heart and Zay unknowingly caused Riley to feel insecure. But Smack? She just wanted everyone to be friends which Riley couldn’t fault. Riley knew it would be hard to be Isadora’s friend. This girl was still friends with everyone else but Riley was willing to give it a shot, just as long as she didn’t feel herself being pulled under again. 

After preparing the first issue for the website, the three girls hovered nervously by the computer in the library.

“So you just click that button there and the first issue is published.” Smackle pointed at the screen.

“You do it, Riley.” Caitlin held her breath.

“No, you should be the one to do it!” Riley exclaimed. “This whole thing was your idea.”

“Yeah but I just wanted to show off my photos, your words are amazing.” Caitlin praised. “This is all you.”

“Would one of you press the button already?” Smackle groaned impatiently.

Caitlin let out a laugh at Smackles outburst. “I like her. She’s full of spunk.”

Riley mouth opened a jar and she gasped to which Caitlin laughed harder. “You’re alright too, Matthews.” She wore a smirk and Riley’s face lit up like first morning light.

“I really wish I didn’t find that so validating to hear!” Riley giggled her response.

Caitlin continued to smile. “Together?”

“Together.” Riley nodded and she took Smackle’s hand too, making the three of them click publish together.

For the remaining few months of the year the three sophomores published weekly issues. Smackle had a small roll, small to her as it all came easy where she’s spend an hour formatting the articles but Riley and Caitlin poured their spare time into it with photos and writing.

Riley felt amazing having something she loved doing. Not that drama club wasn’t fun for Riley, because it was but the only reason she joined was for Kai. And she’s still an active member but now she’s finding new passions in her life like writing and not just the articles but original, fictional stuff. The inspiration just flowed from her like a tap she couldn’t shut off. A tap she didn’t want to shut off.

Through the rest of the school year Riley learnt of Caitlin’s independence and how she genuinely enjoys her own company and how self assured she is which Riley really admired. It was certainly no secret to Caitlin how much Riley cares about what people think of her but after two girls established a connection Riley didn’t even feel the tiniest bit insecure about their friendship. Caitlin is a free spirit and she fluttered in and out when she pleased. Some days she’d sit with them at luch others she’d opt to be alone outside.

The friendship between Riley and Caitlin continued to blossom deep into the summer as well. Kai was still Riley’s best friend and now Noah became a daily reason for Riley to smile each day and even though Cait was probably more out of Riley’s life than in it was still nice to have a female influence her her life that was willing to do some of the things the guys weren’t.

The first weekend back during Riley’s junior year, Noah’s parents were out of town for business so his older brother, Kade, seized the opportunity to throw his first senior party. 

It took a lot of convincing but Riley agreed to attend. She arrives at 7pm and is let in by Kane. Riley then had to awkwardly pass a group of ten senior guys pre drinking in the living space on her way up to Noah’s room. 

Noah, Kai and Caitlin all sit cross-legged on the floor. Each one giggly and evidently tipsy. Riley smiled at their happy coos and politely rejected the drink offer. 

The four teens staid upstairs entertaining themselves until the party downstairs warmed up.

“So Kane invited the whole baseball team.” Noah said carefully as he watched for Riley’s reaction. After the eldest Pearson son graduated, Noah was now the only football player in his family at high school as Kane’s choice of sport was baseball. 

Riley did that cute blank stare where she pretends like she’s clueless to the point. 

“The whole team meaning, Lucas and Zay but more specifically, Lucas...” Noah clarified. 

“She knows.” Kai called Riley’s bluff.

“I hadn’t really thought about it.” Riley shrugged one shoulder. 

Kai gave her a minor eye roll. Not that he was annoyed by Riley’s feelings, it just bothered him how much she still cared because in his eyes, Lucas wasn’t worth it. 

Caitlin let out a groan. She was up to date with the situation that was but it felt a lot more trivial to her than it did to the boys whom had the emotional impact of it all in their minds. Caitlin only knew the basics, boy dates best friend and she was ready for them to all get over it and move on. 

“I vote you grab the first available guy downstairs and plant a big kiss on him and forget about wonder boy.” Caitlin fought the eye roll. 

“Yeah right.” Riley chuckled nervously and quickly tried to change focus of the conversation. 

By the time the group did venture downstairs, the entire living space was crammed with kids from school and loud music blurred everyones conversations into one. 

Kai drags a very reluctant Noah into the crowd of people dancing. Riley’s eyes cautiously scanned the room. 

“I don’t think he’s here.” Caitlin mumbled. 

“I wasn’t looking,” Riley lied. 

“Yeah right.” Caitlin gave her a knowing look. With that the free spirited girl danced her way into the crowd. 

Riley hung back by the stairs and watched everything go on around her. She watched Kai be his usual social self. Caitlin danced on her own, content and carefree. Even shy Noah seemed to be better at the whole party thing. He was off with a group of guys from the football team all chatting happily. 

Parties weren’t really Riley’s thing, she much preferred intimate gatherings with a few important people. So a small room crammed with perfect strangers just didn’t entice Riley all too much. 

The brunette retreats upstairs and returns to the comfort of Noah’s bedroom. Riley took a deep breath and sat herself at the edge of his bed. Riley had been in there no more than twenty minutes when she heard the muffled sound of Caitlin shooing party goers from the upstairs hall. Moments later she’s stumbling through the bedroom door. 

“There you are!” Caitlin huffed. “Should have known you’d be hiding.” 

“I’m not hiding.” Riley pouted. “I’m just having a moment.” 

“Well have a moment downstairs,” Caitlin slurred, evidently past the point of tipsy now. “This is a party!”

Riley knew there was no use in fighting her friend. Victoriously, Caitlin grabbed Riley by the hand and dragged her downstairs. They’re not even off the last step before a senior, Wyatt, started heckling the two girls. Obnoxiously ‘ooo’ing and ahh’ing’ about them holding hands. 

Riley was no stranger to the rumours that were bouncing around over the summer about her and Caitlin. Cait had apologised to Riley if the romantic rumours about them made her feel uncomfortable which she genuinely assured her that she was fine and that wasn’t even close to being something Riley would take offence over. 

Caitlin is very self assured and the crap she got for being into girls never bothered her slightly, she was only bothered when her friends were brought into it. Riley felt Caitlin tense up beside her as Wyatt kept going on in his drunken stupor. 

Caitlin in her drunken state was seconds away from losing her cool. Riley looked between her friend and Wyatt and let out a tiny groan. “Would you just get over it already?” The brunette broke the hand hold only to place both her hands on either side of Caitlin’s face and quickly she closed the space between their lips. 

Kissing Caitlin was much different than any of her other kisses. There was her first and only kiss with Lucas, her handful of kisses with Spencer during a Midsummer Night’s Dream and there was even a moment during a CPR class where Kai and Riley were pulled up front for the demonstration. Kai was supposed to pretend to blow air into Riley’s mouth but instead he gave her a peck on the lips causing them both to erupt in laughter, the rest of the class too. The instructor wasn’t too thrilled but it made for a very funny moment. 

Caitlin’s lips were much softer than anyone else's and tasted like vanilla Chapstick. Everything about the moment was different, not different bad but it wasn’t exactly life changing either. Riley broke away first. Caitlin was left with an expression that suggested she knew what Riley was doing but it still took her by surprise.  

“Can we all move on with our lives now?” Riley addressed Wyatt and the group of people that had joined in with the spectating. Noah and Kai both present and looking just as surprised as everyone else. 

The four of them made their way away from the other kids watching. Riley looked up as they were walking and locked eyes with Lucas, Zay only a step behind him. Both Texans looking stunned as they had witnessed it all. Riley hadn’t noticed them arrive, she didn’t stop or even react to them she just kept walking. 

Outside in the hall Kai is the first to squeak his confusion. 

“Everyone is always making a big deal out of nothing.” Riley shrugged her shoulder. “So maybe this will shut them up.” 

“Shut them up?” Kai chuckled. “Ri, that will be talked about from now until forever.” 

Riley managed another slight shrug and turned to Caitlin with a quiet apology. 

“You don’t have to be sorry, Riley.” Caitlin stated. “I get why you did it but you don’t have to go around kissing me or any other girls to convince me that you’re okay with this.” 

“Did you see Lucas’ face?” Noah whispered to Kai but everyone heard it. 

“Not what I had in mind when I said kiss the first person you see and forget about him.” Caitlin chuckled. 

“That’s certainly going to give him a lot to think about.” Kai bit down on his bottom lip as he fought a giggle. 

“Ew.” Both Caitlin and Riley said in unison. 

After a brief chat things were normal between them all once more. Noah and Caitlin were planning on going back inside and Kai was going to walk Riley home and crash at the Matthews. The two were halfway down the call when Caitlin’s voice stopped Riley. 

“Oh and Matthews,” Caitlin said with one hand on the doorknob. Riley turned back to face her. “Not bad.” Both girls let out soft laughs, Caitlin was obviously joking and in some way it was like they needed that kiss to get over the stigma attached to their friendship. Maybe now they could really all just move on.

Riley walked away with a smile. She wasn’t planning on diving into relationships with girls anytime soon but new beginnings were definitely upon her. 

End Notes: Welp there it is. Next chapter Riley is ready to move on. Officially. 

tags: @plutoxriley @pamela-barron​ @nicolecolin​ @brassqueen​ @renait-courageux @helenpenhallxw  @dallas258