#funny how that happens huh. Mine Get Help Challenge you made me compare you to kume mine im so sorry ily

[todayisafridaynight]

Daigo has so many genuine connections, all these people who would stand by him regardless of if Tojo still exists. It just sort of feels like it plays to the way Masato is just chronically blind to the love around him and the strength of Ichiban's whole thing and surrounds himself purely with transactional relationships. It's the way Mine viewed the world before he met Daigo, but Masato is purposefully cultivating this environment around himself. Masato HAD those bonds where Mine didn't, but Masato's "those who use and those who are used" still feels like a worse distillation of Mine's philosophy, or at least that the two rhyme even if they aren't the same. Daigo originally defying Mine's worldview led to a longing to understand it and be a part of it; Daigo defying Masato's would probably just lead to more seething lol. Tojo going away, not only is just 'oops daigo already planned on that' robbing Masato of the satisfaction, idk it just further highlights that without being wrapped up in the status of Chair that these people are still with Daigo. Aoki bought his connections through lies and money and destroyed the only ones he sincerely had by following "use or be use" to its end, but Daigo could just fuck off anywhere he wanted and still have not just friendship but as Masato might see it absolute loyalty (esp in a Mine lives scenario; Aoki's lil pet bastard Kume's devotion is absolutely a speck vs **Mine** ). Both Aoki and Daigo can lose their positions of power, but its only Masato who feels like he's lost everything. sdfklfsjld idk goodbye anyway the brainrot is strong please keep going I'm here for every second

OK BUT LIKE. ALL OF THIS. ABOVE MY FIREPLACE AND FRAMED

the note bout mine and masato's worldviews IS SUCH an interesting point too: in essence they both believed the same thing (genuine bonds are a myth and people only use each other), it was just that mine held onto the small hope that he'd be wrong one day. by the time daigo does prove him wrong, he's almost automatically willing to accept it. his problem is that he became so attached to daigo that when the possibility of him being taken away became real, he went off the deep end

in masato's case. Lord he's a field day to explore psychologically maybe in another post, but he did have those bonds mine wanted so earnestly for more than half his life, exactly. ever since arakawa saved him- hell, even after sawashiro realized the life he inflicted upon him, masato was showered with nothing but love from the arakawa family. it's a wonder that despite that fact, masato still insisted he was neglected and alone. settling for relationships he knew were fake and for the most part temporary, he wanted to protect himself- he didn't want to be attached and become hurt and vulnerable again

it really is a cruel twist for masato and daigo and how they end up: despite daigo actually having grown up alone, that didn't stop him from having a warm and inviting attitude towards people and giving him a sizable amount of people who'd follow him to the ends of the earth. inversely, masato had become greedy and wanted more adoration, even if it was superficial or surface level.

[marauderundercover]

This Side of Normal Ch. 10

AO3

Prev

Marinette glances around the silent table, willing Jason to say something. Or do something. Or even Dick. She needed one of them to start a conversation, because Adrien hated awkward silences. And if this silence went on much longer, he was definitely going to say something and then she would regret it. Horribly. 

“These rolls are purr-fect.” Adrien says, out of nowhere. Marinette lets out a groan, of course he’d skip straight ahead to the cat puns. Of course that’s where his freaking mind was tonight. 

“Aren’t they? I’d say Alfred’s cooking is pretty claw-some, myself.” Dick speaks up, grinning at Adrien. Marinette looks at him, wide eyed. 

“That’s it. I’ll find a new trapeze partner and a new best friend. Both of you are out of my life.” She deadpans, ignoring Adrien’s offended gasp. 

“But Bugaboo, who else would give you a hand with your crazy schemes?” Adrien asks, and Marinette turns to him, narrowing her eyes. 

“I swear to god if you take your arm off right now you will never find it again.” She threatens, pointing her fork at him from across the table. 

“But Mari, that joke needs the arm. It doesn’t work without it.” He pouts, she rolls her eyes and turns to Damian. 

“I apologize for him. He thinks he’s funny.” She says, turning her glance back at Adrien. “He’s wrong.” 

“Tt. I’m unbothered by his sense of humor. I have lived with Grayson for eight years. His humor is nothing compared to those horrors.” Damian quips, and Marinette swears his lips almost quirk into a smile. She snorts. 

“Guess I made the right choice in throwing Dick to the curb, huh?” She teases, ignoring Dick’s gasp and Adrien’s reassurance to the man. Honestly, who was the adult here? 

“It was for the best, Dupain-Cheng.” Damian says and Marinette winces slightly. The only person who called her by her last name (in regular conversation, anyway) was Chloe. And while the girl had long since given up full on bullying her, she still wasn’t Marinette’s best friend in the world. 

“You can call me Marinette, my last name is kind of a mouthful.” She says, trying to be nonchalant about it. She’d heard him refer to everyone else as their last name the entire evening. She didn’t want to make him uncomfortable, but him calling her Dupain-Cheng was going to make her uncomfortable in the long run. 

“Very well.” He says, and though he doesn’t say her name, she still counts it as a win. A throat clearing catches her attention and she glances at Jason who was glaring at Damian. 

“What’s up, Jay?” She asks, quirking an eyebrow. 

“Nothing Pixie Pop. Just thinking about the time you kicked the ass of that would be mugger.” He says, and Marinette frowns. Mugger? “You know, the one that was obsessed with you?” He clarifies, and she understands. Copycat had been reakumatized during Jason’s stay in Paris. And he had wanted nothing more than a date with Ladybug. Though, she couldn’t understand why he was bringing it up now. 

“I am so lost.” She admits, shaking her head at her pseudo-brother. He grins. 

“That’s fine, just sharing that you can kick ass with the table. In case someone wants to try something.” He says pointedly. Oh. He definitely caught the heart eyes she sent Damian back in the gym. Can he blame her, though? Her weakness was green eyes. And Damian’s were the greenest. 

“I did walk in on you hogtied, Todd. I assumed she was a reputable fighter after that.” Damian says, and Marinette blushes furiously. 

“I’m sorry, what happened?” Mr. Wayne asks, his vapid (and fake) smile replaced with a faux look of bewilderment. She briefly wondered if it was exhausting, putting on a constant act, until she remembered how tired she was throughout collège, before she started lycée and decided she didn’t really care. Yeah, acting constantly was tiring. But why did he do it? Jason nudges her lightly and she blinks, focusing back on the conversation. 

“Oh, Jason and I sparred. He apparently had forgotten that I use my surroundings to my advantage and that Adrien is always on my side.” She explains, shooting Jason a smug smile. Jason huffs. 

“Not always.” He says, and Marinette raises an eyebrow, crossing her arms and giving him a challenging look. 

“Oh really? Name one time that Adrien took your side instead of mine.” She challenges. She grins as Jason starts to think, obviously wracking his brain. 

“Earlier today!” Adrien pipes up, and she immediately turns to him, glaring. 

“What?” She asks, confused. What had- oh. Of fucking course. “That doesn’t count!” She protests, narrowing her eyes. 

“Why not?” Adrien asks, raising an eyebrow in a challenge. She scoffs. 

“Because it wasn’t a fight or argument or anything. It was a joke.” She says. 

“Are you talking about the adoption shit, cause that was definitely not a joke. All the kids B adopts definitely have trauma and certain features.” Jason cuts in, and Marinette sighs. Of course he would clue in. 

“But- no. No. That was a fluke. A glitch in the matrix, obviously. You literally cannot name a singular other time. And technically, ya big jerk, you didn’t even name this time. Adrien did.” Marinette points out, glaring at Jason. 

“I’m sorry, how long have you three known each other?” Mr. Wayne cuts in again, and this time- this time- she sees that some of the confusion on his face is real. But it looks odd, like he wasn’t used to expressing a real emotion. She really needed to remind herself to talk to Jason about this later. She didn’t necessarily want to make it a habit to stick billionaire fathers with asshole tendencies in jail, but she would. She’d do it for her boys. Any day of the week. She hums in thought, adding up the time. The anniversary of Gabriel’s defeat had been a few weeks ago, which meant-

“We’ve known Jason for just over a year.” She says, before glancing at Adrien and grinning. “But I’ve been stuck with this goof for four years.”

“You know you love me.” Adrien says with a wide grin. She rolls her eyes. 

“How exactly did you meet Jason?” Mr. Wayne asks, and she kind of wants to throw her fork at him. What was it, interrogate the random kids at dinner night? Though, to be fair, they were random kids in his house. But she refused to like the man until she’d talked to Jason about the potential assholeish tendencies. 

“He helped me learn some self defence after I got caught up in an akuma attack.” Marinette lies smoothly. Well, it was technically a half truth. But the Waynes didn’t need to know that she was always caught up in akuma attacks. 

“Akuma?” Mr. Wayne asks, and Marinette glances at Jason with a frown. Had he not told his father about anything? Not even the basics? 

“Wait, is that what the thing that flooded Paris is called?” Dick asks suddenly and Marinette nearly flinches from the memory. That was one of the akumas that still gave her nightmares. One of the ones that was burned in the back of her eyelids when all she wanted was to sleep. And not think about bloated corpses and dead classmates for one goddamn minute. She lets out a steadying breath, glancing at Jason whose face had changed from annoyance to concern. She resists the urge to roll her eyes. She could talk about akumas. It was the past. Sure, she had refused all of the therapy options her parents gave her and Adrien, but she didn’t need it. She was fine. 

“Yeah. Technically, her akumatized name was Siren. But, the general term for those attacks was ‘akuma’.” She says, gripping her fork a little tighter than necessary, grounding herself with Tikki’s reassuring nudges from inside her purse. 

“There were more?” Dick asks, his eyes wide. Marinette glances at Jason and raises an eyebrow. Why had he not said anything? He’d been there for an entire month of Hawkmoth’s reign. He’d seen dozens of akuma attacks. Jason shrugs. Thank Jay. Super helpful. 

“When you get down to it, there were probably hundreds if not thousands more. Some people, like Siren, were turned into the same akuma several times. Some people became a different akuma when they were akumatized again. I think it just depended on the person or their issue.” Marinette explains, hating how dry her mouth felt all of a sudden. She could talk about this. She could. So why was everything a little too bright? Why was the sound of forks against plates a little too loud? 

“Did the Justice League stop it?” Damian asks, though by his tone, he seems to already know the answer. Odd. 

“No, the local heroes did. Ladybug and Chat Noir.” Marinette says, ignoring the constricting feeling in her chest. 

“Why-” Mr. Wayne starts, but Jason clears his throat. Everyone glances at him, and Marinette is unsurprised to see the flicker of anger in his eyes. Especially after she glances at Adrien and sees how pale he’s gotten. She kicks him lightly under the table to get his attention, frowning at him in a silent question. He nods, slightly. She purses her lips, not believing for a second that he was actually okay. But they could talk later. Away from eager ears. 

“I’m sure you remember what Dick said about my phone call from when I first arrived in Paris. Marinette and Adrien dealt with attacks like that interrupting their day to day lives from thirteen to sixteen. I get that you’re not the best at knowing when to drop the damn topic, but I really think you should drop the damn topic.” Jason says, and though he’s smiling, Marinette can see the danger behind it. The warning. ‘Drop it, or I’ll make you’. 

“My apologies, it was just so interesting.” Mr. Wayne says and this time Marinette winces at the falseness in his voice. And the smile on his face. God, this man could not have lasted a day in Hawkmoth’s Paris. 

---

Finally, finally, dinner was over. After the akuma talk ceased, it was extremely awkward. Mr. Wayne looked like he would rather be anywhere else. And Marinette couldn’t blame him, wanting nothing more than to get back to her hotel room and away from the constant lack of real emotion on the eldest Wayne’s face. It was tiresome, just watching him. 

“Thanks again, for having us.” Marinette says, mostly directing her comment to Dick and Alfred. Alfred just nods. 

“Of course! Come back any time. Really soon, actually, so we can work more on the trapeze. I can’t lose my new trapeze buddy.” Dick says with a wide smile. Marinette holds back a sigh, nodding instead. She liked Dick, she did. But she’d definitely have to make sure that Mr. Wayne wouldn’t be around. She still wasn’t sure what to think of him. 

“You should also spar with me, some time.” Damian speaks up and Marinette blinks in surprise. 

“Spar. With...you?” She says, tilting her head in confusion. That came out of nowhere. 

“Yes. You took down Todd easily, and I am far superior. You would actually have a challenge if we sparred.” He says. She smirks, and suddenly, with a burst of confidence she didn’t know she had, says:

“Sure thing, Pretty boy.” Before turning and walking straight out the door. The second she’s outside, she drops her head into her hands. “I can’t believe I just said that.” She mumbles under her breath. 

“Pretty boy?” Adrien says with a smirk, she glares at him and moves down the front steps. 

“Fuck you.” She says, no real venom in her voice. The boy knew how she got around crushes. He’d seen it firsthand. With him. With Luka. With Kagami. With the girl with bright green eyes who worked at the coffee shop across the street from the bakery. She was an absolute disaster. He was worse, but still. He wasn’t the one with the quickly developing crush on the youngest Wayne. 

“Pretty boy?” Jason asks, a scowl on his face as he catches up to the two. 

“Not another word, Jason.” She scowls at him, crossing her arms defiantly. He holds his hands up in surrender. 

“Sure.” He says. Her mind rushes suddenly to her previous thought. Youngest Wayne. Damian Wayne. Hadn’t Lila- she snorts, before erupting into uncontrollable laughter, ignoring the worried looks from Adrien. 

“I- oh my god, Jay.” She manages to say, straightening up and following Jason to the car he was borrowing to drive them back to the hotel.

“I’m completely lost.” He says.

“Join the club.” Adrien adds, and Marinette just laughs again. 

“Your little brother is Damian Wayne.” She says, as if it should be obvious. Jason doesn’t get it, and neither does Adrien. But after a moment-

“Oh my god, that’s hilarious!” Adrien cries, letting out a chuckle. Jason huffs as the trio get into the car. 

“Care to share with the class?” He asks, and Marinette snorts. 

“Absolutely not, I dislike the majority of those people.” She says, referring to the group who was hopefully already in their rooms and not in the lobby of the hotel. “Now it’s funny that your brother is Damian Wayne because Lila made us come to Gotham instead of New York and London, because she’s dating him.” She explains and Jason scoffs. 

“Yeah right.” 

“Obviously she’s not actually dating him, Jay. But it’s freaking hilarious that she thinks she’s gonna get away with it. He definitely goes to Gotham Academy, and people are definitely going to call her out.” She says, not even trying to hide the absolute glee she’s feeling. If there was ever a time for all of Lila’s lies to come crashing down around her, now would be good. When she can’t just run away and claim Marinette set it up. If people Marinette didn’t even know called Lila out, well, that would be irrefutable evidence, right? 

“Her regime is gonna topple and I’m gonna take you guys out for ice cream to celebrate.” Jason declares and Marinette laughs again. She was so against the idea of Gotham originally, but now, with Jason at their sides again, she’d decided that it wasn’t so bad. Suddenly remembering what had been on her mind most of the night, she turns to Jason. 

“Jay, I have a serious question. And I know it’s a little hard to talk about but just know that we’re here for you to support you, and that we’ll figure out a way to make sure you and your brothers are safe and-” 

“Whoa, Pix, calm down kiddo. You’re rambling again.” He says gently, furrowing his eyebrows. He pulls the car over to the side of the road and turns to put his full attention on the two. “What’s bothering you?” He asks. 

“Is Mr. Wayne abusive?” She asks and Jason blinks. “I saw how hesitant you were to call him your father, and you were tense around him a lot of the night. And I don’t think the man had one legitimate expression all night. He was acting the whole time.” Marinette says, looking at him worriedly. “Look, Jay, I don’t necessarily want to make a habit of putting billionaires in jail, but I’d do it for you.” 

“Is he- you would-” Jason stops and lets out a breath, obviously trying to compose himself. “No, kiddo, he’s not.” He finally says. Marinette frowns. 

“Really?” She asks, and he sighs. 

“Yeah, look. Our relationship has been...rough, for a couple years. We had a sort of falling out when I was a teenager and I stopped talking to him for several years. We reconnected a while ago, but it’s still rocky at times. I don’t usually call him dad or father or anything. He’s just Bruce, or B, to me.” Jason explains and Marinette nods, letting out a small sigh of relief. 

“I was worried, Jay.” She admits, and Jason grins at her before pulling away from the curb again. 

“I didn’t even catch on.” Adrien says with a frown. Marinette rolls her eyes, smiling at him with fondness. 

“Course you didn’t Kitty. Reading people isn’t really your strong suit.” She says with a small smile. He huffs, but nods in agreement. 

“True.” He says and Marinette laughs. She could officially take Bruce Wayne off her ‘threat to be dealt with immediately’ list and move him to ‘possible future annoyance’ list. A big improvement for the man, and it would mean she wouldn’t be as tense around him the next time she saw him.

Next

Tag list: @toodaloo-kangaroo @laurcad123 @kittenmywaythrulife @lost-in-the-world-of-maribat @queenz-z @daminette-56

[onyxiana-is-obsessed]

Hints | Katsuki Bakugou x Quirkless!Reader

Hiya! I hope y’all like it! It’s short, the reader is female, and I just think it’d be funny if Bakugou, someone who dislikes quirkless people, falls for one~ Length: 1.3k Pronouns used: She/her

Full Name: (y/f/n) Quirk: none Age: 17

“Hey, (f/n). What’s your quirk?” Bakugou asked his girlfriend of eight months. She gave him a slight laugh.

“Wouldn’t you like to know? Come on, I’ve been dropping hints. Not my fault you’re not as observant.” (f/n) always lied. From the first time they met. She didn’t attend UA because of it. She worked at a bakery and coffee shop where Bakugou and his friends came to a lot. That’s where she first met him, and although he wouldn’t admit it, he already had a crush on her. He kept coming back and eventually asked her out, to which she said yes. He had asked about her quirk, but she gave him a flirty response and told him it was a secret. Of course, he believed her.

Except, Bakugou didn’t understand why she still hid it. According to her, her quirk helps with her job. She did go into a bit of detail as to why she wasn’t a UA student. She explained that being a hero wasn’t something she wanted in life and her quirk wasn’t that helpful. She didn’t think she could cut in. He believed her, but it had been eight months and he wanted to know.

“Oh come on. Why can’t you just tell me?” She gave him a giggle, trying to seem like she wasn’t scared at all.

“You’re going to be the number 1 hero, right? Can’t figure out my quirk?” So he tried, all day he guessed her quirk, every time she marked him down as wrong. She had given herself a fake quirk; a simple one. Warming up liquids. Nothing special, nothing out of the ordinary, and one she could ‘use’ at work.

~**~

Bakugou had arrived at the cafe, where he saw (f/n)’s friends, (friend 1) and (friend 2) eating cake. It was 5 pm and it was when (f/n) finished up her shift. Today they were just going to his house to hang out and whatnot.

“Hey, Bakugou!” They waved him over. He gave them a nod and walked over, sitting in the empty chair next to (friend 2).

“Haven’t seen you in a while.” (friend 2) laughed.

“I’ve been busy.” They made small talk and an idea came to Bakugou’s head. These two weren’t her best friends, but they were her good friends. What if she forgot to tell them about this little game she’s playing with Bakugou.

“Hey, so has (f/n) told you about her quirk not working as well recently?” Bakugou lied. Except… he didn’t expect the response that he got. At all.

“(f/n) has a quirk?” (Friend 1) asked (friend 2) with wide eyes.

“She told us she was quirkless, was she lying to us?” The two went on and on until Bakugou interrupted.

“W-wait, she’s quirkless?” the two stopped and looked at him, giving him a nod.

“Well yeah, that’s what we thought. Unless she lied.” Just then, it hit Bakugou. He was always vocal about that damned Deku being quirkless and how he randomly got a quirk and whatnot… she probably overheard. Everything. All the times Bakugou called Deku weak and pathetic for not having a quirk.

“N-no.” Bakugou interrupted. “She didn’t lie to you. Don’t worry about it and don’t bring it up to her.” They gave him a confused nod as (f/n) came out from the back and waved to them, the girls waving back with a smile. “Hey babe, ready?” She gave him a nod and they were off.

~**~

The two were currently sitting in Bakugou’s room doing homework. Although they weren’t in the same class, their work was somewhat similar. Bakugou was quite smart when it came to schoolwork and (f/n) was a bit on the opposite side, sometimes she needed more explanation or needed someone to explain it differently.

“(f/n)… show me your quirk.” He stated, causing her to laugh.

“Suki, what is it with you and my quirk. It’s just a stupid quirk, sheesh. One not even good enough to help me out in daily lif- well it kinda does.”

“I wanna know what it is. You know mine.”

“Suki, everyone knows yours, you competed in the sports festival remember? Besides, mine is… non-existent compared to yours. I mean have you seen your explosions? They’re huge and amazing! I mean, golly, I wish I had your quirk!” She giggled as she continued to write in her notebook.

Now he understood. She had been dropping hints, like she just did. Non-existent. She was jealous; she envied Bakugou’s quirk, but in a good way. She thought he was amazing and had no doubt he had the skills to be a pro-hero. However, Bakugou didn’t want her to lie in this relationship. Yes, he used to look down on people with no quirks, just like her. That was until he realized… when he became a pro-hero, he’d be protecting people as amazing and wonderful like his (f/n). Knowing that, made him a bit happy, not as if he would admit it.

“Non-existent, huh?” She perked up and laughed nervously.

“What?”

“Your quirk is non-existent compared to mine.” He repeated.

“Well yeah, I mean your quirk is what a pro-hero would have, you could definitely be the number 1 hero!” She cheered, but he saw through her facade.

“You don’t have one.”

“Wh-what?”

“You don’t have a quirk. You’ve been lying about having one this entire time.”

“I-I do t-too!” She retaliated, weakly.

“Yeah? Show me.” He challenged, eyes void of any emotion.

“Wh-what?”

“You heard me. You have a quirk, right? Show me.” She could go two ways here, argue and yell at him for assuming she didn’t have one… or surrender. She let out a shaky breath.

“F-fine… yo-you caught me. I don’t have a quirk.”

“Why did you lie?” He didn’t sound or look upset.

“I heard you talking to your friends. Y-you were talking about someone be-being quirkless and pathetic and weak. I was angry at first, but I agree. I really liked you… so I thought I’d lie.” She explained, fidgeting with her pencil, staring at the table, but she heard him sigh.

“When I said that… lots of things had yet to happen. So much has changed and to be honest, I have a different outlook on life now. Tell me… why aren’t you attending UA.” She gave him a bitter laugh.

“Can’t pass the entrance exam as a quirkless nobody.” Bakugou got up from his position and grabbed her arm, pulling her up. The two walked to his bed, where he laid down with her in his arms.

“I don’t think you’re a quirkless nobody. You’re amazing. You’re funny, kind, caring. You always know how to make anyone feel better and you’re always looking out for others. Who cares if you have a quirk or not? I don’t… I still love you.” He muttered, burying his face in her hair. (f/n)’s eyes widened when he said those four words.

“I-I love you too, Suki.” The two laid there, in peaceful silence for a few minutes until she broke it. “Hey, Suki?”

“Yeah?”

“Can… can I call you Cuteski?” His eyes shot open in disbelief. What the hell did she just say?

“What?”

“What about Bakuboi?”

“Bakuboi?!”

“Bakuhoe?”

“Oh, that’s it!” His hands immediately attacked her weak spots and laughter soon filled his quiet room.

“S-stop!” She giggled, wiggling in an attempt to get away. He was too strong though and his attack continued, evil laughter filling the room, along with hers.

“Oh yeah? Make me!” The tickle attack continued for a few more minutes, until Bakugou stopped, thoroughly proud of himself. He loved making her laugh until she was exhausted.

“I got a good one, this time.” She said, as he leaned down to press his lips on hers. The kiss was short but sweet.

“Yeah?” She nodded.

“How about Ground Zero. As a hero name. It’s the point on the Earth’s surface just above or below an exploding nuclear bomb.” He gave her one of his rare smiles.

“Sounds good, (princess/whatever nickname you like).” Their lips met once again in another kiss.

[p-artsypants]

Bad Day (1) Morning

Marinette was Ladybug! This was Adrien’s luckiest day ever! Except it wasn’t, because all his good luck was used up in one go. Turns out this might be the worst day of his life.

Ao3 | FF.net

Part 2

I’m still working on Longest Night. This was just supposed to be a one shot, but it got out of hand. There should only be three chapters. Crack, Angst, Fluff, in that order. 

Also, this story is super gross. Because 14-year-old boys are super gross. 

--

“Pound it!” Ladybug and Chat connected fists after a job well done.

His ring beeped right on schedule, having used his cataclysm earlier than she had used Lucky Charm.

“Go ahead, I’ll take care of the victim.” She smiled so politely and rested a hand on his arm.

He nearly swooned.

“Go!” She chided with a laugh.

He blew her a kiss as he departed. It was an early morning, just before school. Early enough that classes probably wouldn’t be cancelled. The akuma had been a quick run, though the time he had intended to use for studying in the library was gobbled up instead. Oh well. That was the whole point of studying, staying ahead so when the akumas overwhelmed him, his grades didn’t suffer.

The courtyard was still relatively empty, as there was still a good twenty minutes before classes started.

He rushed to the bathroom, keeping a careful eye on the students, though no one noticed he was there.

He took the first stall, and his transformation fell just as he cleared the door.

Plagg fell in his hands, immediately begging for cheese.

Adrien laughed and gave him a little wedge. “There, I have more in my bag, but I have to go while we’re here.”

“Go? Go where?”

“You know…go.” He gestured to the toilet. “It’s poo-thirty.”

“Aw man,” Plagg whined. “Couldn’t you hold it until we got home so I can leave the room?”

“Don’t be such a baby.” Adrien chastised, dropping Plagg in his pocket. He undid his buttons, dropped trou, and let nature take its course. Aimlessly, he scrolled through the Ladyblog on his phone while he did his business.

Then he noticed that the door was slightly cracked open.

“Oh narts, this the stall with the bad lock.” He sighed. Reaching his leg out, he toed the door, having it hit the jam and rebound back, opening wider. Adrien groaned, “Plagg, can you—“

“Nuh uh. I’m not coming out until you’re done with your disgusting human behavior.”

Adrien rolled his eyes at his ridiculous kwami. Oh well. It was still early, and he’d be done in a minute. Surely it was no big deal?

Except someone was running towards the bathroom.

And then running to his stall.

Into his stall, with their back to him.

A gorgeous back, with an adorable butt, covered in red and black, and hiding. Then, there was a flash of pink, and the red and black gave way to a dark gray jacket and soft pink pants. An outfit he had seen nearly everyday.

He choked on air, wanting to say something, and also very aware of the fact that his pants and boxers were around his ankles.

Not how he imagined the reveal would go down at all.

So he simply held his breath, vying his time.

She didn’t wait long, only a couple seconds really, it had just felt like an hour being in that space with her. As she left, he made eye contact with her kwami.

She saw. She saw that he saw.

Then he was alone again, his eyes staring forward, unseeing.

Marinette.

Marinette was Ladybug.

Beautiful, sweet, kind, and righteous Marinette was his Ladybug. Of course she was! It made perfect sense! They had the same eyes, the same black hair that shined blue in the light! The same laugh! Oh it was perfect!

It was—

Oh no.

He had to tell her. But she HATED the idea of him knowing her identity! Hated anyone knowing!

Why did it have to happen while he was on the can?

How was he supposed to explain this without completely embarrassing both of them? It was completely unfair!

“Sorry Marinette I saw you detransforming while I was dropping off the Cosby kids at the pool, sorry!” Like that was a good option!

But then again, he was finding it too hard to be upset about it when the truth of ‘Marinette is Ladybug’ reverberated in his head.

They’d work it out. Somehow. But now he just had to get through the day without melting into goo around her.

Maybe he’d turn on the Chat Noir charm.

No, that’d be too suspicious.

“Are you gonna poop or what?” Asked Plagg.

Adrien scoffed at him.

Then his kwami chuckled, lowly, manically.

“What are you up to, you little creature?”

“Oh, I’m not up to anything. I just had…a premonition, if you will.”

“Care to enlighten me?”

“Do you feel lucky?”

“What kind of question is that?  Uh…I mean, I just found out who the love of my life is, so…yeah?”

“The luckiest you’ve ever been?”

“Yeah, in a way.”

“That’s what I thought.” Plagg snickered again.

“What?”

“Oh nothing…really. Just that…I have a feeling you used up all your good luck for the day.”

“What? Is that a thing?”

“Just hurry up and finish. Nasty boy.”

Rolling his eyes at his kwami, Adrien finished his business. Afterwards, he left his stall just as Kim came in.

“Yo!”

“Howdy!”

Kim took his stall, and Adrien went to wash his hands.

“Holy shit!” Kim shouted.

A bad feeling settled in Adrien’s stomach. Did I forget to flush?

Ah, it was probably no big deal.

He finished up, and went into the locker room, where Nino was putting his stuff away.

“Hey man,” Adrien greeted pleasantly.

“Sup dude! If I had known you’d be early, I would have waited out front for you.”

“Oh no, no worries. I’ve been here for a while. Needed to use the library.” That had been the initial plan, before the Akuma had struck. So not a complete lie.

“For the essay?”

“Yep.”

“I haven’t even started, dude. I mean, I have a topic idea but..” Nino went on, but Adrien’s mind had begun to wander.

Back to Marinette.

His lady.

His bugaboo.

He giggled.

Nino frowned at him. “Dude, what’s so funny about the holocaust?”

Adrien’s eyes widened. “No no I wasn’t—no, sorry. I was listening! But I was also thinking...uh, so you’re doing your essay on the holocaust?”

“Well, I’m thinking of doing a comparative piece between the holocaust and...”

And he was off again.

Not that he didn’t love Nino immensely, but this was the biggest revelation of his life! He wasn’t going to pay any attention to anything for the rest of the day.

Oh how badly he wanted to sit behind Marinette, so he could stare at her all day.

A little creepy, but cut him some slack.

“…it’s not really comparing the Holocaust to country music, but it’s finding similar themes, you know? Is that the dumbest idea you’ve heard?”

“Yeah…” Adrien said with a pleasant smile on his face.

“Yeah? My idea is dumb?”

“Sure is.”

“Well…thanks for that, I guess.”

“Hmm mmm…say Nino, is Marinette interested in anyone?”

Nino blinked a few times. “What?”

“I just thought you might know, since you’re dating Alya and all.”

Nino snickered. “Oh, I see what this is about. Finally got your head out of your ass, huh?”

Adrien blinked heavily at him. “W-what?”

“Oh come on. Everyone can see when you give her your patented ‘soft eyes’.”

“My what?”

“You know, you get this dopey smile on your face, and then your eyebrows turn up and your eyes get all misty, and then you look like you’re going to cry.”

“What! I do not do that!”

“There was a spider on Rose’s desk, and Marinette gently scooped it up and put it outside, even though she’s scared of spiders too.”

Adrien’s heart melted. “Aw, she did?”

Nino snapped a picture on his phone. “Bam, heart eyes.”

Adrien narrowed those heart eyes into slits. “What’s your game, Lahiffe?”

“You’re in love with Marinette.”

Adrien blinked. “Yeah, I was getting to that.”  

Nino gawked. “You-you were!? You are!?”

“Yeah, I mean…I just realized it today. I thought I was in love with someone else, but…” Technically, he still was, but knowing that Ladybug was Marinette only made his feelings stronger and feel more solid.

Marinette was Ladybug!

Adrien then realized Nino was giving him a knowing look. “You’ve got it bad, dude.” He chuckled.

Adrien huffed and crossed his arms. “Well, are you going to tell me who she likes, or what?”

It was then that Kim came out of the bathroom, and made hard eye contact with Adrien. “I see you there. It’s on, Agreste.”

“What’s on?”

“You know Le Chien Kim doesn’t back down from a challenge!”

“What challenge?!”

“As if you didn’t know!”

“I don’t know!”

Kim just gave a smirk and walked out of the room.

“Uh, what the hell was that?” Asked Nino.

“You’re guess is as good as mine with Kim.”

“Fair.”

“So anyways...Marinette? Her crush? Help a guy out?”

Nino rolled his eyes. “Look dude, if I tell you, I’m dead meat, per Alya. But, you should absolutely ask her out. She won’t say no.”

“...is it me then? Does she like me?”

“Again, I’m a dead man. But her fondness for you surpasses ‘friendship’, ya dig?”

His lady liked him! She liked Adrien!

“God, you make me sick.” Nino chuckled. “You make sure to turn those soft eyes on Marinette. She’ll turn to goo.”

“Noted!” Adrien beamed. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go woo Milady.”

“Christ.”

Adrien haughtily tossed a smirk over his shoulder, and then turned to rush out of the room.

Only, Plagg’s premonition would come true. With a vengeance.

In one step, his shoelace broke and he stepped completely out of his sneaker. With the momentum he created in takeoff, he launched several steps until he collided his pinkie toe with the corner of the lockers.

Oh mama.

He was down.  

Clutching his foot like his life depended on it, Adrien dropped to the floor and let out a string of curses that would make Chat Noir blush.

“Oof, dude, you okay?”

Adrien couldn’t tell if he was laughing or crying.

But oh, did it suck.

“Let’s go to the nurse.”

“No.” Adrien wheezed out. “I’m good.”

“Like hell you are.”

“If I go to the nurse, she’ll call my dad, and he’ll pull me out of school for being in an unsafe environment. I’m fine!”

Though the tears streaming down his cheeks did not have Nino convinced. “Whatever dude. Let me help you get to class though, kay?”

Nodding through the pain, Adrien took the offered hand, and together they tottered to homeroom.

As they approached the room, they could hear Kim talking. Everyone in the school could hear him, he was so enthused.

“No, you guys don’t understand! It had to be at least two feet! The thickness of my arm! This thing was massive!”

Nino snickered, “What, did he take up fishing?”

“That’s not physically possible.” Said Alix, just as loud.

“Oh yeah? I took a picture! Look!”

There was a collective shout of ‘ew! Kim!’ from the class, when Adrien and Nino finally reached the door.

Everyone went silent.

Dead silent.

Adrien’s gaze drew immediately to Marinette—His Lady—only to see her avoiding his gaze, with a very red face.

Then he noticed that everyone was staring right at him.

“Uh…good morning?” He detached himself from Nino and used the desk to get to his seat.

Alix stood, and just started clapping.

This caused some of the others to start laughing.

“Uh…what’s going on?”

“Tch, like you don’t know.” Said Kim, in a way that inexplicably reminded him of an anime villain.

Adrien rolled his eyes. “I already told you in the locker room, I don’t know what the heck you’re talking about!”

“You, sir, are the Dump King of Collège Françoise Dupont! And I intend to dethrone you!”

Nino and Adrien looked at each other, and then at Kim.

“Dump King?”

Marinette had her head buried in her hands, unable to look at him. Whatever this Dump King thing was, it was bad.

“Yeah dude! I used the bathroom right after you and you left this massive turd! It was two feet, easily! It was standing up in the bowl!”

Adrien’s face burned, embarrassment outweighing the pain in his, presumably, broken toe. “Kim…”

“You’re so clean and perfect…you’d never leave a message like that unless it was a challenge! And I’m going to start eating fiber ASAP!”

Now it was Adrien’s turn to hide his face in his hands.

Nino clapped a sympathetic hand to his shoulder. “Oh man, you broke the number one unspoken rule. No pooping at school.”

“If we’re not supposed to poop here, why are there toilets?” Adrien whispered back, harshly.

“It’s not a hard rule, just a globally recognized one.”

“Now you tell me!”

“Oh don’t play all naïve, Agreste. I know what you’re about.”

Adrien trembled in front of the class, because now he had to explain to Kim, in front of all his classmates, and the love of his life, that that hadn’t been any kind of challenge. He had simply forgotten to flush. And he normally didn’t poop logs. Just, regular sized poops.

Oh man, if it sounded this terrible in his head, it would sound so stupid out loud!

His mind really had to have been gone if he hadn’t noticed he left that behind.

“Listen, Kim…” He began, sitting on the edge of the desk. “It’s not like that. I’m not the kind of guy that shits and tells.”

That was not the right thing to say as everyone erupted in laughter, and Adrien’s embarrassment only grew deeper.

Fortunately, Marinette was the only one not laughing, as she was probably reeling from second hand embarrassment.

Kim noticed, and draped himself over her shoulders. “Oh come on Mari! Everyone loves a good poop joke!”

“Yeah, when they’re five.” She muttered.

“You have to admit, Adrien is always impressive. Even his deuces are deuces.”

Shutupshutupshutupshutup—

“You’ve got to be a little impressed, aren’t you?”

Marinette finally met his eyes and he was fully prepared to cry at her sympathetic gaze. She smiled. “I’m just glad you’re healthy.”

What.

“I’m doing school under my desk today, thanks everyone.” Adrien withered and crawled under their table.

“Dude, come on.”

“Adrien’s not here right now, he’s at the humiliation station. Population: me.”

“Don’t be so dramatic sunshine, everyone poops.” Alya said, by way of consolation.

And it probably would have worked too. If it were any other day. But the day had just started and he was already overwhelmed. He was acutely aware of Marinette’s eyes.

Nothing was worse than being embarrassed in front of your crush.

Well, as Chat Noir, he always managed to embarrass himself in front of her. But this was different! He was Adrien! Embarrassing himself as Adrien wasn’t just bad for him.

It was bad for his father.

Oh no.

Could his father find out about this? He didn’t have a sense of humor, he wouldn’t find this funny at all!

“Adrien? Where’s Adrien?” Miss Bustier called in attendance. He had been so deep in his self loathing, he hadn’t even realized the teacher had come in the room.

“The Dump King is under his desk.” Called Kim.

“Dump…? Never mind, I don’t want to know. Adrien, please sit in your seat properly.”

Resigned, Adrien went to stand but hit his head on the table, eliciting a ‘ooo’ from the room.

Adrien sat in his chair, slumped in defeat.

Plagg vibrated in his pocket, barely able to contain his laughter.

The kwami was right, today was not going well at all. Despite the wonderful knowledge that Marinette was Ladybug, everything else seemed to go wrong.

He failed his physics test.

He, Adrien Agreste, top grade in Physics, Physic nut, had failed his test.

He just stared at the paper with growing horror. “Miss Mendeliev, there must be some sort of mistake!”

“Sorry Adrien, you know the rules, you don’t show your work, you don’t get points, even if the answer is right.”

“But—“

“If you find the paper you did the problems on, I will regrade it. But it will be a zero in your grades until then.”

Frantic, Adrien dumped his backpack out on his desk and began searching for the lost paper.

“Not right now, Mr. Agreste.” She said sharply.

Feeling small, Adrien gathered his supplies and stuffed them back into his bag.

During lunch, he was called back to the mansion, even though he had asked to eat with his friends. Though, this wasn’t that much of a disappointment, considering that he dealt with it fairly often.

As he left the school, he found Marinette waiting for him. Beautiful, sweet, understanding, and patient.

As he walked up to her, she stuttered and stumbled on her words. “H-Hey Adrien! I’m sorry about what I said in class. Not that I’m not happy that you’re healthy! I’m very glad you are! You look great! You always do! I mean—! I just wanted to say...I could tell you were embarrassed by Kim, but I’m sorry I didn’t say anything to help.”

Adorable. Simply adorable.

He realized that he hadn’t responded, and only continued to stare at her longingly.

“Marry me...” he sighed.

Her eyes blew wide as her mouth went slack.

Quick! Play it off!

“Mari! You Mari! Me Adrien! Yes, good! Thanks!”

Nice.

“Bye!” He damn near shouted, and he hauled ass to his car, limping with each step.

Plagg giggled in his shirt, and whispered up to him. “You’re such a dumbass.”

“Shush.”

After lunch, it was time for gym.

Which was a fun activity with a, presumably, broken toe.

“You going to be okay, dude?” Asked Nino. “You know, if you just show Mr. D’Argencourt your foot, I’m sure he’d let you out of gym.”

“I’m fine, I just…need to walk it off.”

Nino gave him a flat look. “You’ve been ‘walking it off’ for several hours already. It’s not getting any less purple.”

“I looked it up. There’s nothing they can do about a broken toe. They can’t set it or anything, so don’t worry about it.”  

At this point, Nino decided to officially give up. “Fine, suffer. Be my guest.”

Soccer.

It had to be soccer.

Why not tennis? Why not frisbee? Why not pickleball? Any game! Any other fracking game, except for the one that demands you use your foot the entire time!

Adrien reconsidered his life choices. “Excuse me Mr. D’Argencourt, I stubbed my toe really bad earlier. Can I sit out?”

Mr. D’Argencourt, shrewd man that he was, gave Adrien a once over and huffed. “If you must. You can sit with Miss Rossi.” He gestured over to Lila, who was beaming at him.

Adrien winced.

“How about goalie?”

The coach was much more willing to have Adrien participate and consented.

Whatever forces on earth that had been responsible for Adrien’s crap day came back with reinforcements.

On Adrien’s team was Rose, Juleka, Nathanael, Chloe, Sabrina, and Max. Against them, was Kim, Alix, Ivan, Alya, Nino, and Marinette.

Whoever picked these teams is a moron. He thought to himself.

Adrien, humble as he was, was an excellent goalie. Of course, he’d give the credit to his time as Chat Noir. The game was almost over, with the score tied 0-0. His team hadn’t gotten anywhere near the other goal, but Adrien hadn’t let a single ball in on his side.

His was bruised, battered, sweaty, and exhausted.

Of course, most of his teammates hadn’t even broken a sweat.

Marinette stood nearby, waiting for the assist to the goal. Of course, having her so close was immediately a distraction, and all of his attention was on her.

“You’re amazing,” she told him, adorable blush on her cheeks. “Sorry we’ve been so ruthless, you know how Kim and Alix are.”

He meant to thank her, to assure her there was nothing to apologize for.

But his brain decided to remind him, yet again, that he was talking to Ladybug.

“Thank Kay, you’re not apologize. Amazing, yes!”

Flawless.

Her eyes widened slightly. “Are you okay?”

A low whine came from his throat, as he felt the need to shrivel up and die.

“Hey Dump King!” Kim shouted, “Block this!” And he kicked, with all the power in him.

To Adrien’s credit, he did Block the ball, but it was with his face.

“Adrien!” A cacophony of voices called out to him.

He was on the ground, wetness on his face. And in too much pain to move.

“Adrien? Are you alright?” Marinette was above him, looking down at him with concern and so much love. “You’re bleeding.”

“Bleeding...” he swooned.

“Alright, alright,” Mr. D’argencourt shooed everyone away from crowding him. “What happened.”

“He took a ball to the face, and I think he hit his head on the way down.”

“How many fingers am I holding up?” The coach stated, holding up three fingers.

“Three.” Adrien said simply.

“Oh, he’ll be fine.” The coach said. “Will someone take Adrien to the nurse?”

Marinette opened her mouth to volunteer, but Lila shouted out first. “I’ll take him!”

Adrien used Marinette’s hand to climb to his feet, and then waved Lila off. “I’m fine, I can go on my own.”

Lila latched onto his arm. “Oh please, let me help you.”

“No, really, I’m—“ He sneezed, flinging blood right on Lila’s face and clothes.

She shrieked.

“Ah! I’m sorry! I didn’t know I had a bloody nose!” He cupped his face, not really doing any good. He turned to Marinette, “Does it look okay?”

“I mean, you’re bleeding, but nothing looks bruised yet.”

Lila weaved her arm around his again, and pulled him away from Marinette. “Come on, let’s take you to the nurse.”

As she yanked him down the hall, Adrien looked down, and saw an absolutely menacing look on her gaze.

But it was gone just a moment later as she smiled up at him. “It’s okay Adrien. Accidents happen.”

He wasn’t completely convinced.

The walk to the nurses office was quiet, and Lila departed just as they arrived.

The examination went smoothly as well. “Well, Mr. Agreste, you don’t have a concussion, and your nose will be fine. It might be a while before it stops bleeding however.”

“Will I bruise?”

“You might. But the skin isn’t broken, so makeup should be able to cover anything.”

He hated wearing makeup, but it was better than getting yelled at. He sighed. “Thank you ma’am.”

“But you can keep this icepack on it for a little while. That’ll help.” Gently, she molded the icepack around his nose, and placed his hand on it to keep it steady. He sighed in relief. “Um, while I’m here…” He reached down and took off his shoe and sock. “I stubbed my toe earlier.”

“Oh honey!” The nurse exclaimed. “Why didn’t you see me earlier about that!? Look at how dark it is!”

Adrien hunched his shoulders. “I just…Didn’t want you to call my dad.”

The nurse considered it for a moment. “Alright, I won’t call your father. But try to keep off of it, and ice it as much as possible. Alright?”

Adrien managed a smile. “Thank you.”

After about 15 minutes, when his face went numb, he gave back the ice packs and decided to head back to class, a wad of tissue still up his nose.

In the hall, he ran into Lila, her face clean of any trace of blood, and her shirt damp, but clean as well. “Hey Adrien!”

“Oh, hi Lila…” He greeted cautiously.

“Is your nose still bleeding?”

“Yeah, the nurse said it’s not broken though.”

“That’s good! I actually was on my way to the nurse’s office to give you this.” She held up a cylindrical wad of cotton, with a string on the end.

“Uh…what is it?”

“It’s for packing nosebleeds. I get them all the time, so I always have them handy. All you have to do is put it in your nose and leave it there for an hour.”

“Oh! Well…thanks! I…I just I’ll go put this in now. Thank you!”

“It’s no problem Adrien. I just wanted to make sure you were all better for our photoshoot this afternoon.”

A chill ran down his spine. “Our…what?”

“Our photoshoot? I could have sworn it was today?”

No. Today was Friday. He was going to Marinette’s for his first sleepover with friends! He made sure to clear his schedule! Quickly, he whipped out his phone and pulled up the spreadsheet with all his events.

Right there, in a block after school until late evening, a photoshoot was scheduled. Edited as of 10am this morning.

He growled in his throat, and then called Nathalie.

“Adrien, do you really think it’s appropriate to call during school hours?”

“I had today off from modeling.” He said by way of greeting. “I was supposed to hang out with friends.”

“Yes, you were. But your father insisted on a shoot anyways. But he made sure to get your friend Lila as a model so you wouldn’t feel too bad.”

“Well, as long as I can hang out with them afterwards?”

“No, your father wants you to come home tonight.”

“Why?”

“He just does, Adrien.”

Adrien hung up, angry, upset, frustrated.

“I’m sorry Adrien, I thought you knew?” Lila said, with her little sing song voice.

“Well, it was scheduled at 10am, so no. I didn’t.”

“Weird, I got a text about it. Sorry!”

“Whatever,” He huffed. He was done. This day officially sucked, and he’d find a way to cataclysm it right off the calendar.

Well, at least Lila had been kind enough to lend him this…thing. Whatever it was. He went to the bathroom to change out his tissues.

Yeah, he was still bleeding.

But the new cotton wad fit like a dream and he jammed it as far up into his nose as he could stand, and then went back to class.

Lila was already there when he returned, and Miss Bustier was in the middle of her lecture when he walked into the room.

She stared at him. “Oh…uh, glad to see you’re alright, Adrien. But…um…”

“Dude,” asked Nino, when no one else would, “why do you have a tampon up your nose?”

Adrien paled, considerably, “…this is a…?”

Nino nodded.

Kim burst out laughing first, and the rest of the class followed suit, while Adrien hid his shame with his hands.

Marinette, blessed, beautiful, and kind, did not laugh. Instead, she stood and went to him. ”Come on.” She grabbed his hand and tugged him along to the bathroom.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he noticed Lila glaring at them, glaring at him, with a smile on her lips. It seemed she had changed targets.

She led him to the boys room, and opened the door. “Anybody in here?”

When there was no reply, she pulled him in, and steered him toward the sink.

“Go ahead and pull it out.”

He did, the bleeding starting up again.

“Sorry I just commandeered the whole situation, but I had a feeling Lila was going to be less than helpful.” She wadded up a ball of toilet paper and handed it to him. “Hold this to your nose for now.”

With the ball under his nose, he just continued to gaze at her. “No, thank you for rescuing me. I’ve never dealt with a bloody nose before.”

Marinette gave him this sympathetic little smile. “Well, lucky for you, I have. A handful of times.”

Adrien remembered a dozen or so times when Ladybug got knocked a little too hard and ended up a little bloodied.

“Here,” she took a strip of toilet paper and twisted it into a long string. “Now, you’re going to fish this up your nostril as far as it will go. It will tickle and be uncomfortable, but I swear the bleeding will stop in a few minutes.”

Adrien took the tissue and did as she instructed. He got the urge to sneeze again, but held it back.

“There. Now we’ll just wait a little while and see if it stops.”

“Thank you, Marinette. You really are our everyday Ladybug.” He kind of felt stupid saying so, but it was so true.

Marinette tinged a lovely shade of pink, flicking her eyes away from his. “You’ve been having a pretty bad day today, huh?”

He groaned and almost collapsed on the floor. “The worst.”

“Well, we’ll just have to make up for it tonight, right? I know. You versus me, Ultimate Mecha Strike 4, battle to the death. What do you say?”

“That sounds like so much fun! But…”

“But?”

“My father…he changed his mind this morning. I can’t go. I’m sorry Marinette, I really really really wanted to.”

She deflated. Her shoulders dropped, her smile faded, even the light in her eyes snuffed out. “Oh.”

He wanted to cry. “I’m serious, I’m really upset about this! I was so excited!” He choked.

The life came back into the girl in front of him, and she rested a gentle hand on his arm. “Hey, it’s alright. We’ll try again. If we’re persistent, eventually your father will have to let you go, right?”

Despite the optimism in her voice, Adrien could she she was severely disappointed.

Maybe she really did have feelings for him.

“We better get back. How’s your nose?”

He carefully extracted the tissue, only to find part of it still clean. “I think it’s good. I’ll just tuck a little bit in there just in case.”

“Good idea.”

“And...Marinette?”

“Hmm?”

“Thank you. You’re wonderful.”

She blushed, and some of that light came back to her eyes.

[footballffbarbiex]

House Cleaning.

Day 29 of the writing challenge. For the 30 day masterlist, click here. Word count: 1124 Player: Paulo Dybala.  ______________________________

Paulo knows how busy his girlfriend has been lately. Between meeting deadlines, completing her work, looking out for her friends and seeing her family, it hasn’t really left much time for him. Of course, Paulo is bothered by this. He doesn’t get to see his girlfriend but everyone else does. He’s not annoyed about this, it’s just the way the cookie crumbles sometimes. They were able to text and call each other which certainly helped. Seeing her face on his screen as they skyped was what he needed to fill the void. He wouldn’t tell her this, but he often kept a shirt with her perfume sprayed on it nearby. He also wouldn’t truthfully tell her how much he missed her when she asked. He gave what he was given. A smile, “of course I miss you,” and whatever else she wanted. But he didn’t tell her how as much as he loved seeing her face, her smile and hear her laugh, it wasn’t anything compared to being there and being able to kiss her, hold her and just be there with her.

She didn’t need to be doing anything, just sitting in the same room as him and he’d feel content. He’d feel happy and at peace. It was funny how she did that. He knew she was there before he saw her. He felt the unease wash away and in its place was her. No, he didn’t want to tell her how much he missed her or how much she helped him because he was scared she’d leave, just like the others had. It made being in his home sometimes unbearable.  He also knew she was struggling under the pressure of it all too and to add his burdens, to add his….neediness to the equation? It didn’t feel right.

Paulo knew she wouldn’t see it that way but he felt it. He felt he put too much on her to “fix” him. To make him feel better when it wasn’t her place to do that at all. He shouldn’t depend on someone else and so he kept his feelings to himself.

Paulo jogs up the stairs to the front door and pulls the keys from his pocket. She was at work and he had a couple of hours before she was due to finish. The soft click of the door unlocking sounds and he tries the handle. It opens easily and he bends to scoop up her post, only to find more of it behind the door when he closes it. Frowning, he collects it all and heads through into the kitchen and drops the post onto the table. He had expected the place to be much worse than it is. He knows when she goes through these stressed periods that her homelife tends to dip and when that happens, her mindset goes with it. He didn’t want her falling into darker times. He didn’t want her getting in a cycle she couldn’t break and so if it was something as having a clean home, then that’s what he do to help. It’s bad by her standards but not by his. Taking a deep breath, he wonders where to start. --

Almost two hours later he’s finished and on his way home when his mobile rings. He connects it to the Bluetooth of his car and smiles when he sees her name. “Hey! How was work?” “It was better. I had half a days holiday so I finished at one.” Finished at one. Paulo looks at the clock and frowns when he sees it’s coming up to 6pm. “I’m glad to hear you had a better day.” He says absentmindedly, wondering where she’s been for the past few hours if she hasn’t been home. “How was training?” Her words pull him back. “Training?” “I figured since you weren’t home that’s where you be?” “How do you know I’m not at home?” “Firstly, I know with the way you’re speaking that I’m on your car Bluetooth speaker. Secondly, I know you’re not in because I’m in your lounge and you’re not here with me.” He grins, unable to stop himself. “You’re at mine? Right now?” “Uh huh. So where are you?” “Coming back from yours.” He laughs, checking his mirror before overtaking the other cars, wanting to get home quickly.

She’s exactly where she said she was when he arrives. She shifts her body weight, moving so that she’s pressed up against the back of his sofa. She opens his arms and smiles widely as he climbs on and snuggles into her, unashamed to be the little spoon. “I’ve missed you.” The words come from both of them at the same time, resulting in soft laughter from the two of them. “Why were you at mine?” She asks. “You seem stressed and I don’t like it when you get like that. I figured your home should be somewhere relaxing so I’ve cleaned it for you. Maybe added a few additions in there too that I hope you’d like.” He thinks of the bouquet of flowers on the table and the candles around the bath, along with some expensive bath oils to go in there too. “You work too hard. You need to unwind sometimes.”

“That’s why I came here.” She admits. “I’ve missed you and I’ve felt like you’ve needed me the past few days but I haven’t been here for you. Not in the way you’ve needed.”

“You could have invited me over, you didn’t need to come here if you really wanted to see me.” He chuckles, looking up at her. She was always taken back by how beautiful Paulo was. His striking eyes in contrast to the dark hair never failed to take her breath away.

“Nuh uh. You need to feel good in your own home. Not coming to mine when you’re upset. I’m going to get you feeling safe here.”

“Then you need to move in.” His comment is casual but something that’s been on his mind. “I’m serious,” he says when her eyes flicker. “there’s only you that makes me feel that way and unless you’re here, I won’t feel like that.”

“You’re asking me to move in?”

Paulo nods, “Say you’ll consider it?”

“I don’t need to consider it, if you want me to then I will.”

“As easy as that?” Paulo frowns. He expected to work a lot harder to get her to move in with him.

“If it makes you happy, of course I will.”

“What about what makes you happy?”

“As long as I can sleep, eat, see those that I love and watch you get better I’ll be happy Paulo. Promise me if I move in you’ll work on you?”

“I promise.”

[chiefdefendofcherryblossom]

NABC Writer’s Challenge

Good evening my fellow writers! I’m sorry I wasn’t able to post earlier, it’s been stressful and hectic. How’d your 1000 word ramble go? Here’s mine: 

My demon probably wasn’t going to agree. 

“I’m going, Barney.” 

The spirit hovering by me glowered. “Don’t call me that! How many times do I have to tell you, it’s Barnabus! And I will not let you!” 

“Barnabus,” I grumbled under my breath as I shoved things into my suitcase. “A lovely name for a lovely young demon.” 

Barnabus’s aura didn’t darken like it did when he was really ticked at me. Instead, he sighed. “I’m your guardian angel, Dern. No demon.” 

“Really? Well, you might want to take a refresher course in angelic qualities. You don’t even remotely bring angel to mind, let alone angelic guardian.” 

I probably shouldn’t taunt the powerful being like I did. But he was being annoying, so I was going to be annoying back. 

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Think about it! I can test the first real-life time machine. The pay will set us up for years. And I already bought the ticket.”  

I glanced around. I’d packed everything, hadn’t I? 

“You want to know why they pay so well? To attract idiots like you to be lost forever in time! How’d you like to live out your life stuck in the 1100s? And think about me, Dern! This really makes it very hard to keep you safe. It’s better to not go.” he nodded, as if he’d settled the matter. 

I grabbed my suitcase and walked to the door, putting on my coat. I ran through my mental list. Keys, ticket, wallet, check. 

“Well, Barney, you can stay if it makes you all that happy.” I opened the door and let myself out, smiling tauntingly.  

Grumbling, he floated to my side. “I knew you’d change your mind,” I said, locking the door to my one-bedroom apartment shut. “Boy, am I glad to leave this place.” 

“And you expect certain death to be better?” Barnabus demanded. 

I grinned. “There’s no death in the contract, let alone certain. And even that’s got to be better than what we’ve got. If life were food,” I explained nonchalantly as we walked to the car, “Mine would be that bland, awful oatmeal mush that Dad used to make, and yours something that’s making the fridge smell like mold. Compared to that, even McDonalds would be good.” 

I slid into the driver’s seat of my blue truck. “Which means that death, even if it isn’t certain, is an upgrade! If we don’t die, it’s still a win-win.” 

Barnabus rolled his eyes. His spheres of angelic sight must be loose, they’d fall out of his head soon. Maybe then he wouldn’t be so cranky - he wouldn’t be able to jump at shadows at every corner. Or maybe, he’d be even worse, because with no sight, all you’d see was shadows, right? So maybe I didn’t want to go there after all. “Need me to fix that?” I said. 

Barnabus frowned. “What?” 

“Looks like a few of your screws are loose,” I told him, spinning the wheel for a right turn. “Wouldn’t want those eyes to fall out and make you even more cynical.” 

Barnabus’ only response was, “I can’t believe I still like you, Dern.” 

I laughed. “Yeah, I’m a charmer, huh? A bad influence, too. Double points for me.” 

I adjusted my rearview mirror, catching a glimpse of my reflection. 

Tall, lanky boy with thick, unruly blond hair, smirking at the empty space where Barnabus’ reflection should be. 

“What makes me so special that I get my own demon?” I asked. “Or does everyone get a demon and nobody knows? That doesn’t seem like it’d work so well.” 

Barnabus paused. 

“Well, when your mother died…” 

I swallowed. “Yeah?” 

“She, well, wanted me to look after you.” 

“Why didn’t she come do that herself?” My tone had more bite than I meant it to. 

“That’s not how it works, Dern. She...she’s busy.” 

“Busy? She’s dead. She should have plenty of time for me now.” I scoffed. “Even dead, I’m second priority.” 

I readjusted my mirror, so I couldn’t see Barnabus’s expression and flustered hand movements. Why did it irritate me so much? 

“Anyways...most people don’t have one specific guardian assigned to them. You’re a special case, Dern.” 

“Yeah,” I grumbled, turning left. “So I’ve always been told.” 

It’s not bad, Dern. You’re just...special. 

Us? We’re the disabled kids. Otherwise known as ‘special.’ 

Would you cut it out, Dern? You always act as though you’re so special!

I’m here to help your...special case. 

When will you start acting like a normal child?! 

“So special.” I murmured, flicking off my blinker. 

Barnabus sighed. “I’m sorry, Dern.” 

I stared at the picture that I’d taped next to my speedometer. Clara had her dark red hair tied in a messy bun, tongue wagging, left arm draped over my shoulders. I was laughing. Everything’s easier if you laugh, she’d told me. 

I chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. Few people can be like I can.” 

 Reporting to the lab was exciting. Even Barnabus didn’t complain, taking in the movie-like surroundings. Pristine office, official workers buzzing around. I walked up to the counter and flashed my ticket. “Dern Reddcunt. I’m here to test the time machine?” 

The short lady at the desk looked me over disapprovingly. “Uh-huh...one moment.” She clicked away on her computer for a few minutes, long enough for me to get bored, which, granted, wasn’t very long. I blew into Barnabus’s face, and he crackled lightning into mine. 

I looked up as a little kid pushed through the doorway and looked over the lady’s shoulder.

“A kid?” Barnabus whispered.  He was dressed in jeans and a t-shirt with Metallica on it. His black hair looked like it hadn’t been washed in a month, there were dark circles under his green eyes, and he held a huge cup of what I assumed was coffee. Despite all this, there was that wiry grin that most tweenagers have, and he seemed rather energetic. 

“So this is my guy, huh, Ariel?” 

The lady nodded. “Dern Reddcunt.” 

I frowned. “Your guy? But you’re -” 

The boy grinned, raising his mug. “A dweeby kid?” 

I nodded. “Exactly. And you don’t look like you belong...here.” I glanced over my surroundings of white lights, whiter walls, crisp business suits - and back at him. Nope, he definitely didn’t match. 

His eyes looked like static electricity trapped in a bottle. He smirked. “I’m Alistair Sheldon, and I invented the time machine. And I’ve just employed you to test it.” 

He glanced back at the desk lady. “See ya, Ariel.” he winked at her, and she rolled her eyes, smiling. 

“Come on, kid.” he pulled open the door to what looked like a broom closet.  

“Kid?” I grinned at his snark, jumping after him. 

He shrugged. “People always called me that. Now I can do it to you.” 

“And is this your...cleaning closet?” 

Alistair laughed. “It used to be! Now it’s updated and renovated and made holy,” 

I raised an eyebrow. “By what?” 

His grin was so cocky. Oh, this kid was begging to be taken down a notch. “By my presence,” he said simply, and marched into the room. 

I walked after him. Barnabus huffed. “Rude child.” he floated down the stairs. 

“Whoa,” I breathed. “Some broom closet.” 

It had been taken down into the whole basement level. Inset lights made up nearly the whole ceiling, and the place was divided into what looked like at least 50 different cubbyholes, a large room in the center. Heavy rock and deep classical blared at each other, fighting for eardrum breaking dominance. The walls had family pictures taped to them, and random colorful stains. Tools, trash, paper, oil, and various things lay strewn all over the place. Alistair smiled genuinely. “My favorite place in the world,” he spread his arm, indicating the whole place. “My lab.” 

I nodded. “Not bad for a twelve year old.” 

Alistair raised a finger. “Uh, I’ll have you know that I’m fourteen.” 

“Sure.” 

“Now if you’ll excuse me while I get your paperwork. In case you die or something. For legal status.” He turned away from me. “DAD! THE GUY IS HERE!”

I thought it was funny, if nothing else. Send me yours, I’d love to read them! 

There are several key components in writing that I have found. Prose/narrative, dialogue, description/setting, and characters, which is a HUUUGE element.  Anyway, today I want you to write three paragraphs - a minimum of 10 sentences, in deeply descriptive writing. Make me be able to feel, smell, see, touch, and hear everything. Let me know what characters look like and what vibe they’re putting off. Just make sure that as you write it, you get completely submerged into your setting, so the same thing can happen for your reader. 

Here’s mine. I tried two different examples. The first is with my character Vienna, the second with my friend Kasv. 

"Please...don't."

The tears roll down my face like wet beads, even as I try to suppress them. I rub at them with my sleeve, but the cloth is rough, and it irritates my raw skin.

"Get over it, you do this every day," I hiss to myself, scratching the scabs on my eyelids.

I curl in tighter to myself, huddling against my own body. "But it doesn't usually hurt like this, it doesn't!"

I feel a twinge of empathy for myself. "I know, I know. But you don't want to die, do you?" 

My eyes are shut so tight that they start to hurt, bright spots flashing in odd ways. "No," I admit in a whimper. "But I - I - " I choke on my tears and convulse softly, the fear physically seeming to squeeze my lungs. "I don't want to."

I rub my shoulder.  "I know, honey. I know. Let's do it quickly, alright?" 

"I - " a hiccup stops my voice, and a large tear drips off my nose. "I don't want to!" 

"Enough," I tell myself authoritatively. "You're going to live, I won't let you die. It'll only hurt for a few minutes."

Even as I sob and slide away, pushing against the hard wall,  suddenly feeling my bruised tailbone, I nod. I don't want to die, not yet.

I stared at the figure retreating. 

A feeling of blankness. Things this dramatic, they don't happen in real life. They are for stories. For heroes. 

But it has just happened. To me. I am no hero. I am a wretch of a human that has lost the best thing to ever happen to them. 

My eyes burn. I know I shouldn’t cry; boys don't cry. 

I cry. 

The tears hurt, each one feeling like a new weight that I’ve procured for myself. 

Hate. Hate hate hate. 

A part of me wishes to cry out in anger, hurt, and confusion. It comes out in a sad warble. 

My soul is splitting inside me. It hurts. Living hurts. I hurt. I am hurt and I hurt others. I hurt. 

Again, the wretched warble tries to push its way through my lips. 

A shoulder shoves past, knocking into me. 

Reality comes flooding back. I am in the train station. I need to do something. I cannot stay here and become a spectacle. 

A heavy breath. I want to go after them. 

No. I am not that weak. 

...but I am. 

I push through the others in the station, forcing my muscles, suddenly weak, to assist me. 

The fluorescent lights are both harsh and not bright enough. I can’t tell where they have gone. 

No! I can’t lose them!

Good luck, work hard, and have fun!

[tellerford13]

MO ASTOR- CHAPTER 25

We don’t own the bikes, brothers, or any “related” Sons of Anarchy, trust us, if we did we wouldn’t have the time to write. No money is being made from our stories. So, please don’t sue. It’d be a fruitless endeavor indeed. That being said, Harley, Journee, and any other newbies are ours, and we don’t share. :Whispers in creepy voice: “My precious.” The universe This reality is a mix of cannon, and our own ideas. We strive to keep the boys cannon, but since we will be shifting around some of the events, that will reflect in our writing and their personalities as well. It’s our goal to provide you with quality fiction, and solid, fleshed out OFC. We appreciate constructive criticism and love LOVE reviews, they are a writers life blood and definitely help encourage us and inspire us. We will be posting on our Tumblr where we’ll have fun pictures from time to time as well. http://tellerford13.tumblr.com We’ll also be taking requests for one shots, preferences or imagines for all things Sons at our other Tumblr, so check it out and send your thoughts!http://tellerford13oneshots.tumblr.com/ And just for fun, we’ve decided to start a Pinterest for the story! So if you want a glimpse at our girls and see into our world, check it out! https://www.pinterest.com/tellerford/

A/n: Thank you all for the incredible support you’ve showed us. Telford’s birthday rocked and she thanks you for the kinds words.

                                           Mo Astor Chapter 25

Lee

My phone rings and “Thank you for being a friend” plays, making me squeal. She’s here!

I hit answer. “You’re home,” I breathe the words like a prayer. There’s so much I want to tell her, hear, and discuss. It’s been hell having her away while my worlds completed shifted.

“I am. Why aren’t you here?”

“Because you have a husband now. You two need time to settle in and continue your honeymoon over the weekend before its time to head back to the daily grind.”

She snickers. “You’d be the only one who thinks that. Jay ambushed me and talked me to death on the way down, and then Gemma demanded we show up at the family dinner. So, get your ass over here we need to talk.”

“What about Chibs?” I ask. The last thing I want to do is make him feel ignored or disrespected. Journee and I together, are a lot. We practically have our own language, and it leaves plenty of folks feeling left out. “He took pity on me and went to say hi to the boys at the club.”

“Say no more. I’ll be there in five minutes.”

I’m like a teenage girl on her way to her first slumber party as I stand from the couch, grab my purse off the table, and rush to my car. We’ve both had so much happening in our lives. It’s time to get caught up and reconnect. She’s as much my anchor as Charming, and the Sons are. There’s power in loyalty and familiarity.

I crank the engine and all but peel out the driveway. I whip into her driveway and pause. It’s no longer her house. It’s their house. My best friend is a married woman. Mrs. Journee Telford. It’s funny…I can remember her writing that name in an elegant font in notebooks and on a countless number of loose leaf pages when we were teens. Who would’ve thought we’d end up here one day?

From the minute they admitted their feelings they’d moved at hyper speed. It’d be too much for anyone else, but with these two it made perfect sense. Why beat around the bush when you’d been putting in all the work for years.

The only thing that had kept them from being an official item before was labels. There had been many nights when I saw Chibs leave her room in boxers and a t-shirt, and the look in their eyes never screamed just friends.  I’m over the moon for both of them, but it’s a dynamic change I’m still feeling my way around. I’ve never had much reason to spend a ton of time around Chibs, and I’m waiting to see what kind of husband he’ll be.

Some men like to keep a woman mostly to themselves. I wouldn’t blame him if he did. They have a lot of time to make up for. Still, the thought of losing my best friend in any way sends me into a slow panic. I push the door open and climb out walking toward the door as I try to outrun my fears. I’ve been left alone so many times in my life, I’ve almost come to expect the relationships that mean the most to me to eventually end.

The door opens, and we hug. Her scent is familiar, and her embrace is tight. My anxiety eases back. This is Journee. She’s never let anyone come between us. Why would now be any different? Because he’s her dream come true. She pulls back, frames my face and brushes our lips together. I hum.

“Well, hello to you too, beautiful.”

She smiles. “Those pretty blue eyes are looking stormy. Come in and talk to your Journee.”

“Are you still mine? I think your husband might disagree,” I say playfully.

She studies me in that scary calm, still, way that makes one feel like she’s peering into your soul.

“Me belonging to him now doesn’t and never will make me any less yours. After all, we’ve been through together, the bond we have is unbreakable. If you’re worried about things changing, don’t. I talked to Daddy about this early on.”

“You did?” I whisper humbled by the actions she’d taken on my behalf.

“Yes, babe. So stop worrying.” She frowns. “You don’t seem like yourself.” She wraps an arm around my waist, and we head inside. She closes the door, pauses to enter the alarm and leads us to the couch. We sink onto the cushions and curve into one another.

“Spill, babe.”

“You’re supposed to be telling me all about Scotland.”

“And I will, right after you tell me what’s got you so antsy.”

“There’s a lot of changes happening, and we both know I’m a creature of habit,” I say glumly.

‘Uh huh. And this has nothing to do with the little head to head with Wendy.”

“Ugh, Of course, he told you.”

“Yeah. I heard his side. Now I want to hear yours. Are you okay?”

I sigh and glance up at the ceiling. “She’s right. I mean, no we weren’t fucking around behind her back, but if I was her, I’d be pissed. We’ve been so busy with our own happiness. We didn’t give a second thought to hers.”

“Ugh, Stupid bitch is still fucking shit up.”

“Down Mama Telford. I know she made the mistake of touching your man, but she’s also knocked up with Jax’s kid. We have to tread lightly—.”

“No, you need to set boundaries and figure things out before this kid comes and she runs or does something else equally stupid. J was all she had. When you came out at the wedding, the last of her hope was stripped away. That puts her in a dangerous place.”

“Shit no wonder she came out breathing fire.”

“That girl slept, ate, and lived, Jax. Even I can admit he was wrong for doing her the way he did. He had a loyal woman. Just because she let him walk all over her didn’t mean he should have. But that was the old Jax.”

Her words hit home as they line up with the same things swirling in my brain. “You see the change too?”

“Yes, thanks to you. You’ve always challenged him and forced him to be a better person. A man who thinks shit through and remembers his humility. Now that you’re together that effect increased tenfold.”

I sit up and lick my dry lips. “I see someone I know, but then don’t when I look at him these days. I was worried maybe I was projecting.”

“Oh, no, you got that boy sprung.”

“What?” I chuckle.

“Oh come on, he makes cow eyes at you.” She blinks slowly and widens her eyes making me giggle.  “He does not.”

“Oh, My God Are you kidding me? He thinks you’re sexy, he wants to date you, he wants to marry you,” she sings.

“Thank you Miss Congeniality,” I say already feeling lighter.

“Look, I’m just calling it how I see it.”

“Right.” I shake my head as I wipe away a tear.

“Feeling better?”

“Much.”

“Want to tell me what had you uptight?”

“How fast this is all going. I don’t let people in like this, but he was already behind my walls, and now he’s infiltrating...” I trail off unable to speak the words out loud.

“Your heart?” She says.

I nod my head.

“Trust me, babe. When it’s meant to be, and you’re with the right person, it won’t matter how much time goes by. This isn’t a bad thing.”

“Yet,” I say quietly.

“Honey he’s not like any man you’ve ever been with. So, stop comparing him. He’s always been there. Why would he not be more committed now?”

“Because this shit never ends up well for me.”

“Do you remember Kyle and the various men who came before him?” she asks.

“That’s different.”

“Why?”

I shake my head unable to answer her.

“We both deserve to be happy. We have our wounds. They’ll lead to doubts, and us picking ourselves apart until we don’t know which way is up and which is down. But we’re lucky because we have something most people don’t.”

“Oh yeah, what’s that?” I ask

“Each other. I’m here to tell you I refuse to let your past ruin your future. Search your heart and your memories. Would Jax even start this with you if he couldn’t see it through?”

I shake my head. “I don’t think so.”

“You know he wouldn’t. My brother is many things, but being reckless with his girls isn’t one of them, and I’m not talking about the warm bodies who’ve played placeholder in the role of girlfriend. I’m talking about You, Gemma, and me.”

I sigh. “It sounds good logically. But.,,” I shake my head.

“We’re far too used to pain and disappointment, but this is our time to be happy. In no universe would I find everything I ever wanted and you not have the same thing. Our worlds are connected.”

“I’m so fucking scared. He could break me. I always hold back with men. I can’t with Jax, and that terrifies me.”

“That’s how you know he’s the one,” Journee says as she squeezes my hand.

“After everything happened with Wendy, he left. I know he needs space sometimes, but it scared me.”

“You know I won’t share his thoughts. That’s his job. But I can say this. You’re not the only one who’s scared. This is new to him, and he’s trying his best to rise to the occasion and be what you need. It’s a learning curve, for both of you.”

“Why the fuck do you make it seem so easy.”

“Cause I’m outside of it, not in it, and I know you both.”

“What the hell am I going to do?”

‘Sit back and enjoy him slaying the dragon for his lady fair.”

I huff.

“When the time is right you guys will find your comfortable spot. Both of you are complex people. It takes time to get through all those layers and wade through those crowded heads on your shoulders.”

“Fuck you’re already old, married, and wise.”

She shoves me, and I laugh as I chew on what she said.

“Seriously, though. I appreciate your input. I’m going to… quell my stinking thinking.”

She smiles. It was an old phrase we’d both adopted from my Gran.

“Good. Did I help some at least?”

“You helped immensely. Thank you for helping me walk through it. Enough about me. I want to hear all about your trip.”

“Fact number one, Filip is a fucking beast in bed. That wedding night was no one off.”

I can’t help the squeal that leaves me lips. “Are you serious?”

“Me and my Kitty are dead serious. I can’t even walk right.”

“Wait. You’re serious.”

“Umm. Yes.”

“Well, now I just have to see it for myself.”

“Lee,” she whines.

“Nu uh. Get your ass up and walk for me.”

“So demanding,” she says with a wink as she eases into a standing position.

The pronounced hitch in her giddy up has me giggling on my back on the couch.

“No sympathy!” She flings a pillow at me, and I clutch my stomach.

“I’m sorry. It’s too good.”

She rolls her eyes and I sprawl out on the couch and blow her a kiss.

“Since you’re here, you can help me with this slide show I have to put together for Ma.”

I shake my head. “She couldn’t wait to get all her children together again.”

“Typical Gemma. Tell, don’t ask.”

“Hope your old man knows what a crazy family he married into.”

“He has one of his own.” I listen as she launches into her tale about his nephew Padric and his mother, Chibs’s sister, Greer. I tear up when she tells me had a chance to speak with his daughter and how they’ll keep in touch now.

I wonder if she realizes she’s given the man everything he could’ve wanted.