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fluentmoviequoter · 16 days

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All The Reasons We Can't

Requested Here!

Pairing: Tim Bradford x fem!reader (Lucy's roommate)

Summary: When you move in with Lucy Chen, you don't expect to fall for her ex-boyfriend.

Warnings: unspecified age gap (r is younger than Lucy), angst, fluff, spoilers for s6! (it's canon-divergent but still has spoilers)

Word Count: 2.6k+ words

A/N: If you are looking for a happy ending for Lucy and Tim, this is not the fic for you lol.😆

Masterlist | Tim Bradford Masterlist | Request Info/Fandom List

“Lucy!” you call, waving from your seat in the back of the restaurant.

She rushes to you and pulls you into a tight hug. “Thank you so much for coming,” she whispers into your embrace. “I needed this.”

“You’re my best friend, Lucy, I’ll always be here for you.”

Lucy nods as she releases you. You take the seat beside her rather than across from her. She’s dealing with a lot, and you know that she needs a friend right now.

“So, how long are you staying in town this time?” Lucy asks as she picks up the menu.

“Uh, about that,” you begin slowly. “I was thinking I’d just stay this time. You’re here, a lot of other things I love are here, and I just- I think it’s time to stay in LA for good.”

“You’re moving?” Lucy exclaims. “Please don’t be kidding, I can’t take that right now, girl.”

“I’m serious,” you promise her. “I’ve been looking for a new job and a place. Lucy, I want to be close to you; I need you in my life all the time, too.”

“It’s been too long,” Lucy agrees as she takes your hand. “I do have an idea though.”

You hum, inviting her to share, and her smile grows.

“Why don’t you move in with me? Tamara moved out, so I have the room. Even if it’s just temporary until you find your own space, I’d love to be roommates.”

“Are you sure? That’s a lot of change, Luce, and I don’t want to get in the way of you processing everything.”

“I’m really sure.”

“Then, yeah, I’d love that, Lucy.”

Lucy squeals, drawing the attention of an older couple sitting across from you. You wave awkwardly before they look away, then laugh with Lucy. Moving in with her sounds perfect and being right there for each other is part of why you decided to move.

“Hello,” you greet when Lucy returns from work. “Dinner is in the oven.”

“You’re the best friend ever,” Lucy sighs. “Where have you been all my life?”

“Wasting time until we met online mostly,” you answer. “How was today?”

“It was- uh, it was better. Tim and I still have a lot of work to do, mostly on ourselves. We’re going to try to be friends, though, because there’s no way either of us could ever just go back.”

“I get that. Being friends will be good for you, Lucy, even if it’s hard. Especially since you have to see him every day.”

“Yeah, it’s just still hard. Really hard sometimes, to wake up and remember he’s not there.”

You pull Lucy into a hug, which she gladly accepts. The oven timer dings, and you release her with a smile and an apology to finish preparing dinner.

“What would make it better?” you ask. “I know you’ve been thinking about it.”

“Honestly, I know I’m not ready to get out there yet, but I think seeing Tim with someone else – even just platonically – could help. He deserves it, too. For everything that he did and didn’t do, he’s a great guy, and he needs a friend or two that he can be himself with. Or does that sound selfish, like I’m trying to push him away to forget?”

“It doesn’t sound selfish at all, Lucy. You want the best for him, and if he’s trying to be friends, it seems like he wants that for you, too.”

“Yeah.” Lucy taps her fingers on the counter.

“I’ll get you a sign for the door,” you joke, trying to make her smile. “Lucy Chen, Platonic Matchmaker.”

It works, and Lucy smiles as you slide two plates onto the counter. She’s your best friend, and if she thinks Tim Bradford needs a friend (even after breaking her heart), then you trust she’s right.

“Hi,” Tim greets softly when the elevator opens.

Lucy nods once in greeting as she steps inside. “Good morning.”

Tim presses his lips together in the awkward silence. He knows he made the right choice by letting her go to get the better things she deserves, but it doesn’t make this part easier. “Big plans this weekend?”

“Not really,” Lucy replies. “My roommate is making me dinner tomorrow night and we’re just going to hang out, I think. Tamara and some other friends are coming over this weekend.”

“That’s good. You got a new roommate already?”

“I did. A friend I met a few years ago moved here, so…”

“Nice.”

“Yeah.” The door opens and Lucy steps forward. “Plus, she knows every little thing there is to know about me and you.”

Tim’s eyes widen and Lucy laughs as the elevator door closes behind her. Shaking his head, Tim smiles because Lucy looks happy again. His phone buzzes with another reminder about her cop-iversary, a term she coined to celebrate the anniversary of when she graduated to short sleeves. It’s the first year he hasn’t celebrated with her, but he’s still celebrating for her.

On the day of Lucy’s cop-iversary, you wake up early to surprise her with her favorite breakfast. When you have the food done and decorated for her big day, you realize that she should be awake by now. You walk to her bedroom door and knock lightly.

“It’s open,” Lucy calls from inside.

Gently pushing the door open, you see her finishing her hair. With the last clip in place, she sighs and looks at you. Her eyes are bloodshot, she looks tired, and there’s no sign of excitement for her big day.

“What happened?” you inquire.

“Yesterday was awful. A cop got shot, and I got roped into an undercover thing that almost blew up in my face… I’m just stressed and tired, I think. Everything’s piling on, you know?”

You extend your arms toward her, and Lucy hugs you tightly.

“Thank you,” she whispers. “What is that amazing smell?”

“That’s your cop-iversary breakfast. Go eat, I’ll tidy up in here for you.”

“I love you,” Lucy sighs. “You’re the best person, friend, roommate, human, ever.”

“Back at ya,” you reply happily. “Now go before you run out of time.”

Lucy presses her hands together in another silent thanks as she walks backward out of her room. If she hadn’t told you about the rough day yesterday, her room would have. There are some clothes spread around on the bed and floor, her desk is disorganized, and there’s an overflowing backpack shoved in the corner. Her go bag, you realize. You pick a place at the back of the room and begin gathering the loose items; it’s the least you can do for your best friend.

In the kitchen, Lucy takes a bite of food and closes her eyes in appreciation. Before she can continue eating, someone knocks on the door. As she stands, she grabs a piece of food from the edge of her plate and pops it in her mouth on the short walk to the door.

“Kojo!” she squeals.

She drops to her knees without greeting Tim, opting to welcome Kojo into the apartment rather than the man who brought him over. Lucy takes the leash from Tim and leads Kojo to the couch.

“Can I come in?” Tim asks from the hall.

“Yeah,” Lucy answers, not looking away from Kojo. “What are you two doing here?”

“Heard about yesterday,” Tim says as he closes the door. “Thought you might want some Kojo comfort.”

“Kojo comfort is my favorite.”

“Happy cop-iversary.”

You survey Lucy’s room once you’re finished. With a satisfied nod, you turn toward her door. As you open it, you realize that Lucy has company.

“Sorry,” you say softly as the man looks toward you.

You recognize Tim Bradford from Lucy’s description of him and the pictures she refuses to delete. Now that they’re friends, it’s fine, but you didn’t approve of the folder while she was lying awake every night.

“I’m just gonna…” you trail off and walk toward your room.

“No, you can stay,” Lucy says. “You live here, too. This is Tim. Kojo and I will be right back.”

Lucy stands, and Kojo follows quickly behind her. She gathers her plate from the counter before she and Kojo disappear into her room and the door closes behind them.

“Hi,” you tell Tim. You remember that Lucy never actually said your name and offer it.

“Nice to meet you. And glad to see Lucy got a good roommate,” Tim replies.

You nod and look toward her door before you drop your voice to say, “Thank you. Lucy told me how you’re trying to do everything right after the breakup. Friends and all that. Plus, she needed to see Kojo today.”

“It is quite literally the least I can do,” Tim replies.

“I disagree. You seem like a great guy, Tim, and the fact that you’re trying at all means a lot. To me, at least.”

Tim isn’t sure how to respond to that. He blames himself for so much of what has happened recently, yet as he stands here with you, that guilt and the memories fade. He just wants to know about you.

“So, you and Lucy have been friends for a while?” he asks.

“Long-distance friends. We met online and then ran into each other in person a while back. Everything just kind of fit between us.”

You’re taking up every thought in Tim’s head, he realizes. Even as you’re talking, he wants to know more, to know you. But then a small voice in him points out that you’re young. Whatever it is he’s feeling doesn’t matter; you’re younger than him, younger than Lucy, and there’s no way you’d be interested in him. The realization fails to silence the other voice that whispers about how he feels alive, like himself again.

“How are you?” you ask. “Not just like how are you, I mean. Uhm… How are you doing with everything?”

The whispering voice rises to a yell. Tim’s heart knows exactly what it wants. Back to life in his chest, Tim acknowledges its cry that he needs you. Tim Bradford has feelings for Lucy’s younger roommate.

“I’m sorry if that’s overstepping your boundaries,” you add when Tim doesn’t answer. “It’s just that Lucy had me, Tamara, plenty of people to talk to after the breakup. From what she’s told me, you may not have had that same community to help you.”

“I don’t,” Tim agrees. His heart hammers in his chest as he wishes he could come home to you and your arms, where nothing else would matter.

“I’m sorry.”

He shrugs half-heartedly and offers a small smile. You see right through them to the sadness and guilt beneath. Living with Lucy has accustomed you to touch and physical affection, and you don’t think twice before you hug him.

Your arms wrap over his shoulders, and the brief moment where you think he will pull away ends when his strong arms tighten around your waist. He drops his face to your shoulder and holds you tighter as he clings to you. You feel it, and Tim does too, as he melts in your arms and releases the baggage he’s been carrying for far too long.

“You have people now,” you whisper.

Tim nods against you and raises one arm toward your shoulder to deepen the hug before he pulls away.

“Do you have your phone?” you ask, your hand still on his arm. “I can give you my number so you can call or text any time you want.”

Tim passes you his phone and watches your eyes as you type your contact information. As you place it back in his hand, you repeat your invitation.

“Anything you need, just to talk or listen, I’m here, Tim.”

“Thank you,” Tim replies. He holds your eyes for a moment then asks, “Is Lucy going to give Kojo back?”

You tilt your head back and laugh, and Tim smiles at the sight and the melodious noise. “Nope,” you answer.

“Maybe I should take her roommate to get even,” Tim jokes.

You smile at him as you shake your head. “Take a seat, she’ll be a while. There’s plenty of food, too, so help yourself.”

Tim happily takes a seat, more than willing to pass the time with you while Lucy gets comforted by Kojo. The minutes pass quickly as you and Tim get to know each other. When Lucy’s door opens again, Kojo trots to Tim’s side and Lucy calls that she’s just getting her stuff and she’ll be ready.

“Great, I’m a chauffeur now,” Tim grumbles.

“Tim, you should come over more often,” you suggest. “Only if you’re comfortable with that, of course. I think it would be good for all of us, though.”

You pat Kojo’s head as Tim promises, “I will. And if you ever want to come to my place or meet somewhere, you have my number.”

Lucy emerges before you can answer Tim, and she hugs you tightly to thank you for the cop-iversary present. She tells Tim he’s free to go, to which he rolls his eyes but leaves anyway. You know that you’ll be texting him soon.

“You hugged Tim,” Lucy accuses after he leaves.

“What?” you ask, turning back toward her after watching Tim leave.

“I’m not mad. You’re really good for him.”

“Lucy, I promise it was not my intention to-“

“I know,” she assures, reaching for your hand. “But Tim and I are friends, he clearly likes you… If you want to try, I’m rooting for you.”

“Thanks.”

She picks up her bag and steps toward the door. “You didn’t ask how I knew you hugged him.”

“Cologne?” you guess.

“Happiness. I saw it on him too, and it’s been a very long time since it was that obvious.”

After she leaves, you unlock your phone and see that Tim has already sent you a text. With his comments and Lucy’s approval, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t pursue whatever it is that’s blooming between you.

“Thanks for the hug and the talk,” you read. You smile as you type a reply: Meet at my favorite restaurant on Friday for more?

The message says ‘delivered’ then ‘read,’ but there’s no reply. A minute passes and you lock your phone. Maybe you misread everything, and he really did just need a hug, and now he’s done. You try to shake it out of your head and begin to clean the kitchen. You’re nearly done when your phone rings.

“Hello?” you answer as you dry your hands.

“Why?” Tim asks.

“Hmm?”

“I’m older than you,” Tim points out. “And I dated your roommate and then dumped your roommate. I kept secrets and lied and nearly lost my job. There are more reasons than I can count that this wouldn’t work.”

“I know you’re older than me. And I don’t care. Tim, for all of the reasons you just told me that this- that we wouldn’t work, did you think of any reasons we would?”

Tim exhales before he admits, “No.”

“Then I’ll see you Friday, because both of our hearts already know, and for every reason that your brain tells you no, my heart is telling me yes. If yours isn’t, tell me now and we walk away.”

“Mine is too,” Tim whispers.

“Good.” You smile as you say, “Hey, can you get the early bird special, so our first date is cheaper?”

“What do you care? You’re not paying,” Tim replies, an addictive, teasing lilt in his voice.

“I’m glad you came over today, Tim. I needed that hug, too.”

“See you on Friday for more.”

#tim bradford x reader #tim bradford x fem!reader #tim bradford x y/n #tim bradford x you #tim bradford fic #tim bradford the rookie #tim bradford imagine #tim bradford #the rookie x reader #the rookie abc #the rookie #fem!reader #requests #hanna writes✯#the rookie spoilers

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parkerpeter24 · 11 months

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We need the date with pool instructor!Peter Parker

since you asked in bold-

pairing ➳ swim instructor!peter parker x reader

warnings ➳ slightly nsfw towards the end. making out and regular date stuff.

masterlist

“what have you got there?” you pointed behind his back but it was clearly evident that he was hiding a bouquet of flowers.

he finally brought it in between the two of you, standing at your doorstep, “i didn’t know which ones you like, so i got some of the most popular ones.” he chuckled nervously, handing you the mosaic of flowers.

you admired the roses, lilies, orchids and tulips, smiling wide as you took the bouquet from his hands, “i love them.”

you and peter had hung around the pool earlier in the morning but he told you that he wanted to take you out on a proper first date. so he suggested dinner and the boy was not even a second late.

as soon as the clock struck 7, he was there at your door, knocking and handing you these flowers.

the two of you made your way to the place he’d chosen for dinner, telling you about how it was his favorite place and the reason behind it.

“this was my uncle’s favorite place too.” you could tell by the way he smiled, so reminiscent, that it was a distant memory of his.

“it sounds great already.” you smiled, linking your arm with his as you walked, the place being just two blocks away from your place and all, “do you have a favorite?”

“oh, the chocolate truffle there is to die for!” you couldn’t help but let out a small laugh at his remark.

“so do you suggest we have that for dinner?”

“um, duh.”

dinner couldn’t have gone better. in fact, at one point you concluded it was the best dinner of your life. you got to know peter so much better. he was so much more than just the hot swimmer you knew from community pool who had once held onto your waist to teach you kicking. he was so much different from than any man you’ve ever met. so much better.

he told you about his school life and even though he didn’t highlight much, you could tell he was very good at everything he did. you got to know about his passion for science and that he was an assistant teacher of chemistry at esu just a year ago.

“how did i even score a date with you.” you wondered out loud, making him laugh.

he shrugged, “i’m honestly wondering the same thing.” you caught a hue of pink over his cheeks as he leaned forward, “it feels like i’ve been the only one talking all this time.”

“i don’t mind.” you flashed him a smile.

“no! you should tell me more about you.” he insisted.

and so you did. you told him about your likes and dislikes, about your favorite music and foods, about your only best friend who was there for you through thick and thin, about the good birthdays and the bad ones, about small things that you recalled from the past. and peter listened throughout, making you laugh with his reactions every once in a while.

“you were right. those were some good truffles.” you sighed.

the two of you found yourselves walking back to your place as the night wind drifted past you, making your hair flow with it. peter’s hand was in yours now as you leaned more towards him.

“told you.” he smirked, “i can never go wrong with a good dessert. that’s my superpower.” he chuckled.

“you seem to have a lot of them.” you smirked right back at him, watching as his face suddenly morphed into confusion.

“n-no. just the one, actually... that’s all i got.” you thought you were getting better at reading the brunette but his nervous laugh confused you a little.

“i meant to say that you’re really good in swimming, and you’re kind of smart at an inhumane level from what i heard, so...” you trailed off, letting out a chuckle to ease the situation a little more.

“oh.” he let out a breath of air, “right.”

in less than a minute, the two of you were climbing the strairs of your apartment building. your apartment was just on the second floor, thus, you opted for them.

after leaving you to your door, peter stood with his arms behind his back, right where he had been about two hours ago. the night seemed to have ended way too soon but you didn’t know if it was okay to invite him in.

“can you-”

“could i-”

both of you decided to speak at the same time, making the other one stop suddenly.

“you go.” peter chuckled softly.

“would you... would you like to stay? for a while, you know.” you gave him a small shrug, “we could watch a movie or...”

there was a slight pause as his eyes trailed over your lips as they moved. he responded with a nod of his head.

and in the blink of an eye you were pushing open your door, just to drag him along you inside the place by the collar of his flannel. his lips were on yours and hands placed on either side of your waist– this time for a better purpose. you just hoped your place wasn’t as big of a mess but your thoughts blurred as his frame pushed you against the wooden door, it making a sound as it locked in place.

peter’s hands were doing all the good things, setting your skin on fire as they trailed down to your hips, pulling your legs to wrap around his slim waist. your arms snaked around his shoulders as you tilted your head, only deepening the kiss that you started.

his teeth bit onto your lower lip and his tongue followed to soothe the blissful ache. you parted your lips further, tangling your tongue with his. a battle of tongues, only for peter to back off and let you take control. you both knew he was way too stronger than you.

your hand ran down the length of his arm, feeling the taut muscles of his biceps before. a slight squeeze from your hand as you wrapped it around his wrist and peter knew what to do.

he pulled you along with him, gracefully carrying you with him as he tried to find his way to your bedroom.

you pointed at the room in one of the corner and peter followed suit as your lips attached to the skin of his jaw. you trailed small kisses along his jawline, until they weren’t small anymore. you bit onto his skin, soothing the bite with your tongue just like peter had done earlier.

peter was quick to wrap his right arm around you, supporting you up as his left hand got busy with opening your bedroom door, walking inside before he kicked the door shut.

it was more than safe to say that the truffle wasn’t the best thing you were having tonight.

#peter parker x reader #tasm!peter x y/n #tasm!peter fluff #peter parker imagine #peter parker fluff #peter parker #tasm!peter parker #tasm!peter x you #tasm!peter x reader #peter parker x fem!reader #peter parker smut #tasm!peter parker smut #tasm!peter parker x you #tasm!peter smut

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anonymous-dentist · 5 months

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Honestly idc about the Tallulah vs Sunny vs Leo babyfight going on because, really, that kind of stuff is just what little girls do.

I work in childcare professionally and seasonally- specifically with 9-10 year olds- and it’s gotten to the point where my higher-ups ended up telling everyone that it isn’t our job to sort out the Little Girl Drama because it happens so often! At least once a day we have at least one group of girls have a dramatic friendship argument that will drastically shape their lives forever, and then they’re best friends again the next day. Little girls can be full of such hatred that is only ever seen otherwise in angry NFL fans after a bad ref call, it’s INSANE.

So Tallulah and Sunny not getting along? And Tallulah actually being pretty mature for a little girl and being all “We can’t be friends yet, but maybe in the future when I’m in a better place” and seemingly working on herself and her problems before tackling the Sunny Problem? That’s chill, 10x more mature than the way the girls at work can be

Leo and Sunny not getting along? Now that’s realistic. Sometimes kids just don’t like each other. You can’t force people to be friends, children included. Doing that just makes the kids hate each other more, especially when one of the kids is as traumatized and depressed as Leo is.

And then both Tallulah and Leo hanging with Empanada and Pepito but not with Sunny? Again, that’s normal for little kids, especially considering how both Tallulah and Leo may have seen/are currently seeing Sunny as an antagonistic force.

Sure, it makes sense that Sunny is hurt by all this, and that’s when an adult figure should step in: when the kid starts to cry and act out aggressively. She’s in a bad situation here, but so is Leo. Sunny fans have gotta start considering Leo’s pov and stop insulting her and her admin, and so on.

If this entire scenario was happening in a school?

Leo and Sunny would be kept apart at all times. Different tables, desks, whatever the classroom uses. Don’t pair them up for activities, and keep them across the room from each other. They don’t get an option in this because of how they antagonize each other.

Tallulah, though, would probably get an option. She’d be allowed to play with Sunny during recess or gym time if she and Sunny can both promise to play nice, and they might even be allowed to eat lunch together depending on how their behavior’s been that day. This is because of the open communication these two kinda have going on; Little Girl Drama isn’t always a constant, sometimes there’s moments of peace within.

This is all to say: this babyfight stuff is awesome because it’s the single most realistic depiction of Little Girl Drama/Friendship I’ve seen in my LIFE, and I’m saying this as someone who works in childcare for a living who has had to deal with Little Girl Drama for years at this point. It’s actually super impressive!! Kudos to the admins, they’re doing great!!!

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bullet-prooflove · 26 days

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Welcome to Nightvale: Sean Archer X Reader

Tagging: @kmc1989 @to-grow-in-and-to-love @mandy426 @icefrye19 @toasted-stiletto

Sean’s relationship with you starts because of a book.

You’re in front of him in the queue at the café in Med when it slips out of your bag and hits the tiled floor, the pages fluttering open, revealing an array of multi-coloured post its. You’re too busy ordering too notice. It’s when he raises to his feet after picking it up that he comes face to face with you.

You’re pretty, so pretty that Sean doesn’t expect it. His mouth goes dry for a second before he holds up your book.

“You dropped this.” He says shyly as he hands it back to you.

“Thank you.” You say as you take it from him and place it back into your bag. “I’m reading it for my book club.”

“Welcome to Nightvale huh?” He says as he tucks his hands into the back pockets of his jeans. “I’ve heard the podcast but I’ve never read the book.”

“The podcast is much better than the book.” You tell him as you wrap your hand around your takeout coffee cup and raise it to your mouth. “I can lend it to you if you want? Maybe we can talk about it afterwards.”

His cheeks colour as a smile breaks across his features.

“I’d like that.” He tells you as he gives his own order to the server behind the counter. “They have a live show coming up in June. I’m on the fence about going, I’m not sure how it’ll translate in the real world.”

“I’ve been thinking about it too.” You say as he waits for his coffee. “A lot of podcasts are doing it now, I kind of feel it’ll be like online dating, great in theory, disappointing in real life.”

He laughs then because yea, that’s kind of true. He doesn’t do apps but he’s heard the horror stories from the guys he lives with.

“Online datings not really my thing.” He confesses as he picks up his coffee and gestures towards a table. He expects you to make an excuse, a reason to leave but instead you slip into the offered seat and he finds himself sitting down across from you. “I’m not sure what you can learn about someone from an online profile. They don’t really give you the whole picture.”

“Or they send you the ‘whole picture’ once you’ve connected.” You joke and he blushes when he catches your meaning.

“Unsolicited dick pics are not my thing.” He tells you, shaking his head. “I wouldn’t even know how to get the right angle. There has to be an art to it right?”

You laugh then and it really is the loveliest sound.

“What is your thing?” You ask him and Sean shrugs his shoulders.

“Honestly I’m trying to figure that out.” He tells you, his gaze lowering to his drink as his thumb chases over the ridged cardboard. “I’m taking some time, trying to learn who I am.”

“Can I tell you a secret?” You ask him, your elbows coming to rest upon the surface of the table.

“Sure.” Sean says as he leans in close and the scent of your perfume floods his senses. It’s airy and light, like the first breath of spring on his skin.

“I know this looks all put together but I’m still trying to figure my shit out.” You says gesturing at yourself. “Truthfully I feel like we’re just all a work in progress.”

It’s the kindest, most insightful thing that anyone has ever said to him.

“Come out with me.” He says softly, his eyes meeting yours. “We can go see that show, bitch about it afterwards.”

You pause for a moment and he realises he’s been too bold, too forward. He draws away, but your hand captures his, thumb skating over the hollow of his wrist.

“I’d like that.” You tell him, the edges of your mouth tipping up into a smile. “Really I would.”

Love Sean? Don’t miss any of his stories by joining the taglist here.

Like My Work? - Why Not Buy Me A Coffee

#sean archer #sean archer x reader #one chicago #chicago med

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jawritter · 1 year

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Carry On

Chapter 29 (Final)

Summary: It was just a simple hunt, found on a pie festival. It was supposed to be easy. Something they’d all done one hundred and one times a million. No one could have told Y/N, Dean, and Sam that nothing from that point on would ever be the same again.

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Reader x Sam Winchester

Word Count: 3k

Warnings: Throws some fluffing feels in your face and then closes the door like a boss.

Due to the graphic nature of this fic, and the fact that it will eventually contain Smut. This fic is an 18 + only fic! If you’re under 18 DO NOT read this fic!

A/N: This fic is beta’d by @kazsrm67 Thanks so much love! Please do not copy my work! Feedback is golden! I hope you all enjoy this ride with me!

My Mastlist Series Masterlist

“Wearing a hole in the floor isn’t going to make the time go by any faster,” Y/N reminded Dean as she sat on the counter, nibbling on a saltine cracker, and watching her boyfriend literally pace the kitchen in front of her.

“Sorry,” Dean grumbled as he forced himself to stop pacing, and after a brief moment of deliberation, decided to just take a seat at the kitchen table.

Not fifteen feet away, in the bathroom that adjoined the hallway, were two pregnancy tests sitting snugly under a box on top of the sink. The test took only three minutes to show the results, it had so far been exactly 1 minute and 34 seconds since she placed the boxes over the top of the test once she’d taken them, and honestly, it felt like it had been one year and 34 days instead.

Especially to Dean. That much she could tell. He wasn’t exactly hiding it very well at the moment.

“Dean, don’t get your hopes up, okay? It could just be a stomach bug, and I don’t want you to get disappointed,” Y/N said as her gaze wandered back to the red reamed clock on the wall; checking the time for what felt like the hundredth time in about 40 seconds.

It was true. All signs and symptoms pointed to pregnancy. They’d stopped all preventative measures that could deter conception, but that didn’t mean she’d gotten pregnant yet. She was prepared to have to try for quite a while to even get pregnant. She’d taken birth control for years, and only God knows how long it was going to take for her body to hormonally be ready to conceive.

“Trust me sweetheart, my hopes aren’t up,” Dean assured her, reaching for her to come and sit down in his lap.

Carefully, she pushed down and off of her perch and made her way over to where he was sitting, slipping into his hold with ease.

“It will happen when and if it’s meant to. This is kinda one of those things we have little control over. We can do things to help it along, and there are multiple avenues to try, but after everything in life we’ve been through, I’ve learned nothing ever comes easy, or right away; so I have no expectations, other than making sure you’re okay,” Dean continued, placing a kiss to the top of her forehead.

She melted into the warmth that seemed to always radiate from Dean’s body. Home, no matter where they were in life, no matter where life would take them, this was it, Dean was home. Not a roof and four walls.

“I’m feeling a lot better,” Y/N admitted. “I’m sorry I scared you earlier.”

Dean’s grip tightened around her waist, attempting to hold her as close to him as humanly possible. “It’s okay, it’s my job to take care of you when you’re not feeling well. I just wish you would have told me you weren’t feeling great sooner; I would have never gone into work this morning. I didn’t know this was something that had been kinda going on for days. You’ve got to communicate with me sweetheart.”

“I know, I’m sorry,” Y/N said, burying her face in the crook of his neck.

Here she sat with the tables turned, what felt like not so long ago, she was the one telling him that HE needed to communicate with HER when he wasn’t feeling well. God they had come so far, especially Dean.

Just since his accident, he’d proven not only friends, family, but doctors and even himself wrong. He’d far surpassed any expectation any of them set for him. He’d done the one thing Chuck and the universe had tried so fucking hard to not allow him to do - he’d created a life for himself. He’d created a home. He was doing what it was he always wanted to do. He was happy. An ending he never thought he’d deserve, and one Y/N didn’t really feel that she deserved either, but here they were. He should be dead. By all rights, accounts and reasons, Dean should have never lived to see the outside of that barn, but here he was, alive and well. Scared, battered, broken in some ways, but still here. Still alive.

“Did you ever think we’d be here?” Y/N questioned, and Dean swallowed thickly above her.

“No. No I didn’t. I thought I’d be dead by now. I never saw life the way it was not. It was just a distant dream. It still feels like a dream some days,” Dean admitted, and he wasn’t wrong, it did feel like a dream some days. If it weren’t for the hard days, the days that tested the both of them on every emotional and physical level, she’d think they were both dead and in heaven, just playing this thing out, but nope, this was real, this was their life. As fake as it felt, it was real.

“Me either,” Y/N voiced after a moment. “I had given up on anything even remotely similar to this. Never even tried to achieve it.”

“Do you regret it?” Dean asked, his deep rumble barely above a whisper in the silence that hung heavy in the kitchen. “Do you regret giving up your life as a hunter for this? For me?”

Y/N sat up straight as he would allow her with his firm grip on her waist, and placed a gentle kiss to his lips before leaning her forehead against his own. “Not even for a second. I’d do it all over again, no matter how many times I had to live through everything we both went through, I’d do it with a smile on my face as long as it ended right here, right now.”

“Me too,” Dean agreed. “I’d walk right into that barn every time, go through every ounce of pain and suffering, just as long as we ended up right here in this kitchen at the end.”

The sound of her alarm going off seemed much louder than it was -coming from her phone in the pocket of her sweat pants; she’d have jumped off of Dean’s lap had he not been holding onto her. But as the shock of the sudden loud sound waned, the heaviness set in with a rock of nerves in the pit of her stomach. Here it was. The moment of truth. There were only two answers waiting on the other side of that door, but one would change their lives forever. Suddenly, she found herself too scared and nervous to move.

“Do you want me to go and look for you?” Dean questioned when she didn’t move, just sat up ramrod straight in his lap.

“No, no I wanna do it, just… stay here, okay?”

Dean nodded as she stood on shaking legs, and even though she didn’t turn around to see him, she could feel his pale green gaze on every step she made towards the door.

A million and a half memories flooded her mind as she opened the bathroom door and stepped inside, looking at the boxes that were still set on top of the little tests. Memories of pain, so much pain. Pain of Dean never even noticing her. The undesirable pain she felt as she stood there and watched him stuck to that goddamn poll, his life quickly bleeding away. Pain as she watched him struggle to recover. The fear that he’d never be the same again, if he ever woke up at all. The pain of learning how to let him go, so that he could recover on his own, and move from caretaker to partner. The moment they moved in this house. Every step that they made that led them to this moment. She could still see it. It was all still so clear. A horrible ending that they had taken, and rewritten for the good. What could have been a disaster, now could possibly be the start of a whole new life. One that Dean had always wanted. One that she had always wanted.

She felt as if she was having an out of body experience as she lifted the box off of the text, eyes closed; breath held, almost too afraid to open her eyes and see that they were negative, which she had convinced herself that they were.

“It’s okay,” she whispered to herself. “It’s all gonna be okay. No matter what the results are, we’re gonna be okay.”

With every ounce of courage she had left in her body, Y/N forced her eyes open, and her focus to shift down to the counter, where the sticks were.

At first, she thought she was hallucinating, surely she had to be, because one test stood proud and pink with two lines on the result screen, and the other the word YES + . She was pregnant.

Subconsciously, her hand fluttered down to her stomach as shock quickly made way for disbelief, and disbelief to something that she could only describe as pure joy. She had a little life, a little piece of Dean Winchester, the man she loved more than her own life, growing right now inside of her. A piece of him that no matter what, she’d get to keep forever.

Grabbing both tests, she quickly made her way out of the door, and back towards the kitchen, where Dean was still waiting at the table, his head buried in his hands.

Most people would have probably wanted to ‘surprise’ him with something cute. Some way of telling him that he was gonna be a Dad, but not her. They’d waited long enough for this moment, and she wasn’t going to make him wait a minute longer for the sake of theatrics.

Dean’s head lifted as he heard her footsteps approaching, and he was on his feet reaching for the test before she could even make it to him. His hand shook as he took the two test from her hand, and looked down at them. The same emotional turmoil running over his face as had hers only a moment ago, which sent a flood of emotions streaming down her face, or maybe it was the hormones?

“You’re pregnant?” he stated after a while- as if he needed to say it to make it real.

“You’re going to be a father, Dean Winchester,” she said, her voice choking with emotions, as he wrapped his arms around her squeezing her tightly as his own emotional dam broke, and years of pain, rejection, doubt, and fear of never having a life of his flooded down his own face, all while he clung on to her like she was his lifeline. She was honestly, and he was hers.

Life as they knew it would never be the same. Things had forever changed. Dean had a family of his own now. A real family. This was the first day of their forever.

Y/N’s eye’s lifted to the doorway of the kitchen, where had Dean not been holding her up, her feet would have given out from under her as the clear ghost of John Winchester and Mary Winchester stood, arm and arm watching the pair. Jack and Cas stood not far behind in the hallway, along with Bobby, beaming proudly at him.

“All of Heaven had to come and see this moment,” Jack said as both stood there in shock at the faces of family and friends long gone.

“We’re all so proud of you son, and when that boy of yours is born, he’s going to do great things,” John said, pride beaming from his face. “You did good.”

Just as suddenly as they had appeared, in a blink of an eye, they were all gone. Leaving nothing but an empty room, and the promise of a son that Dean had always wanted. She couldn’t think of a better, more fitting ending for Dean Winchester. The righteous man that might have saved the world on multiple occasions, and he saved her. He’d saved her in way’s she’d never stop thanking him for. He was her constant. Her comfort, and now, the father of her child, and the man he could finally call himself proud of. Scared. Battered. Bruised. Broken. But proud of the man, father, and one day husband he’d become.

The End.

Forever:

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Jensen and Dean’s Babes

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#Carry On #Dean Winchester #Dean Winchester series #dean winchester x reader #dean winchester x you #dean x reader #dean x you #hurt!dean winchester x reader #hurt!dean winchester x you #hurt!dean x reader #hurt!dean x you #spn fanfiction #spn fanfic #spn series #jensen ackles jawritter

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coleskingdom · 3 months

Text

Your Revenge

Adam Cole x F Reader

18+ Minors DNI

@midwestmade29 @madhatterbri

It’d been a few weeks since that night with Cole. I’d gone home, showered, Adam contrary to his words didn’t leave a mark on my neck and swore to myself I wouldn’t tell Jay.. Not for fear of him leaving me but for what he’d do to Adam. There was an apprehensive when an unknown number would appear on my phone, I didn’t know if it’d be Adam. Things between Jay and I were not great but he had sometime off coming, the things that made him cranky like his creative was fixed soon he’d be back to normal.

Jay left out a day earlier than normal, it wasn’t a big deal, plans change and I didn’t ask him any questions about the schedule shift. I ordered take out and settled in on the couch to watch Dynamite, Jays music hit and he comes out and does his normal entrance when he takes off his jacket, there are scratches on his back that weren’t there when he left. Trying to be rational I pause the screen and try to take a closer look maybe my guilty conscience is showing me things that aren’t there.

My phone went off

Unknown Number

Maybe your not so sweet as honey after all, you have Claws

Me:

Who is this?

Unknown

😈 I’m hurt

Adam?

Adam

There’s my girl, I haven’t seen him marked like that since Japan .

Me:

Those aren’t from me.

Adam:

Fuck, Honey are you okay?

Me:

Don’t honey me please. Did you tell him?

Adam

No, call it a crisis of conscience

Me:

Conscience you? I guess thank you . No chance he brawled with mox in the back

Adam : Want me to lie?

Me: No….

Adam: He’s been or rumored to be fucking some girl in make up , I don’t have proof and you deserved better than to worry about a rumor.

Me: Are you in town?

Adam: yeah still not cleared. Honey do you want me to come see you? I can come pick you up, we can go grab food, a drink or just talk.

Me: Yeah, I need out of this house.

I gave him the address, I met him outside when he pulled up. “Have you said anything to him ?” As he pulled away from the house . “No, not about a couple weeks ago, not about tonight. I don’t know what to say I feel like a hypocrite.” staring out the window “Also why are you being so nice to me? I figured you’d be happy about this.” Casting a glance his direction. “Honey, I like you, I want you, I haven’t stopped thinking about you. So it served no purpose to hurt you, honestly I texted tonight because I was jealous, that those were your nail marks down his back. I never would’ve rubbed it in your face had I known. You have to believe me.”

Strangely enough I did believe him. “Were you ever going to call me about the third option?” my cheeks blushed turning more towards him in the seat. “You really want me to tell you? “ I nodded “I’ve picked up my phone so many times but again, I didn’t want to fuck up your life. I wanted you to want me, if you had called I’d have done anything you wanted. You didn’t though and I thought you and he had fixed shit.” his voice soft and sincere. “Adam, I haven’t stopped thinking about that night. It felt right, I just had to try and fix it with him, but it’s over now. If he has the audacity to walk out with his back looking like that knowing I’m watching there’s no going back. If I’m honest I had hoped the text was about the third option. “ placing my hand on his thigh a groan fell from his lips as he gripped the steering wheel tighter.

He pulled up in front of his house. “Honey, I want you to be sure, if your not please tell me, and I’ll take you to dinner or a drink.” his voice low and warm and just like the first time I kissed him, it was needy and desperate. “Adam, take me inside, show me, pick me” my voice cracking on the last word. “Honey I’d pick you everyday and every night.”

He opened the car door, his hand on the small of my back leading me inside the house. He shut the door his lips finding mine, taking his time as he kissed me. “ Honey look at me” I glanced at him, his fingers lifting my chin, “Let me take care of you.” His hands moving to the hem of my sundress.”Let me show you everything you deserve” his mouth on my neck his hands moving up my sides. I felt my body relax under his touch. He took my hand and led to me to the bedroom, his touches were soft, as he lifted the sun dress over my head, his mouth followed his hands as he undressed me,before laying me down on the edge of his bed. I heard my phone ring, we both knew who it was and I ignored the call, as Adam had taken off his shirt and kneeled on the floor , parting my legs kissing the inside of my thigh when the phone rang again. “Adam, you don’t “ he cut my words off when he kissed my core through my panties, “Honey, unless you don’t want me to, or you don’t like it, I’ve been thinking about this since the night in the truck.” His fingers moved to the waistband of the soft cotton panties pulling them down. He licked from my entrance up, humming in appreciation as his mouth moved on my core. The phone rang again , “Answer it” he threw the phone up on the bed , “Adam he’s FaceTiming me” I whimpered, looking down at him

between my legs, “Good, take your revenge , take your control.” his eyes flashed wickedly as his tongue speared inside .

“Hello” I answered my face pink angling the camera just at my face. “ sweet girl, what are you doing? It’s not like you to not answer my phone calls.” Jays voice composed, I moaned as Adam’s finger glided over my clit. “Oh so that’s what you’re doing, dirty girl, let me see.” I shook my head no, words no longer able to fall from my mouth. “Sweet girl, I miss you and your pussy so much.” I groaned as Adam inserted to fingers moving at a faster rougher pace as I clenched around him, “ Oh fuck Ad” the words falling before I could stop them, “ who’s there with you? Who the fuck is there with you right now?” With his free hand Adam grabbed the phone, angling it showing Jay what exactly he was doing. I couldn’t stop the orgasm as I came while Jay was on the phone. “Cole is that you, you motherfucker I’m going to kill you.” Cole worked me through my orgasm, kissing the inside of my thigh, his beard covered in my cum, as he put the camera directly at his face. “Actually, I’m a girlfriend fucker but after the way your back looked tonight I’m gonna say your ex girlfriend fucker.”his voice cocky and assured. Jays face was pure rage as he screen shot it , “Seems, she needs to be tended to so I’m gonna let you go” as he hung up and turned off the phone.

#adam cole x you #adam cole fan fiction #adam cole x reader #adam cole smut #aew smut

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dreamwritesimagines · 2 years

Text

Enamored Extra Scene - 14

[Set in: During chapter 35]

Not that he would ever admit it to anyone, but he was beginning to understand why every suitor went to Elias to talk about his sister, instead of their father.

He made his way to the door to Duke’s study and Cecily turned her head when she heard him approach, then grinned at him.

“So, Lord Bridgerton,” she taunted him. “Your final trial.”

“Quite literally,” Anthony murmured. “Do you think he will shoot me or…?”

Cecily hummed. “Nowhere lethal,” she commented. “I think.”

“Great.”

“It would be romantic, your betrothed would love that.”

“Thanks a lot, Cece,” Anthony said, making her laugh and he took a deep breath, then knocked on the door.

“Come in,” The Duke’s voice reached them and he gave Cecily a faint smile, then opened the door to step inside.

The Duke was sitting behind his mahogany desk with a glass of scotch in his hand and he raised his glances to look at him when Anthony closed the door behind him.

“Lord Bridgerton,” he said and motioned at the armchair by his desk. “Please, take a seat.”

Alright, this honestly felt like that one time he had broken all the fine china.

Anthony tried to ignore the nervousness and went to sit down on the armchair. “Lord Avon.”

“Let’s hope this conversation goes better than the last one we had,” he commented and Anthony cleared his throat.

“I’ve been informed by my mother that…it wasn’t my place to talk of something I didn’t know about,” he said. “My apologies, I was not thinking clearly.”

“No you were not,” the Duke said. “Lady Bridgerton is a wise person.”

“She is.”

“Much like your father,” he stated. “Makes me wonder who you took after.”

Oh this conversation was off to a good start.

Anthony raised his brows but managed to hold back the retort. The Duke eyed him for a moment and let out a small chuckle.

“I’m jesting,” he said. “Scotch?”

“Is it poisoned?” Anthony asked back and the Duke rolled his eyes.

“I’ll leave that to my sister if the need arises,” he commented before he went to fill his own glass along with another, then handed the other glass to him. Anthony took a huge sip and cleared his throat.

“I know you don’t approve of me,” he said. “As her suitor or in general.”

The Duke made a noise of discontent before leaning back in his seat.

“But I love her.”

The Duke sipped his scotch and heaved a sigh.

“Listen,” he said. “For the sake of your father, I will try to keep this conversation civil.”

“I appreciate that.”

“But you do not have my approval.”

Anthony frowned, sitting up straighter. “Why not?”

The Duke swirled the drink in his glass. “Anthony…”

“No, give me an actual, valid reason,” Anthony said. “Besides the fine china incident, I was a child back then. Tell me why you do not approve.”

“Where do I start?” the Duke asked. “Firstly, you did not ask me beforehand.”

“Her opinion on the matter is more important than anyone else’s, she said that before.”

“This was a very short courtship period.”

“I already know I want to spend the rest of my life with her, why would I wait?”

“You barely know each other.”

“I’ve known her longer than Elias has known Cecily— you don’t have to like me,” Anthony insisted. “But you have to look at this objectively.”

The Duke ran a hand over his face and thought for a moment.

“Edmund would be proud of you.”

Anthony was so ready to oppose anything he would say that he had already opened his mouth, then he pulled back slightly, trying to wrap his mind around what he had just heard.

“What?” he asked, completely confused and the Duke shrugged.

“Your father was a great man,” he said. “And he was a very close friend of mine as you know. And after his death, you did a great job in stepping up, you’ve taken on a very heavy responsibility at such a young age. Anyone else would have stumbled at the very least but you…you did not. You’re a much respected Viscount, your family has a prominent position within the ton, and as the head of the family, you honestly do not have any faults I can think of at this point.”

Anthony felt the need to look down at his glass to check whether he was in fact drinking scotch or something much stronger that would twist his hearing.

“I’m telling you all these so that you can understand what I’m saying comes from an objective stance,” the Duke said. “All those traits are remarkable yes. But Anthony, you would not make a good husband and I will not sacrifice my daughter to test that theory.”

Ah.

There it was.

“I love her—”

“For now.”

“Forever,” Anthony corrected him. “You of all people would understand, would you not?”

The Duke shot him a look. “As you said, my love story is a cautionary tale.”

“Doesn’t matter. You know how it feels.”

The Duke let out a tired breath. “You have quite the reputation,” he said. “What is it they call you? Capital R rake?”

“I’m not like that anymore.”

“You barely hid your escapades from the ton.”

“That was before she got here.”

“You had a mistress up until what, merely a couple of weeks ago?”

“Months ago,” he corrected him. “I put an end to that arrangement the moment I realized my feelings.”

“Either way, you’ve been popular among the ladies for years now,” the Duke said. “And that changed overnight?”

Anthony scoffed, even the thought feeling quite absurd now.

“I can’t even notice anyone else when she’s in the room,” he said. “Let alone looking at another.”

A silence fell upon the room and the Duke took a deep breath.

“Your word alone is not very assuring in this case, you know that.”

Anthony thought for a moment, then cleared his throat.

“What of your own experience then?”

“What?”

“As you said, my father and you were close friends,” he said. “He used to talk about all those adventures you two used to have. You had a reputation too, among ladies.”

The Duke raised his brows. “Decades ago.”

“Exactly, and it changed.” Anthony said. “When you met your wife.”

“That’s very different.”

“Is it?” Anthony insisted. “Because I know for a fact that you never took a mistress or even entertained the idea of another woman even after your divorce. I’m willing to bet that you’ve never been unfaithful the whole time you were married to her.”

“Of course not.”

“So it changed for you overnight,” Anthony said. “Why is it so difficult for you to believe that it changed for me overnight as well?”

“I was not a good husband,” the Duke pointed out. “As you so eloquently put it. I’m not going to put my daughter through a similar hell that her mother went through.”

Anthony shook his head. “I would never do that to her.”

“And yet you hurt her.”

That familiar bitterness spread through Anthony’s throat and paused for a moment, trying to put the words in order before he took a sip of his drink, deep in thought.

“I did,” he admitted after a couple of seconds of silence. “It was a misunderstanding, but that is not an excuse. It shouldn’t have happened, and I swear on my honor that it will never, ever happen again.”

The Duke watched him quietly and Anthony downed his drink, then put the glass on the desk.

“Now that all cards are on the table, there’s something you should know,” Anthony said. “I do want your approval on this, but I’m not going to let you stand in the way. You wanted to know why I didn’t ask you first? It’s because the only opinion I care about is hers. Not yours, hell, not even Elias’s at this point. Only hers. So even if you don’t trust me, I don’t care as long as I have her trust. And most importantly, she loves me.”

The Duke narrowed his eyes, glaring at him.

“I’ve never loved anyone more in my entire life,” Anthony said. “I’ve never wanted anything more than being with her. I’m not going to put her through that hell, because she is the embodiment of my heaven. So trust me, by hook or by crook I will be with her, regardless of your opinion or your approval.”

The Duke clenched his jaw before he clicked his tongue.

“Very well,” he said. “I’ll think about it.”

Anthony nodded and stood up from his seat to walk to the door, but stopped as soon as the Duke spoke.

“Lord Bridgerton?”

He turned around, adrenaline still rushing through him. “Yes?”

“If I do approve,” he said. “You do realize I will not make things easy for you during the settlement negotiations, do you not?”

Anthony shrugged his shoulders.

“As far as I’m concerned, everything I own is already hers,” he said. “Do your worst.”

With that, he opened the door and walked out of the study before closing the door behind him and Cecily saw him from the end of the hall, then rushed to him.

“How did it go?”

Anthony thought for a moment, then let out a breath, leaning back to the wall.

“To be honest,” he murmured. “I have no idea.”

#enamored extra scene #anthony bridgerton x reader

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agentnico · 7 days

Text

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024) review

I have now officially lost my IMAX vorjeneteee! First time experiencing a film in IMAX at the BFI theatre and holy Moses that’s one big screen! The perfect way to get immersed in Chris Hemsworth flexing his prosthetic nose!

Plot: Snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers, young Furiosa falls into the hands of a great biker horde led by the warlord Dementus. Sweeping through the Wasteland, they come across the Citadel, presided over by the Immortan Joe. As the two tyrants fight for dominance, Furiosa soon finds herself in a nonstop battle to make her way home.

Mad Max: Fury Road is easily one of the most spectacular action films of the 21st century. Shame that back when it came out in cinemas I opted to go see Pitch Perfect 2 instead. Look, my film tastes back then we’re not as refined nor was I so cultured in…..okay yeah, my film taste was crap. I opted to go watch some youngsters sing acapella instead of witnessing Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron wanting to literally kill one another for 2 hours in glorious form. I’ve of course since fixed my ways and discovered and appreciated Fury Road for what it was. The maddening chaotic post-apocalyptic world built from the mind of George Miller, the visuals are truly impressive, especially due to 80% of it being actual practical effects, so seeing the cars flying about left and right and characters defying physics, with Junkie XL’s energetic score and so many cool characters throughout - it’s pure awesomeness. The only weakness really is that there’s hardly a plot. Like half of the movie is a chase and the other half is a race. Essentially if you boil it down to the basics. Not much narrative substance so to speak.

Luckily Furiosa ends up being that kind of prequel/spin-off that actually enhances and improves on the Fury Road experience. There’s so much more story in Furiosa, but not only does it focus on its titular heroes, but it also fleshes out the villains from the original film as well as featuring set pieces that would be highly recognisable to the Mad Max fans. I’m not even simply referring to Fury Road here. There’s a few Easter Eggs that fall reference to the 2015 Mad Max game, which by the way is a highly entertaining play through and a very unique open-world game that doesn’t get enough love. So naturally I was pleased to see a lot of material from that game being made canon now, from the appearances of characters like Scaborus Scrotus and Chumbucket to the film debut of the Gastown location, which is only referenced in Fury Road but has been brought to life in the game. And now we get to see it in full glory in film form. Right, I’m not an obsessive video game or anything but I did have a little fanboy excitement seep through during this film.

The movie solely relied on dialogue focused on world-building, and the villain of Chris Hemsworth’s character, Dementus, was better than I’d expected. Honestly from the trailers I was afraid if he was going to be too cartoony, and also I’m still recovering from whatever the fudge Thor: Love & Thunder was, however the way Hemsworth mixes in the humor he’s known for with his rage and wit was a welcome sight. He’s still a dangerous character, standing up to Immortan Joe as well as destroying Furiosa’s childhood and leaving her with nothing but vengeance. Honestly not going to lie, this may be Hemsworth’s best performance ever. Truly with this and Bad Times at the El Royale Chris Hemsworth truly proves that he’s a fantastic actor when it comes to playing antagonists. He’s highly entertaining but also leaves a lasting impression as a truly sadistic character. Anya Taylor-Joy as Furiosa was alright, however not going to lie, I do feel the movie missed a trick by not bringing back Theron. Chances are Theron probably did not want to come back after having a terrible time filming Fury Road, but she was so powerful as that character, and with Taylor-Joy she simply didn’t reach that same level of intensity and anger expected from the character. I did enjoy her interactions with Tom Burke though. The way the two immediately worked together to fend off the raiders on the War Rig was reminiscent of the way Theron and Tom Hardy did in Fury Road, doing its predecessor justice. Burke played the role perfectly and their goals and motivations were rightly aligned with each other, eventually falling in love with one another, which gave Furiosa even more motivation on her hell-bent journey of enacting revenge on Dementus. Again, there’s so much story in this story, and it filled a lot of gaps in the Mad Max lore.

Though I thoroughly enjoyed the plot, dialogue, characters and set pieces, the main issue I had was the movie’s misuse of color-grading and CGI. While Fury Road set the standard for practical effects with minimal uses of CGI, making scenes come to life through real explosions and harsh red color-grading, Furiosa suffered from lack of both. The color-grading was too clean for me as it relied on softer colors, a downgrade from its predecessor eight years ago, and there were more moments that I could see the CGI at work — and it wasn’t done well. In fact at times the backgrounds of scenes looked so fake it was jarring and really broke the immersion. Again, I was watching this on the giant IMAX screen, so the level of detail was both great in enjoying most of the film, but also made the weaker visuals stick out like a sore thumb. Also Junkie XL’s Fury Road score is a true orchestral masterpiece. The levels of epicness it reaches is superb, so I was highly disappointed with what he did this time around. Aside from a couple of moments, the music score is an uninspired collection of booms and drum beats that left zero emotion.

Furiosa is a fantastic cinematic experience and is the second time this year where a desert setting makes for a superb film. Chris Hemsworth is the stand out and the story is rich in depth and scale, even if it does end up a bit too bloated. It does falter in the technical side with the obvious CGI and the weaker music score, bit overall this makes me want to see Miller continue making these Mad Max flicks, though judging by the box office results that may now be a pie dream. But let’s enjoy what we have - lady and gentlemens, start your engines!

Overall score: 8/10

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thana-topsy · 1 year

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WIP Wednesday!

Thank you to @mareenavee for the tag! I tag @expended-sleeper @viss-and-pinegar @anxious--ace @kookaburra1701 and @moriche

WELL this is a WIP that may never see the light of day, honestly. It takes place during [vague hand gesture] but sometime after Halfway to the Sky ends. Honestly, I just kind of wanted to write Aiden and Harukar talking and getting to know each other outside of everything that had happened on their journey. So, I've cut out the bits that spoil how HttS ends, but have a Giant Nerd and a Vampire basically going on a date:

Word count: 1267

---

"But indulge me, if you will: what would you be doing had Sarel never come to you?”

Aiden raised an eyebrow. “You say that as if you don’t know the truth of his arrival.”

“It’s neither here nor there. He’s in your life regardless. So, tell me about yourself. What are your interests? What drives you, outside of parenthood?”

“Is this a date, now?”

Harukar gave another small shrug, and Aiden felt heat rise in his cheeks. Implications of their non-date aside, it was a good question. Aiden was slightly terrified at the fact that he didn’t have an answer readily available.

“I’ve always wanted to prove myself as a scholar. I’m no great mage, but I know the theory behind most schools of magic backwards and forwards. It makes me a good enough teacher, but teaching isn’t really my passion.”

“So, what is?”

Aiden thought for a long moment, letting the question roll through his mind. “Research, I suppose. History. I feel most at home surrounded by books and manuscripts. Piecing together clues from the past, finding parallels between different theories, drawing new conclusions. It’s thrilling to prove an old theorem wrong.” He groaned. “That sounds so pathetic, I know.”

“Not at all. The life of an academic is attractive to many people.”

“I just wanted to do something that had never been done before—ask questions other scholars were too afraid to ask. I just wanted to find the thing that would change the history books, something attributed to me. People would hear the name ‘Aiden’ and their first thought would be of me, and not the damn Direnni Prince!”

“How many siblings did you have?” Harukar asked.

The question caught Aiden off guard. “Er, four. I was the…” And then it dawned on him. “Middle child.” He sighed and covered his eyes with his hands. “I’m pathetic, aren’t I?”

“You speak terribly of yourself so often. It frustrates me. And, if I’m honest, it makes me rather angry with whoever it was that put these thoughts into your head.”

“Would it be better if I spoke too highly of myself? Thought myself Auri-El’s gift to Mundus?”

“There’s a third option, you know.”

Aiden smiled and took a sip of wine. “What about you? What would you be doing now had you never become a vampire?”

“Well, I’d most likely be dead, considering I’m about two hundred years past my expiration.”

Aiden snorted into his cup. “Fair point.” He chuckled and wiped droplets of wine from his cheek.

Harukar appeared to think for a moment. “I probably would have died a warrior with the Ash’abah. We aren’t known for our long lifespans. So, in many ways, my affliction afforded me the ability to do much more than I might have otherwise been able to. And, despite everything, I feel that I’ve been able to do a lot of good. So I’m thankful, in the end.”

“Do you ever get tired of trying to constantly see the good in life?”

Harukar smiled. “No. Nor do I tire of trying to see the good in people.”

Aiden flushed with unwanted heat once more. “So, you said that you’ve had children, adopted or otherwise. I assume they’re all grown up?”

“Or dead, now, yes.”

“Dead?”

It was Harukar who averted his eyes now. “The unfortunate aspect of having a long life. I pity elves who take human partners.”

“Ah, yes. I worried about that with Collette. Briefly, that is. Our relationship—” Aiden bit his tongue. The wine was loosening his lips already. “Well, that is to say, if you could call what we had a relationship, it didn’t last very long. So it’s less of a worry, now.”

“Collette?” Harukar tilted his head curiously.

“She was basically a mother to Sarel. We’d… attempted a relationship before I began my research into the Falmer, but of course it ended in disaster. As all my relationships do.”

“And how many have you had?”

What a shameful question with an equally shameful answer. “Three, I suppose. If you count a teenage fling that lasted less than a month. And then the second one was with a fellow student when I was at the College of Sapiarchs. They all end the same way: her being the first to call it off. I just—I never seem to know what they want from me!”

“Pardon?”

“Women. They confuse and elude me,” Aiden confessed, taking another long sip of wine. “I think I’m better off alone.”

Harukar wore a strange look, seeming to take a long moment to study Aiden. “Forgive me, this may be too forward, but… I had assumed you preferred men.”

Aiden snapped to sit up straight, letting out a too-loud laugh. “What? Why?”

Harukar gave another one of his infuriating little shrugs. “Just a feeling, I suppose.”

“Well, I’m not. I don’t.” He hesitated. “At least, I don’t think I am… or do. I’ve never—”

Don’t lie to his face, Aiden.

Ah, of course, it had been too long since his little Daedroth had interjected.

We both know the fantasies that occupy your mind, alone, with only your hand to keep you company.

Aiden cleared his throat. “Even if a man showed interest in me, I’m not sure I’d even know what to do.” This conversation was getting out of hand.

“I find it’s very much the same, regardless of sex or gender. The mechanics vary slightly, is all.”

“You mean, you’ve—” Aiden tried not to gape. “You’re—?”

“I’ve had many partners in my life so far. Men and women, and a few that fell somewhere in-between. I don’t really have a preference. It all depends on the person.”

“Oh… So, then—er—what do you find attractive in a partner?”

Harukar hummed thoughtfully, looking off and to the right. “I like those with a quick wit. I rarely hold back my own sarcasm, so someone who doesn’t feel put off by that kind of humor. I also tend to be drawn towards more…bookish types. I think, being raised a warrior, I seek my opposite in a lot of ways.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“I very much am.” There was a playful glint in Harukar’s glowing eyes. “I’m also attracted to passionate people. Those who have a spark for life, one might say.”

“Is that—” Aiden did manage to catch himself that time and clamped his mouth shut.

“Is that what?”

“Sorry, no. That… I feel like that would have come out wrong. It would have been rude.”

Aiden might as well live with his foot in his mouth, he could hear his sister saying. Anything he thinks, he says. (It had been many, many years since she’d made that observation, and Aiden had thought that he’d improved since then.)

“Now I’m curious.”

“I was going to ask if the attraction to… that ‘spark for life’, as you said, was because you were…” Aiden gestured vaguely in his direction.

“Ahh, because I’m undead.”

Aiden smiled, though it was more of a grimace.

To his relief, Harukar laughed. “You should have just said it. It would have been funny. It’s one of the things I like about you.”

“That I have the chronic ability to fit my entire foot in my mouth?”

“Mmm, I understand it’s a quality that’s probably unbecoming of an Altmer.” Harukar leaned on the table, propping his chin in his hand. “But I find it charming… most of the time, at least.”

He finds you charming. He’s attracted to men, he likes bookish types, and he finds you charming.

Most of the time…

Aiden cleared his throat before refilling his tankard with another heavy pour of wine.

--- These fucking guys...

#topsy writes #wip wednesday #skyrim fanfic #skyrim oc #aiden #harukar #topsy's ocs

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deathofpeaceofmiiind · 5 months

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high infidelity | twenty five

You’re the king baby, I’m your queen. *Noah’s POV* “So where are you taking me?” I looked over at Ellie and just smirked, not daring to tell her where we were going. I kept my eyes on her for a little longer than I expected, I couldn’t help myself. She had her hair in a sleeked back ponytail, black ripped skinny jeans, white tank top and her signature checkered vans. The past 24 hours with her have been absolute heaven. My home has been such a safe space for me and having her in it made it feel complete finally. She was so patient and understanding with me last night and I felt like a huge weight had been lifted. Sex with her felt like a drug I wanted to use for the rest of my life. Between last night, this morning and fucking her quickly in the shower before we left the house, I still couldn’t get enough of her right now.

“I’m not telling you.” I replied as I backed out of my driveway and headed down the street. She crossed her arms and I could feel her eyes on me. “Great, I’m gonna end up on the news. Newsflash, Canadian women missing in the Hollywood Hills.” I was having a hard time holding my laughter back at how dramatic she was being, “do you really think I’m taking you somewhere to murder you?” “I don’t know, Noah Sebastian…are you?” She sarcastically replied. “Ok fine, I’ll ruin the surprise. I wanted to order from my favourite sushi place, and take you to my favourite spot in the city to have a little picnic. I figured since most of our time has been taken up with my shows, we deserved another quiet night together before you leave.”

She leaned over the console and kissed my cheek, almost making me run through a red light.“That sounds great. I’m sorry for accusing you of murder.” “I am capable of it but I’ll save it for another day.” I winked. She just rolled her eyes and grabbed my hand as she looked out the window. I felt my heart skip a beat over how happy I was feeling right now. The windows were down, music was playing, and the sun was shining, making Ellie’s dark hair shine. I don’t think it could get better than this.

We left the restaurant with enough sushi to feed an army and headed over to White Point beach. This place was so special to me for so many reasons. I got a lot of my writing for the death of peace of mind done here and it was just my escape from the pandemic. It was the one place I actually felt my nervous system calm down. I’ve tried chasing that feeling elsewhere and honestly, I never found it until I met Ellie. “Wow…Noah.” Ellie paused, putting her hand over her mouth as she admired the view in front of her. I wasn’t sure what her reaction would be since she was also surrounded by beaches and mountains at home but she still looked awestruck. The beach had a hill that towered over everything, giving you the perfect view of the ocean and an even better view of the sunset. “This is my hiding spot.” I replied turning off the car and locking my fingers with Ellie’s. “I’ve never shown anyone this spot. This place has given me more peace than therapy ever has. I just wanted to show you it cause … well because you give me the feeling this place does.” “Noah…” She whispered as tears filled her eyes. She took her seatbelt off and grabbed me by the back of my neck, guiding me to kiss her. I pressed my mouth to hers, wrapping my hand around her throat the longer we kissed. The kisses were so soft and gentle, giving me time to taste the strawberry flavour from Ellie’s lip gloss. We pulled away and she smiled so sweetly at me, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear. I just sighed deeply, this girl was something else.

I came prepared and grabbed blankets, a cooler and hoodies out of the trunk before we headed over to the beach. Ellie raised her eyebrows at me as I walked past her and found my normal spot was free. I laid the blanket down, Ellie put our food down and sat beside me. I pulled out two white claws, giving one to her as we dove into our food. “Who knew you were such a romantic.” Ellie smiled before taking a bite of her sushi. “This is better than any expensive restaurant.” “Good, I’m glad.” I replied, not taking my eyes off her. “That’s one of the biggest reasons why I love you.” She face flushed a little as she met my gaze, “what do you mean?” “I guess what I’m trying to say is that, you’re probably the first woman I’ve ever won over by being myself. You don’t have unrealistic expectations because of who I am, so I never felt like I needed to hide behind a mask.” I stuttered a little near the end, I was trying to tread lightly and not offend her by any means. “Noah, I fell for you because of your heart, and who are you are as a person off stage. Your band, your success, any money you make from all this comes secondary. Sure I met you because of your band but in another life if I just met you on the street and didn’t know who you were, I’d still be here ridiculously in love with you.” “Ridiculously huh?” I joked, nudging her arm. She smiled at me as I got closer to her, caressing her cheek and kissing her again. I couldn’t stop myself from wanting to be all over her right now. Not even in a sexual way, just affectionally. My heart felt like it was going to burst because of her. “I love you Ellie.” “I love you more.” After we finished our food, we got cozy and watched the sunset together. The sky was so beautiful and reminded me of cotton candy with the shades of pink and blue. Ellie was nuzzled against my chest, listening to the sounds of seagulls in the distance along with the sound of each other’s heartbeats. I didn’t want this night to be over. The sun began to disappear and the sky glowed a dark blue, all I could see was Ellie’s bright eyes piercing through the darkness. As we got to the car, my phone buzzed in my pocket and I pulled it out, it was Jolly. “Hey man, we’re thinking of hitting up the pier in 30. Last night for Matt, both Nicks and Bryan in town. You two want to come?” “Hey Ellie do you want to head to the pier?” She just nods, polishing off her white claw before getting into the car. I pouted a little bit hoping she’d just want to go home, but this could be fun as well. I should also be thankful my friends love her as much as I do and want to include her in things. Before I got in the car I went to text Jolly back but I opened my conversation to Nick, taking a deep breath before I started typing. “I wanna marry this girl.”

#bad omens #fanfic #noah sebastian

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depressedbagpipe · 2 years

Text

Silver (Prince Caspian x female!reader)

Epilogue

Words: 682 Warnings: none, maybe a little sad? A/N: so, this is it :( I wanted to properly finish this story by writing a short epilogue, also celebrating Ben Barnes' birthday today! thank you so much for giving me a chance, I really hope you enjoyed this story 💜✨🫶🏻 PS I may or may not have been thinking about a second part following The Voyage of the Dawn Treader... but I'll leave that up to you

Series Masterlist Previous chapter

Epilogue

Dearest Peter,

Twelve months. Your absence still hurts twelve months later. It’s gotten easier, indeed, but it still hurts nonetheless.

I’ve been writing letters to you all, even though I know you won’t read them. It makes me feel closer to you. I don’t know how much time has passed in our world, well, your world. For me, it’s been a year, yet it feels like a lifetime. So many things have changed since you left, and it still feels like you will all appear stumbling out of a tree in the woods any minute. But I know you won’t.

Caspian and I are together, officially. I wish you could’ve been there. Remember when you joked about walking each other down the aisle? You would’ve loved it, Trumpkin almost fell flat on his face carrying the rings. He swears he didn’t enjoy it one bit when we asked him, but even I know better. I know he misses Lucy, too. I was bouncing around with nerves, I couldn’t calm down at all. But it all went perfectly. Only you guys were missing.

We came back from our trip a few weeks ago. Life is peaceful, too. No wars so far, no poverty, no injustices. Caspian is an extraordinary king. He’s kind, he’s brave, he’s just, he’s loving. Narnia is thriving once again. Sometimes I look at him and see you. He always says I’m a great queen too, but I’m not so sure about that. I’ve been getting better, for sure, but the pressure is too much. I still need to get used to it, as well. But Caspian’s always there for me and wants me by his side.

Speaking of, he misses you all too. We talk about you all the time. He often asks questions about what we did in the old days. The Golden Age, they call it. Honestly, should they have seen us at Cair Paravel, I don’t think they would call it ‘golden’ anymore. Caspian asked me whether should we reconstruct Cair Paravel. I said no. I hope you don’t mind. That place belongs to you. The ruins remain, but the Narnians respect me enough not to wander around. I still do. At this point, it’s the only remainder that what we all had was real. I’ve moved on, but it’s the only memory I have of my family. Caspian’s been telling me about his father too. He’s mentioned a couple of times the seven lords that ruled alongside his father, and how they all disappeared after he died. A couple of rumors have been roaming around the lower port, about the evil that resides on the farthest island, but even Dr. Cornellious doesn’t know what to believe. Caspian says he will look into that, but that’s about it. We’re fine. I’m happy. He’s happy. That’s all I care about.

I truly hope you’re taking care of your siblings. I know it’s not fair, how you were forced to grow up quicker than the rest to become a father to them and a king to a world you didn’t know anything of. And I’m sorry that I can’t be there now, helping you through it. I still feel that pit in my stomach, you know, like a part of me is missing. It left with you that day.

Twelve months. Twelve months and one day, now, as it is getting late. Twelve months and one day since our lives changed completely, again. Twelve months and one day where you guys haven’t left my mind.

I really wish you guys are alright, that’s all that matters to me. Tell Susan I miss our talks. Tell Lucy I miss her hugs. Tell Edmund I miss our fights. Tell yourself I miss my best friend of all time.

Should you ever come back, Caspian and I will be here, waiting for you with open arms. You know, he’s even losing his accent, a little more every day. I guess he’s becoming one of us, at last.

Remember to chill, too. Stay safe. Love you.

Until we meet again,

The Queen of Narnia

The end

#prince caspian x reader #prince caspian #ben barnes x reader #narnia fanfiction #narnia #prince caspian movie #prince caspian fanfiction #ben barnes #bin bons #chronicles of narnia #prince caspian x you #prince caspian x y/n #narnia imagines

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ijustwantogohomehogwarts · 10 months

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The Adventures of Lee and Gracie - BONES AND ALL : part 2

Warnings and such: some angst, especially sibling, talks about shitty past, stalker?, mentions of scars, jokes about dying and poor driving....?

--------------------------------------------------

“And yesterday I met you. I think that’s all there is to tell.”

I don’t know why, but opening up about my life and talking to Lee felt like second nature, like the easiest thing to do in the world. It shouldn’t be, I don’t think. Despite feeling like I had known him for years, it had hardly been 24 hours. Maybe it was in the way he listened, how his eyes constantly flickering between me and the road. Or how he’d smile and nod along as I spoke, interrupting to ask questions or confirm that he was still following along with the people and places I spoke about. I never imagined people like that actually existed, not outside of the books I read at least.

“That’s some heavy shit, not going to lie.” He chucked, pulling into a gas station. “But you seem to be handling yourself well, I’ll give you that much!”

“Thank you? I think?” I laughed, getting out too. I watched him, again, as he got gas and walked circles around the parking lot. He was easy to watch- in a non-stalkerish type of way.

“You hungry?”

“Ummm…”

Lee laughed, pointing to a dinner behind me. “I know better.” The idea of Lee eating regular food seemed like a foreign concept. I don’t think I can ever recall a time where my mother ate “people food,” outside of coffee and some junk food she had shoved in the back of the kitchen cabinets. I was learning, at an alarming rate, that I knew nothing.

“You’re turn,” I smiled as we sat down to dinner.

“My turn?”

“Lee! Come on, tell me about you.” He chewed his food slowly, avoiding eye contact with me as he did.

“Can it wait? Until we’re back on the road.” I tried to glare at him in a non-threatening type of way, if that was even possible. He smiled, holding a pinky out towards me.

“Fine.” I turned his hand over, taking in his tattoos for the first time. “How about those? Can we talk about those now?” He laughed, taking his hand back.

“Honestly, there’s nothing to tell. I did them myself. When I was younger. For no reason at all…I was just bored. Why? You want one?”

“I’ve thought about it…”

So we talked about tattoos, and hair and piercings…all the things teenagers toyed with and were typically done with by our age. As it turns out, the pink hair was actually supposed to be red, but he could never keep up on maintaining the color. ‘So pink it is.’

I learned 3 things about Lee over dinner;

The first was that he had an appetite. This boy could eat, and would eat, anything you put in front of him. He must have the metabolism of a God. He was probably, what? 140 pounds, soaking wet?!

The second was that he was an absolute riot. He wasn’t loud, per say- quite soft spoken and monotone actually, but he could find a way to crack jokes at every word that came out of my mouth. Some of them were great- we were doubled over in laughter, drawing attention to ourselves a few times over the two hours we sat inside. Other times, the jokes were really, really lame. I’m talking kindergarten level knock knock jokes, but the way he told them…you had to laugh. And boy, did he have a beautiful laugh!

The third was that he was unfavorably kind. This was more of a judgment call on my part, I don’t know that he would ever admit to being a kind person, considering what he was, but I thought he was kind. He held doors for me, let me order first, and asked if I had enough to eat more than once. He was overly pleasant to the waitstaff, though I saw nothing wrong with that, and he even asked the entirety of the dinner if anyone wanted the last piece of peach pie before he took it. I mean, who does that?!

“Alright mister,” I turned my full attention towards him once we got back in the truck, back against the door, feet on the seat. He turned down the radio and cleared his throat.

“There’s not a whole lot to tell, I’m just going to say that now.” I nodded.

He talked. It was a drawn out story with bare bone details, and I could tell he was reluctant to share anything too personal, but in the moment it didn’t seem to bother me. I didn’t push him for details- I was just happy to hear him talk.

His voice stirred confusion throughout my body. Lee was human, of course he was, but I think he went his whole life believing he was a monster, or at least that’s how other people would see him. I couldn’t bring myself to see him that way though, outside of the cannibalistic tendencies, he and I shared very similar experiences growing up. The monsters I’ve read about in stories, the real ones you heard about on the news- they all had tragic backstories of abuse and neglect and abandonment. Lee didn’t get along with his dad, but he had a sister, a mother, aunts and uncles…never any real friends to speak of, but I didn’t either. I don’t know if any of that made it easier or harder on Lee to be ‘what’ he is, but I thought him to be far from a ‘bad person.’

We rolled to a stop at an intersection in the middle of nowhere. The red glow brought me out of my thoughts, my attention back to the boy at my feet. He yawned, looking around. I don’t think either one of us had realized how late it had gotten, and we didn’t make plans to stop somewhere. We’ll have to get better at that. Lee stuck his head out the window, like a dog, and smiled.

“How do you feel about sleeping outside?”

“What?”

“There’s nothing here, I’m not sure where else to stop. We could find a nice spot to park, sleep under the stars?”

“Okay…” I hesitated, not sure if he was being serious or not.

He was serious.

We found a quiet spot at the edge of a field a few miles up the road. We pulled out our bags and the few small blankets we’ve collected and piled into the bed of the truck. Lee handed me the keys and a flashlight.

“Gracie?” He muttered, trying to get comfortable.

“Yeah?”

“Do you think we could stop in Kentucky? I promised my sister I would teach her how to drive…”

Domestic.

“Of course we can!” He smiled and rolled over without another word.

I sat on the tailgate and tried to read. There was only a few chapters left in my book, but it was my last one and I wasn’t sure how long it would be before I’d find somewhere to get another one. The stars were beautiful. I was beginning to regret not sleeping in the bed of my truck before tonight, I had always slept in the cab, too scared to be out in the open and by myself. But I wasn’t alone anymore. I had Lee.

******

“How long will it take to get to Kentucky?” I asked, watching as Lee’s fingers traced over the map.

“If we don’t stop anymore than necessary, we could probably make it by tonight. Or tomorrow morning if you wanted to raid a bookstore along the way.” I smiled at him, eyes returning to the road.

The drive was long, but otherwise easy. Lee sang to every song on the radio, belted at the top of his lungs to his favorites, and groaned at every commercial. It reminded me of a road trip with a small child, except this was far more enjoyable.

We had to stop for gas one more time before the sun went down, and decided that this would be it for the day. We found the cheapest motel and walked across the parking lot to a convenient store for dinner.

“You know, this is considered a delicacy in some areas.” Lee grinned, holding up a can of spaghettios.

“In this area, we respect spaghettios!” I beamed, snatching the can from him and tucking it under my arm.

Lee continued looking up and down the aisles, but I could tell that he wasn’t excited about anything. There was something else on his mind. I could see it, the way he watched everyone who walked past him in the store. I’m not sure how often eaters eat, but maybe that’s what it was? Lee and I had been together for almost a week…

I slipped around the corner, gitty to find the last box of exactly what I was looking for. I returned to Lee, who was still watching someone at the front of the store. I stuck the box in front of his face and smiled.

“Really?” He laughed. I nodded excitedly. “Will you do it for me?” The question caught me by surprise, it was an innocent request but seemed so…personal? Intimate almost?

“Okay!”

We perused the store for a little while longer, but Lee seemed to be more distracted than he had even when we walked in. I figured I would ask him about it later, when the only people who could hear us were the ones on the other side of the paper thin walls of the motel room. Strangers. People we would never meet face to face. Who cares what they thought.

I noticed an old man who was watching Lee and I intently as we checked out. Lee must have noticed him too, because as we were leaving and the man made a step towards us, Lee put a hand at the small of my back and rushed us across the parking lot.

“Go. Go.” he whispered. The door slammed behind us and Lee locked it quickly, peeking behind the curtain.

“What?”

“That guy…” he started, dragging a hand through his hair. “I feel like I’ve seen him before.”

“Like, recently?”

“More than once. I can’t be sure though. He’s one of us- he’s like me, I mean. I could smell him.”

“Lee…” He began pacing in front of the door. He took a deep breath and stopped. “Do you think we should leave?”

“No,” he sounded much more confident this time. “We’re almost to my house, if I see him again…we’ll deal with it.”

I nodded…not knowing what else to say. I tried to recall if I could smell someone like that too. I could smell Lee, he smelled nice… but I’m not sure if that was the same thing or not.

“Ready?” He asked, taking the box and walking towards the bathroom. I jumped up in excitement.

“Look down, you’re too tall.” I laughed, reaching for the top of his head.

“Have you done this before?” He walked away, sitting on the closed toilet seat.

“It’s hair dye, not rocket science!”

“That’s a no!” Lee laughed. I looked around the bathroom, everything was smeared with a bright red hue, like someone had been- I stopped that thought, turning my attention back to what I was doing.

“I think that’s all of it.” I smiled, taking a step back to look at him.

“Are you sure? There’s still some in the bowl…”

“There’s always extra, you should know that!”

He chuckled softly, standing to look at himself in the mirror. He looked rather impressed that I didn’t get any on his face. I was impressed too. He smiled at me in the reflection, watching as I took off the cheap gloves and tossed them in the trash.

“Gracie,”

I looked up. Lee was standing within arms reach, the rest of the hair dye on his fingers. I nodded, feeling a blush rise in my cheeks. He stepped forward, and grabbed a strand of hair from the underside of my head, fingers ghosting against my skin. He smeared the chemicals in, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. There was more left over than I thought there was, so I allowed him to dye a section in the front of my hair too- a section that would be more visible.

He looked so proud of himself.

We sat down to dinner and a movie, the comfortable silence engulfing me like a fire. I was starting to love it… I checked my watch and nudged Lee towards the bathroom to wash out his hair. He took a shower, emerging a short time later with the ends of his curls now a bright shade of red.

“Not too bad!” He smiled in the mirror.

“Oh my god!” I stumbled to my feet, walking towards him.

“What?!” He immediately tried to look at the back of his head. I reached him and grabbed his arm.

“Adam, Eve and Steve?!” I laughed at the tattoo on his shoulder. He stilled for a moment under my touch. “I love that!”

Until now, I hadn’t seen Lee shirtless. Not that I thought it was a big deal, but it let me find my new favorite tattoo of his. I could guess that it was a jab at sexuality, his or otherwise, but it was funny. A continuation of the jokes he loved to make. My fingers trailed lightly down his arm, not realizing that I was holding onto him the way I was. I selfishly let my eyes wander over his body, a well healed, but good sized scar on the left side of his chest. A bite. I reached to trace it, stopping when Lee took a deep, shaky breath.

“Sorry.” I whispered, hands dropping from his body entirely.

****

I tried desperately to peel my eyes open, the sun pouring into the room was overwhelming. There was rustling beside me, Lee was peeking out the window again. I watched him, assuming he didn’t know I was awake. This was quickly becoming my favorite way to pass the time.

“You could take a picture, it would last longer.” He smiled, looking at me over his shoulder.

“Sorry,” I yawned, looking around the room. Lee’s bed hardly looked slept in, or on. I worried that he had spent the whole night in front of that window.

I stumbled to my feet, crossing the room without an ounce of grace in my body. Oh, the irony. I smiled at the new red strands in my hair. I quite liked them, actually. Not to sound all metaphorical and english-teacher like, but it felt like something that sort of…tied…Lee and I together. One in the same, but still different.

“We should go, when you’re ready.” Lee spoke, standing behind me and pulling me from my thoughts.

We only had a few short hours until we got to Lee’s house, nothing in comparison to the hours we had put in over the last two weeks. I was worried that things would be awkward, or that he would bring up the small moment we shared last night, but he didn’t, and I think I was grateful for that.

“This is my aunt's house,” he said, pulling into the driveway. “She died a few months ago, so it’s empty. We can stay here. I live just on the other side of that plant, but my mom she’s…” He shook his head and smiled.

“Say no more!”

“I’m going to go take Kayla driving…hopefully I don’t die!”

“She can’t be that bad!”

“You’re right, I survived your driving-”

“Lee!” I swatted his chest playfully.

“Any requests for dinner?”

“Are you cooking?” I raised an eyebrow at him, looking towards the kitchen.

“Absolutely not! But we got about everything in town. Just can’t be seen hanging around…do you need to know why?”

“Nope!”

“So?”

“Surprise me?”

Lee smiled. “Lock the door, keep the lights off! Snoop around if you want, fuck if I care. I’ll see you in a bit! Hopefully!”

I snooped. I didn’t see any reason not to. It was clear this was something that didn’t bother Lee, he snooped through people’s things all the time- dead people for that matter. The more time I spent with Lee, the more questions I had about being an eater. My mind was still unwavering, there wasn’t a single part of me that wanted to experience any of that for myself, but I had questions nonetheless. I wondered how much Lee would be willing to divulge, if it wasn’t anything “personal.”

I found a box with old photos and sat on the floor to look through it. These were all strangers, I didn’t recognize anyone in the photos, but they seemed to have a happy life. About halfway through the box I found a photo of a little boy, his smile screamed familiarity. Baby Lee! There was a stack of photos of him at Christmas and his birthday parties, at halloween and on a bike. He didn’t look much older than 10, but after that they stopped. No pictures of him at any other family events, school functions, carnivals…nothing. Maybe it all started around that age. Does his family know? They must know…or they don’t and that’s why he still sees them?

“Gracie!” Lee called from the door. I had lost track of time, the sun was setting and the street lights were coming on. “Food’s getting cold!”

“How did it go?” I asked, watching him pick at his food.

“Minimal deaths- could have gone worse.” He smiled. “Actually Kayla-”

There was a loud banging on the door, followed by a woman yelling.

“Lee, I know you’re in there! Open the fucking door.” I looked at Lee who simply rolled his eyes and stood up from the table. “Come on you asshole. Open the goddamn door!”

“Speaking of the devil!" He whispered. "Kayla, fucking chill!” He opened the door and a short girl with bright blonde hair came barreling in, shoving him back until he hit the wall. I stood in the doorway.

“I found the note you left me, you’re leaving already?!”

“It’s just for a little bit, I’ll be back. Chill!”

“Why the fuck do you do this!” She continued to yell. “You’re just like dad you-” She stopped, finally noticing me. “Who are you?”

“Kayla, this is Gracie. Gracie, this is my sister. Kayla.”

“Hi-”

“Fuck you, Lee!”

“Outside, Kayla.”

“No! You-”

“I wanna talk to you outside.” Lee sighed through gritted teeth. “Please, just go outside.”

My mind flashed back to the night I met Lee. To the drunk man in the grocery store and everything that followed afterwards. I could hear them arguing outside, but couldn’t make out what was being said. I sat down and waited, not knowing what else to do.

“Fuck you, Lee!” Kayla yelled, and I could see her storming off towards their house.

Lee came in, stress and frustration radiating off of him. His body temperature alone raised the temperature in the house a few degrees. He shed the button up he was wearing and I could see him sweating. His sister must really get under his skin. Either that, or just being back here was a lot. His leg bounced restlessly as he sat and tried to steady his breathing.

“I think we should go…” he sighed. “She’s probably going to tell my mom I’m here and I just…I don’t want to deal with that right now, you know.”

Dinner was abandoned, Lee grabbed a few things from the house and we set off once again. His knuckles were white as he gripped the steering wheel, sitting idol in the driveway for a moment. I slid closer to him, hand resting on his.

“It’s okay,” I tried to sound reassuring. “Siblings are supposed to get under your skin.”

Lee chucked softly, relaxing his shoulders. “Can we make another stop? Before we go?”

“Of course.”

We drove to the far part of town, to a slaughterhouse. Lee smiled, parking the truck and turning off the lights.

“What are we…”

“I used to work here over the summers. I wanna show you something.”

I followed him, over fences and railings and through doors. Lee knew this place like the back of his hand. He didn’t seem worried about getting caught. I guess there was only one security guard and he was old. ‘Deaf in both ears,’ as Lee put it when I asked. We ran down a few dark hallways until we reached a cafeteria.

“Lee?”

“I can’t get into the safe, but they keep petty cash in the lockbox. Stand guard?” He ran through the back, returning a moment later with a good size stack of money and handed it to me. “You’re the bank.” He smiled breathlessly.

“Is this what you wanted to show me?”

“Of course not! Come on.” He grabbed my hand and we were off again.

In the back of the plant there was soft music playing, and the distinct sound of cows. It was sad to think about, but otherwise peaceful. We climbed to the top of the walkway and sat, our feet dangling over an empty pen.

“I used to hide up here a lot.” Lee smiled, looking around. I could see why.

Comfortable silence.

“What’s on your mind?”

“Hmm?”

“You look like you wanna say something- ask something, so speak.”

“You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to…”

“Deal.”

“What’s it like?”

“To work here?”

“No,” I laughed, picking at the skin around my nails. “Eating…to have to do the things you do.”

“I guess I don’t really have a choice, do I?”

“I wouldn’t know…”

“It’s kind of like predator versus prey meets natural selection. I can’t speak for other eaters, and maybe your mom did it differently…but for me…I try to only pick the people who aren’t worth saving.”

“Saving?”

“Yeah. Like the guy in the grocery store when we first met? No one’s gonna miss him.” Lee laughed. “Only men, not married, no kids…”

I nodded. There seemed to be a method to who Lee “picked.” It wasn’t just a random, spur of the moment decision, but something he calculated meticulously in his mind. He didn’t want to hurt anyone- he didn’t want someone’s wife waiting for him at home, or some kids wondering where their dad was. Lee was kind like that- if there was a way to be kind in all of this.

My hand found Lee’s, lacing our fingers together carefully as I found the courage to ask the next question. He seemed to sense this, and squeezed my hand gently.

“Do you remember your first time?”

“Yeah, it was with this girl when I was like 16? She was hot-”

“Lee!” I laughed, leaning into his shoulder.

“I was…10? Maybe? I don' t even remember if that was the first, but it's the first I remember. It was a babysitter. I don’t remember why I did it, or how it started…but I remember feeling this kind of rush- the blood vessels popping you know. I felt like a superhero. Until it was over anyway. I remember knowing what I did was wrong, but I wasn’t sorry…if that makes sense. I think I was upset that it was a girl.” Lee sighed, “I liked her too- she was good with kids!”

“So, do your parents know?”

“My dad does. He's one too, but I didn’t know it at the time. He umm,” He reached for the scar on his face, stopping himself and hoping I didn’t see. I did. “He made sure I wasn’t going to tell anyone. And I didn’t. For 12 years.” He smiled at me before chewing on his bottom lip.

I let go of Lee’s hand, offering him my other one as I reached up to card my fingers through his hair. I tucked a few pieces behind his ear before he finally looked at me with the softest expression I had ever seen on a person.

“Do you think I’m a bad person?” he spoke, barely above a whisper. I smiled but shook my head.

“No, I don’t think you’re a bad person.”

My fingers rested on the back of his neck, eyes glancing between his and his lips. I pulled him gently towards me, waiting for a sign of protest. There wasn’t one. It felt like an eternity before his lips ghosted against mine, the faint smell of his last cigarette on his breath. He was…intoxicating. I gave him one final tug towards me and with it, time stopped. He kissed with such caution and softness. Nothing was rushed or ravishing and breathless. I supposed I had expected something more, but found myself much preferring this than the visions I had of how this was going to happen.

Everything I knew about him, and all that I thought I knew came to life in that kiss. I wanted this feeling for the rest of my life-

Oh, shit!

Lee pulled away, his forehead resting on mine, eyes still closed. I didn’t have to look at him to see the smile on his face. I could feel it radiating off of his body. Our fingers were still intertwined, squeezing each other carefully. There was a loud ‘moo’ from one of the cows below us, causing both of us to jump slightly. He groaned, staring at the ceiling for a moment as if trying to commit this to memory.

“We should go,” he finally sighed.

“Where to next?”

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