#he might do a gig here and there especially if its for a good cause or for friends but he doesnt make a living out it

[reki-of-the-valley]

Why do I feel Langa modeled in his youth as a little extra cash grab and got pretty popular but quit that world before he could "make something out of himself"?

[blazedhs]

started reading manhwa love interest zone, which I liked, but since its ongoing and I saw it had a drama with the same plot, love for the sake of love, - I watched it to know the ending. It has some minor changes in plot, and characters kinda a bit different (gonna be honest, a lot different in visual aspect that's for sure, especially sangwon), and I do like manhwa better, but I still liked the drama, i think for a bl it's a step forward, it's as okay as you can expect from non budget first love drama, which for bl is a lot, cause most of the time the adaptations are atrocious and the actors are as good in acting and having any chemistry as stick figures. so my review is positive even tho the minor development of the plot was rushed and at places awkward, like the stalker subplot, the modeling gig - no idea why couldnt they stick to manhwa here, where it all made a lot more sense, and the pick of actors veeeeeeeeery interesting, like you gotta say this is the mother and That is the model highschool girl who likes to run but anyways). It could very well be better, but among the bl adaptations it might be the best one so far. the myungha actor was good and by the end he convinced me he is very cute and troubled, just like it was intended.

[aquadestinyswriting]

Come Back Again

Summary: Gruk is on the hunt for his youngest daughter, who seems to have vanished after the weekly service in the Cathedral of Kherillim

Words: 2,152

Tags: @druidx @homesteadchronicles @asher-orion-writes,@warriorbookworm, @odysseywritings

Warnings: None. Fluffy fluff is fluffy

Notes: Meredith is about the equivalent of 6 or 7 years old in this one, so she has no idea of the significance of what she's doing. The lyrics she's singing is from Will Ye No Come Back Again? I'm going to try and sort out some in-universe lyrics that would fit because it does sound a bit hymn-like

The Cathedral of Kherillim had been the centre of Fangthane society since its founding. It was a huge edifice carved directly out of the mountain initially, but as the millenia went on, new parts were added as the city grew and prospered. Now the entrance hall was made of brilliantly polished marble and obsidian and mosaics and tapestries covered the floors, walls and pillars of the interior. The oldest parts still bore scars from the various wars that had happened centuries before, but, for the most part, the building gleamed, lit by the light of the divine that infused the place. 

A stocky, near middle-aged dwarven man grumbled as he walked through the hallway leading further into the cathedral and away from the main vestibule. He was currently wearing a smart suit and tie and his dark auburn beard and hair were freshly washed and combed through, dimly reflecting the light from the various glowstones that lit his way. The man grumbled as he strode down the hall, passing a small gaggle of junior members of the clergy who hurried off to attend to their various duties now that the morning service was over. 

“I swear, the lassie must be part kobold to have disappeared this fast.” he groused, stopping at a junction and peering down each passageway, hoping to catch a glimpse of his currently wayward youngest daughter. He turned at the sound of footsteps behind him,

“Ah, good morning Mr Ovaksson. Can I help you with anything?” A deep but quiet voice asked. Ovaksson grumbled a bit more, waving his hand in the direction he’d been walking,

“Hopefully ye can Faither. My youngest daughter, wee Meredith, has decided to take it upon herself to go for a wander.” The sandy-haired cleric of Moradin shook his head and laid a hand on the despondent man’s shoulder,

“It’s alright Gruk, I’m sure she hasn’t gone far. When was the last time ye saw her?” he asked. Gruk looked guiltily at the floor,

“Ah, to be honest, I wasn’t the one watching her during the service. That was supposed to be Alfie. Last I was looking was at the start of the service and she seemed content enough then.” The cleric huffed a patient sigh, and gestured for Gruk to follow him,

“We might as well check the Infirmary first, then. It’s the place she’s the most familiar with.”

It wasn’t long before other members of the clergy were roped into the search. The cleric Gruk had initially told about his daughter’s disappearance had collected a group of acolytes to help him, while Gruk was sent off with a more senior member of staff. The dark-haired man looked back at a frantic Gruk as the pair turned down another corridor,

“Don’t worry Gruk, she has to be somewhere down here. I can’t imagine that she’s left the Cathedral.” Gruk waved his hands in front of him, gesturing down the corridor,

“That’s not what I’m worried aboot Faither.” he said, his voice tight, “I just hope she’s not gotten into someplace she’s not meant to.” Father Ragnarsson pursed his lips as he carried on down the hall. While it was not unusual for children to go wandering through the Cathedral-  especially if they felt an affinity for the place- it was rare for them to wander far from the main vestibule. The priest pondered what it meant that young Meredith had wandered so far. He paused, causing Gruk to run into the back of him,

“Oof! What’re ye-” Ragnarsson held up a hand to quiet the blacksmith and cocked his head. A quiet giggle, followed by murmuring filtered through a doorway further down the corridor. A soft blue-ish light was barely visible through the gloom. Ragnarsson turned back to Gruk,

“I think we’ve got her.” he said, voice low, “I don’t know what she’s doing, but I don’t think it’s wise to march up there and startle her.” Gruk’s brow furrowed as he inhaled sharply through his teeth,

“She’s been missing fer over an hour.” he growled. Ragnarsson patiently crossed his arms over his chest,

“And most young children don’t feel the need to go exploring the storage rooms of the Cathedral when there are infinitely more exciting places to find.” he retorted mildly. Gruk glared at him for a moment before finally nodding,

“Fine. But she’s still grounded for the rest o’ the year.” he grumbled. The cleric in front of him repressed a snort of amusement and gestured for Gruk to follow him, quietly. The two of them could now clearly hear the voice of a young child singing an old dwarven hymn,

“Sweet’s the laverock’s note and lang,

Lilting wildly up the glen;

But aye to me He sings ae sang,

Will ye no come back again?”

Ragnarsson smiled; while Meredith was a bit young to know the meaning of what she sang, it clearly spoke to her. The soft light brightened slightly as the blacksmith and cleric approached the door. The two men poked their heads through, one prepared to start giving the girl what for, the other preparing to talk his companion down, but both simply stared at the sight that greeted them. 

The room was small, containing only a table with a gold and red runned and a simple clay bowl on top. Sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of the table was a small dwarven girl wearing a dark green dress, which was currently covered in dust. Her hair was tied into unruly pigtails, the curls making it look like she was wearing bobbles on her head and in her hands…

Neither man spoke, too enraptured by what Meredith was doing. In the soft blue light between her hands was a handful of what looked like claydust gently being teased into the shape of a rabbit. Sitting at her knee, currently cleaning its nose and ears, was a mouse that looked to be made of the same material. The dust-creature froze and looked up at the two dwarven men, squeaking in alarm. The noise was enough to break the girl’s concentration and the soft blue light faded as she looked up, eyes wide. She quickly cupped her hands and brought them to her chest protectively, while the dust-mouse scampered into the space between her legs. The three dwarves stared at each other, none of them sure what to say. 

Ragnarsson stared dumbly at the mouse. The thing was made of claydust. It shouldn’t be staying together like that, never mind moving and squeaking. He glanced up at the bowl on the table, dim memories of being told about it; its importance to Fangthane’s history, what exactly it was made of and who had created it.

Shaper.

The word rang loud and clear in his mind. But how? The last known Shaper died over 2,000 years ago and the family line the ability had been linked to had been extinct for almost a millennium…

He was shaken out of his thoughts by Gruk finally breaking the silence,

“What’ve ye got there, Merri?” the blacksmith asked, his voice low, gentle and genuinely curious. The blacksmith slowly crept into the room and crouched in front of his daughter, who shuffled back, a little, looking up at her father warily,

“Ye- ye’re not upset?” she asked, voice quavering. Gruk shook his head, now kneeling and sitting back on his haunches,

“I was.” he admitted, “You know ye’re not supposed to run off on yer own like that.” he paused, trying to find a way to reassure his youngest child that he wasn’t really angry with her. He huffed out a sigh, “Ye’re not in trouble.” he said, “We were just worried.” Meredith glanced up to the cleric, who nodded and crouched down next to Gruk,

“Why did you come all the way down here, Meredith?” he asked “It’s a long way from the church hall.” he added. Meredith looked up at the bowl, frowned, then looked back to the priest,

“The really nice lady said to." She replied, "I was gettin' bored 'cause Alfie was just standing talking to folk and I wanted to go explore and-" 

"What really nice lady?" Gruk asked, getting a glare for daring to interrupt his daughter's spiel just as it was getting started. Meredith huffed, puffing out her cheeks,

"The invisible one." She stated simply, "Anyway, she said that if I wanted to explore that there was something really special I had to see and she brought me here." Gruk frowned looking up to Ragnarsson. 

The cleric could hardly believe what he was hearing. While it was clear that Meredith didn't have the words to describe it accurately, she had obviously been Called down here. And not only that, but by Throff Herself, if the child's wording was anything to go by. He cleared his throat,

"Did the really nice lady say anything else to you?" He asked, gesturing for Gruk to allow the child to speak. Meredith looked down at her hands thoughtfully,

"Only that she was happy that I could hear her." She said, "And that if I wanted to talk to her she would always listen, but that she was very busy sometimes so she can't talk all the time." The girl looked down to the mouse that was now sitting on her knee,

"She's not here any more, but the lady told me the dust on the bowl was special and that I was allowed to play with it." She added. Ragnarsson nodded,

"That's alright, but I think it's about time you went home. There are a lot of people currently looking for you because you didn't tell anyone where you were going." Meredith pouted,

"I told Alfie!" She retorted, "Not my fault he didn't pay attention." Gruk rolled his eyes and gestured for his daughter to get up,

"Then he'll get in more trouble than he already is." He said, "But right now, it's past lunchtime and yer mum is worried sick." Meredith looked down at the floor, 

"Sorry da." She mumbled. She unclasped her hands, letting the dust between them fall to the floor and picked up the mouse on her knee instead. She showed the creature to her father,

"Can Dusty come with us?" She asked. Ragnarsson interjected before Gruk could disappoint his daughter,

"Actually, Merri, would it be alright if he came with me?" He asked. Meredith looked up at the old priest warily as she stood,

"Why?" She asked slowly, bringing the creature she'd made closer to her. Ragnarsson smiled,

"I would like to show him to someone very important." He replied patiently, "Don't worry, I promise I'll take good care of him." Meredith looked down at the mouse, which turned in the beardlet's hand and twitched its nose at her. Slowly Meredith nodded, gently placing the mouse into Ragnarsson's outstretched hand,

"Only because Dusty thinks it's a good idea." She mumbled. Ragnarsson's smile widened, placing the mouse into a pocket. Meredith sulked out of the little room while Gruk pulled himself back up. The smith frowned at the priest, 

"So mind tellin' me what in the Pit is going on?" He grumbled, a worried frown settling on his face as he tried to make sense of what had just happened. Ragnarsson laid a hand on the smith's shoulder,

"To be honest, I'm not sure, but you might want to make an appointment with the High Priest to enroll her as an acolyte once she's old enough." Gruk followed Ragnarsson out into the corridor, watching as Meredith chatted animatedly to thin air. He sighed as he tromped after her,

"Well, I suppose it's better than her getting into my toolbox like her brother did." He grumbled, quickly catching up to the girl and promptly leading her back to the rest of their family.

Ragnarsson watched them leave for a moment, before turning back to the room he'd just exited, frowning at the bowl on the table and the small collection of dust on the flood. He closed the door and swept off in another direction, head still spinning. Never mind the High Priest, the Archlector had to be informed about this. He petted the mouse absentmindedly as he walked. If this was what Meredith was already capable of with no training, then who knew how powerful she could be with the proper guidance. Mind made up, he strode down to the deepest part of the cathedral.

Elsewhere, Meredith and Gruk were hugged and admonished for being gone so long. Meredith stayed quiet as her father laid into her oldest brother for letting her wander off and her mother fussed over the state of her dress. She wondered how long Dusty would stay in that form. The lady did say he wouldn't stay that way forever. Her stomach grumbled, immediately distracting the girl. She looked up to her mother with a pout,

"Mama, I'm hungry!"

[loousir]

[Merman] Close up Shots

Popular Octomer Male x Photographer Male Reader Part Two

Cassian

Warnings: Tentacle boy do be flirting again, some physical affection with said tentacles, nakey Cass for a little, talking about how he shifts from octo to human

•︎☆×【Ｐｒｉｄｅ】×☆•

2 of 7 The Seven Sins Series

Masterlist | Part One | Part 3 |

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

About a week past since you had last seen Cassian. The festival was coming up tonight so as a mental preparation, you decided to go for a walk along the beach. You had your bag and camera with you as you walked along the coast line, snapping the occasional picture here and there.

Before you had even realized it, you were at the place where you had first met Cassian. That same gorgeous cove cave now lay silent, hosting only a couple gulls and some sandpipers. You decided to go into the rather large area and simply take in the mid afternoon atmosphere in peace.

The waves crashed against the shore gently as your shoes crunched through the sand. You found yourself watching the water which nearly tripped you. A heavy glass tinking sounds filled your ears for a moment before you looked to the bottle you kicked. It was very clearly a message in a bottle but as you approached it to open it, you realized it was filled with water.

"Well fuck." You sighed and sat down in the sand next to the bottle. The most confusing part about the whole things is that the cork was really on there so you didn't understand how water got into it. Once you managed to get the thing open, you dumped the water out along with the letter. When you picked up the rolled paper it felt dry. That's when it clicked.

"Oh! That makes a lot of sense now." You said as you unrolled it. In absolutely gorgeous script, a still very readable letter started out by addressing you. You blinked a couple times, staring at your name on the paper before continuing.

'(Y/n),

I might be silly for trying such an outdated way of messaging but as I didn't get your number I figured this would suffice. That is to hope you get this before another does.

Let's meet here on the night of the festival around 6. As a confirmation of sorts, I ask that you leave the bottle underneath the wall tree. You'll see it.

-Cassian'

You smiled and rolled your eyes before glancing around for said tree. It was very close to the water and you decided instead of just leaving the bottle, you would wait as well. You carefully made your way over to the tree and sat criss cross on the rock underneath it. Your wait was only a few minutes before you noticed something shifting in the water.

The familiar blonde octomer breached the surface and looked over to the tree. His face held one of shock. "(Y/n)? You're here?" You smiled and nodded. "Yeah. I didn't bring a pen and paper to respond so." Cassian smiled and pulled himself into the shallow parts of the water.

"Its about 3 right now so we have a few hours before the festival." Cassian said with a smirk. You looked at him with an unamused face. "Don't smirk at me like you're gonna get something, we barely know each other." Cassian smirks again and pulls himself up onto the rock you were sitting on and ploped himself down next to you.

One of his tentacles gently coiled itself around your showing ankle before giving it a gentle squeeze. "Then let's get to know each other." Your cheeks flushed at the proximity and he laughed. Good gods... Cassian looked to the bottle and paper you were still holding in your hand. "Keep it." You furrowed your brows and looked over to him. "Huh?" He motions to the note and bottle.

"Keep it. As a memory of our first date."

You did that thing where you smiled but tried to hide it making Cassian laugh. "You invited me!" With an exaggerated sigh you nodded. "Yeah. I guess I did." Cassian smiles and wraps an arm and a tentacle around your waist. He was a bit damp but you didn't mind. "I have a question." He said, pulling you close to his hip. "What's your question?"

"Have you ever dated a non-human before?" You shook your head before tilting it to say kinda. "Well, I've only had two boyfriends. One of them was a half elf but I'm not too sure if that really counts." Cassian shrugs. "So I would be your first non-human AND octomer then." You blush softly and nod before looking up to him confused. "Wait who said we were dating?"

Cassian laughs again, making you blush more. "You definitely enjoy seeing me flustered." He nods confidently. "Yes I do indeed." After that, the two of you kept chatting about various things in your own lives and Cassian paused the conversation every so often to soak up the salty ocean water to prevent himself from drying out.

Apparently, Cassian used to date a sharkmer and at one point a naga. "The only reason me and the naga broke up is cause of when he learned I was an octomer. Apparently tentacles are an innate fear of his..." You told him about how you only moved here a about a month ago which prompted the question, "How do you like it here so far?"

You shrugged at the question. "Its a lot nicer than the last place I was living. Loads more places to get pictures." Cassian seemed to forget you took pictures for a job and you could tell by the look on his face. "Oh, I wish I could make photography my full time job but I just don't get enough gigs. I work part time in the little Cafe downtown."

"Oh! The one run by the Gargoyle? Tea and Stones right? His name slips my mind." You nodded. "His name is Xavier." Cassian nods. "We met once but it was long ago. I love going there when I do work on the land, especially after a long day." You nod and laugh. "Thats the best time to go." You pause for a moment. "I met Xavier when I first moved in. We're neighbors and as we were chatting it just so happened I was looking for a job and he was looking for people to hire."

Cassian smiles a little more, "Lucky timing." You nod and check your phone, it's just turning 5:10. "It's getting close to when we were gonna go. Did I tell you what it was?" Cassiam shakes his head. "No but that's OK. Let me shift and get dressed. Would you mind walking to my house with me?" You tilted your head and watched as he made his way back into the water.

You watched as Cassian went into the water until it was just above his chest that was showing. You could still see him with how clear the water is and you watched as he put his tentacles together to form two leg-like figures before they melded and fused together to form actual legs. You watched his face and he made it look way less painful then it probably was. And sure enough, he was buck naked, all proud and presented. Your cheeks instantly flushed once you noticed and you covered your eyes. Cassian walked up and smirked at how you weren't looking, taking pride in the fact he flustered you so much. "I went into the water to save you from the sounds as it's utterly disgusting." He said, walking up to you.

"Thaaaaanks..." Cassian chuckled and grabbed your hand away from your face, holding it in his own gently. You locked eyes with him when he did, you wanted to look out of sheer curiosity but your subconscious won't let you. "My place is right up the hill." He said, helping you off the rock. You thankfully avoided getting your shoes soaked as the two of you walked along the empty coastline.

It was maybe a 2 minute walk to his house and you recognized it. "Cassian you live there?" You asked, shocked slightly. Cassian laughs and nods. "Yeah, why?" You blinked and looked down the street as he quickly made his way into the house to avoid an indecent exposure charge. He pulled you inside and shut the door behind you.

"Cass I live down the street. I'm in the corner house. My only neighbor is Xavier." Cassian smiled and looks back to you when he let's go of your hand. "Then that means I get to visit whenever I want right?" You looked at him through squinted eyes. "No, at least text me first." Cassian smirks, "I'll need your number for that. But before, let me actually go get my phone. And get dressed." You blushed and nodded, forgetting he was naked for a moment.

You decided to make yourself comfortable on his couch and scroll though your phone, periodically checking the time. You were too engaged on whatever game you had opened on your phone to hear Cassian sneaking up behind you. "Boo~" He purred into your ear as he wrapped his arms around you. You jumped slightly and tensed heavily, dropping your phone in your lap. "Cassian please don't do thaaaat..." You whined out with closed eyes, leaning your head against his shoulder.

Cassian reached around you and snatched your phone from you lap before pulling away. "Cass, give-" He cut you off by handing your phone back. "I was just putting my number in, relax." Cassian said before going over to the door to put some shoes on. You looked at the new contact on your phone. "How cheesy are you?" You asked, looking up to him as he pulled his hair back into a low ponytail.

"What? It's true." You glared at him before he grabbed your hand and lead you out of the house. "We'll be late if we don't get going. I wanna spend as much time with you as possible tonight."

-----

1639 (sorry for cutting it short, just felt like making another part :>)

[munchabunch]

Burnin’ For You (3/?)

A/n: part three is here babies!!! Thank you for your patience. I hope you enjoy. Again this is late September 1984 so before season 2. I have big plans for Penny and Eddie so please stick around I really think it might be worth the wait.

Warnings: cigarettes, like one sexual moment, fluff

Word count: 3.3k (getting longer each chapter my goodness)

Synopsis: Penny enlists help from her best friend to get ready for Corroded Coffin’s gig. Penny finally sees the band in action for the first time since middle school

Previous | Next

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Tuesday Afternoon

The excitement brewing in Penny’s chest had caused the rest of her school day to fly by in a blur. At the sound of the final bell, she made her way to her locker and started to gather her belongings.

Her plan was simple, get her stuff, get home, pick her outfit, shower, get ready, eat-

Penny was lost in her thoughts before her friend, Robin, broke her out of them.

“Penny! Hey, what uhhhh- what were you doin’ at lunch?” Robin asked her with a wiggling of her eyebrows. Penny knew Robin had seen her sit at the so-called cult leader’s table, just by the way she asked.

“Hey! Sorry I didn’t tell you before, but Eddie asked me to sit with him and you know I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.” Penny responded, chuckling lightly at the face Robin pulled.

“WAIT he asked you? I mean, you’ve only been dying to talk to him since middle school and last I checked, you hadn’t grown the pair you needed to do it. So what the hell happened that I don’t know about?”

Penny huffed, Robin knew her too well. The girls had been best friends since they were children. Growing up across the street from one another. Penny being the first, and so far only, person Robin had told about her crush on Tammy Thompson. With Robin being well aware of how Penny felt about Eddie.

“We bumped into each other on Saturday at the record store. And I told him all about my search for the tape. So he helped me look for it for a bit, but we couldn't find it. And then yesterday after school was over. The tape was in my locker.” Penny rushed to tell the story as quickly as she could, hoping Robin wouldn’t think too much of the fact he’d gotten her the tape. She did.

“PENNY! He got you the tape? Are you serious? He’s totally in love with you!” Robin practically screamed, causing them to get several looks thrown their way from other students. Penny looked around nervously. Putting both hands on Robins shoulders to calm the young woman,

“Oh my god, could you be any louder? I think he might just be a nice guy. I don’t know, Robs. I don’t think it means all that. Do you need a ride home by the way?” Penny swiftly tried to change the subject. Turning back to her locker and continuing to switch out her textbooks. She’d had a crush on Eddie since middle school, sure. But Eddie liking her back? That was laughable to her.

“Actually I do! And don’t think you can just switch topics like that!” Robin pushed. She was convinced and there was no telling her otherwise. That didn’t mean Penny wouldn’t try.

“Robin, he's just a nice guy, okay? I’d honestly be fine if he just wanted to be friends. Maybe. And besides, it’s not like my mom would LET me date anyone anyway. Especially someone like Eddie. Please can we just let it go for now?” Penny flung her arms around, exasperated.

“Fine. We can let it go. FOR NOW! Don’t think you can weasel your way out of this, Castillo!” Robin conceded.

“Wouldn’t dream of it, Buckley.”

Penny shut her locker and led Robin through the mass of teens. Pushing through the exit doors, their feet landing on concrete, Penny pointed to her car. As they arrived at the vehicle, she peeked up to the space she saw the van parked in earlier that day and caught the eyes of its owner. With a small wave and a sheepish smile, she unlocked her doors, allowing Robin to get in and toss her knapsack into the backseat, Penny’s following soon after. Hopping into the driver’s seat and waiting for Robin to buckle up, she stole another glance to find Eddie’s eyes still trained on her, a smile gracing his features and his hand waving back.

The drive went by quickly with Robin telling Penny all about what Tammy Thompson wore that day and about how she caught her staring at “The Hair” Harrington. Penny didn’t see the appeal of Tammy Thompson, who sang like an off-key cartoon character, but she listened to what Robin said nonetheless. Pulling into her driveway and putting the car into park, she took her keys out and opened the door, Robin following suit.

“So I didn’t say anything earlier because someone doesn’t know how to keep their volume in check when receiving sensitive information, ROBIN. But Eddie invited me to The Hideout to see Corroded Coffin’s gig tonight at 8 and-“

She’s interrupted by incomprehensible noises escaping Robin’s mouth.

“He invited you to his lunch table AND his gig? I don’t like men enough to understand them but I UNDERSTAND THAT HE'S IN LOVE WITH YOU!” Robin practically shrieked loud enough for the entirety of Hawkins to hear.

“That’s exactly what I meant about the VOLUME, Robin!! Could you please just help me get ready?” Penny implored her friend, stifling a laugh at the girl’s antics.

“Of course I’ll help you, Pen”

Penny and Robin made their way into the house, greeting her mother, and scaling the mountain of stairs.

Opening the door to her room, Penny darts straight to her closet, swinging it open and beginning to rifle through her clothing. Penny’s style for going out differed greatly from how she presented herself at school. Not out of embarrassment at all, her mother just preferred she dress a certain way for school. Robin made herself comfortable on Penny’s bed, flipping through an old magazine and looking up at options that she was presenting.

“No. No. Definitely not. Wait!! That one for sure!” Robin exclaimed excitedly. Penny had pulled out a black leather skirt with a zipper down the middle. She set it aside and ran to her dresser to find a shirt to go with it. She settled on her Diary of a Madman Tour shirt, pulling it out to show Robin. The girl nodding furiously with wide eyes.

“Eddie’s gonna love that shirt, Pen! Go take a shower and I’ll accessorize for you!” Robin felt confident in what she was going to pick for Penny’s finishing touches. Penny nodded, grabbed a towel and dashed across the hall to her bathroom.

Robin went around the room gathering what she knew Penny would like to wear with the outfit they’d chosen. An assortment of rings, a bracelet made to look like barbed wire, several necklaces, Penny’s battle jacket, and a pair of Doc Martens that were well loved. She heard the shower turn off after a while and went to the dresser grabbing Penny a matching set of bra and panties, just in case. She came into the room wrapped in a towel already mostly dry, having dried herself and applying lotion in the bathroom, and put on the undergarments Robin had chosen for her, noting that they were paired.

“Thank you, Rob. I don’t know why I’m so nervous. But you’ve been a big help today and I really don’t know what I’d do without you.” Robin smiled at Penny, handing her the shirt and then the skirt. Penny tucked the shirt into the waistband of her skirt and began putting on her rings and bracelet. Robin had chosen a ring for nearly every finger. The standout ring being the dark bottom half of a skull that Penny had decided to put on her middle finger. She quickly dried her dark brown hair, teasing it where it was needed. Looking at the clock and seeing that it was nearing 6:30 already, Penny decided to do her makeup before putting her jacket and shoes on. Penny chose to go dark today. She went through the motions of her face base quickly before she got to her eyes. Opting for a burgundy and black smokey look, she blended and blended until she was satisfied. Finishing the look with a medium brown lipstick, she made a kissy face at Robin.

“How is it? Too much?” Her eyes held worry in them all of the sudden.

“Too much?!,” Robin looked at her questioningly, before she softened and said “Penny, he’s not gonna know what hit him.”

Penny shrugged on her jacket and rolled up the sleeves before pausing and turning to her dresser with a smirk. She opened the drawer and pulled out a pair of fishnets, tugging them on and pulling them up under the skirt she was already wearing, and grabbed a pair of socks from the same drawer. Turning toward Robin, who wore the same smirk that had graced Penny’s face moments ago.

“Oh yeah. If he’s not already in love with you. He will be once he sees those!” Robin bellowed, causing Penny to cringe at the volume slightly. Smiling, she wrenched the socks onto her feet and stepped into her boots, tying the laces adeptly. She grabbed her black crossbody, settling on wearing it to her side instead of across, she spritzed herself a couple times with her favorite YSL perfume Opium, and took a long look in the mirror. She looked hot, maybe Robin was right and he really would take one look at her and fall in love. She shook the hope out of her head, deciding in that moment she’d truly be happy simply being friends with him.

The clock next to her bed read 7:15. She had just enough time to eat dinner and then leave. Making their way downstairs again, they were met with the delectable scent of her mother’s cooking.

“Mamita, you look beautiful,” her mother said, holding back a tear or two. “Oh Robin, you’re going to eat with us, right? I made extra for you.” Penny’s mother looked at Robin with big hopeful eyes. Truth be told Carolyn Castillo absolutely adored Robin.

“Oh most definitely Mrs. Castillo, it smells so good I’m not sure you could’ve gotten rid of me even if you hadn’t made extra.” Robin said, earning a laugh from the older woman.

“Robin, mija, how many times do I have to tell you to just call me Lynn? It’s been 17 years. You’d think you’d know by now!” Lynn said, nearly exasperated, as she placed a plate full of food in front of Robin and another in front of Penny.

“Sorry Lynn! I always forget! Thank you” Robin said in between bites of food.

They finished quickly, knowing that the time for Penny to leave was nearing. She grabbed her car keys off the counter, thanking her mom for dinner and telling her she’d be home in a few hours.

With an obligatory “be safe”, Lynn hugged her daughter and Robin goodbye, and they were both out the door.

The two friends bade their goodbyes in the driveway and Robin crossed the street to her house, backpack in hand. Penny got into her car, turned the key in the ignition and pulled out as soon as she was sure Robin was inside her own home safely.

The drive to the Hideout felt like it took forever, but was truly only a ten or so minute endeavor, especially with the way Penny drove. She whipped into the lot and reversed into a space, slamming the car into park and gathering her bearings before turning off the vehicle. She took a deep breath and opened her door, and made her way to the entrance. As Penny stepped inside the smoke-riddled room that was packed to the gills with bodies, she immediately felt the eyes of every person in it, drinking in her appearance. Shaking it off she walked over to the bar, fake ID in hand, and ordered a rum and coke. The bartender, none the wiser, made it for her and handed it over. She took it with a smile, paid, and turned around while taking a sip, nearly choking on the beverage when she made eye contact with the one person she came that night to see. When he saw her, Eddie could’ve sworn his heart skipped a beat. She looked stunning, the fact that she wore an Ozzy shirt sent his mind reeling. Not only an Ozzy shirt but his favorite Ozzy show he’d ever been to. Having only really seen her at school, he was shell shocked as his eyes flitted briefly to her legs in fishnets and a battle jacket of her own. Collecting himself quickly, he gave her a grin as she made her way over to the stage to speak to him before the show started.

“Hey! Fancy seeing you here” Penny said cheekily, smiling grandly up at him.

“Ha yeah. I heard this awesome band was playing tonight and figured I’d come check it out,” Eddie replied, with just as much cheek as she gave him, before he got called off to help Gareth set up one of his cymbals. Penny took the opportunity to eye the man up and down, heat rising to her face as she took him in, ripped black jeans with a chain on his side, black bandana in his back left pocket. Where he would usually wear his hellfire shirt, a Judas Priest shirt was in its place. Rings adorned his hands, along with a leather cuff on his right wrist, and a watch on his left. He wore his infamous leather jacket, topped with his denim battle vest. Penny felt the heat in her face travel down her body making its home between her legs as she brought her eyes to the handcuff belt buckle he donned. Pushing the new feeling aside, she found a free seat in front of the raised platform and scrambled to grab it before anyone else could, nearly careening off the seat. She adjusted herself nonchalantly hoping Eddie hadn’t seen her embarrassing display. He had. Eddie stood staring at her, a twinkle of amusement in his eyes, his shoulders shaking with laughter. Her face burned in shame but she didn’t have time to dwell on it as Eddie walked himself up to the microphone.

“Hello everyone. We are Corroded Coffin. We have our number one fan in the audience tonight and I’m hopeful that we can knock her socks off.” Eddie called out, throwing a pointed look at Penny. As soon as he said it, the band started playing, drums and guitar immediately recognizable as Holy Diver by Dio. Penny could feel the bass drum in her chest and thought to herself how much she’d missed live music. They were nearing the end of the first song and she was awestruck, as good as they had been in middle school, it didn’t prepare her for how good they’d be four years later. Eddie’s voice traveled through her ears, filling her head and making her slightly dizzy. The people in the crowd began dancing and head banging. Penny finished her drink quickly and joined them. Throughout the night they played an array of songs, not just metal, from Dio to Metallica to Judas Priest to Scorpions, as well as one or two originals. Penny was in bliss. The last show she’d been to was with her father and that had been two years ago. The gig finished with a flourish from Eddie on his guitar at the end of Mr. Crowley by Ozzy. Penny whooped as loud as she could, drawing attention to herself but not really caring. Eddie looked at her with a smile.

Thanking the crowd, the band members began collecting their equipment and taking it through a door she hadn’t noticed before. After a bit, Penny saw Eddie go through it and saw that it led outside, presumably to where his van was. Deciding to follow him out she found him leaning against the side of the building, lighting a cigarette. The way the lone sconce on the wall lit his face nearly made her heart explode. He saw her almost immediately.

“HEY! How did you like it? What did you think?” Eddie wanted to know everything.

“Well I can’t find my socks anywhere!! You guys really did knock them off, huh?” Eddie gave her a hearty laugh at that and took a deep drag of his cigarette. “In all honesty you guys were so fuckin’ great. I’d be here every Tuesday if I could,” she told him earnestly. He gave her a meaningful grin and a heartfelt thank you.

“Well I’m glad you enjoyed yourself, princess,” Penny’s stomach lurched at the pet name. “I like that shirt by the way, did you go to that show at Market Square? It was such a great show, best Ozzy show I’ve ever been to. Did you like it?” He genuinely wanted to know, but how could he possibly know what he’d just asked her? Penny looked down and her eyes grew sad.

“Ummm ye- yeah I did,” Penny took a deep rattling breath, “it was actually the last show I went to- w-with my dad before he umm….”

Eddie’s eyes grew wide, realizing what she meant.

“Oh my god I’m so sorry, I-I had no idea.” Eddie stammered, searching in vain for the right words to say, opting instead to take another drag from his cigarette, blowing the smoke out arduously.

“Please don’t feel bad. How could you have known? Really it’s okay.” She placed a light hand on his arm to reassure him that she knew he hadn’t meant any harm. As she looked up she noticed his Mercyful Fate pin, her eyes brightened as she moved her hand to touch it as her other hand went to the matching one on her own jacket.

“Hey we match!” She giggled. He looked at her in awe.

“Yeah we really do.” Penny not catching the hidden meaning behind his response. He opened his mouth to say something when the door next to them slammed open, startling the both of them. Gareth stepped out holding a rather heavy looking amp.

“Dude. Can you please get your shit?” He wheezed the words out in exasperation. Eddie looked at him annoyed at the interruption before placing the cigarette he was holding between his lips, giving Penny an apologetic look, and moving to grab the amp to put in the van.

“I gotta go anyway, promised my mom I wouldn’t be home too late. But I’ll see you tomorrow?” Penny looked at Eddie inquisitively before grabbing the cigarette from his mouth, putting it to her own and pulling deeply, blowing the smoke out of the side of her mouth so she wasn’t blowing in his face. His eyes widened and his heart stopped for what felt like the millionth time since he saw her at the record store on Saturday.

“Ummm yeah. Lunch tomorrow. I don’t come in the mornings after gigs but I’ll see you at lunch.” He wasn’t planning on going at all, but now he would go anywhere just to see her.

“Then I’ll see you at lunch tomorrow. I’m finishing this one by the way” she referenced the cigarette with a smirk. Waving goodbye and walking to her car, and starting it. She finished the cigarette quickly and threw it out the window, she exited the parking lot and began her journey home. Back in the alleyway, right where she left him, frozen with his lips half parted, stood Eddie with Gareth next to him.

Gareth glanced at Eddie with a laugh, “you got it bad, man”

With a groan and a dragging of his hands down his face, Eddie replied, “ugh tell me about it”. The band members finished packing the van and went their separate ways home. One thing was for sure though, Eddie couldn’t wait for lunch tomorrow.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Taglist: @portaltothevoid @chaoticmunson

[allieisnothere]

Even more Julie and the Phantoms headcanons!

I made two previous posts with my headcanons about this amazing show (links here and here) and I thought of a few more! (Some of these are sad and I’m sorry)

- Luke’s parents are older, having already have had full lives and careers by the time Luke was born (Luke’s mom is a nurse and his dad is an accountant). His parents tried for years to have kids, but it never worked out. Around their late thirties/early forties they were finally able to Luke. He became their pride and joy: their little miracle baby

- Luke was always a momma’s boy growing up and was never that close with his dad. (His dad was always quiet and reserved and didn’t know how to reach out to Luke), but when Luke and his mom’s relationship started to be noticeably strained (before Luke ran away), Mr. Patterson tried to connect with Luke. (Mr. Patterson is not a man known for talking, especially leading a conversation with someone as forceful and passionate as Luke; he thinks, what do teenage boys like?? Baseball? Star Wars? Pizza?). Unfortunately, his actions fall flat from years of not knowing how to connect with Luke and his avoidance of the one topic that Luke cares most about, but is the cause for the problems in his family: music. His talks just make Luke feel even more alienated

- Ok so I’m really on this Luke’s family backstory train. Luke gets a lot of his energy and mannerisms from his mom, however, no one really knew where his proclivity for music came from. No one on his mom’s side has any music talent and his dad side never said anything (though his side doesn’t say much). Turns out Luke shares a lot in common with his paternal grandfather. His grandfather was a pilot in World War II. He was known in the military for bringing energy and fun around the camp; making friends, playing games, and leading campfire songs with his beat up guitar. (Luke’s grandpa is this guy {link slightly NSFW} and one one can convince me otherwise). However, the war left him, like a lot like a lot of other men from the war, with PTSD and without proper therapy and mental health counseling to deal with his symptoms and no way to process what he had been through. A lot of his spark died down, masking his pain with solemn silence (and passing those traits onto his own son)

- Reggie’s mom had only lived in LA for a few months when she met Reggie’s dad, and she had just turned 23 years old when she realized she was pregnant with Reggie’s older brother; but she thinks, she can make this work. Sure she hasn’t know him that long and he’s a little older than her, but he has a steady job; and she knows she did eventually want to be a mother

- Reggie’s mom was from Montana and every summer when Reggie and his siblings were little, she would bring them to visit few weeks in the summer. However, around the time Reggie became a teenager, and money became tight, his mom had to work full time at the local kmart, and the Peter’s were unable to go on this yearly family trip. Reggie was really sad, but he likes to look on the bright side; now he has more time to play gigs with Sunset Curve (he does miss the horses though)

- I know its a popular opinion in the fandom that Reggie’s parents were physically abusive, but I really don’t think so. I think his parents fought with each other and Reggie and his siblings were caught in the middle. They were trying to stay together for the kids but with their constant fighting it might have actually been easier (and a lot less traumatizing) for the family if they got divorced

- Alex had a golden retriever growing up. Part of their perfect family aesthetic™. but, man, did Alex love that dog (plus dogs are one of the few things he’s not allergic to, unlike cats)

- Alex’s mom is a stay-at-home mom and spends a lot of her time organizing and fundraising for their church

- Alex and Luke met when they were really young and Luke’s mom was so excited about it. She knew the Mercer’s were from a good respectable home and Alex was such a good little kid (hoping maybe it would rub off on Luke). Alex’s parents were not the biggest fans of little Luke, but were so happy Alex found a close friend, that they let Alex hang out with Luke all the time (as long as the Patterson’s hosted)

- Bobby’s mom packed up and left his family when he was 12 years old (around the same age Carrie was when her mom left - not that Trevor had ever shared that with Carrie) and from then on it was just Bobby, his dad, and his football playing older brothers. His dad and brothers’ coping mechanisms became drinking and sports, leaving little guitar playing Bobby, who had no interest in either of those things, to deal with it on his own

- Trevor is a loving and devoted father, but has no idea how to communicate with Carrie. The two of them have a lot in common but have no idea because Trevor keeps his past locked up tight, even from his daughter (he can’t help see so many traits from his boys in her too. And those he could never voice)

- Reggie and Willie both love the Princess Bride and will act out the sword fight scene with each other

- Reggie loves dogs (obviously) and they love him, but animals hate Luke. His excitable puppy energy makes actual excited puppies be like ‘you are a human, why are you acting like this????’ and cats loath it. 

- Reggie died first, then Luke and last was Alex. Watching his best friends die next to him is why he cried for 25 years.

- When Reggie cries its silent; not making a single sound, from years of acting like his parent’s fighting doesn’t affect him. When Alex cries its with grumbles and sighs, almost like he’s disgusted thats it happening, wiping snot from his nose with a huff and an eye role. When Luke cries it’s LOUD. He wears his heart on his sleeve for everyone around him can hear. In Trevor’s memory his wails almost sound like a melody

[gaymershigh]

hulloh! I've only been on tumblr for a few hours, and me and my friend already love your work! Is it ok if I request some TWST parent scenarios with Riddle,Lilia,Sebek,Vil and Floyd? If so, thanks! Also once again, me and my freind love ur works alot!

Of course! Since there's no s/o really mentioned in here but people might still want to be included, s/o will be mentioned just a tiny bit (the kids being biological or adopted is up to you since I want to make the s/o gender neutral.) Also, thanks a lot! I'm still and probably be forever an amateur writer so this means a lot to me 🥺💞💞

Triggers: None

Parents au: Riddle, Lilia, Sebek, Vil and Floyd edition!

From what we've seen, his parents are not the best role models like, at all. They were too strict, pressuring him and treating him like a trophy child. However, he will definitely not treat his child like that at all after Ace slapped him with reality.

He will be a bit strict, having some rules and will scold them if they did something wrong but not as scold them the way his mother does. He won't raise his voice at them, showing them the right path after he scolded them. He will give them freedom and try his best to not make his children suffer the same thing he did, especially when he's the source of the pain.

Though, he might accidentally adapt some things from his mother and project her ways to his children, being completely not self aware. If you're his s/o, please teach him the baby steps to avoid this from this occurring too often.

Unfortunately, having a good life and children won't make his short temper extend. This is the only reason why he doesn't spoil them too much, they might act entitled and may be too late to change them back to the innocent infant they were back then. He tries very hard to control his temper if his children unintentionally knock furniture over or damage something. He just needs a few minutes alone, everything will be back to normal later.

There was one time where his child's birthday was near and decided to bake a cake from scratch, without any assistance from Trey nor his s/o. Thinking he could do it and don't want anyone to underestimate him. He was planning to make a burnt strawberry cheesecake and did the mistake of leaving the oven on for an hour for 400 degrees fahrenheit. The cake went on fire but it tasted very good when he for some reason tasted it. Nobody knew about the incident and the cake was actually used for its purpose. Yay for him, I guess.

He was already pretty outdated in trends when he was in his teens so do expect him to be like a middle aged soccer mom on Facebook every time his children send him memes or something like that. If he does even use any sort of social media and stumbled upon a 'funny' minion meme or something, he will definitely send it to the family group chat. He will make those 5th grade types of edits with one of the family pictures with a "I love my family". It's funny but still wholesome so don't laugh at him.

There is no alternate universe where Lilia isn't a good dad. Silver and his other wards are already an amazing example of how amazing of a parent he is! He has gained a bunch of experience so he got this in the bag.

Though, his way of taking care of children might be different from how it is now. Times have changed, there are probably some new and uncomplicated objects or toys to entertain the baby or child. He would love to go on a shopping trip to buy some fascinating kids toys he found in the toy store. Please stop him from buying everything in there because it looks "intriguing".

If you're his s/o, you're very lucky since if you have a baby who always cries at three in the morning or a kid who really have trouble sleeping, Lilia will sing a lullaby and they'll doze off in any second. He can wake up easily or he'll just always stay up playing his games so you don't even need to break a sweat in this situation.

His kids or any kid in general loves him lots. He will always tell his tales anywhere, anytime. If the kids ask him for a story to tell, he will always have a new one ready to tell. They also make amazing bedtime stories! It can be funny little innocent stories like his funny experiences taking care of his three wards to actual battles he went through. Any story is a good story.

He really got along with his child when they're young and innocent but when they get into their teenage years, oh boy. He will unintentionally embarrasses them but their friends won't mind. If anything, they will love him being around as he's always keeping up with the games and trends, not being a fat, shirtless creepy dad. One of the positive parts about his child growing up is that he can play video games with him just like he did with Silver! Reliving the nice memories.

He would always try to cook something in any opportunity he gets and of course, he gets stopped by either s/o or his own children. Yes, they have to go through the hard way to realize their father is garbage at cooking. He would always try to cook some food everytime something good has happen in order to celebrate but most of the times, he just wants to cook something for them to show how much he loves them. They really made him happy, he finally have a biological/adopted offspring to watch growing up (again).

Sebek unfortunately doesn't have that much time to spend time with his children due to being Malleus' trusted escort. Of course, when he does have free time and is not exhausted he will use the opportunity to spend it with his adorable younglings.

Knowing him, he still loves and worships Malleus but he's no longer his only priority in life when he finally has a life of his own other than just being Malleus' bodyguard. He will ramble and tell so many stories about his young master to his kids. They will be infatuated but will later complain about how everything is just "Malleus this, Malleus that". He will get a bit upset about that comment, so he will only talk about Malleus stories for 3 days a week.

He only has focused his life on guarding Malleus and advancing himself on magic and education. Now that he's now an actual father, this is a new chapter in his life and he's not prepared at all. He will seek Lilia for guidance and of course, Lilia being Lilia will rope him to doing something absolutely ridiculous and he would of course, woefully fall for it. Pretty surprising that no matter how much he has fallen for his teacher's trap, he still seeks him for advice.

His kids will definitely learn how to read fast. He loves reading and he really wants his kids to appreciate it too. He was about to immediately give them the books that have old and poetic language without even knowing what the alphabet was. Lilia put a stop to this and you couldn't even bear seeing how sad he looked because he needs to wait for a few years for him to have little reading buddies. Oh well, it doesn't matter now. He will teach them how to read and appreciate the art of reading no matter how long it takes.

He has exposed his children to a bunch of Malleus propaganda so there's no surprise if the children become just like him. Loud screaming, Malleus worshipping, smart but naive and other things Sebek has. If you're his s/o, please keep the children in check as they might cause problems to the neighbors. As this might be troublesome, it's at least entertaining experience I suppose.

Just like Sebek, he has even less time to spend with his kids as he always has modeling, acting and other businesses to attend. He's probably going to be exhausted when he comes back as well. Though, of course he's going to try to use all his energy to talk to his children till he can no longer open his eyes anymore. He prefers an s/o that is a stay-in mom/dad so the children won't feel lonely while he's gone.

They're definitely gonna grow up just like him. A model, actor, media influencer, or the combination of the three and it's not a bad thing. If they're going on the same route as him, he will teach them in a strict but still in a somewhat caring manner as he has learned a lot from his experience of the VDC boot camp and the overblot incident. He will only show his threatening side if they start to misbehave like those ADeuce rats.

Just because they are his children, doesn't mean they get a free pass if they intentionally neglect or not doing their best at all times, especially when it comes to appearance. He's known to be a neat-freak and a very hard worker to the point it's concerning. He will scold them if more than two pimples pop up on their face but he knows when to cross the line. He learned this easier if their child is rather sensitive and just emotionally fragile in general but they still need to take care of themselves.

He expects his children to follow his footsteps when it comes to where they're schooling. He wants them to enter a prestigious school like he did for his reputation and for the sake of his children's future. This is optional (not really) but he also hopes his children to enter Pomefiore as well and take the dorm head title at least the second week they enroll in this school. If they were sorted to a different dorm, they still want them to have a role in their dorm or in the school at all.

He begs to the Great Seven that paparazzi or desperate losers obsessing over him don't intrude into his personal life, especially if it's about his family. The last thing he wants to witness is his family in pain or being uncomfortable for their whole life. He usually avoids or straight up tells the interviewer that he's not comfortable answering questions when they're going too personal when it's about questions of his family.

You cannot feel anymore blessed when you see his smiling face when he received news about having a vacation. He can finally spend more time with his wonderful kids he's raising with all his heart. He will tell them about some funny incidents in the studio while he was involved in some modeling gig or he will bring them to a private island with gorgeous scenery for both of them to enjoy. Of course, his children's happy faces are more beautiful than the island.

Floyd is seen to be very warm and sweet despite having a very intimidating height. Naturally, he's not going to be ruthless and act the same when it's with his children because it's his children of course, family is precious to him. He has a lot of energy even after a long shift at Mostro Lounge, so he will always spend a lot of time with his kids.

He's physically affectionate so expect him to be always close and wrapping his arms around his children at almost all times. He'll usually let them sit on his lap when they watch TV or sleep with them if they can't go back to sleep because of a nightmare. Headpats are needed, especially if the kids did something good or got good news. Not saying he won't give any headpats if something bad happens, maybe headpats of sympathy perhaps.

He's very patient when it's with his children because he doesn't want his children to fear him when they grow up. If anything, the s/o have to do the scolding to avoid him snapping or anything like the sort. They rarely do anything bad though, since they're aware of how their dad acts from how he treats a dirty burglar who once tried to break in.

Since he's usually very active and hates just standing around, he expects his children to be just like him. It's never boring if your dad is Floyd as he always has something really entertaining to do at most times. If you're his s/o, you have the free entrance to see an eel man dancing around with his kids or playing some basketball either inside or preferably in the backyard. He tried showing the art of parkour but is stopped due to it being very risky. He sulked about this but oh well, once they're ten, they have no choice but to learn it!

Floyd is an amazing cook and he sometimes lets his children be involved like chopping some vegetables or stirring the macaroni. He sometimes teaches them the perfect way of doing it or let's them try doing their own meal with his assistance. There was one time they decided to make one of the weirdest food combinations and try to eat it, he won and ate it all as it was too gross for the kids to eat it. It's not gonna be a surprise if everyone in this household is an expert cook when Floyd is here.

If possible, he really wants to bring his kids at work no matter how troublesome they could get. If Azul has a "bring your kids to work" day (which I doubt of him doing), he's going to bring all his children no matter how many he has. If there's no day like that, who cares! He's bringing his kids anyway and nobody's stopping him. Sure, he will get scolded by Azul but if that's the only thing stopping him then he'll take his chances.

I don't if it's still Christmas or not since I don't celebrate it but if it's still is, Merry Christmas! 🎉 I'll just say this is a Christmas gift for you and your friend, Mouaietaru! Especially for that Jamil and Silver fanfic that you made. It's very good, keep up the fantastic work! ✨✨✨

-𝕸𝖎𝖗𝖎

[julie-thefatones]

Ghost of You || Luke x Reader || Part 4

A/N: Your best friends with Julie, since the stamp was removed from the boys they are able to be seen by lifers at choice and can touch lifers at choice, but are still ghosts. You and Luke grow closer and closer starting to go from friends to more than that and everyone starts to notice, it just takes a little longer for you two to figure it out.

Part 1 , Part 2, Part 3

Side Note: The song that Luke "writes" about Y/N is in fact Moving Along by 5 SOS look it up its a good one

Word Count: 3,088

WARNINGS: 16+ (Sexual References)

It had been weeks since yours and Lukes encounter, in fact you guys have barely talked.... Anytime you guys hung out it was always with the group and only the group and every time he would barely even look at you, you didnt really know what to think of it .... you missed him, yeah you knew that it was gonna be different than before but not this different... You were walking out of 4th period when Carrie came jogging down the hall to catch up with you "Hey Y/N! im gonna walk with you" She said in her normal high pitched Carrie voice, you gave her a shy but inviting smile and then hugged your books to your chest, you hadn't really felt like your self since this whole thing happened, Carrie could see the sadness in your demeanor "Are you okay Y/N? you have been down for like..... weeks" Carried asked with concern, you kind of sighed because thinking about it was hard enough let alone talking about, but you thought your friend deserved an explanation, you glanced in Carries direction "Not really" you said with sadness in your voice "Me and Luke had an... incident so to speak a few weeks ago and it kind of caused a rift in our friendship and now he won't even look at me or talk to me....." you sighed and looked down at the floor "I miss him" you said in a barely audible sad tone, Carrie came closer to you and put a gentle hand on your back showing she cared "Can I ask ... what happened between you and Luke.... you guys were so close, like it was rare to ever see you guys not together" Carrie asked in a soft tone trying not to be pushy, you contemplated on telling her or not *What do I got to loose* you thought to yourself then stopped walking, turning to face Carrie

"Okay.... you just cant tell anyone okay" you said getting close enough to Carrie so that only she could hear what you were saying, her eyes widened with intrigue "Yeah, I promise Y/N" she said urgently to insure you knew that she wouldn't tell a soul "Me and Luke......" you started saying, then stopping to look side to side, to make sure that no one was listening to what you were saying, then looking straight back into Carries eyes "Me and Luke, almost slept together... like it was going to happen but then ... Alex and Reggie Poofed in and then it was a huge mess and then Me and Luke agreed to just be friends and now we are here" You said in a slight urgent whisper, Carries mouth was wide open with shock with her eyes bugged out of her head "Carrie?" you said widening your eyes in concern to why she wasn't answering yet "Carrie!" you exclaimed in hopes she would snap out of it "YOU AND LUKE WHAT!" she yelled in which you immediately slammed your hand over her mouth "Can you not yell maam" you said with tight lips and wide eyes, Carrie shook her head yes under your mouth and relaxed, you released your hand from her mouth in which she started talking instantly "Im sorry! you and Luke what? why am I just now hearing this" Carrie exclaimed in a whispered tone, you sighed and continued walking down the hallway, in which she followed after you "Because I didnt want anyone to know .... I didnt want to make a big deal.... especially since Luke isn't even talking to me ..... I don't know... I just really really miss him" You said in a melancholy tone, Carrie looked at you as if she was gonna say something and then Alex poofed in right in front of you and Carrie, stopping you both in your tracks "Woah! Hey Alex" You said in a high pitched tone, you thought you would be used to them popping in like that by now but you weren't "Luke misses you too! hes driving me crazy" Alex exclaims motioning his hands from his head like he is going out of his mind, You just look at Alex not really knowing what to say, Carrie just looking back and forth from you to Alex waiting for one of you to speak again, Alex continues on with his rant "Y/N! hes so mopey, hes just sitting around all day writing in his stupid freaking song book with his sad Luke face! and anytime I try to ask him to do something or ask him what wrong he just looks at me with that face you know that Luke face that is just like brooding and HIS LUKE

FACE!" Alex says in frustration all while pacing back and forth in front of you guys, messing with his hair in frustration and annoyance, and then he abruptly stops in front of you with wild eyes, grabbing both your shoulders "Y/N! you gotta go make up with him or something! I CANT TAKE IT ANYMORE!" Alex exclaims, you had to admit this was slightly entertaining you couldn't help but chuckle, but then you sighed thinking about the *You gotta make up with him* part of what Alex said "Theres nothing to make up, we aren't fighting ..... we just ..... I guess aren't as close as we were" You said back to your sad voice , Alex rolls his eyes throwing his hands up in the air doing a slight twirl to face away from you and then a quick motion back to face you "BULL CRAP! YOU GUYS CANT GO FROM ALMOST BONING EACH OTHER TO NOT TALKING AT ALL THAT FAST!! YOU GUYS NEED TO TALK! NOW" Alex exclaims, now pushing you toward the door, Carrie just laughing and then following after to not miss anything "GET HIM OUT OF MY STUDIO, AND FIX HIM!" Alex continues pushing you out the door, him and Carrie just standing in the hallway looking out the door as you walk down the street in major confusion to what just happened, Alex sighs "I really hope I got through to her but wasn't like mean ya know" he says tilting his head to the side as he watched you walk away through the school doors, Carrie tilting her head in the same direction but snapping it up ward to look at Alex "No I think you did a great job! very well executed" She said with reassurance, Alex snaps his head up to look back at her "Thank you, ya know I just ..... I really want Luke out of the studio" He said bringing his hand to heart.

As you walked down the street you decided you weren't gonna go see Luke, it just felt too weird and you didnt want to impose, you just decided to go home... you just wanted to sleep! not talk to anyone or deal with anyone! just sleep! you thought to yourself....... your feet dragged you up the stairs into your room, you slammed the door and face planted on your bed when you noticed something in the corner of your eye... It was your guitar, Luke had kept it with him since he gifted it to you just to keep it safe, but there it was, with its own stand and everything, then you noticed a note sticking out of the strings, you quickly rolled out of your bed to stumble over and read it, you gently pulled the note out of the strings being careful not to damage the guitar in any way, the front of the note read To: Y/N you could tell it was Luke who left it there because of the awful, but cute hand writing, it smelled like him and you thought that was a weird thing to think but .... you missed that smell, you took a moment thinking about the last time you breathed in his scent.... flashing back to the night you guys almost..... you shook your head bringing your self back to focus and opening the letter

Dear Y/N,

Hey.... long time no talk eh? how are you? I don't know why im asking that this is a letter not a text message..... anyway! here's your guitar, figured it wouldn't be any good to ya if you didnt have it. It didnt have a strap or anything so I took the liberty of picking one out for you, I figured you would like this one it has checkers all over it, It will match your vans... and my vans too! thats pretty cool .... I almost bought one for my self I think still might, look at us matching guitar straps! Reggie is gonna be so jealous! Anyway, I hope your doing good ... Oh! and good luck on you French test! I know you were nervous about that, I know youre gonna rock it! you always do

-Luke

You closed the letter holding it to your chest and smiling, you lightly lifted the guitar strap with your finger to look at it, you chuckled noticing that you were actually wearing your checkered vans today. You removed your finger letting the strap fall gently back to place, you sighed curling your legs up to your chest. You remembered that the band had a show tonight... *Should I go?* you thought to your self... you initially thought you wouldn't go, but it would be nice to support your friends, and maybe you and Luke should talk *Okay Im gonna go!* you thought to your self confidently, but first you needed a nap.

It was 7:00pm, you arrived at the venue of the gig 30 minutes before their performance, the place was packed! you knew you should have gotten their earlier, but it was hard enough to get out of bed to get here... wasn't exactly easy for you.

You danced along with the bands that were on before Julie and the boys, you noticed Flynn and Carrie across the venue, they noticed you back waving their hands in the air in excitement for you to join them, You grow a big smile and excitedly run over to join them... you hug them in a greeting, and just then you heard the announcer say "Please put your hands together for Julie and The Phantoms" the crowd goes wild, Julie and the boys had become quite popular in your town, You, Carrie, and Flynn made it a point to be the loudest ones out of everyone though. Julie entered the stage, alone like she always did, she made her way over to the keyboard and sat down. She pressed one button on the keyboard in order for the boys to poof on stage, Luke immediately starts singing while simultaneously playing the guitar "Thinking bout you lots lately! Have you been eating breakfast alone like me! Thinking bout you lots lately Oh are you moving along!" You had never heard this song before, it must have been new, Luke played and sang effortlessly, you didnt really notice the lyrics until you noticed Carrie and Flynn looking at you with curious wide eyes, Luke sang with such passion in his voice, he always did but this time seemed different. When the bridge came Luke found you in the crowd his eyes getting big but then locking his eyes with yours as he sang, not breaking his stare, singing "Scared of moving on, but you're already gone So if you're moving on, won't you just tell me? Scared of moving on, but you're already gone So if you're moving on, won't you just tell me?" As soon as the bridge ended he broke your gaze, you shook your head in order to get your self to recover, you look over at Carrie and Flynn who were watching you for your reaction, you look back up at the stage, Luke and Reggie were doing their classic move of sharing the mic during the chorus, then Luke broke off, playing the melody on his guitar with such... what seemed like anger, or frustration. You started questioning if you should have even come tonight *Was this a mistake..... he looks mad* you thought to yourself, now biting your thumb due to your new anxiety toward the situation. When the song ended Luke shook his hair which was now damp with sweat, and then he stared at you, you couldn't tell what his emotions were at this moment.... *oh boy, how am I gonna make it through this night* you thought to your self.

The band had a great set, after the new song they played Finally Free, which was one of your favorites, then they did Bright. You were really proud of your best friend and how successful her and the boys were becoming. The whole event was over and the place was now pretty much empty, it was just you, Carrie, and Flynn waiting for Julie and the Boys to come out from the back. You were super nervous to see Luke, you didnt know what to say, was that song about you? you wondered to your self.... in the middle of your internal crisis you saw Julie coming from the back with Alex, Reggie following behind all smiling and then Luke shortly after them, he wasn't smiling though, he was just anxiously messing with the hair behind his head. Carrie and Flynn ran up to Julie to give her a hug to congratulate her on the show, you broke your gaze from Luke in order to do the same, you quickly ran over to give your best friend a hug "Congrats Jules! that was an amazing show!" you exclaimed and then motioned to the boys "All of you!" you said looking at all of them, and then setting your eyes on Luke just a little longer than everyone else, he just shyly smiled in response "Thanks Y/N!" Reggie Exclaimed "Did you like the first song? Luke wrote it about you!" Reggie continued with a big smile and a slight chuckle at the end, Lukes eyes widened with annoyance, Alex just turned slowly to face Reggie, his eye twitching in the process, Reggie just looked confused at both of them "What? was she not supposed to know" Reggie asked like he really didnt know, You just stood there shyly, not really knowing what to say, Carries eyes widened "Well!! Flynn! Julie! Alex! and Reggie! I think there is something over here you guys should see its really cool?" Carrie said breaking the awkward tension, or trying to at least, motioning everyone in to the other side of the venue in order to give you and Luke some privacy "Why whats over here?" Reggie asked confused, in which Alex pulled his arm with annoyance rolling his eyes "Just come on reg!" Alex said with a frustrated tone pulling him in the direction Carrie was leading everyone. Soon enough they all disappeared behind a curtain on the other side of the venue, You turned to look at Luke who had his hands in his front pockets, he looked up to make eye contact with you, a half smile appeared on his face as you guys shared a look, you couldn't help but smile a little too. Luke lifted one leg up and then hoped forward to get closer to you "Soooo....." He said as if he didnt know what to do next, You put your hands in your back pockets, then motioned your shoulders forward a little "Sooooo" You echoed back to him, he chuckled "Did you like the show?" He said motioning toward the stage, you nodded your head yes "Yeah!! you guys rocked it as usual" You said, you felt awkward because you had so many things you wanted to say but you didnt want to overwhelm him or feel like you were over stepping, He made a slight whistle shaking his head yes then looking down at his foot which was resting on its heel motioning side to side, "Was that song really about me?" You blurted out with out even thinking, or realizing what you were doing, Luke froze and then looked up with wide eyes, his lips still pursed from whistling and then he relaxed his position putting his foot down and removing his hands from his pockets "Okay, we're just gonna jump right into it..... yeah! it was" he said with a slightly frustrated tone, you bit your lip not really understanding "Wh- why?" you asked truly wondering why he wrote it, you guys both agreed to be friends and you guys never dated so what was there to move on from, he looked at you scrunching his eyebrows together "Why?" He said back confused to why you were confused, you don't know why but you were getting angry "Yeah!" You said throwing your hands in the air "Why Luke! Why everything! Why have you been avoiding me! why have you been so absent!!!" You exclaimed, starting to tear up "So what we almost slept together! BIG DEAL! THAT DOESNT MEAN YOU HAVE TO CUT ME OFF! THAT DOESNT ME YOU

HAVE TO

TURN AWAY FROM ME!" You didnt realize it but you were yelling, tears were streaming down your face, you wiped your tears with the sleeve of your jacket "I missed you so much..... so much Luke..... so yeah why?" you said softer with a crack in your voice, Luke bit his lip in frustration "You wanna know why?!" he exclaimed moving one step closer to you "Because you mean more to me than I could ever imagine someone meaning to me, youre the most amazing person I have ever met!" He exclaimed, now him growing tears in his eyes "AND WHEN YOU KEPT SAYING WE'RE JUST FRIENDS IT EFFING BROKE ME INSIDE BECAUSE IM SO IN LOVE WITH YOU THAT IT HURTS! OKAY! THAT THE FACT YOU DONT WANT ANYTHING MORE THAN JUST FRIEND SHIP KILLS ME INSIDE! SO YEAH I AVOIDED SEEING YOU BECAUSE EVERYTIME I SAW YOU THE PAIN WAS UNBEARABLE BECAUSE ALL I WANTED TO DO WAS GRAB YOU AND HOLD YOU IN MY ARMS AND CALL YOU MINE!" He yelled, grabbing his hair in frustration "There ya go! thats why!" he exclaimed finishing his statement, You stood there gathering the ends of your jacket sleeve in your fists, looking at Luke with red puffy eyes, and before you could respond Luke picked up his guitar, wiped his eyes and poofed out.

[red-riot-rat]

ＲＥＱＵＥＳＴ: me dashing to the request button 🏃🏽‍♂️. I am asking for platonic league of villains with teen reader who's joining the team and everyone like- "tHeY dOnT lOoK lIkE mUcH-" but then when they go on their first missions reader whips out some marvel black widow assassin type shit and they're like: 🧿👄🧿 

HEY HEY! GOD I FUCKING LOVE P!LOV REQUESTS GJNKFG

Ｇｅｎｒｅ：CHAOS AHHSAHASH

𝙒𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨: kinda gore(brief mention of blood), reader being a badass, shigaraki is crusty and unmoisturized…. Uhm, reader kills like two dudes, stabbing, me making up stuff for fighting no one @ me on that, 

𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘴: they/them

AN: is this good,,, no. a lfjhABSLKJGN

-

-

OKAY SO MR. COMPRESS BRINGS YOU IN

AND YOURE LIKE OKAY bitch.

But not really

Hes very nice to you and recognizes that even though you're young you can be good for the league, not to mention that you’ll soon all basically be family

But full ass you walk into the bar and everyone just stares because

You're a new recruit

 YOU'RE A KID

Shigaraki: Theyre a fucking kid

Mr. Compress: Uh, yeah.

N e way

All of them sit at the counter and just stare at you.

They want you to break and start talking but you're used to this

You’ve been doing this gig for most of your life

Eventually tomura will start to throw a tantrum, kinda, but then he’ll ask you questions 

He wants to scare you, he wants to be intimidating but to you,

You kinda look up to him

You answer his questions, sounding oblivious to the obvious threats he spews to you.

“Kid, you're going to end up dead NPC here, and I'll make sure of it. You still wanna join?”

“✨ yes you dumbass✨”

NO PLEASE DON'T SAY THAT

Nah for real you just say yeah.

He doesn't dislike you, but he's purposely not going to like you because he wants you to be scared of him. 

Kurogiri talks to him, they glance over at you every once and awhile 

You’ve been talking with Toga, Dabi and Mr. Compress

“So! Who are ya?”

You reluctantly explain what has happened and who you are, you know the backstory. Parents were heroes and pushed you too hard to become a hero as well,

And then you went apeshit,

The hero commissions been on your ass since you’ve been born,

You didn't want to ever be like your parents

So yay villain times

Dabi talked a little about it, agreeing with you that parents are shit, you know and then you asked him

“Who were your parents?” 

But tomura interrupted your conversation you might never know

“Much to my unwant of a side character like you, welcome kid.”

Toga pats your head

Dabi slaps you on the back

Twice messes up your hair

And Mr compress just flashes you a thumbs up

You stick with them

You grow as close as you can with Dabi, and especially close with Twice and Toga.

Although Dabi seems cold to you, he’ll never tell you but he does care a great deal for you.

Shigaraki assigns a mission to you, Dabi, and Toga 

All you have to do is get some info out of a boss that works for a small part of the hero commission

Which only fuels your anger

-

-

-

You walked side by side, to the right side of Dabi. Toga skipped on his other side, and waved her knife around. Yours was hidden underneath your hoodie, and was sheathed in a thigh rig.

“What's his name again again Dabi?” Toga sang, not caring that her voice echoed down the long hall. You glanced at the male, who looked rather annoyed.

“I don't know, it doesn't matter. We just get the info and get out.” He turned and stared at her,

“That's ALL we need.” 

She groaned and pouted to him, “You’re no fun! No fun at all.” 

Dabi grunted in response, he honestly didn’t care. 

“Hey! Who are you?” A male voice behind you caused all three of you to spin. Out of reflex you kicked the side of his knee and he toppled over. You smiled wide as you heard Dabi warn you, but you didn't care. You played your own game, you were the narrator of your own story. You didn't need anyone in your way.

You grabbed the top of his head, grasping onto his hair violently. You yanked the knife out of its holster, and twirled it between your fingers.

“Guess my hand…” 

You held it to the man's throat, and beamed at him.

“Slipped.” 

And in one quick motion, the man's body went limp as he bled onto the floor. You stood tall, and your expression blank like you didn't just kill a man.

You looked up, your eyes narrowed. You scanned through the eyes staring at you as you twirl your knife between your fingers again.

“Kid we-”

“We had a problem and I took care of it, let's move on.” your knife flips through your fingers at a fast pace, one that if you slipped it would hurt like hell.

“That was fun! Can I get his blood? Can I? Can I?” Toga asked excitedly, turning her head rapidly to Tomura then to you.

“Have at it.” You spun your knife one last time, and handed it to her. She seemed taken back, like she didn't expect you to comply.

“Yay!” she took the knife eagerly, and you turned away from her before anything went down. As you turned you were faced with a pair of turquoise eyes staring daggers at you.

“Kid, that was fucking dangerous. We could’ve handled that.” Dabi was frustrated, but he didnt know why. Yeah, he could have handled that but seeing you put yourself in danger like that made him upset.

“Yeah I know that okay? That's what its fucking about. That dude works with the hero commission, I’m not letting him stand.” Your brows furrowed as you talked and Dabi rolled his eyes. 

“Don't treat me like I’m five. I know I don't look like it, but I’ve done this for a long time.” you shoved your hands into the pocket of your hoodie and kept walking.

“You’re either a pawn, or a player.”

Toga smiled wide and skipped up to you.

“That was cool! Dabi’s just a party pooper!” She glanced over her shoulder and stuck her tongue out at the male.

He rolled his eyes once again, and continued to walk behind your duo.

Eventually, after minutes of silence you found the main office, that held the boss. 

Well, a mini boss.

-

A funnel of smoke fogged the hallway as you ran.

“Kid! Wait up!” Dabi’s raspy voice rang through the long hall and you spun on your heels to face him.

He walked towards you, Toga smiling wide at his side, blood smeared across her face. The sound of footsteps came from both sides of you, and you glanced over your shoulder to the other side of the hall.

A man's figure ran closer to you by the second, he moved fast, too fast for you to see his face.

Too fast you didn't have time to react when he punched you straight in the face. You fell back, holding a hand to your nose that began to bleed. 

“KID!” Dabi’s flames erupted from his hands and Toga’s knife made its way back into her hand.

Your brows furrowed and you jumped up as you unsheathed your knife. The figure in front of you threw another punch, but you ducked causing him to stagger forwards. You slammed him into the wall and flipped your knife in your hand. 

You drew your arm back, and brought it into his chest quickly stabbing him right between the ribs. He yelped in pain and held his hands against your shoulders.

Blood stained his blue button up shirt and it leaked onto the floor. 

“Guess nothing lasts forever huh?” Your boot rested on his leg, and you pushed back removing your knife from his abdomen. 

Immediately, an arm wrapped around your neck locking you into place. 

Dabi began to run to you, the blue flame escaping his hands once again , and Toga flipped her knife in her hands as she stalked over to you.

You struggled, gasping for air against the figure, and with your best ability elbowed him in his chest. He groaned but kept you in place, until you swept his right foot and pushed him into the opposite wall. 

“Everyone here is fucking annoying.” You took a step back and glanced at the figure struggling, leaning against the wall. You pushed a hand out and stopped Dabi and Toga from coming closer, and smiled wide at them with your eyes narrow.

“Did you know you're lifes a game?” You asked the man, his eyes wide, his breathing heavy and staggered. 

You threw the knife into the air and as it spun the male watched it. You caught it in your right hand, and wasted no time to throw it at the figure. 

It lodged right into absodemn and he toppled over.

“Can we go home? This is kinda boring.” You groaned at Dabi, who stared at you with wide eyes. Toga begged for the knife while jumping up and down and you compiled once again.

“You’re a fucking madman.”

[im-in-love-with-pizza-bites]

HomeTown Part 2

Sebastian Stan x F!Reader

Summary: You and Sebastian go visit your family for Christmas and share a big announcement but Sebastian has an announcement of his own.

Warnings: Fluff?

Part 1

You followed behind Sebastian in the airport as he dragged you to the end of the gate like you had done a little under a month ago. It was the day after new year's and you were back in your hometown. You spent Christmas day and new year's with his mom but still wanted to have a Christmas celebration with your family. "Babe!! Slow down!" You wined as he walked faster. You found this amusing. In the week you had stayed before he got close with your oldest niece and your oldest two nephews, converting both boys to team cap. Jon said he'd bring them when he came to pick you up because he found this just as sweet as you did.

"But. I want to see them!" He pouted causing you to laugh.

"I know but they ain't going no where." You said walking beside him. "See they are right there." You pointed at the three teenagers running over to you their dad/uncle standing filming the reunion.

"Auntie y/n! Seb!" They said giving Sebastian a gig before you.

"You stole my niece and nephews!" You pout at Sebastian who just laughed.

"Don't worry Auntie y/n your still our favorite." Samantha reassured. You smiled shaking you head.

"Hey! When will I get a dang hug!" Jon shouted from where he was standing a pout evident on his face. Your ran ahead of your boyfriend and the kids to give your brother a hug.

"Happy New Year Bro." You said laughing as you pulled out to go to luggage claim.

"Happy New Year Sis." He smiled at you wrapping an arm around you while his kids and nephew began to talk Sebastian's ear off about what happened since they last saw him. "So Colleen said your might have big news come on tell your favorite brother!" He said.

"Goddammit Colleen." You mumbled. "We don't have big news." You lied as you made it to the luggage claim. Sebastian pulled both bags off passing yours to you.

"Oh.." Jon said.

You guys made it to the car and began the drive to town. "Sebastian how's filming falcon and the winter soldier?" Jon asked keeping his eyes on the road.

"It's going good!" He said. You leaned on his shoulder.

"Any spoilers you can tell us?" Grayson asked looking back from the front seat where he sat.

"You have to wait till the show comes out." Sebastian said.

"Come on, please?" Samantha begged.

"No."

Samantha rolled her eyes leaning back in her seat pouting.

"Why do you want to know spoilers anyway?" Jon asked the three teens.

"So we can sell that information to the people at our school. We're already popular because our aunt is Y/n L/n but being able to tell them things about Falcon and the Winter soldier would bump up our street cred." Jaxon said proudly.

"Your using us for street cred?" You asked.

"Yeah!" Grayson told you sitting back in his seat properly

"They can't use me for street cred I'm not officially part of the family." Sebastian smirked at you.

"A photo of them bombarding you with questions went viral." Jon reminded him.

"Oh yeah." Sebastian said laughing a bit.

"Did you guys bring presents?" Samantha asked.

"Yes but you have to wait till tomorrow." You said giving her a pointed look.

"Please?" The three teens said giving you puppy dog eyes.

"Yeah come on why can we give them the presents today?" Sebastian asked. He knew why.

"You know why babe." You rolled your eyes. You had a big surprise for your family, and your nieces and nephews were gonna help you pull off telling the adults. But of course you got them normal presents as well.

"You guys hiding something?" Jon asked you raising an eyebrow at you through the rearview mirror.

"No." You laughed as Jon pulled into your parents drive way. You saw your nieces and nephews playing with different toys they had probably gotten for Christmas. "Let's see if they prefer you over me as well." You joked to Sebastian as you got out. Your nieces and nephews walk toward the pair of you besides Griffin and Oliver.

"Auntie y/n!" Griffin exclaimed hugging your leg, Oliver hugging the other while your slightly older nieces and nephews just walked over normally and gave you hugs.

"See im their favorite." You referred to your youngest nephews as you picked them both up setting them on opposite hips you stuck your tongue out at Sebastian smirking.

"Good job Dragoste."

"What does that mean?" Griffin asked him.

"It means love." Sebastian said.

"Dragoste! Cool!" Griffin giggled smiling at him.

"Why do say dragster and not love?" Oliver asked him as you guy went to the trunk of the car.

"Because if I just called your aunt love. It wouldn't be as special." Sebastian smiled at them before he pulled the suitcases out of the car because your hands were occupied.

"Cool! Dragoste I like it!" Oliver declared. You shook your head a loving smile on your face.

"Why don't you two of play?" You asked them setting them back down on the ground. They nodded running off to where Benji was playing with a remote control monster truck. "I can't believe we're gonna have one of those in nine months." You whispered placing a kiss to your boyfriends lips.

"Can't we tell them today?" Sebastian asked you. That's right you're pregnant! You guys already told his mom and step dad on Christmas. You had found out on Christmas Eve.

"No we can't." You said taking your bag from him and going to the porch where Colleen was excitedly standing on the porch waiting to know if you were pregnant.

"Are you having a baby?" She asked you smiling wide.

"No." You faked being sad to hope she'd not bring it up any more.

"Oh.. Sorry." She frowned hugging you.

"It's all good." You assured trying to hide the amusement on your face. Sebastian on the other hand didn't even try he just smiled.

"Don't worry it took me and Jon a little to get pregnant." She said pulling out of the hug.

"When you did get pregnant you had twins. I don't think we're ready for twins." You joked as the three of you began to walk inside.

"I think we could handle two." Sebastian spoke up. You rolled your eyes smiling.

"You could get your own Jax and Sam." Colleen said.

"Colleen... I used to baby sit them you do remember all the trouble they caused? Especially if you threw Grayson in the mix I don't think I'm ready for that." You said before you entered the living room deciding to pause the conversation since the rest of your family was waiting there.

"Hey mom!" You hugged her, "wassup dad." You said after you pulled out of the hug with your mom hugging him next. You mom brought Sebastian into a hug while you hugged your dad. After you hugged your parent you ran over and jumped on your three brother who you had yet to greet. "Hi!" You smiled at them sweetly before they pushed you on the floor.

"You okay dragoste?" Sebastian asked helping you up giving your brothers a playful glare.

"I've had worse. Now where the baby?" You asked Justin.

"You haven't even let us say hi yet and your already asking about Nora." Justin said rolling his eyes.

"Justin she's done this every year since she was eighteen why are you surprised.

"She's in the playpen in your room cause it was the quietest place to put her." Liz answered walking into the living room, Oliver on her hip eating fruit snacks.

"Okay!" You and Sebastian said the same time before you guys made your way up stairs hearing your family laugh.

"We're gonna have one of these soon." Sebastian said when the two of you made it to your room looking in the play pen where a peacefully looking baby slept.

"Yea..."

---

It was the next morning, you sat in the living room presents under the tree that your mom kept up just for this late Christmas celebration. You brothers and their families weren't here just yet so you and Sebastian were talking with your mom and dad.

"Jax and Sammy have been telling us all about your roll with marvel." Your dad told him smiling.

"Really?"

"They are big fans of your character Barney." Your mom said. You began cackling.

"Barney barnes." You teased him.

"I-its bucky... Barnes." Sebastian corrected politely.

"Where's the presents!" You hear Griffin exclaim dashing into the living room, Levi and Jasper close behind him. Grayson walking in grumbling about how it was to early.

"They're under the tree. Find the ones with your names it your each have two." You directed them, the younger three boys of the four all dashed to the tree looking at each of the presents even though Griffin couldn't read.

"Grayson help Griffin find his." Mike said before he came and sat down in between you and Sebastian pushing you two apart. "Hi, did you guys get me any presents?" He asked as his wife walked in smiling at her sons.

"Yeah go join them finding them." Sebastian said. Griffin moved to the coffee table with his two presents.

"Okay one of those is from me one of those is from Seb."

Griffin smiled wide ripping open the present Sebastian picked out for him. It was a kid's remote control car.

"Cool!" Griffin exclaimed. Levi was the next to settle down with his presents he opened the one you picked out, finding a new football since Levi played Football. (american)

"Cool! Thanks!"

Griffin ripped open the one you picked out, revealing a Tigger stuffed animal. Jasper and Grayson sat down next to their younger brothers before griffin ran over to his mom begging her to open the car. Jasper opened his first present getting a nerf gun from Sebastian.

"Awesome! Thank you Seb!" Jasper said a big smile on his face.

"Told you he'd love it." Sebastian said to you.

"I said his parents wouldn't not that he wouldn't." You rolled your eyes at him.

Grayson opened his first present the one from Sebastian to see a empty box. "Uh... Thank you?" Grayson said looking at him confused.

"Did you really wrap a empty box! I thought you were joking!" You said reaching over Mike to smack Sebastian.

"Sorry!" Sebastian laughed. "Don't worry your actual present should be near the back of the tree." He told your nephew who was frowning.

Levi wrapped the present from Sebastian open it also revealed a nerf gun. "Dude! Cool! Come on Jasp! Nerf gun battle!"

"Wait I have one more." Jasper said unwrapping the present from you, it was the next book in the series he was reading. "Thank you!" He said before running off with Levi their nerf guns in tow toward the Mitch to probably get scissors to open it with.

Mike got up from his seat to "help Grayson find his present" he actually went to find his own presents. Grayson went back to where his other present was sat with his actual present from Sebastian. He opened it again revealing a nerf gun. Sebastian was setting up a nerf war for all your older nieces and nephews which is why Griffin didn't get one.

"Oh cool! Thank you!" Grayson said before opening the one from you, which was a x-men comic book he wanted. "This was the one I wanted! Thanks Auntie Y/n!" He said getting up to hug you. You smiled hugging him as mike sat back down next to you his two presents in his hands. These were both from you because Sebastian didn't know what to get your brothers.

Grayson found himself a seat next to your mom and dad opening his comic. You watched as your brother opened his present to get a gag gift, it was a tradition you and your siblings each had to give each other the most random or useless thing you could find at the dollar store since this started when you were 6 and only had a dollar.

"Wings? Really?" You nodded before Kristina passed you a box.

"Ooh my gag gift!" You said ripping it opened to reveal a good job cone. "Oh thanks." You laughed. Sebastian looked at it confused.

"What's the point of these gifts?" Sebastian asked.

"There is none it's a tradition, Y/n started when she was five. There's only two rules no one can help you pick the present out and it has to come from Dollar tree." Kristina explained.

"To avoid inappropriate gifts being opened while the kids are around." Mike added.

"Okay if I had known what was in that box I wouldn't have opened it!" You said.

"Matt put don't open around the kids! GAG gift!!" Mike said.

"Yeah in tiny ass letters!" You said. Sebastian looked at you guys confused.

"Whatever." Mike said opening the next gift. "Thank you." He said giving you a really look holding up the T-Shirt that said "I have a badass baby sister yes she got me this shirt."

"You're most welcome!" You said smiling at him. Kristina rolled her eyes at you two going to grab her own presents you got her.

----

Soon the rest of your brothers and their families were there, the older kids were having a nerf gun battle outside with Sebastian since he obviously bought himself a nerf gun too. The younger kids were inside playing with the other toys they had got. Your brothers were wearing the matching fairy wings you got them as their gag gift. While their wives and you were talking. You had Nora on your lap.

Sebastian walked in a nerf bullet stuck to the center of his forehead. "Babe you have something on your forehead." You said laughing.

"They teamed up on me." He grumbled pulling it off before taking a seat next to you and stealing Nora from your lap. "Can we do it now?" He whispered to you.

"Yeah go wrangle the big kids." You said taking Nora. "If you excuse us we have a surprise that the kids are going to help us pull off.. So get your butts outside to wait for us." You said to the adults in the room. They rolled their eyes walking out with Sebastian.

"Okay kiddies! Come on!" You said the little kids looked at you. "I'll give you guys lollipops." The kids jumped up running up the stairs. "Slow down! Your parents will kill me if you fall down the stairs." You said.

Once up stairs you got upstairs you got Griffin, Oliver, and Nora in their shirts while Leo got into his on his own. Sebastian and the older kids barreled into the bedroom after.

"What are we doing?" Samantha asked.

"You guys are going to have a new cousin! And if you get these shirts on you'll help us tell your parents and Granny and pap." Sebastian explained.

"Cool!!" Hazel squealed. Your nieces and nephews celebrated a bit and gave you hugs before you sent them each to a different room upstairs to change while Sebastian watched the ones already you got into your shirt that said right over the belly where your baby was: GrandBaby #14. Your nieces and nephews had shirts that say Grandbaby #1-13. You made it t your room and everyone was ready.

"Okay line up in number order. Griff stand right next to Sebastian when we get out side. Oliver stand next to Griff and so forth." You explained. Sebastian would be holding Nora and standing next to you.

You all made it outside and still in line.

"What?" Your dad asked.

"Read the shirts!" Violet exclaimed.

"Grandbaby... 14?!" Colleen looked at your shirt squealing.

"No way!" Elizabeth said.

"What? 14 kids? There's only 13.." Justin said not getting it.

"Your pregnant?" Your mom asked you.

"Yep!" You and Sebastian said at the same time.

"You told my kids before you told me? I thought I was your favorite?" Justin said mocking offense.

"Your a blabbermouth if we told you everyone would've known." You said as your mom come over hugging you then hugging Sebastian as the kids ran off to play. Your family finished giving you both hugs. Sebastian handed Nora over to Mike before he reached in his pocket. You were looking away at Hazel and Violet.

"Y/n look." Kristina said. You looked at Sebastian gasping as you saw he was on one knee.

"Y/n.. Will you marry me?" He asked. You stared hands over your mouth in disbelief. "Your scaring me." He whispered.

"Yes! Yes! I'll marry you!" You exclaimed tackling him into a hug. Your mom and dad smiled softly at you two while your brothers, tried to be supportive but your their baby sister they won't see you anyway. Your nieces and nephews didn't even notice. You stayed on the ground hugging for what seemed like forever before you pulled apart and he put the ring on your finger. "I love it!" You kissed him before a chorus of "Ew!" Was heard alerting you and Sebastian of your nieces and nephews.

"We're getting married!" Sebastian said smiling, the kids gasped hugging the two of you. their parents laughing took a photo of it.

"Can I be the ring bearer?" Leo asked smiling.

"I want to be the flower girl!" Hazel said as they all pulled away from the hug to let you two stand up. All four of your sister inlaws quickly pulled into a hug squealing, Justin was quick to give Sebastian a hug and welcome him to the family slowly followed by Micheal and your dad, Matthew and Jon stood by your mom who was waiting to hug you. The two men stared at Sebastian with the same look they had when you started dating or when your prom date came to pick you up.

"Dad? Why are you staring at Sebastian like that?" Luna asked Matt.

"This again you two?" Your mom asked them as the hug from your sister in laws was pulled out of and the three men gave who had hugged Sebastian each gave you one followed by you mom while your other two brothers kept glaring at Sebastian.

"Did I do something wrong?" Sebastian asked.

"They're being babies." You said walking over to them sighing. "It's not gonna work this time. He isn't a jerk like him." You said quietly to them, only the two men know what your talking about and that's how you've always wanted it. Now if your wondering what that is. It's about an ex who those two are the only ones who even know about him. It had been getting serious but you ended up getting in a fight and he tried to manipulate by proposing to you (this happened just before you moved out so you were 18) while those two were walking by and ended up "talking" to the guy.

*like who?" Justin asked.

"No one." Jon said hugging you before going over to Sebastian. "Welcome to the family man!" He said. Matt begrudgingly walked over to Sebastian.

"I like you and all but just because your my sister's fiancee I will still kick you ass... In a nerf gun war." Matt changed demeanors as the older kids took that as sign to get their nerf guns from the yard and begin the war again. "Welcome to the family Seabass."

"Ow! Come on!" Sebastian ran off as they began shooting at him.

"Watch the face! I want my fiancee to have both eyes at my wedding!" You exclaimed laughing.

"Glad you care!" Sebastian whined running around with the toddlers while the teens and pre-teens tried to shoot him.

"Don't shoots the little kids or your all grounded!" Matt warned as you leaned your head on your moms shoulder sighing.

What a late Christmas you had. A baby and your getting married.

A/n: I'm a tiny bit in love with this large family... Probably since I want a extended family like this but whatever Merry Christmas if you celebrate Christmas which since you read a Christmas themed story you probably do if not happy holidays!

[trashcatsnark]

Oh, let me continue the subject of the jealousy of these two. You're saying that Johnny isn't the type to hold back when it comes to emotions. And it really is. But... there is a moment in the game when V talks about his exes or about stupid compliments in a conversation with River. And Johnny doesn't say anything. I would write it off as a scenario move, so as not to shift the focus from the River. But this isn't the only time Johnny ignores events in this quest line. See the second question

Part 2 for context:  So... I continue. Do you remember the moment when you watched brain damage and lost consciousness, when you and River were searching for clues about the mayor's murder? Johnny never ignored the moments when V passed out. Here River comes to the rescue, and you would think that he knows that there is someone to help and nothing to worry about ...But in similar situations with Judy and Panam, he would appear and deliver his moralizing remarks or make snide comments. 🤔

Personally, I do believe this is sort of a meta issue. I’ve talked about it a little bit before in a general post; how given his characterization, Johnny does not in my opinion talk as much as he should. In a more comedic example, I mentioned how could anyone honestly look me in the eye and say that Johnny wouldn’t have a comment on the guy with the exploding penis implant????  Like Johnny is majorly characterized as a guy who can’t leave well enough alone and always has something to say; yet theres a fairly large percentage of gigs and missions and moments where you’d think Johnny would have something to say and he doesn’t. There’s also times where lines are blatantly reused and in a jarring way.

Like, I could be wrong, but I think they reuse him saying “There it is” with both V getting Nibbles and a man committing suicide in a gig. Like????? 

Meta wise, I do think it’s partially a fear of over incorporating Johnny to the point players found him annoying. Because even now, some people find him irritating and wish he’d talk less. So, that could be a factor. The idea of not sidelining love interests is a factor of course. While, he has commentary through out each love interests questlines. He always does mostly bugger off during the romantic lead up and the actual kiss then sex. Because well, it might be a bit of a buzzkill and if you’re trying to get laid and Methed Out Future Keanu Reeves is yelling at you from the corner of the room. I mean, it’d probably enhance my experience but some people aren’t into that. 

As for why stuff like, him ignoring V getting zapped by the braindance in River’s quest. I’ve always thought that was ooc. Like, short of potentially the bd having fried him up for a bit, kinda like the emp blast does when V and Panam take down the AV. But overall, over and over again, Johnny is shown to be the first one there when V gets hurt. Even if its to yell at them for going into the toxic water or he waits a beat to appear once Panam is done looking over V. 

And that could be because they potentially again wanted to give more attention to River or... and I always hate to get into this sort of discourse, cause I know it aggravates some people. It was an oversight, something not caught, something not thought of, just because to be fair...River has the least polished questline of the love interests. The male love interests in general imo were sidelined more. But, River A) has the least amount of quests to build up to his romance, B) is the most easily missable love interest since he’s not even required to meet for the secret ending the way Kerry is. and C) this could just be my own personal experience, maybe cyberpunk 2077 provides unique bugs for everyone, but his quests are the buggiest for me.

And to be perfectly clear, this is not me being a dick to River. Do, I think some aspects of his character are kinda tone deaf, sure, but I like River. I think he’s a sweetheart, who’s usually pretty stiff, but has his cuter jokey moments and is a puppy dog underneath.  I love doing his quests because they’re truly very emotional, being able to help his family. Like, being able to save Randy is one of the best feelings in the game to me, knowing you saved him and so many other young boys. That’s why it honestly breaks my heart to see how little polish and attention his quests were given. From the calls glitching, him not staying on comms in the first quest, Johnny in my game doesn’t even give the dialogue warning my V about River wanting to sleep with her, like it just does not show up for me, The cobbled together family photo. The weird pacing of the romance that goes from 0 to a 100. Randy’s face glitches and clips through the mask when you’re saving him. Like the concept, the investigation, the intense stakes, and the emotional impact of his quest are all so good; but CDPR just did not in my opinion take enough time with it. 

So, maybe they didn’t bother to script and put Johnny in that scene despite it being something he’d most definitely pop in for; cause they just didn’t take their time with it like they could have/should have. 

And in regard to Johnny in universe and talking; while like I said he’s more upfront and direct with his anger and side comments that he uses to hide his real feelings. I do think, especially if its post oils field convo, a part of him tries desperately to bite his tongue and just sit with his feelings if he think its best for V. In the more love dovey romance moment with River, I could see him being like, “okay, V wants this, as much as it pisses me off, V deserves to have some good in their life” and tries to hold back and be good and then five seconds later “CANT BELIEVE YOU’RE GONNA MAKE ME FUCK A COP” cause he can only behave for so long. 

And I do wanna note; I am by no means consider myself a Johnny Silverhand expert. I’ve said this before, his characterization and just him as a person can be very messy, very all over the place, and contradictory at times. He can try to kill V and then the next day pop up to chat with them in a diner and be like “why aren’t you happy to see me?????? you still mad?????? its been a whole ass 5 hrs since I told you to kill yourself and bashed your head into a window, gotta learn to let shit go dude.” So, sometimes I worry I’m making him ooc, but its fun nontheless, so. 

[averytinyelephant]

sing our love from the rooftops

Author’s note: This is my response for @tog-valentine-exchange! This response is for @jill-8-7 (who’s art is amazing, go check it out!!) and their artwork. I’m sorry for this being a little late, but hopefully the fic’s good enough to make up for it! My first go at a songfic, but I feel pretty good about how it turned out! Listen to Love Someone by Lukas Graham here. (Also, this can sortof (?) be read as a peek into (epilogue actually, haha) to my fic for Vih and Eevee’s Honey Lavender AU which... has turned out to be quite a monster, so apologies to both of you for taking so long to finish it! I really hope that it’ll blow you away once I’ve finished!!) Fandom: Tower of God (Read the Webtoon here!) Pairing: Khun Aguero Agnis/The Twenty-Fifth Baam Word Count: 2,633

Summary: Khun may be new to relationships, but he knows missing Valentine’s Day with his partner for work is a really shitty thing to do. So he’s planning on making up for it with a surprise that’s sure to sweep Baam right off his feet. Everything’s laid out perfectly, but Baam manages to beat him to the punch anyway.

Khun taps his foot impatiently and checks his watch. Half an hour to go, he thinks to himself. This damn meeting is dragging on like molasses, even though he’s already worked out an arrangement with Shibisu so he can get out of this one earlier.

It’s not that he doesn’t like his job: quite the opposite really, this business is something he’s poured years into building from the ground up. It’s quite simple, even if there are some days that are a little too reminiscent of a childhood he’d rather not think about, and much of it comes with practiced ease now.

No, it’s not that at all, it’s just that his whole life was turned upside down almost two years ago now by a certain man with the brightest golden eyes, and he finds himself looking forward to frivolous, overly sentimental things like Valentine’s Day despite himself. He knows that this meeting is important (there was a reason that he resorted to scheduling it today of all days, after all) and that he has a surprise planned out for his partner to make up for not being able to spend today with him.

Just half an hour more and I’ll be on my way to see him, Khun reasons, trying to force himself to pay attention to this meeting, when they’re interrupted by a knock on the door.

They enter briefly, and it’s a member of security, “Mr. Khun, I need to speak to you privately for just a minute.”

She tells him that someone’s requesting his presence from the ground floor, claiming to be his partner and that they’re incredibly persistent. Khun feels like his eyebrows might be touching his hairline right now and he’s about to dismiss her, that’s impossible, he wants to say, and it wouldn’t be a lie but she goes on to say, “He says his name is Jue Viole Grace.”

And that’s — Khun feels his world stop for a moment. This… this could be a real problem: he’d not even told his closest friends about Baam and had gone to great lengths to make sure their relationship remained private, something untouched by this messy life of constant competition, how could anyone know?

Despite the turmoil in his head, Khun manages to answer, “Thank you very much, though I’ll deal with this personally,” and walks back into the conference room to excuse himself briefly before making his way to the attached balcony. If he remembers right (which he always does), his car is parked on this side of the building and should be readily visible from this balcony. If the imposter wants his attention, he’d either be there or near his car, and there’s no harm in checking from here first, especially since they mostly likely wish him harm.

Peering over the balcony, Khun sees he was right, they’re just by his car and — he has no idea how he knows this, the figure’s much too small from all the way up here to see properly but it just clicks in his head with a terrifyingly overwhelming certainty that this is Baam, he’s staring right at the real thing, Baam’s right here looking up at him and waving excitedly, that’s impossible, how —

His phone’s ringing — no, Baam’s calling him. When he answers, he can’t even mask his shock when he asks, “Baam? How the hell—”

“Sorry to pull you out of work Khun!” he chirps back, not sounding the least bit sorry, “I wanted to surprise you for Valentine’s Day!”

What the fuck.

“But, Baam, you’re supposed to be — You told me you have a gig tonight at Endorsi’s place, it’d be crowded as all hell, and you flew across the country to see me?”

“Yup!” And Baam’s unpacking his guitar.

Wait. He’s unpacking his guitar.

“Are you crazy? You’re going to serenade me right here and now?”

“Oh, great, I was wondering how to explain this. It’s kinda awkward, y’know, I tried phrasing it a few different ways and none of them really clicked. I’m glad I don’t have to—”

“You can’t be serious, I swear, Baam, one of these days—”

“Put your headphones in! You’ll be able to hear me a little more clearly.”

Khun grumbles a bit to himself as he does, determined to express his indignation despite his shock, and Baam only laughs at him.

“Okay, they’re in. You’re so on, by the way.”

Baam just huffs and puts his phone in his pocket, and Khun doesn’t even need to look at his face to know he’s understood.

He waits patiently as Baam tunes the guitar and meets him with a challenging lilt to his voice as he asks, “Can you hear me okay?”

“Loud and clear.”

As Baam plays the first few notes, Khun can’t see his face from where he’s standing at the balcony’s edge, but he’s seen Baam play so many times he already knows how serenely focused his eyes are, the relaxed and confident set of his shoulders, the involuntary quirk of his lips as he loses himself in playing. He never gets tired of seeing it, and he wishes he could see it again right now. He thinks he’s already heard this song before, its opening is familiar but he can’t hope to place it right now, but he’s reminded again when Baam starts to sing that it doesn’t matter, this version — Baam’s voice, even tinny and distorted through the phone’s mic, a little muffled by the fabric of his shirt pocket — will be more beautiful than any original he’s heard.

There are days, I wake up and I pinch myself You're with me, not someone else

“Who else would there be but you?” He means it sarcastically, to poke fun at his choice of song in this game they’ve played for years now, but it comes out horribly dopey and fond instead and Khun suddenly feels his cheeks burn. Baam’s late for a chord for a fraction of a second anyway, so it’s not an entire failure.

And I’m scared, yeah, I'm still scared, that it's all a dream

“A damn good dream, I’d say,” Khun manages in the haughtiest tone he can muster at the moment and that gets Baam’s voice to crack a little with suppressed giggles, but his playing’s still flawless as always.

'Cause you still look perfect as days go by

“Please, that’s a given.”

Even the worst ones, you make me smile I'd stop the world if it gave us time

Khun’s about to say something snarky again despite how deeply the sentiment resonated with him, but the way Baam’s voice swells at the chorus tears away his pretense.

'Cause when you love someone, you open up your heart When you love someone, you make room If you love someone, and you're not afraid to lose 'em You’ve probably never loved someone like I do When you say You love the way I make you feel Everything becomes so real Don't be scared, no, don't be scared 'Cause you're all I need

(Privately, Khun admits defeat this time, because he doesn’t think he could muster a witty comment, a sufficiently steady voice, or even the will to compete right now despite all his pride.)

And you still look perfect as days go by Even the worst ones, you make me smile I'd stop the world if it gave us time 'Cause when you love someone, you open up your heart When you love someone, you make room If you love someone, and you're not afraid to lose 'em You’ve probably never loved someone like I do All my life I thought it'd be hard to find the one 'til I found you And I find it bittersweet 'Cause you gave me something to lose

Khun feels himself straighten before he registers commanding himself to do so, because that’s it — that’s what Baam’s trying to tell him. For a split second, he’s taken back two years and three hours before, a conversation asking about Baam how he chose songs to learn, a light voice on a hot desert breeze saying “there’s always one bit, a whole verse or a few words, one bit of the song that tells you plainly what they’re trying to say.”

He doesn’t know how he knows, there’s no evidence to suggest such, but Khun feels it like a punch to the solar plexus: this is that part. This is what Baam’s been trying to say, what he’s telling him now: It’s you, it’s you, it’s always been you. When we met the first time, my heart remembered the shape of yours from somewhere our eyes have never seen; we’ll never be favored by the stars but I’ll fight each day for us; everything beautiful reminds me of you because I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you more than I can ever show you in ten thousand lifetimes, so I’ll love you every day of this one and hope you understand.

But when you love someone, you open up your heart When you love someone, you make room If you love someone, and you're not afraid to lose 'em You’ve probably never loved someone like I do

When Baam finishes, he looks up at Khun, and he doesn’t even need to see his face to know he looks shy and sheepish like the reality of the situation’s finally hit him and Khun — Khun can hardly even speak. He’s certain he looks like a complete moron, gaping mouth and openly flabbergasted, but he can’t even bring himself to care. Before he knows it, his feet are carrying him away from the balcony and back into the still-busy conference room. He thinks Shibisu’s trying to speak with him and he’s distantly aware of Baam calling out to him in his headphones, and fuck, this is so fucking stupid, Khun’s never this impulsive —

He rushes out the door anyway, making a beeline for the elevator (he briefly considers the stairs when he passes by them on the way and has to focus to turn his brain on momentarily and think of how many damn stories there are in the building to decide against it) and slams the button for the ground floor. He can hardly stand still as it goes down, tapping his foot and checking his watch and oh, Baam’s disconnected the call, and his hands are shaking (absently, the rational part of his mind thinks it’s amusing how closely what he’s experiencing now resembles a panic attack) and fuck, this is still so goddamn stupid, and fucking finally, the elevator’s stopped at the ground floor. Before the doors even open all the way, he’s gone, sprinting through the front door and around the side of the building to where he parked this morning and he sees Baam, zipping up his guitar case and he looks ethereal now that he can see him up close —

“Aguero?”

And Khun feels the last of his sanity snap in two as he just grabs Baam by the collar and kisses him so hard he can feel the way Baam yelps in surprise in each of his teeth. His lungs are burning and his heart’s pounding in his throat, already winded from running so fast, but he still can’t bring himself to care.

Baam’s the one to break the kiss, breathy and concerned, “Aguero? What are you…?”

And damn, Khun realizes he has to give him answers.

Say something! “You’re fucking ridiculous.” Not that.

Baam looks more than a little offended. That’s… appropriate.

“Absolutely and totally impossible, I fucking hate you so, so much,” Khun knows he’s rambling nonsense, but Baam’s gotten him choked up and unable to even comprehend what he’s feeling right now, much less express it in words, so he just kisses him again and hopes he understands.

He breaks the kiss again (he doesn’t get it, obviously, because he’s not making any sense) and replies, “You’re telling me two very different things here, Aguero.”

Wait. What?

Khun forces his brain back online through sheer willpower and really, properly looks at Baam, and — this bastard’s smiling of all things right now, he looks like he’s about to burst out laughing any moment now. “You’re the worst. You know that?”

And he does burst out laughing, and it sounds like a million bells chiming in the most euphonious orchestra in the most irritating way possible. “I hate you so much — I have a ticket for a flight for LA in two hours and a rental car waiting for me, I made arrangements to work remotely for the next week to make up for today, I was going to — stop laughing at me!” He means it seriously, but he’s so giddy right now, he’s certain he’s grinning wide like a fool.

Baam exaggeratedly wipes tears from his eyes and wheezes out, “You scared me! I thought you were mad at me—”

“I am mad at you! You ruined my surprise!”

And Baam’s laughing again and Khun can’t figure out if he wants to kick him or kiss him again, but he redeems himself (just a bit) when he says, “I’m sorry! I’ll help you get a refund on that plane ticket if you want.”

“That’s not what I care about here, Baam!” That only makes Baam laugh harder, and okay, Khun has to admit, this entire situation is frankly ridiculous, and he starts laughing with him before he can catch himself.

After a few moments, Khun manages to collect himself enough to retort, “I’m definitely doing something else to make up for it.”

Baam looks at him curiously as Khun pulls his keys from his pocket with a flourish. “You mean right now?” he asks incredulously, “But what about your —”

And, well. Khun’s definitely not about to admit Baam made him forget about work entirely. But he’s saved from having to think of a decent cover because as if on cue, Khun’s phone starts ringing with a call from Shibisu.

“Khun? What the hell’s going on, you just disappeared, is that —”

“Shibisu, wait, listen.” At this point, Khun knows Shibisu well enough to know that if he doesn’t cut him off now, he’ll never stop asking questions. “I need you to manage the rest of it. You’ll be fine, it’s just a little earlier from when I had to take off anyway—”

“Yeah, I know, but, Khun, what’s actually going on? Don’t tell me—”

Khun just looks Baam in the eye and winks at him when he answers, “I’ve got something a lot more important to tend to.” Baam flushes bright red but beams at him anyway and Khun barely tamps down the urge to coo at how cute his partner is.

The other line’s silent, but it seems like Shibisu gets it because he sighs, dramatic and long-suffering, before muttering, “I really should’ve taken Hatz up on that bet, he’d owe me money right now.” Khun’s grips the phone a little tighter in irritation, but he makes a note to reward him somehow for not taking the bet before Shibisu continues. “Yeah, I’ll take care of it. But you owe me the presentation in two weeks and one hell of an explanation.”

Khun doesn’t even think before he answers, “Deal.” He still hates cashing out his end of a bargain first, being indebted to someone rather than having others owe him, but when Baam beams at him as he pockets his phone again, Khun thinks it’s really not all that bad.

“Come on, lover boy,” Khun teases as he spins his keys once and unlocks his car, “you showed me LA last time, it’s your turn to see New York City.”

[dream-a-little-bigger-x]

Parallels | Chapter 9

Add yourself to my taglist! | Here’s my masterlist! | Parallels Masterlist

Characters: OC! Violet Grace Dawson, Luke Patterson, Julie Molina, Carrie Wilson, Bobby Wilson, Reggie Peters, Alex Mercer, Flynn nolastname, Willie nolastname, Nick Danforth-Evans, Dirty Candy 

Guideline: Sunset Universe is the universe in which Sunset Curve is famous and Violet is friends with Carrie, Julie and Flynn. Candy Universe is the universe in which Dirty Candy is more famous and Sunset Curve has broken up. 

Song(s) used: Breakthrough - Lemonade Mouth | This Band is Back - Sunset Curve

Warnings: Bobby raps in this again lol, other than that there’s nothing, I think? 

Words:  5,339

Gif made by the lovely @amazondancewarrior​! 

“Guess what?” Carrie said the second Violet picked up the FaceTime call that morning. 

Violet was sat on the floor in front of her full-length mirror, doing her makeup. She had no idea why she did it, sitting on the floor, but it seemed easier. Maybe it was something about the lighting or the mirror. It was unclear. 

“What?” Violet asked, screwing the mascara wand back on its tube before putting it back in her beauty case. 

Carrie’s eyes rolled back. “You’re no fun! Guess! Guess!” 

Violet let out a chuckle before properly resettling on the soft carpet beneath her and placing her phone on the floor cushion next to her mirror, letting it balance against the gold frame. “Uhm… You’re pregnant!” Carrie’s smile disappeared. “No, okay – uhm… Dirty Candy split up!” 

“Good one, but no…” 

“Can  you give me a hint?” Violet asked. There was no way she was ever going to get this one. 

A smirk tugged at one corner of Carrie’s mouth before she teasingly started to sing. “Luke and Violet, sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G–” 

Suppressing a smile and the blush that came along with it, Violet chuckled. “What are you even talking about?!” 

So far, Violet had learned that Carrie was always full of surprises, and this was no exception. That was the one thing different from the Carrie she knew. The Carrie in her universe was sort of predictable. Or that might just be because she had known her for years. 

“Bobby just called me to invite us over to their house for rehearsal today,” Carrie said with a smug smirk playing on her lips. “I’m pretty sure it wasn’t technically his idea…” 

An unfamiliar feeling welled up in Violet’s stomach at the insinuation Carrie was making. Luke wouldn’t actually want to have her there during rehearsal, would he? Then again, he couldn’t quite keep his eyes off her during their album launch party. The boy was pretty into her. That just meant her plan was working but Violet wasn’t entirely sure if she was so okay with that now. 

No, she had to be okay with it. She just had to. There was no time for liking someone right now. Any other day. But not now. 

“I hardly think that’s–” as soon as she started speaking, so did Carrie, cutting her off. 

“Babe, this is good! This means our plan is working! We’re going to that rehearsal!” She sounded determined, or at least she tried to be. Violet couldn’t know she was worried about the whole plan now. She couldn’t know she was scared for her best friend who wasn’t technically her best friend. 

Violet hummed. “Yeah… I guess it is!” A nervous chuckle rolled off her lips before she set her sight and mind on something else. “What are we wearing?” she asked, finding her smile and excitement back. 

“Something that says, “I’m very single and you should take me out on a date”!” Carrie shouted excitedly and watched as Violet manoevered from her bedroom floor to the closet. The girl halted in her tracks and looked at her phone screen, deadpanning. 

“Is that a hint, Wilson?” she asked teasingly. 

She witnessed Carrie’s iconic eye roll before diving into her closet with her best friend on the screen in her hand. Everything had changed but that. Violet still felt like she could mess around with Carrie and have the friendship she had with the other Carrie, with this Carrie. It sounded like a big, complicated mess in her head,  but she knew what she was thinking and she knew she was right. 

In the end, Violet opted for a black-and-white checkered bodycon dress over a white T-shirt, paired with black Converse on her feet while Carrie went for a jean skirt and an off-the-shoulder top. They looked cute, they felt cute. It was perfect and even Alex complimented their outfits when they arrived at the Sunset Curve mansion in Beverly Hills. 

The boys guided them around their house, despite Carrie already having been there a dozen times before. Violet hadn’t and Luke was impatient to share a piece of his life with her. They went through hallways upon hallways, from the spacious living room to the cinema room to their very own gym and swimming pool. Their enormous kitchen was Violet’s favorite part, she didn’t know why but it really was until they showed her their rehearsal space in the basement. 

“This is sick!” Violet gasped as she let her eyes wander over every single guitar that hung on the wall and the amplifiers they used in the room. While she wandered around, letting her eyes bathe in the beauty that was the Sunset Curve practice room, Luke watched her like a hawk. A lovesick hawke. 

His eyes were tender as they noticed her every move. He wondered what was going on inside her head and if she was thinking about him too. She probably wasn’t as she was so focused on the instruments, especially the grand piano seemed to capture her interest. The girl let her fingers glide over the ivories. 

“So, if Luke’s done staring at Violet, maybe we can start rehearsing,” Reggie stated, capturing everyone’s attention, but more so Violet’s and Luke’s as their cheeks heated and turned a bright scarlet red. 

“What are you rehearsing for?” Violet asked, dismissing the fact that she was blushing like a crazy person. 

Reggie and Alex exchanged knowing glances before the latter responded to her question. “The Late Late Show.” Violet’s eyebrows knitted together, having never heard of that show ever. “With James Corden?” Alex tried again. 

Violet quickly glanced over at Carrie who subtly stuck a thumb up in the air, letting Violet know that’s a good thing. “Oh!” Violet suddenly changed her demeanor from confused to excited. “Right! The Late Late Show! Yes, I know that show!” 

“What song are you performing?” Carrie asked to change the subject and have Violet off the hook for a moment. 

Bobby glanced at the boys for a moment to see if any of them were going to answer. “We were thinking Livin’ on a High Wire,” he said, “But we’re not sure yet.” 

“Luke has a pretty cool song he’s working on!” Reggie announced. “We might do that one.” 

“I have the lyrics, but I can’t find a good rhythm for it…” Luke said somberly. 

Violet shrugged. “Lemme take a look at it? People say I’m pretty good with melodies and rhythms.” Luke chuckled nervously before reaching for his songbook and opening it on the right page. He placed it on the piano where Violet was standing and pointed at the lyrics. 

“That’s all I’ve got.” 

Violet leaned over the piano to take a look at it. Their shoulders brushed as the two of them scanned the page together. Luke tried to ignore the sparks he felt when he stood close to her and instead, enjoyed the pure bliss he had found himself in. 

The girl hummed before placing her fingers on a few keys on the keyboard. A soft melody chimed through the rehearsal space and Luke immediately picked up on it. 

“Oooh yeah, mmmm Breakthrough”

He grabbed his guitar again and let an electric riff float out, seconds before Alex and Reggie jumped in as well. As Bobby took over on the keyboard, Violet grabbed the microphone and started singing the words she had remembered. 

“Up, down, spinnin all around Fly, high, falling to the ground Sometimes dreams can feel so far away Time, keeps, skippin' out a beat Left, right, trippin' on your feet Life is like a string of cloudy days”

Violet nodded to Luke, who took this as a sign it was his turn to sing. So, he grabbed that chance and, without breaking eye contact with Violet, sang the pre-chorus he wrote. 

“Sometimes it's raisin' your voice Sometimes it's makin' some noise Sometimes it's proving to the world it was wrong”

Reggie skipped towards Luke and sang the next part of the pre-chorus with the lead singer in his mic the way they always do during gigs. 

“Whenever you can't see the light Whenever there's no end in sight Keep on, keep on moving on Keep on moving on”

With the widest smile on her face, Violet chimed in on the chorus again with Alex and Bobby as well. Their voices blended together perfectly and the sound gave Violet a kick of adrenaline. 

“Here comes a breakthrough Here comes a day Here comes a moment that you gotta go for it So don't let it get away It's all about breakthrough Just turn the page 'Cause everyday you’re getting closer Life is just a rollercoaster”

While Violet danced her way through the post-chorus Bobby, Alex and Reggie took for their account, Luke watched her with the greatest smile of admiration. This girl was so talented, she could turn a song she just saw on paper for a few seconds into a complete hit.  

“Shake it, till you make it Till you breakin’ on through Don't stop till you breakin’ on through Shake it, till you make it Till you breakin’ on through Don't stop till you breakin’ on through”

As the beat changed again, Violet halted in her spot and started singing the next verse. Though she didn’t quite remember the exact words, what she came up with sounded equally as good. Better, even. 

“Stop, still, take another breath Road block, move it to the left Get around whatever's in your way Heartbreak, pick up all the pieces Don't stop dancin' in the bleachers It's gonna be your turn to play Gonna be your turn to play”

Violet turned to Bobby to rock out with him while Reggie and Luke sang the pre-chorus again. 

“Sometimes it's raisin' your voice Sometimes it's makin' some noise Sometimes it's provin' to the world it was wrong Whenever you can't see the light Whenever there's no end in sight Keep on, keep on movin' on Keep on movin' on”

Then, Violet turned around again, looking at Carrie as their only source of a crowd and performed the chorus towards her. Though she didn’t quite like seeing her best friend falling for the lead singer after what had happened the last time, she did love seeing her in her element, performing with the band.  

“Here comes a breakthrough Here comes a day Here comes a moment that you gotta go for it So don't let it get away It's all about a breakthrough Just turn the page 'Cause everyday you’re getting closer Life is just a rollercoaster”

Bobby quit playing the keyboard and picked up the microphone. Violet had almost forgotten about his talent of rapping until the boy spit out the bridge like a total pro. The same way he did during their gig. 

“You can see it in the blind sight Movin' through the limelight Groovin' to the music imma use it when the time's right Hoping I can do it through the shadows, I can shine bright Usually in life there's one short, this is our night Listen to the rhythm that we given and it will make you Start pushin' the barriers and it will take you Wherever it is you wanna go, never too late to Keep pushing till you breakthrough”

Luke’s voice floated through the space as the song  broke down with just Bobby playing the keyboard. Violet turned to face Luke and moved towards him, reaching out her microphone for him to use as he sang the pre-chorus again. 

“Sometimes it's raisin' your voice Sometimes it's makin' some noise Sometimes it's provin' to the world it was wrong”

With a wicked smirk on her face, Violet echoed his last words while they shared the mic. Luke couldn’t stop his eyes from flicking up and down to her lips as she was so close to him. 

“World it was wrong”

“Whenever you can't see the light”

“Can’t see the light”

“Whenever there's no end in sight”

“No end in sight”

The others picked up on the chemistry between the two singers and exchanged knowing glances. Their buddy had it bad and everyone could see it. 

“Keep on, keep on movin' on Keep on movin' on”

While the others lapsed into the chorus again, Violet went for a high note before jumping in as well. 

“Here comes a breakthrough Here comes a day Here comes a moment that you gotta go for it So don't let it get away It's all about a breakthrough Just turn the page 'Cause everyday I'm getting closer Life is just a rollercoaster”

The energy in the room was high as everyone gave their everything on the last post-chorus. 

“Shake it, till you make it Till you breakin’ on through Don't stop till you breakin’ on through Shake it, till you make it Till you breakin’ on through Don't stop till you breakin’ on through Shake it, till you make it Till you breakin’ on through Don't stop till you breakin’ on through Shake it, till you make it Till you breakin’ on through Don't stop”

“Here comes a breakthrough”

Smiling at each other, the band didn’t need any words to agree that this was the best song they had ever written. It had that Sunset Curve energy, that empowering feeling they always wanted and needed. They could see this skyrocketing in the charts. Only Violet didn’t quite know that yet. 

“That sounded amazing, you guys!” Carrie exclaimed excitedly as she clapped her hands. “I think you’ve got a new hit on your hands!” 

Luke and Violet turned their heads at the very same time and both of them smiled at each other. “I think so too,” Luke admitted. Violet couldn’t ignore the fluttering feeling in the pit of her stomach. Something was happening and she wasn’t sure if she liked it or not. 

“How about we go up for some drinks and snacks? I think we deserve it,” Alex suggested with a wide smile plastered on his face and the rest of the gang agreed with a mirroring smile. 

The six of them headed upstairs where Alex and Reggie took care of the beverages and Luke and Violet were on snack-duty in their pantry. Of course that was just part of Alex and Reggie’s plan, but the two went along with it anyway. 

“I wanna thank you for helping us out with that song,” Luke said as he handed Violet some snacks from the shelves. 

Violet let out an airy chuckle. “That’s– that’s no problem, Luke. I really liked the song you had so far, so…” She shrugged, trying to balance the bags of chips Luke had piled on her. When  he noticed her struggling, he finally took some off her. Their fingers brushed as he did so and while Violet tried to ignore the spark she felt, Luke didn’t quite. 

“Can I repay you?” he asked and before Violet could protest, he continued. “Let me take you out on a date. Just dinner, us two?” The girl scoffed at his bravery and smoothness. 

“Sure, Luke. Why not?” 

His teeth dug into his lower lip as he gazed at her for a moment, processing the fact that she had just agreed to go out on a date with him. This all sounded so crazy but it did mean their plan was working. Violet should be happy about it, but there was just something in the way… 

Days go by and there wasn’t one where the boys, Violet, Carrie, Julie and Flynn didn’t hang out together after school. They played some songs together, hung out and got to know each other bit by bit. It was nice to see the boys getting along again. It almost felt like a part of Violet became whole again. 

“Hey, Violet,” Alex started carefully when the Sunset Curve boys entered the garage where the girls had already been chilling on the couch for an hour. She had her legs in Carrie’s lap while resting her back against the armrest of the couch, keeping herself busy scrolling through her phone. 

“‘Sup, Lex?” 

Alex scratched behind his ear while shooting a glance to his buddies, one of which grabbed an acoustic guitar from its stand where it had been waiting for them. “We wanted to thank you… For bringing the band back together,” he said, grimacing. 

“And apologize for acting like complete idiots when you first asked us,” Luke added, fixing the guitar strap around his chest. Violet let out a chuckle at this, silently agreeing with Luke’s statement. 

“And for that, we wanna give you a little glance into Sunset Curve and prove you are the perfect fit for our band,” Bobby continued with a grin. “So… Luke?” 

With the widest smile on his face, Luke nodded and started to play a fun melody on his six-string. Violet sat up straight for this, facing the boys’ way as Alex started doing body percussion, adding a fun beat to the song. 

The only one who didn’t seem into it, was Reggie. He was sitting on the edge of a couch, watching, but not moving. “Come on, Reginald!” Alex encouraged him before Luke counted him in and Reggie started to sing excitedly. 

“Can you, 'a can you hear me?”

Alex let out a chuckle before answering Reggie’s call. 

“Yep, loud and clear”

“We gotta get, we gotta get ready”

Luke dramatically responded to this one. 

“'Cause it's been years”

Bouncing along excitedly, the girls watched as the boys continued to improvise together, much like Violet did the other day to get the band back together. 

“Whoa, this band is back Whoa, this band is back Woo, woo”

Reggie reached for Violet’s hand, pulling her up while Bobby went for Carrie and Alex went for his two best friends. 

“Can you,”

The girls responded this time. 

“Yes we can,”

“Can you hear me?”

The four of them started dancing around the garage and around the boys while singing along with them. Thankfully, the song was easy enough to remember for everyone, which made it all the more fun singing along. 

“Loud and clear”

“We gotta get, wanna get, we gotta get ready Cause it's been years Whoa, this band is back Whoa, this band is back Woo, woo”

Giggling, the girls fell back on the couch. Luke quickly exchanged his acoustic guitar for an electric one while the other boys claimed their own instruments. All four of them ready to start rehearsing. 

“Got any genius songs up your sleeve, Captain?” Luke questioned, his eyes focused on Violet as she got up from the couch again. She reached for her backpack and fished her songbook out. It was a notebook the other Violet had stashed in her night stand, but Violet now claimed it as her own. 

“I had this idea for a song… It might be absolutely terrible, but I wanted to see if we could do something with it anyway.” She placed the notebook on the grand piano and sat down before starting to play a soft melody. 

“Trying hard to fight these tears I'm crazy worried Messing with my head this fear I'm so sorry You know you gotta get it out I can't take it That's what being friend’s about”

The notes floated out into the garage before coming to a halt. “And then we would like, come in with the instruments and it would speed up and –” she stopped herself from getting too excited about it and looking like a fool. “Unless you guys got a better idea?” 

Bobby grimaced at the insecure girl that sat at the piano. This wasn’t the Violet he was used to and it made him wonder what happened in the other universe for her to become this ball of insecurity. She was a talented, gorgeous young woman. There was nothing she had to be insecure about. 

“Something like this?” Bobby asked and played a riff on his guitar. 

A thankful smile reached Violet’s cheeks and it widened as each boy added something to the melody. It sounded exactly like it did in her head when she thought of this. The boys were just the perfect addition to her music. 

Softly, but with more confidence than before, she started singing the chorus she had come up with the other day. 

“Gotta turn the world into your dance floor Determinate, d-determinate Push until you can't and then demand more Determinate, d-determinate You and me together, we can make it better Gotta turn the world into your dance floor Determinate, d-determinate”

“You guys should perform at the open mic night at Chubbie’s Friday,” Julie suggested as soon as the band stopped playing to bask into the genius that was Violet’s song. 

While Luke was practically bouncing off the walls with excitement, Violet’s shake of the head shut him down almost immediately. “Why not, Vi? We sound epic and your songs are amazing! We can’t not share them with the world!” 

“The last time I was on a stage, I puked over the entire front row… I’ve been afraid to get up on a stage ever since,” she replied without thinking twice about it. Only when she noticed Carrie’s and Bobby’s widened eyes and the other’s confused glances, she realized what she’d done. “Dirty Candy is different, though… I’m a completely different person in Dirty Candy. I’m not Violet. I’m Blue Candy.” 

Carrie let out a relieved sigh at Violet’s quick saving. That was a good excuse. 

“That’s fair…” Alex muttered, nodding his head. “We can’t force you to do something you don’t wanna do…” 

Luke shook his head, disagreeing with both of them. “No, Violet… You have to get over that fear. What you have – it’s pure talent! And it’s a shame to keep it under wraps…” He took a step closer towards the piano, leaning over it until his face was mere inches away from hers. “I was wrong about you being just a bubblegum princess. You’re much more than that. You’ve got talent, Violet.” 

Violet swallowed the lump that got stuck in her throat. Luke had never been this close to her. She couldn’t count the amount of times she had dreamed of being in this position. “I– I can’t do it, Luke… I can’t…” She got up from the stool but before she could move away from him, he grabbed her wrist to stop her. 

“What if we’re all gonna be up there with you? You’re not alone, Violet… You have us. We’re backing you up. You got this, okay?” 

This might be the only way to get back to her own universe. Maybe performing together could be her unfinished business. Maybe after that, she could get back to her own universe. 

“Fine… I’ll do it…” she whispered, but it was loud enough for everyone to hear and cheer loudly. 

Luke smiled a proud smile. “I knew you could do it,” he said before the band went back to rehearsing together. 

During the entire rehearsal, Luke couldn’t help but remember the crush he used to have on this girl a few years back, before she turned into this Bubblegum Princess from Dirty Candy. He could feel that crush coming back as they made music together. Seeing her blossom, finding aspects of her personality he had never noticed before. He felt himself falling for her all over again and he knew he had to do something about it. 

“Remember when I had a crush on Violet?” Luke asked the boys after rehearsal while they were packing up their instruments and the girls were chatting around the piano about the open mic night. 

“Had?” Reggie asked, eyebrows raised. “Did that ever go away then?” 

Luke rolled his eyes at his friend. “Yes, it did. But now it’s back and I don’t know what to do about it…” 

“You could ask her out?” Alex said with his usual flair of sarcasm. 

Luke opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out. He knew Alex was right, but he had no clue how to ask a Dirty Candy member out on a date. “How?” he whispered. 

“You ask her,” Alex replied and pushed the lead singer towards the girl in question, who  happened to be making her way over to them. While the boys made their way out, taking the other girls with them, Luke stuttered and stammered as he watched the girl he had a crush on watch him expectantly. 

Violet’s eyebrows knitted together. “You okay, Luke?” she asked. 

“Yeah, yeah…” he chuckled and scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “I uhm… I was wondering if maybe you’d like to go out with me? On – on a date?” 

Her breath hitched in her throat. She never thought Luke Patterson would ever ask her out. Not willingly. The image of him laughing at her when their friends had set them up on a blind date flashed through her mind again. 

“I– I can’t, Luke… I’m sorry,” she mumbled before gathering her stuff and exiting the garage, leaving Luke by himself and heartbroken. How could he have been so stupid, thinking Violet Dawson would actually want to go out with him? 

If only he were born in a different universe where Violet would actually be into him… 

Dressed in a floral romper and heels she borrowed from Carrie, Violet nervously walked over to her front door where seconds ago, someone rang the bell. She knew exactly who it was. Three minutes early. 

“Hi Luke,” she greeted with a nervous smile while Luke let his eyes wander over her body. 

“Woah,” he  breathed before coughing to gather himself back up. “Uhm… You look gorgeous.” For a confident little asshole, he seemed insanely nervous right about now. Violet thought it was rather endearing that something as normal as a date made this rockstar so nervous. 

“Thanks!” Violet said. “You clean up pretty nice too.” She regarded his outfit. A white button-down and slacks. Something he could wear to impress her mother, that was for sure. 

Luke chuckled before reaching out a hand. “You ready to go, m’lady?” 

Violet placed her hand in his and let him guide her towards the car. There was a nervous flutter that made itself known in her stomach. It wasn’t like she was nervous about the date. She was nervous about the outcome. For herself. And him. 

“Where are we going?” she asked as he opened the door to the backseat open for her. 

He smiled, “You’ll see.” He shut the door and jogged to the other side, getting in the backseat as well. To say Violet was confused yet not surprised he asked his chauffeur to drive them to the date, was an understatement but she let it slide. There were a lot more things about the rockstar’s life she wasn’t aware of yet. 

“You’re really not gonna tell me where we’re going?” she questioned again whilst the driver sped away. 

Tight lipped and silent, Luke shook his head. “But you could guess?” 

“Not you too,” Violet rolled her eyes, giggling. “Uhm… Italy!” she joked excitedly, which made Luke laugh. “I would’ve expected something big like that from our first date, Mister Rockstar.” 

“What if I told you we were going to the next best thing?” 

The car came to a halt as the smirk on Luke’s face widened. He quickly pecked a kiss to Violet’s knuckles before getting out of the car and running around it to open Violet’s door, helping her out. 

The two of them stood in front of a large building in a quiet part of the city, it seemed. There were barely any cars zooming past and, even though they were standing in the middle of the sidewalk, they weren’t in the way of anyone. It gave Violet plenty of time to read the elegant lettering ‘Figurati Italia’. It looked and sounded very posh and exclusive, and when they walked inside, Violet knew she was right. 

“Luke, this–” she scoffed. “This looks insanely expensive, are you sure about this?” 

Luke smiled at her, placing his hands on her shoulders in comfort. “Rockstar life,” he whispered before taking her hand and leading her towards the man in charge. “Signore Rossi!” he greeted the stout man animatedly. 

“Signore Patterson!” the man wrapped his arms around the seventeen-year-old boy as though they were old friends getting reacquainted. The man’s eyes landed on Violet next. “Ah! Bellissima!” He reached for Violet’s hands and kissed her knuckles. 

If Violet didn’t think Luke and the man were insanely adorable together, she would’ve found this extremely uncomfortable but the man seemed to be of good intentions and just wanted her to feel welcome. 

The man turned back to Luke, whispering, “You’re very lucky tonight,” before guiding the couple to a table in the very back of the restaurant. “Your usual seats,” he said and while he handed them the menus and Luke carefully slid the chair behind Violet, she took a look around. They sat underneath this gazebo-like thing, covered with roses in every color.  

“Do you like it here?” Luke asked once Signore Rossi had left them, capturing Violet’s attention. “If you don’t, we can go s–” Violet placed her hand over his, stopping his rambling. 

“It’s perfect, Luke. E’ mozzafiato.” Luke had to blink a few times, her singing voice was hot, but her speaking Italian was even hotter. “It’s breathtaking,” she quickly translated, mistaking his bafflement for not understanding. 

“I know – I didn’t know you could speak Italian?” 

Violet grinned. “Just the basics.” 

As they lapsed into a conversation about Italy and their own lives, Violet had to remind herself not to get too lost in Luke’s eyes and forget she wasn’t actually the Violet he used to know. She had to be careful not to give anything about the different universes away. It would ruin the plan and Luke would think she was completely nuts. 

The night was coming to an end and Luke was leading Violet to her front door. It had been a fun night, filled with anecdotes about the tour and life. Luke felt like he knew Violet a little bit better and that he liked her even more. 

“Do you remember that time our friends set us up on a blind date? You know, before the band took off and such?” Violet licked her lips and softly nodded her head. She had no clue what he was talking about but pretended she did. “Back then, I didn’t think of you as more than a friend or a sister. You were more like a sister to me, but now… You’ve changed, Violet. And I– I really like that change in you…” 

Violet smiled. She just smiled. She didn’t know what else to do. There was nothing else she could do. She had no idea what he was talking about, but she liked the confession he just made. Their plan was working. Luke was falling in love with her. 

He reached for her hand as it constantly brushed against his, his monologue wasn’t over yet. “I like hanging out with you, Violet. I really do. I hope we can do this again sometime.” 

Violet suppressed the smile that threatened to spill and with a straight face she said, “Only if you take me to real Italy for the next date.” She pressed a quick kiss to his cheek before heading inside, leaving Luke at her front porch, dazed and confused with a tingling feeling on his cheek where her kiss lingered. 

He wanted to know more about this girl. He wanted to find out where her confidence came from and what other genius ideas she had for songs. He wanted to get to know her. How she liked her coffee in the morning or how she ate her eggs. If she believed in conspiracy theories and what she wanted to do in life. He wanted to know everything about her. 

Luke was smitten. He couldn’t hide it anymore. 

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FP//The Midnight Club (part 4)

hey! thats right, after the long awaited return, its back!!! and because i feel so terrible about leaving it for so long, the rest of the series is written too (and edited!!!), it just needs posting. anyway, i hope you like it!! and i hope it was worth the wait. seriously, thank you for being so patient, i love you all. (part 3)

In movies, Saturday detention always looks fun. Sneaking around, pouring your heart out to people you see everyday but know next to nothing about and making new life long friends. In reality, its spent doing a whole load of nothing.

You rest your chin in your hand and stare at the blank board ahead. You were the second one here, after Penelope Blossom and as soon as you walked through the door she sent you a disapproving look.

You and Penelope get on almost as well as you and Alice. She’s an annoying teachers pet that likes to write you up when she catches you and FP so much as holding hands.

The seat you chose when you got hear was a good one, near the back and away from Penelope. But then the rest of the your classmates turned up and suddenly you found yourself sat between FP and Alice, both of which were trying to kill each other with just looks. 

“Leave me alone FP.” You whisper. It’s the third time he’s tried to talk to you since he got here, and every time you’ve told him to go away. It seems finally he gets the hint and huffs loudly before leaning back in his chair.

You glance behind you to see Alice already looking at you and you send her a small, unsure smile. She just scoffs and looks down at her gloved hands, leaving you to stare at the top of her head.

“Welcome...to Saturday Detention.” Principal Featherhead’s loud but tired voice draws your attention the front of the class again and you force yourself to try and listen to whatever’s he’s droning on about, but in the 2 seconds its taken for him to let out a breath, you’ve tuned out.

It’s weird when the closest thing you have to a friend is Alice Smith. The rest are just acquaintances...and FP, who right now could be dead for all you care. You’re still not over last night. 

There’s clearly something going on between him and Alice, the more you think of it, the more it makes sense. And you’ve thought about it a lot, all of last night in fact. 

Your boyfriend knocked up Alice Smith...and then you. It makes you wonder if anybody else is expecting, you could make a little football team at this rate. 

It’s bad enough having Saturday detention, but it’s even worse that he’s here, especially when you’re running on less than an hours sleep. 

It’s just one Saturday. Eight hours, seven people with nothing in common.

Well, almost nothing.

The bad girl

“Alice Smith?”

The rebelling Catholic

“Hermione Gomez?”

The teachers pet

“Penelope Blossom?”

The artist athlete

“Fred Andrews?”

The political animal

“Sierra Samuels?”

The good girl

“Y/n Y/ln?”

And the ladies man

“Forsythe Pendleton Jones, Jr?”

You piece together the reasons everyone’s here. Alice and Penelope are here for fighting, something Alice told you about in detail last night, despite you wanting to sit in silence and watch Winona and Johnny fall in love. But you will admit...she did deserve it. 

Sierra and Hermione are probably here because they were in the bathroom just before you left, so they got caught in a wrong place, one time thing like you. The friend that you’re covering for isn’t even here, instead she’s probably in bed, or at Pop’s while you’re sat here taking the fall for her. 

Fred and FP were caught streaking, which was funny at the time. Seeing FP and Fred run down the corridor with no clothes on was a sight, made even funnier by Principal Featherstone catching them. But now you just want to slap the smirk that seems to permanently reside on FP’s face off. You have never hoped he has a hangover more.

“While you’re here today you will not talk.” Featherhead starts while making his way around the desks, handing out paper as he goes and you have to hold in a sigh. “You will not play” He says and snatches Fred’s drumsticks away, making the boy huff quietly and sit up straighter. “You will not move. I don’t even want you to breathe.”

“Charming.” Alice mutters and you stifle a laugh. Sierra clears her throat and everyone looks at her.

“Yes?”

“What if we have to pee?” She asks.

“You hold it, Miss Samuels. And at the end of the day, you will deliver a 1000-word essay as to why you’re here today.” He replies and you all let out a collective groan. “I will be right down the hall, in my office, all day long...cause I have nothing better to do.”

The clock reads 11am, meaning you’ve only been here for two hours and they’ve been the longest two hours of your life. Staring at the blank sheet of paper in front of you for so long has made your vision go weird so you  focus on the clock instead. You know why you’re here, ‘caught smoking’ is what you’ll have to write, despite the fact you were just holding it. But how are you supposed to stretch that into 1000 words?

A scratching behind you distracts you from your thoughts making you look behind you. Alice sits on the windowsill with a knife in her hand as she scratches against the wood.

“Dude, can you not?” Fred asks annoyed and she stops abruptly.

“Dude? Can you bite me?” She retorts. Fred rolls his eyes before turning back around.

“Oh, my God. Shh.” Penelope says loudly and now its your turn to roll your eyes.

“Psst. Sierra.” A different voice is a welcome distraction for all of you and everyone looks at the door, hoping and praying that its something exciting.

Tom Keller peeks his head round the door, a smile growing on his face when he spots Sierra and she quickly stands up, making her way towards him.

“Sit down. We’ll get in trouble.” Penelope scolds but Sierra ignores her.

“Tommy.” She smiles and the two of them kiss. Your eyes widen at the sight and you hear a few muffled gasps from the other students.

“Brought you some sustenance.” He says and waves a paper bag at her. She smiles again and grabs the bag from him, holding it close to her chest.

“Thank you.”

“I love you. I’ll see you tonight, okay?”

“Okay.” She nods and kisses him again before he leaves as quickly as he came.

“Sierra?” Fred is the first to break the stunned silence. “You and Tom Keller?” She nods and he lets out a short laugh. “Guys we’ve been going to the same school since kindergarten. How do we not know anything about each other?”

“We’re not friends. Cliques don’t cross pollinate.” Penelope replies. “Haven’t you seen Heathers?”

“Well, we’ve got six or more hours to kill, and no one to impress. How about a round of Secrets and Sins?” Sierra says, a small twinkle in her eyes as she looks at each you.

You gulp and share a look with the rest of the group, yours and Alice’s lingering for a little longer than the rest.

Sierra is the first to sit down, an excited smile on her face as she watches the rest of you reluctantly sit. Fred’s next, and then Hermione who sits beside him. Penelope sits on the other side of Sierra, FP sits next to Fred and you sit beside him, making sure to put a good amount of distance in between you. Alice is the last to sit, doing it as dramatically as she can and earning an eye roll from Sierra and FP.

“I’ll start!” Sierra says. “Tommy and I have been secretly dating for a few months now.” She admits.  

“Why secretly?” Hermione asks.

“Our parents don’t want their children dating someone so...different. To use their euphemism of choice.” She replies, the previous happy smile is long gone. It’s replaced by sadness and she looks at the old, faded carpet, trying hard not to think too much of it. 

“My mom’s all up in my relationships, too.” Hermione adds. “You know Hiram Lodge?”

“Uh, yes.” Fred replies and a few of you giggle at his response. “Dude is ripped.”

“And a petty criminal.” Penelope mutters.

“He’s a self starter who provides for his family.” She defends. “But to my mom, he’s a scrub. ‘Thats the way to to the American Dream, mija.’ But what dream? She cleans hotel rooms in that stupid Five Seasons, 16 hours a day. Hiram’s got the right idea. Get out of Riverdale. No matter what you have to do.”

“Yeah.” Fred starts. “Except...Riverdale’s not the problem. Me? I wanna stay here my whole life.” He says making Sierra laugh and you shake your head. You can’t think of anything worse. 

Although now, you just might be stuck here. You’re destined to live in a crappy trailer, barely keeping it together and watching your friends move on with their lives. Oh god, the thought alone makes you want to cry and throw up all at the same time and you let out a shaky breath. Your hand automatically moves to your stomach as you try to slow your breathing. 

“Are you okay?” Fred asks and you force yourself to look at him, faking a smile and quickly dropping your hand to your thigh.

“Yeah, I’m good.” You nod. FP moves to hold your hand but you quickly pull it away, sending him a scowl and he quickly retracts his hand back. Fred notices of course, but decides to stay out of it, instead looking at the old carpet. Alice rolls her eyes at the two of you and looks straight at Fred. 

“Is that how longs its gonna take you to decide between music or baseball?” She asks and Fred flips her off.

“Our minor league is solid. And we’re close enough to the city to play music gigs. This towns got it all. Could even see myself running for mayor one day.” He says, and he’s the only person in this room that you believe could actually do that.

Fred Andrews is something different. He’s friendly to everyone, no matter where they come from or what they are. He’s somebody you wish you could be more like, and you can see him changing the world someday.

“Ugh. Nightmare job.” Sierra huffs. “Why not shoot for something bigger? You can do all those things in a real metropolis.”

“Yeah. Except look after my dad. He’s sick. Real sick. And he took care of me my whole life, so, now it’s my turn.” He replies, his expression saddening and a frown appears on your own face. Tears well behind your eyes and one rolls down your cheek. It lands on your hand and your curse your hormones for making you cry.

FP reaches out again but you just shuffle further away from him, wiping your tears as you go and he lets out an annoyed sigh.

Hermione places a comforting hand on Fred’s knee and he looks at it for a few seconds, seemingly getting lost in his thoughts for a while before quickly changing the subject.

“Alice, you’re up. What’s your deepest, darkest secret?”

The tension in the room shifts. Penelope, Sierra and Hermione share a look and you watch as FP and Alice glance at each other.  

“Um...”

“Lets skip her.” You interrupt and she sends you a glare.

“I don’t need your pity Y/n.”

“Alice just tell them about the time you lit a dumpster on fire on the southside” FP says bored.

“Wait, that was you?” You ask, earning a few confused looks from the rest of the group. You remember that fire, it caused quite the rage on the Southside because the serpents thought it was a rival gang seeing as though it was right outside of the Wyrm. “...FP told me.” You add quietly.

“Why don’t you tell them that you actually live in Sunnyside Trailer Park?” She replies and for a second you freeze, thinking she’s talking about you.

“I thought you lived on Elm Street.” Penelope says shocked and you realize she was actually talking to FP.

“Yeah, of course. Because it’s what Forsythe wants you to believe. You parade around the school in your varsity jacket like a Northsider. You even got yourself a northside girlfriend to help you fit in.” She says and looks at you. “But don’t kid yourself. You’ll never escape the Southside. You’re gonna end up just like your dad.”

“Alice.” You warn. He may have pissed you off, gotten you and some other girl pregnant, but he is not his father. He never will be and you feel yourself jumping to his defense quicker than you probably would have liked.

“Downing six-packs in your double-wide.” She continues, staring straight at him.

“Maybe, but I’m not gonna hit my kid. Not like my old man hits me.” He replies and looks at you, his eyes glancing at your stomach for a split second before looking back at her. The group goes silent, no one daring to look at each other and even you avoid eye contact with him.

“Oh really? Which one?” She laughs and you quickly look up. Everyone looks up surprised, but before they can question anything Alice storms out, slamming the door behind her.

Its quiet for a few minutes, before FP takes a deep breath and continues his story.

“I told him I didn’t wanna join his gang. That I wanted to be the first Jones to go to college. He didn’t like that.” He holds up his broken wrist. He hates the way they’re looking at him, like he’s broken, like he’s a victim. But he feels better when he feels your hand resting on top of his. “I guess he sort of got what he wanted. It looks like I won’t be going anyway.” He whispers the last part, turning his hand over and holding yours as best as he can.

“Okay. I guess I’m next.” Penelope interrupts the moment you’re having but you don’t let go. Instead you shuffle closer to him, you’re still pissed, beyond pissed even, but it doesn’t mean he doesn’t deserve a hug. “Fair is fair. The Blossoms. They’re...terrible people.”

“But, Penelope, you’re a Blossom.” Hermione replies confused.

“No, I’m not. Not really. I grew up at the Sisters of Quiet Mercy orphanage.”

“Oh, my God, Penelope. That place has like, violated every humanitarian code.” Sierra says.

“When I was eight, the Blossom’s came and asked to see all the red-headed children. The next thing I knew, I was leaving with them. I was so excited. I very quickly realized this was not an altruistic adoption. I was being groomed. To first be Clifford’s sister. Then, eventually, his life companion. Every second away from that house, even today, is a relief.”

“Why are you still living there?” You ask, genuinely curious as to why she would stay there.

“They’re my family.” She replies.

“That’s not family. It’s basically incest. It’s disgusting.” Hermione adds.

“At least I’m not cleaning other people’s toilets like your mom.” Penelope argues and Hermione stares at her annoyed, trying to think of an insult.

“Well, at least she has class. She’s not stealing child brides out of orphanages.” She spits and Penelope gasps.

The two of them start fighting and you hear Fred and Sierra complain before moving to separate them. FP stands and helps you up, quickly moving you out of the way and you end up backing into something much worse that an accidental punch. 

“Congratulations. You all just upped your sentence from Saturday detention...to four.”

[livesincerely]

dress you up, dress you down ch.1 - dress you up

aka the Tie Fic. Also on Ao3

00000

“So. Davey.”

Davey pauses mid-sip. He looks at Katherine, then down at the cup of coffee in his hand—it’s the expensive kind, the kind that comes with milk and sugar, the kind that Davey would never dare buy for himself—then back up at Katherine, and realizes that he’s been tricked.

He sets his cup down with a heavy sigh. “What is it?”

To her credit, Katherine doesn’t even pretend to misunderstand. “Jack needs new clothes.”

Davey’s eyebrows shoot up.

“Okay...” he says after a moment of consideration. “Why does Jack need new clothes? We got him that art smock so he’d stop getting paint on his selling shirts and I haven’t noticed any rips or tears—“

“No, not his selling clothes,” Katherine interrupts. “I want to get him a few outfits that he can wear for his shifts in the art department. He keeps coming in wearing his Newsies cap and he showed up at my father’s office on Friday with a piece of tie-line holding his pants up instead of a belt.”

“He didn’t,” Davey says, though he doesn’t find it at all hard to believe, torn between laughter and exasperation.

“He really did,” Katherine says, the corners of her eyes crinkling up in amusement. “I’m sure a lot of it is just impertinence for impertinence’s sake—understandable after all that’s happened—and god knows it’s good to have someone around that won’t jump at my father’s every beck and call, but Davey,“ Katherine leans forward, her expression turning serious, “you get why things can’t continue on this way, don’t you?”

Davey takes a long drink of his coffee to give his thoughts a chance to settle. Because the thing is, Davey absolutely understands Katherine’s concern.

Jack’s new position at The World is a fantastic opportunity, especially for someone who wasn’t born with the privileges of a full education, a comfortable home, or family connections to ease his way in life. This job might just be a weekly political cartoon, but it has the potential to one day be so much more: the start of a life-long career, where Jack can do something he loves and get paid a fair wage to do it.

Jack’s hard working and smart and so incredibly talented, but he’s also stubborn as a mule and dead set against submitting to any kind of authority, even over something as simple as an office dress code. Pulitzer and the other managers in the art department might be willing to look over Jack’s apparel for now, but not forever—the last thing Davey wants is for Jack to get passed up for promotions, raises, and projects because he can’t dress the part.

“Yeah,” Davey finally says. “I get it. It’s a good idea, Kath.”

“Great!” Katherine exclaims. “So now we just have to convince Jack to let us pick out some business casual clothes for him; I was thinking we could spend tomorrow uptown, my tailor will be able to see us right away, I’m sure, and we can get Jack’s measurements taken and have him fitted for a few—“

“Wait, hold on,” Davey says, suddenly wrong-footed. “How did I become involved in this? It’s your idea!”

“But it’ll be easier to convince him if he hears it from both of us,” Katherine says. She’s hitting him with the wide-eyed, pouty, please-Davey-do-this-favor-for-me face. Joke’s on her: if Les and Sarah hadn’t already indoctrinated him against that face years ago, the last couple of months spent as the lone voice of reason amongst the chaos that is the Lower Manhattan Newsies would’ve done the trick. “And it would be helpful to have your opinion when he starts trying things on.”

“You mean, it’ll be helpful to have me there to take the fall if Jack hates the idea,” Davey says.

“Oh, sure, like Jack’s gonna be angry with you,” Katherine says, rolling her eyes.

Davey patently ignores this comment. “I mean, you clearly have a handle on the situation,” he continues, fingers drumming against the rim of his coffee cup. “I’m sure you don’t really need me to—“

“If you come with me to pitch this to Jack, I’ll make sure he leaves with a new set of suspenders,” Katherine says.

Davey blinks, his protests thoroughly derailed. Katherine knows him too well.

“I hate you,” he says, blowing out a breath. “Fine, I’ll go. But I’m telling you now, Jack’s not gonna be happy about this.”

“All we have to do is present a united front,” Katherine states with incredible confidence. “He can’t argue if it’s both of us.”

“No. Hell no,” Jack says when they approach him the next day. The two of them have been talking for all of five minutes and Katherine and Jack both look ready to throw punches. Davey’s relatively sure it won’t come to that, though honestly, his money’s on Katherine if it does.

“Jack, would you please just—“ Katherine gets out through clenched teeth.

“I said no, Kath! How many more times do you wanna hear it? No!”

Katherine throws Davey an exasperated look—one that says ‘for the love of God, talk some sense into him.’

“Jack,” Davey starts, taking a step closer to him. “I think you should let Kathy take you shopping for some new clothes.”

Jack whirls around to face him, his eyes dark with irritation. “Dave, just ‘cause  I’m workin’ a desk gig don’t mean I need some fancy geddup to do my damn job—“

“Jack, no one’s saying you need to start showing up to The World dressed to the nines,” Davey says, “but don’t you think having a nice set of office clothes would get the other workers to treat you with more respect?”

“I shouldn’t hafta dress a certain way to get treated decent,” Jack says, and he still looks upset but he’s starting to settle down. “Havin’ money don’t make ya a better worker and being poor don’t make me an idiot.”

“You think I don’t know that?” Davey asks, running a hand soothingly along Jack’s shoulders until the tension there eases. “I’m not saying it’s fair, of course it’s not fair—but stuff like this never is. It’s about knowing the game and learning how to play it. Katherine and I just want to make sure you got a decent shot at it.”

Jack holds Davey’s gaze for a long moment, then the last of the fight drains out of him.

“Fine,” he huffs. “What exactly did the two of ya have in mind?”

00000

Katherine doesn’t give Jack the opportunity to reconsider. She drags them uptown to a little tailor’s shop with a neat, simple storefront, but whose glossy windows and brass finishes make it clear that this is a place that caters to the upper class.

The bell above the doorway chimes gently as they enter. The young woman behind the counter looks up from where she’s taking inventory and greets them with a smile; a moment later an older gentleman with a head of salt and pepper hair comes out of a back room, his arms open wide in welcome.

“Miss Katherine,” he exclaims, taking one of Kathy’s hands in his own and kissing the back of it. “How good it is to see you once more! And you have brought friends!”

“Good morning, Giovanni,” Katherine greets warmly. “This is David and this is Jack. Jack’s the latest hire in the art department—he works on political cartoons.”

“Jack… Kelly?” Giovanni asks. “Yes, I have seen your work! I very much enjoyed the cartoon with the little shoe shiner. Was very funny!”

Jack looks a little caught off guard—like he wants to dislike Giovanni on sheer principle, but is finding it difficult in the face of such an honest compliment.

“Uh... nice to meet ya,” Jack says.

“We’re looking to get Jack fitted for a few things,” Katherine explains. “Business casual, office wear. Do you have time to see us now?”

“Of course, Miss Katherine,” Giovanni says. “We will get this taken care of right away. Abigail!” The girl at the front counter scurries over. “Turn the sign on the door—we have a project and must not be disturbed!”

Giovanni has Jack stand on a small footstool towards the back of the store. He makes a slow circle around him—pulling a tape measure out of one of his apron pockets and whipping it to and fro—eyeing Jack critically and muttering rapidly to Abigail, who trails behind him dutifully taking notes.

For his part, Jack looks deeply uncomfortable with having such careful scrutiny trained on him. Davey tries to seem calm and reassuring but he’s not sure how successful he is: he’s feeling a bit out of his depth as well.

Finally, Giovanni steps back. “This is enough to start with,” he says, nodding decisively.

“What options can we look at right now?” Katherine asks, with a kind of intensity that Davey would be hard pressed to muster up over any clothing, no matter its quality. “Ideally we’d like to leave here with at least one full outfit.”

“We keep a selection of our most popular styles on hand for customers to try on before purchase,” Giovanni offers. “Would you like to begin with those? I can think of several that would flatter the young gentleman.”

Katherine smiles. “That sounds perfect.”

The two of them have a quick conversation about colors and cuts and fabrics that goes over Davey’s head, then Giovanni is bustling Jack into a changing area, his arms weighed down with bolts of cloth and a mouthful of stick pins. In the meantime, Abigail ushers Katherine and Davey over to a pair of cushioned stools set up next to a tri-fold mirror, ostensibly so they’ll have the best view from which to offer commentary and cast judgement.

Or, really, for Katherine to cast judgement. Davey suspects his main job will be mediating when the argument between ‘An Actual Heiress’ Kath and ‘the paint stains on this vest match my hat so it’s fine’ Jack inevitably breaks out.

They’ve not been waiting very long when Jack comes out of the fitting room to model the first outfit. Davey glances over when he hears the rustle of the curtain being pushed back and—

Oh.

Oh.

Jack is wearing a navy blue button down with a pair of dark gray slacks and a matching vest. The colors and cuts aren’t that much different than his usual garb, but the way everything fits makes a whole world of difference. Oh good god, does everything fit.

Davey’s eyes bounce here and there, his brain unable to decide which part of the incredible sight to focus on. There’s the strong line of Jack’s shoulders, which look even broader than usual because of how the vest tapers in at the waist. Or how the fabric of the pants drapes nicely around Jack’s thighs, perfectly highlighting the toned muscle underneath.

Jack looks back to ask Giovanni a question. Davey’s eyes trail up the backs of his legs as he turns, then up over the curve of his ass—

Davey ducks his head to hide his burning face. Oh no.

“That looks great, Giovanni,” Katherine says. “How does it feel, Jack?”

“Like it’s too damn expensive,” Jack mutters. He’s standing strangely: holding his arms out from his sides like he’s trying his hardest not to touch the clothes even as he wears them. “I’m still not convinced that all this is necessary.”

“Do not start with me, Jack Kelly,” Katherine says, one eyebrow lifted. “Now honestly, what do you think?”

“Well... it fits,” Jack says lamely. “That’s all that matters, right?”

“Jack,” Katherine starts with a huff.

“I’m serious!” Jack says defensively. “I’m not tryin’ta get on ya nerves, Kath, but I dunno what else there is to say.”

Katherine considers him for a moment, then sighs, disappointed but accepting the answer. “Davey, what do you think.”

Davey’s throat works. He still sort of feels like someone’s hit him over the head, but he manages to say, “The gray is nice. You can match it with a bunch of different colored shirts.”

“Hmm...” Katherine hums, tilting her head to the side. “Simple, versatile... sure, we can make that work.”

“Versatile?” Jack whispers to Davey.

Davey gets caught between not staring at Jack and trying not to look like he’s avoiding staring at Jack; his gaze lands somewhere around Jack’s left ear. “She means colors like black and gray and navy and brown—stuff that goes with everything.”

“Right, okay,” Jack mutters to himself. “That don’t sound too bad.”

Another quick conversation between Giovanni and Katherine, then Jack’s back in the fitting room to try on a second option. As the curtain pulls shut, Davey feels himself let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.

Katherine glances over at him and says, “Aren’t you glad you agreed to come with us?”

Davey’s blush had been fading, but it flairs up again with a vengeance. “You are the worst person.”

“I am the best person,” Katherine corrects. “I’m the reason you know what Jack looks like in pants that actually fit his waist—“

“Katherine,” Davey hisses, shoulders hunching in embarrassment.

“—and I saw you staring at his biceps. You’re welcome for that, by the way.”

“Katherine, oh my god—!”

Jack comes out again, this time in a black and white ensemble, and still looking far too handsome for someone who’s been safety pinned into his clothes.

“I like this, but it’s a little... plain.” Katherine says, mercifully distracted from tormenting Davey any further.

“And? What’s wrong with plain?” Jack grumbles. He moves as if to cross his arms across his chest, then seems to remember all the sharp pins sitting very close to his skin. He settles for tucking his hands in his pockets. “Plain works just fine for me.”

“It needs something to finish the look,” Kath muses, ignoring Jack completely. She looks at Giovanni and asks, “What sorts of ties do you have?”

“No. Absolutely not. Ya mighta talked me into a coupla shirts but ya ain’t gonna put me in no tie—“

“We have a fine selection, Miss Katherine,” Giovanni responds, joining Katherine in talking over Jack’s protests. “In fact, we just received a variety of silk ties in a number of colors. I will fetch the display—“

Jack’s eyes bug out a little when he hears the work silk, his mouth opening and closing soundlessly; Davey fairs only slightly better. Katherine and Giovanni don’t pay them any mind—examining the assortment of ties, weighing the pros and cons of each one, occasionally holding one up next to Jack’s face and frowning.

After a few more seconds of spluttering, Jack seems to come to terms with the fact that he’s leaving with a tie. He points at the array Giovanni has brought over and says, “What about that blue one?”

“You and your blue,” Katherine mutters, shaking her head. “How about something different for once? This silver one is nice. Or, how about this one, with the stripes—“

“If you’re gonna make me get a tie, you could at least let me pick it out,” Jack grumbles. “I like the blue one.”

“You can’t only wear blue, Jack,” Katherine says, a little testily. “You need to have different options.”

“Don’t seem so important to me,” Jack says with a shrug. “Blue’s a good color: it don’t stain too easy, it’s versatile.” His eyes dart briefly to Davey, and then away again. “And it’s my favorite.”

“Be that as it may, I still think you should choose something else—“

“Jeeze, why does it matter so much—“

“The red one,” Davey blurts out, and given that he hadn’t meant to say anything at all, it comes out much louder than he’d intended it to.

Katherine and Jack halt their bickering and they all turn to look at him. Davey regrets opening his mouth.

He swallows, then awkwardly continues, “You should try the red one. It looks nice—red is a nice color, I mean. You’d look good in it, or it’d look good on you. Either, really, I guess. And, um... yeah.”

“Uh, okay,” Jack says when Davey trails off. “Sure, let’s try the red one.”

Giovanni slips the tie around Jack’s neck and knots it for him with professional ease. Jack flips his collar back down, then tucks the ends hesitantly under his vest. He stares at himself in the mirror, twisting and turning as he checks himself over from all the different angles.

It looks nice. Better than nice, actually. Maybe even incredible. Davey tugs at the collar of his own shirt, suddenly feeling overheated.

“Yeah, that’s the one,” Katherine declares. She’s not even looking at Jack, instead she’s watching Davey for his reaction. She pins him with a knowing smirk, and Davey blushes even harder, privately wishing for a nice, cozy sinkhole to open up beneath him and put him out of his misery.

“I dunno,” Jack murmurs dubiously, not noticing the exchange. “What do you think, Dave? Does it live up to your expectations?”

Davey really wishes Jack would stop asking for his opinion. He already feels like he’s suffocating—Jack could at least do him the courtesy of letting him die unharassed.

“...I think it looks good,” Davey mutters into the floor.

Jack does another turn. “I still think the blue one woulda been nice...”

“Get the tie,” Katherine orders.

“But—“

“Get the tie before I stab you with these fabric scissors.”

Jack ends up leaving with two vest-and-pants combinations, one in black and one in gray, four dress shirts in various colors, the promised suspenders, a new pair of shoes, and the red silk tie. Katherine leaves with an incredibly satisfied expression and Davey leaves with significantly elevated blood pressure.

As they walk back home, Katherine says, “So do you want me to hold on to everything, or do you want Davey to?”

“What?” Jack asks.

“Who do you want to keep your new clothes, me or Davey?” Katherine repeats.

Jack and Davey stare at her, not grasping her meaning.

“You don’t have anywhere to keep them at the Lodging House, and I would say you could see if Medda would let you keep them at the theater but I know they wouldn’t last the day before they were covered in paint,” Katherine explains. “So? Me or Davey?”

“I guess I’ll have Davey keep ‘em for me, if that’s okay,” Jack decides, glancing at Davey for permission. “Probably easier that way.”

“Um, sure, that’s fine,” Davey says, taking the garment bag when Jack hands it to him. “You can get changed at mine, and we can clean and press them for you too.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Jack agrees. “I’ll just pop over before my shift tomorrow, yeah?”

Davey imagines tomorrow, imagines trying to deal with Jack in a suit and tie first thing in the morning, and can feel his expression start to falter. “Sounds good,” he says weakly.

00000

Chapter two here

[blind-their-eyes]

Edge of Great

Pairing: Julie Molina & Luke Patterson (Julie and the Phantoms)

Words: 2,843

(I wrote this in 3 hours, reread it 3 times to edit it, there might be mistakes as it is currently 2 am for me :P)

Read on ao3!

Don’t ask me how many times I’ve rewatched this scene, because I will not be able to tell you. This is my favorite performance in the show, Stand Tall coming up really close behind it, but I think it’s my favorite due to Luke fighting for Julie’s attention. (It’s a real shame they didn’t add in the guitar riff/solo for this song in the soundtrack :c) Also! This is the first time I’m writing something JatP related, I hope you enjoy it! ! Also tagging @dance-dreamer​ cause they asked to be tagged when I posted it! (here you go friend, its finished!) 

     Julie was nervously pacing behind the closed garage doors, waiting for Flynn to announce the band. Ray had “booked” the band a gig (and by booked, he called Flynn and had her invite a bunch of people over to their house to perform) to repay for what happened with the manager at the café a few days back. Flynn’s voice echoed around the front of the Molina’s garage from her place in the crowd, and everyone cheered in excitement.

     “What’s up everybody! Time to put your hands up, do a little dance yup! Here’s the new anthem, from Julie and the Phantoms.”

    The garage doors open (thanks to Carlos and a friend of his) and Julie comes out smiling, her hands moving from her hips to in front of her chest as she clasps them together. She felt amazing in her outfit, Flynn had helped glue the butterflies to her white crop-top and shoes a few hours before the show, which she had paired nicely with some black and white cargo pants. She looks over the crowd for a second before taking a seat on the piano bench.

     “Thanks for coming, everyone!” she says into the mic, the applause having yet to stop. Her eyes are on Flynn for a few seconds before she takes a deep breath and readies her hands on the piano. Watching her hands, she begins to play. 

“Runnin’ from the past,

Trippin’ on the now,

What is lost can be found, it’s obvious.”

     She looks up at the crowd momentarily, a smile on her face from the reaction she’s gotten so far. She knows that soon enough, everyone will be dancing, and she will be too, but she has to keep her eyes off of Luke. Even after her talk with Flynn about her feelings for the guitarist, she still had feelings for Nick as well. He was here, and she didn’t want him to get the impression that something was going on between the two bandmates. Yes, there was some chemistry between her and Luke, but Julie tried to convince herself that it was only the music that was driving her to be that intimate during their performances. Especially during “Finally Free”. (also, had she mistaken the way Luke had looked at her that night while he was singing the chorus back to her?)

“And like a rubber ball,

We come bouncing back,

We all got a second act inside of us…”

     The band kicks in, Julie is smiling bigger than before as they appear. She stands from the piano and takes her mic off it’s stand and pushes it away from her on the beat. She makes her way in between both Luke and Reggie, right in front of Alex’s drums. She’s dancing and feeling the music, the weight of the lyrics, with a bright smile on her face. Luke looks over at her with a lovesick smile on his face, all of the boys are slightly bouncing to the beat of the music.

“I believe,

I believe that we’re just one dream,

Away from who we’re meant to be,

That we’re standing on the edge of,”

     She turns to Reggie and starts to dance with him as she sings, Flynn’s word’s in the back of her head. “... The key is avoiding those big, beautiful, dead eyes.” If she just followed her best friend's words, she could convince (herself) Flynn that her feelings for Luke were just from the music and the heat of the moment. She could get through this performance without looking at the cute boy.

“Something big, something crazy,

Our best is yet unknown,

That this moment is ours to own,

‘Cause we’re standing on the edge of great!

(on the edge of great)

Great!

(on the edge of great!)

Great!

(on the edge of great!)

‘Cause we’re standing on the edge of….

Great!”

     Reggie and Julie look back at Alex, who is smiling at them both. Luke leans in towards Julie as she makes her way back to the middle of him and Reggie, but Julie pays him no mind as they echo the last line back to her. A look of confusion crosses over his face before he flashes a smile at the crowd while singing along. Why didn’t she want to sing with me? Maybe she didn’t see me… A few thoughts run through his head at why she didn’t come over to him, and Julie finishes the first chorus. As she sings the last line, she turns to Reggie once again, and Luke starts the second verse, the crowd cheering as he comes in.

“We all make mistakes,

But they’re just stepping stones,

To take us where we wanna go,

It's never straight, no.”

     Luke’s smile fades a bit when he looks from the crowd over to Julie. She’s dancing with Reggie and Alex once again. Did I do something wrong again? Why doesn’t she want to come over to me… His thoughts are answered when he gestures with his head for her to come over to him as she steps away from the other two and she blatantly ignores him, facing the crowd again instead.

“Sometimes we gotta lean,

Lean on someone else,

To get a little help,

Until we find a way!”

     As Julie joins in the second half of the verse, Luke’s face falls from a happy one to a more upset one. He clearly did something to upset Julie, but he couldn’t think of what he did. Julie, however, was trying her best to stay away from the boy and was extremely proud of herself for how well she was doing. Julie looks over to Reggie again before starting pre-chorus.

“I believe!

I believe that we’re just one dream,

Away from who we’re meant to be,

That we’re standing on the edge of,”

     Julie makes her way to the front of the piano, closer to the crowd as she moves with the music, dancing with every step. Reggie makes his way over to Luke, giving him a glance before looking over at Julie. He knows something is up between the two, he’s seen them ooze chemistry while on stage together. He raises an eyebrow towards Julie’s back as she sings. He’s honestly really glad to have jammed out with Julie, but she was clearly avoiding Luke tonight, and he might know the reason why. Luke’s eyes flash with a bit of jealousy when Reggie approaches, but he quickly hides it with confusion as he looks back over to Julie. 

“Something big, something crazy,

Our best is yet unknown,

That this moment is ours to own,

‘Cause we’re standing on the edge of great!

(on the edge of great)

Great!

(on the edge of great!)

Great!

(on the edge of great!)

‘Cause we’re standing on the edge of-”

     Julie reaches her hand out towards Flynn, who is happily jamming along with the rest of the crowd. The boys all join in during the chorus, and Luke looks at her again with a loving longing expression. Julie starts making her way back around the other side of the piano, stepping up on the bench, getting ready to climb on top of it for the bridge of the song.

“Shout, Shout!

Come on and let it out, out!

Don’t gotta hide it,

Let your colors blind their eyes,

Be who you are, don’t compromise!”

     Julie slides across the piano and sits on the edge closest to the crowd, belting out the words, tossing her head back as she feels the music run through her. The crowd echoes the “Out’s” as she and the band sing them and she’s feeling good. The song’s almost over, and she hasn’t had a single moment with Luke. That last thought hurt a bit more than it probably should have, but again, she was sticking to the plan!

“Shout, Shout!

Come on and let it out, out!

What doesn’t kill you makes you feel alive…”

     Again, the crowd echoes the lyrics, but this time they include the “Shout’s” as well. Julie is crouching on the piano now, on one knee, ready to stand at any moment, ready for her solo. What she wasn’t expecting was for Luke to come in with his guitar, and for him to walk over to the piano beside her. She goes with it, of course, her eyes drawn to him immediately. Her voice is as soft as can be as she sings, and Luke feels as if she’s finally singing to him. 

“Ooh-oh, I believe

I believe that we’re just one dream,

Away from what we’re meant to be,

That we’re standing on the edge of great!”

     As Luke plays along with her, he is smiling softly, hoping to finally grab her attention. She looks into his eyes as he approaches, his confusion fading as she leans in a bit towards him, smiling a bit bigger, scrunching up her nose at him, and Luke can feel his heart-melting as he gives her a lovesick smile of his own. After avoiding him so much, she finally had her moment with Luke, and it might’ve blown the plan over completely. And to be honest, she didn’t really care. The way she felt when he had looked at her was as if she was looking straight into his heart, and it was as if his heart was beating just for her. She didn’t know if he had a heartbeat anymore, being a ghost and all, but what she did know is that it felt real. That one little moment, whatever they had together, it seemed real, and the way it made her feel was almost indescribable. And with all those feelings, she belts out the rest of the chorus.

“(something big, something crazy,

Our best is yet unknown!)

That this moment is ours to own!

‘Cause we’re standing on the edge of great!

(great, on the edge of great!)

On the edge of great!

(great, on the edge of great!)

On the edge!

(great on the edge of great!)

Woah-oh-oh!

(Standing) on the edge of!”

     Julie slides off the piano and walks back around to the bench, putting her mic back on its stand before taking a seat. Reggie and Alex give each other a knowing look as Luke walks over to Julie, and the two poof out, causing the audience to gasp at the sudden loss of the bassist and drummer. Luke is face to face with Julie, and he slides onto the bench next to her. Their shoulders would’ve been touching if he was human. A small gasp leaves Julie’s lips as she notices him, and she backs up a bit from the mic to give him room.

“Runnin’ from the past,

Trippin’ on the now,

What is lost can be found, it’s obvious.”

     Julie watches as Luke’s eyes drift from her own to her lips, and she can feel the heat rising on her cheeks. The way he had been looking at her before, during the solo, suddenly had been amplified by 10,000% (maybe it was because he was closer now?). She can’t fight off the smile on her face as she sings to him, and he doesn’t try to hide his lovesick smile anymore. He knows he’s got it bad for her, and he doesn’t care if anyone else is watching. He doesn’t care if anyone else is watching anymore because he knows that he’s stolen her heart as well. 

     As Luke poofs out, Julie is still looking into his eyes, and the crowd cheering is the only thing that snaps her out of the moment. She looks around with a smile on her face and chuckles a bit embarrassed about her (what felt like a private) moment being shared with so many people. She stands and clasps her hands in front of her again, nodding towards the crowd in thanks. 

     “Thank you! That was “Edge of Great”. We’re Julie and the Phantoms, tell your friends!” Julie waves to the crowd, her smile unshaken as she gives a small bow. The crowd's cheers don’t stop for a few minutes, and Flynn runs up to Julie and throws her arms around Julie’s shoulders, giving her a big hug.

     “Jules, that was AMAZING!! Even better than all the rehearsals!” Flynn gushed to her best friend, who was still blushing. 

     “Thanks, Flynn. And thank you for getting the word out so fast! I didn’t expect so many people to show up for a house party.” Julie lets Flynn out of their embrace, tucking a piece of loose hair behind her ear. 

     “Nick is here! Do you want to go chat with him?” Flynn raises her eyebrows at her bestie, giving her a knowing look, and Julie sighs and shakes her head.

     “I should probably talk with some of the other people that came, not just Nick,” She scans the crowd, looking for the redhead boy. “Plus, he might’ve already left, I don’t see him anywhere.” Julie points out to her friend.

    “Alright, alright, fine. But if you see him, you need to talk to him.” She says, pointing her index finger towards her friend as if to scold her. Julie just laughs and wraps her own index finger around Flynn’s as she lets her best friend lead her through the crowd.

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

     The boys' poof to the beach, seeing as the garage doors are wide open still, they didn’t exactly have a safe place to ghost around with no one watching. They had agreed to meet here once the show was over so they could all be together and talk about the performance. Reggie and Alex are the first to arrive, of course, seeing as Luke stayed behind with his crush to finish the song. 

     “Did you see that Julie was literally avoiding Luke during the whole song? What was up with that?” Reggie questions, a semi-confused look on his face. “Did she not want to have her signature Juke moment on stage? That doesn’t make any sense.” Reggie continues, kicking up some sand.

     “Juke?” Alex questions back.

     “Oh, Julie and Luke - their names mashed together.” He holds up both of his hands, motioning to either one when he says the two names, then bringing his hands together as if to put something together. “It was either Juke or Lulie and I think Juke sounds better.” Reggie explains, dropping his hands. 

     “Oh. Alright. And yeah, Julie did seem to be avoiding Luke all night, but boy, did he chase after her alright.” Alex nudges Reggie's side with his elbow, a grin on his face. “He’s got it for her, BAD.”

    As if on cue, Luke poofs in next to the boys, his lovesick smile not faltering. Alex gives him a clap on the back as Reggie gives him a smug look, folding his arms over his chest.

     “I got more stage time with Julie, how does that make you feel, Lukey?” He says, rubbing in the fact that he got to jam out with Julie twice during their performance tonight. 

     “Hey, Reg, I got to jam with Julie too-” Alex is cut off as Luke frowns and through a flash of jealousy, he fires back a response towards Reggie.

     “Oh yeah, well what about that riff, huh?” He dares Reggie to say anything else about sharing a moment with Julie. He knows he shouldn’t be jealous of his best friend, but the high of singing with Julie hasn’t gone down yet, he’s amped up. 

     “That was just you being a simp, Luke.” Alex calmly responds, removing his hand from the back of Luke’s shoulder. The boys go from looking at each other (Reggie smugly, Luke annoyed,) to looking at Alex with the utmost bewildered looks on their faces.

     “A what?” Luke asks as calmly as he can, his eyes squinting as he folds his arms over his chest defensively. Reggie is struggling to back laughter at this new funny word.

     “You heard me, a simp.” Alex said, a small blush on his cheeks.

     “You have no idea what that word means, do you?” Reggie says, giggling a bit.

     “Well, sorta, but I’m not gonna tell you what it means. Figure it out for yourself.” Alex says, slightly embarrassed. He poofs back to the studio to see Ray, Flynn, Carlos and Julie pushing the piano back to its original place. He steps out of the way politely as Julie looks up, catching his eye.

     “I’m gonna ask Julie what that means!” Reggie says quickly, poofing back before Luke can tell him otherwise. 

Suddenly, Luke is left alone at the beach, and his heart is full and a smile is on his face. He’s happier than he has been in a long time. Just as Luke is about to poof back home, he’s hit with another painful jolt. He clutches his chest in hopes to ease the pain, and he can only hope that the guys weren’t in Julie’s view when it happened. His only thought on his mind when he gets back into the studio is “time to write another song.”