#beth's 1k thing

[sunshineandspencer]

Jogging

A/N: I’ve discovered that I, actually, despise angst. I hate reading it and I hate writing it, unless specifically asked for, my brain thinks only happy thoughts. On an unrelated note, I’m also a very emotional person and perhaps angst sets off my severe second-hand embarrassment and I’ve never finished an angst fic. So, from that unrelated note, have a finished fluffy fic :) 

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x Fem!Reader.

Summary: Aaron is incredibly attractive at the best of times, but put him in sports gear and it’s like flies to honey. Which is an excellent cultivator of jealousy for his jogging partner, until she overhears him talking to another woman.

Word Count: 1k

Warnings: fluff, kind of established relationship (you’ll see)

I have redone the form for the taglist now that I’m apparently expanding from Criminal Minds

Going for a morning run with her more-than-a-friend-but-not-quite-labelled man, was fun. Aaron taught her some proper techniques, and she got a kiss whenever they completed a lap.

There is an issue, unfortunately, and it’s one she’s desperately trying not to blow out of proportion.

Aaron is attractive, devastatingly so, and because he occasionally runs ahead to finish a lap and wait for her to arrive so that he can greet her with a kiss, people don’t always know that they’re out together. Added with him in those damn workout clothes - that she would burn if she weren’t mentally stable - it’s no surprise to her anymore to see women jogging up to him.

They’re almost always gone by the time she makes it over to Aaron, who kisses her and immediately moves on to their next lap. She tries hard not to let the clawing jealousy show.

Due to JAck, and both of them agreeing not to move too quickly so that they don’t confuse him, they’d just decided on not labelling anything yet. So she isn’t really anything official to him, and can’t do all the things her jealous mind screams at her to do.

Like today, for example, Aaron had pressed a kiss to her cheek and sped up to get to the end of their lap. 

The minute he’s not beside another woman, someone else runs up to him.

She hears the fading introduction of “hi, I’m Beth, I see you around here pretty often” and her stomach clenches.

Once again, her pretty, not-boyfriend is getting hit on by a woman who can actually keep his pace. She hates it, and hates the burning hole in her chest even more.

Deciding, this time, she would actually speed up and join the conversation. Which will ultimately be worth the burst lungs and exertion-flushed face. Until she turns the corner and sees them still talking, any semblance of confidence withers.

When she hears her name on his lips, however, she dives behind the nearest tree. Realising he just gestured to where she should be coming from, and hoping neither of them had seen her practically rush for cover to avoid being seen. Pressing her back to the bark of the tree and listening closely to the conversation.

“-out with my girlfriend, actually, we run together.”

If she weren’t hiding behind a tree, from a random woman and the man that just called her his girlfriend, she’d be doing a happy dance by now. Choosing to press her hands to her chest as the burning hole closed up, victoriously grinning as ‘Beth’ jogged on feeling pretty dejected.

Once sure that Beth was gone, she turned to place her hands on the tree, bracing herself to look around it to try and spot Aaron, that daft smile still on her face. But he wasn’t there, and that observation came with a pair of hands landing on her hips and making her jump and spin around. Meeting Aaron’s smug grin as he gently pinned her to the tree by her hips.

“Are you spying on me now?”

Refusing to meet his gaze, she started looking all around them - as if searching for someone, and that only made his stupid grin wider.

“Should be careful Hotchner, wouldn’t want that girlfriend you mentioned to catch you pinning a girl to a tree.”

“Oh?” Knowing she’d heard, he now has no plans to try and keep up the facade that he hasn’t wanted her, officially, for weeks now. “And do you think she’d be upset if I kissed the woman I pinned to a tree?”

Giving a dramatic gasp, she used it to breathe in fully to answer, realising that her lungs aren’t really cooperating with her right now. And he used that as his chance to lean down to kiss her, loving the sparky feeling he gets from her every time. Siling against her lips as she melted against him.

Pulling back with a soft nip to her lips that had her chasing after him. Before realising what she was doing and resting back against the tree, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of getting what he wanted.

“I think she’d definitely hate the thought of you doing that to anyone else.”

“Ah, so she gets jealous?”

As if she were caught out, her eyes darted away from his as she pouted - from a profiling perspective, she really does have cute tells when she’s been caught - tugging at the hem of his shirt.

“She pleads the fifth.”

Thankfully, as she knows he actually loves any jokes that relate to his time as a lawyer, he laughs, leaning down to kiss her again, hand trailing away from her hip to lace their fingers together. Pulling back with a soft hum and another soft peck.

Swiping his thumb across her knuckles as he waited for her to open her eyes again, loving the little flush speckled across her features that obscured her freckles.

“Will she forgive me if I take her to get ice cream?”

“Definitely.”

Tugging her away from the tree, he brushes the flakes of bark from her hair and clothes, spending a little too much time ‘brushing off’ whatever was on her ass, until she smacks his hand away with a laugh. Leading the two of them back towards the car, deliberating what kind of ice cream ‘his girlfriend’ would like the most.

But as they get in, he gives her another smile and laces their hands over the centre console.

“You do know I’m calling you my girlfriend, right?”

Shaking her head, she leant in to kiss him again, pulling away to pat his cheek lightly. 

“Didn’t need to be a profiler for that one, love.”

“Oh, so you’re a profiler now?”

“Best watch it, I’m coming for your job next.

Laughing, he lets go of her hand to start up the car, already knowing exactly which ice cream place they were going to - and exactly what she would order. Not that she’s predictable in the slightest, but she always orders the exact same thing.

“First my heart, now my job? At this rate you’ll have my house by the end of the week.”

“That’s the plan!”

He’s going to marry this goddamn woman.

Want more?! Good!

taglist ( ˘ ³˘)♥ @peliides ║ @peachsodameg ║ @angelinajolie0213 ║ @jiggly-puff-12 ║ @khxna ║ @kennedy2156 ║ @trulycayla ║ @none-of-your-bullshit ║ @alexxavicry ║ @meg-black ║ @princess76179 ║ @chicken-fifi ║ @averyhotchner ║ @punkyghoulz ║ @anotherpassiongirl ║ @princessjax ║ @gghostwriter ║ @pear-1206 ║ @justyourusualash (if your tag is here and not working check out this reblog to see if any of it could hopefully help!!)

[luveline]

Badass!reader in the verge of crying but still pretending like she isn't? Spencer doesn't even try anything and he just lets her be until eventually she cries? Just some hurt/comfort :)

If it's a no please feel free to ignore this! Have a lovely day jade <3

tysm! hope this is okay angel ♡ fem!reader, 1k

"Irresponsible, sloppy, and pig-headed." Spencer winces. "I expected more from you. I'm extremely disappointed." 

Spencer winces worse. You can take a scolding. You can take a beating. But disappointing the people you care about, and disappointing Hotch? His chest hurts for you.

He pretends to have been reading as the door to Hotch's office opens and you step out, glancing up as you take the stairs down into the bullpen. Your desk is adjacent his and Morgan's, crowded by case files you nearly send flying as you hurry into your chair. 

Spencer takes his computer mouse and clicks on the work contact page. Your instant messaging is still open, the last message he sent you glaring and awkward, hey, think hotch is going to call you in for cincinnati. don't stress. 

You'd opened it but not answered. He peeks around your monitors to analyse you. You're staring hard at a single spot. The longer he looks, the glassier your eyes become. 

He sighs and cracks his knuckles, thinking. The last thing you want is for him to make a big deal of this, he knows that, but he needs you to know that he's here for you. 

"Did you want to get dinner tonight?" he asks without raising his head. 

You respond eventually, two seconds too slowly, "Where from?"

Your voice is fraught with the weight of your upset. Spencer ignores it for now. "Luh Bem?" 

"If you want to." 

"What I want is a cup of coffee." He stands, still without staring at you —an impressive feat of self control— and begins toward the office kitchenette. Predictably, you follow him. He's already putting a second mug beside his own when you step into his reach. 

"So, did you want to go?" you ask. 

Spencer nudges your hip with his gently. "Duh. What else would I wanna do on a Friday?" He makes your coffee exactly how you like it without asking and leaves it billowing steam by his own as he adds his five sugars. 

Bringing his coffee to his lips and turns, he leans on the counter. You do as he does, murmuring a thank you as you pick up your mug. Spencer lets his arm rest on yours, ever so slightly taller, more as your back begins to slouch unconsciously. There's no point in asking you if you're okay, because you'll say that you are. There's no point in trying to comfort you, because, despite your affection for him, you're not someone who cries easily in front of others. It would have you pushing him away. 

You're a nice girl under all your hardened exterior, and Hotch's disappointment hurts. You try very, very hard not to cry, swallowing and taking little sips of your hot coffee. 

You press your coffee into his hand and turn your body toward the cabinets, away from the office. Spencer waits, and waits, his relief immeasurable as you finally hide your face in his shirt sleeve and sniffle. Even though his heart breaks for you, he's glad you're giving in. You need to let stuff out before it eats you alive. 

He puts the coffees down behind him one at a time so as not to disturb you. Hands free, he lifts the hand furthest from you to your arm. If you were somewhere more private he'd hug you to him by the small of your waist. For now, he rubs a short line down to your elbow. Up, down.

"He was being harsh," Spencer says quietly. 

"Sorry," you whisper. 

He can't imagine how mortified you are. You won't sob or even shake, but these hot and fast tears aren't unfamiliar to him. Theyll be followed by an abundance of remorse.

"What are you sorry for?" He pulls you in closer, a squeeze of a hug. "You're okay. It's okay, he's just– he's mad about other stuff, he's upset about Beth. It's not just you." 

"He's right, I messed up," you say, your breath hitching. 

"You messed up," he agrees. "It was an accident. You'll be better next time." 

You sniffle rough and lift your face, wiping your tears with a cruel hand. Spencer takes your wrist in his hand to stop you, turninh to cover you from any nosy eyes. His fingertips are as soft as his voice wiping the rest of your tears away as he laments, "Please don't cry, don't get upset." Your face is hot to the touch. "Don't be embarrassed." 

"I'm not crying," you say, a last teardrop streaking from the corner of your eye. 

He wipes it away. "Okay." 

You pout at him like you want to cry more, and Spencer wouldn't mind, he'd stand here wiping your tears for hours if you needed it, but that's your worst nightmare. 

"Are people looking at me?" 

"Nobody's looking," he answers honestly. "You're only making a scene for me." 

You laugh but quickly cough. Spencer takes his opportunity to hug you and pats your back, considers kissing the side of your head but can't make himself commit to it. 

"Do you still wanna get dinner?" you ask weakly. 

"Yeah, I do. I really do. I'll get you whatever you want." 

If it were Morgan offering, you'd step on his foot. For Spencer, your clear and evident favourite, you nod into his chest, your hand slinking low on his back. 

He hugs you so hard he feels his ribs. 

"Wanna sleepover and watch Golden Girls?" he asks, prepared for rejection. You're the type to lick your wounds alone. 

But maybe in the privacy of Spencer's apartment you'll let yourself be upset properly, so he can comfort you appropriately. It aches how badly he wants to rub the tight space between your shoulders, tell you it's fine, you're fine, and one mistake doesn't define you, it never could. 

It's evidence of your affection for him that you agree. "Could we get the dinner to go?" you ask. 

Spencer tries not to look to triumphant. He's going to coddle and comfort you half to death, and by the looks of you, you're happy to let him. "Absolutely. Whatever you want." 

[zeezelweazel]

A fluffy Leah fic for her comeback???? Maybe r being the one to give her the armband when she gets subbed on or like Leah being shy when asking r to be there during her comeback game??

Leah Williamson| Welcome Home|

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LEAH GOT AN ASSIST ON HER FIRST GAME BACK

(I also hit 1k followers 🥹 thank you so much guys)

I wrote this just to get my mind off jilly so it's short, sorry but I'm so sad rn

Finally some fluff to cleanse all the smut

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You remember the day Leah tore her ACL vividly. You were on the bench, having been subbed off just a few moments before. Nothing compares to the feeling of absolute dread that filled your entire body the moment you saw her go down. When the stretcher brought her on the sidelines Leah looked at you her eyes wide and scared and you knew.

Her recovery was long and hard but you were there. For every small step forward and every step back, for every time she was angry or frustrated or sad you were there. To hold her and brush your fingers through blonde strands of hair and whispers sweet nothings in her ear and kiss her forehead. You loved her when she didn't love herself and you kept loving her as she got stronger and stronger. You watched as she picked up different hobbies and did amazing things she never thought she'd do.

And now you watch as she gets up from the bench to warm up and your heart soars. You grin wide as you try to keep your head in the game but your body is buzzing with excitement at what's to come.

Soon enough you hear the crowd soar and you look at the bench to see Leah, smiling free and happy, ready to take your spot on the field. You didn't care about being subbed off, having done your part, so you run towards her. You carefully slipped off the captain's armband and approached her.

The loud stadium was tooned out as your whole world turned into blonde hair and blue eyes. As you reach the white line you take Leah's hand, holding it longer than necessary, and you slip the arm band on. Leah pulls you in for a quick hug and you don't waste the opportunity to place a chaste kiss on her head.

For the rest of the match your eyes are firmly locked on Leah. You watch closely as she sprints around and goes for tackles, because of course she does, and you watch as she puts in the perfect ball for beth to score. She was perfect in every way even after being gone for so long. Only your Leah would be able to do that.

You jump up from the bench to celebrate, probably too excited for a goal in a match that's already been won, and you wish you could run on the field and scoop her up in your arms.

And that's what you did. The moment the final whistle blew you made a beeline for Leah who was already looking for you. When your eyes met you recognised all those different emotions swirling in her blue irises.

You pull her in for a tight hug, Leah giggling happily as you spin her around.

"I'm so proud of you baby, you did amazing."

Leah smiled at you blushing and placed her head on the safety of your shoulder. She stayed there in your arms until the team had to huddle in a circle while Jonas gave his post match celebratory speech. You squeezed Leah's shoulder from your place next to her when he talked about her injury, her recovery and the fight she had to put up to get here. Leah blinked rapidly, her head moving from the sky yo the ground as she desperately tried to fight off her tears.

You moved your hand to rub her back and Leah gave you a grateful smile even though the tears didn't leave her beautiful eyes.

"You did it baby, I couldn't be more proud."

She turned and placed a kiss on your lips, not caring about the rest of the team. You enjoyed the warm feeling of her lips on yours and the soft hands on your hips. You chuckled at the cheers and whistles of your teammates and leaned your forehead on Leah's.

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[lvnleah]

Away Game Travels | Leah Williamson x Lia Wälti

Summary: some of the AWFC girls help keep Sage entertained whilst Lia and Leah travel on the coach for an away game.

Word count: 1k

thank you once again to @alotofpockets who helped and gave me ideas!

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“Right! Have we got everything?” Leah asked, holding her away game bag as well as Lia’s.

Lia nodded, looking around the conference room, “I think so,” she looked down at Sage who was currently spinning around in circles with her backpack on her back, “Sagie, stop spinning a second.” Lia laughed.

The toddler stopped spinning and stood in place, her favourite teddy, Mr Flopsy, was tightly gripped under her arm, “Yeah Mummy?”

“Have you got everything, bubs?” Leah asked, “We need to go soon, the girls are boarding the coach now.”

Leah and Lia were currently preparing for a four hour coach journey to Liverpool. The team were travelling the day before and Leah and Lia were doing the trip on the coach for the first time with Sage.

With Leah being out for a while, taking Sage on the coach was something they hadn’t had to face yet. Before Leah tore her ACL, Sage used to stay with Amanda, Leah’s mum, when she was playing away. Now with her being three years old, they decided it was the right time to take her with them.

“Got Mr. Flopsy!” Sage declared, raising the well-loved teddy bear for inspection.

Lia smiled, “Anything else you want from your toy box, bubba?”

Sage shook her head, “Nope!”

“Alright then!” Leah said, “it’s time to hit the road.

Lia scooped up Sage, resting her on her hip before carrying her out to the coach. Leah took charge of their bags, making sure nothing got left behind while Lia focused on getting Sage on the coach.

As they got on the coach, Lia placed Sage down and let her run down the aisle to say hi to everyone. Sage knew that her Mum’s had rules when it came to being on the coach and around the team and they were something she followed well for a three year old. They were basic ones such as not waking the other girls when they were asleep and understanding if they wanted time alone.

“Beffy!” Sage shouted, running to where the blonde was sitting with Steph.

“Sage, no shouting please.” Lia reminded the three year old, “indoor voice!”

Beth gasped, “Hi tiny! You sitting with me and Steffy?”

Sage nodded, climbing up onto the seat opposite Steph that was closest to the window. Lia laughed as she watched Sage struggle.

“Sweetheart, you need to take your backpack off!” The Swiss shook her head, slipping the bag off the toddler's shoulders.

Soon enough, Leah boarded the coach with her bag as well as Lia’s. Leah sat with Steph, Beth and Sage while Lia sat beside them on the other table with Viv, Lotte and Vic.

The coach hummed with the low murmur of conversations as everyone settled into their seats. As they pulled away from the training ground, Sage’s attention was caught by the passing scenery. She pressed her small hands against the window, leaving faint prints on the glass as she watched everything pass by.

She pointed out different things that passed by, asking questions and chattering away to Beth and Steph. She pointed out cows and different animals, Beth and Steph questioned her on the different noises they made.

An hour and a half into the four hour drive, Sage began to get bored. They’d been able to distract her with a few games of eye spy and some games that Leah had packed but now the toddler was growing bored of them.

“Mumma I’m bored!” She huffed, resting her chin in her hands, “How much longer?”

Leah laughed, “Still a few hours, bubs.” She reached down and pulled out a colouring book from Sage’s backpack, “Do you want to do some colouring?”

Sage nodded eagerly and took the colouring book from Leah’s hand, saying a quick thank you before spreading out her colouring book on the small coach table.

“Beffy colour with me?” Sage asked, holding a pack of crayons out to Beth.

Beth gasped, “Oh of course I will! What are the choices?”

Sage flipped through her colouring book, listing the options off, “Princess, mermaid or a puppy!”

“A puppy please!” She smiled, “I’ll colour Myle!”

Beth used a brown crayon from the pack and began to carefully fill in the lines of the puppy in the colouring book. Sage, meanwhile, chose a bright pink crayon and started colouring a princess, her small fingers gripping the crayon with determination.

As they coloured, Sage chatted away about her favourite colours and asked Beth about Myle. "What does Myle like to do?" Sage asked with genuine curiosity.

Beth chuckled, "Myle loves to play fetch and run around in the park. She’s very energetic, just like you!”

Sage beamed at the comparison, feeling a sense of kinship with Beth's dog. "I wanna play with Myle too!" she declared.

“Oh I’m sure Myle will love that when we get home!” Beth said.

Leah watched the interaction with a warm smile, grateful for her teammates' kindness towards her daughter. She knew that these moments were precious and that Sage was forming bonds that would last a lifetime.

As time passed, the coach continued its steady journey towards Liverpool. The colouring book was slowly filled with vibrant colours, Sage ran around the coach and got different people to colour a page.

Leah leaned over to Lia and whispered, "She's having a blast, isn't she?"

Lia nodded, her eyes softening as she watched Sage. "She really is. I'm so glad we brought her along."

After her little adventure around the coach, visiting each teammate, Sage eventually made her way back to Lia. Lia opened her arms as Sage approached, the little one’s steps slowing, her excitement now replaced by tiredness. With a yawn and a rub of her eyes, Sage climbed onto Lia’s lap.

Lia wrapped her arms around Sage, pulling her close. Lia gently stroked Sage’s hair and placed a soft kiss on her forehead.

“I’m so tired, Mummy.” Sage murmured against Lia’s chest.

Lia rubbed her back softly, “Have a nap, bubs. We’ll be in there when you wake up.”

Lia could feel the weight of Sage’s head as it nestled into the crook of her neck, her breaths deepening as she fell asleep.

Leah looked across the aisle, the sight of her girlfriend and daughter melting her heart. “Our little bubs has tired herself out!”

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liked by liawaelti and 106,546 others

leahwilliamsonn always fun travelling with these two 🫶🏻

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[dixons-sunshine]

Punishment Enough | Daryl Dixon x Fem!Reader

*GIF isn't mine.*

Summary: After Beth's death, Daryl took it out on himself. He hunted for the group, but refused to feed himself. One day, you've had enough, and you decided to take matters into your own hands.

Genre: Angst, fluff.

Era: Post Terminus; Pre Alexandria.

Warnings: Swearing, mentions of death, blood.

Word count: 3k.

A/n: Alright, here's yet another vamp!Daryl fic to add to the growing number. This was originally supposed to be a 1k word thing, but it got way longer than I had anticipated lol. (ALSO, yes, I know some things in this isn't factual to most vampire things we see online, but I took some creative liberty and wrote it in a way that I liked.) Anyways, I hope you like this!

➳༻❀✿❀༺➳

“This is getting out of hand,” your leader and friend, Rick Grimes, whispered to you as he watched Daryl disappear into the woods for the millionth time since your journey on the road began a mere two weeks ago. “He needs to feed. He's going to die otherwise.”

You sighed as you watched one of your closest friends disappear beyond the treeline. You continued your snail's pace of a trek next to Rick, the heat from the blazing summer sun beating down on you relentlessly. Your stomach grumbled with hunger and you were thirsty beyond belief, but you knew that it couldn't compare to the discomfort the archer was experiencing. You had eaten, even if just a little, a few hours ago, while he hadn't fed since Beth had died, which was at that point already two weeks prior.

You knew that if he kept that up, he would die within the next few dies, maybe even the next few hours. He was punishing himself, and soon, he would pay the price for it.

“Rick? I don't mean to interrupt whatever intelligent discussion you were having with miss Y/n over here, but Rosita and I have managed to locate a river on the map not too far from here. If you send two people down to replenish our water supply, we should be ready to move on with our trek in about thirty minutes.”

Rick stared Eugene down for a few moments. You were sure that he was going to turn down the offer, but to your surprise and great relief, Rick finally conceded.

“We need to rest anyway, so okay. An hour. That's all I'm willing to offer up,” Rick told Eugene. Your leader whistled to capture everyone's attention, and raised his voice to be heard clearly. “We stop for now. Eugene says that there's a river not too far from here. Tara, Glenn, you two go refill our water supply. The rest of you, get as much rest as you can. We move again in an hour.”

Everyone nodded and dispersed, leaving you alone with your benevolent leader. You eyed the spot you had last seen Daryl, all the sounds and sights around you being evaporated from your mind. However, you were startled when Rick snapped his fingers in front of your eyes, recapturing your attention again.

“How about you go after him and see if you can talk to him?” Rick suggested, lightly patting you on the shoulder in encouragement. “If there's anyone he might listen to, it's you.”

“No, he won't listen to me,” you denied, a sullen expression on your face. “If he won't even listen to Carol, what chance do I have of getting through to him?”

Rick pursed his lips, trying to keep the words that wanted to spill from his lips to himself. He couldn't betray his found brother's trust like that. He wouldn't. That was something Daryl had to tell you on his own time, even if it took years to do so. All Rick could do in that moment was gently urge you to go talk to the man.

“Believe me, I have a feeling that you might be able to break through to him. Just go try, please? I don't want him to die just because he blames himself for something that isn't his fault.”

You inhaled sharply, but ultimately agreed. “Okay,” you mumbled, handing your bag over to Rick, but keeping your compound bow and knife handy just in case you needed it. “If I'm not back by the time you guys need to move on—”

“We go on without you,” Rick finished for you, slinging your bag over his shoulder. “I know. Just go check on him. See if you can get him to drink from something.”

You sent your leader a small nod, and turned on your heel to disappear into the woods. You walked in the general direction of where you saw the archer disappear, soon finding yourself surrounded by trees and dirt. You kept your eyes on the ground, lazer focused on the faint tracks of the man you were trying to find.

A chittering sound from above you redirected your attention from the ground to the area of where you heard it. Up in a tree, on a branch low enough to reach if you jumped, you spotted a total of three squirrels, all sitting in a straight line as they went on doing whatever squirrels fancied as entertainment. They were blissfully unaware of your lurking presence, so it made it easy to line up the shot perfectly.

By some stroke of luck, the arrow found it's mark in all three squirrels. Proud and a little giddy at the prospect of food, you walked towards the tree and jumped to get your prey from the branch. Marveling at the kill you made, you almost missed the sound of a twig snapping in the distance. Almost.

On instinct, you dropped the arrow holding the three squirrels and loaded your bow with another arrow, turning around and releasing it in the direction of the sound. The arrow flew towards the walker, but the walker caught it with ease. Calming down and allowing your eyes to adjust, you could see that it was not a walker. Instead, it was the very man you were tracking down.

Daryl Dixon.

“If ya wanna kill me, yer gon' have to do a lot better than an arrow,” Daryl mused, walking towards you to hand the deadly object back to you. “Wha' the hell are ya doin' here?”

“Looking for you,” you stated matter-of-factly, putting your arrow away. You looked up into Daryl's eyes, but instead of finding the usual blue irises that you have grown to love, you found red coloured ones in their place. A clear sign that he was starving. “We're worried about you. Rick thought I might be able to talk some sense into you.”

“Dun' need someone to talk no sense into me,” Daryl grumbled, turning around to stalk away again. “M'fine. Dun' need no damn babysitter. Leave me alone.”

Picking up the dead squirrels from the ground, you took off in a jog behind Daryl to keep up with his speed. Even though he was only walking, his enhanced speed made his pace faster than the average human's, hence why if he wanted to, he could lose you with ease.

“Daryl! Daryl, wait!” you pleaded with him, finally catching up enough to grab his arm. “Daryl—”

“I said, leave me alone, damnit!” Daryl roared, spinning around to look at you. A furious glare painted his features, but instead of being met with fear, he was met with a stubborn glare instead. Well, he could give you points for that, but he wouldn't give in to whatever you wanted from him. “Wha' dun' ya understand? I dun' need yer concern or yer company. M'fine on my own. I've been alone for decades. Dun' need to change tha' now.”

“Daryl, you need to feed,” you explained as calmly as you could, trying to keep your anger in check. It wouldn't do anyone any good if you were to snap at him right at that moment.

“M'fine,” Daryl replied stubbornly, crossing his arms over his chest defensively.

“Really? Because if you were fine, your eyes wouldn't be red right now,” you countered, motioning to his eyes. “Do you wanna die, Daryl? Because if you don't feed, that's exactly what's gonna happen.”

“Dun' need ya to lecture me, woman!” Daryl exclaimed loudly, waving his hand around in anger. “I know my own damn body better than ya do! I've been like this for a long time. I know when I need to feed and when I dun'!”

“Then why the fuck can't you see that you need to feed right now?!” you snapped, pushing Daryl's chest for emphasis. The man barely moved, his inhuman strength countering your attempts to sway him.“I may not be a vampire, and I may not know exactly how being one works, but I do know that you're either going to die, or lose control and hurt one of us. Is that what you want? Look me in the eyes and tell me that you don't have to use all of your willpower to refrain from lunging at me and draining all of the blood from my body. Tell me that drinking my blood doesn't sound good to you right now.”

Daryl's silence only confirmed your suspicions. You scoffed and shook your head, taking one of the squirrels off the arrow and extending it towards the stubborn archer.

“Feed. Don't even think about saying no because I swear I'll fucking kill you.”

He knew there was no use of yelling at you anymore. What was the use of getting mad at you for caring about him? If anything, knowing that you did made him feel all funny inside. However, Daryl still shook his head in denial, refusing to take the dead animal from you. “Nah. Y'all need the meat to survive. If I drink the blood, my venom will taint the meat and then y'all can't eat it.”

“Taint the meat?” you questioned in confusion, furrowing your eyebrows. “I've seen you drink from a human before and they didn't turn. How's this any different?”

“Humans are different,” Daryl explained. “M'not gon' explain it to ya because I dun' even fully understand myself, but all I know is we dun' have control over our venom when it comes to animals. We do with humans. Tha's the most basic explanation I have fer ya.”

You nodded in understanding. You scanned your surroundings for a moment before your eyes fell on an empty can, and you had a lightbulb moment. You walked over to pick up the aforementioned object, before crouching down. You picked up one of the squirrels and, very carefully so that you didn't accidentally nick your finger, cut it in multiple places to drain it of its blood, into the can.

You could hear Daryl inhale sharply when the smell of blood flooded his nostrils. His already bloodred eyes darkened, and you could tell that his self-restraint was dwindling by the second. You had to make quick work of your activities, and fast, otherwise Daryl would lunge for the blood. And you didn't know whether or not the blood he went for would be the squirrel's, or yours.

Once the can was practically overflowing with blood, you hastily got up and pushed the object into his hands, some blood trickling over the edge and onto his hands.

“Drink,” you ordered him, leaving no room for argument.

Grumbling to himself, he brought the can up to his lips to slowly take a sip. However, as soon as that first drop of blood fell on his tongue, he drank the rest of it in hurried, messy gulps. Blood trickled down the sides of his mouth, and you had to resist the urge to bring your hands up to wipe the blood away.

In five seconds flat, the entire can was empty. Some colour returned to the archer's cheeks, and his eyes slightly changed from a deep crimson to a dull red. However, even though Daryl handed the can back to you as a way to say he was done, you knew it wasn't nearly enough. He needed way more than that, even if he wouldn't admit it. And, come hell or high water, you would make sure he drank more.

“Thanks,” Daryl mumbled, wiping at the blood and making an even bigger mess on his face. “Ya satisfied now?”

“Not even remotely,” you mused, picking up the three dead squirrels, one of which now had its blood drained, and offered one of them to him. “Here, take it. We need to head back and there isn't time to drain another one for you. Don't worry about one lousy squirrel. We'll survive.”

“But—”

“No buts, Daryl,” you cut him off, forcing the dead critter into his hands. You picked up your knife and sheathed it, before adjusting your bow on your back. You sent Daryl a look and walked off, calling to him over your shoulder. “C'mon. We gotta go.”

Cleverly sensing that there was no room for argument, Daryl followed behind you with a frustrated huff, shaking his head to himself at your stubbornness. However, your stubbornness was one of the many traits that made him feel drawn to you, one of the many things that made you perfect in his eyes. Well, it was perfect when the stubbornness wasn't directed towards him.

Unable to resist the urge any longer due to the taste he got from it earlier, Daryl brought the squirrel up to his mouth. He sunk his fangs into the dead animal and began to drink mouthfuls of the delicious crimson, his deep hunger not going away but being satiated for the time being.

“You need to stop this, Dar,” you began, shaking your head to yourself. “You need to stop punishing yourself. Beth's death isn't your fault. You need to know that. And you need to stop punishing yourself for it. Beth wouldn't want you to starve yourself. You know she wouldn't, so stop doing it, please. Blaming yourself for a death that wasn't even remotely your fault is punishment enough.”

Daryl drained the squirrel of the last of its blood, before withdrawing his mouth from the creature. He stared at you in wonder, walking beside you silently as he pondered over your words. He didn't believe that Beth's death wasn't his fault. He probably never would, but what he did believe was that Beth wouldn't want him to die. The girl voiced in so many different ways that she wanted him to live. And even though he felt terrible about her death, he decided that he would honour her. He would live because she couldn't. He would honour her by doing what she wanted him to do—he would live.

And, once he built up enough courage for it, he would honour her by following her advice and admitting his feelings to you.

The two of you walked from the treeline and back towards where the rest of the group rested. When the two of you made yourselves known, everyone looked up and shared similar looks of relief at the sight of the blood on Daryl's face and the drained squirrel in his hands.

Everyone except Gabriel, who looked at Daryl in disgust and fear, but was wise enough not to say anything. The last time he had voiced his obvious disdain towards the archer because of what he was, he was met with a punch from you and quite the amount of hateful words and glares from the rest of the group. It was clear that nobody would stand for anything but acceptance towards what Daryl was, and he appreciated that.

“Glad to see you're looking better, brother,” Rick voiced to Daryl, getting up to give his found brother a quick hug.

“Thanks,” Daryl thanked him, patting him lightly on the back before withdrawing from the hug. “She wouldn't let me not drink anythin', so ya really should be glad 'bout her. And she found y'all some dinner.”

“Sweet!” Carl voiced excitedly, eliciting a bunch of laughs from most of the adults there. “My dad found us a few rabbits, too.”

Rick took the squirrels from you with a grateful nod. “Seems like we're gonna be here for another hour or so. Let's cook these up, get ourselves regenerated.”

As everyone fell into their own separate conversations and Rick and Carl took it upon themselves to start a small fire, you walked over to a tree before sliding down against it, looking up at Daryl who had followed you there.

“M'surprised ya didn't offer yer blood to me,” Daryl told you, sliding down next to you.

“Why the hell would I do that?” you asked him in genuine confusion, staring into his eyes that were busy turning back to their usual beautiful blues.

“The ladies back at the prison always offered their blood to me when I couldn't feed on animals. Figured ya'd do the same.”

“Yeah, no. I like you and all, but that's not something you're gonna get from me anytime soon, no matter how hot you are,” you laughed, shaking your head.

“Ya think m'hot?” Daryl asked in surprise, eyeing you with a small smile.

“I—shut up. Don't let it go to your head,” you mumbled, hugging your knees to your chest.

Daryl chuckled. “I won't,” he promised, looking over at you with a soft look in his eyes. “Thanks again. Fer the squirrel and the lecture. I know I said I didn't need it, but I did. So, thanks.”

You smiled and brought one of your hands up to rest on Daryl's knee, rubbing your thumb against it softly. “Of course. I'd do anything for you, Daryl.”

Daryl ducked his head in shyness. However, he couldn't help the way he felt about you. In less than an hour, you had managed to track him down, give him a much needed lecture, and made him feed on something. You truly were amazing to him, but he didn't know if you'd ever feel the same about him. The two of you were so vastly different, in personalities and species, so he wouldn't be surprised if his feelings were one-sided.

Unbeknownst to him at the time, however, you did feel the same. And that first night in Alexandria, you showed him exactly how you felt about him.

[exitrowiron]

Day 9: Vic Sau to Platja Daro

77.1 miles, 6:02, 5,748' ascent

At last night's dinner and breakfast this morning, everyone was focused on just one thing - this is the day we see the ocean and ride ends!

The route includes two significant climbs, but again nearly half the day's ascent is provided by the 'rollers'. The weather was cloud free but this meant that we were broiled by the hot Catalan sun and drank copiously to stay hydrated.

The dramatic views while descending are largely behind us, except for the last big descent when we finally saw the deep blue of the Mediterranean Ocean. This was a thrilling site to be sure but we still had 10 miles of riding and 1K' ascent before we arrived at the beachfront hotel.

After racking bikes and doffing our cleats, the riders and guides headed to the beach for a well-earned celebratory photo in the warm water.

My sister asked if this trip was harder than the US cross country trip and I think it is. The US trip is 4x longer and requires more stamina, but this is certainly the most challenging 8 days I've ridden. Part of the challenge is the novelty of the off-the-bike experience: unfamiliar foods, minimal air conditioning, eating dinner until 10:30 pm etc.

Despite all this, it was a great experience, topped off by Beth joining me the next day for more adventures in Europe.

Thanks for your support and encouragement.

[concretevampire]

An Indulgence

arthur morgan x f!reader ꔫ 1k ꔫ drabble/blurb about affection (or lack thereof) and whatnot

A/N: hi everyone, I'm back from the dead! sort of. it's an understatement to say that I've been busy. between exams, finals, and portfolio preparation, I can't seem to catch a break. I would have loved to have something more substantial to post but alas. hope y’all are well!

Hugs are not something that crosses his mind often. Nor remembers.

But it is no understatement to say that Arthur is touch starved beyond incomprehensible belief. For a long time, the closest thing he’d gotten to a hug in years (decades, he jokes sometimes) were the quick pats left on his back by the various men in the gang; festering marks of unbridled, masculine brotherhood, and nothing more. There’s an odd, silent code between all of them that touch– that love– cannot cross a certain line. 

And if it did, the world would simply collapse because hugs cannot formulate within the constraints of existence. It would break fundamental laws. If gravity no longer clawed at everyones boots and limbs, maybe then Arthur supposes he could share a hug with John. Or Dutch. Or Hosea. Maybe Charles. Sean too. 

When it comes to this, he often envies the affection that women give each other so freely, so often. 

He stares at the way Tilly braids Mary-Beth’s hair, how Abigail lets her fingers linger at the curve of your elbow, or the way you help Karen lay down and rest after a bit too much to drink— even if she’s slapping at your hands. 

He wants this. He yearns for this unbridled affection. Yet then he thinks about the other men in camp and realizes perhaps it’s best that they all keep their emotional distance. 

But Arthur likes hugs. He really does, and he’s not particularly frugal with them. 

The various women he’s saved along the road, each equally shaken and ruined, have wrapped their arms tightly around his chest, sobbing ‘thank you’s and ‘thank God’s into his shirt– and Arthur can never quite find it in himself to spare them of an arm around their shoulders, his hands rubbing soothingly along the space between their shoulder blades. He understands. 

He’s got a corruptive, self-hating need to be a hero. 

Not to forget his troublesome stint with Mary (which never seems to end), and the blink he shared with Eliza. Eliza and Isaac. It seems that beyond hugs, affection comes naturally in Arthur’s life, as rare as it is. This rarity has corroded and cauterized him, because whatever cottonball tidbits plug up his arteries, well, they might as well be non-existent. 

Time has tapped on his forehead diligently, and he’s become whatever sand-ridden, tumbleweed-pushing, gunslinging-outlaw history will immortalize him to be. To an extent, Arthur’s accepted that he’ll be nothing more. That this is his legacy. 

But then there are these moments where he’ll be in camp, standing in front of his small mirror, tilting his chin left and right. Do I need to shave? Maybe trim? And then he’ll feel it. 

Your arms, wrapping comfortably and gently around his middle. Loose enough for him to punch you away and put a bullet in your head if he really wanted to. When he doesn’t do this, you’ll press your cheek harshly to Arthur’s vertebrae, filling that metaphorical chip on his shoulder with the expanse of your lungs. One deep inhale in: mud, tobacco, sweat, sweetgrass, and pine. With your exhale he hears you silently say all sorts of things: I missed you. Did you miss me? How are you? Are you okay? You better be or I’ll kill you. 

It always makes him smile, gently and nearly silent under the thrum of crickets and frogs (you always make sure to embrace him when everyone else is half-asleep) and his hand drops lazily to splay over your own fingers, playing tug-o-war with his shirt. 

And with your deep warmth seeping into the sinew of his back, Arthur will then tangibly remember that he likes hugs; that affection is in fact a part of his day-to-day life. 

Even then, it’s not often that he can truly afford to wrap you up in his arms and press his cheek to your temple, murmuring abstract words quietly as he holds you to his chest. He doesn’t have the time and energy. Actually, it’s more capacity than anything else. He would kiss you if his lips were’t bruised and swollen from a brawl. Hold your hand if his fingers weren’t broken. Hug you if there weren’t a gunshot wound in his shoulder. Fuck you if he had gotten more than four hours of sleep in the past week. 

Arthur’s wealth in physical affection is generally meager. It is both his fault and the world’s. What can he say? He was dealt a poor hand, and like most men, he seldom knows how to play these cards right. 

But you’ve cheated the game. You peaked— perhaps to his discomfort— at his stack of ones and threes and inadvertently handed him your royal flush. Earlier on you probably would have played against him; but he’s blessed to find that you now share a weak real estate worth a pack of cigarettes. He knows this fact more than you. Of course, you’re not impervious to the result of your shared affection but you certainly aren’t aware of the extent to which it envelops him. 

How he adores you, wants to demolish you with gnashing teeth and teary eyes. And simultaneously, Arthur simply wants to wash the clothes you wear and clean the plates you eat from. 

It’s an uncomfortable dichotomy, one that encapsulates the push and pull of Arthur’s psyche that he can’t entirely wrap his own head around. You know about this struggle; he’s hoarsely whispered it to you after returning on week-long excursions on Dutch’s behalf. 

I killed someone, he’ll whisper. They didn’t deserve it. It’s likely they did, because he’s usually a good judge of character, but you have no real way to tell. He’s never quite shaken up per se, but he’s disappointed in himself, oddly enough. He’ll hold your hands tightly with both of his, thumb rubbing numbingingly to your strangely naked ring finger. Fervently, as if his confession will mutate him into the monster of the West’s legends. 

The only real thing you can do to soothe him is by forcing food down his throat and letting him sleep by your side. Let your nails scrape softly against his scalp and cultivate the fields of his dreams. 

So perhaps when things are harsh, harsher than usual, he finds it in himself to seek you out, rather than the other way around. And he’ll clasp one gently ruined palm around your forearm, and press your hearts together. 

[happistar]

what's ur favorite bmc fanfic ever

OOOH okay this is a good question.

Ngl I don't think I could give you a solid "here is the one (1) best fic ever" so here's a whole bunch that I've rated 5 stars in my fic document!

Stammer - Excellent 100k fic, if you're looking for something long. Basically it explores Jeremy and Michael's relationship from when they were kids til a bit after the events of the musical. Really good character piece <3

Jeremy drops out of college during December of his freshman year - REALLY REALLY GOOD fic-- one of my favorites from Beth Harker. Basically Jeremy undergoes a lot of panic attacks and self hatred (some brought on by what remains of the Squip) as he and Michael go to college together. About 10k words.

in the back of my brain, the voices all sound the same - Pretty short ~1k fic that explores the idea of the Squip changing shape into things like Jeremy himself. Forever thinking about the implications.

Play it in Reverse - Really cool podfic that brings in the musical aspect of bmc and acknowledges it! With the Squip's help, Jeremy tries to fix the events of the musical by changing the lyrics. About an hour to fully listen to.

flesh & bone - AU where Jeremy is an android and the Squip Squad find him and repair him. LOVE the dynamic of everyone in this fic, but it's unfortunately unfinished. About 40k words and still worth a read despite this.

Loaded, Recoded, Unsorted - Ngl I think this was the first ever bmc fic I read?? Anyways, it still lasts in my brain despite being unfinished with about 15k words in total. Basically, Michael slowly becomes a squip with all the fun psychological horror that comes with that. Honestly if you like this I'd recommend checking out more of Nez's work. Excellent squip horror writer.

The Mechanics of Compromise - Ngl pretty much everyone I've come across has read this fic and it shouldn't be a surprise that its on this list. Absolutely adore how they handle everyone's dynamics and manage to create a really fun plot as everyone recovers from the events of the musical. Another really good 100k+ fic.

Only One Is Mine - Holy shit this fic is almost coming up on 100k words. Anyways this fic is so so so good. Basically it deals with the rising squipocalypse after the musical as Jeremy accidentally fuses with his squip and has to learn what it means to be half human, half supercomputer. LOVE this concept so much and love how its handled. Honestly one of my all time favorite fics in general-- really cool stuff!! Shoutout to Jordan fr <3

Honorable mentions:

Ophiocordyceps nippon - TRAGICALLY short fic that meant i actually rated it only 4 stars but I thought I'd share because I am still thinking about it. Basically what if the Squip was a fungus.

Same As It's Always Been - I've only read 2 chapters, since it was coming out at the time I was reading it, but its finished now!! I really enjoyed what it was when it was coming out, so I'm sure it's still a good read. Basically Rich is forced to repeat Halloween Night-- time loop style.

[skywalking-through-life]

hi aftercare anon here oh my god i loved the snippet!! do you know when the chapter will be out? also percy calling her “beth” makes me feel all sorts of ways he loves her so much i adore them

YAY! I'm so glad!! I was hoping it was what you were looking for!

So, something I've learned is to never promise that a certain thing will be out within a certain time frame, because that is basically setting myself up to fail. 💀 That being said, I wrote about 1k of the next chapter over the past 3 days, and I'm pretty happy with it! Since each chapter has been (on average) about 5k, if I write really, really fast, it MIGHT only take me only two weeks to get the new chapter out. If I don't write really, really fast or get sick again...it's hard to know? The longest so far it's taken me to get a new chapter out in THIS fic had been a little over two months, so I'd say anywhere between two weeks and two months to the next chapter is a fair range. ☺️

Yesssss I am thrilled to meet another member of the 'Percy calls Annabeth 'Beth'' club! I agree - it's so soft, and I get all warm and squirmy whenever I write it!! He loves her SO much, so much that sometimes I can't even stand it. 🥹

[veysxrge]

Hi! I saw youre struggling with writers block so ill drop this here

Grover, anabelle and Percy bonding with their older sister (adoptive) Child of hephastus! Reader? (Maybe Grover gets making friendshipp bracelets, percy stargazing and anabelle spending time at a library Reading and having coffee/tea)

Ty in advance!!!

Jewels (R.V)

Word count: 1k

Warnings: None

Pairings: Percy, Annabeth, Grover & Child of Hephaestus!Reader (Platonic)

I love this idea, it sounds so sweet! I tried to keep it mostly vague in terms of her personality/backstory, but I hope you don’t mind that I gave her a known nickname so that I wouldn’t have to use Y/n!

-

“Hey Jewels!” The daughter of Hephaestus was quick to perk up from her work at the sound of her nickname, lifting up the goggles to rest on her mop of messy hair. It took her a second to find who called her, but soon enough her eyes met Grovers, one of the people at camp that she bonded the most with.

“What’s up, Grover?” She asked, placing her hammer down and moving away from the anvil so that she could face him properly.

“Perc and Beth were wondering if you wanted to join us after the campfire, planning on taking a swim with the naiads.” She pursed her lips, contemplating his offer as her eyes moved to her unfinished dagger. It was going to be a gift for Annabeth for her upcoming birthday, made of celestial bronze and having a curved handle for easier hold. She was even planning on adding some lapis into the hilt and maybe a ruby at the end of it. She hadn’t fully decided, but seeing as Annabeth’s birthday was a few weeks away, she didn’t have much time to finish it.

She turned her attention back towards Grover and his pleading eyes, he knew she was never able to say no to that face. “I should be able to come by for an hour or two.” 

She knew she made the right decision when she saw Grover’s face light up, and his arms wrapped around her in a tight hug, “Thanks Jewels, see you later.” She smiled fondly at Grover, watching him go before turning around to continue her work.

-

A few days later she found herself drawing up a sketch of how she wanted to design Annabeth’s dagger, Percy laying on the floor by her bed. He had decided to stop by, just wanting to sit in silence. He got like this sometimes, overwhelmed by all the thoughts running in his head, by the younger campers who wanted to meet him and talk about the things he did. 

He always ended up with either Annabeth or Jewels when he got like this. But Annabeth was sadly in the process of helping out some new campers in adjusting to the new life they’d have to live, in the Big House with Chiron as they explained things to the two newest campers.

So here Percy was, staring at the ceiling of the Hephaestus cabin, tracing his eyes along the designs on the ceiling. Jewels looked at him before glancing up at the designs herself, she felt a small smile tug at her lips as she looked at the one directly above him.

“Leo burned that one in, I was surprised at how good he was at it.” She said, looking at the intricate design. Children of Hephaestus were always alright at drawing, but it mostly stemmed from sketches of things they were going to build. But Leo ended up burning a beautiful flower, a Dragon Lily. 

“It’s really nice, I really like it.” Percy murmured, not looking away from it. She just smiled at that, glancing at him once more before returning her eyes back to her sketch.

“I’ll let him know that you approve.” She said, letting them fall into silence once more. After a few minutes she spoke up again, “Hey Perc, wanna help me with potential designs for Annabeth’s dagger?”

She watched as Percy’s demeanor immediately shifted from overwhelmed and closed off to intrigued and eager due to the mention of his girlfriend's name. She rolled her eyes fondly as he got up and practically jumped to sit next to her, “What do you have so far?”

-

It was Annabeth’s birthday, Jewels was currently going around the dining pavilion, making sure everyone was alright and ready for when Annabeth came inside. She left the major planning stuff to Annabeth’s brothers and sisters since they were better at those kinds of things, but she still tried to help where she could. They were basically all done anyway, just waiting for Percy and Annabeth to get back from their little date in the water before everything went down. 

The daughter of Hephaestus was worried, she had spent almost a month perfecting the dagger for Annabeth, but she still couldn’t seem to have full confidence that the girl would like it. No matter how much Grover, Percy and her siblings tried to convince her that Annabeth would be absolutely ecstatic over it. She still couldn’t seem to have that much confidence in her work, which was a surprise seeing as she was always the one most confident in her work.

But she didn’t have any time to really worry anymore, as she was lost in her thoughts Annabeth and Percy had returned. The birthday girl looked amazing, her braided hair pulled back into a low ponytail and her gray eyes shining as she accepted the small gifts and trinkets campers gave her. 

Soon enough Annabeth made her way to Jewels, her smile softening a bit. “Happy birthday, Beth.” She said, pulling Annabeth into a hug which the girl happily returned.

“Thank you, Jewels.” She said, giving her one last squeeze before pulling away. Jewels breathed in a bit before finally grabbing the gently wrapped dagger and handing it to Annabeth.

The daughter of Athena raised her eyebrow, glancing at her before looking back down at the wrapped gift. She pulled the cloth away and you could practically see all the emotions running through her head just by her eyes. 

The celestial bronze dagger was curved at the hilt, but straight on the sharp end. The hilt was carefully woven with leather braided similar to a fishtail braid you would have in your hair. At each edge and corner of the leather braiding was a ruby or a lapis embroidered into the hilt to resemble her birthstone as well as the stone associated with her mother. 

“It’s beautiful… Thank you Jewels, I love it.” Annabeth said, her smile bright as she tried to blink away the tears she wanted to cry. Jewels smiled a bit before reaching behind her and taking out a leather belt with a holder for the dagger.

“Incase you wanted to use it in action.” Annabeth’s smile seemed to grow even more, and instead of her grabbing the belt, she instead wrapped the other in a tight hug once more.

“You’re the best, sis.” Jewels felt her heart melt at the new nickname, smiling more as she wrapped her arms around Annabeth and rubbing her back gently.

[kassiekole22]

Take Your Meds, Josh

Pairing: Josh Washington X Fem!Reader Description: Josh wakes up to see his girlfriend gazing down at him lovingly, and in this moment, he realizes just how lucky and happy he is to have her in his life. Warnings: Fluff, Angst, Mention Of Mental Health Issues, (Prescription) Drug Use. Word Count: 1k Josh Washington MasterList: 🖤 Main MasterList: 🖤 TagList: @lorebite, @house-of-kolchek, @koexchange, @yesitsloulou, @mistmoose, @jasonexo, @mornandil, @fortune-fool02, and @raven-the-cryptid. (If you want to be added to the taglist, let me know in the comments! 🖤)

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Josh woke up and the first thing his eyes met was the gaze of a gorgeous girl — his girl. She smiled kindly at him as she raised her hand to his cheek and caressed it gently. Her touch felt so soft against his cheek, which was covered with stubble that he had forgotten to shave off the morning before. But she didn't seem to care.

"Good morning, beautiful." She spoke softly. Her voice sounded like an angel that had just been sent down from heaven to protect him from the darkest places of his mind. And Josh firmly believed that that was exactly why she was brought into his life; she was his protector — his guardian angel.

"Good morning, baby." He said in a hoarse voice, his throat dry from lack of hydration. "Can you get me a glass of water, please?" He asked weakly.

He noticed that she already had one in her grasp as she handed it to him with a warm smile still on her face and love in her eyes. He took a sip and then peered around his room as his vision slowly came back into focus.

Everything was the same — the walls were still painted a nice shade of crimson, posters of every horror movie you could think of pinned upon them; even the pictures of Hannah and Beth, that he had taken on their last summer vacation were still in their place.

Though everything appeared the same, Josh couldn't help but feel as if something was different. It was like everything had been moved one inch to the left or everything was a slight shade off from the color they used to be. But Josh decided to pay no mind to it for the time being.

"Sweetheart?" His beloved girlfriend murmured beside him, catching his attention almost instantly. "I have your medication here. It's time to take them."

Josh sighed. He hated taking his depression medication. It was just a painful reminder that deep down he was never fully ok — he was never naturally happy.

"Take your meds, Josh." She pushed firmly and yet in the softest tone Josh had ever heard anyone speak. Although he hated it, the worried look in his love's eyes was enough to convince him to take them.

He took the pill bottle from her and noticed that there was only one left in the bottle. He made a mental note to get more later but something told him that he wouldn't have to worry about it. He placed the bitter little pill in his mouth and took another sip of his water before swallowing it reluctantly.

He then handed her the glass which she set on the bedside table. He sighed again as he laid back, waiting for the medication to kick in. His girlfriend laid down beside him on the bed and placed a gentle kiss on his lips, which he gladly returned. After parting from their short but sweet kiss, she placed her hands upon his cheeks and gazed into his eyes.

The look in her gorgeous (E/C) orbs was loving and passionate, enough to make him want to cry — for the first time ever, not from sorrow but from happiness.

He realized that he did not need the medication to make him happy — he needed her. She was what was fixing him and no pills or therapy of any kind could ever compare to her.

He felt the tears finally break free and fall down his cheeks as the corners of his chapped lips turned up into a genuine smile. She returned the smile as a soft giggle broke free from her lips while she gently wiped his tears away with the soft pads of her thumbs.

"It looks like those pills are finally working." She commented happily. He closed his eyes and leaned into her sweet and tender touch. Josh silently disagreed with her words. They were not working.

Or were they?

"Joshua?" He heard a male voice say from across the room.

His eyes shot open to find that he was no longer in his bedroom. The walls were no longer crimson but a dull shade of white that felt unsettling to him, the posters were no longer pinned to the wall and Hannah and Beth's photos were gone as well. He looked over to the door to see an older man standing there, wearing a white doctor's coat with a clipboard in his hand.

"Who are you talking to?" The man spoke with a hint of concern laced within his deep voice.

"(Y/N)." Josh croaked out, his voice much more scratchy and worn than it was before. His worried eyes searched around the room, but she was nowhere to be seen. He looked down at his hand to see a small cup within his grasp — a cup that once contained a small pill.

"Joshua," The man took a few closer steps towards Josh, where he was laying on a bed that had bars on the sides. "Did you forget again?"

"F–Forget what?" Josh felt tears filling the corners of his eyes again. But this time it was not due to happiness, but pure fear of learning the truth.

"(Y/N) died one year ago at your lodge — right after your prank."

As those words echoed through his mind, Josh felt as if his whole world was collapsing. It couldn't be real. It just couldn't.

"I'll have to up your dosage of your medication and get a nurse to take you to Dr. Hill as soon as possible." The man said as he took a pen out of his pocket and scribbled something down on his clipboard.

"The medication won't work! It doesn't! I need (Y/N)! The only thing that will cure my depression is her, not the fucking medication!" Josh yelled while tears finally began to stream down his face, as the last thread of sanity within his mind had come undone.

"Joshua, you only saw (Y/N) because you need the medication." The man explained. "You're Schizophrenic."

》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《》《

[luveline]

I love your KBD universe, I know that Beth is having a hard time with being the weird kid and I just have to say as a lover of weird things and people I would love to see something where Bethie comes home from school happy to have met someone who LOVES that she’s a little weird!

dad!steve and his weird girls <3 mom!reader, 1k

When you get home from work with the big kids in tow, Steve’s gonna kiss you stupid. With baby Wren gurgling on his tummy and less-baby Dove sitting by his head where he lays on the couch, he’s never been this happy. He’ll be happier when the big girls are home, but for now, he’s snug as a bug, treated by his second youngest to a buffet of affection. 

“Love you,” Dove says, kissing his cheek for the tenth time in the last two minutes. He can’t stop laughing.

“I love you, too!” he says, shifting his hand to give Wren some more room. 

“Love you, dad,” Dove says.

“I know, baby, I know. Thank you for the kisses, you’re so nice.” 

Dove kisses him again. “You’re happy,” she says. 

“So happy. Can I get another kiss, you think?” 

He turns into her. She’s sitting too high to be cuddled; all Steve can do is take in her sweetness. He can’t believe how quickly her babyhood has passed into toddlerhood, and she’s been sort of a nightmare, but she’s also his little girl. She’s your daughter, her sisters’ sister. She was always going to be lovely, and Steve feels it like a loving punch as she noses at his ear. “Daddy,” she laughs, “you’re too warm.” 

“I’m blushing, babe, I’m getting all these nice kisses!” He laughs like an idiot and decides he must hug her, pulling his arm up and scooping her into his chest. 

She groans in annoyance before she realises what he’s doing, “Hug!” she says excitedly. 

“Hug!” he echoes, wrapping his arm around her. She’s starting to look less like a baby and more like a little tiny kid, which he hates and loves at the same time. “Aw, I love you, Dovey.” 

The door clatters open. Wren jumps at the sound, hiding her face in Steve’s neck, to which he gives a good back rubbing. “It’s okay, bubby, it’s just your mommy. Don’t be silly, huh? Just mommy. You’re gonna be happy when she turns the corner.” 

“Shoes,” you’re saying from the door, though Steve can’t see you, he can tell you’re smiling. “Shoes, Beth, then you can tell dad.” 

“Daddy, we’re home!” Avery shouts. 

“I can hear you, babe!” he shouts back, not unkindly. 

“Dad, I have something to tell you!” Beth shouts. 

Steve hoists himself up into a sitting position, two babies in his arms, knowing you’ll know he’s laid down all day from the mess of his hair alone but not trying to hide it. You can do whatever you want on your vacation days, you’d teased. Just make sure you feed the kids.

“Hi,” you say, appearing in the doorway, two balls of energy at your legs that bolt for Steve the second they see him. 

“Girls, I don’t have long enough arms,” he says, trying to cuddle them all, even though it’s impossible. 

He finds himself suddenly relieved of the second youngest. Dove might love her father, but she adores her mother, and she hasn’t seen you all day —she slinks down out of his hold and through the mess of her sisters to grab at you, to which you gratefully receive her, pulling her up to station on your hip. “Hi, gorgeous,” Steve hears you say. Avery pushes him back, climbing into his lap with a happy sigh. “Miss me today? I missed you,” you ask sweetly. 

“What did you want to tell me, Beth?” Steve asks curiously, grinning as Avery makes herself comfortable on his thigh, her arm wrapping behind his neck. He’s happy to see everybody else so happy, even if it’s hectic. 

Beth beams up at him with her brightest smile in weeks. She’s been having such a hard time at school, Steve wondered if he could start homeschooling, coming home upset nearly every other day. It isn’t fair. His relief that she’s had a good day is palpable. 

“Dad, there’s a new girl! Her name is Francesca and she’s got the same birthday as me and guess what!” 

“What?” he asks. 

“She said she likes being weird!” Beth’s eyes glow shiny with joy. “Cos Hilly called me weird, and she said she likes being weird. She said we can be best friends.” Beth hits his knee in her excitement. “She liked me, dad.” 

“Why wouldn’t she like you?” he asks, wondering how old he’ll have to be before he stops tearing up at Beth’s good heart. He blinks quickly to dispel any tears before they can gather. “Her name is Francesca? When did she move? Do you think she wants to come for dinner?” 

Your laugh is a snort. “Steve.” 

“What? Friends come for dinner. Best friends! Did you speak to her mom?” he asks you. 

“I didn’t see her.” 

“Don’t worry, Beth, I’ll speak to her in the morning. We’ll see if they want to come for dinner or go swimming or something.” 

Beth’s smile gets wider, “Really?” 

“Yeah, really!” He gives Avery a little shake. “Did you meet Francesca?” 

Avery nods. “She’s pale and she has big hair. Curly hair, too.” Her voice is a tad scratched, perhaps from the cold out. 

Steve lets his weight fall into the arm, cautious not to squish your baby, a grin on his face to rival Beth’s. She gets the memo and climbs up, claiming that last bit of space under the baby to hug his stomach. He tries to wrap them all up, gurgly Wren, exuberant Beth, and poor cold Avery. “You coming?” he asks you. 

There’s dinner to make. You ignore it, crossing the mess of the living room to flop down on the couch next to them all. Steve lifts his face in that way you always recognise, and is pleased as punch when you peck him quickly. 

You don’t realise how Steve thinks of you, he’d say. Don’t realise he wants another kiss, then another, that you’re on his mind when you aren’t there, and dominate it when you are. He loves his babies, but he loves you too. He wants another kiss. 

“Steve,” you scold lightly, surprised as he presses two kisses to the corner of your mouth. 

“Sorry. Beth, tell me more about Francesca. What did she say exactly?” 

Beth takes a deep breath. 

[acecroft]

A YEAR IN REVIEW: CREATIONS OF 2023

Post your favorite and most popular post from each month this year (it's okay to skip months).

I was tagged by @rogerdeakinsdp <3

I'm not gonna count sets I made for group blogs I'm in, only my personal

JANUARY MOST POPULAR: SUPERNATURAL 3.06 (1.5K) FAVORITE: SUPERNATURAL 3.06 (another set)

FEBRUARYMOST POPULAR: The Shining (1980) dir. Stanley Kubrick (1.8k) FAVORITE: I never knew what the black-eyed bastard wanted.

MARCH MOST POPULAR: RESIDENT EVIL 4 Remake (3.4k) FAVORITE: MARY ELIZABETH WINSTEAD as Kate Lloyd in The Thing (2011)

APRIL MOST POPULAR: Sam Winchester in SUPERNATURAL 4.09 (2.2k) FAVORITE: Dean, look, you held out for 30 years. That’s longer than anyone would have.

MAY MOST POPULAR: just sam carpenter thing 🔪🔪🔪 (2.1k) FAVORITE: LILY SULLIVAN as Beth Bixler in Evil Dead Rise (2023)

JUNE MOST POPULAR: Find an outfit. (1.3k) FAVORITE: STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS 2.03

JULY MOST POPULAR: MELISSA BARRERA as Sam Carpenter in Scream VI (2023) (1.2k) FAVORITE: UNCHARTED 4: A THIEF’S END 2016

AUGUST MOST POPULAR: THE X-FILES 2.23 ‘Soft Light’ (~1k) FAVORITE: You’re not hungry, Dean… because inside, you’re already dead.

SEPTEMBER MOST POPULAR: #mood (2k) FAVORITE: SUPERNATURAL 5.18

OCTOBER MOST POPULAR: SCREAM (1996) dir. Wes Craven (1.7k) FAVORITE: THE CURSED (2021) dir. Sean Ellis

NOVEMBER MOST POPULAR: Dean Winchester in SUPERNATURAL 6.06 (1k) FAVORITE: ALAN WAKE II

DECEMBER MOST POPULAR: THE NEW BATMAN ADVENTURES 1.01 Holiday Knights (1997) (2.1k) FAVORITE: FAVORITE GAMES PLAYED IN 2023 (for the first time)

tagging @anthonysperkins @mikaeled if you want to, if not don't worry

[lvnleah]

Movie Nights | Lia Wälti

Summary: a team bonding movie night makes you and Lia realise you have feelings for each other.

Based on this request! sorry it took so long 💗

word count: 1k

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The smell of freshly baked pizza filled your living room as all of your friends settled down. It was a team bonding night and your turn to host at your house.

You’d only been at Arsenal a year and hadn’t hosted one before so your nerves were eating away at you. You’d chosen to do a chill night, something that everyone could enjoy, and had settled on pizza and a movie to watch.

The scent of freshly popped popcorn filled the air as you stood in the kitchen, Beth and Leah leaning against the counter with expectant grins. The sound of laughter and casual chatter drifts in from the living room where Vic, Kyra, Lia, Viv, Steph and Katie were setting up for the movie night.

"So," Beth started, her tone playful yet probing, "when are you going to ask Lia out?"

You nearly dropped the bowl of popcorn in surprise. "What? No, we're just friends," you stammered, feeling your face heat up at the mere thought.

Leah chuckled, nudging Beth with her elbow. "Come on, everyone can see how close you two are. It's only a matter of time."

You shook your head, a flustered laugh escaping your lips as you grabbed the snacks and headed towards the living room. "You're both ridiculous," you muttered, though their words linger in your mind.

As you entered the living room, Lia looked up from her spot on the couch, her eyes lighting up when she saw you. Without a second thought, sat down beside her, the warmth of her smile easing any lingering nerves.

"Ready for the movie?" she asked, her voice soft and inviting.

You nodded, feeling a sense of calm wash over you as you settled in next to her. The lights dimmed, and as the opening scene began to play, you found yourself unconsciously leaning into Lia's side.

You couldn’t get Leah and Beth’s question out of your mind.

Lia’s presence was always comforting and for a moment, you allowed yourself to wonder what it would be like if there was more than just friendship between you.

You’d been friends now for a few years, it had always been a flirty friendship and you often caught yourself lost in her laughter or the way her eyes sparkled when she was excited. But the thought of taking things further always seemed too daunting, too risky. What if you misread the signals? What if you lost her as a friend?

The movie played on, but your mind wandered. You felt Lia shift beside you, her arm brushing against yours. The casual touch sent a jolt through you, amplifying the awareness of her proximity. Her hand, warm and relaxed, rested close to yours on the couch.

"You two are always so cuddly," Beth teased, wiggling her eyebrows at you and Lia. "Are you sure you're just best friends?"

Leah chimed in with a grin, "Yeah, you're practically glued to each other."

Vic and Kyra nodded in agreement, their playful smirks evident even in the dim light of the movie night.

Feeling a bit self-conscious and not wanting to make Lia uncomfortable with the teasing, you attempted to sit up straighter to put some space between you both but before you could move an inch, Lia's hold tightened.

"Don't move," she whispered, her voice firm yet gentle. "I'm comfortable."

As the film continued, Lia leaned closer, her head almost resting on your shoulder. Your heart raced, and you fought to maintain your composure. When she let out a soft laugh at a scene, you couldn't help but glance at her, mesmerised by her smile.

You must have been staring too long because Lia turned to you, her eyes locking with yours. "What's on your mind?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Caught off guard, you stammered, "Just... enjoying the night." Your response was vague, but Lia didn't press further. Instead, she offered a reassuring smile and turned her attention back to the screen.

By the time the movie ended, the room was filled with contented chatter and laughter. Your teammates began to gather their things, stretching and joking about the film. As they trickled out the door, Lia lingered, helping you tidy up the remains of the evening.

As you walked her to the door, an awkward silence settled between you. Lia hesitated, glancing down before meeting your gaze. "I had a great time tonight," she said softly, her hand resting on the doorknob.

"Me too," you replied, your voice almost too quiet to hear.

Lia stepped closer, her expression contemplative. “Beth and Leah were teasing you earlier, weren't they?"

Your breath caught in your throat. "How did you...?"

"I saw the way you reacted," Lia interrupted gently. "I’ve been meaning to ask you something."

Your heart pounded, a mix of hope and fear swirling within you. "What is it?"

Lia took a deep breath, her eyes never leaving yours. "Do you ever think there could be... more between us?"

The question hung in the air, heavy and full of possibilities. You searched her face, looking for any hint of hesitation, but all you saw was sincerity and a hint of vulnerability.

Taking a step closer, you decided to be brave. "I do," you admitted, your voice trembling slightly. "I think about it a lot."

Relief washed over Lia's face, and she let out a breath she seemed to have been holding. "So do I," she said, a soft smile curving her lips.

Without another word, she closed the distance between you, her hand gently cupping your cheek. The world seemed to fade away as she leaned in, her lips brushing yours in a tender, hesitant kiss.

At that moment, nothing else mattered. All of your worries dissolved into the warmth of her kiss. When you finally pulled away, you both wore matching smiles.

"Well," you said, your voice a mix of excitement and nervousness, "I guess we should thank Beth and Leah."

Lia laughed softly, her eyes shining with affection. "Yeah, I guess we should."

[e-dubbc11]

Ericca, you sweet, amazing and lovely lady! Congratulations on your milestone! That is so fantastic and you really deserve it ❤️

You've always been so kind to me and such a good friend. I'm thankful I found you, the Beth to my Rip 😆❤️

You know I'm a fluffball, so of course I'd send an ask. I'm also indecisive, so... two prompts for our Billy boy? 😅🙈

“don’t listen to that voice inside your head, listen to mine.”

"Nothing makes me more happy than making you smile."

Your Billy will forever be my favorite ❤️

My sweet Sofie, thank you and thank you for sending these in, I’m sorry it’s taken me a little while to finally get to this one but I really hope you like it! I love you to pieces and I’ll always be the Beth to your Rip ❤️

What Makes You Beautiful

Photos are not mine. They are courtesy of Pinterest/Google

Pairing: Billy Russo x F! Reader

Warnings: couple of swear words, self doubt, reader feeling insecure about her body, fluff

Word Count: a little over 2K

Summary: Billy and reader are married and have a new baby. Reader is feeling insecure about her post baby body, he reassures her she is the only one for him.

A/N: This ask kinda got away from me, what was supposed to be around 1K words, turned into a little over 2K words so I figured I’d just make it a whole thing complete with moodboard. And thank you Sofie for helping me with the title, I was having a hell of a time. ❤️

Nothing was more picture perfect than the sight in front of you. The sight of your handsome husband asleep on the couch holding your precious baby daughter on his chest, also asleep, was something you were still getting used to.

Billy Russo was a marine, a CEO, a combat veteran, and now, a father. You never thought you would ever see the day where Billy would be content holding a baby. He was nervous at first when you told him he was going to be a father.

He had so many questions, one of them being “Do you think I’ll be a good dad, y/n?” The worried look on his face broke your heart, you could see he was scared, but did your best to put his worries to rest. “Well we’re going to find out, aren’t we. I’ll be right here with you, Billy. I’m scared too, but we can learn together.”

Billy never knew what real love was, he had never been shown, but he eventually learned sometimes the hard way but he did learn. He learned it so well in fact that when he asked you to marry him, it was a complete surprise.

You had never talked about it and weren’t sure if he would ever be ready to get married. Shock and awe are the only two words you could use to describe what you felt that day, tears were shed by both of you but there wasn’t any hesitation in your answer. Of course you would marry him.

That was three years ago, it hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows but he was the love of your life and you would work hard at keeping what you fought so hard to attain—true love. And he would try his hardest to do the same.

And now the two of you were parents, to the sweet little angel asleep on her father’s chest. With each rise and fall of Billy’s chest, you watched her entire body move up and down, her tiny fist balled up next to her face, and her ink like hair that matched her father’s sticking straight up off of her little head. She was so beautiful, your little Ruby—Ruby Faye Russo.

Being new parents, it was difficult to find time to be with just one another but it was important that you and Billy still did things together just the two of you. It was getting easier to leave Ruby while you went out.

Your parents were always very eager to look after their granddaughter and the Castle family could not come over fast enough if Billy asked them if they could babysit for a few hours while the two of you went out to dinner.

It had been six months since Ruby was born, things were going as well as could be expected with two brand new parents. Ups and downs, good days, not so good days but you had settled into a routine and had managed to make time for you and Billy to go out on dates with each other twice a month.

But there was one thing that had been bothering you, especially for the past couple of months. You still couldn’t fit into your pre-baby clothes and even though Ruby was six months old now, your emotions continued to move in roller coaster fashion about it.

You were constantly questioning yourself. “Does he still find me attractive? What if I can’t lose the weight? Will he leave me for someone else?” Stupid hormones and they finally got the best of you while you were getting ready for a dinner date with Billy one night.

He said he was taking you somewhere nice, made arrangements for Maria, Frank, and the kids to come over to take care of Ruby, and Billy also took care of the baby so you could get ready for the evening.

Wanting to look your best, you went all out. You curled your hair, added a pretty red flower to the side, exaggerated your winged eyeliner, and put on red lipstick. But when it came time to put the dress on that you had picked out, that’s when it all fell apart. It still didn’t fit.

Billy walked into the bedroom after you put your dressing robe back on. “Look who finally fell asleep.” You smiled looking at Ruby asleep on her father’s shoulder. Billy placed a soft kiss on the top of the baby’s head and said “I’m gonna go put her down so I can get ready, I’ll be right back, beautiful.”

Beautiful. The way that term of endearment rolled off of his tongue, he loved you so much. But it was hard to get out of your own head sometimes, and before you knew what was happening, tears had welled up in your eyes about to spill over when he came back into the bedroom.

“Do you think I should wear the gray or the black su—? Hey, hey baby, what’s wrong?” Billy asked. Immediately pulling a tissue from the box on your vanity, he started to catch the fresh tears that fell from your eyes.

“It doesn’t fit.” You said with a hitch in your voice.

Billy’s dark eyes, like two pieces of onyx, gazed at you full of love and concern.

“What doesn’t fit, sweet girl?” He asked and glanced quickly at the dress on the bed. “The dress?”

You nodded. “I still don’t have a lot that fits me right now, Billy. And I keep thinking what if I can’t get back into those clothes?”

He caught a couple stray tears that ran down your cheek.

“Why are you sayin’ things like that? I need to you tell me what you’re feelin’, y/n.” He said.

Billy Russo was a lot of things and great communicator was not one of them but today you were the one that was having trouble getting your words out.

“I—I don’t feel very pretty right now, Billy. And I’m afraid if I can’t lose the baby weight that—that you won’t find me pretty anymore either.” You voice was strained, trying as hard as you could to keep from completely breaking down.

A slight smile crept across Billy’s face. “That’s what’s botherin’ you? Come with me, beautiful.” He took your hand and led you out of the bedroom into Ruby’s room.

When you found out you were having a baby girl, pink was not an option, that’s not what you envisioned. Black and white with accents of red decorated her room with her name painted in red above her crib.

You took a minimalist approach to decorating her nursery, but there was an obvious theme of red hearts and bows. You remembered how you cried after you finished painting her name above her crib because you just could not wait to meet her.

Billy ushered you over to Ruby’s crib, she was fast asleep on her back with her hands above her head, and the two of you staring down at the little angel you brought into the world.

“Look at her, y/n.” He whispered.

Shifting your eyes from his, you gazed down at Ruby sleeping so peacefully. Moments like this were so…perfect.

“Look at what you’ve given me. You gave me something I never thought I would ever have or even want. We’re a family and I love you endlessly. You are the most beautiful woman in the world to me because you make me laugh, you taught me how to love, you accept me for who I am and because you gave me my little girl down there. Not because you can fit into some stupid dress.”

You stood there in silence as he poured his heart out to you, still catching your tears in the tissue and trying to not smudge your makeup.

“I love you too, Billy. So much.” You said.

He cupped your face in both of his hands and smiled warmly at you. “Don’t listen to that voice inside your head, listen to mine. It’s always going to tell you that you’re beautiful, my love. Always.”

Billy leaned in to kiss you, his kisses peppered your forehead, to your cheeks and finally to your lips. He didn’t care that he had red lipstick on his lips now and you didn’t mind that he had smudged it, it could be fixed. His long arms wrapped tightly around you and he hugged you with such force that all of the air had escaped your lungs.

Little Ruby stirred in her crib but quickly fell back to sleep while you and Billy quietly slipped out of her room and back to your bedroom.

“So can I still take my wife out to dinner tonight? I’ll take you to get a new dress on the way if you want, just say the word, baby.” He said with that perfect smile splashed across his face.

Finally after the tears, you let out a little laugh. “Yes Billy, I’d love to go out to dinner with you. But you don’t have to buy me a new dress, I’m pretty sure I have something else I can wear.”

Of course he was finished getting ready before you, all he had to do was throw on his suit and he was ready so he went to wait for you in the living room while you finished. After fixing your makeup, you found the perfect outfit. A red pencil skirt and a slim fit black top, they both fit and more importantly, the outfit made you feel beautiful.

You were confident as you walked out to greet your husband.

“Hey there, handsome.” You said batting your eyelashes at him, playfully.

Billy looked up from scrolling on his phone. “Holy shit…baby, you look—you look perfect.”

The desire in his eyes as he jumped up to meet you as you walked towards him was all you needed to see to know how he felt about you.

He brushed your cheek with his knuckles as he looked down at you, wanting to kiss you but you stopped him. “Don’t mess up my lipstick again, Mr. Russo or we’re never going to get out of here.” You said.

His eyes roamed all over you from head to toe and then stopped right at your chest. “Actually Mrs. Russo, I was thinking about how great your tits look in this, my god.”

You weren’t expecting his comment so a burst of laughter came from deep down in your stomach but quickly stopped when you remembered Ruby was asleep in her room.

Playfully slapping him on the shoulder, you whisper yelled “Billy, you can’t make me laugh like that when the baby is sleeping!” You slapped his shoulder one more time.

He pulled you into an embrace and just held you for a brief moment. “Nothing makes me happier, than making you smile, sweet girl.” He kissed the top of your head. “I hope our little girl has your laugh, she already has your sass.”

You pulled away and narrowed your eyes at him. “She does not!”

Billy raised his eyebrows at you. “Oh did you forget that she pulled the nurses hair right after she was born?”

You shied away from him a little bit but also you bit back a smile because you did remember, how could you forget? As soon as she was born, the nurse took her from you and little Ruby grabbed hold of that nurse’s hair and would not let go. “She’s got my hair! She’s got my hair!” She yelled. It was a memory you and Billy would always remember and it would always put a smile on your face.

All of a sudden, there was a knock on your door and Frank’s voice boomed from the other side. “Open up Russo’s, we wanna hold that baby!!”

“Well, I think Uncle Frank is here.” You said sarcastically.

Billy looked in the direction of the door and back to you. “Sure sounds that way, you ready for dinner, my love?”

“I am ready, baby. I love you.” You said with a smile. “You better let Frank in before he breaks the door down.”

He smiled and winked back at you. “I love you too, beautiful.” Frank continued to knock, never letting up. “I’m gonna kill him.”

With a furrowed brow and lips pressed firmly together because of the incessant knocking, Billy turned and headed for the door.

“I’m coming, Frankie! Hold ON!”

Tag List: @mindidjarin @saintmurd0ck @wheresthesunshinesblog @rafaelakelley @idaoftheburningmind @snowkestrel @xdervyxccgh @mattmurdocksscars @fakehappy27 @music-indie-tv @fictional-hooman @kayhi808 @munsonownsmyass @gijos @celestialams

If you’d like to be added to (or removed from) my tag list for the ever so handsome Billy Russo, just let me know and thank you again for reading! 💕💕💕

[courtney-deserved-better]

a masterpost of my td fics as of 10/20/22

posting this because ive reached 50 td fics on ao3. enjoy!

Advantages - 591 words, complete - some very sweet jasammy proposal fluff post-canon

All Is Fair - 1.8k words, complete - alenoah pulling high school shenanigans trying to matchmake for gwourtney while oblivious to their own feelings for each other

Ascent To Wondrous Heights - 1.4k words, complete - team e-scope + owen having fun at a college fair, with some evzy after eva’s deals with a fear of heights

Balancing Act - 1.4k words, complete - set during all-stars, in which courtney confesses a secret plan to gwen and gwourtney ensues, technically canon compliant? if you want it to be

Behind The Scenes In New York City - 2.6k words, complete - just the cast hanging out after the new york challenge, there’s alenoah and gwourtney but it focuses on friendship

Blame Game - 480 words, complete - a short character study about gwen through courtney’s eyes, set during the newfoundland episode 

Blue Lips - 530 words, complete - gwourtney fluff surrounding gwen’s makeup choices, funny and sweet

Coastal Confessions - 8.7k words, complete - set right after the tdwt finale minus the volcanic eruption where heather discovers secrets others have been hiding that bring the cast closer together, alenoah and platonic lesheather

Coffee - 1k words, complete - high school au with sneaky pre-relationship alenoah and student council election hijinks

Drawn to Her - 380 words, complete - pre-relationship oblivious gwourtney ft. gwen + leshawna friendship and courtney + bridgette friendship

Eventually - 578 words, complete - alenoah hurt/comfort, eva is mentioned, talking about recovery

Everything & Nothing - 450 words, complete - a short character study of sierra through alejandro’s eyes, set just before the drumheller episode 

Exchange Of Nines - 3.1k words, complete - an alternate ending to the london episode if trent had been brought back instead of duncan, minor gwourtney & alenoah

Fanning The Flames - 800 words, complete - post-canon girlfriends gwen and courtney run into total drama fan sammy, minor angst & happy ending

Fashionable - girlfriends anne maria and jo go shopping together and anne maria tries to figure out why jo is upset, college au 

Fiendish Fiancé - 805 words, complete - established relationship alenoah fluff with baker noah

For The Lesbians - 644 words, complete - rewrite of a tdpi moment in which dave respects lesbians and kisses shawn

Gal Pals - 1.2k words, complete - set during tdwt, five times heather watched gwen and courtney be gay and oblivious and one time she did something about it

Hook Me Gently With A Chainsaw - 4.5k words, complete - a rewrite of the tdi horror episode with a few different characters, gwourtney, evzy, and harold-tyler friendship

Hopeless - 1.2k words, complete - alejandro has a crush and courtney takes things into her own hands, alenoah and platonic alejandro-heather-courtney

I Rather Like Having Friends - 2k words, complete - high school au, courtney has a bunch of roti cast friends over to make cookies and play just dance

In Her Corner - 1.3k, complete - takes place during tda sports episode, heather calls beth out for turning everyone against leshawna

Last Night Courtney - 10.1k words, complete - total drama psych au with lots of shenanigans while solving a murder, alenoah, gwourtney, and platonic alecourtney, plus team escope

Letters & Prison - 1.5k words, complete - set five years after tdas where courtney sends duncan a letter about her life, gwourtney is mentioned but the focus is on duncan and courtney

Lost to Vengeance - 690 words, complete - macarthur and sanders go for an early morning run and talk about revenge

Music Man - 380 words, complete - behind the scenes of the first tdwt aftermath, trent talks to beth and justin about how he’s upset he’s not a part of the musical season

Naturally Nice - 1k words, complete - alenoah fluff where noah finds out about alejandro’s spanish accent

No Worries - 487 words, complete - alejandro gets himself into a scrape and noah isn’t happy about it, mostly alenoah fluff

Not The One - 410 words, complete - gwen and duncan talk instead of kissing in the confessional, the love triangle but its all one-sided

Not The Worst Movie Night - 3.6k words, complete - post-canon total drama reunion with pre-relationship alenoah and platonic nowen & nemma

Odd Occasions - 630 words, complete - set during tdwt in which alejandro finds out noah is a sleep cuddler, alenoah fluff

Oh Deer - 740 words, complete - gwen and trent chat during the paintball deer episode, canon compliant

Operation Nemma - 21.3k words, 28/28 chapters - texting fic set during the ridonculous race, alenoah with platonic nemma and nowen, mostly silly fluff

Parting Gift - 1.5k words, complete - set right before noah’s tdwt elimination, alejandro confronts him and they air out their feelings, alenoah

Pepper Spray - 590 words, complete - some team escope + owen high school shenanigans with established relationship alenoah

Reinventing The Wheel - 874 words, complete - a silly conversation between team escope + owen

Right As Rain - 250 words, complete - girlfriends gwen and courtney spend a domestic rainy day together

Roommate Revelations - 500 words, complete - gwen realizes she’s in love with her roommate courtney 

Starlight Dreams - 3.7k words, complete - an ellammy cinderella/fairytale au, very romantic/sappy 

Tentative - 664 words, complete - set during in which duncan and gwen reunite somewhat differently, platonic gwuncan

Theft of Property - 750 words, complete - gwen helps a loopy courtney post-wisdom tooth removal, silly gwourtney fluff

Tickled Pink - 700 words, complete - high school au featuring a betherra promposal and supportive friend lindsay

Tolerable - 2.5k words, complete - total drama dirtbags au with noah working as chris’ assistant and alejandro (a contestant) wanting a friend, pre-relationship alenoah

Too Many Cooks Spoil The Spaghetti - 11.4k words, 2/2 chapters - a rewrite of tdi’s “if you can’t take the heat” episode featuring gwourtney, djuncan, gwen-tyler friendship, and a twist on the leshawna-heather rivalry

Undeniable Truths - 2.6k words, complete - post-canon college au in which bridgette and courtney reunite with one another, friends to lovers bridgney

Unfairway - 260 words, complete - alenoah gwourtney double date fluff and humor

Viability - 1.2k words, complete - set during tdwt in which alejandro makes a mistake and flirts with noah to get out of it

Why Are You Asking Me? - 3.5k words - college au where noah reluctantly helps nine couples get together, alenoah, justowen, evzy, trody, jomaria, gwourtney, djuncan, kadie, jasammy/jashawn, and lesheather

and what i’m most know for:

Slippery Slopes - 108k words, 13/14 chapters - a rewrite of tdwt in which heather gets eliminated instead of noah, who becomes alejandro’s new rival, alenoah and platonic nowen, noerra, and alecourtney

Hawaiian Style - 16.8k words, 9/9 chapters - the hawaiian style episode of slippery slopes, to be read after chapter 11