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#but it mostly will be drama and pain and I’m here for it
thewayuarent · 1 year
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Sand and his need for caring
and how Ray totally fits in
The question I ask myself a lot is: I totally understand why Ray is so attached to Sand. But why Sand was so quick in getting attached to Ray? My smart self-aware boy, how did you fall so fast so deep? You clearly see all the flags, what’s going on in you beautiful sad smart head? And that’s the answer I’ve figured out for myself.
Sand is a caretaker. Even if we don’t know about Sand a lot, we can clearly see his personality. Sand is a strong-opinionated man. He is sharp, strict and very sarcastic with his words and attitude (and I love it for him, you’re doing great hun). He is also very kind, caring and responsible person with his actions.
He is obviously a person who gives his all - but he doesn’t do it in somewhat sweet way, no. He is a kind of person who’ll tell you painful truth above soft assurances every time. And I have a feeling that not everyone in his life appreciated that.
I think about Sand as a someone who needs to care about somebody but at the same time has a fear that the care he’s so ready to give is not enough.
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Look at his reaction when Nick tells him to be gentle with his favorite item.
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Look at his reaction when Top brings this shit up.
Very different situations. And Sand has very different relationship with Nick and Top. But both times he’s sad and may be even hurt. I think he truly believes that he’s not “gentle” or “soft” enough for people he cares about.
And than he meets Ray. And oh, what a journey it is. We can see it since the beginning - the whole arc in ep 1 with Sand saving drunk pathetic mess of a man Ray is there (and I say it with all my love towards him). Sand is annoyed, understandably so, but he also kind of genuinely attached towards Ray very fast.
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Like look at this face and tell me there is no warm feelings happening.
And I honestly don’t think that he has any form of romantic or sexual attraction towards drunk unconscious man who just threw up in his toilet. But he’s really giving “you are a mess but in a cute way” vibe. And that’s, well, interesting.
Next morning he is sarcastic and complaining and I totally get it - my man probably didn’t rest well that night and he has like 10 jobs, he needs his sleep. But he is not getting angry before Ray acts like an asshole and it’s - again - understandable.
What happened next? Ray says sorry and more importantly - thank you. And Sand melts like an ice cream in a moment.
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And Ray does it again.
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And again.
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Not only towards things such huge as saving his life, but for Sand cooking and doing his job - and it shows again and again, that Ray is thankful for care Sand gives to him.
Ray does it in a pretty selfish manner, but he is always appreciative of what Sand does. And Sand does more. And more. And more.
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And while he continues to complain he’s not-so-lowkey enjoying it. Both because that’s who he is as a person and Ray’s reaction to it.
Sand and Ray relationship and how they are (may be) good for each other. Everyone talks about how and why Sand is good for Ray and yes, he definitely is. But how Ray can be good for Sand despite all problematic tendencies my man has (and there are a lot of them. I mean A LOT)? Well, Ray makes him feel validated. And we don’t know a lot about Sand’s history or family but I feel like validation is something he misses in his life. And Ray gives it to him constantly.
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This is beside the obvious reason that Ray is incredibly attractive. I mean look at this man. How are you like this I’m losing it and I’m asexual send help.
So there is a lot from “save him” going on with Sand, I would say way more than “fix him”. And it can go on a deeply unhealthy territory. But somehow they are doing not as bad as I expected.
They are not completely stuck in this dynamic, they are actively improving their relationship through episodes. I see genuine interest they have for each other. And it’s the interest that goes beyond their first impressions of “he is so lost and I am terrified but also fascinated” and “he makes up for everything that I haven’t received from people in my life before”. Even if that is a foundation of their relationship, it’s not all of it. Through ep 4 (and it’s very likely ep 5 will continue that theme) Ray stars to see Sand more as a person rather then as emotional support device.
And that’s why I am so invested in their dynamic. It’s absolutely not about them ending up together. And it’s not about them always being happy and healthy, cause, well, they are not and they won’t be. They will hurt each other undoubtedly, and that’s okay. But I have a pretty strong feeling that they will also help each other to heal. Even if only a little bit. Sometimes it’s already enough for than to start a journey through being better with yourself.
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tsukimefuku · 5 months
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blunt trauma ♰ nanami kento
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summary: your mission is to execute a curse user. the issue? said curse user is nanami kento, your former high school classmate and the man who you still secretly love.
tags and cw: dark content, no use of y/n, sorcerer!f!reader, villain!nanami, +18, explicit smut (mostly rough with tender moments hate/love sex), unprotected sex (wrap it, ppl), masturbation, oral (f receiving), pv, from enemies to enemies who fucked 👍, drama and angst (i’m a latina who grew up watching telenovelas), mentions of death, canon-typical violence, ptsd, cursing, hurt/no comfort, this man is saltier than the sea and turned it into everybody else's problem. 
wc: 7.5k
notes etc.: somehow it became a character study. this is my rendition of what i think gege would make nanami to be like if they followed their original plan and had nanami be a villain. inspo list is so huge i had to make a playlist, i got carried away.
writing/reading soundtrack: playlist link ; main songs → way down we go (kaleo) and daylight (david kushner).
disclaimer: i do not in any way approve of (or encourage) the relationship depicted here. it is toxic and bad for all parties involved. this is fictional and should stay that way.
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oh, father, tell me ♰ do we get what we deserve?
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It felt like the air had been beaten out of your lungs by the very one and only blunt blade you ever knew when you heard the news from Gojo.
Of course the first thing he did when he finished wrapping things up was calling you. If roles were reversed, and this had been Geto, he wouldn't expect any less from you.
During the School's Exchange Event, Jujutsu High was attacked by multiple high grade curses and curse users.
One of them was your former best friend from high school, Nanami Kento. 
"Are you certain it was him?"
"Absolutely," Gojo replied on the other side of the line, "there were traces of cursed energy from his cursed technique. He was also spotted by one of MeiMei's ravens."
"And how many students did he…"
"Two students from Kyoto."
Your head instantly felt dizzy.
"He also killed around a dozen assistants and people securing cursed objects underground."
"Shit… shit," you muttered, forgetting for a few seconds what words were and how to form a coherent sentence. Following suit, your stomach dropped with a sinking ache the moment you made the obvious realization, uttering the most painful thing you had to say in your life — even worse than he's gone, so many years before.
 "This will earn him a death sentence, won't it?"
Gojo was silent for a few moments.
"Hey…"
"Tell me. I can take it."
After a bated breath — from your end, mostly — he confirmed your worst fears.
"Yes. It will."
Ever since Geto's and Nanami's defection, you and Gojo had a special type of shared sorrow over each other's failures to save the people you both loved the most. Call it trauma bonding or codependency, but you developed an unwavering sense of loyalty towards one another.
For that reason, he already knew what you were about to ask him, and you only would because you knew he wouldn't find it in himself to refuse it.
"When it happens, please, have me be appointed as the executioner."
"Of course."
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Sitting with a glass of whiskey while gazing out of the window in an understated house just by the outskirts of Sendai, Nanami couldn't say he was fulfilled, unable to grasp the concept of feeling in any way elated ever since his teenage years. However, he was definitely satisfied that this plan had worked.
He managed to put a dent into Jujutsu Society, aiding Geto — or, at least, someone that looked like him, not that Nanami truly cared about it by this point — in retrieving multiple cursed objects that would be used for their inevitable fallout.
There had been a few casualties, though.
Two students and many personnel died — or rather, met their fateful end by the edge of his blunt blade —, but some deaths should be expected if Jujutsu Society was to be brought to the ground, down to its last brick.
Ever since that fateful day when he was nothing but a tall child sitting beside the cold corpse of his best friend, Yu Haibara, Nanami had simmered what would become a cauldron of absolute venom-dripping rage against Jujutsu Society.
To hell with saving other people — what about them? What about the teenager that would never grow to be a sorcerer, who became an inanimate nothing before ever getting the chance of making something out of himself? 
That face… Nanami could never forget it. It haunted his dreams, even a decade later. Such a stark contrast between the light-spirited smiles and this cold, gray monolith that laid in the morgue.
They had no right to rob their students from their youth, much less from their lives, but that's exactly what Jujutsu High did when they didn't even bother to check the mission appropriately before dispatching Haibara and Nanami to a certain death.
Nanami escaped, but just barely, by the skin of his teeth. Haibara, however, wasn't blessed with the same luck, and drew the short straw when his hitched final breaths met their end against Nanami's shoulder. Nanami, who carried his best friend on his back, desperately tried to win a losing race against death. 
Help was late to arrive.
They were too late for Haibara.
And, in a sense, they were too late for him, too.
The worst part, though, was when they were finally being transported all the way back to Jujutsu High. As he glanced over Haibara’s cadaver, now covered by a body bag, one particularly insensitive assistant very rudely stated, “at least there is a body to be buried.”
At least
There is a body 
To be buried
Those words echoed in his head for what felt like eternity. Was that the best they all had to hope for? To at least have remains left behind for the mourning?
In any case, that was why, even though he had to kill, Nanami never mangled any of his human victims — something not easy to do, given how his technique worked and how easy it was to split someone in half.
You had noticed this perverted benevolence while looking over the necropsy reports, a realization that just added insult to injury.
Let there be something for the funeral, I suppose, was what he told himself.
In his own twisted way, Nanami figured this was a kindness very few sorcerers received at their tragic ends, and decided he'd definitely be more compassionate than what Jujutsu High put their sorcerers through. 
In his eyes, those from Jujutsu High who died under his will were the ones granted a truly merciful death.
His peace was disturbed by the sound of the entrance door being brutally kicked in, flying its way across the living room. He pulled his blunt blade from the side of his armchair with his free hand, but quickly put it down when realizing it was you that had just barged inside.
He knew you very well — well enough to be certain you wouldn't come swinging at him immediately.
"I can see you still have a temper. Destroying the door wasn’t necessary, I would've opened it for you," he stated, sipping on his drink.
"I don't care," you retorted, "I guess you already know why I'm here, in any case."
"I do. You're here to carry out my death sentence," he stated, completely unbothered, as if talking about the weather.
As if he was just mundanely stuck in his ways. 
You huffed, placing your hand over your sword's handle.
"Precisely."
"We haven't spoken in a long time, why don't you take a seat?" Nanami inquired, pointing at the armchair right in front of him. "I want to finish my drink."
You glared at the curse user, as he, unfazed, kept gulping on his whiskey. Nanami was wearing a black buttoned shirt, black pants and black oxford shoes, and you couldn't help but see him as a grim reaper — this was a somber look, fitting for the equally somber man who carried it.
For a second, you took in his features — you hadn’t seen Nanami for a few years after the last time you crossed paths.
His shoulders had slightly broadened, and he still bore the same chiseled face, framed by his sand-blond hair neatly slicked back.
Nanami’s eyes traveled over you quickly, apparently doing the very same thing.
Time had left its marks. It was evident you both had grown up — and apart.
You knew this was a shit idea, but entertained it enough that you actually walked towards the chair and sat down. There were definitely things to be talked about, and you just about had a million questions for him.
Most of them, however, boiled down to what you immediately asked.
"Why did you do it?"
Nanami put his glass on the coffee table right in front of you.
"It was a necessary means to an end."
His words came with frost-bitten coldness, his voice embodying the monotone you once loved, but eventually, grew to hate.
You scoffed, incredulous at his reply, involuntarily clenching your fingers around your katana's handle as it laid on your lap.
"Necessary means to an end? Nanami, you killed teenage sorcerers!"
"As I said, and I don't like repeating myself," he interjected, "it was a necessary sacrifice for a greater cause."
"You're such a hypocritical, self-righteous ass!"
Nanami sighed, clearly displeased.
"We have always been able to keep some semblance of respect for each other, despite our… differences. Do not use that foul language with me."
You laughed bitterly, no amusement or fun in your voice as you did.
"Do you think I can still have an ounce of respect for you after what you did? You murdered my people! They were all sorcerers. You killed students, Nanami! Jujutsu High's students! Just like Haibara once was!"
He shot his eyes at you, and the aura of his cursed energy grew sinister at your words. 
"Don't say his name."
Yu Haibara, arguably the glue that kept the trio together. You were hot headed, Nanami was intransigent, and Yu was the conciliatory ray of sunshine that kept you two — but you, particularly — from constant quarreling as classmates nearly every day.
But back then, you'd argue with Nanami with love.
This wasn't the case now.
Not entirely, at least.
"He was my best friend too, the three of us were! Do you really think this is what he would've wanted?!" you questioned him, equal parts hurt and enraged.
"I'm not one to ponder on could've or would've been's. Haibara is gone."
"I'm not a would've been!"
You could still remember it. The day you realized why dealing with Nanami and hearing his sharp comebacks riled you up so intensely. 
You finally understood you were in love with him.
Ever since the first day you met Nanami, you envied the way he'd be able to keep his feelings in check when you constantly felt like falling apart. You felt jealous at how he was considered a greatly competent individual, regarded by all as the best of your class, while you were basically viewed as a ticking bomb nearing explosion. And finally, it made you livid the way how everyone treated him like the informal leader of the trio when the three of you were out on a mission together.
However, those were the same things that got you to admire your friend and, eventually, fall in love for him.
That day, you asked Nanami to meet you outside after class by himself — much to Haibara's dismay —, because you had something to tell him. It was a Tuesday afternoon, and the unforgiving sun of summer was already setting, casting an orange glow through the leaves of the tree you were both under.
After confessing your feelings for him and bracing yourself for being shot down, because why the hell would Nanami Kento, the brilliant, competent, and mature second-year, have any interest in the chaotic, hot headed mess you were, you realized he actually looked surprised. After taking a few moments to collect himself, Nanami told you how he had thought you actually hated him.
At last, somewhat nervous — but definitely intent on not letting it show —, he confided he had affectionate feelings towards you as well.
Your first kiss was awkward, as it would be expected out of two inexperienced people such as you and Nanami were at that age, but it carried the sweet taste of a blue spring marked by teenage years' innocence.
It felt like a promise.
Unfortunately, such promise was unmercifully cut short the very next day, when Nanami and Haibara were dispatched to their life-changing mission.
What an irony it was that, in the end, you were the one to actually mature over Haibara's death, growing up to be an upstanding sorcerer, loved and admired by peers and students alike, and Nanami was the bomb to blow up in everybody's faces.
What a cruel irony.
"I was there too, and I'm still here, having to pick up the pieces of what you deliberately destroyed!" you rasped, angrily.
"You weren't a 'would've been'? Where were you when we needed you? When I needed you?" his voice didn't conceal the tinge of hurt that those questions carried.
What a fucking low blow.
"Nanami, that's not fair. There wasn't anything I could've done in that situation, and you know that!"
You blamed yourself for a while for not going on that mission with them, until you realized that you too would probably have died if you were there. From the three, Nanami was the only one strong and fast enough to pull off an escape like he did.
He diverted his gaze back to the window.
"You were the one to bring up hypothetical scenarios. Let's indulge in them for a minute, shall we?" 
Nanami glanced back at you, and his next words brimmed with bitter resentment, even if his voice sounded more calm and collected than ever.
"You see someone you supposedly love slowly sinking into darkness. What do you do?"
"Don't you dare, you condescending prick! I asked you so many fucking times what was going on. You were the one who shut me out!"
Your voice carried a decade-old pain that resonated from the depths of your soul.
It came from all the times you entered his dorm room with his favorite sandwich after he had cooped up in there for days on end, and he didn't even bother to eat it. Every time you asked him to talk to you, said you were there for him, and was met by a vacant stare.
And, at last, the time when he cruelly blamed you for not being there when Haibara died.
The way he coldly told you about Haibara's last words.
According to Nanami, Haibara said he wanted to speak to you one last time, at least to bid you farewell.
And you weren't there.
Oh, the viciousness with which he blamed you, and decided you owed him something for this perceived failure. 
The next time Nanami talked to you, he asked you to leave Jujutsu High with him, just like Geto did, and swore to destroy them. You tried, pleaded, implored for him to reconsider and stay, but the very following day, you were met by an empty room where the person you once loved used to be. 
That emptiness had, paradoxically, filled you wholly with grief.
Gojo once told you that nobody could save someone who didn't want to be saved.
You still thought you should've tried harder, in a childish attempt at giving yourself an illusory semblance of control over that clusterfuck of a situation.
This is the gap inside our psyche that feeling guilty tries to fill, isn't it?
We can only feel guilty about the things we could've changed, right?
Your voice sounded decades older than yourself, burdening the weight of multiple lifetimes of hurt and grief. Your soul was too old for your own good.
"How can you find it in yourself to blame me for this?! No… This is a prison of your own making. You built the house of cards that is tumbling down on your head as we speak entirely by yourself."
He huffed intensely through his nostrils — Nanami’s version of a snort —, looking the other way before proceeding, each syllable hitting you with the deadly precision of his cursed technique.
"You abandoned us, leaving me and Haibara to fend for ourselves, just like Jujutsu Society did."
By that point, you began yelling, and your voice reverberated all across the room.
"The hell I did!"
You had to take a deep breath before proceeding.
"I just couldn't get behind this dumb idea that we should become curse users and bring down Jujutsu Society."
"Why didn't you come with me?" he finally asked, in an amalgam of pain, sadness, longing, anger, and stinging resentment. "I would have followed you to the deepest recesses of hell if you asked me to."
You huffed, laughing angrily in between your teeth, before thrusting your words like thorns against him.
"Funny you should say that. You'd go anywhere for me? How about staying? Why couldn't you have stayed for me, then?!" 
Perhaps that request was egotistical, but you didn't care. If only for a moment, you wanted to give yourself this small privilege — to want in a world of duty.
"I was the one actually left to fend for myself, right inside the belly of the beast, and you couldn't have cared less."
He stared at you, nothing in his eyes other than the void left behind after his spirit got killed with his best friend so many years ago.
"I didn't stay because… Because," Nanami stated, with a grave finality, "and you're the one who chose to stay. You're still actively choosing to, just like you did back then."
"That's not a good enough answer," you replied with a bad taste in your mouth.
"It's what you've earned," he coldly replied, "but in case you change your mind-"
"Enough," you interrupted him, incredulous that even after everything, this man had the nerve of suggesting you'd ever be interested in running away with him. "It appalls me you would even consider I could… After what you've done? No, never."
Nanami sighed, and for a brief moment, seemed to be actually disappointed under his resigned, polished visage.
"Well, then. Let's get this over with, at once."
In a split second, you pushed your chair on the ground, falling on your shoulders and rolling on your back, dodging his lightning-fast attack. It left a crater behind, right where you were seconds before. Nanami jumped over the fallen armchair, and you dodged him once again, spinning on your heels, unsheathing your sword as you did so, to deal a beheading blow on the back of his neck.
However, right before impact, you faltered, slowing down your movement.
Your own body held you back from taking his life.
He didn't seem to notice.
Nanami bent down just in time to avoid the blow, and swung his blunt blade towards your kneecap. You were quick on your feet, and jumped back, putting a good distance between the both of you.
"I can see you're actually fighting to kill," he noted, getting up on his feet.
"Of course. That's what I came here to do," you spat in his direction.
"You were never the practical one."
You scoffed.
"Guess I learned something from you."
He smiled at the irony of that, but his eyes didn't follow his expression. 
Nanami lunged at you, but while you thought he'd deal his next blow in your direction, he hit your footing, having you fall on the ground. Abruptly, his blunt blade descended in your direction, but you were able to catch it and have it slip to your side using your katana supported by your hand behind it, sending a sharp, loud sound around the vicinity, trembling against the bones and flesh of the house.
You rolled on your side when he struck a new hit in your direction, leaving another gaping hole on the floor, and you jumped yourself up. 
Before you could attack him, however, he took you by surprise, and you lifted your sword to defend yourself. Nanami hit your katana with his blunt blade, breaking it near where the handle and the steel met, launching your body back on the wall.
The impact knocked the air out of your lungs, and you fell to your knees, unable to recover yourself as you got up. Instantly, you heard his quick, steady steps sprinting their way in your direction.
You were cornered.
This is it.
You braced yourself for the impact, closing your eyes. You remembered his technique perfectly.
Precise, just as he was.
Deadly, just as he was, too.
You were to die at the hands of the man you loved, who had become a murderer and only a distorted, broken version of whom you used to truly love.
This seemed like an oddly cruel way to go.
However, the impact never came.
His blunt blade stopped as it was about to hit your stomach, and you opened your eyes, just to see his face mere inches apart from yours. His mountainous form blocked your view from anything else behind him, and Nanami, at that moment, actually looked like the menace he truly was. 
“Why were you appointed as my executioner?” Nanami asked, much to your surprise.
“I asked to be,” you answered, holding his gaze as something went through his eyes. A hint of anger, most likely, and some sense of betrayal, certainly. 
“So, you want to kill someone you once loved? You were always prone to self-penitence, so it stands to reason you’d do something idiotic like that.”
You scoffed, grimacing at him, feeling your entire body incandescent with rage.
“I fucking hate you, Nanami.” 
He inched his face even closer, brushing your noses against one another, eyes stone-cold and hauntingly vacant.
“I hate you as well.”
For a moment, you wondered if he had really stopped his blade before impact. You didn't expect it, but hearing those words felt like you just had been hit, victim of a blunt trauma, at how much they tore you apart. 
The same blunt trauma that severed the Nanami you once knew — the teenager with bangs, who'd always be carrying around a few spare changes to get soda cans from the vending machine for you and Haibara, in his own understated kindness — and this empty monster looking back at you.
"Good. Finish me off, then, and get your revenge for a crime I never committed. Being unfair and an all-around self-centered asshole certainly suits you, fucker."
His hand made its way up your neck, and you were pressed against the wall. The grip was firm, but not enough to choke you — it came more as a warning than anything else.
"I already told you to stop using that foul language with me," he ordered, low voice simmering with genuine irritation.
"Then make me," you challenged him, hoping for this torture to be over as fast as possible.
Just fucking kill me already.
His blunt blade fell with a thud on the floor, and you were confused for a moment, wondering if he really wouldn't give you the kindness of a quick demise. Did he plan on choking you to death?
Did he hate you that much?
His other hand came up, but before you could do anything to try to resist — which would be nothing but a futile attempt at survival, given that Nanami was physically much stronger than you —, his fingers snaked their way through the back of your hair, tugging it at the roots. 
His mouth clashed against yours, all teeth, tongue, anger, and hunger, and instantly every nerve in your body flared up with a raging fiery ember you hadn't felt in years. All the pent-up resentment, hurt, and desire you had for Nanami swirled together in your gut, guiding your hands up his hair, as you also pulled on it intently, robbing him of a gasp.
You intertwined your tongue against his, and he unceremoniously bullied his own inside your mouth, leaving no crevice unexplored, as his hand on your neck descended towards your waist, where he clenched his fingers with a vicious grip. You whimpered against his lips, and he grunted in return, pushing his body on yours. His throbbing growing cock could be felt, even through both of your clothes, as he pressed it right against the edge of your pants.
When you finally parted after what seemed like a not-long-enough eternity, you huffed and panted, and albeit less than you, he was panting too.
"I fucking… hate you…" you gnarled, glaring into his eyes. The hazel-brown gaze you once adored was now clouded and dark, like the muddy waters of a deep lake.
"Shut the fuck up," Nanami groaned back, strongly cupping your cunt with his large hand. You whimpered in surprise, and he pulled you in harshly for another kiss, letting go of your hair and sex to sink his fingers on the backside of your thighs, pulling them. You immediately jumped up and threw your arms around his shoulders, as he manhandled your legs to have them hooked around him.
He quickly took you both inside the room, and tossed you on the bed, having you gasping in surprise. Before you could catch your breath, he climbed his way on top of you, pressing your body down, and clashed his mouth against yours again, making you actually lightheaded from a lack of air.
You pushed against his chest, grunting uneasy, and surprisingly, he parted his lips from yours.
"What?"
You panted heavily, nearly hyperventilating, and mindlessly rested your hand on his cheek.
"C-can't breathe…" was all you mustered up to say, trying to replenish oxygen back into your system.
His eyes softened so discreetly you nearly missed it, and his cold-ivory enclosure slightly cracked under the affectionate touch he didn't expect.
Nanami had no idea how much he had craved it ever since you parted ways, and hated himself, just a little, for how much such an innocuous gesture stirred his old feelings up, throwing his heart against his chest in a fluttering rush.
I should be over her by now, dammit.
Nanami also brought his hand up your face, and ghosted over your cheek for a second before sliding his fingers delicately down over it.
You also weren't prepared for that, and your chest tightened all over your heavy heart as you remembered your first kiss.
The way he'd cup your face in his hands.
 So delicate, so lovely.
This touch, at this very moment, felt like a painful reminder of everything you had lost.
"Kento…" you cooed, voice strained in your throat, with all the things you were sure you'd never say.
He hummed your name in return, and kissed you while sinking your body against the mattress. This kiss was different, as his lips brushed gently over yours, and his tongue tenderly teased over the seam of your mouth. You welcomed him in, and you both explored these deep waters tentatively, as he upped the intensity after each stroke of your tongues against each other.
He tasted like whiskey, and bread, and the tainted love left behind as nothing but a reminiscence of less grueling days. You couldn't help but feel robbed by him.
You both had been missing out on this for all these fucking years.
"Why did you have to go?" you asked, pulling back from him, a tinge of anger to your cadence, and another of pain in your face.
"Why did you have to stay?" he spat back at you, equal parts saddened and resentful.
His mouth made its way to your neck, and you gasped with the sensation of his warm breath mingled with saliva against your skin, as he licked and bit his way around.
You couldn’t find it in yourself to push him away, and your eyes burned with the prickling sensation of tears that wouldn’t come. You were starved for his touch, his smell, his body, even if this was the murderer of your students, of your friends.
In your head, you felt like digging a hole and throwing yourself in it, to wallow in the misery of realizing that you were about to fuck the murderer of people you loved, and that it felt good.
A pool of heat and fire shot down your insides as your heartbeats throbbed in between your legs.
You hated yourself, and on top of it all, hated Nanami. 
Hated that you couldn't help but still love him, even after all he had done.
This was the setting tension in between the both of you, the two extremes of hate and love pulling against each other, all while the tug of war rope refused to snap to either side.
He pulled your shirt over your head, tossing it aside, and you undid his shirt, unzipping his pants. He unzipped you too, and quickly enough, took off your pants along with your panties with a single sharp tug.
Back to rough, but not entirely, it seemed.
His hand glided against your thigh and his fingertips slipped over your entrance, getting completely glazed by your already dripping arousal. He grunted, a guttural and intense sound deep in his chest, giving you another bite on the soft skin of your neck.
"Hate me?" Nanami asked, teasing his digits over your cunt, "doesn't seem like it."
You managed to scoff at him, which would prove to be a mistake.
"Go fuck yours-"
Before you could finish your sentence, he dove two of his fingers inside knuckle-deep, without any hint of a warning, forcefully stretching your walls around them. You immediately let out a whimper so pitiful you wondered if that was really your voice.
He seemed satisfied at that. Perhaps, even elated.
"Good girl," Nanami whispered right beside your ear, nibbling against your earlobe with his teeth, sending shivers down your spine. He began sliding his fingers in and out, and you bucked down against his hand while moaning and mewling, walls sheathing his digits as he finger-fucked your cunt, neglecting your clit as punishment for calling him a condescending prick earlier.
His palm rucked against your dripping folds, echoing wet slaps all throughout the room, as your arousal kept pooling on his palm.
He mumbled softly against your skin, bringing his mouth up to brush against yours, "hate… you still love me."
You instantly drew one of your hands to slap him in the face for this hurtful teasing, but he had quick reflexes — quicker than yours. He dodged himself back as your hand hit the empty sheets, and edged his fingers to hit against your soft spot, pressing it so violently, you let out a strained cry from the shooting overstimulation pain.
"Ah- Shit!" you shouted, face all scrunched up.
"Can't you behave for once?" he chided, "why is it so hard for you to j-just-“ 
Nanami’s breath hitched in his throat as he grunted, unable to finish his sentence.
You shut him up the only way you could think — grabbing his cock harshly over his boxers. It was extremely effective, and he immediately humped his length against your hand, while lowly groaning.
With trembling hands and a violent snap, you haphazardly pulled his boxers down to his mid-thighs, as his fingers kept mercilessly bullying their way inside you, sending vibrating waves all throughout your body with every thrust.
“Stop… telling me… ah-aaah-“ you rolled your eyes back with a loud moan, struggling to keep a train of coherent thought, gnarling your next words,  “what to… ah- do!”
His cock sprang out, slapping against his belly. The tip was already flustered red, leaking with pre-cum, and had a long, prominent vein on the underside.
To punish him back for the roughness, you grabbed his length with one hand, and with the other, pressed the middle of your palm against his flushed tip, glistening his arousal around it with enough force to jump across the divide between intense pleasure and painful overstimulation.
Nanami cursed with a feral voice through his teeth, immediately biting the side muscles of your neck with no semblance of restraint, making sure to leave a purple remnant of pain etched on your skin.
“Ah- ouch! Fuck!” you spat out, tightening your grip around his cock, but weakened enough to release the tight pressure against his tip, letting him fuck into your hand. His hips bucked erratically, and his lips pressed a quick kiss right where he had previously bitten.
He couldn't help it.
Suddenly, Nanami stopped his rutting fingers to press his thumb against your already throbbing clit. That instantly had you seeing stars as you cursed loudly in between moans and grunts, drawing your free hand to his head, ferociously tugging at his hair, as heat pooled in your lower abdomen like fiery embers of coal.
He grabbed your arm, pulling it away from his shaft, and removed his fingers from your walls, having them clenching around nothing at such a sudden emptiness. You began complaining, only to have your voice cut short by his tongue slipping its way inside your mouth, in a sloppy, wet kiss. 
Parting from you, Nanami’s eyes were glassy, and you were absolutely sure your gaze must’ve looked just as hazy as his.
In a brief moment, before you realized it, he slid himself down, and unceremoniously lapped at your already sensitive clit with his warm tongue, hot breath tickling against your sensitive skin.
Both of your hands descended towards his hair, brushing over his golden and now messy locks more tenderly than you expected. Nanami suddenly shivered and moaned into your cunt, edging his tongue down your folds and back, eyes fluttering shut the moment he tasted you entirely.
He felt a tinge of pain clench at his chest, realizing this was the taste he had missed out on for all that time — your taste, which would surely ruin him forever.
Nanami’s pain, however, was quick to turn into outrage, as he began sucking on your clit relentlessly, eliciting the most animalistic sounds you had ever uttered.
You instinctively tried backing away, and he pulled on your thighs, holding them with such a violent force that his hand was sure to leave an engraving of his digits over your plush skin.
Nanami was intent on dragging this orgasm out of you by any means necessary.
You had never given him anything he wanted from you — be it the company to fight against Jujutsu High or the same unwavering loyalty he had for you. So this was something he’d take.
If you wouldn’t be by his side, then the least you could do was to cum for him so fervently, he’d be sure to ruin you just as much as he felt like you had ruined him. You owed him that, or so Nanami thought.
“Aaah-- Kento! S-slow d-… fuck!”
You came with a thunderous shout, jolting your hip forward as your thighs tightened with inhuman strength to the sides of his head. Nanami made sure to deliciously lick your way down from your high, applying such a precise and perfect pressure on your clit that you could’ve wept from sheer satisfaction.
After your legs went limp, he slowly climbed his way back to you, pressing kisses all over your body, leaving a ghost of heat wherever his mouth traveled. When Nanami finally reached your face, he put his forearms against your sides, hands over your shoulders, caging you in, as he pressed his mouth against yours in a slow kiss.
You were floating in a calm sea, salty waves caressing your body every time they passed through, and it felt cozy. Inviting, even. As he parted his lips from yours, Nanami gazed into your eyes in the way he used to.
For a second, you got catapulted into the past, and the orange sun that warmed your cheeks through the leaves as you kissed for the first time seemed to shine its rays over again.
With his arms around you, the nonsensical feeling of being protected washed over your heart.
“Come with me,” he whispered with a sultry, husky voice. 
“Kento…” you cooed, sighing, wanting nothing more than for this moment to extend for infinity.
But it couldn’t.
You didn’t go with him, so many years ago.
And wouldn’t go now, either.
That wasn’t how it worked for the both of you.
Nanami understood it, and what seemed like another crack against his unwavering walls had formed the moment his brows furrowed above his eyes.
“Fine, then,” he said, with a tinge of genuine hurt to his voice.
You parted your thighs to accommodate his hips, and he obliged, guiding his hand down to align his cock against your entrance. You bent and hooked your legs around him, pulling him in, and as the tip of his length got pressed against your dripping cunt, he gasped slightly over your lips.
Nanami sunk in slowly, going through your already relaxed ring. However, it apparently wasn’t relaxed enough, or perhaps he was just too big, because you could feel every inch of stretching his cock made against your walls as he slowly bottomed out inside your cunt.
His mouth fell open and you exhaled a moan into it, breaths mingling together. You two drank each other in. Nanami pressed his forehead against yours, and you both held each other’s gaze, as he pulled your left wrist above your head, holding it there, pushing you down the mattress by your waist with his other hand.
After a moment for you to take him in, Nanami began rolling his hips into you, while his hand kept bruisingly pressing your wrist against the mattress. You could feel his balancing act of trying to love you and wanting to hurt you at the same time.
You weren’t so different from him in that sense, though. Your nails got dragged down his back with abrasive force, and for a second, you considered drawing blood from him. He grunted, and you saw the spark of cold-hearted anger flash through his now dimmed eyes.
You both wanted to love each other just as much as you wanted to hurt each other.
In a more forgiving universe, perhaps, he’d hold your hand tenderly, intertwining his fingers in yours. Maybe you two would be in the kitchen as he showed you one of his favorite bread recipes, and share quiet moments of understanding companionship when remembering those who had left this world too soon.
But this wasn’t that universe, unfortunately.
He was to die, and you were to carry out his execution. 
Except you couldn’t, because even if you still tried to cling on to any sliver of morals, even if his life was something yours alone to take, the mere thought of a world without Nanami was far worse than the reality of a world in which he was a murderer.
You insisted on fighting a losing game, and much to no one’s surprise, you lost. 
Good riddance to me, I suppose.
His grunts came hitched and stuttered against your mouth as he was now rutting himself into you, biting your lower lip hard enough to almost pierce the skin with his teeth. You moaned loudly, dragged around with pain and pleasure, the combo that seemed to summarize the gist of your relationship.
He let go of your wrist and descended his hand without a warning towards your already overworked clit, glazing his thumb against the ring of arousal you were leaving around him before starting to make circles around your nub. Your moans came out cracked and faltering, as you tried to resist the instinctive urge of fleeing that the overstimulation was eliciting.
“Give me… one more,” Nanami groaned lowly against your cheek, planting multiple kisses down the side of your face and your chin. His hair — which had already fallen from its usual slick arrangement — brushed against your fluttering eyelids, momentarily weaving golden sand colors over your your vision, and you drove both your hands to the back of his head, pulling him in for another kiss. 
You could kiss him like this forever. 
You actually wanted to, at that moment.
To his request, you nodded, and this was probably the first time you acquiesced to any request Nanami had ever made to you. 
Fulfilled, his thrusts and his finger over your clit became increasingly erratic, as he was now moaning your name against your mouth. You pushed your tongue over his, sliding your hands up his head to tug at his roots, and that was all it took to tip him over the edge.
Nanami came with a muffled groan, having your tongue still pushed inside his mouth, and kept pumping himself inside you trying to keep the comedown at bay. His thick, white cum got glazed all over inside you, and the slaps of flesh and skin began sounding ever more wet than they already were.
You weren’t so far off, with your walls fluttering around him, and he noticed it, keeping his now trembling thumb pressed and circling intently over your clit. With one perfectly applied nudge on your sensitive bud, Nanami finally pulled you over the edge along with him.
Some tears began pooling on the edges of your lashes, and all your emotions — anger, sadness, grief, longing, and a particular brand of despair you cultivated during the last decade — came crashing down as he wrenched your second orgasm from you.
Your body convulsed under him, fluttering walls expelling his softening cock out, as you shouted and grunted into his mouth. You didn’t know if you were more furious at yourself for still loving him, at him for loving you, or at Jujutsu Society for jumbling you both like pawns to be tossed around until you two were broken beyond repair.
Angry at them for sending the young out to have their spirits crushed too soon. For all the deaths no one got to mourn because there was too much work, too little time, and the wounded were always left behind to fend for themselves.
Just like you were.
And just like Nanami was.
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You sat at the edge of the bed while putting your shirt back on, and looked back at Nanami, who had his buttoned shirt open over his chest.
“Are you still resolute on your decision of not coming with me?” Nanami asked, with a tinge of eagerness. Or maybe it was just your imagination.
You pondered for a moment, and knew exactly what the answer to that question was.
“Yes. I’m not coming with you.”
For a second, you caught the faintest glimpse of the person he used to be. Something aching to genuine disappointment.
The longing that flashed through him, unfortunately, was quick to go, as he began buttoning his shirt down, averting his gaze elsewhere.
“Why?”
“Because I’d hate myself for the rest of my life if I did,” you stated, sighing before continuing, “and it’s not because I can’t kill you or because I love you that I don’t despise you. You crossed an uncrossable line.”
He pursed his lips, and almost felt regretful for the path he chose.
Almost, since regret now would come ten years too late.
“You can’t go back. They will know you let me go,” Nanami remarked. Be it from him or from looking around this house, Jujutsu High would surely hold you accountable for this — for willingly letting the curse user and murderer, Nanami Kento, escape their wrath.
“I know that,” you replied, a tad bit more defeated than you expected, “that’s why I’m fleeing to Hokkaido.”
He sighed and looked at you. You held his gaze, feeling a little hint of anxiety at what he seemed to be simmering under the surface.
With a warmer expression — or as warm as he could muster it up to be  —, Nanami spoke again. 
“I truly want you to come with me. You’d be safer. We’d… be by each other’s side.”
For a moment, you faltered, open lips with no sound coming out of them. Blinking yourself back to Earth, you asked, “you mean together?”
Nanami kept silent, but nodded, waiting for your response.
He wasn’t just asking for you to come with him, but to be with him.
You wanted to. You did. Something Nanami never knew was just how much you wanted to follow him when he asked you the same thing, so many years ago.
But even though you wholeheartedly loved him with every minute part of your being, your loyalty lied elsewhere.
Not with him, but with the people he had killed.
Well, at least that was the comfortable lie you were capable of living with.
It would destroy you to realize the loyalty you had for the murderer of the people you loved. 
In the end, even if you weren’t a teenager anymore, you were just as much a hostage to your feelings as you had always been.
The ticking took a long time, but the bomb eventually went off.
With a decade’s old delay.
“I… just can’t. I can’t.”
Nanami reclined himself against the wall over which the bed rested, closing his eyes as he supported the back of his head on it. 
He never told you, but this moment broke his heart all over again.
He felt pathetically small.
Guess we get what we deserve, after all.
“You really do have a taste for penitence,” Nanami noted, his voice barely concealing the bitterness that tainted those words.
You scoffed, getting up on your feet, ready to leave as the first rays of sunshine began bleeding through the thick curtains that covered the bedroom’s window.
“Go to hell.”
He chuckled, a sound you hadn’t heard in a very long time. However, it sounded off-key. Wrong.
Sad.
“We’re already here.” 
At the end of it all, he wasn’t wrong.
You were doomed to always keep leaving each other.
If only the world had been a little kinder.
But kindness, it seemed, wasn’t in the cards for you.
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End notes: I’m silently screaming. Oh my, this one took way longer than expected, but I enjoyed the writing process during every step of the way (I mean, if that wasn’t evident already from the fact that I made a playlist for this 😂). I forgot how much I was a sucker for gut wrenching angst. Hope you enjoyed it too! 🦉
-
Tag list: @actuallysaiyan @diogodxlot @jadedjane @redlikerozez @voiceless9000
@marvelousfanfictionbitch @kentocalls @ohhheymessa @magical-girl-b @simp-manhwa
@codenamesongbird
504 notes · View notes
ronance4everbrainrot · 2 months
Text
Some even even more little descendants incorrect quotes with mostly Glassheart/CharmingHeart
(and other ships)
Chad: Adulting is hard.
Chad: How do I quit?
Chloe: Time travel.
Red: Die.
(sheesh. Also CHAD! HIII)
---
Chad: So you’re dating Chloe?
Red: What? No! I’m just buying them an accessory since they have terrible fashion sense.
Chad: That’s literally a wedding ring.
(To be fair. Maybe they don't have wedding rings in wonderland, and Red is genuinely just buying her accessories. But not because Chloe doesn't have style. She just wants to give Chloe stuff.)
---
Cinderella: Red, when’s your birthday?
Red: Why? So you can look up my natal chart? So you can figure out my weaknesses? So you can destroy me?
Chloe: …So we know when to wish you a happy birthday.
+
Chloe: You have some serious intimacy issues
(canon)
---
Chloe: You know, I really wish you’d just admit you made a mistake sometimes.
Chad, stirring their coffee: I prefer it with salt.
(he would never admit he's wrong. He'd just word his way around it)
---
Chloe: How stupid do you think I am?!
Dizzy: You really want an honest answer to that?
(Chloe is oblivious to her attraction to Red. Their fighting is actually flirting)
---
Chad: If you don't stop talking, I'm going to jump out of that window.
Chloe: ...We're on the ground floor.
Chad: I know but I want a dramatic exit.
(Go off drama king ✨)
---
Chad: Ow!
Dizzy: What’s wrong?
Chad: I have this weird pain right above my eyebrow.
Dizzy: It’s called a stress headache. I got my first one when I was four.
(canon. Also oof)
---
Computer: Please enter a password.
Chad: *types in Chloe*
Computer: Your password is too weak.
Chad: How fucking DARE YOU-
(Slay big brother. He knows what's up)
---
Audrey: Hey!
Chad: What do you want?
Audrey: Remember what we were talking about yesterday?
Chad: Nope.
(Yes king. Stand your ground. keep away from her)
---
Audrey: I'm not mean. Name one mean thing I’ve ever done.
Chad: When we were younger, you convinced me eggs weren't real.
Audrey: They're not.
Chad: Haha, very funny.
Audrey: I'm serious. Didn't you hear?
Chad: No... what happened?
Audrey: ...Why would you fall for this again-
(I think that's what they were talking about. And he's mad)
---
*The gang's thoughts on stabbing*
Audrey: Would never stab anyone.
Chloe: Would stab someone in retaliation.
Dizzy: Yells "I won't hesitate, bitch!" first.
Celia: Would stab without warning.
Red: Would stab as a warning.
+
Chad: It depends, I guess
(the charming siblings +cousin and their girlfriends)
---
Chloe, singing: I don’t want a lot for Christmas, there is just one thing I need—
Red: A family.
Audrey: A better love life.
Celia: Mental stability.
Dizzy: Money
Chad: *clueless* Bagels?
(... yeah-)
---
Chloe: Go to hell!
Red: Where do you think I come from?
(Wonderland basically is Hell with The Queen of Hearts)
---
Dizzy: You got a date yet Celia?
Celia: No...
Dizzy: Well you do now! Get your ass up and hold my hand!
(Slay ✨🙏. Which I had that confidence)
---
Dizzy: Hey Chloe, wanna third wheel on my date with Celia tomorrow?
Chloe: Sure.
Dizzy: Red! Wanna third wheel on my date with Celia tomorrow?
Red: ..sure, I gues-
Dizzy: Great! I've always wanted to go on a double date!
Red & Chloe: ...
Chloe: Dizzy...
(You'll thank her later, Chloe.)
---
Dizzy: I honestly feel like some of our conversations here are almost word-for-word accurate to the generator.
Celia: Yup.
Red: Maybe the generator is watching us.
Chloe: Wouldn't that imply this conversation will be added?
Dizzy: ...
Dizzy: Wait—
(Oh no. They found out! Got to run!)
---
Hope you liked it!
I ship Chad and Audrey as Exes
Also I want Chad and Chloe interactions in the next movie. Would love it if Dizzy was also there.
Anyway
Byeeee
148 notes · View notes
fqreverwinter · 6 months
Text
“time-slipping”
— — — —
relationship: loki x fem!reader
summary: you were loki’s teenage love, but he lost you too soon. in his quest to save the sacred timeline, he time-slips to you, not knowing that you are the one thing that could help him.
warnings: none! :)
word count: 2.6k
notes: i guess i’m back in my loki era! this contains some spoilers for season two, so please read with caution if you have not seen it yet!
masterlist
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The pain was like no other; time-slipping felt like Loki was being torn into a million pieces while being squished into a small box at the same time. Light flashed around him, making him feel dizzy whilst experiencing the excruciating pain. After the blinding few seconds that the phenomenon lasted, Loki finally landed in whatever spot the force thought he needed to be in next.
At first, he was confused. He was surrounded by trees and mountains—no where he had ever teleported to before. Once he got his bearings, he realized where he was.
Asgard.
It was strange. Each time Loki time-slipped, it was to a place that he had unfinished business in, whether it was the TVA in the past or the McDonald's in the way past that Sylvie worked in. He thought he had no unfinished business in Asgard.
He groaned. Unless it was to deal with his brother or his father.
As Loki began to curse whatever force was behind his teleportation for bringing him here to deal with his family drama, he heard a voice off in the distance. He paused, trying to determine where he knew this voice from. Then he heard it again and his heart skipped a beat.
"It can't be," he whispered under his breath, peeking around the tree that he spawned behind. But it was true. There, you sat, the first and greatest love he ever had.
You were on a stone bench in the middle of one of the many gardens of Asgard. Your hair was blowing in the soft summer breeze as you read aloud—your favorite way to read—a Midgardian book. Loki watched as you smiled or frowned with each line you read, taking in all of the features of your face that he missed so dearly.
You and Loki had met when you were teenagers. You lived in a cottage near the palace with your parents, both prominent jewelers in the realm. He came to their store one day with his brother to pick out a pair of earrings for the queen's birthday. You just happened to be sitting behind the counter talking with your mother when they arrived.
As soon as Loki laid eyes on you, he knew he wanted to marry you. You were the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. While Thor worked with your mother to find the gift for Frigga, he walked over to you and began a conversation.
Loki came to the shop almost every day for two weeks, asking about you every single time. You never really frequented the store, so most of the time, your parents would turn him away. After his thirteenth visit in fifteen days, your father had enough and finally took Loki back to your cottage, where you were baking, another favorite hobby of yours. Your father explained that this "obnoxious prince" had tormented the store for too long and just wanted the pain to be over, as Loki stood behind him with a sheepish grin. You laughed and invited Loki to sit with you.
The rest became history. You and Loki officially began dating after a few outings, mostly walks along the forest or snacking on fruit in the palace's courtyard. Loki was enamored with you, as you were enamored with him.
But the worst happened just seven months after your relationship began. Loki left the palace that morning with the intention of bringing you to the library within the palace, somewhere you had expressed interest in seeing but never had the chance to visit. He planned a whole day: explore the shelves, allow you to pick as many books as you wanted, then have dinner with him and his family so you could meet them properly.
As he approached your neighborhood, he noticed swarms of people standing outside the perimeters as guards blocked anyone from approaching. Curious, Loki walked up to one guard that he recognized and asked what had happened. The guard explained that last night, a group of bandits had broken into the home of a jeweler with the intent to steal some of the more precious jewelry that they kept there. The family woke up in the process and they slaughtered all three: a mother, a father, and a daughter.
The words struck Loki like a knife. His heart sank as he started to push past the guards, but they refused to budge.
"Your highness, we cannot let you through. They are removing the bodies."
"No! You must! That's my love!" he cried, still trying to push past. But it was no use. He peeked through the gaps between the guards to see if he could catch a glimpse of the scene. The only thing he was able to see was your hand, one that he recognized because of the gold ring you always wore. It was covered in blood.
Loki shook the flashbacks out of his head as he continued to watch you read on the bench. Quite honestly, he never got over that day. It sent him into a dark spiral, one that probably led him to making all the poor choices he did and landing in this godforsaken TVA in the first place. But then he wondered, why would the slipping bring him here?
He tried to move closer to you without being obvious, hoping that there was something in the surroundings that would explain his sudden landing here. As he tiptoed closer, however, he stepped on a branch, leading to a loud crack! Your head snapped up at the noise, and you made eye contact with him. Loki froze, unsure of what to do.
"Loki?" you asked. "Is that you?"
He hesitated before saying, "Uh—Yes. It's me."
You smiled softly. "What are you doing? Why are you hiding? Come here."
You shifted to the side as you closed your book and placed it on your lap. He took a breath before emerging from underneath the tree. He could see you clearly now, and your beautiful face made his heart began to race all over again
How could this be happening? he wondered. How could you be here?
"You look... different. What's with the outfit change? It's so strange," you said through a giggle.
Loki smiled at your laugh, something that he hadn't heard in so long but always brought him comfort. He cleared his throat and answered, "Um, I was trying something new. Do you not like it?"
You shrugged, "I wouldn't say it's my favorite look of yours, but I could get used to it. Come sit next to me. I missed you."
He took another deep breath before sitting beside you on the bench, moving so carefully in case you were to disappear at any sudden movement. You reached over and brushed a strand of his hair behind his ear, noticing a new scar on the side of his face.
"What happened, sweetheart?" you asked with a frown, tracing your finger over it. "How could this have happened since last night?"
"Uh, it didn't," he replied, panicking for a response.
You furrowed your brows. "Then how have I never noticed it before? And why do you look so... different?"
You leaned back and looked at him closely, noticing some key differences. He looked older than you were used to, so much taller and so much stronger. He looked exhausted and frustrated and anxious all at the same time. Something in you said that this was not the Loki you knew.
Loki sighed, deciding to come clean. He could tell you knew something was up. And of course you did; he was foolish to think that he could ever pull the wool over your eyes. You were never one to fall for his tricks.
"The truth is, I'm from the future. I'm stuck in this... bureaucracy that controls the timeline of the universe. Something happened and the timeline is falling apart, and I've been slipping in and out of different places in time as a consequence."
You looked shocked for a moment, then laughed. But when Loki's face didn't change, you stopped.
"You're serious?" you asked with a surprised expression.
"Unfortunately, I am," he replied, hanging his head. "For some reason, I spawned here. I have no idea why. You—You're dead. You died, darling. And I don't know if this is some sort of torture from the bastard at the end of time or if there is some other motive—but it's breaking my heart to see you."
You looked at Loki as he sat beside you, breathing heavily and shaking from the emotions coursing through him. His words sat in your thoughts—you die? Well, obviously, you die at some point, but you die young?
You had a million questions to ask him about this circumstance, but you knew that wasn't the reason he was here. You decided to focus on him instead.
"Loki," you began, placing your hand on his shoulder. He looked up at you with tears running down his face.
"Don't cry, my love. You were brought here for a reason, and I doubt it was torture. What are you trying to do with this timeline? Do you need to fix it?"
He nodded, "We have to stop it from branching or—or this dangerous man will escape and start a war."
"Right," you said with a nod, although the entire situation confused you. "So what is stopping you?"
Loki sighed and looked back down at his hands. "I—I keep doing this time-slipping, and I don't know why. I cannot figure out what I am supposed to do. I've been working at it for centuries at this point, and every time I get remotely close, something happens and it doesn't work. And there's one final option left—but I just can't bring myself to do it."
Your heart broke at his lament. You loved him so much, and you hated seeing him so beat down like this. Then, he froze before picking his head up and looking at you with that mischievous grin that you recognized.
"I know! I know why I was brought here! I'm meant to save you!" he claimed excitedly. "I-I can save you from your death, and that way none of this would have ever happened. I can correct the wrongs of the past and just be happy."
His smile dropped when he realized you didn't return his excitement. Instead, you placed your hand on his knee and gave him a sad smile.
"I don't think that's the solution, love."
"No! It is! It has to be! This is the only place that the time-slipping has taken me to that had nothing to do with the people I met at the TVA. Clearly, I'm meant to prevent your death so that we can live happily together and I never made the mistakes I did."
"Loki," you said with a sigh, taking both of his hands in yours. "You said you had a choice to make, that there was a final option. Why won't you do it?"
He looked at you right in your eyes, clearly confused as to why you wouldn't just accept the fact that he wanted to save you. "Um, well, it would mean I'd never get to see my friends again. Like, physically. I'd be able to see them but they'd never be able to see me. And ever since you have been gone, I have had the hardest time finding a group of people to accept me again. I am not willing to let that go quite yet."
"Love, have I ever told you the story about my old dog?" you asked.
Loki looked at you with a puzzled expression. "Uh, no, I don't think so."
"Well," you began with a smile. "Her name was Daisy. She was this gorgeous little retriever who could brighten anyone's day. I got her when I was just four years old, so we pretty much grew up together. She was my favorite thing in the whole wide world. Then, just a few years ago, Daisy started to slow down. She was tired all the time, and she wouldn't eat or play. So, we took her to the closest animal expert. He said that she was really sick. We had to make the decision to either try a medicine that might work but could leave her in pain for the rest of her life or let her go out on her own terms. Do you know what we did?"
He shook his head.
"My parents left the decision up to me because she was technically my dog. I decided to not try the medicine and let her die on her own. It was the hardest decision I ever had to make. I would have loved to have more years with my Daisy, but I knew that she would not be happy. In the end, I had to make the choice that I knew was right, even if it meant losing something I loved."
Loki looked at you with wide eyes, nearly on the verge of tears again. He leaned into your shoulder as you wrapped your arms around him. Somehow, you always knew just what to say to make him feel better.
"So, my love," you began again, holding him close to you. "Sometimes we have to make the hard choice. Sometimes you have to give up something you love. But in the end, it will be worth it."
You held him for a while, no words spoken between the two of you. You could tell that Loki needed this, he needed to just be around you for a little while longer.
Loki, now knowing what he had to do, just took in the moment for as long as he could. It had been years since he felt you. He memorized every curve of your body, every feeling he had touching you, the way you gently rubbed circles on his shoulder, the way you placed a soft kiss on his forehead every so often.
"Thank you," he finally muttered, sitting up and looking at your eyes again. "I just miss you so much."
"I know, sweetheart," you said. "But look at the life you have without me!"
Loki shook his head with a cynical laugh. "I tried to kill Thor, destroy Jotunheim, then take over Midgard until I was captured and forced into this bureaucracy. I have had no life without you, darling."
You looked at him in disbelief for a moment, trying to figure out what to say to all that. "Well, now you have the chance to make up for all that. Be a hero, my love. What's that thing you always say? Greater purpose?"
He laughed, "Glorious purpose, yes."
"Yeah, that! Do that, sweetheart. I'll love you forever, no matter what happens. You know that."
He nodded and stood up, finally feeling ready to take on his mission. As he rose, he noticed the world around you starting to turn into string. He could not bear seeing you disappear again like he saw all his friends. It would be too much, losing you twice. You looked around in confusion as well.
"What's going on?" you asked with a puzzled look.
"It's no matter. Just look at me," Loki replied. You turned to face him. He smiled, memorizing your face one last time.
"Thank you again, my darling. I love you more than you'll ever know."
You smiled at him one last time.
Somehow, Loki had figured out how to control his time-slipping. He felt it in his veins as he was able to spawn back in the TVA without any excruciating pain or blinding light. He looked around at all of his friends—all the people he met on this journey. He closed his eyes and pictured you, the beautiful you he saw sitting on the bench and reading your book. He took a deep breath, opened his eyes, and formulated his plan to save the world.
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jaegeraether · 8 months
Text
Sunsets and footballers (Part 65)
Jordan Nobbs x Leah Williamson (11) / Lucy Bronze x Reader (55)
Masterlist (other parts here)
Join our WOSO Discord chat! Link in bio :)
((** 4.6k**))
Mostly Leah and Jordan :)
Leah POV
“I didn’t wake you, did I? I completely blanked… you stopped replying and I didn’t even think.” Leah stressed as she drove.
“No, no, you’re all good. I’m a little too wound up to sleep for long until Luce gets home, I think. I’m just waiting for the next shoe to drop with this whole drama.”
“Is Ridley still there?”
“She left after I fell asleep, she has some meetings in town.”
“So you were asleep?”
“Barely… it’s okay. It’s probably a good thing you have someone to talk to for your drive…” She cleared her throat and yawned. “Oh shit, did you see Beth scored a brace?”
“No?! I was there for her first. First one back since her ACL, I was crying.”
“That’ll be you soon, mate.”
“Not this year,” she almost grumbled.
“Oh? January?” YFN’s tired voice piped up with excitement for her.
“I’m hoping so. I feel bad for leaving – I should be there to celebrate with Beth after the game.”
“Okay stop right there, that’s your anxiety talking. Beth knows that you needed to do go.” YFN’s support calmed Leah, and she knew she’d called the exact right person.
“Yeah… wait, did you speak to her?”
“I’m always chatting with the girls. A few of them are coming over after the game actually. It was last minute. I think Kyra got excited when she saw Lucy and invited herself and-”
“-and the rest of the girls jumped on board?”
“Something like that,” she laughed wearily. “So it’s a good thing I’m awake because I need to organise some food for when they get here.”
“Don’t you go over-exerting yourself mate.”
“Pfft, I’ve spent the last week laying or sitting… I’m happy to hop around and stretch my leg.”
Leah laughed at the way she’d said that. Her one leg. “You’ll have two legs next week!”
“Hopefully the doctor’s okay with me walking on it. I get to switch from a wheelchair to sexy walking stick. I really hope it’s okay enough to because I’m worried about Luce’s knee when she carries me everywhere.”
“Not surprised. Has her knee been acting up?”
“At the risk of getting her in trouble with her England Captain… yes. It’s been a bit swollen and I can tell it’s giving her pain. She tries to hide it.”
“She’ll never admit it’s sore, especially while you’re still healing.”
“I know, she’s a pain. I’ve been massaging it and insisting she ice it, though. She and Alexia have been working out and training together, so I just hope she’s being careful.”
Leah heard the worry in her voice and it made her think about Jordan. She was never nervous to watch anyone play… except Jordan. She couldn’t bear to watch her be pushed around. She was only small, after all.
“She’s been through this a lot, YFN. She knows her limits better than anyone I know. She’ll definitely be looking after herself.” Leah reassured her.
“Mmn. I know you’re right; I just worry.”
“Well let me distract you then. I spoke to Jill and Alex and they’re both excited for the podcast idea. They said you’ve been chatting with them?”
“Not as much as I’ve wanted to because of this drama, but yeah I’ve chatted to them a few times over the week. Alex is coming over tomorrow to talk a bit more about it all, and we’ll catch up with Jill when we go to Manchester next week.”
“Oh? Lucy’s missing home?”
“Always. Missing home and family so we’re going to see them.”
“When will you be back? I’m happy to do my interview whenever.”
She heard her clicking on what was potentially her laptop. “Uh… so next week I have pencilled in to bring a few of the girls into the office and do some interviews there.”
“Didn’t work out at your house?”
“Oh, no it definitely did,” she yawned again. “I figured it would build morale of my staff to meet some players, and we’ve set up a big studio there for content… and there’s a wall I’d like you all to sign.”
“A wall?”
“Just a little side-project of mine,” she chuckled. “It’ll make sense when you see it. Viv’s just been subbed on.”
“What minute?”
“Eighty-second.”
“Looks like overtime?”
“I missed most of the game but maybe three to five minutes.”
“A good ten minutes at least then. She’s been dying to stretch her legs out there.”
“They’re long enough.”
Leah laughed. She was glad she’d called her; their conversation was calming her at almost the same rate that she became more anxious as she got closer to Villa Park. YFN must have noticed.
“Are you far out?”
“Thirty minutes out. I was thinking of stopping and getting her some flowers. What do you think?”
“Well she loves flowers. I think she’d really like that Leah…” Her voice softened. “Just remember what I told you about when she sees you.”
Leah nodded even though she knew she couldn’t see it. ‘You watch her face when she sees you, Leah. In that first split second that it takes to recover her expression… you’ll see everything she’s feeling.’
This is why Leah thought she was so nervous. What if she was angry she hadn’t told her… or showing how heartbroken she still was? It would hurt, but Leah knew she’d accept whatever came her way, as it was all her own doing. She just wanted her, and their life back – though only if Jordan wanted that too.
“I will.”
“Are you sitting close to the benches?”
“Right near them in the family and friends’ section, yeah.” She didn’t know if she was imagining her voice wavering, or if it actually was.
“She’s going to be excited to see you, mate. I promise.”
Leah arrived just in time for the girls to exit the tunnel, having been delayed in the flower shop procrastinating over which was the best for her. She put it in the back seat of her black Mercedes, right next to the toy she’d bought for Blu.
She couldn’t believe how nervous she was, and YFN was right there with her, on the phone and then texting back and forth with her after they’d hung up. She knew she was busy with the Arsenal and West Ham girls dropping by, but she still made time for her. A few weeks ago, Leah would have thought she was doing it for Jordan’s sake, but she’d gotten so close to the Australian that she knew it was for hers also.
She sat in her assigned seat, saying a polite hello to the people she knew, and felt herself almost hyperventilate when Jordan entered the pitch in the starting line-up. She’d never had this reaction to her – or anyone before. It confused her, but at the same time, it made her realise just how much she meant to her. Jordan was looking too small for her clothes as always, her shorts and socks almost reaching each other. She wore that expression she did when she was on the pitch, her serious face. Football was serious for Jordan, and that was evident by just how aggressive and impatient she was on the pitch; a sharp contrast to what she was usually like in person. So sweet and kind and shy almost. Her Jordan. She felt her body tingling and her hands shake a little as she watched her taking their line-up photos and start to play.
Leah’s phone dinged and she looked down.
YFN: A bit of a healthy distraction for you.
YFN sent a photo.
YFN sent a photo.
The first was a photo of the group who’d invaded Lucy and YFN’s house. YFN had obviously asked Lucy to take a selfie of the group as they were all doing strange poses to the camera mid eating or talking, standing and sitting. Most of the Arsenal girls were there, along with half of the West Ham team. She grinned at the photo.
The second was a photo obviously taken from YFN’s position on the couch, pointing at Beth who was showing two fingers, Katie hanging off her with a ‘COME ON’ expression for Beth’s brace.
YFN’s efforts to distract her from herself were definitely working.
Leah: You’re not getting sleep anytime soon. *melting face emoji*
YFN: My bigger concern is that I didn’t order enough for a fucking tribe.
Leah chuckled. The girls were always extra hungry after games. She should have warned her. She looked up to see the ball nowhere near Jordan, and looked back down again to reply.
Leah: Why do I feel like I’m going to get home, and the party will still be going?
She looked back up to see Jordan crash into someone. She touched the ball, but was still warned by the referee and threw her hands up. That made her smile. That is… after she’d stood up and she knew she was okay.
Her phone buzzed.
YFN: Come 9pm I’ll be dragging them out kicking
YFN: That was Lucy ^^ but she’s not joking. *nervous laugh emoji*
YFN: She gets grumpy when she’s tired.
Leah knew that all too well, having been in many camps with Lucy.
Leah: She’s worse when she’s hungry!
YFN: I’ve learnt to sort that out before it becomes a problem.
YFN sent a photo.
It was a selfie of YFN sitting in the corner of the couch and angled up to Lucy not so elegantly stuffing her face. Regardless of Lucy’s full mouth, YFN looked at her with an expression of adoration. They looked so happy. Leah craved that happiness she’d once had with Jordan. For seven years they were the envy of the party and sitting in the stands now, watching her play from afar, she cursed herself for taking that… for taking her for granted.
She put her phone down to watch her play, again adoring the way Jordan jogged after whoever had the ball, her shorts almost falling off of her, and then attacking the players with the ball whenever she was close. It was evident just how much she loved the game. And as if all of that wasn’t adorable enough, she wore black gloves to fight the cold she felt. There wasn’t much to her, so she was always cold. Their house always needed to be hot enough that she didn’t feel the cold, but Leah had always sneakily liked to have it just the perfect temperature that she’d snuggle into her as they slept or tuck herself into her body on the couch or as she just went about her day. She too loved their hugs, just as much as Jordan. The way she fit into her body was like it was made for her. Jordan was so affectionate that she’d always kiss her neck in thanks.
Not recently of course. Recently there had been the soft hugs without the kissing, and without the talking. It was nice, but she missed all of it.
Jordan was knocked to the ground hard as she went for the ball and Leah flinched, leaning to the edge of her seat to get a better view. When Jordan didn’t get up straight away, she stood with several of the crowd and watched worriedly. As more people stood, she was up on her tip-toes to peer over everyone to see Jordan clutching her knee and the medics run over. Her heart sunk.
The teams used the opportunity to chat while she was being seen to, her face contorting in pain. Leah didn’t want to admit to herself that the smallest part of her wanted something to be wrong so she’d have time off and Leah could look after her. She felt so ashamed and shoved the thought aside as her other feeling took hold. ‘Not the knee,’ she thought. ‘Please not the knee. Get up Jord. Please get up.’
Someone tried to get her attention and she brushed them off, her eyes only on Jordan. The medics helped for several minutes until Jordan was standing again and hobbling across the pitch. She wanted to stay on.
Of course she did. She loved playing football.
They stopped for half time an even nil score, and Leah waited for Jordan to look up and see her as she wandered towards the tunnel, but she didn’t. To say she was disappointed would be an understatement. She let herself mingle with the people around her who she knew, and fifteen minutes later, the girls were re-entering the pitch. Jordan hadn’t been subbed, which was great, and although it wasn’t yet dark, it was even colder and she couldn’t help but stress about her getting sick. It was raining now, and so cold she could see her breath as she jogged back out. Her knee looked to be okay though, which was a good sign.
The first goal came in the 54th minute by an unfortunate own goal from Aston Villa’s Anna Patten. Jordan looked frustrated as she shook her head and jogged back to her spot.
It only took a minute for Rachel Daly to score an equaliser, Leah smiling as she watched Jordan jump and shout excitedly, though she didn’t run to celebrate with her team. There was something different about watching her with Villa. Leah had noticed watching Jordan’s games that she didn’t look as happy when she celebrated with Villa, and she’d always wondered if she was just biased, though seeing her not celebrate with them made her realise she wasn’t imagining it. She remembered the giant grin on her face as she used to run and jump into their group when she celebrated with Arsenal. She was always so light that Leah could barely feel her as she ran and jumped onto her.
Oh, Jord. She missed seeing her at training every day. But it wasn’t even that. As she watched her, she missed living together, driving in together, training together, going home together. They’d always sit next to each other when travelling and share hotel rooms.
She was ripped from her thoughts by Jordan stealing the ball in a clean move. She smiled. The game was back and forth pretty even following that, though Aston Villa were controlling the ball more. They just couldn’t seem to get past the Everton defence. It started raining heavier and Leah pulled her coat tighter around her. A penalty kick to Everton in the 74th minute had Jordan throwing her arms up again in frustration. The kick came… and it was a goal. It wasn’t looking good.
Three minutes later, Jordan was subbed off. She walked off looking defeated, though as she high-fived her subbed teammate at the boundary line, her head raised as if she knew she was there. Mid high-five her eyes caught Leah’s and she froze. Leah stopped breathing as she watch Jordan’s eyes widen with… yearning. Her eyes reflected the emotions Leah felt. Jordan recovered her expression and looked at the substitute, dropping her hands. As she stepped off the field, she let herself look back up with wonder. She could see the happiness in her eyes that she was there. Leah gave her a smile and a wave. Jordan didn’t wave back, but she did smile shyly as she ducked onto the bench where she could no longer see her.
Only then, could Leah breathe again. YFN was right. That surprised expression from Jordan had showed her everything. She wanted her, just as much as Leah did. She breathed a deep breath out and the built up anxiety disappeared with it. She should have never been worried. She knew Jordan.
The game ended 1-2 to Everton, and Leah stood in the stands until the girls disappeared into the tunnel. Jordan had looked up again only once… fleetingly, but Leah had seen it. She grinned to herself at that as she made her way outside to her car. She was hindered a few times by fans and autographs but by the time she stepped foot outside, her phone buzzed. She excitedly grabbed at it, assuming it was Jordan, but it wasn’t. She stopped at her car and looked down disappointedly at the notification on her phone.
“You’re here?” Came a slightly out of breath voice behind her.
She spun around to see Jordan standing all rugged up in her puffer jacket, her nose red and her legs looking freezing where they weren’t covered.
“I… came to see you play.”
Half of Jordan’s face was hidden beneath her collar, and Leah couldn’t tell if she was upset.
“Did I overste-”
She was interrupted by Jordan’s body meeting hers, her head finding her shoulder, forehead pressing against her neck. Jordan’s hands slid around Leah’s body inside her coat to keep warm. Jord. Leah’s arms were moving around her before she even told them to, holding her close and keeping her warm. It felt right to let them stay in their silence for a while until Jordan was ready.
“Thank you for coming to watch my game.”
She let her head lean against Jordan’s. “Of course I came. You pencilled in a hug, remember? I didn’t want you to drive so far after your game.”
She let out a grateful sigh and pressed herself further into Leah. “Thank you, Lea. I’m really tired.”
“Would you like to reschedule?”
A few fans must have spotted them then and Leah saw them getting excited and start to run over from the stadium.
“No!” She stressed and pulled back. “No… we can still-”
“-did you drive?” Leah cut off.
“One of the girls drove me…” She responded, unsure about Leah’s change of pace.
“Do you have all of your things?” She asked, gesturing to her backpack.
“Yeah.. I mean I think so-”
Leah took her bag off and opened her passenger door. Jordan hesitated, still unsure about Leah’s impatience. Leah saw her hesitating and softened. “Let me drive you home please, Jord.”
Jordan’s eyes wandered over Leah’s face before she nodded and slipped into the car. As quickly as she could, Leah placed her backpack in the back seat and jumped in the driver’s seat as the mob of fans were almost on top of them. She saw Jordan’s eyes widen in realisation as Leah started the car and put some distance between them.
Most of the time, she’d be open and welcoming and go out of her way for the fans. Tonight, she just wanted to protect Jordan from that. She just wanted to get her home into where she knew she’d be warm and comfortable and could sleep.
Leah stopped the car abruptly at the exit of the car park.
“Lea?”
“I…” She turned to Jordan. “I don’t know where you live…” she admitted. She hated not knowing that.
Jordan gave her a supportive smile and leant forward towards Leah’s phone mounted to the dash. She paused, looking for permission first, but Leah wasn’t worried at all. She had nothing to hide from Jordan, ever, and she showed that by looking at her with patience. Jordan hid a smile as she typed her address into Leah’s phone and soon enough, they were on their way.
“Do you want to have dinner?”
“Are you sure you’re not too tired?”
“I’d like dinner with you…”
Leah smiled as she drove. She dared not look at her, but knew Jordan was watching her. She wanted to have dinner with her.
“We can do that, Jord. Whatever you want.”
“And maybe we can watch the Lord of the Rings?”
“I thought it scared you?”
“Well, yeah, but you like it.”
It also meant they had more time together, as they’d barely gotten through any of it that last time they were alone. She also liked the idea of Jordan hiding behind her at the scary parts. “You’re okay to stay up late?”
She rolled her eyes. “It’s only gone seven. It’ll be done by eleven.”
Leah frowned. “I’m confused… you want to go out for dinner?”
“God no, I think we should order in.”
“We only had an hour and a half left, Jord.”
“Well, yeah, but I figured we could start at the beginning because I forgot what happened.”
Leah chuckled. It wasn’t beyond Jordan to forget, but as she snuck a look at her, she looked more like it was a sneaky excuse for more time together. “We can do that. I don’t mind a late drive.”
“You can stay… I can take the couch.”
Jordan’s obvious willingness to spend time with Leah softened her. She hadn’t felt so happy in a long, long time. Over a year, when she and Jordan were previously together.
“YFN offered me her bed on the condition that you let me stay…”
Jordan laughed. “Of course she did. You can take her bed then, we don’t want you driving home so late. Did she say anything else?”
“I just have a few things to pick up for her… clothes and what-not.”
“She said she wants to stick around London while she’s healing,” she nodded. “I’ll help you pack her stuff up.”
“Thanks Jord.”
There were a few minutes of silence then as Leah went into her own headspace, her face falling into its natural grumpy look as she did so. Jordan noticed.
“What are you thinking?”
Leah considered brushing her off, but she knew better now. “I have something to tell you but I don’t want it to ruin the night. You just need to know.”
“Okay…”
“The video is handled.”
She waited for questions, for emotion, but there was none. She replied after a few seconds of thought. “Okay, Lea.”
Lea pulled into the driveway and put the car in park, turning to look at her. “Okay?”
Jordan nodded and gave her a little smile. “Okay, Lea. I trust you.”
“Okay…” she replied huskily and reached into the back seat. “This is for Blu,” she said as she handed her the toy. She reached back again. “And these are for you.”
Jordan took the flowers with an excited expression. “Thanks, they’re pretty. And you can give this to him if you want… I think he’s going to be excited to see you.”
She handed the toy back to Leah.
Blu was all over her when they entered the apartment. She chuckled and gave him love and pats before his attention turned to Jordan. Leah couldn’t help but look around her and take in the place Jordan now called home. It suited her. She recognised all of the photos and little trinkets she had around, and the smell was even the same with the incense she liked to burn. And it was warm… Jordan warm.
They ordered take-away and Leah played with Blu while Jordan showered and changed. As they waited for their food, they found a vase for the flowers and packed the few clothes and items YFN needed in London. They chatted, laughed, and caught up with the recent activities in each other’s lives. Jordan shared her frustrations about her game and Leah cheered her up with photos YFN had sent her of the chaos at her and Lucy’s apartment. It felt so normal. She was happy for them to be talking again, and their recent silent dates together had developed a sense of calm and comfort in those silent moments between them.
The food arrived and they settled onto the couch with blankets and began the movie. Jordan let Leah set Blu up in his little bed in front of them and he fell asleep quickly. He was always a big sleeper, tired from walking around on those little legs all day, Leah imagined with a chuckle at the thought. There were sat close enough that their arms were partially against each other and Leah relished the moments where Jordan had to pause eating to hide her head behind her shoulder at the scenes that scared her. Jordan finished eating first, obviously, as she was so tiny she barely ate anything and the next time she came up from her hiding place behind Leah, her head stayed on her shoulder, her hand gently holding her arm. Leah let her rest in that spot, trying to keep her movements small as she ate with her left hand. After only a few minutes, though, she felt uncomfortable. She put her food down on the coffee table and sat back again, Jordan laying back down on the spot she’d claimed. Leah lasted another ten minutes until she wriggled uncomfortably, unable to keep still.
Jordan lifted her head. “Are you okay, Lea?”
“I…” she paused and pulled herself in check. Honesty always. “It’s just the cramps. They’re bad today.”
“Your endo?”
“Yeah,” she sighed. The drive had been bad enough.
Another cramp seized her and she squeezed her eyes shut and shuddered in pain.
“Did you bring your medication?”
“It’s in my bag,” she groaned.
“Stay here.” Jordan said as she stood, pausing their movie and taking the food to the kitchen. She returned quickly and leant over the couch, giving her a glass of water and her painkillers.
“Thanks, Jord.”
“Is it your lower back too?”
She nodded as she swallowed the pills, angry at herself for again ruining a night with Jordan.
She disappeared again and Leah heard the microwave, and the fridge doors.
“Do you need help?”
“I’m fine, just putting the food away. Give me a minute.”
The microwave finished and Leah heard the door opening and Jordan padding back over with two heat packs. Her mouth parted in awe as she looked up into her eyes. Jordan was taking care of her.
“Lay down, Lea.” She said as she guided her down, pulling a pillow under her head. Leah did as she was told, letting herself be looked after by her. Jordan gently put her on her side facing the tv, and placed a heat pack on her lower abdomen, and her lower back, tucking them into the waistband of her pants and pulling her shirt back down.
“Feel better?”
Leah couldn’t speak, so she just nodded.
“Do you need anything else?”
She was about to shake her head when she stopped herself and instead tugged lightly on Jordan who smiled. She took the remote and pressed play, slipping behind Leah, under the blanket. She pulled another pillow over so her head was higher and hesitantly, her hand found her abdomen which she tenderly rubbed in circles above her shirt. They’d done this so many times over the years, but this time it felt more personal, and even more special.
“Can you see the tv?” She murmured, relishing the feel of a warm Jordan pressed up against her back, her arm slung over her.
“Yeah.”
Leah inhaled sharply again at another cramp. Jordan paused her circling to hold pressure against the heat bag over her lower abdomen. That always helped.
“Why didn’t you cancel?”
“I told you I won’t make another mistake.”
She’d thought back to the promise she’d left her in a note, ‘…that was the last fault I’ll make…. no more mistakes…’
Jordan was silent for a moment as she thought about that. Her hand began circling her abdomen again reassuringly. “How do you feel?”
“Comfy.” Leah responded, proud of her little inside joke as she felt and heard Jordan chuckle behind her.
And then she felt Jordan’s lips touch the nape of her neck and linger, pouring affection and reassurance into her. Leah leant back into the kiss and felt that feeling she’d been missing for so long.
She felt like she was home.
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absolutebl · 10 months
Text
This Week in BL - I'm finding rankings difficult, there's a lot of middle of the pack action and some serious top contenders
Organized, in each category, by ones I'm enjoying most at the top.
Dec 2023 Wk 1
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Ongoing Series - Thai
Last Twilight (Fri YT) ep 5 of 12 -  I love how they’re slowly revealing bits of their past to each other. It parallels the slow burn of them falling in love with each other. Knowledge + understanding = affection. I cried during the part with his doubles partner, of course I did. As has been mentioned many times in this blog, I am a sap. Also I’m realizing that there is something particularly clever about this show: Because Day is blind, there must be a ton of physical touch. And physical touch is something that Thai BL does really well. 
(I gotta say, while I ADORE JimmySea in these roles, a small part of me wonders how JoongDunk would have handled these parts.)
The Sign (Sat YT) ep 3 of 10 - Phaya is SO DAMN SMITTEN. It’s great. Have I mentioned recently how glad I am Billy got this role? This was the: “it’s not a date” date ep. 
I gotta say these 2 BLs are neck and neck favorites right now.
Cherry Magic (Sat YouTube) ep 1 of 12 - Uh oh. I like it a lot. I think I was always going to because I have a soft spot for TayNew on screen. It is such funny to watch Tay play such a stiff character. I like it. This is very fast paced for a Thai BL I wonder where they’ll take it with this speed, are they’ll following the manga more closely? 
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My Dear Gangster Oppa (Thurs iQIYI) ep 7 of 8 - Wait, no. Wahl you’re such a problem. The pacing of this is very KBL. I’m not mad about it but it feels odd in Thai. Still enjoying this one the most as my "early in the week" offering.
For Him (Thurs iQIYI) ep 2 of 10 - The booty call flirting is next level with these two. Like Bed Friends but with less pain. I love that Nail is such needy evil wild child - the story gets all its tension from that.
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Baby boy gives off so many danger signals I wouldn't tap that with a 10 ft… pole. Him is a braver queer than I. I do like how the high heat is being used to drive the story. It stands in stark contrast to Playboyy. Which is using high heat to drive, well... piles apparently.
Twins the series (Fri GaGa) ep 6 of 10 - I'm enjoying it again, the main couple is getting more BLish. 
Bake Me Please (Mon Gaga) ep 3 of 6 - Shin and Peach flirting is very cute. Although they got into that sack swiftly. Guy leaving was contrived and reactions overwrought but okay babies. 
Absolute Zero (Weds iQIYI) ep 11 of 12 - Now I'm mostly just confused.
Which timeline are we in?
Do they know each other in this one's past or not?
Have they met yet?
Who has which memories of what?
I feel like I’ve been through a lot for the show.
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I’m not saying the reunion scene in the theater was worth it, but it was a really spectacular reunion scene. I’m terrified that there’s one more episode. I wish it had ended here.
Cooking Crush (Sun YT) 2 of 12 - I’m just not that into it. 
Pit Babe (Fri iQIYI) ep 4 of 14 - A new ship has been set afloat, we are now Team #WayKim / #KimWay and if you're not with us, you're against us. Trash watch happening here.
Middleman’s Love (Fri YT & iQIYI ep 5 of 8 - oh look, it’s everybody’s favorite big brother!
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That was a kind (and kind of lovely) coming out sequence. KingUea being the worst best Gay Advice Dads is awesome. Mai is SO SWEET. And we end on some good old miscommunication / misinterpretation, so that Jade can behave in an even more unhinged manner next ep. Our brief respite from absurdity has ended. 
My Universe (Sun iQIYI) Fake Love ep 16 of 24 - They cute fake bf but it’s oddly unappealing. I mean most us queers have slept with each others exes, that’s swimming in a small pool, for ya. In my experience, only hets get butt hurt about it. (Hets never use enoug lube, they butt hurt about everything.) So the whole drama just felt confusing to me. Or maybe that's just my experience with swimming in lube? 4/10 whatever... not recommended
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Playboyy (Thurs Gaga) 4 of 14 eps - I’m seriously considering dropping this. 
Ongoing Series - Not Thai
VIP Only (Taiwan Fri Gaga) ep 4 of 10 - They cute. Are aquariums now gay? That’s not the definition of fish that I grew up with. 
Sahara-sensei to Toki-kun (Japan Fri Gaga) ep 2 of 8 - I'm suffering from terrible second lead syndrome. Glasses guy is new Best Boy. Also, Rise is trying to earn the Namgoong Award for Best Wingman. 
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It Finished But...
SHADOW (Thai Gaga) 14 eps - completed it's run. Reports are:
It's pretty good horror but not BL. Ending is unresolved.
Given that info and this review here, it's not for me. DNF
It's Airing But...
Behind the Shadows (Korea movie) - a historical I'm interested in (if it's BL) but have no idea how to find.
The Whisperer (Sun ????) 10 eps - Thai horror BL that ALSO involves cheating (what joy is mine). I don't think even the perfect single dimple can motivate me to watch. Word is... it's terrible.
7 Days Before Valentine (Weds WeTV) 10 eps - Giving me Luminous Solution vibes. I'm waiting to binge if it's safe.
Beyond The Star (Weds iQIYI) 8 eps - House of Stars meets Boyband. I was NOT impressed with ep 1. Been told I shouldn't bother.
What Did You Eat Yesterday Season 2 AKA Kinou Nani Tabeta? Season 2 (Japan Gaga) 10 eps - I find this series more fun to binge, so I'm waiting until after it completes its run next week.
Next Week Looks Like This
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12/14 Dear Kitakyushu (Thai/Japan movie) in theaters in country only, I know nothing about distribution.
Still coming:
12/23 Dead Friend Forever (Thai horror) iQIYI
Original 2023 forthcoming BL master post (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED). With the end of the year upon us I'll do an "announced for 2023 but never happened list" soon.
THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS
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Of course I loved all the little language moments. I am here for the kinkification of phi.
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That request for a shirt was v sexy phi+na. Thank you Jimmy.
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Last Twilight bringing the pronoun and particle game to play hard.
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It was a nice kiss. (Absolute Zero)
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This as a perfunctory flirting kiss, I anticipate we still have The Kiss to come.
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I love that Phaya's personality seems to be spin doctor, just accuse the boy of doing that you are already doing to him (or want him to do to you).
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Boyfriend shirts!
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And a meta reference.
The Sign is basically made for me.
(Last week)
153 notes · View notes
kitthepurplepotato · 1 year
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Week 7 - It’s just a cold, Izu!
Summary: Midoriya can’t handle his love ones being sick and Y/N can’t handle Izuku when he’s freaking out for no reason. The duo has their first proper fight but Mama Katsuki and Auntie Inko are here to help.
Warnings: Swear words, a bit of angst, Y/N has a cold.
First Part Master List
~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~
Things went back to the good old ways after all the drama during the camp; Midoriya worked a full week without a single day off, you worked your ass off on your commissions to have some money to buy the latest hero merch, All Meowth continued to get fatter and fatter so you decided to alter his fancy ass feeder but even though Midoriya isn’t home at all he somehow still manages to change the settings back in those 5 fucking hours he’s home. It’s a pain.
Sometimes, Midoriya manages to get into his bed. Sometimes, he just sleeps on the sofa. And sometimes, more often than not, he just curls on himself by the end of your bed like a little stray cat and sleeps for a few hours, not even changing into his pajamas which usually ends up with you changing your bedding after finding mud or blood - or whatever pro hero Deku decided to roll himself into during his mission - on your sheets. Thankfully, Izuku has a super high tech washing machine x dryer combo with a built-in washing detergent and fabric softener dispenser, so the only work you need to do is fold it and put it away. That doesn’t make changing the sheets less annoying though. You might need to ask Midoriya if there’s a device for that too.
Are you bothered by Midoriya sleeping by your feet like a fucking dog? Yes.
Would you rather have him sleep like a normal human being, snuggled into your back cozily? Yes.
Will you ever tell him that? Probably no.
Well, listen. Things might be back to normal but your feelings are not. It’s nearly impossible for you to sleep on the days he decides to sleep in your room. He also mumbles a lot before he actually falls asleep, his mutters usually consist of him saying sorry and talking about consent and about his terrible day and you do respond, especially when he starts beating himself up for doing “the wrong thing” but you are quite sure he thinks it’s his mind speaking back to him in your voice by the way he just ignores them.
For your surprise, after his fifth day of working non-stop Midoriya actually manages to come home on time; and by “on time” you mean 8PM instead of the usual 2AM. You look at the poor guy like you’ve seen a ghost.
“What? I mean what are you doing here? I mean, you live here but… Are you hurt? Did something happen? Izuku, are you an apparition?” Your voice sounds really raspy compared to your usual sound but you blame it on not speaking for 5 days. “Oh, maybe you are just that holographic thingy you have in your bracelet.” You move towards the ghost by the entrance, grabbing his beautifully sculpted bicep to prove your point. Oh. “You are here. Wow.” You snicker awkwardly, giving his bicep another squish because… well… you fucking can.
“Sweet Pea, are you okay? You act a little bit weird and I’m not talking about the part where you squished my arms, twice, but… you don’t really sound coherent?”
“Nah, I’m all fine!” You laugh like a maniac, waving your hands in front of you so aggressively you almost knock one of Izuku’s ‘welcome figurines’ off the shoe cabinet.
Yes, you guys have a bunch of figurines by the entrance to welcome the guest, mostly of the Deku squad so they feel loved and cherished. “I’m peachy.” You try to laugh but your face contorts into something extremely unappealing right before you sneeze and headbutt the door frame. “Ahh, allergies.”
Okay, you have a confession to make…
You’ve been feeling under the weather for a while now. You were okay when you came back home, but on the third day, your throat got a bit itchy and your mind a bit fuzzy. That didn’t stop you from working through the whole day, drawing, cooking, taking care of the laundry and the garden and trying your best to scrub out the blood of Izuku’s dirty clothes which probably didn’t help with your worsening condition.
It’s really not that bad though. Back when you had a job you went in to work when you were sick with no problem at all. It’s really not the end of the world…
… for you.
Apparently, it is the end of the world for the hero in front you.
“I’m calling the hospital, Sweet Pea! Oh my god, why didn’t you tell me you’re feeling unwell, you could have died! Oh my god.” Midoriya freaks out completely. He throws all his stuff on the floor with a loud bang and comes closer to you, his palms on your forehead in only a millisecond.
“Izu come on, let’s watch a movie, I want to snuggle up! I haven’t seen you for 5 days! Also, stop bleeding over my bedsheets I had to change them three times this week! Just put on a bandaid or sleep without your clothes! Wait… no… don’t sleep in my bed without your clothes on, you might set my sheets on fire with your hot ass.”
Shut. Up. For the love of god, just shut up.
“Oh my god, you are burning up.” Midoriya declares, ignoring your rambles. Well, thank fuck for that.
“Aww, thank you!”
“No… I mean yes, but no, you have fever! It’s really dangerous to have a fever, Y/N!” He reprimands with tears pooling in his beautiful eyes and you can’t help but laugh.
“Says the guy whose life is literally in danger 14 hours a day. Come on now, change into your pj’s!” You try to pull the hero in by grabbing his hand on your forehead, but he doesn’t move.
Midoriya is having a meltdown. Internally. And externally as he can’t stop muttering. He drops on his knees right in front of you, hugs your legs and just mutters and mutters and mutters…
“It’s just a cold, love.” You kneel in front of him to swipe your fingers underneath his teary eyes to dry the skin. “Do heroes not get cold?”
“I should have realized something’s wrong, but your snores were so cute…”
“My what?!” You yell, trying your best not to cough all over the hero afterwards.
“You snored a bit yesterday. It’s was so adorable. I should have known you are getting sick. You never snore.”
The fact that he knows that makes you wonder how many times he ended up in your room without your knowledge and you should probably be concerned, but this is Mr. Green flag. He might not know the word ‘personal space’ but he can’t even hurt a fly. Literally.
You wanted to buy a Venus flytrap and Deku started crying because the plant is carnivorous and it would kill the flies around the house. You really had to stop yourself from telling him about where meat comes from. If Izuku would take a few seconds to think about that he would go vegan in a heartbeat.
Wait, how did you end up on this topic?
Also, why are you flying right now? Oh, Midoriya is taking you to your bed.
“Izu, I don’t want to sleep! I want to watch something!”
“You are going to bed and I’m going to get a bucket of water and a sponge. Then I’m going to the conbini to buy you medicine then I’ll cry in the shower.”
“Izu, you are overreacting.” You sigh. Yes, you do feel a bit weird but it’s really not that bad. This drama is uncalled for.
“Okay, I’m calling the ambulance.” Deku puts you down on your bed and gets his phone out to actually make a call. You really want to fangirl over the fact that his background is one of the pictures the gang took while camping and you are also on the picture but even with a high fever, you know that’s not the priority right now.
“Okay, okay, Izu, stop! Just.. whatever. Do whatever you want.” You give in, not even moving to get under your sheets. You can’t believe he came home sooner to be with you and you ended up like this.
“What about watching Netflix on your computer when your fever breaks?” Izuku asks, his hands caressing your forehead.
“Snuggles?”
“Snuggles.” Izuku smiles, tugging a stray hair behind your ears.
“Okay.”
~•🥦•~
Izuku really goes above and beyond to take care of you. He sponges your skin with tepid water to help the fever to go down, tugs you in like a baby so you can rest comfortably while he runs outside to find something for you to take. He comes back with a bag full of random stuff; there is a nose and throat spray, cold medicine - the super high end one you could never afford - throat sweets, vitamin C, pre-cut fruits and easy to eat stuff, Orange juice and a Deku plushie.
“I missed you.” You murmur as Izuku puts the stuff on a big tray and puts it on the bed.
“Have you eaten today?” Midoriya grumbles and you really hate the way he ignores you completely.
“Don’t be like this.”
“I’m sorry, I’m freaking out. Let me take care of you first, okay? Then I’ll be back to normal.”
“Gimme’ the Deku doll.” You command. Deku’s eyebrows rise at that.
“Excuse me? That’s for when I’m gone to patrol.” Deku reprimands, his eyes full of that weird kind of darkness again.
“Are you jealous of yourself, Izu-Izu?” You say mockingly.
“You know what, princess? You are not getting it. Nope. You’ve messed up.” Midoriya pouts while pointing his nose towards the ceiling offendedly.
“Give him to me, I’m a sick woman!” You move yourself up from the bed, aggressively trying to take the doll from Izuku. You manage to grab the poor fluffy thing so you yank it towards you but the hero comes with it; he ends up on top of you, giggling and laughing while you struggle to breathe. Midoriya pulls himself up to let you take a deep breath and you can’t help but look at his pretty and tired face up close; his eyes are shining in that weird way they usually do when you are around, gaze full of fondness and something else you can’t put your hands on; you look at his freckles and start counting them but there’s so many thanks to the sunny weather… at last, you look at his lips which you kissed by accident the other day.
Talking about that little accident…
“What if you get sick?”
“Why would I?” Midoriya smiles.
“I… we… kissed… on the peak. By accident.” You mumble nervously.
“Could you not say that right after you stared at my face for a whole minute, Sweets?”
“But staring at your face for a whole minute made me remember it.” You mumble like it’s common sense.
“You don’t have a filter when you have a fever, do you?” Midoriya giggles, but his shyness wins; he moves to the end of the bed, his face hidden in his hands awkwardly while his shoulders move with the laughter. After a few seconds, his tone changes into a serious one. “We barely get sick.” Midoriya admits. “We are always on edge, ready to fight. We are stubborn bastards who don’t let themself rest for long enough to be able to get sick.” Deku smiles into the nothingness with a hint of sadness in his eyes.
“We should go on a holiday, Izu. To America, where All Might studied.” You sigh. “We could go to see his school, that famous street where he first debuted. Geeky stuff like that.”
“Sounds like a dream, Sweets.” Deku smiles for real this time and you really want to daydream a bit more but somehow you’re incapable of words; the sleep takes you without a warning and the world goes black.
You wake up after a few hours; it’s still dark outside, but it’s closer to the morning than to the night; or at least that’s what your body clock tells you. Next to you, there is a green mop of hair sprawled out on the second pillow you never use; he’s sleeping next to you but in a safe distance, unlike the other day when you woke up in his arms. You really miss the closeness, you miss everything about those three beautiful days; it’s harder and harder not to point out the elephant in the room and just end this sweet nothing and burn it to pieces for that 1% chance of your feelings being reciprocated. Apparently, Izuku is a vigilant sleeper; when a tiny sigh leaves your mouth he opens his eyes; without a single word he puts his palm on your forehead and starts his usual freak out session.
Honestly, this joke is getting old.
“Izu, stop freaking out, I’m actually feeling okay. My fever broke hours ago.” You stare at your shaking roomie with disappointment. “I’m literally tucked into 3 different comforters, of course I’m burning up. I’m quite sure I fell asleep in one, so why do I look like a burrito now?” You try your best to get out of the hellishly hot covers but Izuku looks at you with those freaking puppy eyes; he literally looks like a puppy who just peed on the carpet and feels bad about it. He’s the definition of a baby golden retriever.
“Let me get the sponge at least!” He murmurs almost silently with a little pout on his face. Adorable.
“Izu…”
“What about a lukewarm bath?” Midoriya pushes but you roll your eyes. “I’ll help you.”
This guy is ridiculous.
“You wish.” You snap back with a red face and if you wouldn’t be so ashamed you would have heard the almost silent “I do” murmured into his pillow.
“What did you say?”
“I said I need to go to work.” Midoriya grumbles, his sleepy voice more deep than usual. Oh no…
“Izu, are you grumpy right now?” You giggle and Midoriya really doesn’t appreciate that; he looks at you with an offended gaze. “Did you wanna have a lovely bubble bath with me and wash my back like you wanted in the camp?” You full on laugh now which ends up with you coughing a bit, which as per usual makes the greenette freak out for a good moment but after he checks your vitals and decides you are not about to die from a single cough, his angry pout is back.
“Shut up and take your Deku.” Midoriya tries to throw the stuffed version of himself to you and it lands on your face as your reflexes aren’t really good in your condition; you might feel better but there is definitely a long way until you can go back to your usual self. “Don’t make fun of me, I’ve grown up in a really loving and really touchy family. Once I tried to wash Kirishima’s back in the river and almost got Howitzer Impacted into the moon.” Midoriya admits and you burst out laughing.
“You did not…”
“I fucking did and he fucking let me. It almost cost my life.”
“Wow, you swear so much on this lovely morning.” You grin menacingly. “Did you not sleep well in MY BED?” You try your best to tease him flirtatiously; Midoriya was right, you have no filter when you’re sick. Oh well.
“You snored so much I couldn’t sleep well!” Izuku sticks his tongue out and you can’t believe his audacity.
“You cheeky little bitch, get out!” You whine and your green companion snickers as he leaves your room to get ready for his day. He comes back after a while in a full setup with a steaming cup of noodles in his hands.
“Eat this and take your medicine. Only leave the room if you really need to. Send me a message every hour if you don’t want me to jump in through the window which I will leave open just in case.” Midoriya mumbles, and you can’t help but giggle.
“We have a door you can use, I hope you know that.” You try to deadpan but your mouth doesn’t want to cooperate.
“Let me be extra, okay?!” The move Izuku made with his hands really makes you question his sexuality.
“I didn’t know you can be so sassy, Izu-Izu, I kinda like that.”
“Say that when there’s no snot dripping from your nose and I might get a little bit turned on.” Izuku fucking WINKS at you and leaves like the sassy bitch he is.
So let’s take a deep breath and think about the fact that Deku openly flirted with you, even though you look like you were just hit by a truck.
… and now freak the fuck out.
Yes, that will definitely help you to get better.
~•🥦•~
Well, Deku wasn’t joking when he said you need to message him every hour. If you were even a minute late, you woke up to a green blob staring at you from your window like a creep. It was kind of funny until you realized how dangerous this whole situation is; Deku is clearly not concentrating on his job properly which is not just a risk for his own health but to the people of the city as well. You need to do something about this.
“Hey, Katsuki.” You ramble into the phone with a husky voice. “I have a problem.”
“The fuck, freeloader! Are you hurt?! I’m coming over!” Katsuki is about to end the call but you stop him.
“I’m sick, don’t come here. I need your help with Izu.” You sigh. “He’s not concentrating on his work because of me. He’s around the house every hour, he’s absolutely lost it.”
“Fuck. He did that to me too when I was sick. Only happened once but fuck I make sure to eat my fucking vegetables since, he was an absolute emotional mess, crying and yapping by my fucking bed like I’m dying.” Katsuki tenses. “I’ll sort this out, you rest or whatever.” The line goes dead and the silence is back. You send a quick message to Midoriya that you are about to sleep and decide to close your eyes a bit; the sooner you get out of this mess the sooner you get your old roommate back.
~•🥦•~
The next time you open your eyes, Izuku’s sitting at the leg of the bed, hunched over; he looks banged up and really tired but he still smiles at you as you sit up.
“Hey, Sweet Pea.” His voice is rough. Something is not right. Something is…
Dripping. On the bed. From his side.
That’s fucking blood.
Okay, this is it. You are done.
“Midoriya Izuku, you are bleeding! What the fuck are you doing here and why are you not in a hospital?!” You yell but straining your voice probably wasn’t the best idea as you end up having a coughing fit. Midoriya tries to move and help you through it but even the smallest movement makes his breath hitch.
This is not funny anymore. “Why are you doing this?! How am I supposed to get better if all I can think of is you dying on the battlefield because of me?! Huh?! I’m really fucking done, Izuku! I don’t want you here! I want to sleep! I’m calling the hospital!” You cry to him, your eyes full of worry. It breaks your heart to talk to him like that, but he didn’t listen to you when you were nice and if you need to break your own heart to save his life, then so be it.
“I’m sorry, I only looked at my phone for one second…” he tries to explain, but fuck if that doesn’t make you even more angry.
“You looked at your phone in the middle of a fight?! I’m having a cold Midoriya, not a terminal illness that will take me away randomly!”
“Don’t call me that…” Midoriya’s eyes are full of tears and that only makes you cry harder; it’s extremely hard to breathe, your already stuffed nose not letting any air into your lungs. Your door gets smashed in suddenly and you both jump; Midoriya makes a tiny whine from the pain.
“Okay, this shit show ends now.” Bakugou barges in and puts Midoriya on his shoulders like he’s nothing but a sack of potatoes. “Deku, you are going to the hospital.” He grumbles. “Freeloader, you hide that fucking bedsheet before Auntie gets a heart attack when she comes in from the living room.”
“Mum is here?” Midoriya mumbles with a pale face. The weakness of his voice makes you cry again.
“Yes fucker, she’ll take care of your girlfriend while you get your ass treated. You are not going back to work today. We’re going to use your window so she won’t freak out. Now shut the fuck up and chill for the fucks sake, what kind of fucking drama is this anyway? Honestly, you need to get a grip, you fucker! She’s just fucking sick. Stop being an idiot!” Bakugou doesn’t stop talking as he jumps out of the window; you can hear him yelling at the greenette until their silhouettes disappear in the sea of skyscrapers. When you hear the footsteps coming from the living room, you quickly hide the top sheets under the bed.
“I heard a lot of yelling, are you okay?” Mama Midoriya comes in but she stops at the door when she sees your teary face. “Honey, what happened?” Inko runs over to hug you. You try your best to not cry even harder as she embraces you the same way a mother embraces her child.
“He doesn’t have any sense of self preservation, I can’t do this. It’s my fault, everything is my fault…” you bawl like a baby, your words so mumbled she probably can’t understand the half of it.
“Is there something bloody hidden under your bed, honey?” She mumbles into your ear and you freeze; Katsuki went above and beyond to make sure Inko doesn’t see his injured son yet you managed to mess up everything in the first 30 seconds. Well done.
“… N-no?” You stutter but Inko only laughs at that.
“Y/N, I know those two like the back of my hands. I heard yelling then Kacchan disappeared through the window, together with my son. I might be a working class woman but I’m not stupid.” The lady smiles. “I used to cry so much when my boy got injured but it’s the part of the job. I can’t believe they still try to hide this away from me. I was the one who treated Izuku’s wounds in the first few years. I was the one who washed his blood soaked clothes. Honestly, these two boys… they are a handful.”
“It was my fault, I’m sorry…” You try to apologize but Inko puts her hands on your mouth.
“Oh, shush now, Sweet Pea. It’s his own fault for not taking care of himself. He should have called me right away. This isn’t a first time I take care of his friends while he’s on duty. But I guess you are special. He wanted to take care of you himself.” Inko looks at you with a knowing look. “Don’t be too hard on him when he comes back, okay? He’s probably really heartbroken right now. He takes everything so seriously…”
“I yelled at him.” You sniffle. “I yelled at him and told him I don’t want him here. I didn’t mean it…”
“I know, honey. But you thought this is the best you can do to keep him safe. Thank you.” Inko keeps rubbing your back soothingly and the movement makes your sick brain feel super woozy - in a nice way. You could really sleep in Mama Midoriya’s arms. “Why don’t you close your eyes for a minute, honey? Let’s kick this cold in the butt so you two can make up and be happy again, yeah?” The soothing little circles lulls you to sleep really quickly; the next time you wake up it’s the next morning; you are alone in your room, there is water and breakfast ready for you by your bedside and there’s also a little pot of pink flowers sitting next to your pancakes. By the look of it, they were planted really quickly and you must add, really messily but you know these flowers; they are pink kisses, the flowers you made Midoriya buy for the garden when you first moved in. You really want to cry right now.
“Are you feeling better, honey?” Inko comes in with a sleepy face; you really hope she didn’t sleep on the sofa. Knowing Izuku, he probably let his mother sleep in his bed while he crashed on the sofa even though he’s hurt. You want to strangle that man and kiss him senseless, all at the same time.
“Much better, thank you. That disgusting thing with ginger really helped.” You giggle. “How is he?” You ask in a serious tone, worried. The poor guy went out into your garden and dug a flower out of the fucking dirt. He must feel so guilty for everything he’s done and probably has the wrong idea about your feelings as well. You really need to talk to him. As soon as possible.
“He’s okay… right, Izuku?” Inko smiles and suddenly, there is another green head in your view; Izuku looks so tired, his eyes red-rimmed and full of regret.
“Izu…” Things happen really quickly; Izuku is at the door one moment and in your bed in the next; he hugs you like he haven’t seen you for a year, grabbing your shirt anxiously while he buries his head into your neck. “I smell really bad…” you mumble self-consciously, but he only buries his head in deeper.
“I’m so sorry.” He sniffs and you really can’t take this anymore; you embrace the man so tightly he ends up making a little noise of discomfort.
“Ahh, sorry, did I hurt you? You got injured yesterday, I’m so sorry!” You ramble but Izuku only smiles. Inko slowly backs out of the room and closes the door behind her to give you some privacy. Bless that woman.
“I got healed by recovery girl, I’m fine. I’m sorry I made you worry and for being a ‘creepy ass fuck’ as Kacchan has said.” Poor Izuku looks so dejected you can’t help but caress his cheeks to cheer him up.
“I’m sorry for yelling at you. You were hurt and I only made it worse for you. Look at your eyes, love, they are so red and puffy…” You barely realize what you’ve just said. It just slipped out without your knowledge. Oh, you really fucked up this time, you really…
“I love the sound of that nickname.” He mutters with a red face. “You are forgiven. You’ll always be forgiven, Sweet Pea.”
“And so will you, Izu.” You mutter back with teary eyes. “Whatever you do, I’ll be here, waiting for you to come home to me again.”
This is the last straw for your poor heart. You are in love with him. You can’t fucking lie to yourself anymore. He’s the most perfect creature you’ve ever met in your life with all his weird habits and stupid shenanigans. He’s everything you’ve ever wanted. You really need to take a deep breath and close your eyes for a second to not act on your instincts and kiss the man in front of you.
“Promise?” Deku smiles, his pinky lacing together with yours.
“Promise.”
~•🥦•~
After a few days, you feel good as new; at last, you can safely snuggle with your favorite roommate as you two enjoy a movie on this lovely afternoon.
“Hey, Sweet Pea…” Midoriya mumbles shyly. It weirdly sounds like a beginning of a question so you look up at the green haired hero. “So, my mom told me off for not listening to the doctors and getting glasses for home to read and to watch the TV, so… what do you think?”
“About you in glasses? Or about you being an insufferable little bitch about using them?” You grin when Izuku makes that funny squeaky noise he usually does when he’s being bullied.
“Excuse me, first of all, I’m not an insufferable little bitch about it, I just forgot to get my glasses done. Second of all, stop chatting with Kacchan when I’m not around.” Izuku pouts, so you give him a little kiss on his cheek to stop his incoming tantrum.
“You are literally so obsessed with him you have all his merch, is it really a bad thing if I sound like that?” You continue your teasing, because you are an asshole.
“Well, first of all…” Midoriya is about to start ranting but he gets cut off by your loud laugh.
“First of all, stop saying first of all over and over!” You talk back, still snuggled close to him, your hands playing with his fingers in his lap.
Yes, friendzone be damned, you two can’t stop touching each other since the fight, and no, not in that way, obviously, but you can’t lie, it is constant. Good morning kiss on the cheeks, good night kiss on the forehead, a ‘well done’ caress after finishing a commission, ‘thank fuck you are alive’ kiss on Izuku’s shoulder because you can’t reach his face properly without jumping up on him like a monkey, fingers entwining while watching a movie on the sofa, secret sniffs of the other’s skin after a shower… Long story short, it’s bad but neither of you really care at this point.
“I don’t want you to sound like Kacchan, because one is perfectly enough of him. Also, I’m getting those glasses, so if you see a new man sitting on the sofa, please refrain from attacking him with a mop again.” Izuku giggles, reminding you of your second encounter in the living room.
“Nah, I would know it’s you even if you take away all my senses.” You smile with a fond look on your face. You are so fucking obvious it’s actually hilarious.
“That’s highly unlikely, but I’m still fluttered.” Midoriya smiles back with a dorky look.
“Damn, you don’t even have your glasses yet but you already sound like a fucking nerd.”
“That’s it princess, you are going to the naughty jail!” Midoriya giggles and makes a move towards you. You look at him with questioning eyes.
“The wha… oh my god, Izu, stop!” You whine as the hero lands on top of you, viciously tickling you on your super ticklish sides, movie long forgotten. If you two end up staying in this position after tiring yourselves out by playfully fighting on the comfy sofa then falling asleep in each other’s arms, that’s no one’s fucking business.
Fuck, you really do sound like Katsuki these days.
~•🥦•~
EXTRA - A few days before
Deku’s mental health support group
Green oblivious idiot: Even her snores are cute…
Kacchan: Jesus ducking Christ Deku.
Kacchan: ducking
Shitty Hair: 🦆
Kacchan: I ducking hate you all.
Kacchan: Duck’s sake
Green, oblivious idiot: 🦆
Kacchan has left the group.
… Next Chapter!
~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~
Potato ramble:
- This was actually supposed to be a 2 parter but I have so many chapters sitting in my notes I decided to post both of the chapters together haha I hope you enjoyed the little treat!
- The next chapter is my personal favorite one and guys… you are not ready.
- HEY VIETNAMESE FRIENDS, this story is being translated to Vietnamese by the lovely @tlam105! Thank you very much for your hard work! 🩷🩷🩷🩷 CLICK HERE IF YOU WANNA READ IT!!
- Eyy, Izuku has issues, man 😂 Someone needs to give that poor guy a chill pill. I’m really not sure how the heck did he manage to look at his phone during battle though, I’m quite sure he was hiding somewhere and that’s when he took his phone out, not in the middle of an actual battle but that doesn’t make it any better.
- I have a confession to make; I finished this story a few days ago and I’m really emotional right now 😂 the story will end with week 10, BUT! You know me and how much I love this story so there will be a second season! We will see more of Izuku’s weird habits in that one! It will just as fun as the first season was! 🥦 I already finished the new header for it 😂 I really hope you like the ending! (which ain’t an ending but you know what I mean.)
- My boyfriend is cutting onions and I can’t see from the tears so if there’s a mistake in the potato ramble bit I’m sorry I’m literally blind. TMI, I know.
See you next week! Likes, comments and reblogs are appreciated as always! I love to hear your thoughts! 🥦🩷
Taglist: @porusuniverse @stickygumchewer @sixxze @mily-moo @momothemasocist @aymasakusa @kastuari @kenzie-deadly @shiviwrites07 @lukerycyja-reblogs @cloroxisadelectabletreat @coffeent @kisskissshutmydoor @bobcar1 @yazminetrahan @cringefan @ronimacaroni77 @thekookiecorner @dangerousluv1 @emperatris-rinaka @shotos-angelic-whore
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eddiediazismyhusband · 3 months
Text
rant/vent post bc im exhausted and my brain won’t stop buzzing about this:
you know i find it mildly infuriating that tim had time to address the karaoke scene debacle bc of twitter fans, but he doesn’t have time to addresss the fact that since the start of s7 there have been fans who have been spouting hateful rhetoric about poc cast/characters and sending death threats to other fans, crew members, and journalists for not supporting their lukewarm ship, and he also for some reason is trying to remain on this high horse of “representation” when that is probably one of the weakest character sexuality storylines i’ve seen, and not only that but he decided to make the entire second half of the season practically dedicated to the pain of poc, as well as exploiting racial stereotypes for cheap drama….. all of this while these fans are acting like this guy who came out of nowhere (something that has literally been admitted by tim) is somehow this holy grail of a character when his emotional range is less than the “😐🧍” emojis, and tim is simultaneously ignoring the hate and blatant racism from the fans, but also promoting and giving a storyline to a racist character— even going as far as to brush that racism under the rug narratively, as well as allowing the actor to rile up controversy and division amongst fans
this is why it is so hard for me to trust tim anymore because that man has not shown to ke that he actually cares about good storytelling, he just cares about money going into his pocket.
now, no i don’t believe he is out here DM-ing fans s8 spoilers because the man is a moneymaker not an idiot, so before you try to say anything about me saying i believe bree, i most certainly do not— but unfortunately i don’t trust tim to handle any of the storylines he’s set up for s8 well until i see it.
and most of all i feel awful from ryan and oliver who want nothing more than to tell such a beautiful story but they are constantly being mowed over by tim, by the network, and now by the fans… oliver really wanted to do something with buck’s story, and all it’s done is caused a group of batshit fans to spread hate to other fans for not jumping ship after 6 years. ryan is so exhausted of having to rehash the shannon shit every season even though we’ve been given plenty of evidence to show that he has moved on from her— this storyline wasn’t necessary (and especially not the way they chose to tell it).
and lastly— oliver and ryan have wanted the fans to be happy. they want buck and eddie to be happy. and right now, neither of them are in a narratively satisfying spot, and until the show actually cuts the bullshit and starts doing something with their storyline and not just exploiting it, I’m not gonna support it by watching. they’ve shown they don’t care about queer rep by making half of a popular ship canon by bringing back a former character who was literally racist and misogynistic just to serve a character arc, and haven’t gotten rid of him despite having an entire half of a season to do so. they’ve shown they don’t care about queer rep by giving the bisexual main character a sexuality arc that lasted 0.2 seconds narratively and had him end up with the first guy who kissed him, despite there being zero chemistry or build up to imply there were ever actually any feelings of interest. they’ve shown they don’t care about queer rep by once again putting the show’s two black queer women through the same storyline they’ve had before, rehashing their trauma once again in an arc that didn’t even carry over because it was mostly resolved after 3 episodes. they’ve shown they don’t care about queer rep by saying that they wanna “do the story naturally” if they make eddie queer, yet they ignore every opportunity they have to do do by (literally) digging up his ex wife at every turn despite having written numerous lines of dialogue in which he blatantly admits to not actually loving her romantically, and stating that their marriage only happened because she got pregnant.
season 7 had the potential to be something great. it turned out to be mid.
season 8 also has the potential to be something great. until it starts looking like it im not gonna waste my time, energy, or sanity forcing myself to watch- especially if they’re just going to continue the blatant fan service bullshit after telling buddie fans for 6 years that they “don’t wanna do fanservice”….. well what the fuck do you call this dumpster fire, tim?
we may get some more information once filming starts that will change my mind, but right now it’s really not worth it after spending 7 year watching this show to just continue to be spat on and slapped in the face by the creators.
sincerely, an emotionally and physically exhausted fan who just had a long day and desperately needs to take my anxiety meds and crash
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prettymuchteddy · 8 months
Text
Good Luck Egg Chapter One: Welcome Egg
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Summary: Jace Targaryen was one of the eldest siblings of his two mothers and when he found out they would be having yet another child he was both excited and nervous. His baby brother, Egg, would have to navigate life through their crazy family so as any good brother would do he started creating video diaries to give him advice for the future.
Chapter Summary: When his mother goes into labor early Jace struggles to wrangle all his siblings together to get to the hospital and meet their little brother
Pairing: Alicent Hightower x Rhaenyra Targaryen, Jace Velaryon x Sara Snow, Cregan Stark x Helaena Targaryen
Warning: some language
Words: 5,262
A/N: This is high-key written like a sitcom and is Jace-centric (since he's Teddy in this fic), also muña means mother in High Valyrian
The house was mostly quiet for once. The only sound came from the TV, a humming signaled the beginning of the theme song. Rhaenyra turned up the volume enthusiastically. She glanced down at her bowl of strawberry ice and frowned. Taking the whipped cream topping in hand she added more until it was a mountain that buried the ice cream, only then was she satisfied. She took a spoonful and smiled. 
Rhaenyra never felt fully comfortable when she was in her final trimester of pregnancy even when she had done it several times. However, to her, the best thing about being pregnant was that she could eat anything without her wife bringing up how “unhealthy” it was. She could say it was cravings and her wife moved on.
The screen lit up with the colors of her favorite fantasy series. Without hesitation, she took another spoonful. A sharp pain came from her abdomen. 
“Ow”, she huffed. Her eyes went to her stomach. “All your brothers were easy, why aren’t you?”
She swallowed the ice cream and turned back to her TV. Her favorite family drama show was on. She had yet to catch up to the current season like her son had but with the rest of the kids out of the house, she could watch her show without having to worry about them walking into the awkward parts.
Another pain came from her abdomen. She gripped the remote tightly. She winced. Slowly, Rhaenyra turned off the TV and put down her plate. She could barely adjust to sitting on her own couch. Every time she would end up rolling. Gods she forgot how much she hated this feeling. 
“Alicent”, Rhaenyra called.
The sound of boots clicking in the kitchen got her attention and before long, her wife walked into the living room. 
“What is it?” Alicent asked. 
“I’m going into labor”, Rhaenyra sighed.
Alicent’s eyes popped open. “What?! But you’re not due yet!”
“Well take that up with him.” Rhaenyra gestured at her stomach. “Unfortunately, I’m running on his time, not the doctor’s or mine apparently.”
Alicent scanned the couch for her purse. “Okay, okay”, panic edged in her voice. “A bit of a hiccup but it's fine.”
Alicent grabbed the purse which was thrown lazily on the floor. “Okay, I have our stuff here. Do you want me to bring you a robe and slippers?”
Rhaenyra bit in inside of her cheek as another round of pain resurfaced. “We don’t have time for that, my love.”
Alicent helped Rhaenyra to her feet. Rhaenyra threw on her sweater and casually walked toward the door with an anxious Alicent behind her. 
Rhaenyra looked over her shoulder and then smirked. “Ready for baby number eight?”
Alicent was practically shaking. “Gods no, but let’s do this.”
—---------------------------
Jace wanted to throw his controller on the couch. He had lost another video game match with Cregan. His best friend was smiling but he was not. How after so many times playing had he not improved at all? He thought at least with the new combo he had, he thought he could get one victory over Cregan but nothing.
He rolled his eyes at the TV. “This is rigged.”
Cregan threw back his head and laughed. “Keep telling yourself that.”
“This is your game and console. I wouldn’t be surprised if you had done something.”
“I only play games, Jace, I’m not a tech wizard that’s your brother.”
“I bet he did help you.”
A ring broke through the conversation. Cregan picked up his phone but saw his screen was pitch black. 
“Jace, I think it’s yours.”
Jace shuffled through his pocket and pulled out his phone. The word ‘Mom’ lit up the phone. He answered.
His face scrunched a bit in confusion. “Mom, what’s up?”
“Um”, he could hear the nervousness in his mom’s voice. “Your mother went into labor early.”
Jace sat up on the couch. “But I thought the baby wasn’t coming for a least like two weeks. Is Muña okay?”
“Yes. Yes. Your mother is okay.” 
A scream came from the background. “Alicent, can you drive any fucking slower?!”
“I’m talking to Jace”, his mom said.
“Watch the road!”, his muña yelled. 
“I’m trying to”, his mom responded in the calmest voice she could muster. 
“You’re on your way to the hospital, right?” Jace asked.
“Yes, we are. Jace, I’m so sorry to ask this but can you please bring your siblings here? I can’t leave your mother alone.”
Jace nodded. “Yeah, of course. I’ll get bring them over as soon as possible.”
“Thank you, darling,” his mom said. With that, she hung up.
Jace had wanted to record a film from their short film, but it seemed that would have to wait. He turned toward his friend. “Cregan, I need to borrow your car, it’s for an emergency.”
Cregan sat up. “I heard everything your mom was screaming, let’s go.”
“Believe it or not that’s her calm.”
Cregan threw the car keys at Jace, who caught them with one hand. They got into the car and Jace turned on the engine. He glanced between himself and his friend at their uniforms, it was for their film, but he didn’t have time to change. Whatever.   
“Do you know where you’re going?” Cregan asked. 
Jace nodded. “Yup, theater rehearsal.”
The younger teen was practically speeding until they got to the parking lot of their local high school. It was a weekend so few cars were in the lot when Jace pulled into an empty space. He turned off the car and ran toward the auditorium, with Cregan close behind. The two opened the doors to the building. Inside were other teenagers dressed in costumes reading over a script. Jace scanned the group assembled.
“See 'em?” Cregan asked.
“No.”
Jace opened the doors to the stage. On top of the stage, he saw a couple rehearsing some overly dramatic monologue while staring into each other’s eyes. Behind them was a group of teenagers dressed as fairies with cheap plastic wings. In the corner of the stage, she saw a girl with light hair dressed as a tree. 
“Helaena,” Jace called out.     
The couple stopped monologuing. The guy looked annoyed. “I thought we locked that door.”
Jace smiled awkwardly. “Sorry to interrupt, family emergency.”
Helaena in her tree costume made her way down to the stairs. The closer she got the more Jace was struggling to not laugh at his sister’s odd costume. She looked as if she could barely move with her arms stuck at her sides where the trunk of the tree was. 
“Jace, I’m at rehearsal”, Helaena reprimanded softly.
“I know. I know but it’s muña. She went into labor.”
Helaena’s eyes widened. “But I thought she wasn’t due yet.”
“She isn’t but the baby calling the shots here.”
Helaena nodded. “Okay, let me get out of this stupid costume. They can find another tree in the meantime.”
Jace helped Helaena unzip the back and she tossed off the tree costume. Underneath her costume though was a camo jumpsuit, supposedly to match the tree. Jace didn’t bother to bring this up. They raced back to the car. Jace jumped into the driver’s seat but found that Cregan was no longer in his passenger’s seat. The rearview mirror showed he was now in the backseat with his sister. Jace shook his head.
“Hel, do you know where everything else is?”
“Aegon and Daeron are at Ben Blackwood’s party”, Helaena admitted.
“Ben Blackwood is having a party today?” Jace asked.
“Yes, they didn’t want to tell mom and muña. You have to keep it a secret”, Helaena demanded. 
“Fine. Fine.” Jace then groaned. “Crap. How are we going to find his house?”
Cregan leaned close to Jace. “He lives in Ravenhall.”
“How do you know that?” Jace inquired.
Cregan glanced to see if Helaena wasn’t paying attention. “I used to date his sister, Aly.”
Jace’s face scrunched together. “You’ve never brought this up.”
“It was a long time ago.”
Jace sighed then started the car and pulled out of the parking space. As he began driving, he saw Cregan lean closer to Helaena in the rearview mirror. 
Cregan swallowed nervously. “So, are you a big theater person?”
“I like it, so I guess.”
“Cool. Um, what play were you doing?”
“A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, Helaena replied.
“Oh really? My teacher made me read that book for literature. It’s got a lot of freaky magic and stuff.”
Helaena smiled. “I know, right? I think that’s why I like it so much; it stands out from Shakespeare’s other work.”
Cregan smiled. “Yeah, it's awesome.”
Jace wished he could be anywhere else than inside this car and being forced to live through this conversation.
The neighborhood of Ravenhall was luckily close to where the school was. The security guard at the gate was nice and let them in once Jace said they were going to the Blackwood’s. The man asked if they were Brackens and Jace said no. He was confused about what was going on between the Brackens and Blackwoods but that was not the main objective. As Jace got closer to the house, he could see cars surrounding the house. The music from the backyard was playing loud enough that he could hear it from the front. 
“You’d think for a house party, they’d be more lowkey about it.”
Helaena pointed at the fence, suddenly. “Look the gate is open.”
Jace nodded. “Come on let’s these two.”
The three of them slipped through the half-closed gate. When Helaena told him it was a party, Jace had not expected this. There was a bounce house beside the pool where children around the age of ten were playing. A clown was face painting a little kid, while another clown made balloon animals. A pile of presents was in the corner next to a large table with an ocean cake. A banner above spelled out ‘Happy Birthday Sam!’ in big blue bubble letters. 
Jace stared at the scene before him. “Cregan?” 
“Yeah?”
“This is the Blackwood house, right?”
“I swear it is.”
“Helaena?” Jace asked.
“I swear they said they were going to Ben Blackwood’s party”, Helaena replied.
“This is a kid’s party”, Jace pointed out.
“Um, Jace.” Cregan nudged his rib.
Jace turned and saw Aegon and Daeron sitting in beach chairs beside the pool. Their legs were sprawled out as they laid back on the chairs, juices in hand. Without a word, Jace walked over to them. His older brother, Aegon was quick to notice him. 
“Hey, you were invited too?” Aegon asked.
Jace looked down at his two brothers. Both of them were wearing Hawaiian shirts with cargo pants and straw hats. Their accessories consisted of flip-flops, sunglasses, and a capri-sun in hand. Aegon even had sunscreen on his nose.
Jace sighed. “I don’t have the time to ask you why right, just know you need to come with us.”
“They’re cutting the cake soon, though”, Aegon complained.
“Muña’s having the baby”, Jace said.
Aegon sat up. “Wait, how?”
“I’ll explain in the car.”
The group hastily left through the open gate and shuffled back into Cregan’s car. Jace started the ignition and then turned back to the backseat.
“Okay, where’s Aemond?”
“At a friend’s house”, Daeron mentioned.
“Can you be more specific?” Jace asked.
“That girl he hangs out with, Alys Rivers,” Daeron added.
“Alright we need to hurry, mom and muña should have gotten to the hospital by now.” Jace began speeding down the road. His eyes occasionally went back to the mirror. He caught a look at Aegon and Daeron’s clothing again. 
Jace cleared his throat. “So, are you guys going to explain why you were at a ten-year-old’s birthday party?”
Daeron chuckled while looking at Aegon. “This should be good. Go on tell him.”
Aegon buried his face behind his hands. “So, I heard a rumor that Ben Blackwood was going to have a party this weekend and Blackwood is one of the most popular guys at school…”
Jace asked. “And?” 
“When we were in class, I commented that it sounded cool and that I could help out. He invited me and told me to bring my little brother so he could have fun too. I brought Daeron with me to the Hawaiian pool party he told me about. Turns out it's a party for his little brother, Samwell and when he told me to bring my little brother, he meant to bring Joffrey 'cause they go to the same school.”
Jace bit his hand to hold back a laugh. Unfortunately, a snort escaped. 
Aegon rolled his eyes. “Yeah. Yeah. Real funny. Laugh it up.”
Daeron suddenly stood up from his seat. “Wait Jace, that’s her neighborhood, you’re passing by it!”
“Shit!” Jace gripped the wheel and abruptly turned it without warning. 
Daeron who was standing, hit his head against the roof of the car. Aegon crashed into Daeron’s chest and then Helaena fell against Cregan. He immediately heard sounds of pain form the backseat. Jace was sure whatever he pulled was illegal, but he frankly didn’t care. However, he didn’t hear the end of it from his siblings until they arrived at the front door of Alys’ apartment. 
Jace knocked on the front door, impatiently. 
The person who answered was just as irritated as him. A guy wearing a long green cloak and riding boots glared at him. “What do you want?”
“Is Aemond here?” Jace almost growled.
The guy sneered. “We’re in the middle of something.”
Cregan stepped in front of Jace. “Let me handle this.”
The Stark was much taller than Jace despite the fact he was only a year older. His gray eyes bore down at the guy. “Either get Aemond or move out of the way.”
The guy was shaking when he turned over his shoulder. “Aemond.”
Aemond came around the corner. “Has the food arrived? Shall we finally feast?”
His older brother’s face fell when he saw them. Jace stared wide-eyed. Whatever annoyance he felt before was gone. His brother wore a long wig with an eye patch covering his right eye. He was wearing black pants, a black leather tunic, and a black leather trench coat. By his side was a fake sword attached to a belt. Aegon was the first to say something.
“Is that a wig?” He asked while slowly raising his phone to take a picture.
Aemond looked horrified. “What are you doing here?”
“Muña’s going into labor”, Jace explained.
Aemond stepped forward. “Now? Is she alright? Did mom get her to the hospital?”
“Yes, and we need to go”, Jace expressed.
Aemond nodded. “Okay.” 
“But my Prince, we need you for the campaign”, the guy said.
Aegon was trying to keep in his laughter. “Prince?”
Aemond sighed. “Sorry, family emergency comes first.”
Jace knew they didn’t have time to continue this argument and closed the door on the guy. 
“Car, now”, he directed his siblings. 
They didn’t need to be told twice. Aemond rushed to the passenger’s side while everyone else went to the backseat again. 
Jace took one look at his older brother. “Before we leave…a campaign?”
“And cosplay?” Daeron asked from behind. 
“It’s not cosplay, it’s for an original character”, Aemond explained.
“So, an OC?” Daeron asked.
Aegon furrowed his brows. “How do you know what that is?”
Daeron crossed his arms. “No reason.”
“Is that from the fantasy show you and Muña watch?” Helaena asked with a smile.
Aemond avoided looking at them. “Yes.”
Jace smiled. “Hey, at least you’re hanging with friends.”
Aegon leaned back in his seat. “Yeah, wait till we tell mom and muña when we get to the hospital now that everyone’s here.”
Aemond glanced back at the mirror to take in those present. Then he looked at Jace. Slowly, Jace’s brown eyes widened. 
“Oh my god, we’re still missing Luke and Joffrey!” Jace yelled.
Aemond stared in disbelief. “I thought you already got them.”
“Obviously not! Do you see them in the trunk?”
Aegon actually turned back to look inside the trunk. “Yup not there.”
Cregan looked at the Targaryen. “You thought I would put them in the trunk?”
“I mean saves space. Also, Luke deserves it depending on the day, especially when he’s always messing with the neighbor.”
Jace straightened up. “Wait. Wait. Say that again.”
“He’s always messing with the neighbor?”
Jace started the car. “I know where Luke is.”
“Terrorizing Ms. Velaryon, no doubt”, Aemond sighed. 
Jace made it quickly to the house. He refused to get out of the car and Aemond opted to be the one to knock on the front door. From what Jace could see from across the street, their neighbor, Ms. Velaryon answered the door. Her usual scowl was on her features when she opened the door. Aemond said something before she went back inside though curiously left the door open. Not even a minute went by when she came out dragging Luke by the collar of his shirt. His younger brother had a smirk on the entire time as she seemed to complain to Aemond about Luke. Eventually, she closed the door and Aemond walked with Luke back to the car.
Jace lowered his window as they approached. “Do I even want to know?”  
Aemond tilted his head. “Apparently, he broke in through her cat’s door and tried to ‘prank’ her by putting blue hair dye in one of her hats.”
Jace shifted to his younger brother. “Luke?”
“She said blue is her favorite color, I don’t see the problem.”
Jace looked at Aemond who was back inside the car. “He didn’t dye her hair, right?”
Aemond looked over his shoulder. “No. Ask him what happened instead.”
Jace turned at Luke. For the most part, his brother looked fine. His shirt was a bit wrinkled from where Ms. Velaryon grabbed his collar. However, his shoes were fine as was his baseball cap. Jace’s eyes narrowed. Luke’s curls weren’t sticking out of the cap. He couldn’t see his brother’s hair at all. It was all tucked inside.
“Luke, the cap.”
Slowly, his brother reached for the cap and took it off, revealing a head full of blue hair.
Aemond sighed. “Yup.”
“I might have mixed up the hats I was supposed to dye”, Luke elaborated.
 Jace could only stare. A moment passed before he turned back to the road and shifted the gears into drive. 
“Where’s Joff?” was all he felt like asking anymore.
“Mom mentioned that he was at a field day event”, Luke answered.
Jace picked up his phone and began to call someone as they made their way to the park where Joffrey was having his field day. As they approached the park, Jace saw the crowd gathered. He stepped out of the car and ran toward the group. The children were wearing different colors from their respective teams. Joffrey was sitting on a bench with a teenage girl beside him. His brother was wearing a jersey with the name Targaryen on it. However, dirt had gotten on the jersey, his shorts, shoes, and somehow his face.
Jace smiled at the girl. “Hey, thanks for helping me get Joffrey.”
The girl smiled in return. “You don’t have to worry about it, I didn’t mind especially with Rickon participating in this too.”
Jace glanced at her shirt. Team Stark was written in silver letters.
“You guys winning?”
“Well, sort of.”
“What do you mean? You’re always good at sports.”
“Sadly, the sign-up age was from seven to ten, so I missed the mark”, she joked. “Instead, I’m on water bottle and moral support duty.” 
Jace chuckled. “Maybe next time I can come and be the moral support of the moral support?”
He wanted to smack himself. God that sounded so stupid. 
She leaned close and gave him Joffrey’s backpack. For a second, their fingers touched. “Definitely would like the support next time.”
Jace nodded while he tried to ignore his heart beating in his ears. “Yeah, of course, I’ll see you soon, Sara.”
Sara gave a smile. “See you soon, Jace.”
Jace watched as she walked away by the time she left his sight, Jace realized Joffrey was halfway to the car. He rushed after his brother. Once he got into the car, Jace mentally counted the people inside the car. He had managed to get the last of his siblings. Now, they could go meet up with their mothers.
The hospital was busy when they got there. Jace, his siblings, and Cregan passed by dozens of patients in the waiting room. He walked up to the nurse in the front.
“We’re here to visit, Rhaenyra Targaryen. She’s having a baby”, Jace explained.
The nurse glanced at the seven other people who he was with. “Sorry, I can’t allow that many people inside of the room while she’s in labor.”
“But we’re her kids”, Jace insisted.
This time the nurse’s eyes bulged, and she again glanced at the large group. Jace recognized the surprise in her eyes. He was used to it, being in a big family and such. Now his muña was going to have an eighth. 
“I’m sorry I still can’t allow all of you inside during the labor.”
“What about like two of us?” He asked.
“Okay but only two.”
Jace turned back to his siblings. “Guys I’m going to check up on Muña and Mom, Aemond are you going too?” 
Aemond glanced at Joffrey who was standing in front of the vending machine. “Yeah, someone just keep an eye on him.”     
Jace and Aemond went down the hallway and found the room fairly quickly. Jace opened the door. His muña was lying on a bed while wearing a hospital gown and his mom was sitting in a chair beside her. Upon hearing the door creak open they both turned to him and Aemond. His muña gave him her usual bright wide smile.
“Jace. Aemond. You’re both here.” She reached out her arms. 
Jace hugged her followed by Aemond. His mom stood from her chair then captured both of them in a hug.
“Oh Gods, I’m so glad you made it. Are the rest of your siblings here too?” His mom asked.   
“They’re in the waiting room”, Aemond said.
His muña rubbed her belly. “That’s good. That’s good.”
“How’s everything been?” Jace inquired.
“Um”, his mom fidgeted with her nail. 
Jace’s stomach dropped. That was never a good sign.
“The doctor is running late”, his mom explained.
“What do you mean running late?” Jace asked. “I’ve been running around trying to get everyone here, if anything I should be considered running late. How is he running late?”
“There was an accident on the highway and he’s stuck in traffic”, his muña expressed wearily. 
“Wait but if he’s not here what happens?” Aemond asked.
“The nurses will have to help”, his muña said.
Jace scoffed. “So, the guy who we’ve been seeing for nine months for this exact delivery isn’t even here?”
“Jace, it's fine I’ve done this before. You have one example here and the others in the waiting room. I’ll be fine.”
She winced for a moment. “Just wait outside, don’t worry about me.”
Jace begrudgingly went outside and Aemond closed the door behind them. When they walked back into the waiting room, Jace excused himself and went outside toward the vending machine. Outside was fairly empty. Jace wanted to hit the machine, shake it, anything. He couldn’t just stand there and be useless when something bad might happen to his muña.
He wanted the machine to just swallow his dollar and give nothing back. He wanted a reason to take out his anger on the machine. That didn’t happen. The machine dropped a bag of candy. Jace roughly pulled it out.
“Didn’t know you were that serious about candy.”
Jace turned around to see Cregan had followed him.
“Shouldn’t you be in the waiting room?” Jace asked.
“Shouldn’t you? It’s your family.”
Jace looked away. “I just needed a minute.”
“Something happen?”
“You shouldn’t worry about it. I already dragged you into enough as is.”
“Okay, first of all, drop the bullshit, Jace. I let you take my car and went to go with you. I wasn’t dragged into anything. Call me crazy but I like hanging out with you and your family. And also, as your future brother-in-law-”
Jace scoffed.
Cregan looked offended but only cleared his throat. “I repeat as your future brother-in-law, your family is going to be my family too, so they concern me too.”
Jace shook his head with an amused smile. “Right your future mother-in-laws.”
“Exactly. So, what’s up?”
Jace shifted his gaze. “The doctor’s running late.”
“How late?”
“Might not get here in time late.”
“Crap. Okay. Okay. What’s his name?”
“Dr. Gerardys. Why?”
“Jace, just let me handle it,” Cregan assured.
Jace made a face. “What are you going to do?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“Everything you say makes me even more worried.”
Cregan put his hand on Jace’s shoulder. “Jace, for once let me help you.”
“Fine just don’t do anything like…illegal.”
“Says the one that made an illegal U-turn earlier.”
“That was a different scenario.”
Cregan rolled his eyes. “Sure.” His gray eyes shifted. “In the meantime, you might want to talk to Joff.” 
“Why?”
Cregan gestured over past the vending machine. Joffrey sat alone in a seat, staring at his lap.
Jace nodded at Cregan. The two parted before Jace approached Joffrey. He sat beside his youngest sibling. Joff wouldn’t look at anything beside his lap, tough.
“Hey, what are you doing here by yourself?” Jace asked gently. “Everyone else is inside the waiting room.”
Joffrey kept his arms crossed. “Waiting for the baby, I know”, he said bitterly.
Jace immediately knew what was wrong. “You’re upset about the baby.”
“Why did Muña and Mom have another baby? We were just fine before. Now when they have a baby, they’ll only pay attention to him. Everyone else is always busy. Aegon likes to go out with his ‘cool’ friends, Helaena comes home late from her play stuff, Aemond tells me I wouldn’t understand his shows, Daeron does his martial arts and soccer every day, Luke is always planning some prank on Ms. Velaryon, and you’re out with Cregan making your films. With the baby, you’ll forget about me even more than you already do.”
Jace faced his brother. “Joff, that isn’t true. Look, if I’m being honest, I was caught off guard by the baby too. However, even if I’m a bit nervous, I know that I’ll love him just like I love you.”
Joffrey continued to pout. 
“We don’t forget you, Joff. We just have our own things sometimes and can get caught up in them. But you’re still our little brother.”
“You won’t forget about me?”
“Never.”
“Even if I got third place in the field day today?”
“Hey, third place out of twenty isn’t bad.”   
Joff finally smiled. “I won at tug of war with my team.”
“You did?”
“Yeah, I accidentally threw dirt at someone on the other team.”
Jace’s face scrunched together. “How do you accidentally throw dirt?”
“I mean I said it was an accident.”
Jace stared at his brother. “An accident?”
“Yeah. I also accidentally stepped on someone else’s foot.”
“I’m starting to think these aren’t accidents.”
Joffrey giggled. Jace just ruffled his dirty hair. 
“Want to go back inside the waiting room?” Jace asked.
Joff nodded.
When they walked back to the waiting room, Jace sat next to Helaena while Joffrey rested his head on his shoulder. Eventually, Cregan came back inside from wherever he was and sat on the other side of Helaena. They waited in the office for fifteen minutes before the door to the waiting was slammed open. A man in a white lab coat hastily ran down the halls. Jace sat up. It was Dr. Gerardys. 
Jace turned toward his brother, Aemond. “He’s here.”
Aemond sighed. “Thank the Gods.” 
Jace leaned back into his chair. The stress left his body when he allowed himself to relax his muscles. Half an hour went by when a nurse called their last name. Jace gently awoke Joffrey, who had fallen asleep. 
Helaena took Joffrey by the hand and walked ahead toward the hospital room. Aemond followed behind with Aegon and Daeron, whose flip-flops squeaked against the white glossy tiles. Luke walked just ahead of Jace and Cregan.
“I’m surprised the doctor got here so fast”, Jace commented to himself. 
“A little bit of persuading helps move things along”, Cregan mused.
Jace turned to his best friend and narrowed his eyes. “What did you do?”
“A little bit of persuading.”
“What did you do? And should I be concerned that it was illegal?”
“I just grabbed his business card at the front desk and gave him a call.”
“What did you say on the call?”
“I may have said something along the lines of a car accident being the least of his concerns if he’s late.” 
“You didn’t. Cregan, you didn’t.”
“Motivation helps.”
Jace rubbed his temple. “Oh, my Gods.”
“Jace, hurry”, Helaena called.
They shuffled inside the hospital room. His mom was sitting beside the bed with a smile on her features. She gestured for them to get close. His muña was sweaty with her hair slightly tied as she held a bundle in her arms. Her eyes gleamed when she saw them enter the room. 
“Kids, come over here”, she beckoned. “Come meet your baby brother.”
They approached her side. Jace smiled when he saw him. The blue blanket did little to hide his face. His tiny cheeks were red and round. His eyes were closed shut as he slept. His fingers were wrapped around his muña’s gown. Small strands of light hair were on the top of his head.
“Do you have a name for him?” Jace asked softly.
“We were actually talking about that”, his mom replied.
His muña scoffed playfully. “We can think about that later, let’s get a picture of the whole family.”
His mom scanned the room. “Oh, Gods where did I put that camera?”
Cregan grabbed the camera from a seat. “I got it.”
His muña smiled gently. “Cregan, would it be alright if you took a picture?”
Cregan smiled. “Got you, Mrs. T.”
All of his siblings stood on both sides of his muña as she and his mom presented the baby in her arms. 
Cregan grinned. “Say cheese.” 
Jace smiled with his family. A flash went off. 
“You guys look great”, Cregan commented as he looked at the photo.
The door creaked as a nurse came in. Jace watched the color slowly drain from her face as she saw them. Jace looked back at his family. He had nearly forgotten Aegon and Daeron’s beach attire, Aemond’s eye patch, Helaena’s camo jumpsuit, Luke’s blue hair, Joffrey’s dirtied appearance, and his and Cregan’s shirts from their film.
“Hi”, his mom greeted the nurse. “Would it be alright if you took a picture of all of us?” She looked at his friend. “Cregan, get in the photo.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Cregan rushed to take a spot by their side.
The nurse took the camera. Her face looked less than impressed with the family.
Joffrey was looking down at their news addition when he out loud he said, “He kind of looks like an egg. That’s what I’m going to call him, Egg.”
Jace gave an amused smile as the camera flashed. 
The nurse sighed. “Good luck Egg, you’re going to need it.”
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avatrice + kiss on the back of the hand?
[ava + some friends, more outside pov (in the future!) for @unicyclehippo]
//
despite the fact that physical therapy is boring, and not at all your favorite activity, you like your therapist, brian, and at least you’ve gotten to consistently schedule it early enough in the morning you don’t miss your bridge group. and you’ve been compliant — mostly; you did spend more time on your feet last week than you were supposed to, but your grandson was visiting and you would never let him leave without having his favorite brisket and matzoh ball soup — and have done the exercises brian gives you to do at home every day. 
the physical therapy gym is mostly boring, more — and you hate to say it — old people, like you, recovering from total knee or total hip replacements, and a few young athletes. your son, ezra, drops you off and picks you up twice a week; sometimes his husband, marcus, fills in and he always takes you to get donuts afterward, your little secret. today you sit at the table you always start at, your walker steady and almost unnecessary at this point, and a young woman, exhausted-looking and the kind of pretty that could easily belong in a party when you were young, sitting in a sleek wheelchair by the table, smiles gently across you. you’re early by a few minutes — ezra is wonderful, but he’s a bit wound up all the time — so you smile back. ‘i’m ruth,’ you say. 
‘hi.’ the young woman seems happy to talk, cheerful. ‘i’m ava.’
‘very exciting beginning to your morning, it seems like.’
she groans. ‘ugh, tell me about it. my partner barely woke up in time to drive me here.’
you laugh. ‘not a morning person?’
ava rolls her eyes. ‘no, not at all. i love mornings though, even if they’re at physical therapy.’
‘it’s not so bad,’ you tell her. ‘have you done it before?’
‘not really.’ she shrugs. ‘i have some chronic spine stuff from a car accident when i was younger, and my doctors have tried… a lot, so we’re hoping this helps everything.’
‘i hope it’ll help.’ you gesture to your walker. ‘total hip replacement. from being old.’
ava’s smile is bright. ‘kinda cool, to get old, though, huh? and to have as cool of clothes as you do? i can only hope the same for myself, one day.’
it’s sweet, and sincere, and aching under the surface. ‘it is wonderful, to get to grow old. and —‘ you wink — ‘to get to be better dressed than everyone around you.’
‘hell yeah.’ she looks at her own hoodie and joggers. ‘i usually am better dressed than this, or, at least, more fun; i just had surgery last week.’
‘well, when you’re feeling better, i’m sure i’ll be very impressed.’
‘i don’t know about that.’ ava blushes a little, and you’re delighted. ‘i think my partner is probably the better dressed of the two of us; she’s very chic. but i’m fun!’
‘fun is the most important part. especially when you’re an old lady.’
she laughs and then brian walks up, says hi to you, and you wave. ‘good luck, ava. i’ll talk to you soon.’
‘for sure,’ she tells you enthusiastically.
/
you’re waiting on a bench in front of the physical therapy gym in the warm sunshine — not too hot, not too cold, perfect — when ava walks toward you, slowly and with a cane, but walking.
‘is this seat taken?’
‘for a pretty girl like you? absolutely not.’
she laughs, bright and warm. ‘ruth, you flirt.’
‘i’m old.’ she sits gingerly and it makes you hurt for her, just a little — not that she needs any mobility aids, but because it’s clear she’s in pain. ‘i get to flirt whenever i want.’
‘oh, is that how it works?’
‘absolutely,’ you tell her sagely.
‘well, other than me, of course, let me know if there are any crushes i should know about? i love drama, and my life is, both tragically and fortunately, drama free right now.’
‘well, sean in my bridge group, and david from shul. oh, and lee from my favorite cafe i go to for lunch.’ 
‘hmm, pros and cons? or are we playing the field?’
you laugh, and you tell her about sean’s clever hands, the beautiful way david reads scripture, how lee always offers you half his reuben. ava listens attentively, like she really cares, and, after she asks a thoughtful series of questions about how to play bridge — my girlfriend would probably demolish at this game, honestly — you understand that she really does care; she really does want to know you. so you ask her questions too; her partner’s name is beatrice, and she is, according to ava, beautiful and kind and exacting; ava grew up mostly in spain and is a bartender, which she loves, and they live in a house on the beach because beatrice, apparently, works in consulting all over europe, and also enjoys teaching aikido. ‘she has four black belts,’ ava says, and fans herself. it makes you laugh, and when marcus drives up in his practical, nice bmw hybrid, you pat her hand. 
‘see you tuesday, ruth.’
‘enjoy your weekend, ava.’
/
ava’s walking better on tuesday, and she sits next to you without asking this time, after you’re both finished. she fishes around in her crossbody bag and then holds out her hand, some candy with wrappers in mandarin on her palm. ‘they’re plum candies. they’re beatrice’s favorites, so i thought i was being sweet, but, i kinda went overboard and ordered, like, enough for a small army.’
you laugh but take one — you would never turn down an offered sweet; something of a communion — and open it while ava does the same. it’s wonderful: flavorful and sweet and a little sour, and you tell ava that.
‘ugh, i know,’ she says. ‘i don’t think bea had had them for a really long time; she cried the other day.’ ava smiles, like she’s trying not to laugh. ‘it was very sweet. a little dramatic, but i get it. i kind of go crazy for panellets.’
‘well, i’m making babka tomorrow, how about i bring you both some thursday?’
‘ruth, that’s too much.’
‘i love to share food,’ you say. ‘really, it’s part of the job description of a bubbe. they only let you in if you share your babka.’
ava rolls her eyes but then she nods. ‘i would really love that.’
ezra drives up, and you stand — easily, now, without pain and much stiffness — and wave.
/
your babka turns out as good as it always does — the best at shul, despite the fact that yael claims hers is better — and you place a few carefully in a tupperware to bring to ava, who seems a little wilted when she sits next to you. she waves you off when you look concerned.
’no big deal,’ she says. ‘just didn’t sleep too well last night. but! now i’m going to eat the world’s best babka and nap after bea drops me off. do you think i could convince her to nap with me?’
‘depends on why you didn’t sleep well last night.’
it takes ava a minute but then she laughs, brightening immediately. ‘ruth!’
‘you’re young, you should be having fun.’
‘oh, we have fun.’ ava grins. ‘don’t worry.’
‘well, speaking of fun,’ you say, ‘a few of my friends and i go to this water aerobics class at the country club together, every wednesday. i’m sorry if i was eavesdropping, but i heard kayvon tell you that some water therapy might be helpful? it’s really quite fun.’
‘that sounds awesome, honestly. i just got cleared to drive myself next week, so i would love that!’
you don’t bother to mention that everyone in the class is over seventy, mostly because you don’t really care, but, also, ava doesn’t seem to care, at all, that you’re at least fifty years older than her: you’re friends, and she’s kind, and bright. 
once again, marcus is there to pick her up before her ride, but you give her your number — and you add her on facebook, because that’s easier for you sometimes — before you leave. you send her the details later that day, and she responds with a few emojis you don’t understand, but that your grandson laughs at when you show him. good enough. 
/
‘i didn’t know, really, what to wear to water aerobics,’ ava says, happily sitting on the edge of the pool with you. she has on a simple red one-piece, her hair tied up in a bun, although short pieces escape. the back dips low and you see multiple scars, some faded and one new, and painful looking; ava’s light often makes you forget why you first met. 
‘this is great,’ you tell her. you gesture to your brightly colored, polka dotted tankini. ‘you can spice it up however much you want. just wait until you meet angela.’
as if on cue, angela, tall and Black and striking, walks in, with her perpetually perfect close cropped hair, in a pair of heels and draped in an elegant silk coverup over a royal blue bikini. ‘whoa,’ ava says, and it’s so earnest it makes you laugh.
‘listen,’ ava says, ‘i’m bi, queer, and, yeah, i have a partner who is so so so beautiful, like, god, this morning she came home from surfing and used our outdoor shower — thank god for her trust fund, am i right? — but… ruth, i have eyes.’ she looks over to you. ‘you have eyes too, right? like, no offense to sean and david and lee, but… angela is stunning, okay?’
‘she is,’ you grant her, mostly because you’re amused. angela walks over and smiles, gracious and perfect, and you gesture to ava, who gulps. ‘angela, ava. ava, angela.’
‘hello, ava,’ angela says. ‘ruth says that she’s quite fond of you from physical therapy.’
‘yeah,’ ava says, a little stunned. ‘that’s — that’s really kind, ruth.’
‘we don’t invite just anyone to water aerobics. it’s an exclusive club.’
‘other than courtney,’ angela grumbles.
’well, true,’ you admit. ‘but she’s not part of lunch. ava, next week, you should come join us.’
‘i would love that,’ she says. ‘beatrice will too, i’ll make sure of it.’
you laugh, and angela waves to rosa and farha when she sees them. class goes great; ava seems, when you look over at her a few times, to enjoy it a lot. even though you hadn’t really worried that ava would feel out of place, any nagging feelings are assuaged when she gets out of the pool and wraps a towel around her shoulders, carefully moves on the wet floor with a cane.
‘i told bea i’d be home soon,’ she says, ‘and she gets kinda nervous when i’m late. but! i’ll see you at therapy tomorrow, and i’ll definitely plan on lunch next week.’ she hesitates for a moment and then gives you a hug, which fills you with a very particular kind of warmth. ‘thank you, for inviting me.’
‘of course, ava. see you tomorrow.’
/
you see ava at therapy and you think, for the most part, she’s improving: you haven’t seen her wheelchair in months, and she still uses her cane, but you think it’s mostly because it feels safer, especially if she’s sore. you start going once a week but it doesn’t really matter, because she comes to water aerobics in increasingly fun swimsuits, including a purple stripped bikini that makes even angela whistle. ‘oh, to be young again,’ she had said, and ava had blushed.
‘so, how did you meet beatrice?’ margot asks, back from her annual trip to florida.
ava puts down her fork and smiles, so soft. ‘work, in spain. a job i didn’t even want, even. but, even from when we first met, she’s always just been so kind. we spent a sabbatical together, one summer, and that’s when i really fell in love with her.’
‘love at first sight, then?’ angela grins.
‘maybe not quite,’ ava says, then laughs. ‘i was… difficult, back then. obviously, i’m a total angel now.’
you roll your eyes and farha says, ‘oh, sure.’
‘we’ve been through a lot,’ ava says, softer and very sincere. ‘she’s — she’s the best person i know.’
‘well we need to meet her,’ you decide, even though you’ve been meaning to ask them both to shabbat soon anyway. ‘bring her to lunch friday?’
‘if that’s okay with everyone? i guarantee she has exceedingly good manners, much much better than mine.’
‘low bar,’ rosa says.
‘ha ha, very funny.’ ava tries her best not to smile but then does anyway, brighter than the noon sun overhead outside.
/
you’re just sitting down at the table, one extra seat this week, when ava perks up and then stands, steady and even, and you see who you know, from pictures ava has shown you, is beatrice, smiling a little nervously. ‘hi, baby,’ ava says, and beatrice takes ava’s hand and gently places a kiss to her knuckles, like a genuine knight.
‘absurd,’ angela whispers from next to you, and you try not to laugh loud enough for them to hear you, because they’re young but they’re not that young: they have a home together, and you know, from the few things ava has mentioned privately, usually on days that are too, too bright, things have been hard, and they’ve had to spend time apart in the past, and ava is thankful.
‘hello, everyone,’ beatrice says, her accent and posture extremely formal, in contrast to her casual but still, somehow, smart black hoodie and white sweatshorts and birkenstocks. her hair is in a messy bun, a few strands escaping that ava happily pushes behind her ears, and a big tattoo sitting above her left knee; she’s muscular and strong, but there are freckles spread across her cheeks and, when ava smiles at her, she softens, entirely. they are young, and, even though ava has shown you pictures, you’re still struck, in the moment, by how much they fit. 
there’s a chorus of hi, beatrice and it’s so good to meet you and ava talks about you all the time, but beatrice takes it all in stride, a happy little smile on her face. you understand, quickly, that they fit, the same way you and aaron had, so long ago: ava is loud and overwhelmingly bright, enthusiastic and generous with all of her affection, and beatrice is quietly funny, whip smart, and thoughtfully attentive to ava. she turns and listens, fully, to whoever is talking, and knows about rosa’s birding, and the shrine farha talks about in lahore, and the new podcast angela is listening to. she’s impressive, as a person, and ava seems distinctly aware of it, basking, a little, in being chosen by someone so special.
‘sorry i’m underdressed,’ beatrice says after you order. ‘i was surfing this morning, and then had to jump on a work call, and i didn’t want to be late.’
‘everything okay?’ ava checks.
‘yes,’ beatrice says, soothes a hand along ava’s thigh and then squeezes her knee. ‘nothing of concern.’
ava squints. ’were you just asleep? you wouldn’t lie to me, right?’
beatrice pauses. ‘i was — well, catching up on some sleep, when camila called.’
ava barks a laugh. ‘bea is the sleepiest person i know.’
‘sleep is one of the great pleasures of life,’ angela says, regal and finite in her statement, ‘among other things in bed.’ 
beatrice grins while ava blushes. ‘now i know why you like coming to these classes and lunches so much,’ beatrice says, shooting angela a wink. ‘you do have a type.’
‘ah, and what a type it is,’ ava says, sighing for effect, seemingly recovered from her momentary emabrassment.
at the end of lunch, you do invite them to shabbat, and beatrice asks your favorite kind of kosher wine.
/
‘okay, you are all sworn to secrecy,’ ava says, leaning forward at the table. it’s not particularly quiet, because farha’s hearing aides can only do so much, and rosa flat out refuses to wear any, but there’s no on important around you anyway.
‘wonderful,’ angela says.
‘i love a secret,’ you agree.
‘well.’ ava lets out a big breath. ‘beatrice and i are going to switzerland, next week, to the alps, where we spent our first summer together, and i —‘ she shakes her head — ‘this feels so crazy, but i’m going to propose.’
it sends the whole table into a flurry of excitement, asking about ava’s plan — a hike, the one they would go on every tuesday together, slowly and for fun — and the ring ava had picked out — beautiful, and elegant, and perfect, you think — and, ‘do you think she’ll say yes?’
ava gulps. ‘i know she wants to spend her life with me.’ she sounds sure, and calm, despite her fingers nervously fidgeting with her napkin. ‘she was… very religious, for a long time, so, like, she’s always been really accepting of other same sex marriages, but i think it’s taken her a minute to get her to feel ready for, like, our own very queer marriage. sacrament, and all that, i guess.’ she shakes her head. ‘but anyway, yes! i think she’s ready. i think she really wants to get married.’
her smile is gentle, serene, and you had watched beatrice — in neat linen, her hair long and swept over her shoulder, fight her way through eating multiple bites of gefilte fish last friday, even though it was clear she hated it, and say prayers in hebrew, quietly. ava had been in her chair; you hadn’t asked, and neither had anyone from shul or your family, but beatrice had made sure that she had everything she needed, unobtrusive and practiced. ava had been, unexpectedly, the life of the party, charming everyone with her laugh and her silly puns and a very spirited debate with your granddaughter about women’s soccer. they’re a pair, you understood, very clearly: at the end of the night, ava had encouraged beatrice, gently, to take extra kugel along with the challah and chicken you’d already put in tupperware for them; beatrice had gotten their sweaters from the closet and handed ava’s to hers with a kiss to her forehead, tender and private, a moment that had belonged just to them.
‘we’ll all be eagerly awaiting the engagement photographs,’ angela says with sure gravitas.
‘post them on facebook,’ you tell her, and ava laughs, but she promises, later, when you give her a hug, that she will.
/
‘thank you, for inviting us,’ you tell ava, a bit in awe, if you’re being honest, of their house. she bounces around happily, and angela just looks at you with a raised brow for a moment. there are bright red and gold decorations everywhere, and beatrice walks over with a neat bun and beautiful jacket, embroidered so elegantly even angela seems a little in love with it.
’happy new year,’ she says, and you both give her a hug as you return the sentiment, then shows you to their kitchen, with a spread of chinese food that smell so, so good, and then gestures out to the open-air doors and patio that overlooks the ocean. ‘help yourselves to whatever you want. ruth, there are plenty of dishes that i made sure meet all kosher standards; they should be labeled. and there’s plenty of seating, and come find me if you need anything.’ she pauses. ‘or ava, but she gets a little… activated when we have a lot of people over.’
‘so, did we know how rich they were?’ angela says, loading her plate with everything she can after beatrice walks away to greet more guests.
‘not this rich.’
you both wait a beat and then laugh, and you find seats by the railing; your hip doesn’t hurt at all anymore. ava finds you both eventually and steals an egg roll from your plate with a laugh. ‘i’ll get you another one,’ she promises. ‘and, i just wanted to say, thanks for being my friends. i know it’s silly, but the water aerobics have really helped me feel better — and much less bored — when my mobility has been limited. and i love hearing about your lives, and sharing mine. i just —’ she scrubs her hand along the back of her neck, her hair neatly trimmed to her chin, fluttering in the breeze. ‘i went a long time without great role models.’
it’s so sincere and so touching. angela sniffles and you fish a hanky from your purse and hand it to her; she dabs her eyes.
‘don’t call us old,’ she says, voice breaking, and ava laughs.
‘i could’ve called you my adoptive grandmothers, so count your blessings.’
you roll your eyes when she takes a big, smiling bite of her (your) egg roll. ‘you are a blessing,’ you tell her.
ava swallows her bite and then leans to hug you, tight and sincere. ‘thank you,’ she whispers.
‘happy new year, ava.’
‘yeah,’ she says, a little teary but with a huge smile. ‘happy new year.’
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asksythe · 1 year
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MXTX Interview with Risa Wataya for Subaru Magazine P.6
Creative Process: 
Risa: "Mo Dao Zu Shi" has not only sweet scenes but also painful scenes. After scenes of brutality, violence, and death, the characters might carefreely chat about nothing and everything, or there might be some lovey-dovey scenes. This is like treating readers with alternating pleasure and torture. Did you do this intentionally during your creative process? 
Moxiang: If I only write about sad, painful story elements, my readers will inevitably leg it. From the other perspective, joy and happiness are comparatively fleeting emotions. If I only write joyful, happy stuff, I would not be able to touch and move my readers to any significant depth. Therefore, I paid special attention to balancing both sides during my creative process. 
Kuohao: If you keep the same kind of tone throughout the story, the evocative effect will inevitably decrease. Readers will eventually become bored of it. But if you time it right, readers (listeners in the case of audio drama)'s emotions will go up and down along with the flow of the story. The pacing and structure of "Mo Dao Zu Shi" are incredibly well-timed. As a result, the audio drama script was not changed in any significant way and stayed loyal to the source materials' strength. 
Risa: Do you feel pain when you write sad parts, and joy when you write happy parts? 
Moxiang: In the case of "Mo Dao Zu Shi", I put myself in the position of an observer when writing sad parts, and focus on the development of the narrative. In the happy parts, I put myself among the characters and indulge in their shared joy. 
Risa: That's so clever of you. There are so many 'torturous' (*) parts in the novel, so I thought perhaps it was very difficult. When reading "Mo Dao Zu Shi," I feel that there's a vast world populated by many people in Ms. Moxiang's mind. Where does Ms. Moxiang's immense imagination come from? 
(*: literally 'reverse/mistreat/torture.' It's a modern Chinese slang denoting sad story elements designed to 'emotionally damage' the readers. Please check the note for the same word in part 3 of this translation)
Moxiang: If we are speaking of imagination, I feel that it's important to visit many places and meet vastly different people. In other words, step out of the house a bit more. But in terms of building characters, observing people is of great importance, even more important is... to dig deep into your own heart. 
Before, when I was a young child, I read stories by Alexandre Dumas, Hugo, Balzac, and other world-famous authors. A writer staying in his room alone, talking to himself, laughing, and crying. A friend visiting him saw him in this state and became worried: "Is your mind alright?" But when the friend was about to leave, the author said: "Don't worry about me. I'm just writing a story." 
Risa: The excitement of unraveling mysteries starting from the introduction of the story is a pleasure when reading Ms. Moxiang's novel. The introduction carries details that, sometimes later on, become a key point in the second half of the story in unimaginable ways. There's also a feeling of picking up hints and information purposefully left behind by the author. Is this a careful deliberation on your part during the writing process? 
Moxiang: As I said, I only start to truly write once I have completed the outline of the story. About 80% of the story is planned. 20% is inspiration that came up during the writing. I think that the story structure is immensely important.
..
Translator’s Note: In this part is a section concerning the audio drama by Mimi. Risa talked mostly to Kuohao. Moxiang only chimed in at the last bit to say the production quality was very high and she was very happy with it. So, for now, I’m not including that part here. Once I have completed the translation, I will reorganize everything into a single file, proofread, edit, and host it on google drive so that it can be shared with the community. 
..
Before writing "Mo Dao Zu Shi" 
Risa: Ms. Moxiang, please tell us how you started writing stories. What kind of stories did you write when you first started? 
Moxiang: The first time I started writing stories was probably while I was in elementary school. Along the way to my school was a bookstore selling books as big as a hand. I love buying the ghost story magazines there. Because of this influence, I remember writing lots of horror stories while in elementary school. Although most of them were just short parts and scenes and weren't complete stories. The first story I completed was 'Tian Shi' (lit. Celestial Master), a schoolyard romance story, during my secondary school. Even though it was just a WIP draft, it still got some of my classmates really riled up. "I also want to be a character in this story." "I want to be in the same team as this heroine." I got a lot of requests like this. 
Risa: Woa, I so want to read that story! 
Moxiang: the heroine, the heroine's childhood male friend (let's call him A), and a male classmate that suddenly appears (let's call him B). This story is about these three. The thing I remember most about this story is: when I asked my classmates, who were my first readers, for their opinions (I still keep the draft now. Even though now it's old and yellow); around that time, I wrote a romance between the heroine and B, but the result from all of my readers was: everyone liked A instead! I was so shocked! Everyone commented: "B's love is so whatever! (*) We want to see A and heroine together!" (laugh). I could not understand it at the time, but now that I think about it, A certainly does have a charm of his own. Even though I wrote without any kind of plans or forethought at the time, after that, I started to realize: "The main character must be a person I love the most and has the most charm." At the time, I looked at my classmates' excitement and admiration for my story and felt so happy. As a result, my old notes are filled with old, incomplete stories. If I have a chance in the future, I would like to complete them. 
(*: Northeastern Mandarin slang 爱咋样咋样. A combination of Heibei-Shandong and Jiao-Liao Mandarin. It means 'whatever' / 'don't care'/ 'indifferent')
Risa: To be honest, I have the same experience as Ms. Moxiang. I drew manga while in secondary school. My classmate said after reading: "I hope you can continue to draw." I was overjoyed. Perhaps it is because of this kind of experience that I became a novelist. 
Moxiang: Me too. From the start, I also wanted to become a Manhua artist! Perhaps this is normal for people who want to become novelists. Because I never had the chance to learn how to draw, the result is that I chose to become a novelist. 
Risa: A, I feel the same! Ms. Moxiang, where do you get your ideas?
Moxiang: To put it simply, it starts from 'fulfilling a personal desire.' For example, if it's a detective or mystery story, then I want to fulfill my curiosity and solve puzzles. If it's a romance story, then I want to love and be loved. If it's a survival story, then I want to see survival in extreme conditions. To fulfill these desires, I think of how to best tell stories. To write a great story, one must have a foundation of intense desire. Of course, the amalgamation of multiple desires also works. In fact, 'desire' is a 'thread.' The story is the pursuit of this 'thread' to the very end. Once you have found a strong desire, disregard everything else, the story starts there.   
Risa: So that's how it is. 
Moxiang: I think that each author has different ideas. I personally build the characters first. Their personality, their destiny, and their emotions. Once a character with irresistible charisma appears and makes people fall in love with him (her), then they will surely love his (her) story too. Therefore, build the characters first, then weave the story. That is my process. Until now, I've only produced three novels. So I still find the process of structuring a story to be complicated. In terms of the structure and pacing of stories, I strongly recommend Robert McKee's "Story"! You can learn the theory of writing craft.  
To Be Continued
Translator: Sythe / NPD Khanh
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“Ooooooh, that looks interesting!”
Keith groans, as loudly and dramatically as he can. He tries to emulate Shiro every time he was finally forced to actually do his job and mark student papers after weeks of procrastinating.
(He’s pretty successful, if he does say so himself.)
“Please,” he begs the red paladin, yanking on his sleeve to dissuade him from turning into the store. It does nothing.
“C’mon,” Lance says, ignoring his agony. “One last store, okay?”
“You’re a dirty liar. You said that two hours ago.”
Lance reaches back blindly to pat Keith patronizingly on the head, missing by a mile and smacking him on the face instead. Keith has to bat his hands away. “There, there. You once tried to fight a ten thousand year old zombie dictator with your bare hands. You will survive.”
“Fistfighting Zarkon wasn’t nearly this painful,” Keith grumbles, but lets Lance pull him into the store, anyway.
God, he’s fucking whipped. He’s embarrassed of himself. Truly.
He dutifully takes the basket Lance hands him (on top of his twelve other shopping bags, full to the brim, Keith might add) and holds it out whenever Lance gasps excitedly and swipes something off a shelf or a hangar.
“Allura would look great in this skirt!”
“Wouldn’t Pidge look adorable with this hair bow?”
“Oh, Hunk has been looking for this!”
“Gasp!” (He actually says the word gasp, out loud, with his mouth.) “Hair chalk! Maybe Shiro will let me dye his floof!”
“You’re ridiculous,” Keith tells him. He sounds so fond that a random passer-by raises an amused eyebrow at him, which makes Keith want to melt into the floor. “Like an irritating wind-up toy.”
There. That should cover his tracks.
Lance pauses for a moment, turning to face Keith and squinting at him. For a brief, foolish moment, Keith feels something like hope — maybe this horrible torture will come to an end!
“Didn’t you collect wind-up toys when you were a kid?” he questions, head tilted. “You had like four boxes of them in your shack. I stole a little stegosaurus.”
Keith opens his mouth, then shuts it again. His ears burn.
“First of all, you have a kleptomania problem,” he points out, instead of stop knowing so much about me and let me live in peace. “Second of all, you are a snoop and I hate you.”
Lance snorts. “Yeah, yeah.”
Keith is about to say something else, something scathing, something to make him the clear winner of this dumbass, not-real argument, but then Lance absentmindedly links his arm through Keith’s and pulls him close as he strolls down an aisle full of puzzles and games.
Keith’s throat goes dry. Lance smells faintly of something floral, sweet.
Briefly, he squeezes his eyes shut and prays for strength. It will do nothing, because the universe likes to put Keith in horrible situations and laugh at him, but he tries anyway.
They walk in mostly silence for a the next little while, interrupted only by Lance’s quiet humming and occasional points of interest. He’s agonizingly slow to walk through the store — Keith is sure at this point that he’s doing it on purpose, no one likes shopping for this long, he’s definitely punishing Keith for drinking the last of the red juice packs — but perks up excitedly when he sees an aisle lined with jars on one side, and various tubes and pallets on the other.
“Look! Look look look! They have a skincare and makeup section!”
Keith turns his head to the sky. “Why do you despise me,” he mutters to it.
He is never getting out of this goddamn store.
“Come on, you drama queen,” Lance says, dragging him towards the first shelf of various products. “Shiro and Pidge keep stealing all my products because they are horrible people who don’t know how to ask for things. I need to replenish. Come help!”
He yanks Keith forward. Yelping, Keith stumbles after him. “I’m coming, you goober, yeesh! Ease up a bit.”
Smirking, Lance ignores him. He reaches for a shiny pink pot, unscrewing the lid and taking a sniff. He makes a face. “Blegh. Here.”
Keith indulgently smells it and almost gags. “That smells the way final exams feel.”
He trails after Lance for the next fifteen minutes, smelling weirdo products and laughing himself to tears at Lance’s various reactions. He has the pleasure of making Lance laugh, too, with all his creative descriptions; making his brown eyes light up and his bright smile making Keith’s heart do dangerous things.
He’s so fucked. He’s so fucked!
“Oh, hey, I have an idea. Close your eyes.”
It doesn’t even occur to Keith not to listen. That’s the embarrassing part. Lance tells him to close his eyes and immediately his world goes dark.
He feels something approach his face.
“Smell this,” Lance says.
Keith grimaces. “Can we be done with the nasty smells?”
“This one isn’t nasty, promise. It’s lip gloss. Guess the flavour.”
Keith hesitantly leans forward and inhales. To his surprise, the scent is pleasant, familiar.
“Mint?”
“That one was too easy,” Lance says. “Keep your eyes closed, smell this one.”
Less wary now, Keith does. This one is even better than before.
“Oh, oranges!”
Lance grumbles to himself. Keith hears rustling, like Lance is digging through something, and then a sharp intake of breath.
Keith peeks an eye open. “Everything okay?”
“Close your eyes again,” Lance orders. Keith does, hesitantly, noting that Lance’s expression is very particular, in a way he can’t place.
“Guess this one,” he says quietly.
Keith does. He frowns, tiling his head in confusion.
“D’you give up?”
Lance sounds closer. Much closer, actually. Keith’s breaths get heavier.
“No.”
Lance says nothing for a moment, and Keith is tempted to open his eyes. He feels Lance get closer, feels the heat of his breath on his cheeks. He’s still for a moment, and Keith’s heart pounds as he breathes rapidly, strangely familiar scent of the lipgloss getting closer and closer.
“…You want a hint?”
Keith nods rapidly. The smell gets even stronger, and then something warm and sticky presses against his lips.
Lance is kissing him.
He pulls back as quickly as he leaned in, but not far. The scent of the lip gloss is still cloying, intermingling with the scent of Lance, sweet and fruity.
“I don’t think I’ve ever tasted it before,” Keith rasps. He cracks open his eyes, barely, and finds them level with Lance’s nose, close to those shiny lips.
Lance hums. “It’s sweet pear.”
“Oh.” That makes sense. “It’s nice.”
Lance leans in again, and Keith does too, like a magnet drawn to Lance’s polarity. “Wanna taste again?”
As if Keith would ever say no to that.
———
based on this post
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Bridgerton Season 3 Episode 1 Initial Reactions
I didn't get to post these reactions so I'm posting them late as I needed time to edit all my 3am typos (cry) from Thursday.
Bless Francesca for being the funniest lowkey Bridgerton with that piano playing scene.
I swear I paused the Colin glow up reveal scene to analyze everyone's reaction. My top choices are Anthony and Kate and Bennedict.
ABC reunion + Gregory being adorable. I love when they show the sibling interactions.
Backs up, did I just see ASL from a debutant! That is so cool!
Queen Charlotte is having none of these people lmfao
Not Eloise getting dragged by Colin by her fashion choices (peak brother-sister vibes)
Stop- Francesca: “y'all are chaotic yappers the lord cannot present me a harder challenge”
Featherington's! I almost forgot both of Pen's sisters were married here! I keep remembering the book (romancing Mr. Bridgerton) and that the show has arranged things differently.
Prudence's man (I cannot/ do not remember his name) is giving such strong Kenergy.
Would it be the Featherington household without financial drama?
Eloise - Pen meet up, omg the heart break in their eyes!!
Cressida, when I get you!! It has been 0.5 seconds since this girl got to this garden party and she's already bullying Pen. Girl breathe.
Cressida-Eloise is intriguing as a dynamic I’m afraid. Also, Pen’s sad little face (cry)
I'm a bit confused with Francesca's interest in the marriage mart right now as she seems to prefer being around small groups of people and does not have much interest in being around guys. It feels as if this is a chore she must fulfil.
Kate -Violet solidarity is so cute to see after the angst of last season
Lady Danbury in the white ensemble with the top hat is looking magnificent I want her to poke someone with her cane!!
I'm liking the make up on Kate much more this season??? She seems a lot more glowy and rosy, maybe it's the lighting or something but her make up looks different.
I'm so sorry but Colin getting all this attention after having a literal hot girl summer is vv funny. Like he's in his early 20s lmao, but he is not giving confidence he is giving slightly awkward line reading with no chemistry. In the books him being more rakish was believable because it was set 10 years later.
Colin meeting and talking to Pen, side eye my boy. I'm loving the costuming choices to visibly show they are both uncomfortable/ do not fit their clothes well and it’s so starkly done. Poor Pen in this yellow dress makes her look a lot more juvenile (which isn't bad but it is unflattering). And Colin with what I am assuming are Anthony hand me downs since that jacket looks frumpy. The parallels!
Omg "Go home and get to work" Mrs.Featherington is so unserious
One sentence horror story "I take comfort in knowing you will always be there to take care of me". Get out miss Penelope runnn
Colin had one slutty slutty summer and the fact they keep trying to frame it as mostly intellectual is sending me.
Eloise reading Jane Austen! Is this character development?
Every scene so far where Pen and Eloise see each other gives the vibe of two exes meeting after the most devastating break up, I appreciate this framing so much because losing your childhood girl best friend is one of the most painful types of breakups.
ABC hang out?? Bennedict responsibility arc?
"She is colder now I am afraid" is a wild way to say someone is dead.
NEWTON!! BABY!! KANTHONY! IN! BED! BEING ROMANTIC!!
Damn! We're getting steamy af scenes already in the first episode! Anthony needing to go down on his wife to start off the day is certainly something I can get behind.
OOh this outfit reveal! Yessssss bb Pen eat them up! Penelope having a *debut* moment.
Aww the Featherinton spouses are sweet.
I see you Colin with that side eye
Omg Penelope being a bombshell and being socially awkward is so cute. You’ll figure it out soon bb don’t give up, they’re just jelous!
Ooh these girls are not liking Eloise they're sus
I'm a little uninterested in the queen charlotte diamond drama atm
Francesca: Live Laugh Love the piano forte
These guys are being so rude to Fran like let the poor girl speak! You’re traumatizing her.
Kanthony dancing and Kate's dress to reference the Bridgerton blue?? Oh the costume department has served.
Aww walflower solidarity with Francesca and Penelope. They're both the more reserved of their family, it's sweet moment between the two and the encouragement!
I know we won't love lord Debling but he's looking so sweetly at Pen and being so welcoming compared to everyone else.
CRESSIDA they can never make me like you, you little brat.
Yes, Pen eat him up give it to him tell him!!! "You miss me but you would never court me". GET HIS ASSS!!
 I fear our girl will be writing some scathing lady Whistledown.
This man threatening the Featheringtons is a gremlin, and I am getting bad vibes.
This conversation about the pitting of women against each other is valid social commentary but I cannot focus on it as it appears Cressida has murdered a flock of flamingoes to make her outfit.
Self-awareness, Cressida, does not free you from your crimes!
Kanthony is serving this episode. I appreciate this blissfully married life on them! Also Kate’s outfits are so intricate and beautiful. She has come so far.
Francesca so far feels like an external character, and it was similar in the novels until we got to her book. I really hope we get more context for her outlook soon.
Colin, what are YOU doing here. The way that Luke N is serving this season, whew. I really can buy his clueless innocence at his friendship with Pen, but finally the plot is plotting!
I'm very confused by this Baron Kent plot line and its introduction in the first episode.
OOH the drama for Colin's Whistledown dress down.
She really said he ain't shit, it's a facade, a ruse, he's a sad little attention whore
Colin: FUCK lady whistle down all my homies hate lady whistle down.
I'll keep it short. It was simply exhilarating. I love being back it's like slipping into a comfy worn hoodie. It's good to be back!
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striderepiphany · 1 year
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My favorite reddie fics masterpost
I have an absolutely insane number of reddie fics saved in my bookmarks for how recently I joined this fandom so I decided to share my absolute favorites with you. Please give these authors some love and let me know which ones are you've read and enjoyed!
the year of the goat and your kid back by derryfacts2
1 chapter, 14,838 words, No Archive Warnings Apply. Summary: The day you get the most important email of your life, there’s a new black skidmark on the wall of the stairwell, and you know exactly whose fault it is. “Margaret,” you intone to the harried, wild-haired woman in the lobby. She sighs at you as she tries to jimmy her mail key loose. “I know.” It wouldn’t even be that bad if the kid would just skateboard outside. Or get good at skateboarding. Either of those things. Maggie’s a nice lady, though, and she’s had “trying my best” scribbled all over her since they moved into 6B maybe eight years ago. So you try not to be a dick, even if her son is a gold-standard pain in the ass. He’s good for three things: smells, noise, and reminding you how big Eddie must be by now.
The first It fic I read that made me go "holy shit, this is fantastic" and remains one of my all-timers (hence why its first in this list). Really fun and unique outsider POV from Eddie's estranged gay dad, and tells a very sweet story mostly through dialogue. Young adult Eddie and Richie are very cute.
i think the clock is slow by derryfacts2 (again)
3 chapters, 15,815 words, No Archive Warnings Apply. Summary: So there was that reason that work wasn’t boring, too. There was Richie’s soppy campaign of making cow eyes at the back of Eddie’s head as he passed, gently pressing Betty for details about his personal life (“I don’t think he has one. He had this awful fiancé a few years ago, but we’re all glad that’s over”), and chasing the incomparable high of a quiet, muttered “Thanks, Rich” whenever Richie picks something up for him from the copier.
Richie is a wannabe stand-up comic daylighting as the receptionist at Eddie's office. Eddie is a tightly-wound corporate asshole. They are both disasters. Or: five times Richie watched Eddie and one that Eddie watched him back.
I really enjoy workplace dramas and this one satisfied the itch so well. So many good scenes and dialogue, this author characterizes them in a way that really works for me. The perfect read-in-an-afternoon fic.
listen to my heart (can you hear it sing?) by vampirerising
12 chapters, 137,708 words, Major Character Death. Summary: "You need to wake up now,” Stan says softly. “This isn’t real.”
“I know, but I can’t,” Richie sobs. “I don’t want to be here.” Not again. Never again. It is dead, why is It still haunting him?
Stan fixes him with one of those looks of his, the one where he can see his every thought as if it were written on his face. “That’s not true, Trashmouth.”
Alternatively: We all know Richie gets caught in the Deadlights, but do we really know what happens after?
(Deadlights, timelines, Stan’s ghostly meddling—oh, my.)
This one is fucking weird in a way that I absolutely adore. Kind of like a sci-fi novel in that it requires you to pay attention to figure out what the fuck is going on but its so good and worth it. The MCD is Stan, not Eddie, and the last couple chapters are actually a very normal domestic Eddie lives AU. One of the first reddie artworks I made was fanart for a scene from this fic that I really enjoy.
a strange sense of familiarity by Katranga
21 chapters, 103,571 words, No Archive Warnings Apply. Summary: "So Eddie, what brings you to the bar tonight?" Richie asked. "Gonna rebound from the divorce? Pick up a hot young twenty-something to feel young again?” “Fuck you,” Eddie said, jutting his chin forward. “What a terrible way to ruin the mood.” “I’m sorry, all my moods are poorly cultivated. What mood were you looking for?” A nervous lump grew in Eddie's throat. He threw back his drink to get rid of it.
Hand wrapped around the glass he’d just slammed back onto the bar, he said, “The mood that gets me leaving with a schlubby forty-something.”
Pre-chapter two, Eddie and Richie meet and don't remember each other, but have an instant connection anyway...
This one is just... so fucking good. Decently long without ever feeling like it's dragging. Part 1 is them developing their totally-casual-I-swear relationship, which blows up right when Mike calls them back to Derry. Part 2 is them navigating both killing a nightmare clown demon and the awkwardness between them. Also everybody lives! So that's nice.
change partners by avacadomoon (with podfic available)
1 chapter, 30,453 words, No Archive Warnings Apply. Summary: "Rich," Eddie says heavily. Meaningfully, and Richie holds his breath, both afraid and hopeful that Eddie is about to say something really sappy, like I always knew and it didn't matter to me, or you know I support you no matter what. Eddie takes a deep breath before he speaks, and Richie closes his eyes, braced for it. "I didn't look at your dick pics."
"Well hey, Eds, thanks," Richie says, laughing incredulously. "Thanks for that."
I LOVE THIS ONE SOOO FUCKING MUCH. I urge you to consider this as a rec for this author as well, as they have a bunch of other reddie fics I think are fantastic. I have a weakness for any reddie fic that lets them be just a little mean to each other. As a treat. (Also the podfic is very well done, you should check that out too.)
check raise by avacodomoon
1 chapter, 15,061 words, No Archive Warnings Apply. Summary: "Eddie, not a fan of stand up comedy, not a fan of his beer," Rich says, leaning back on one elbow and squinting at him, like he's lining him up in a camera lens frame, "but what is he doing drinking alone?"
"I was alone, and now I'm not," Eddie says. "Some prick sat down next to me and started yapping."
"Ah, unpleasant to talk to," Rich concludes. "Explains a lot."
I know I meant the last rec as a blanket rec for all this author's works but I'm including this one specifically because it has a twist ending that is well-foreshadowed and it slapped my dick clean off.
Things that Happen after Eddie Lives by IfItHollers
11 chapters, 107,947 words, Author Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings. Summary: In a world where Richie manages to save Eddie from It after the deadlights, they still have problems on their to-do list. Featuring everything from Derry to Los Angeles—Richie Tozier's murder trial, Eddie Kaspbrak's divorce proceedings, bedsharing of the platonic and non-platonic varieties, an investigation of magic, a truly disgusting séance, the quintessential morosexual road trip, and OH MY GOD THEY WERE ROOMMATES.
Definitely NOT your average Eddie lives AU. Drama! Mild peril! Psychic abilities! The ghost of Stanley Uris collect calling from beyond the grave via Richie Tozier's vocal chords! Fun and freaky and weird. Three things that make any fic a Josh favorite.
I'm going to stop there because I'm sleepy but let me know if you want more! Like I said I've got like 70 of these lovingly tucked in my bookmarks and I'm happy to share with the class.
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waitmyturtles · 7 months
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Dead Friend Forever: I managed to catch up in time to watch the finale, and here are my immediate, uneducated, "holy shit" thoughts
First off: I acknowledge I am an utter interloper on this tag, having written exactly zero meta words about this mostly great show. Second: everything I know about slashers comes from my childhood memories of "Scream," and my recent conversations with the lovelies @lurkingshan and @neuroticbookworm. So I'm not an expert here. Thirdly! I was inspired in part by them to watch this, and also by the friendies who jumped into comments on my recent KinnPorsche liveblog watches for my Old GMMTV Challenge project. I've been waiting these past few weeks to finish Dead Friend Forever before putting pen to paper on my KP rewatch thoughts, because I thought Be On Cloud did something fabulously experimental with DFF as its second major serial drama.
Anyway: all of this is to say that now that DFF is over, in the near future, I'm gonna write a bunch on KP and a bit more on DFF -- but I want to offer just some quick wandering thoughts on DFF now.
I think like many of y'all, I found the tone of the last PheeJin moments to be discordant with the tenor of the rest of the finale episode. The way I'm calculating this, as I'm sure many of you are, is that I think there was a commentary on fate and Buddhist purgatory, particularly with New/Tan being able to hear from a thankful Non one more time before New's passing. New suffers, it seems to me, the least painful death, and I think that was in part Non’s doing.
In order to conclude the tone on PheeJin, I do wish that we would have seen a flashback back to PheeJin at the house. I guess we’d assume that Phee and Jin never regained their consciousness, that the antidote didn’t work, and that their cyclical fate would be returning back to the lakeshore, only to be haunted by Non again. While it seems to me that Tee, in whatever realm of fate they ended up in, got his appropriate ending — I don’t think that the PheeJin cyclical ending at the lakeshore assigned enough “blame” of fate to either of them, especially Jin. I know @lurkingshan notes that that’s a nod to the need to appease any hopes of surviving ships, and I agree with that assessment. But also — god, BLEH, they sucked, we were left with PheeJin?! JIN??? My boy White, my bubbala, he’s the good one that got really in-your-face off-ed? Wah. (But I do see and understand why White needed to die, to make Tee’s residual fate the utter living hell he deserves.)
Like I said: on a more macro note, I’m gonna have thoughts about DFF, Be On Cloud, and KP in the coming days, because I just like that BOC is dabbling with some experimental writing while allowing solid acting to really shine. (And I compare that to what’s happening at Idol Factory and the recent writing miss that was The Sign.) I wish the ending wasn’t as milquetoast as it was, but BOC still traffics in BLs, and I guess they felt they needed to throw the fans some kind of BL bone (huh huh).
But overall? I am REALLY GLAD I watched this, and it absolutely belongs on the OGMMTVC syllabus. This was incredibly new for the Thai BL genre, and I gotta give BOC — AND ESPECIALLY BARCODE AND TA, WOW — their flowers for taking Thai BL into this new direction. For the most part of this run, I had a great time with this show, as brutal as the content was.
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sasha199 · 1 month
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Gale/ Rolan drama Part 16
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Read all of me on A03
Mayhem and Madness
Rating: E
Pairings: Rolan & Fem Human Tav, Astarion & Shadowheart & Fem Half-elf Tav
No smut in this one.
Its the aftermath of a battle and there's some description of gore.
Y’all…this game hits different when your Tav is a stand in for yourself.
My sister and I are playing a multiplayer as ourselves, as sisters. I (Sasha) am romancing both Gale and Rolan. Sister (Marlie) is pulling both Astarion and Shadowheart.
Marlie’s eyes are vacant. Staring. I’ve always been jealous of their color, a soft grey blue, but there’s no light in them. A trickle of blood drips down from one corner, over the bridge of her nose.
The githyanki steps over her, plants a muddy boot on one soft cheek, it says something I don’t understand. Time seems to slow as it raises a massive sword and brings it down in a swift sweeping arc. The afterimage of the blade seers the air but before I can even draw breath to scream, the githyanki is falling, stumbling back. It’s majestic cloak floats down around it in ash as it batters itself trying to put out the flames. I tear my eyes away, searching, searching, the attack would have revealed…there! Astarion is crouched on a low roof, his bow raised, fletching drawn taunt to cheek. Another fire arrow crackles and sparks in his grip. I can hear my heart in my ears. The githyanki is not down, the force of the blow shifted Marlie, she lies crumpled and face down a few feet away covered in mud.
I grind my teeth as I rise, my mouth is full of blood and grit. The arrow embedded in my rib sings in protest, but I keep pressure to the wound and propel myself forward. He’s not too far, the gith, I might be able to reach him, distract him. Astarion will need an opening now that he’s been seen…
“H-here, you pug nosed, newt!” I don’t even have a weapon in my hand, my bow lays discarded somewhere on the bridge. I pull
something from my belt and attempt to smash him with it. I’m half crouched around my wound so my reach is low and weak. The gith looks down at me through his gleaming helmet, not even bothering to dodge my meager swing. He begins to laugh, deep and throaty, his eyes crinkle with pleasure as he raises his sword.
I hear it before I see it, the roaring of the arrow as it cuts through the air. I smell the char that is my salvation and my death. I tense to brace for the fiery impact from either sword or fire, and feel only a warm stir. The arrow sails between the gith and I. It strikes the ground and I scream as I feel the soles melt away from my boots. I throw myself back, rolling on the ground to douse the flames that lick up the sides of my armor. I can smell burned hair. The fucking vampire missed!
The arrow in my side sinks in a bit deeper, I’d forgotten it in my panic, and I see white. I lay on the ground, breathing in the dust and coughing. I can hear the gith moving towards me again, his metal boots grinding in the soft earth. I use the last of my strength to spit a bloody glob. It mostly trails down my chin. A clawed hand grips what’s left of my hair. This is it.
“Fuck y-you.” I breathe, but simultaneously I hear...a dull roar...like a train...
And I am suddenly enclosed in a gentle cocoon of warmth. It’s like sinking into a bath on a winter day, it sends a shiver up my spine. The grip on my hair is gone and I feel like I’m floating...a twinge in my side brings me back to reality. I open my eyes a sliver, I’m not floating but being carried. I recognize Astarion’s pointy pale chin.
“You missed,” I whisper.
He says nothing. Is he crying?
The arrow shifts and I'm swimming on the edge of blackness. Fighting to keep my head above water.
“Give her to me.”
I feel Astarion’s grip tighten. I whimper through the pain, every breath hurts. Tears seep from my clenched eyelids, I’m shaking and my teeth are chattering. The adrenaline of the fight is wearing off, I’m going into shock.
“Go to her, Astarion.”
I cry out as I’m lowered to the ground, a firm hand pries my mouth open. I try to bat the hand away, but I have the strength of a kitten and fire is ricocheting up my ribs and spine. A nasty floral taste lands on my tongue and I cough.
“Swallow. That’s it. Here, more.”
“No! Go aw-!” Herbal liquid is poured into my protesting mouth, and as I feel soft lips connect with mine the pain begins to subside. My breathing slows and I feel something tickling my face.
I open my eyes, Gale is kissing me. He looks pale as he pulls back, lips pursed and brows scrunched with worry. He lets out a breath and I can feel his body sag with the weight of it. “Thank the gods,” he pulls me tight against his chest, only to push me back just as quickly. “I feared the worst had – no matter. Here,” he’s supporting my head, “You must drink this in its entirety.”
“My sister,” I pull the bottle away from my mouth, my strength is returning, the arrow is still there but it’s a painful throb now, “where’s Marlie?”
Gale says nothing, but he looks up. West of the bridge, in the shadow of a dilapidated house, Asatrion crouches, his body curled around something.
I scramble up, pushing away from Gale. He has an iron grip on me, and the arrow pain slows me down, but I turn him into a crutch and move closer.
Astarion is...I’ve never heard a sound like that...Marlie’s head hangs slack over his shoulder, one of his hands buried in her unbound golden waves. He nuzzles in the crook of her neck, his whole body wracked and shaking. He must have closed her eyes.
I kneel down, slowly, next to him. Gale grips the shoulder of my armor, like he’s afraid I’ll move far from him. As if I could with this blasted arrow, is the bloody thing barbed? The scent of iron and sweat is thick, mingled with the electric burning smell of whatever power coats those insane great-swords. Astarion took a couple of solid blows from one, I don’t know how he has the strength to hold her.
As I reach for her, Astarion’s eyes snap open. The blood vessels have all burst in his left eye. Tears have made clean tracks down his mud streaked face. He hisses at me, like a damn cat, recoiling and pulling Marlie against him. Her head lolls horribly.
“DON’T touch her!” He spits, baring long white fangs, blood and saliva drip from them. He tenses like a cornered predator, poised to attack, “I’ll fucking RIP you APART!” His eyes blaze red, blood trickles out of his left one.
“We only have a minute.” I say as calmly as I can, pain punctuates my every word. Sweat starts to break out on my forehead. “I have to…” I can’t even get the words out. My throat closes up, with sorrow, with pain. I attempt to reach into my pocket, but my vision is blurring as tears drip down my cheeks. Gale's warm hand is over mine, helping me to fish out the scroll and hold it firmly in my palm. It sparkles with yellow motes of arcane energy.
I crawl towards Astarion and reach for her again, this time he lets me. He buries his face against her breast as I hold her head. He’s shaking so much her whole body trembles. I let the incantation leave my lips, take up space in the world around us. A cold sharp snap surrounds me and Marlie vanishes from existence. For a moment Astarion’s arms hold only empty air and he curls in on himself. She pops back into being a few steps away.
“Ugh, I’m exhausted.” Her voice is faint and small. Reeling she attempts to rise to her feet, only to be knocked back into the dirt as Astarion rushes her.
“Careful!” I snap “She’s only got one-”
But Marlie raises a hand up over Astarion’s shoulder, telling me without words it’s fine, don’t worry. Her blue eyes meet mine and I let out a breathe I didn't realize I'd been holding. I use Gale to get to my feet. “I’ve got to find Minthara,” I grunt.
“She has already returned to our camp,” Gale says, taking my arm and looping it over his shoulder, “we must do the same.”
I groan, “Fuck, fine just get this damn thing out of me.” He pecks a scratchy kiss on my cheek.
As Gale and I move away, I glance over my shoulder at Marlie. Astarion is still holding her. She’s speaking softly to him, probably in elvish. One hand rests at the nape of his neck, he gives a small nod. Their eyes never leave each other.
They’ll follow when they’re ready.
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