#i do also like how his family pushed him along into weird fake science it's a good bit that i don't think u see a lot?

[aprofessionalwithoutstandards]

Favorite thing abt this tf2 prop is how everything on it is pseudoscience. No one can come to me like Uhm Actually Medic Tf2 Is Really Good At- girl his family is selling people radium suppositories

[Image ID: A squarish green sign hanging up by two black chains. It says "Humboldt's Pharmacy" in fancy lettering, and beneath it in plain lettering it reads "leeches, baboon hearts, radium suppositories, humor balancing, phrenological exams". End ID]

[teecupangel]

Hey there, imagine an AU that has a fledgeling company a'la 23andMe who is trying to ione-up Abstergo in ancestry research because they are trying to monopolize stuff. And Desmond, during drunken lark at work, sends them his test. And see... They freak out because Desmond hits as only near human. And contact him. Wanting to meet and also cautioning him against doing other tests due to Abstergo owning a lot of them. Que conspiracy hatched by this company and Desmond going along

As much as I like the idea of making Abstergo's life miserable by turning Desmond into some kind of science-world celebrity, Abstergo would either buy the company out or some kind of scandal or 'accident' would probably happen even before they could go public with the preliminary results. Not to mention, scientific studies go through lots of reviews, including peer reviews (at least, those who are serious and wants to be taken seriously, not just out for... clout or something). Peer review is good... until you think that there's no way Abstergo doesn't have goons there too.

Soooo... have a little fic of how I think this would go?

I guess Derek Milton is now Desmond’s unofficial ‘fake name’ on my tumblr. I should have made it Miller instead. That would have been dumber.

Sidenote: My fics usually use either Delsin Mercer or Nathan Walker because I like references

=============================

“Hey, Derek.” Ted bumped his shoulder against Desmond, making Desmond freeze briefly before turning to look at him. Ted leaned close as he whispered, “I think that girl’s checking you out.”

“I wouldn’t mind more tips.” Desmond jokingly said, turning his head to look at where Ted was staring. The girl with the tightest bun to have ever been conceived by human mind waved at Desmond with both of her hands before the older man next to her grabbed both of her hands and pushed them back to the table, whispering to her something they couldn’t hear from the bar. Desmond raised an eyebrow as he recognized the pair and replied, “Oh, it’s Doc and Lizzie.”

“You know them?” Ted asked curiously.

“They had a flyer up on my apartment’s bulletin board. They were looking for volunteers for their ancestry genetic company.” Desmond replied as he wiped the glass in his hand, “Paid me a couple of bucks to swab my mouth and poke my nose.”

“Well, they seem excited.” Ted noted before patting Desmond’s back, “Go. You still haven’t taken your break anyway. Might as well do it while everyone’s busy dancing.”

“I was planning on taking it when it gets really busy.” Desmond joked as he placed the glass and towel down.

“Don’t you dare! I’ll kill your ass!” Ted shouted as Desmond began to make his way towards the table of the two excited… Desmond wasn’t actually sure if they were just colleagues or maybe a father and daughter duo?

“You can try!” Desmond shouted back with a grin before turning to face the two as he reached their table. He continued to stand as he greeted, “Hey, Doc, Li-”

Both of them pulled Desmond to their table roughly and Desmond’s chin almost smacked the table. Desmond was sure they all looked super weird and stupid, their upper body bent so close to the table Desmond was sure his back was going to hate him tomorrow.

“Mister Milton! What do you know about your family?” Doc asked in a hurried whisper with wide eyes.

Desmond frowned as he replied, “Pretty much nothing. Never met anyone. Just me and my parents.”

Desmond ignored the flash of memory his mind conjured up, reminding him how he heard from his dad that the Templars had killed them before Desmond was born.

“Well…” Doc took out a rumpled folded paper and quickly unfolded it, placing it on the table as he explained, “This is your ancestral result. We had to check it ten times just to be sure. Even borrowed a friend’s equipment to check if maybe the one we have is faulty. But, if you look here, it says here that you have approximately 9%-”

“You have alien DNA!” Lizzie exclaimed in a loud whisper, making Doc hush her which she just ignored as she continued, “Oh my god, Derek! You’re an alien!”

Desmond stared at the both of them for a few seconds before nodding, “Oh. Cool.”

Seeing Desmond’s underreaction, Doc pointed at the paper repeatedly as he said, “No, no, no, we’re serious, Mister Milton. Look here. This is the DNA of an average human.”

Then he pointed at another part of the paper as he said, “And here is your DNA.”

It all just looked like numbers and words Desmond could barely read so he just hummed.

“We don’t think you’re an alien.” Doc stressed, giving a passing glare at his excited companion.

“Oh, that’s good.” Desmond nodded, although… considering he was using fake IDs and have no actual legal documents, the term ‘alien’ did sorta applied to him. Just not in a sci-fi kind of way.

“We think you’re a descendant of an alien race.” Doc announced and Desmond stared at him for a few seconds.

“Suuureee…” Desmond drawled, wondering if he should break into their lab and take all of the samples they took from Desmond.

“We’re serious, Derek!” Lizzie whispered loudly, “This is huge!”

“Huge? This is groundbreaking!” Doc looked at Desmond with such a joyful expression that Desmond felt bad for thinking that they were a couple of nutjobs, “Mister Milton, this will answer so many questions we have in both history and in genetics! Your genes are the key to-”

Desmond tuned him out, not because he didn’t want to hear more (he did, it sounded like a plot of one of those dumb low budget sci-fi movies he watches when he gets bored) but because his instinct took over, making him raise his eyes without being too obvious about it. His vision zeroed in on the three men that has just entered the bar, noticing that their eyes immediately went straight to the table Desmond was sitting on before quickly turning around as if they were just scanning the room. The three men walked in different directions and…

Desmond saw the outline of a gun strapped behind one of the men, hidden by his jacket and pants.

Desmond’s eyes scanned the entire bar, noticing two of the men had sat on separate tables.

Near the main entrance and the fire exit.

They’ve covered the two main exits…

The last man went to the bar and Desmond knew the moves that Ted was making.

The man had ordered a nonalcoholic drink.

“Doc.” Desmond whispered quietly, leaning closer as he asked, “Did you tell anyone about my DNA result?”

“No. Not yet.” Doc added, “I mean, we would need your approval to announce it, after all, since-”

“But did anybody else see it? Did anyone else checked it?” Desmond cut him off, keeping his eyes on Doc even as he noticed that the man was making his way towards them with his nonalcoholic drink in hand.

“Uuuhh…” Doc and Lizzie looked at each other before Lizzie replied to Desmond, “I mean, I guess Doc’s friend saw it too?”

“And where does your friend work?” Desmond pressed just as the man sat on the table next to them even though there were more empty tables nearer to the bar or the dancing floor.

“He works for Abstergo.”

Fuck.

“But he’s a nice man! Been helping me with getting this business up and running! Even checks my notes for me!” Doc exclaimed with a smile that only made Desmond feel bad.

His dad’s words began to whisper inside his head and he sighed as he said, “I think we need to go.”

“Yes! We should return to our labs and-”

“No.” Desmond grabbed the paper and pocketed it as he said, “Your lab’s probably been hit already. If you’re lucky, they just took all your stuff. If you’re not lucky… well, probably torched it or something.”

“What?” Both Doc and Lizzie looked at him with a confused expressions that reminded Desmond of puppies.

That had been the reason why he had agreed to volunteer his DNA in the first place. It was clear to Desmond that these two were nice people who may or may not yet realize that Doc’s supposed friend might have been using them.

And now they have Desmond’s DNA.

Desmond wanted to believe that Abstergo wasn’t out to get him but considering there were three armed men that just entered minutes after Doc and Lizzie came in?

Desmond wasn’t going to take the chance.

Not when he had just been free for the past five years.

“Just…” Desmond sighed.

It would be easy to give them the slip.

Just tell Doc and Lizzie that he needed to check something or he had to return to work. Slip into the employee’s room and get out through the window.

But he can’t do that.

Not when Doc and Lizzie were in this fucking mess because of him.

Desmond took out his phone and dialed the only number he had ever memorized. He placed it on his ear and waited.

The person on the other line picked up even before the second ring was finish.

But didn’t speak.

So Desmond just said, “Bar called Bad Weather, Brooklyn, New York. Three men. Main entrance. Fire exit. Table to my left.”

There was silence before he heard a voice he both wished and didn’t wish to hear ever again.

“Ten minutes. Keep the call.”

Desmond froze when he heard it.

“Remember your training.”

The voice didn’t say anything else but Desmond didn’t drop the call. Instead, he slipped the phone back to the back pocket of his pants as Lizzie asked, “Who did you call?”

Desmond’s face turned blank as he replied in a monotone voice, “My dad.”

=============================

Okay, so I made Desmond younger, 21 years old to be exact, in this one because I think the main reason why Desmond got caught in canon is because he got sloppy. Nine years of peace made him think that he’s in the clear and can be a bit ‘adventurous’. But a younger Desmond would be more paranoid and still kinda dumb. That also means that this is a Desmond that has less experience being away from Bill soooo… yeah.

For those worried that this means Desmond would be taken in by the Assassins (and Bill) after they rescue them... My preliminary idea is that Desmond gets the Assassins to take Lizzie and Doc in while getting info to why his DNA flagged Abstergo. He learns about Altaïr and Ezio then gives the Assassin the slip. He can't go back to Bad Weather sooooo...

Guess Desmond just has to have an impromptu trip out of New York

[scapegrace74-blog]

New Ways of Turning into Stone, Chapter 4

A/N  Some strong reactions to the last chapter, which I admit caught me by surprise.   Writing is a funny craft, where you spend a lot of time and effort trying to show your reader exactly the picture you have in your mind, but then also have to surrender to each reader’s interpretation of what you wrote.  That said, some interpretations miss the mark entirely, and for that reason this chapter is entitled “False Assumptions”.   Trigger warning for childhood disease.

Jamie’s weekly appointments continued through the grey slumber of late April and into the wakening month of May.  Thursday became Claire’s favourite day of the week, for reasons she didn’t care to scrutinize too closely.

With regularity came a certain brand of predictability.  Their appointments took one of two forms, she realized.  Some days Jamie was full of life, witty and exasperating by turns.  He would spin long yarns about some trivial aspect of his life, fascinating tales that turned out to be nothing more than surface reflections, revealing little of the murky depths beneath.  He was also adept at using his considerable verbal charm to draw her into divulging more about herself than she ought.  Those visits left her equally frustrated and challenged.

The rest of the time her patient arrived with a weary slump, the thousand watt bulb of his personality dimmed to an occasional flicker.  Given his offhand comment about whisky and women, she tried not to ponder if he was hungover or suffering from the effects of an all-night hook-up.  From a diagnostic point of view these days of low ebb were beneficial because Jamie was far more likely to offer some nugget of inner revelation, truth sneaking out through the cracks of his weakened defences.

“I was away on business, in Hong Kong, when my Da passed,” he said on one such afternoon, the skin below his eyes drawn tight and the copper in his hair somehow muted.

“Did it happen suddenly?” 

“No’ really.  Jen had been at me fer months tae come hame, sayin’ that Da was workin’ himself tae death.”   Jamie looked out the window, eyes reflecting the overcast skies beyond.  “I ignored her.  Too wrapped up in my own grand self tae pay any heed.  Twas Ian, my brother-in-law, who called tae say Da had dropped in the pasture.  Massive coronary.  I caught the first flight back, but he was gone before I landed.”

She watched Jamie’s face closely as he spoke, but beyond the understandable emotion of reliving the sudden loss of a parent, he remained inscrutable.  The urge to draw him out overcame the deference she paid to Jamie’s well-defined boundaries.

“Do you think you’re to blame for his death?” she asked, half-expecting to be met with silence or a nimble deflection.

Jamie shook his head ruefully.

“Nah.  I dinna think I’m tae blame.  I ken it.  I was the only surviving son, ye see?  In the Highlands, tradition is everything, an’ a Fraser man had worked those lands fer generations.  I was only meant tae complete my studies abroad, an’ then return tae Lallybroch and take o’er from Da.  Instead, I left my sister an’ Ian tae watch o’er the farm while I played the business tycoon.”

“Is Lallybroch still in your family?” she wondered aloud, the name rolling about in her mouth like marbles.  

“Jenny and Ian couldna keep it.  I wasna well enough tae object, an’ they sold tae a developer.  It’s some kind of corporate wellness retreat now,” he finished with a distasteful grimace.

For every disclosure Jamie made, two more questions arose in its wake, like hacking away at a many-headed Hydra.  She wished she could delve further, but the chime from her computer announced the end of the session.

“Will I see you next week, Jamie?” she asked as he reluctantly rose to leave.

“Aye,” said with a sad smile.  “I’ll be here.”

***

The following Tuesday, Claire took the afternoon off work to perform an errand she’d long been avoiding.

Her departure from the Royal Hospital for Children had been so precipitous, she hadn’t filed the necessary paperwork to close her employment file.  The Human Resources department had been pestering her to complete the process for months.  The threat of holding up the transfer of her accreditation finally forced her hand.

To her great relief, the personnel offices were nowhere near the actual wards.  They lay at the end of a long white hallway broken by large windows looking into a series of meeting and activity rooms.  Her plan was to get in, sign the damn forms, and leave without running into any former colleagues or patients.   

The sun slanting into one of these sparsely furnished rooms glanced off the top of a bent head, causing it to glow like a freshly minted penny.  She stopped and stared, trying to reconcile the image of James Fraser seated in a too-small plastic chair, surrounded by a group of hospital-gowned children.

He must have caught sight of her while she stood gaping.  Running to the door before she could find the motor function to turn around, he called out joyfully from behind a blue hospital mask.

“Doctor Beauchamp!  Fancy meeting ye here.”

She mumbled something incoherent, damning herself for the blush she felt enveloping her cheeks.   Behind Jamie, a row of dewy eyes watched on.   She recognized the paper-thin skin and missing hair of chemotherapy patients, and a salty knot rose in her throat.

“Can ye spare a few minutes? Ye’re jes the pair of steady hands we need.”

She longed to decline, to disappear, to come up with a plausible excuse why she couldn’t enter that room.  Her heart thumped angrily in her chest, warning of its fragile state.

Seeing her conflict, Jamie extended a welcoming hand.

“Come, Sassenach.  The lassies would love tae meet ye.”

The space smelled of sterile laundry and sawdust.  With a habit borne of years of practice, Claire disinfected her hands in the small utility sink and donned a spare mask from the nearby dispenser, all while wondering what the hell she was doing.

The children were seated on colourful chairs arranged around a low table, its surface covered in pieces of pre-cut lumber, colourful pots of paint, a glue gun and all manner of cheap decorations such as you would find at a craft store.  The little girls ranged in age from pre-school to young teen, but they all looked at Jamie as though he’d hung the moon as he addressed them.

“Ladies, I’d like ye tae meet Doctor Beauchamp.  She’s a braw doctor but I bet she kens next tae nothing about woodwork.  Ye’ll have tae show her how it’s done.”

A chorus of nervous giggles was the only response.  Claire knew from experience that being a medical professional wasn’t going to endear her to children who spent much of their lives being essentially tortured in the name of science, hoping for some kind of miracle.

“Hello, everyone,” she waved meekly.  “You can call me Miss Claire, if you like.  Now, whatever are you doing with all this wood?”

It turned out that Jamie was supervising the construction of a half-dozen birdhouses.  He had pre-cut the lumber for easy assembly, but was assisting each girl to create a custom masterpiece that would hang outside her hospital window.  With the patience and steady manner of a primary school teacher, Jamie led the group through each step.  

A waifish girl of perhaps six sat directly to Claire’s left, her bare scalp covered by a brightly coloured bandana, offset by a huge pair of peacock-blue eyes that glimmered above her mask.  Eyes that were the mirror of the ones that visited her office every Thursday.  Something heavy settled inside her ribs.

“What’s your name, sweetie?” she asked in a low voice as she pushed an open pot of sky blue paint away from the table’s edge.  Small hands busied themselves pulling apart a package of cotton balls that looked suspiciously like the ones kept in the hospital’s supply cabinet.

“Margaret Murray, Doctor, errr, Miss Claire,” came the timid reply.  

Not Fraser, then.  But that didn’t necessarily mean anything.  She snuck a glance across the table at Jamie, who was just then teasing the youngest girl by tickling her cheeks with a fake feather.  Despite her heavy thoughts, she couldn’t help but smile.  That smile faltered when she noticed that the inside of Jamie’s elbows bore a matching set of fresh bandages.   A series of puzzle pieces tumbled into place.

Perhaps sensing the weight of her scrutiny, Jamie looked their way, whistling in admiration when he saw Maggie’s near-complete birdhouse.

“Tis a fine hame ye’ve built fer yer wee birds, Maggie.  What is all yon white fluff for?”

“Tis clouds, Uncle Jamie,” Maggie replied with the certainty of childhood.  “I dinna want the birdies tae miss the sky, even when they arenna flyin’.”

Claire watched the words hit him as surely as though they had been bullets.  A frozen gasp, a shudder that travelled the length of his body and the crest of tears that he tried valiantly to blink away.

“Aye, ye’re right, a nighean.  Any bird would be fair honoured tae sleep in yer skyhouse,” he managed to reply, voice bouldery with contained emotion.

When each birdhouse was complete and left along the window ledge to dry, Jamie set his small crew of helpers the task of clearing up the mess.   Claire stood next to him as he loaded his tools back into a small carrying case.

“Thanks for inviting me to join you, Jamie.  It was... well, it was unexpectedly wonderful,” she admitted.

“Ye’re most welcome, Doctor Beauchamp.  We couldna have managed wi’out yer steady hand manning the glue gun,” he teased.

“You’re not my patient here, Jamie.  You don’t need to use my title,” she said, a bit vexed by his formality.

“Aye, but it doesna feel right tae call ye by yer given name either.  An’ Miss Claire is jes weird.”

She had to acknowledge that he had a point.

“What was it you called me earlier?  Sassa-something?”

“Sassenach.  My Da woulda skelped my hide if he heard me call a lady by that name,” he said ruefully.

“Why, does it mean something terribly offensive?”  She was almost afraid to know, having enjoyed the delusion that Jamie felt as fondly towards her as she did towards him.

“Nah, tis jes an old-fashioned word for an English person in Scotland.  Seemed tae suit ye, is all.”  He shrugged, seemingly embarrassed by the explanation.

“Well then, Sassenach it is.  When I’m not on the clock, that is.”

Jamie’s eyes danced above his mask the way they did when he smiled, and she imagined hers replied in much the same way.  A long moment passed when nothing was said, neither of them looking away.

“You’re her platelet donor,” she said at last.  “Maggie’s, I mean.”

“Aye.  Every week while she’s in hospital for chemotherapy.  Tis the least I can do.”

It was an explanation that fit all the facts, but one that she never would have guessed.  Jamie had always worn long sleeves to his appointments, but she was certain the weeks when he was haggard and worn out coincided with the times he was donating the litres of blood necessary to distill into the platelet concentrate that would then be injected into Maggie’s body, helping her combat the poisonous effects of her chemotherapy.

“Whisky, women and song?” she prodded, relieved and yet frustrated that his offhand comment had kept her from seeing the truth.  “Why didn’t you just tell me, Jamie?”

“I didna want yer pity, Sassenach.  Fer once in my life, tis no’ about me, ye ken?  I didna want ye lookin’ at me like I was some kind of hero.”

She held back her reaction that his was a textbook definition of heroism, and instead asked the next obvious question.

“Are you a compatible bone marrow donor as well?”

Jamie shook his head slowly.  Although he was a close match, he explained, it wasn’t close enough.   Maggie’s older brother, Wee Jamie, was a perfect match but the law prohibited him from becoming a donor until he was at least sixteen, in seven long years.

“We’re jes tryin’ tae buy her enough time,” he said sadly before stepping out of the room, explaining he’d be back momentarily.

Claire stood in a daze, running through everything she’d assumed about Jamie in light of these newest facts.  A light tug on her hand drew her back into the moment.  Maggie was looking up at her with wide, trusting eyes.

“Are ye the Sassenach lady Uncle Jamie and my Mam argue about?”

“I suppose I might be,” she replied, curious what had been said between the siblings that Maggie had overheard.

“Are ye a heart doctor?” Maggie continued.

“Well, no.  Not exactly.  I’m the kind of doctor who helps people who are sad, and I try to find a way for them to be happy again.”  It sounded so easy when explaining it to a six year old.

“Sometimes Mam and Da talk about Uncle Jamie when they dinna ken I’m listenin’.  I’m verra good at sneakin’,” Maggie confided, and Claire couldn’t help but smile.  What a precious child.    “I’m sure you are,” she replied warmly, a hand coming to rest gently on the tiny cloth-covered head.

“Mam says Uncle Jamie is more stubborn than a mule and that he canna see past his own big heid,” Maggie continued.  Claire couldn’t say that she disagreed with that assessment.

“But Da says Uncle Jamie’s heart has been broken too many times, and thas’ why he’s given up on living.  Can ye fix his heart, Miss Claire, so that it isna broken any more?”

She couldn’t have stopped her tears if she tried.   She knelt on the floor and gathered Maggie’s thin, fragile body in her arms.

“Oh, Maggie.  I’m certainly going to try.”

[warm-like-autumn]

Little Witch academia theories

Since now there's the possibility of an upcoming Lwa season I thought it was the perfect time to share this theory I've had for a long time, along with what I think the upcoming season could be about, possible episode ideas and… maybe future villains. And as I’m rewatching this show , I developed this theory that I had for a long time and even came up with ideas for the new season and what it could be about.Let's speculate!!

My main theory is about Croix Meridies and how she could possibly be related to the Hanbridge family.

This might be me over analysing things, but after seeing someone on Tumblr point out to how similar Andrew and Croix's eyes are, I believe they are connected in some way, but the creators didn't have time to develop on that. Especially in how in ep 24, there was put a strong emphasis on both of their eyes. In a scene that was supposed to parallel their reactions.Especially in a show like Lwa, where all the important characters have unique eye shapes that match their personality, having two important characters have the same eye shape and the same eye color raises some questions.

And this is not the only evidence I have to Croix being related to the Hanbridge family. In episode 19, Andrew even states that him and Diana are sort of related. And now on to the Paul Hanbridge part, it would be weird for a man who claims to dislike magic so much to be related to witches. So, what if his wife was a witch, because I think there's a reason we never saw Andrew's mother, and even though we don't see all of the characters parents and flashback moments in this show, Andrew's backstory seems to be pretty important and his father is always present throughout the story.

And for a father that is so strict it raises some questions that his mother is absent. So what if his mother is… dead, and what if her death had to do something with witchcraft, possibly being a reason why Paul hates witchcraft and forced his son to have the same opinions , thinking magic is a dead practice, and his hatred seems too personal to be political in the first place.

Another interesting factor is how Paul's hatred for witches seems to be different from Blackwell's hatred for witches. Whereas Paul's reasons are more justified since he hates the art, not the artist and thinks magic and witches are outdated and have no place in the modern age, Blackwell holds this opinion out of pure bigotry.

And as much as he hates witches, Paul still tries to keep a good relation with them, even if trying to "keep his enemies in debt"

as he says in ep 6 and he seems to have had a good relation with witches and Luna Nova for a long time. So something must have happened along the way for him to hate witches and that something may involve… his wife. What if witches or witchcraft were involved in his wife's death.

And this gets us to the important part of the theory, Croix and how she could possibly be Paul's daughter. What if Andrew isn't the only child Paul has, and this theory is plausible since Croix is around 28 years old,(she graduated in 2007, the anime takes place somewhere around 2017)

and Paul seems to be around his middle or late 50s, basically old enough to be her father. Another piece of evidence I have to that is how there not anything known about Croix's past before she joined Luna Nova, and despite her achievements and the fact that she was described as a "magic prodigy" she was also described as timid and reserved during high-school days, and back then she wasn't as confident and over the top villainous as she is today, her stance being much more distant and reserved, compared to Chariot, who was much more extroverted, even a bit of a show of, always surrounded by people.

She seemed as if she was hiding from something… or someone. What if Croix ran away from home in order to pursue witchcraft, since Paul could have been just as strict about witchcraft to her as he is to Andrew.

And it would make Andrew and Paul's connection to the Chariot and Croix storyline deeper and better, since even the magic shop owner was more relevant to the plot than those two at this point, and they acted as spectators in the second half of the story. Another interesting factor is how Paul constantly says that magic is dead ,obsolete and not necessarily in modern times, while Croix's main motivation is to prove that this exact thing is wrong and that magic is still useful by fusing it with science. And think about it for a second, the damage Croix's monsters did, how Croix fueling the protests for her experiments almost sparked into ww3, all of these things affect the government, which Paul is a part of. Her villain plan might have also been a revenge plan at her father, for being an awful parental figure.

On top of that, neither Andrew or Paul ever directly interacted with Croix or even saw her, and all of the important characters saw Croix and interacted with her, except those two. And at the end of episode 25, right after Croix was arrested and left the scene, Andrew appeared, almost as if the creators didn't want the two characters to interact just yet.

And knowing that Andrew and Diana are cousins, this would also make Croix be part of the Cavendish family, Meridies being possibly a fake name she took to distance herself from both of the well known powerful families. Andrew and Diana often parallel each other in the show, and Croix and her relationship to Chariot is also supposed to be a foil to Akko and her relationship with Diana. Therefore Andrew and Croix were supposed to be a foil to each other, Croix kind of showing Andrew what can happen if he quietly held a grudge against his father and not standing up to him at the right time for two long until he eventually could snap and do the same thing as Croix. Her story of being misunderstood,missguided, filled with jealousy could serve as a cautionary tail.

And Croix being Paul’s daughter would also make sense given her overambitious personality and her constant need of validation from others , including Profesor Woodward and desire to be on top.All of these factors could have easily shaped her into the sort of person that despite having good intentions doesn't have the best ways of achieving them , often putting others in danger to do so.Her being Paul’s daughter would also make sense of why she is jealous of Chariot , since Chariot not only has the shiny rod , but also support from others and appreciation .

A reason my theory could work is how Andrew was originally supposed to be Akko’s love interest , but the creator of the show , Yoh Yoshinari scrapped that sconcept at the request of staff and voice actor , he ended up making Akko a “girl who’s not interested in boys” , so Andrew needed a new purpose in the story , and maybe him discovering Croix is his sister and potentially also becoming a wizard could be those purposes , since they already been kinda set up.

But this theory also raises some questions .How did Andrew’s mother die?Is Andrew a wizard?Did he know he had an older sister? These could be interesting themes to explore in the potential upcoming season .Other things that would be cool to see in this potential season what happened after the missile, Croix redemption arc, my theory becoming cannon and Croix and Chariot having to deal with the mistakes they made, how Akko feels about all of these, and more stuff with the nine new witches, are they considered like superheroes, are they famous now??

Now , onto what the upcoming season could potentially be about :

- As I stated in my theory , Croix and Andrew having to deal with the fact that they are siblings

-Croix redemption arc , maybe more development with her relationship with Ursula/Chariot

-Maybe another episode focused on nightfall , maybe Akko using a spell to make the Nightfall characters real for Lotte’s birthday.

-More flashbacks about Chariot and Croix’s years as Luna Nova students

-Lore behind the golden age of magic and the nine new witches

-New villains

-Return of the shiny rod , but in a unique way

-Maybe the stories could deal with Arthurian Mythos via Appleton Academy

-Male Wizards , maybe more episodes with Andrew and Frank

-More action scenes and serious moments

-The preparation for the spring festival mentioned at the end of episode 25

-More references to other pieces of media (maybe more kingsman , marvel and star wars references as well…)

I should go in depth with some of these aspects :

1.For example , even after episode 25 showed everyone cheering for the 7 witches,they were happy and cheering because otherwise the missile would have killed everyone.They now are happy that they are saved by the witches , and possibly entering a new age of magic , but what if somehow , it is discover that it was because of Croix’s magic that the missile attack almost happened in the first place.How would they react knowing a single witch was capable of such a feast.Especially how would the politicians react.Because at the end of episode 25,Paul was willing to learn more about Andrew’s opinions about witchcraft and even be open to it .But maybe after he finds out the truth about the missile attack,his hatred for witchcraft is even more reinforced , maybe ruining all the progress Andrew has been trying to make in teaching his father about magic ,for him to hate it even more now.Maybe it would even push him to become a villain in the show.

2.Another idea for a villain in the upcoming season I theorize about is Daryl , Diana’s aunt , even though she was kinda redeemed by the end of the season , she is a strange figure , possibly using dark magic , maybe after Diana became head of the Cavendish family , Daryl does not agree with some of Diana’s ways of improving the Cavendish family title and returns to villany , maybe serving as a possible introduction to dark magic (Like she literally can go through walls and has a snake as a pet AND HER EYES GLOW RED)

3.After rewatching episode 17 (Amanda O’Neill and the holy grail) I came up with this silly idea for a plotline , what if that episode wasn't just about an epic fight scene and showing us Croix’s first experiment test , but set up something even more interesting.Even if the title of the episode is a reference to “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” , in the Arturian legend of the holy grail it is Galahad the knight who is chosen to find the Holy Grail. Galahad, in both the Lancelot-Grail cycle and in Malory's retelling, is exalted above all the other knights: he is the one worthy enough to have the Holy Grail revealed to him and to be taken into Heaven , so Galahad is the one to have found the holy grail.And for a first test , Croix’s monster worked quite well , and we also know in Lwa , spirits and ghosts exist and they tend to attach themselves to objects.And if Croix’s pixels were in the grail before Louis broke it , why didn't they start working yet.My theory is that Galahad’s ghost was attached to the Holy Grail and the cubes only powered the ghost up , making it able to separate form the grail ,but decided to stay still until Louis broke the grail , pissing the ghost of Galahad off and thus punishing Louis by possessing a nearby knight armor along with Blackwell himself, combining both into a violent berserker.After Amanda destroyed the armor she could’ve weakened the ghost of Galahad , thus everything instantly went back to normal , but what if the ghost started regaining strength , adjusting to life not being attached to the grail , but planning to stroke again , to punish Louis and the other students of Appleton for ruining the reputation of the school with their hatred for witches .Appleton academy could possibly have lore connected to Arthurian legend to it , with how much they hold the importance of tradition , duels , and gentleman like behaviour , almost knight-like.Maybe the next season could have a plotline that involves stopping the Ghost of Galahad.

4.Last but not least , even after the shiny rod vanished in episode 25 , i think there is a way for it to return without ruining the impact it had in the show. There are seven words of arcturus , and seven of the Luna Nova students are part of the nine new witches , right ?So since the rod became a constellation at the end of the show , seven of those stars could be the seven words , so what if each of the seven words materializes as weapon of their own on earth and each of the seven witches(Akko ,Diana, Lotte,Sucy, Amanda , Constanze , Jasminka) get one of the seven words that became weapons .Because even if the rod disappeared , it came to Akko’s help in a different way , since even if the quest to bringing a new age of magic is far from complete.

[spideymarvelws]

Peter Parker fluff- as friends or on a date, the reader and Peter go to target and cuteness, flirting and a lot of fluff happen 🥺

Some ideas ( if you don’t know what to do )

- Peter picks you an outfit to wear

- your in the makeup section shopping and Peter either gets into it or he gets bored

- in the food isles Peter says that you both should bake together

Even tho i’m not taking requests... i still wanted to do a little hc cause this idea was to cute to pass up that and i was feeling in a fluffy mood

Main Masterlist 

I could see it just being something happening out of the blue

Well for Peter at least

He was ready to just chill at your place

Maybe get some last minute work down

But for the most part he was just excited to goof around with you like he did almost every afternoon

Maybe also gather the courage to confess his feelings to you

What he didn’t expect was to be attacked with your puppy dog eyes, asking him to come with you to target

You were already planning on going with a MJ but she bailed last second

For reasons unknown 👀

Definitely not because the constant pinning was getting on her nerves😀

And since it was a last minute decision to go, you didn't have the time to tell Peter your plans

So once he reached you immediately asked him to go with you

He ‘reluctantly’ agreed, coughing away the red all over his face when you grabbed his hand and dragged him out the apartment

Now where I live we don’t have target and I’ve only ever been there once so bare with me here

Peter doesn’t know jack shit about shopping for clothes

His waredrobe consists of the same jacket, two pairs of jeans he just washes every week, maybe a sweater or two and an entire draw dedicated to tshirts with science puns

And while you found the silly puns and jokes cute, especially when he looked so proud and went on little rambles when someone pointed them out

You couldn’t help but wonder how you could do so much better...

Queue the fashion show montage

The classic black jeans, white shirt combo for starters

Definitely trying out the bad boy look with a fake leather jacket over top

Does target sell plaid pants?💀 cause if they do thats a definite yes

We’ve seen how good Tom looks in them

And maybe- possibly you slipped in a crop top 

The second best thing you’ve ever done after embarrassing him in front of the avengers 

And as much as he didn’t want to admit, he liked it too

Quite a lot

But he couldn’t let you know that

Especially since he was acting done with the entire situation, he had to keep up with the facade

Not that it was believable when his face was the shade of the target logo itself

Subtly slipped the top into the cart 

“I thought you didn’t like it?”

“shutup.” 🧍🏻

Picking out some clothes for you wasn’t any better

Because of course you picked the most revealing outfits

Constantly asking how he felt about it, if he liked the colour, the way it made you look

He always answered with the generic answer of you look beautiful in everything or just a quick, high pitched ye-yeah you look great!

Which was true, you could make a potato sack look amazing

But he wasn’t about to call his best friend sexy in the middle of a Target

Nor did he want to get turned on in the middle of a Target

So calling you beautiful seemed like the next best thing

After the absolute torcher mostly on his part in the in the clothes section

It was off to the makeup 

And boy, did you take advantage of him

Using him as your brand new canvas

Countless swatches of eye shadow, lipstick, you name it, littered his arms with the first aisle

Honestly anything that caught your eye and had a free sample you used

Ofc this is after covid

Very pouty boi every time you grabbed his arm

But still looked at you like you lite up the sun

Which was always his downfall

Willing to help

But at what cost?

At some point, you managed to reach to his face

Manz do be looking like a full on clown afterwards🤡

But he was your clown 🥰

*cough cough*

Best friend clown ig 👀🙄😒

Luckily you kept makeup wipes in your bag

Because you were cruel, but not that cruel

And while Peter was relieved, he had to make a mental note to ask if you could do his face properly when you reached back home

Maybe it was because he actually quite liked how he looked with coloured eyeliner or maybe it was because of the close proximity of your face to his

Ig we’ll never know🤷‍♀️

At that point you thought you’d put him through enough

So you rewarded him with going to the toy aisle next

Because you can’t convince me that Peter Parker is not a man child by heart

And that is not the first place he would run too anytime he’s taken to any store like target

You’ve never seen him smile wider that day

Probably because all you’ve been making him do was blush and mumble words under his breath 😇

But he was especially pulled to all the spider man toys

In fact as you both entered the aisle there was already a small boy there, giggling with his parents as he held up packaged web-shooters and playing superhero, adorning a plastic spider-man mask on his face

Peter almost burst into a million pieces of confetti

And as the family left, he turned to you with a bright smile

“Can we get some?”

“THE CHILD??!!”

“WHAT!? NO! Not the child, the TOYS!”

such a weird sentence out of context lmaoo

Fast forward the next thirty minutes, the both of you are giggling and laughing, chasing each other around the aisles with plastic swords and shields

Peter having to hold you back from jumping into a crate of plushies

You making sure he never got any silly string cans in his hands

Just pure chaos

How you both haven’t gotten kicked out? Only bingus knows

Having that moment where he sneaks up behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you against him, just muttering boo in your ear to scare you

Him laughing at you

You trying to calm your racing heart

Then realising how close both your faces where

The area becoming quiet

Feeling his breath against your face

His body close to yours

All Peter saw was you and all you saw was Peter

The both of you slowly leaning in, gaze switching from his lips to his eyes, making sure that this was something that he wanted

Feeling his lips brush along yours, reading to fully press them against-

“eXUsE mE? But do you knew where the shampoo is?”

👁👄👁

🧍‍♀️🧍🏻

🦗 🦗 🦗

Peter stepped away and politely guided the lady to the aisle, earning him a pat on the head while you stood awkwardly by your cart

You both strolled to the food area in silence, immediately separating to ‘divide and conquer’ but in reality it was to fully process what just happened

While you were overthinking near the pastries, Peter was working over by the fruits, hating that the moment was ruined and wondering what would’ve happened if you weren’t interrupted

He kept thinking about the fact that you didn’t pull away

That you leaned in with him

That he felt your lips even if it was for a split second

He wasn't about to let his opportunity go to waste

And his sudden burst of courage

So as you both checked out and walked out of the store, he was quick to pack everything in the trunk of the car, pushing the cart right in front of you and blocking you from climbing into the drivers seat

“Get in.”

“Heh?”

“Get in.”

You blinked

“As in, get into the cart?”

“Yes.”🙂

hehe 

you’re in danger😀

But nevertheless you got into the cart, trying your best to find a comfortable position 

You mind immediately went to Peter rushing you across the carpark, sending you both flying into a hospital bed

But you didn’t expect him to pull out a camera along with a bouquet of flowers you didn’t know he bought

He delicately gave it to you, blushing when your fingers brushed along each other

“I just- I just wanted to get some photos for memories.” 

His hand rubbed at the back of his neck, eyes locked on his shoes that tapped on the floor repeatedly

You bit your lip, relaxing into the cart with your leg thrown over the thin plastic and flowers held to your chest

“Like one of your french girls?”

“Okay. Just because we watched Titanic last week does not give you the right to use that line everywhere,”

“Just shut up and take the pictures Parker.”

After a few moments of Peter circling the cart, making sure to get the perfect angles that captured the sun set behind you but kept you as the focus point of the picture, you started to zone out

Instead of focusing on making a certain face or direction, you took in his appearance

Hair tousled and glowing brown, moving perfectly with the wind

His face fully concentrated on taking the pictures

It was a perfect picture

He was a perfect picture

“If this is for memories you gotta get in here too Peter.”

You smiled, waving your hands and ushering for him to come closer

“I- okay.”

He walked behind the cart hesitantly, leaning over with the camera to get the both of you in frame

He had to lean a little bit closer, his face right next to yours

So as his finger pressed the button to take the photo, you took the courage to turn your head to give him a kiss on the cheek

But he turned his head to do the same thing

Resulting the both of your lips connecting, a quick peck that sent to both of your head spiralling and smiles growing

“Never thought our first kiss would be in a target carpark.”

“Can out second one be there too?”

“Damn right it can.”

[dibs4ever]

After the latest Nightwing issue I got this thought about Dick’s parents. Before they were together......

He said she said

John splashed water on his face, his Icy blue eyes reflecting at him.

He could also see Meili Lin approaching him from behind. She had slipped on her silk robe before wrapping her arms around him, hugging his backside

“Thank you.” She whispered “The gentle love...I needed it after what Tony puts me through.” She said softly

Jon turned to face her “No Thanks necessary. I’m glad I could make you feel better.”

She could read right through him “You love her. Don’t you? You feel guilty?”

Jon looked up at her questionably “Love who?” He released her and sat on the edge of the bed. She stayed out in front of him

“Mary Lloyd.” She continued

Jon let out a chuckle that was drawn up of both nerves and fake acting to draw away suspicion “Mary is my trapeze partner. We aren’t dating. What do I have to feel guilty over?”

Meili Lin moved to sit beside him “Cause you wished you were more.”

Jon looked at her for a long while “Mary.” He sighed “Is it that obvious? We can’t ever be though” he waved

Meili grabbed his hands “Why not?”

Jon shrugged “Mary is-“ he looked off in thought “Mary is amazing, she’s smart and talented, she picks up on routines like it’s nothing. She is great at communicating with the audience. She’s insanely smart with math and science which you’d be surprised how much that helps with putting together routines and she’s honestly the most beautiful person I’ve ever met both inside and out.” The smile on Jon’s face grew wider and wider with every passing word he spoke about Mary.

“And you feel you aren’t honorable enough for her?” Meili asked

Jon shook his head “I don’t think -I know. Mary deserves the best life possible and I can’t give that to her. Besides--she has a boyfriend back home. A guy her parents approve of. They're trying to get him to convince her to leave the circus.” he explained

Three days later Melili was sitting in the bleachers Tony was observing practice and she had been instructed to sit there still with her head down.

That didn't mean she couldn’t watch her two favorite acrobats practice though. She was in awe of the pair. Jon had mentioned the other night that the two had only been working together for a little over a year yet you'd never know it. The way they moved on the trapeze was as if they were working with one mind. Somehow they were connected. Reading each other without words needing to be spoken. They were graceful and swift. Performing so beautifully together by watching them you almost felt as if you were intruding on a romantic moment.

She couldn't help. but listen as the pair climbed down the post, their feet safe on the ground floor “You were great Mary the way you jumped off that post, whew you got more guts than I do.” Jon said pushing his dark wavy hair back

She smiled “Well I can say the same for you, Grayson, I know when I jump you’ll always catch me”

Jon grinned at her “You’ve got that right. I will always catch you, Mary. And if I ever don’t? Well, it’s cause I’m falling along with you.”

Mary laughed lightly “Please with those muscles? I can’t imagine you ever dropping me.”

Jon flexed “Oh these Ol’ things? If you think my catching you is impressive you should see the other things they’re capable of.” He winked

Mary smiled, rolling her eyes “Oh Jon, what am I gonna do with you?” She bopped his nose with her index finger

He chuckled “Why don’t you tell me after I bring us back some waters?”

She nodded “Sure it’ll give me time to think of an answer.”

Mary watched him walk out of the tent before noticing Melili eyeing them. Mary strode over to her sitting beside her. They’d had a handful of conversations -enough to be friends.

“How’d we look from down here? Think it’ll be good in the show tonight?” Mary asked hopefully

Melili nodded “You two were fantastic.”

Mary smiled, the girl had a gorgeous smile. One that could warm anyone’s heart. Her smile alone allowed Melili to see why Jon was so smitten with her.

“Jon” Mary sighed blissfully “He’s an amazing performer. He has more experience than I do. He’s a 3rd generation acrobat. His grandfather was among some of the very first circus performers. Me? I’m just a gymnast-ballerina who didn’t get into dance school after High school so I opted to join the circus to follow my performer dream instead.”

Melili shook her head “Those American schools don’t know what kind of talent they passed up.” She paused “So you like working with Jon?”

Mary nodded “Whats not to like? In fact, I love it. Jon is caring. He’d give the shirt off his back to help someone in need. He’s dedicated to his work, he’s funny and great at comforting people. Not to mention he is ridiculously charming and handsome. I don’t think I’ve yet to meet someone who doesn’t like him” She added

Melili smiled “So what’s stopping you?”

Mary shrugged “Fistly I don’t know if he feels the same. I’m almost certain he doesn’t. Come on a 3rd generation acrobat vs. the girl who’s 3 years younger than him and ran away to the circus as an act of rebellion when her family told her she had to go to college since she didn’t get into

Dance school? Plus he’s way too good-looking for me.”

Melili shook her head “I don’t know about that. You’re breathtaking “

Mary smiled down at her feet “That’s very kind of you.”

“Your boyfriend isn’t why you wouldn’t work?” Melili asked

Mary shook her head “I like my boyfriend a lot but I mostly am with him hoping it’ll help me forget about my little crush on Jon.

So far it’s not working” she let out a small chuckle

Melili tilted her head “Why don’t you just tell him?”

Mary quickly shook her head “Oh no, and ruin our amazing partnership. Look Jon ...he sleeps around. Not in a bad way, I know he respects the women he does get with. He’s not out there hooking up with random audience members at every city we visit -although he could if he wanted to. But he’s never tried anything with me....kinda a dead give away he doesn’t like me like that.”

Melili furrowed her eyebrows “You mean you two have never-“ she wiggled her finger

Mary shook her head “No—-even if I kinda want to. Which is weird for me cause I have this thing where I can only have that sort of attraction to people I REALLY like-not sure if there’s a word for it. I don’t even have that attraction towards my boyfriend. Which makes me feel so guilty” she threw her head back

The girls watched as Jon reentered the tent, two full water bottles in hand. “Melili thanks for listening to me rant. I don’t have many close friends being on the road all the time.”

Melili smiled “No problem. If I can give you a word of advice before you start rehearsing again?”

Mary nodded “Please do”

“Tell him how you feel” Melili nodded toward Jon who was waiting at the trapeze post, giving the two girls privacy “You never know, you might uncover why he treats you so different than other girls.”

Mary flashed Melili a smile before standing and making her way back to the ring to join Jon.

[life-rewritten]

STARTUP - Dosan and Fate (Luck vs Hard Work)

Important to note: The title of episode 9 and 10 was Risk (the possibility of loss) and Demo day (an event where people show their achievements)

Let me first say that these two episodes hurt a lot, for both guys, in Risk we had both revelations of how both men felt like they were played by Fate/Luck.  Dosan feels broken by the upcoming consequences from the moments he's felt like a fraud in this game of life, where he was prone to win easily because of always using deceit. His impostor syndrome ate him up inside and made him feel like a lesser person for Dalmi and others. Meanwhile, Jipyeong also felt like a tool that was thrown around by Fate to bring the two together despite his feelings and wants and efforts for Dalmi. Fate seems cruel; it leads Dosan to underserved fake moments, its the wind that becomes a storm Whilst, other people would relish in their luck, Dosan goes to self-hate and self-doubt about what is his work vs what is others. Hence the next title, with demo day which is just putting on a show of your achievements, the sad thing is that Dosan felt like he had no achievements that were really his thus he put on a show using others reputation, identity and memory and so lost himself in the process. Let’s analyse this two episodes  and these twos fate further:

DOSAN AND FATE

Thing is its weird because Dosan by Fate has been chosen as the namesake for each of these moments without actually wanting or meaning to be part of them. He's been intended and pushed to follow along, so he gets to his purpose/destiny. He's given one answer in a test paper, the answer not the solution, and he's the real recipient of Dalmis first letter because of the results of that test. 

If Dosan were like me, he'd notice Fate was playing a massive role for him and Dalmi to find each other. Like the wind that he was scared of being a storm, it wasn't for that; it was to push him to his destination. Because of the wind blowing in, he managed to get that one answer right which led to his 10/10 (it sparked the solution in his head) but because of that he also won the gold medal award, and he took a picture as the golden olympiad, but then he returned the medal.

But the medal wasn't the point, what Fate wanted from him was already done; the picture, it was a series of occurrence where Jipyeong was watching on tv on his way to the grandmother, where he would be found on the newspaper and ultimately become Dalmi's namesake of the letter of her ideal guy. Fate positioned him perfectly as Dalmi's soulmate but also because Dosan is a good person and he doesn't like to be deceitful he returned back the medal with guilt and even though he should have let it go. He held onto this resentment and failed to notice all his other hard works.  So this brings us to the question before I continue; Is Dosan really just lucky, has he not done anything worth praising by himself, is he really a nobody the way he perceives he is? Is it all Fate?

Obviously No. The episodes so far in this show have shown time and time again how good Dosan is at everything he puts his mind to. He's diligent, focused, and always trying to do something to help others. All of his works so far have been because of his creation, not Fate, not Luck, and certainly not others like he keeps saying. He may be pushed into an idea by listening to others. Still, just like that one answer provided him with the solution on the test paper, he is the one who figures out how to put two and two together, and he ends up creating something appealing, useful and needed.

Which is funny because it's like his actual person, he may not see himself like that to people, but to his friends, his family and Dalmi he is;

APPEALING

He's good looking without to having to try; people flock to him, yes they're turned off by his logical way of thinking and his socially awkward mannerisms, but Dalmi knows he's attractive and as she said opening the music box was wonderful. He's a beautiful presence in her life; he brought hope, happiness and joy to her by just showing up. The thing that makes this even more hidden for him is only because he thinks he's inadequate because of his lack of wealth, lack of possessions, and lack of style. He even says to Dalmi (because Jipyeong convinced him that the way he dresses is not right) that's who he is, and tbh what he was wearing wasn't bad it suited him more than the suit.

But the other thing is that there's potential screaming at Dosan because soon we'll get to see him reach that person Fate is trying to mould him into which is the very vision of the guy Dalmi thought her Nam Do San was. So all the things he thinks prevent him from been seen as appealing he'll quickly get it once he starts to work for Alex. Fate has again already sent him the next step for his journey to being the ideal guy for Dalmi. Fate is on Dosans side not against it. But I also want to mention that as much as Fate is involved in making Dosan look appealing to Dalmi it's still Dosans choice, and actions that actually makes him appealing to Dalmi: its because he chose to go to her and show up for her during that time she felt lost, its because he spent that evening with her making her laugh and also it's because of those quirky mannerisms that he thought turned people of him that she likes him (when she's drunk in episode 9 she smiles and says when he goes into a rant about the science vs superstition that that's him, that's Dosan, and she is happy about it because he makes her smile by being himself.  

USEFUL 

But we continue to see how Dosan is important despite thinking he's not. He's useful, and everyone knows it and has used him somehow. To his friends; He's useful because he provided them a job, he gave them a new dream when it seemed that everything was crashing, he pushes them to learn and be better with their computer skills and  he offered them solutions to their problems when they lost their jobs, he's the person who solved the hacking, prevented them from losing money or getting sued and he's the person who gave them a new place to call theirs. He elevated them to his partners. We can argue he's not useful to his family yet, because he's had to rely on them for his start up, he hasn't been able to offer them money, or things like that, however. But he will, and we know he will once Samsan Tech is successful. Dalmi : I mean I can write essays about how useful he's been to her but I'll just be repeating the same stuff over and over again, he's useful to her because he provided her another job by choosing her as the CEO, he also is the reason for why she chooses to chase her dreams and gave up on her other previous work, he helped her be promoted without even knowing it, he's the keyman; he's the most useful to Samsan Tech, his hard work is also useful to her: he improves and stays up all night with her to create a better version of their app to detect Injae's new hand writing, he's useful to her because of how he, teaches her, she understands him and it leads her to finding solutions and answers to what she wants, he's useful because he helps her gain her confidence. In the end of the day he's like a solution to her problems but also he's  useful to her grandmother because he made Noongil.

This is where Fate isn't playing an active role because Dosan is always useful, you can say that Fate plays a role with his family, Jipyeong, his nephew, Alex because they provide opportunities that make Dosan even more helpful to the world, Dalmi and her grandmum (the nephews marketing skills brings Alex to him, brings Noongil fame and success, brings 2STO to Samsan Tech, ( helping his friends and Dalmi). His family's kindness helped him to start his company with his friends which will later be useful to Dalmi because she becomes CEO and starts her dreams. Jipyeong is also part of this, because he's the person who actively berates and puts down Dosan but pushes him to prove himself and thus he becomes more useful but Dosan is also helpful to Jipyeong ironically: he's valuable because he manages to find a way to improve Yeongsil and provides use to Youngsil for Jipyeong in a way he hasn't realised yet with Dalmis grandmother, in an ironic way he helps Jipyeong pay his debt to the grandmother because its Jipyeong who brought Dosan to their lives and because of Dosan the grandmother's issue blindness is less of an obstacle.

So Fate uses people, sends people to help Dosan improves his usefulness but Dosan's heart, actions, and hands automatically make him useful. This is why the show keeps on mentioning his hands, they may be empty but they're helpful because of what they can do, what they can create, what they can hold onto. Dosans brains, hands, and just character are what made him already useful.

But here's even more proof how useful his own actions are:

CODA: Samsan tech win CODA competition not by luck but with their hardwork, the reason why Alex is so stunned by CODA is because he created something that was far more needed/better than the others. It had a higher rate of optics and it was seen as something that was incredible.

Noongil: Because he's spurred on to find a way to repay grandmother for introducing the whole letters thing that led him to Dalmi, he finds a way to create something incredibly useful to the world, and also to her, but also Noongil becomes the most successful app not because of money, but because its the most used by people.  Again this was Dosan's idea, hard work and plans.

9/10 on the test. I still think its 10/10 because one line wouldn't have been able to provide him the solution for the question but it inspired him to seek the solution. Even without that answer Dosan is still a genius, he's younger and smarter he was able to solve 9 questions out of 10 on that paper. He was still smart, he was still Dosan.

The company hacking issue of Chulsan: He's the one who finds a way into the system where no one else could do so, he fixes the issue and moves on like it isn't an incredible feat. Even Chulsan knows no one else could do that

Handwriting forgery detecting software: He spends the night with Dalmi as others slept working and creating this product, he even after they lose the competition stays up all night to solve the last issues, he makes it become 100% accurate.

See its his own brains not Fate that creates the apps/softwares/opportunities for him to be of use/ to be a genius.

NEEDED

There's a difference with usefulness and being needed. The last thing Dosan feels he's not. But the thing is again Fate plays a role here: 

Fate provides situations for where Dosan is needed. Fate is the reason for why he saw Dalmi's grandmother in the clinic; to create Noongil.

Fate is the reason for why his name is the namesake of the letter when Grandmother and Jipyeong needed a namesake (they needed him to help Dalmi get out of her depression, without realising it they needed him: he was the right age, the kind of person she'd like and also there was proof of him in the news paper (a picture was needed at that moment).

Fate is the reason for why Dalmi needed him to show up. He ended up needing to sell his baseball. Fate made his company break down so he was forced to sell those items; it led him to being Dalmi's reliable source. Fate pushed him as the answer for Dalmi when she needed a solution on how to get investors.

Fate made him create Samsan tech when his friends needed a new job, Fate created him as a partner for Dalmi when she needed to be a CEO and stay in the Sandbox, and in this episode Fate again pushes him to tell Dalmi what she needs to hear, so she's more confident.

Also Fate gives him a different solution where he is needed for the success of Samsan Tech if 2STO invests in the company.

There's so much more times in this show where Dosan is needed because Fate/Life has played a role where someone needs something from him, he's been required because of his brains, his physical looks, his hands, his creativity, his support, and his presence/actions. Fate plays the role here, but again it's Dosans automatic hard work, character and choices that make him needed. Before he even knew it, Dosan has always been needed by people, he's essential, he's not a nobody who is a fake impostor, he's the real deal, the final solution to people.  Dosans hands are the most needed. Again Dosan is a metaphor for his hands, they seem empty, but they're necessary and useful and vital.

[ricksbowen]

one more time | pt. 4

IN WHICH: a nighttime visit turns into a whole other session.

INSPIRATION: she — harry styles, the less i know the better — tame impala

WARNING: this series will have smut in it and is pretty sexual all around ( read with caution ). there are implications of sex right off the bat, and everyone is 18+ and in their senior year. there’s also family problems mentioned.

pt. 1, pt. 2, pt. 3, pt. 4, pt. 5, pt. 6

The sound of his doorbell going off terrified Ricky in more ways than he wanted to admit.

He had spent five minutes getting ready to answer the door. The metal bat in his hand and the comical hockey helmet he put on were only precautions; who would ring at 12:16 AM? It only had to be a serial killer, and Ricky Bowen wasn’t going to be one of the stupid teens in every horror movie ever.

He was smart. He’d beat them up.

“Okay, Ricky. Just open the door.” Ricky jumped on the balls of his feet, his eyes trailing up to the peephole on his door. He nodded to himself, turning his head to crack it as he continued to hype himself up. “Peephole. Right— peepholes are great,” Ricky muttered, peering through the small hole.

You were standing outside. The rain that was pouring outside didn’t seem to phase you as you stared at the red rain boots you wore.

Ricky’s shoulders slumped ( he totally wasn’t excited for a serial killer to be at his door ) at the sight of you, relief coursing through his veins as he opened the door. Leaning cooly against his doorframe, Ricky managed a smirk past the hockey helmet over his head. “You look glum.”

“And you look stupid— who did you think was at the door?” You retorted, an eyebrow raising in question.

“Freddie Krueger. Jason Voorhees,” Ricky counted the names on his fingers, and even your sadness couldn’t stop the smile that crept on your face. “Hannibal Lector, the live-action Cat in the Hat—“

“You were scared of that movie?” you asked, cocking a brow in amusement. “I should’ve known you were a pussy,” you remarked, laughing softly at the ‘hey!’ he let out. You ducked under his arm, entering his house and shaking the rain from your hair like a wet dog.

“Umbrellas are a great invention.”

“Shut up, Bowen.” You shrugged off your coat, hanging it up alongside the other coats. You knew he was looking at you; rarely did you ever come to his house without a warning. “Stop staring.”

“I’m not,” Ricky retorted, averting his eyes to anything that wasn’t you. He pulled the hockey helmet off his face, shaking the mess of hair he had on his head. He watched you from his peripheral vision, your actions less lively than usual as you made your way to his kitchen. “I’m guessing you didn’t sneak out just for the hell of it.”

“Usually I do,” you answered, eyes darting up and down his pantry for anything edible. You knew you left some chips from the last time you were here. “My parents were arguing again. They were too loud, so,” you reached up for the familiar bag of chips. “I came here.” You didn’t want to get into the details of your parents’ problems. Ricky already knew most of them, from the growing rumors of an affair to your mom’s want to leave both you and your dad. “The only time they can get along is when they’re yelling at me,” you added quietly, almost inaudible.

“Stay as long as you want,” Ricky hummed, coming up behind you and reaching for a box of cereal. You always ranted to him because you knew he understood what you were going through. After everything that happened between his parents in his junior year, how could he not? “I can put on a movie or something.”

“Horror?”

“Sure. We can pick it apart like we always do,” Ricky said with a crooked grin, one that made you smile back. “We are still allowed to do stuff like that, right?”

“Like what?” you asked, making your way to his couch and flopping down on it.

“Normal friend stuff. I mean, we’ve had sex,” Ricky paused, staring up at his ceiling in thought. “Multiple times, In a lot of places,” he turned to the couch where you sat, eyebrows slightly furrowed.

“Your point?”

“Wouldn’t it be weird?”

“It hasn’t been weird,” you stated, sending him a puzzled look. “Has it been weird for you?”

“No!”

“Then what’s makin’ you change your mind?” you pressed further, the overwhelming feeling of curiosity making you ask him.

Ricky let out a sigh, clicking on a random movie. It seemed cliche enough; teenagers lost in the woods. Normally, the most cliche ones were the funniest ones to pick apart. He threw the remote back onto the living room table. “This girl asked me on a date today.”

Your eyebrows raised, surprised at the lack of emotion you had as you nodded. “Who? What’d you say?” you asked with a beaming smile, shaking him gently and making him let out another loud sigh. He picked a random horror movie, not bothering to look at the summary as he put it on.

“Just this girl I got paired up with for science. I went out with her today.”

“And? You can’t just leave it at that!” you pressed on, leaning into him with a cocked brow. Why didn’t he tell you? Usually you’d help him out with everything when it came to date, from what he was supposed to wear to where he was going to take her.

“She sucked; she kept on judging every little thing I did. All the jokes I made?” Ricky sucked in a breath, feigning disappointment. “She took them too seriously. When I said that I’d kill for a burrito, I actually don’t mean it,” he said, trying to keep a straight face as he felt you hit him as you laughed.

“Holy shit, she thought you were gonna kill someone?” you forced out behind bundles of laughter, throwing your head back as more guffaws left your chest. “I’m sorry, it’s just—“ you cut yourself off, a string of uncontrollable giggles following and making him bite back a grin.

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, giggles,” Ricky said, words dripping with sarcasm as he looked at you from his peripheral vision. “I hope a jumpscare bites you in the ass,” he muttered.

“Aw, Ricky,” you sing-songed, nudging him playfully with a shit eating grin. “I’m sorry,” you said, your smile anything but sorry. Ricky still refused to look at you, faking the silent treatment and making you sigh. Ricky pulled his eyes away from the movie, setting them onto you and raising a brow.

“Are you really?”

“No, not much,” you grinned, and Ricky chuckled as he shook his head. He felt you move closer to him, putting your head on his shoulder like you always did when you both had movie nights. It was nothing but platonic.

The movie was watched in silence, the beginning dragging on for longer than you liked before the first teen separated from the group.

“She’s so gonna die,” you muttered, head still on Ricky’s shoulder. You felt him nod, eyes focused on the screen, and the music from the T.V picked up. The tension grew along with the devilish idea in your head. Ricky was staring at the screen with wide eyes, goosebumps rising on his skin, and the girl opened the door—

You let out a yelp. Ricky screamed bloody murder.

Ricky’s chest heaved, hand on his chest as he stared at you with frightened eyes. You were laughing, practically falling off the couch in laughter. Ricky swore he saw tears in your eyes.

“Y/N, stop,” Ricky whined, his high-pitched voice only making you laugh harder and clutch your stomach.

“I forgot how easy you were to scare!” you giggled, trying to calm yourself by breathing deeply.

“Please don’t do it again,” Ricky muttered, face burning with embarrassment.

“Or what?” you challenged, the smile on your face contrasting your glum expression moments before. It felt nice to smile, to laugh without having to worry about people yelling at you to stop. Usually, that was how things worked at your house.

Ricky moved closer to you, your smile faltering just a bit at the slightly determined look in his eyes. You knew the game he was playing.

“What’re you gonna do about it, Bowen?” you joked, knowing fully well what you were doing with him. You saw the way he clenched his jaw, and how the movie suddenly sank into the background as his attention was focused on you.

Ricky leaned forward just as you did, your lips pressing against each other. Your hands go to the sides of his head, pulling him down over you as your back hit the couch. Ricky hovered over you, deepening the kiss and making you let out a small moan in response.

He detached his lips from yours before reattaching them to your neck, making you tilt your head back to give him more space. You felt Ricky’s lips go down, his lips sucking a mark right above where your sweatshirt started to cover your skin. You felt him bite down, making you gasp, and you could practically hear him smirk smugly at the reaction.

Ricky’s hands tugged your sweatshirt up in a silent plea for it to come off, shivers running up and down his body when he felt your hands trail underneath his shirt. Wordlessly, you sat up and tugged it over your head, throwing it somewhere in the living room. You lifted your hips, pulling your pants off and revealing the black panties you wore.

Ricky swore he forgot how to breathe.

In turn, you tugged his shirt off, tossing it behind him. You pulled his joggers down, letting out a laugh when his lanky legs got stuck in them. Ricky sent you a sheepish grin, pulling them down his legs as quickly as he could. That too was thrown behind him, and you pushed him back, making his back hit the couch.

You straddled him, listening to the groan he let out when he felt you grind onto him. Ricky was looking up at you through his eyelashes, his mouth slightly agape as he breathed heavily. It was sinful how innocent he looked under you, gazing at you as if you were a goddess on earth.

To him, you were. To him, you had to be the most beautiful person, inside and out.

You looked down at him, leaning down to his neck and attaching your lips to his skin. Ricky let out a whine when he felt you suck in a mark right under his hear, the sound influencing you in more ways than one.

“Protection?” Ricky breathed, eyes shutting tight when he felt you grind down against him again. You were teasing him, the equally teasing smile on your mouth making him melt into a puddle.

“I’m on the pill,” you mumbled, pulling away from his neck and hovering over his dace. Your eyes were hungry and dominating, sending a sense of thrill down Ricky’s spine as he looked back at you with a lustful haze. It was obvious that he was enjoying it, being under you and having you tower over him.

Your hands went up to his neck, fingers wrapping around it as you grinded down onto him. He let out a moan, hips bucking up subconsciously at your movements. Your hand pressed against his throat only spurred him on more.

You pushed your panties aside.

—

The sunlight hit you in the face, making you rub the sleep away from your eyes.

You and Ricky had made it up to his room after having a few rounds on his couch. The stamina you both had was unbelievable, even for Ricky ( who you knew secretly loved working out ).

You opened your eyes, succumbing to the bright light shining through. The cotton white sheets that covered your naked frame brought you warmth, and you gently stretched. Only when you moved did you notice the arms that were wrapped around you, pulling you close to him.

Ricky never did that. He knew that you didn’t like having arms wrapped around you after sex.

You pulled his arms off of you, heart beating rapidly in your chest as you moved to the other edge of the bed. It brought back too many painful memories of him. Ones you never wanted to remember.

“Luka!” you squealed, head thrown back in laughter when you felt the arms that were once sleepily wrapped around you poke you in the stomach. You turned to him, face-to-face with your boyfriend.

“Aw, I never knew you were ticklish, babe,” Luka said, the crooked smile on his face making you roll your eyes. The sunlight that shone through his windows hit him perfectly, showing you the freckles that littered his skin. Your finger reached up, gently touching each of the little kisses of sun that were on his face. You moved your finger between them, connecting them like dots.

“What’re you doing?” Luka asked softly, cerulean blues observing your face.

“Counting your freckles,” you replied, making a smile appear on his face as he pulled you close to him. You turned around, making yourself the little spoon as he held you closer to him.

You moved your legs to the side of his bed, letting them hang off the edge. You let out a shaky exhale, the feeling of Ricky’s hands on your waist burned into your skin. You reached for his drawer, opening it and grabbing a random shirt. You pulled it over your head, standing up and stretching the tension away.

You hated how even the little things reminded you of him.

“Y/N? Are you leaving?” You heard Ricky’s groggy voice ask, his head peeking out from his blankets. His curls were like a bird’s nest, messed up from your hands sifting and roughly tugging on his hair last night.

“No— I can’t do that to you, you know that,” your words were soft, almost pointed towards yourself as you climbed back into bed. You pulled the blankets over you, making sure you kept a distance away from him.

“You okay?” Ricky asked, voice gentle and inviting as he gazed at you. He wasn’t blind to the sudden space between you both, his choice of wrapping his arms around you not even a memory in his mind. You knew he didn’t mean it, that he had always liked holding onto others, but the feeling always left you pained.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” you mumbled, your eyes meeting beautiful hazel ones as he looked at you.

Ricky observed you, taking in the little details. The messiness of your hair. The small amount of mascara that was smudged under your eye. The blooming hickeys he left on your neck that led to unholy placed under his own shirt. The way your eyes drooped because it was too early for you, and how your hair was a mess of tangles thanks to his hands running through them the night before.

Something changed when he looked at you. Ricky’s mouth fell agape at that moment, and something clicked.

He didn’t know what his epiphany was, but he didn’t want to find out.

—

TAGS: @tomshufflepuff​, @myrandom-fandomlife, @softpeteparker​, @sarcarstic-space-weirdo​, @particularcth​, @lifes-a-party-youre-a-boy, @paniniirae, @supersouthy​, @jointherebellion215, @gabyer0309​, @hannarudick​, @broken-from-fandoms​, @complete-trash-101, @ssprayberrythings​, @raven-waheda, @timelordtardis​, @chubby-cheek-calum, @nicole-lynne​, @loserr-likeme​, @whoseblogsthis​, @stxfxniexreads, @cherrydolan​, @allaroundaddict, @of-outerspace​, @blueevelvt, @kitykatnumber, @rocketdolans, @givemebooksorgivemedeath, @80sthottie

[kinktae]

bitchin’ || pt. 3 (M)

↳ PART OF MY REWIND SERIES

The 80s were a time of choices. Which perm was right for you? What color neon would you wear next? None of these choices, however, were more questionable than a certain deal you made with Jeon Jungkook.

pairing: fratboy!jungkook x reader

word count: 6.4k

genre: 1980s au, eventual smut, e2l

warnings: multiple smut scenes, science talk, banter, jealousy, alcohol & LOTS of colorful 80s slang lmao

A/N: This fic was inspired by To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before & Stranger Things 3. Thank you to @junqkook for letting me use her likeness and @httpjeon for editing this chapter!

OFFICIAL PLAYLIST

01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

PART THREE

"You're a psychopath." You accused.

Jungkook let out a scoff, eyes rolling in dismissal.

"You're being dramatic."

"Stop the car."

"Y/N." Jungkook scolded, reaching over to turn down the radio's volume.

"I'm serious, asshole. Let me out!" You huffed before lowering your eyes into small slits. "You're probably driving me off to a remote location just so you can kill me. Bet you're just like that sicko Ted Bundy that they got locked up in Florida right now."

Jungkook's head snapped over to look at you, disbelief in his wide eyes.

"Holy shit, all I did was change the radio station!"

You flashed him an exasperated look.

"You changed it while Wham! was playing. What is wrong with you?"

Jungkook had shown up at the door of your dorm right on time, grinning lopsidedly in his yellow windbreaker as you opened the door, his blatant eagerness effectively souring your mood.

You were entirely against this date at first; it hardly seemed necessary to get to know someone who you already knew you had nothing in common with. Not to mention the fact that you seemed to be the only one who cared that this relationship between you two was literally fake.

If it weren't for Yara physically shoving you out the door, you would have never gotten into Jungkook's ridiculously nice Chevy as he hauled off you to wherever he had decided your date was. He refused to answer when you asked him where the two of you were headed so, needless to say, you were already on high alert.

Him changing the station as soon as Everything She Wants playing was the final straw.

"Nothing is wrong with me, dweeb. I just don't really like their sound. I don't really like a lot of artists on the radio nowadays." Jungkook confessed, shoulders shrugging as he kept his eyes on the road.

"Oh God. I'm fake dating a monster." You breathed dramatically.

Jungkook rolled his eyes, no longer in the mood to entertain this conversation as he turned the knob on the radio back up.

It proved to be in vain, however, as your stubborn self refused to let the conversation drop there, your own hand reached over to reverse what he had just accomplished– the song currently playing fading back into the dull background.

"Madonna." You pressed.

"What about her?" Jungkook droned unenthusiastically.

You furrowed your eyebrows, annoyed. "What do you think about her?"

"Oh. Industry sellout."

"What?!" You nearly shrieked, jaw dropped as you stared at Jungkook's cool expression. You let out a disappointed noise.

"Cyndi Lauper?"

"Mediocre at best."

"Duran Duran?!" You exclaimed. "Wait, no. Don't answer that, I don't think my heart could take it if you didn't like them."

Jungkook chuckled, glancing over at your distraught expression, "Duran Duran is okay."

"Just okay?" You marveled, crossing your arms over your chest.

You were wearing a patterned collar shirt today and when Jungkook first laid his eyes on it, he couldn't help but think it looked exactly like the carpet belonging to the arcade he and friends used to go to in high school. On your left wrist was a bright yellow scrunchie that he swore he saw Yara wear once.

He wondered for a moment what it might look like in your hair.

"You know what the problem is with music today? It's all synthesized, I mean you can hardly call it music." Jungkook continued, pushing his previous thought away. "What's that song by The Buggles?"

"Uh... Video Killed the Radio Star?" You offered.

"Yes! God, that song just barfs me out." He shuttered, a prominent frown on his face.

"Fine, then. What do you consider real music then?"

"Hm, let's see. Twisted Sister, Bon Jovi, Van Halen, Def Leppard–"

"Oh, I see. The meathead is also a metalhead." You mused, the sides of your mouth twitching up slightly.

"Can you headbang to Prince? I don't think so." The meathead in question offered cheekily, wagging a finger at you.

You had just opened your mouth to quip back when your surroundings suddenly dawned on you; Jungkook had pulled into the parking lot of what you recognized to be a roller rink.

"We're going roller skating?" You asked as the boy shifted into park, causing him to look up at you.

"You don't sound excited." He pointed out.

You didn't bother to confirm or deny his accusation.

"Weren't roller rinks considered cool in the 70s... when we were kids?" Was your response.

Jungkook had unbuckled himself from his seat, reaching over into the back of his car to grab his backpack, carefully lugging the brown bag over his shoulder.

"They're still cool. Man, quit being such a downer you're ruining our date." He warned.

"Hey! What did we say, this isn't a date. It's a bonding activity." You piped up, opening the passenger door. "Besides, I'm not being a downer, I just…"

Your sentence trailed off as the two of you hopped out of the car, excited chatter from a family parked nearby filling your ears.

"You just what?" Jungkook pressed as the two of you made your way over.

"Nevermind."

There was a cold rush of air that hit you as Jungkook pulled open the door to the building, causing you to cross your arms over your chest, following him into the dimly lit space.

You could make out the sound of Take on Me by a-ha playing overhead from where you could see the actual rink located in the back. From the looks of it, the arena appeared to be somewhat empty today.

Radical. Fewer people to embarrass yourself in front of.

"Where do we go now?"

"To get our skates, duh." Jungkook stated, flashing you a look. "Haven't you ever been to a roller rink?"

You didn't get the chance to respond to the condescending boy because before you knew it, your hand was intertwined with his and you were being lugged over to where a bored-looking man was waiting behind a desk, a wall of worn-out beige skates behind him.

You stood beside Jungkook awkwardly as he spoke to the employee, speaking up only to protest when Jungkook tried to pay for you and to tell the roller rink man what size skates you needed.

Sat on a nearby bench, the two of you began to change shoes; Jungkook was rambling on and on about how excited he was to skate and how he was gonna lap you ten times over.

Slipping your first foot into the wheeled shoe, you let out a sigh.

"I have to, uh, tell you something..." You began, capturing Jungkook's attention.

"Sure, what's up?"

Pressing your lips together, you laced up the skate, the neon green shoelace glowing under the room's fluorescent lighting.

"So… I never actually... learned how to roller skate." You confessed through a shrug, ignoring the way Jungkook looked at you in surprise.

"Man, you really were robbed of a childhood. And here I thought you were some kind of superhuman who could do anything."

"Firstly, don't question my superiority over you common folk. I am superhuman." You scolded, pushing a finger into his chest playfully.

Jungkook let out a laugh, rolling his eyes at your words.

"Secondly, I mean, we were a family of six. If I got rollerskates, then everyone had to get roller skates. We just didn't have that kind of money." You explained.

"Woah. Family of six, huh? So you have siblings then." He noted.

"Yep. Three."

"Tell me about them."

Looking up from where you were slipping on your second skate, you met Jungkook's eyes, surprised to see genuine interest in them.

"Well… Sammy is the oldest. He moved out when I was, like, thirteen so we were never that close but I see him every time I go back home."

You had finished fastening both skates, placing each wheeled foot on the colorful carpet. You took a moment to drag your legs front and back, enjoying the way the wheels rolled beneath you.

"Then there's the twins, Rosa and Lia."

"Hold on. Twins? Wait… did they go to our high school?" Jungkook asked, his interest in this conversation doubled.

"Yep. They were two grades above us." You confirmed.

"Oh shit, yeah, I remember your sisters, they were mad hot." Jungkook let out a low whistle, before stiffening, flashing you an apologetic look. "Uh, in a totally non-meathead way."

You offered the scared-looking boy a small smile, shaking your head.

"No, it's okay. They are pretty, um, hot, I guess."

Suddenly, you made an effort to stand up, and Jungkook jumped to his feet to help you— you waved him off, of course. The carpet provided enough grip to allow you to walk somewhat easily.

"I still can't believe the Y/L/N Twins had a little sister. And that little sister was in my grade. How come no one ever talked about you?" Jungkook asked as the two of you reached the rink.

You gripped onto the short wall that lay along the rink's entire perimeter, clearly meant for people like you to hold onto so that they wouldn't bust their asses.

"Some kids in our grade asked me if we were related but I would always lie and tell them we weren't. Honestly, I had this weird complex towards them. I hated them for a little while."

Jungkook wasn't expecting such a confession to come from you, and it was clear that you weren't either with the way your face turned away from his, twisting up in regret.

"Really? Why's that?" He asked despite himself.

You felt yourself perk up as the familiar tune of a Duran Duran song came on, lifting your mood immediately.

"It's– ah, nevermind, it was really stupid. I don't feel that way anymore." You waved him off through a laugh, not wanting to unload onto him the heaviness of your childhood insecurities.

"I don't care if it's stupid, you can tell me. I want to know."

You stare at him for a moment, unsure of whether or not to tell him. There was a sense of sincerity in his eyes that wore you down, however. You let out a sigh.

"I dunno, I think it started early on. They were older and there were two of them, so I was kind of the third wheel."

"Ah. Yeah, isn't there some special bond only twins have?" Jungkook added.

"Yeah… Yeah, I understand it now that I'm older, but when I was younger, it just pissed me off." You chuckled bitterly, eyes flickering towards a couple skating around in the ring.

"It wasn't until I entered high school that I actually started to resent them, though. I kind of got stuck in this ugly duckling phase and my sisters… they're beautiful, right? Popular with boys, lots of friends…"

You trailed off, eyebrows furrowing as an unwanted feeling of reminiscence crept into you.

"I liked learning. And I was good at it. And it wasn't like I didn't have friends. I made friends with people who liked the same things I did. I wasn't alone." You continued, Jungkook's eyes glued to your profile.

"My friends used to beg for me to come over and study with them, you know." You looked over at the messy-haired boy, a shy grin on your face.

"It felt really good for people to acknowledge the hard work I put into school. It made me feel... cool, I guess."

"So when people asked about my sisters, I lied. Because I thought if I told them, then they would see everything that I wasn't. They would have something to compare me to and they would see that I actually wasn't that cool."

Your face fell into an unreadable expression, your knuckles turning white as your grip on the wall tightened.

The only person who ever knew you had felt this way about your sisters and yourself was Yara. But Jungkook wasn't Yara. He was just a boy in high school who occasionally bumped into you in the hallways, never paying any mind to where he was going.

Hesitantly, you turned towards him, only to find him already looking at you. Suddenly, a wave of embarrassment washed over you.

"I told you it was dumb." You laughed nervously.

It wasn't that you cared much what Jungkook thought but you had a feeling a guy like him, who was popular and carefree, wouldn't be able to sympathize in the way you would like him to.

"No, I'm just… surprised, that's all."

Jungkook certainly was surprised. You had built up quite the impression on him from the very moment you two met. It was hard to imagine that the girl who was so unapologetically herself was ever unsure or insecure.

Somehow, the idea tugged at his heart, as if he understood you more if only just a little.

Entering the rink, Jungkook skated in smoothly, looking as laid back and natural as always. You raised an eyebrow, doubting that your entrance would be that seamless.

"Feet shoulder-width apart. Keep your knees slightly bent."

Realizing these were instructions, you frowned, walking over to the rink's entrance.

And sure as day, your first step onto the shiny wooden floor was a less of a step and more of a slip, your hands reaching out to grip onto the wall before your balance was completely thrown off.

Jungkook took his bottom lip into his mouth, trying his hardest to swallow down the chuckle that threatened to escape. Instead of laughing at your instability, however, he skated towards you, an amused glint behind his eyes.

"Don't be scared, I'll catch you if you fall."

You offered him a glare, "Thanks, meathead, but I don't plan on falling."

Mustering up your strength, you pushed yourself off the wall, taking a bold step forward. You hadn't wobbled more than two steps when you once again lost your balance, arms flailing around wildly as you tried to prevent yourself from toppling over.

Your feet slipped from underneath you, however, sending you flying backward. Before you could hit the ground though, a pair of arms found you, hoisting you up by the waist as your legs lay sprawled in front of you.

"C'mon now, stand up." Jungkook urged, causing you to let out a shaky breath. You thought your ass was grass for sure that time.

"Can't. It's useless. Just let go, Jungkook. I'll crawl my way off the rink." You shook your head.

Your savior laughed, "New plan. Hold onto me. We'll do a lap around the rink together until you can skate on your own."

Embarrassed, you agreed, carefully making your way back up into a standing position with Jungkook's help.

It certainly wasn't smooth. There was something incredibly unnatural about rollerskating; Jungkook had told you to pretend like you were a duck which only confused you more because not only were you not a duck but you hardly understand the logic behind his thinking as ducks, most certainly, did not know how to roller skate.

With hands wrapped around Jungkook's bicep, however, you found yourself making your first lap. There was one other couple on the rink skating alongside the two of you; they were young— probably still in high school, and you wondered for a moment if to them Jungkook and you actually looked like a real couple.

"What's your major? I just realized I never asked." You brought up casually, the song overhead coming to an end. Lights were hanging that projected down onto the wooden floor, moving around in tempo with the upbeat music that was playing.

If you could actually skate, you imagined this must be loads of fun.

"Exercise science." He told you.

You nodded, "Makes sense."

It was evident that Jungkook took good care of himself, even if you weren't holding onto his bicep, you'd be able to tell.

"What's yours?" He countered. "Biology?"

"Yep. I really wanted to major in Neuroscience but my scholarship wouldn't cover it."

"Oh, you're on a scholarship?"

"Yeah, it's how I'm paying for college, actually. My dad made it pretty clear early on that he wasn't paying for our college tuition." You explained.

"Could you guys not afford it?"

"Mm, well yeah money was a big part of it but he also doesn't really see the value in a college degree. He got a job without one. That's why I worked so hard in school. I knew I had to do well if I had any chance of getting into college—"

Your sentence fell flat as a loud yelp fell from you, stunned as you realized you had just slipped and fallen onto your ass.

Jungkook was doubled over in laughter, your shocked expression far too funny to hold back his amusement this time.

"What the hell! You said you would catch me!" You gaped, the sides of your mouth quirking up at the sound of Jungkook laughing harder, desperate gasps of air breaking through his giggles.

"Quit laughing, pea brain. I'll seriously dump your ass right here and right now if you don't help me back up."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" He snickered before moving over to help you up, his eyes watery and smile wide.

"This is so embarrassing…" You muttered under your breath, feeling unstable like a newborn deer.

Another chuckle found Jungkook, finding the way you were pouting sourly just too cute.

"If my ass bruises I'm going to be seriously pissed." You declared stubbornly, before intertwining your hand into Jungkook's.

Jungkook knew you were only doing so to ensure your balance but something about the gesture had his chest tightening in a way he didn't understand.

"So, uh, your siblings! They're all out of high school, right? What do they do?" Jungkook started suddenly, in an attempt to sway his thoughts.

You were humming along to whatever song was filling the room and Jungkook wished he was familiar with the tune so that he could hum along with you.

"Oh, Rosa is an intern for our hometown's newspaper but between you and me those assholes don't even let her write. She does coffee and burger runs for men in charge. And Lia sells ice cream at the mall."

"What about your brother?" Jungkook asked.

"He's training to be a cop just like my dad."

"And your mom?"

"She works at a convenience store."

And so the rest of the evening played out, the two of you sharing pleasantries and learning about one another, with only a few more falls on your part.

Jungkook told you his story, how he was an only child to a set of lawyer parents that let him do whatever he wanted as compensation for being so busy all the time. You bit your tongue but it made sense, considering his behavior in high school. Still, Jungkook turned out alright, you thought. Contract or not, you wouldn't willingly spend an evening falling on your ass with someone who wasn't at least a decent person.

You and Jungkook were sat at a table at the roller rink, a box of cheesy pizza set out in front of you.

"I don't understand. If you love film so much, then why aren't you majoring in it?"

"I don't know if I'm even any good at it. Just because I have a camera and like to use it doesn't make me a director." Jungkook shrugged in response.

"No, but if it makes you happy, then that's all that matters. If you love something and it inspires you then why wouldn't you do everything within your power to go after it?"

You had that look on you again. The kind of look that made Jungkook think that if he were to lean in close, he could see flames ablaze behind your eyes. It was the kind of look at sent his curiosity and admiration for you soaring.

"Isn't that lame? A guy majoring in the arts?" He asked, sounding uncertain.

You let out a grunt, growing frustrated with Jungkook's placid nature.

"What's lame is that anyone should have to be ashamed for doing what they love. Do you know how many times I get asked, 'Why biology? Why not education?' by my male professors? Fuck what anyone else thinks Jungkook! Do what makes you happy." You declared with a clenched fist, eyes glimmering with fervor.

You had gotten so worked up, Jungkook realized; he knew right then and there that you were speaking from the heart and that he was a lucky man to get to see you this way. Even if you had begun to shout and were scaring him slightly.

Turning away from you, the cool-headed boy ran his eyes over the room's walls, pausing only when he found a neon clock perched along one of them.

"What's wrong?" You wondered, following his eyes.

"October 16th, 1985. 6:48PM."

"Yes. That's today's date and time. What about it?" You pressed, growing confused.

"Remember it." He warned.

"Why?"

"It's when I fell in love with you."

Suddenly, you let out a laugh— it was the kind that comes out unexpectedly and makes a loud, unattractive noise and it surprised you both. Your hand clamped down over your mouth as if on impulse before your shocked expression broke, a cascade of giggles washed over you. Jungkook could only stare at you in bewildered awe, wondering if that wasn't the most beautiful sound he had ever heard.

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

Jungkook shifted back up on the bed, his back having grown sore. Pulling his notebook closer, he gripped his pen. Somewhere in the background, he could hear you muttering to yourself as you worked at your desk, knees pulled up to your chest where your chin could rest on top of them.

The two of you were doing homework in your dorm room, a common occurrence for the two of you nowadays.

Jungkook let himself spare you a glance from where he sat on your bed. You had thrown your hair up into a lazy bun earlier on, but now it would seem it that you had once again let your hair down.

You had the end of your pencil tucked between your lips, captivating Jungkook's attention for longer than he had intended.

Jungkook wasn't sure if it was safe to say that you were friends, mainly because of the contract that was holding the two of you together, but seeing as you two now spent nearly every afternoon together, he couldn't help but think he had whittled you down into tolerating him.

Not that you'd ever admit that, of course.

You let out an audible sigh, whatever task you were working on clearly giving you trouble as you tapped the end of your pencil against your bottom lip contemplatively.

"Break?" Jungkook called out lazily, tearing his eyes off from your lips.

Jungkook watched as you stared down at your textbook for a moment before ultimately swiveling your chair around to face him.

"Yeah, okay." You agreed, lugging yourself off your chair only to hop onto your bed, causing Jungkook to bounce slightly, the springs of your mattress protesting.

Face scrunching up, you brought your legs up onto the bed, extending them out in front of you to stretch out your stiff joints.

Jungkook couldn't help but grin slightly as your foot brushed against his knee. You were wearing your favorite pair of socks – they were a bright red and fluffy, a cartoon picture of Santa Claus knitted into each. Jungkook nearly lost a lung the first time he saw you wear them, but you were quick to defend them, saying that keeping your feet warm was always in season.

"I still can't believe you bought Christmas socks. It's not even Halloween." He began in an effort to make conversation. You rolled your eyes, smacking the side of your foot against his knee lightly.

"You act like I was actively searching to buy Christmas socks. I was on the hunt for fluffy socks and these just happened to be the fluffiest pair the store offered." You defended.

"I would gladly wear Halloween socks if I found fluffy ones." You added, bringing your offensive socks back over to you as you sat cross-legged.

"Speaking of Halloween," Jungkook began, eyeing you cautiously, "the party is in three days."

Cocking your head to the side, you contemplated today's date before concluding that the sweater-clad boy was correct.

"Oh shit."

"We need—"

"— costumes, yeah." You cut Jungkook off, nodding.

Jungkook blinked as he took in your words before shaking his head.

"No, I meant—"

"Yara suggested Bonnie and Clyde or Danny and Sandy from Grease but I don't really know how I feel about a couple's costume. Doesn't that seem too obvious like 'Hey, look at us! We're totally banging!' Do you know what I mean? Also, can we not just dress up as whatever we want to? Can couples really not do anything without each other? I remember whenever I showed up to a party without Erik, everyone would ask about him and why he didn't come. He didn't go because I didn't invite him, morons." You finished with an irritated huff.

"Woah, hold on... you went to parties?" Jungkook marveled, halting your ramble. "Also, who the hell is Erik?"

"My ex-boyfriend. And yes I went to parties. I was in a lot of school clubs and they threw parties sometimes." You shrugged.

"Oh. Nevermind, I thought you meant actual parties."

"Fuck you, asshole. Those were actual parties!" A surprised laugh tumbled out of you. "Anyway, we can go costume shopping tomorrow if you're free–"

"Y/N." Jungkook interrupted, a stern look on his face. You shut your once open mouth, flashing him a cautious look as you offered him your full attention.

"I'm going to kiss you."

Your body tensed in surprise, eyes going wide, "What?"

"At this party. I'm going to kiss you, remember?"

"Oh... Oh!" Your eyebrows raised as his words sunk in.

"Yeah." Jungkook nodded, reaching over to shut his notebook that was now going unused. He wasn't in the mood to study anymore.

"Okay, then. Lay it on me."

"Huh?"

"Kiss me now. Like a bandaid. C'mon, meathead, rip that sucker off." You ordered authoritatively, causing Jungkook to shake his head.

You certainly know how to set the mood.

"Fine." Jungkook mused dryly.

Your composure crumbled, however, as the handsome boy began to lean forward, eyes fixated on your lips.

"Wait!" You blurted, throwing your hands in front of you to halt Jungkook from coming any closer.

"What?" Jungkook pressed, looking slightly irritated.

"No... No, I'm just... I think I'm nervous." You blinked.

At your words, Jungkook's expression noticeably softened. You had this look on your face that he had never seen you wear before. You usually carried yourself with such self-assurance and confidence, but this version of you that was sitting in front of Jungkook... this you looked vulnerable.

"Why are you nervous?" He cooed.

"Because!" You huffed, not noticing the way Jungkook's eyes were set on yours gently. "I dunno, it's just... it's you I'm kissing."

"Is that a bad thing?" He asked.

A silent moment ticked past as you failed to respond immediately.

"...No."

"You hesitated." He glared, tone falling flatly.

"Well, I don't know! Who knows where that mouth has been?!" You accused, pointing a finger towards him. He smacked away your finger easily, a frown finding his face.

"Y/N."

"Sorry, sorry! I get mean when I feel threatened, it's like my defense mechanism." You apologized.

Jungkook chuckled, enjoying the inner turmoil you were clearly going through.

"Close your eyes."

You frowned at his words, knowing what doing so would entail.

"You're overthinking this. It's just a kiss. I don't bite, I promise." He teased cheesily.

You held his eyes for a moment. If there was anything you could give Jungkook credit for was the way he made even the most astronomically complex subject seem so simple, as if you were silly for even fretting over it in the first place.

Taking comfort in that thought, you let your eyes fall shut, hands finding purchase around the duvet you sat on.

You felt the mattress shift, your weight shifting forward as Jungkook moved closer, causing your heart to pound.

And then, he kissed you.

The kiss couldn't have lasted longer than a second, and you hardly had time to register the feeling before the sound of the mattress groaning as Jungkook shifting back into his original spot rang out.

You opened your eyes.

"Oh." You breathed.

"See? Was that as bad as you thought it would be?" Jungkook mused.

"You were right. I don't know why I had hyped this moment so much in my head." You shook your head, laughing lightly despite the way your heart had yet to calm down.

"Told ya."

You nodded, "I mean if anything that was super underwhelming."

"Yeah, like— Hey, hold on. I know it was just a peck but you don't have to phrase it like that, damn." Jungkook's eyebrows furrowed.

"No, it's a good thing!" You tried to reassure him, uncrossing your legs. "I think one of the reasons I was so nervous was because I was afraid the kiss was gonna be good but, nope! Totally ordinary!"

Jungkook let out a low hum. He knew what you meant but there was still something within him that couldn't help but feel bitter. He knew you would accredit it to what you liked to call his 'raging man pride' – whatever it was, it had him pouting without him even knowing.

"That offended you." You observed easily.

"No, it didn't." He brushed off.

"Yes it did, I can see it on your face. I've thrown your fragile man ego off balance and now you're insecure over your kissing abilities." You offered him a sympathetic look.

"Woah, woah, woah. You didn't do any of the sorts because my man ego isn't that easily toppled over, okay? I've got a rock-solid foundation, thank you very much." He scoffed defensively causing you to snort.

"And for your information, I can't be offended because it wasn't like I actually kissed you so suck on that."

You frowned on his words, "What do you mean you didn't actually kiss me?"

"Y/N, please. If I had kissed you like how I usually do it would've knocked you dead." He insisted, nose sticking up in a way that reminded you of Yara.

"What the hell? Why didn't you kiss me you usually do?" You replied sharply, catching Jungkook off guard.

"Uh..."

"Isn't that the whole point of this?" You continued, hand reaching over to flick at the tip of Jungkook's nose.

You held your glare as he flinched in surprise. A scowl took over him.

"What the hell was that for?! I didn't think–"

"I don't want to embarrass myself on Saturday. I need to make sure I know what I'm doing so don't half-ass things! Kiss me like you would your real girlfriend, dumbass!" You scolded, hand reaching over to place another attack against the boy's nose.

Before you got the chance, however, Jungkook's hand came up and wrapped itself around your wrist, stopping you. You attempted to pull back your trapped hand but Jungkook's grip was unforgiving, his dark stare locked onto you.

"What are you doing? Let go." You huffed.

"God, how am I meant to kiss you if you won't shut up."

You hardly had time to register his words when the hand around your wrist was used to yank you forward, Jungkook's mouth finding yours once again.

You were absolutely caught off guard, eyes held open in shock until the moment his other hand found your face, palm cupping your jaw as his fingers pressed into the bone softly, urging your head to tilt to meet his kiss better.

The hand that Jungkook still kept captive curled itself into a fist as you struggled to reciprocate his pace, taken off guard by his sudden vigor.

His lips were softer than you expected and you prayed that the hand that held your cheek wouldn't be able to feel the way your face was burning. The second he finally let go of your hands, you were quick to find purchase on the back of his shirt, gripping the fabric in hopes to give yourself something to hold onto as you lost yourself to the way your shared breaths filled the room every time your lips separated only to meet again immediately.

It wasn't until Jungkook's tongue ran against your bottom lip that reason finally took ahold of you. Pressing back against Jungkook's chest, you broke the passionate exchange, your wide eyes meeting his hazy ones.

"Something wrong?" He breathed heavily, his tongue darting out briefly to wet his bottom lip. The sight causes something in you to stir, so you turn your head to the side, choosing to stare at the wall across the room instead.

"N-Nothing. Just… I need to catch my breath is all." You lied.

It was more than that. This was precisely what you were afraid of. The kiss was good and it was making it very, very hard to want to continue keeping Jungkook at a respectable distance. You really didn't hate the kid and maybe if the circumstances were different the two of you would've gone on to be actual friends but you knew exactly how this was going to end. Jungkook and Kiri would get back together, you'd get your event and as much as you'd like to think Jungkook and you could continue on hanging out like this, you knew that was impossible. There was no way you could face Kiri after all this – not when you were the girl who was meant to be dating Jungkook all this time. You had helped him deceive her; watching and supporting Jungkook through a relationship built on lies was not exactly on your to-do list.

"Can I give you a hickey?"

Jungkook's words pulled you from your thoughts.

"Huh?" You replied, intelligently. That had been the absolute last thing you had been expecting to leave Jungkook's mouth.

"I know it's sometimes seen as a possessive thing so I, like, get why you wouldn't want one but it would definitely get the message across to everyone. If you're down, of course."

You could feel the urge to say no rise up your throat. Jungkook was right, hickeys seemed like a display of ownership – just a primitive way to claim someone as yours as if the emotional commitment wasn't enough. But there was something in the back of your head that was reasoning that he had a point. Furthermore, you could almost imagine the way Yara would be insisting you follow through with it if she were here right now and not in class.

God, she was going to lose her mind when you told her what had just gone down between you and Jungkook in your dorm room.

"Sure."

"Really?"

Jungkook's eyes were doe-like and you found it hard to face them.

"Y-Yeah, whatever, I don't care." You shrugged, hoping to give off an air of nonchalance.

"Wicked." He grinned boyishly, a hand coming down to push against your torso.

Your back met the bed and you didn't even have time to voice your confusion before Jungkook climbed over you, silencing your thoughts.

"Just easier this way." He told you, as if able to read your mind.

You feel yourself tense up as his lips meet your neck, pressing a cautionary kiss there.

"You don't have to be so stiff, I'll try to make it feel good." Jungkook leaned over to coo into your ear, causing a shiver to run over you.

You nodded, relaxing yourself the best you could as you tilted your head over to expose more of your neck to the awaiting boy.

You bit down on your lip, fighting down the sigh that threatened to spill from your mouth as Jungkook began to pepper kisses onto your neck, the feeling surprisingly pleasant. Your chest was rising and falling rhythmically, trying hold in your heart that threatened to leap out of it.

The feeling of Jungkook's tongue on your skin caused a small squeak to leave you, Jungkook taking the sensitive skin into his mouth to sucking at it. Before you could even think to stop yourself, one of your hands intertwined itself into his hair, tugging at it lightly as you felt his teeth scrape against your skin. To your disbelief, Jungkook let out a low grunt, sucking at your skin harder as if in retaliation. The noise echoed against your skin and, embarrassingly, you felt your nipples harden against the cup of your bra, a clear indication that you were getting aroused.

Shit. You were totally getting turned on; you could hardly thread together a single coherent thought and your whole body felt hot.

You tugged at Jungkook's scalp again without thinking and another noise of content left the curly-haired boy's mouth; you nearly threw out a sound of your own as he licked a hot stripe against the afflicted skin.

Before things could escalate any further, however, Jungkook pulled away from your neck, moving back to sit on his heels, his chest rising and falling unevenly.

"There. That should do it." He breathed out.

You sent him a small nod, eyes unable to pull away from the mouth that was just on you.

To say Jungkook's man ego was now pleased as hell would be an understatement. Your face was twisted in embarrassment, eyes watery and unable to meet Jungkook's the longer he stared. The left side of your neck had patches of pretty pink bruises etched into it and he couldn't deny the sick way his chest swelled with pride at knowing you would be wearing the marks he put on you.

"What?" You mumbled shyly, unable to stay still under his stare for much longer.

Jungkook was silent for a moment, lost in the dangerous thoughts his mind was filled with as he looked at the way you were laid out in front of him.

Finally, he shook his head as if to clear his mind.

"Nothing. Just admiring my work." He grinned sweetly before leaning over to press a chaste kiss onto your forehead, leaving you a hundred degrees warmer than you originally were.

[obxlife]

Worth It (John B x Reader)

A/N: Another John B request! I wanted to make this as long as my other fics (which means at least 3000 words) which is why I took so long to make this. HOWEVER, I liked how it turned out so I’m pretty happy. 

Pairing: John B x Reader

Word count: 3,409

Request: More John B??? I love your writing!! Where he gets jealous?? ily!❤️

Summary: John B and the reader have liked each other for a while now. It’s been one hell of a ride with unrequited (and requited feeling), but it ends one night with a broken nose and a jealous John B. 

Warnings: Nothing I think. Just some jealousy, alcohol, weed, swearing, and a lot of feelings lol

WORTH IT

The wind that swept through your hair was distracting. Not only to you but to John B as well. He didn’t seem able to concentrate on driving the HMS Pogue when you were sitting on the bow, rolling a blunt with JJ, and wind messing around with your tresses. He actually wasn’t able to concentrate on anything much when you were around him. 

He had met you in school. You were new to school because your father had lost a lot of money, which had caused you to leave the Kook Academy and transfer over to the public high school. Much to most of your classmate’s surprise, you weren’t as stuck up as they had expected. You were laid back and easy going, never bothered by things that occurred around you. Everyone quickly realized that you were as normal as everybody else. You loved surfing, you hated expensive outings and parties that were more about social power than socializing, and you hated Kooks. 

After all, you had been bullied by a large group of them for years. And they had also been the reason for your father’s downfall.

The Pogues had met you because you had been JJ’s lab partner during the first month of school. When he hadn’t shown up for the third time in a row, you had asked around about him and figured out just enough information to find him. That September morning you had busted inside of the Chateau and found John B and JJ smoking and drinking together. At first, you had been angry at JJ for not showing up for school as you had to do the past three graded worksheets by yourself, but soon enough you had relaxed along with them, drinking beer and smoking weed. 

From then on, you had forced them to go to school and then would return to the Chateau to smoke and hang out with them, plus Pope. Kie wasn’t around yet because she would normally only join the Pogues for the weekend. 

And so you became friends. You were motherly towards them but just as reckless as well. It was a strange combination that the Pogues didn’t understand but loved all the same. 

You liked how different and tight they were compared to everybody in the Kook world. Back then, when your family still had money, you had tried to make some friends but they had turned their backs on you once your family became poor. You didn’t mind that much. 

“Their loss,” you would tell yourself. And it really was their loss. They were now extremely jealous of how you spent your days with three of the most attractive boys on the island. 

Months and months went by with you as a part of the Pogues. With time, they began to trust you more and more. Pope told you about his scholarship opportunities and JJ told you about his father. Kie told you about Sarah Cameron and John B told you about his father. You, in turn, told them about how your family had lost their money. 

“We were swindled. The Thorntons stole a lot of money from us and had made a fake deal for my dad to sign. We lost most of what we had.”

The Pogues were silent, not really knowing how to comfort you. Feeling the tense air surrounding you, you smiled at them and said, “Something good came out of it.”

JJ quirked his eyebrow, smiling at you. “Really? What?”

“I’m never saying this again because it’s super cheesy,” you began, “But you guys. You’re the good in it.”

The Pogues had jumped onto you and piled on top of your body. Giggling and laughing, screaming, and shouting out of joy. 

And from then on you were officially a Pogue. Also from then on, John B hadn’t stopped thinking of you. 

Only then had he realized how much he had liked spending time with you. How much he liked being around you because you were such a positive influence on everything. How much he loved that you made every single one of the Pogues smile when you would burst inside of the Chateau with some brownies and beer. How much he hated when JJ would place an arm around your shoulder or waist. How much he hated when you and Pope would talk for hours on end about your science stuff that he just couldn’t bring himself to understand. How much he hated when you would speak about your random hookups with Tourons at the many keggers you had organized together. How much he loved when you would smile at him when he would make you feel better as if he and you were the only people around. How much he loved when you would play with his hair whenever you lay down on the hammock together or just took a seat around the bonfire next to each other. How much he loved when you were present, joking around with him about what stupid thing one of you had done. 

It hadn’t taken him much to come to accept his feelings for you. However, it took him a lot longer to ever confess to the other male Pogues about what he felt for you. 

“Man, what is up with you recently?” JJ had asked when you and Kie had left to help her father at his restaurant. John B had been in a pissy mood all day. He couldn’t shake the thought of you being flirty with JJ out on the marsh earlier or the fact that you had shared your beer with Pope and not him. Both of his friends had caught on to his anger but didn’t bring it up until they were alone. 

“Yeah, dude, why are you so mad?” Pope said while opening the fridge. He pulled out a water bottle for himself and a beer for the other two. JJ took it, but John B didn’t which caused the dark-skinned boy to drop it onto the counter. 

“Nothing,” John B had muttered not looking into their eyes. The other two had shared a look before charging towards John B and pushing him onto the pullout couch of the Chateau. 

“What the hell? Guys, stop!” He began to thrash around in an attempt to break free, but JJ and Pope held him down more forcefully. 

“C’mon, dude. Just tell us and we’ll let go!” the blond screamed. 

The fighting and struggling continued for a while longer until John B began to grow tired. Laying still, the other two boys moved back and stared at their friend. Then, he spoke:

“I like Y/N.”

JJ raised his eyebrows as Pope furrowed his. “Um, excuse me, what? Like as in more than a friend?”

John B simply nodded and raised his hands to his face. He didn’t feel like explaining himself to his other two friends. He didn’t want to admit that he was jealous of them because he knew that his jealousy was irrational. He had the same relationship they had with you.

“No way,” Pope shook his head. “What about no Pogue on Pogue macking?”

“Why do you think I haven’t done anything?”

Realizing how deep John B’s feelings ran, both boys had decided to pull back a bit from you. JJ would avoid flirting as much as possible, and Pope would maintain a bigger distance when speaking to you. John B was grateful for the support his friends were giving him. You, on the other hand, hated how you seemed to have suddenly grown distant from the boys. 

During one Kie’s shifts at the Wreck that you had gone to visit her, you confessed what you felt. 

“It’s as if, one day from another, they learned something about me that pushed them away!”

Kie stared at you, confused. “What do you mean? JJ seems just as close as he was to you a couple of weeks back.”

You groaned. “He is but at the same time he isn’t. Like, we still tease each other and speak about the things we used to, but now he won’t put his arm around me or anything. And Pope seems to stand twelve feet away from me at all times!”

Kie frowned at you. Now that she heard your complaints she realized that they were true. The following day she had done some snooping while you weren’t around and learned about John B’s crush on you. She had to almost torture Pope to get it out of him. 

“Damn it, Pope!” JJ had exclaimed when the dark-skinned boy had confessed what John B had told them just a few weeks prior. 

Kie never told you what she had learned that day and had only ushered you to ignore the boys and their weird behavior. 

It had been months since then and John B had not gotten over you one bit. In fact, he was pretty sure he was almost in love with you. Evidence? How distracted he was by the wind tossing your hair around. 

JJ had stood up from where he had been seated next to you, giving you the joint and walking up to John B. “Stop staring. You’re making it obvious.”

The whispers of his blond friend went one ear and out the other. JJ had to repeat himself for John B to actually process his words. 

“Oh, fuck off.”

*************************************

Organizing a kegger between the Pogues was something you liked. JJ, Pope, and John B would normally be in charge of getting the beer and some food for you guys while you and Kie would get the cups, ice, and any other items that may be needed. Oh, and Kie would force you to set up recycling bins with her across the beach, of course. 

So that was exactly what you were doing with her at the moment. She had noticed you had been a tad bit off all day and was meaning to ask you about it, but you had begun to work far away from her. She didn’t want to force it out of you, but she could only take so much tension. 

“Okay, what is going on with you?” she asked suddenly turning around towards you. 

Fuck, you thought. You had been acting differently for more than just that day. It had actually begun a few months ago when you had caught yourself staring at the long-haired boy of your friend group. John B had suddenly become extremely attractive to you, which was weird because you had never seen him in that light before. You had thought it had just been a passing thought, but you soon caught yourself thinking about him and imagining how his hand would feel in your own or how his lips would feel pressed against yours. 

You couldn’t understand where this feeling had appeared from, but it had. And you couldn’t do anything about it. You had tried to hook up with Tourons - even tried to hook up with JJ - but nothing worked. And no, JJ had not acted upon what you had wanted and yes, you had pretended as if you were too drunk to remember it the following day. 

John B had taken over your thoughts and you didn’t really like it. But this had been going on for too long, and maybe telling Kie would make you forget him. 

You had sighed and turned towards her, the wind pushing both your and her hair in the direction it was going. You had to confess to her, and this was the best moment possible. 

“I think I like John B.”

Kie had stared at you with disbelief at first, but soon she broke out in a smile. “Since when?”

You groaned, knowing that she would be asking questions. “Three months now.”

She looked as if she would combust with happiness. However, she just shut her mouth and said “Cool,” before turning around and continuing to set up the trash bins. 

You stared at her in bewilderment. No questions? Weird. You ignored your thoughts and continued to place the trash bins around the Boneyard. 

Soon enough you heard the boys approaching the logs where you and Kie were perched. You looked at John B, noticing his open Hawaiian shirt and his beige shorts. He looked really good, which put a smile on your face. You shook your head. 

“No Pogue on Pogue macking,” you told yourself under your breath. 

Smiling at them, they placed the keg down while Kie fished out five cups for all of you to drink. Filling them up and passing them around, JJ spent no time downing its contents and serving himself another. 

You were already dressed for the party, and John B took notice of how nice the clothes fit you. Your shorts were tight around your waist and they made him imagine how it would feel to loop his fingers through the belt loops and pull you close. 

You didn’t even notice his stare on you, too distracted by Pope telling you and Kie how the boys had almost been spotted by the police with the keg. After a while, you tuned to look at John B (who had stopped staring at you by now) to analyze his face. 

That’s it, you thought. I can’t be obsessed with him anymore. Tonight I’m hooking up with someone for sure.

***************************************

JJ was screaming again. He often did that at parties. 

You weren’t looking at him though, because you were concentrated on the boy beside you. You didn’t really remember his name but you knew he was an amazing kisser, judging by the activity you were both engaged in. His hands had been resting in your waist, but you felt them slowly slide down to your butt, pulling you closer to him.

John B wasn’t looking at JJ either, no. He was looking straight at you. Actually, he was staring straight at the boy’s hands and their placement on your body. Rage was coursing through him. All he had wanted to do since he had put his hand on your thigh was rip him away from you and throw him down a cliff or a long flight of stairs. 

However, he remained still, sipping on his drink and observing your every move. He hated this. He hated what he was feeling. 

Suddenly, and out of nowhere, the boy had raised his hand to your breast which made you pull away from him a little. You weren’t really comfortable with the fondling the boy was doing, but you forced yourself to continue kissing him.

John B’s knuckles were wrapped around his now crumpled plastic cup. They had turned white. He had noticed the discomfort on your face and was sure you were going to pull away from the boy, but instead you had continued kissing him. 

You tried to enjoy what the boy was doing, which you were sure you would have enjoyed had you not been practically in love with your best friend. You just couldn’t enjoy what he was doing. When the boy tried to slip his hand down your pants you drew the line. If he was going to try that then at least he could do it somewhere private and not in the middle of the party. The boy removed his hand and wrapped it around your waist. 

“Do you want to go somewhere else?”

You tried to say yes, you really did, but deep down you knew you didn’t want him. At all. 

“Um, actually, I wanted to stay here.”

The brow frowned, anger seeping into his eyes. “So what? You throw yourself onto me and then you don’t want to pull through?”

You shook your head, pressing your hands against his chest. “It’s not that -”

The boy pushed you so hard you fell onto the ground. “You bitch. You enjoyed that didn’t you?”

Before you could try to stand up and reply, John B had thrown a punch at the boy, hitting right on his nose. A sickening crack broke through the midnight air as the boy fell onto the ground. Hands grabbed onto your arms, pulling you up. JJ and Pope stood before you, covering you from John B and the guy you had been kissing. 

The boy turned around and got John B off of him and then raised his hands in surrender. 

“Don’t talk to her like that!” John screamed out, pointing at him. Then he turned around towards you, his eyes trained on your body as if looking for an injury. Then they rose to your face. His features softened as he pulled onto your hand and began to drag you away from the party. You didn’t dare say a word. 

“If you want that bitch, fine! But don’t be surprised when she doesn’t fuck you like the tease she is!”

Before John B could run back to him, the boy had been toppled back onto the ground by JJ and Pope. Watching the scene before you, you continued to tug onto John B’s hand so that he wouldn’t involve himself in the fight. You knew JJ and Pope could deal with the boy you had been kissing. 

When you had walked far enough away from the Boneyard, John B let go of your hand and stomped all the way to the Chateau. You had to run after him, as your legs were shorter than his, and almost crashed into the front door when you arrived. 

“John!” you called out for him. He was seething, pacing around before the pullout couch with his hands tugging on his hair. 

“Why would you do that?” he suddenly jumped at you. “Why would you put yourself in that situation?”

You felt tears prickle your eyes. He had never screamed at you before. He had always been soft and gentle with you. 

“Why would you let him touch you like that if you weren’t comfortable? I just don’t fucking get it!”

“Because I wanted to forget,” you tried to explain. 

“Forget what, exactly?” He was panting as he stopped moving and was turned towards you. 

“I - I was trying to forget you.”

His mouth opened wide, as well as his eyes. The shock the words you said left upon him made you worried. “And I tried to get over you so many times but I just couldn’t because you were -”

John was kissing you. He had run up to you and kissed you on the mouth. He had pulled you up from the ground and wrapped his arms around your waist and pressed his lips to yours, molding perfectly together. Your hands found his bare chest, slipping a little bit under his open Hawaiian shirt. 

Your tongues clashed together as one of your hands moved to his hair, brushing through his perfect locks. His hands moved down in a similar way that the boy from the party had moved his hands. They came to rest on your butt, but this time it didn’t make you uncomfortable at all. Instead, John B’s hands made you feel aroused in a way no one had made you feel. 

Breaking apart for some air, John B lunged at your neck as you let a moan out. However, before even being able to give you a hickey, the door of the Chateau burst open, revealing Pope, Kie, and JJ. They widened their eyes at the scene before them, shocked to find John B and you with surprised expressions and puffy lips. They closed the door again. 

The moment already broken, John B placed you back down on the floor, but he didn’t let you go. You were smiling up at him, eyes twinkling in the way he loved. 

“How long?” he asked. Somehow you knew he was asking how long you had liked him.

“Three months,” you replied, blush to rise to your cheeks because you were ashamed of how long your crush had lasted. 

John laughed and then said, “Don’t worry. I’ve liked you for like a year.”

You opened your mouth in shock. “Was that why JJ and Pope got all weird with me?”

John B nodded before laughing again and bringing you close to him. 

“I’m sorry if I put you through shit,” he told you sincerely. 

“I’m sorry. You must have had worse than tonight if you’ve liked me for that long.”

John B simply laughed and nodded. “Worth it though,” he mumbled as he pulled you close once again.

[mxtantrights]

˚ · · . · ✵ ✷PART TWENTY-FIVE

warnings: guns, Steve Harrington has music taste in this

HAWKINS,INDIANA

NOVEMBER 5, 1984

While the kids were fighting, and Mickey was ignoring me, me and Steve heard something in the far distance. Even had the weird moment where we looked at each other as soon as we heard it. We both took small steps from where the sound came form.

"You think that's it?" I ask him

He nods his head. "Guys!"

The kids stop their bickering and come over to us. The boys specifically.

Max is on the offense. I let the boys go ahead and jog over to her.

"Come on, neither of us have flashlights. We're safer with the idiots." I hold out my hand for her to take.

She takes it and jogs with me and we catch up with the boys. They keep on walking and walking until we get to  a hill. We can all see the foggy Hawkins area, but no Dart. Lucas uses his binoculars to get a better look.

"It's the lab." He tells all of us. "They were going back home."

But none of us were, it seemed like.

-

"Steve?" Both Nancy and Jonathan ask at the same time.

Steve looks at them both, "Nancy?"

Dustin and I both call out Jonathan.

Holy shit where has this guy been? Some crazy stuff has been going down and he hasn't been here? Even the stuff with his brother? Where was he this whole time?

They all start having a conversation but something in my mind is telling me to look around. Ir'a like one of those gut feelings. And so I do.

I look into the darkness and see that same lab Lucas was talking about.

What if I was born there? In that creepy lab where all these creepy monsters come from? And where El came from? I don't like lumping her together with those disgusting things but that is where she's from.

If that's where I'm from then-

That doesn't make any sense.

We lived in Odessa, Texas. We had a house and we knew people there. I can't be imaging that because my brothers know that too. It was real the life that I had back home was real. The scars I have on my knees from playing on the playground. My first kiss at the middle school dance.

I can remember it.

So why does this place make me ache?

"Jessie why are you staring?" I can feel Max shake my arm a bit to knock me out of it.

I shake my head and try to pry my eyes away from the lab. But it's too late and Mickey's in front of me- even though he was ignoring me. I can't lie to him anymore. I can't. He's part of the only family I trust and I'm not gonna push him away because I'm trying to protect him.

"All of this is crazy but- I'm connected to it somehow. I know it sounds crazy but you have to believe me." I say.

"The whole truth. Or everything you know. Now." My brother grabs my hand and squeezes it.

I feel a shiver go down my back as I look back at the lab. "There's this old photo of Dayton and our parents before I was born. They were here for some reason in Hawkins. And he said it was a year before I was born. I-I think I came from that lab."

"So you're like eleven?" Lucas asks, making me look at him. Looking at that place wasn't going to give me answers I so desperately needed. "So what were you doing in Texas?"  

I shrug my shoulders, putting my hand in my jacket pocket. "I don't know why we went back home. But I know that every birthday I've ever had is wiped from my memory. Every single year."

"What that's crazy! Why?" Max now asks.

"Because my mother," I sneak a glance at my brother to see his face change. I knew it. I'm breaking his heart. I'm screwing up his world. My heart feels like it's gonna jump out of my chest. "She's a part of this. Every birthday I've had, that I've forgotten, has been spent with her. She's the one who's doing this to me."

"But-" Lucas starts but he gets interrupted.

Steve cuts through. "Hey let her take a breath, alright?"

"Guys the powers back on."

-

We managed to get back to the Byers house. Managed being the operative word.

I stare out of the window. It's all I can do. I can't look at my brother. I can't look at Will. I can't look at anybody.

I'm the problem here. It's me.

Me being born started all of this. I mean my mother is to blame here to but if she didn't have me who knows what would've happened? Maybe my family would've been normal. Dayton would be a normal college student. My brother would be a regular kid.

They probably wouldn't have moved to Hawkins.

They would have all be normal.

And I wouldn't have this hatred for my mother.

Beyond that!

Everything is so screwed up.

Will is fighting for life again. There's more monsters just running around. El is no where to be found. I've broken my brother's life into pieces.

"Hey don't beat yourself up."

I don't have to look to know that it's Steve.

But I do.

His eyes look a bit puffy, nose red. He had been crying. Wasn't going to bring that up though. We've already been through enough to know not to poke around. Yet here he was trying to help me?

I run my hands over my face. "Everything is just really fucked up."

"That's an understatement." His snark catches me off guard, I almost have to laugh. "But we got through it last year."

I turn around and look at the scene in front of me. Mike, Max, Dustin, Mickey and Lucas at the table. Will on the couch unconscious. His brother and Nancy standing over him. I think Ms.Byers and Hopper are someplace else.

"Did we though? It doesn't feel like it." I wrap my arms around my body. "You don't have to play the check up game anymore Harrington."

"I'm not Jessie."

When I look at him he's already looking at me. I don't keep eye contact with him for a long time, I'm start to think about the things I was saying about him in my mind. Before he saved me and the kids tonight I really thought he was an asshole.

An asshole with layers maybe.

But nonetheless an asshole.

And now I don't know what to think.

I swallow the lump in my throat that I didn't know was there. "Okay Steve."

-

"None of this is real it's a kid's game." Hopper groans.

"Last year it helped us." I comment and Dustin thanks me.

I've never seen him like this. The first time I met him he wasn't happy go lucky but at least he could fake it. I guess now that the shit has hit the fan there is no more game of charades.

But also why wasn't he saying anything about El? The time for hiding her is over. We need all the help we can get and she's the only one I know that can take down a super monster like the Mind Flayer.

Hopper skips through the part of Dustin's analogy and starts talking about how to defeat the thing. Of course it is a kids game after all and the solution doesn't help us much.

Until Mike comes up with an idea of his own. Make Will unable to recognize his surroundings so that they can ask what the weakness of the Mind Flayer is. It's a brilliant plan. Something out of a science fiction movie really.

And then we're headed to work.

Everyone is in groups of sorts woking on something to help. Me and Mickey are gathering all the paper we can find and passing it around for everyone. He hasn't said a word to me since I partially explained what was going on with me.

He wasn't ignoring me, but he also wasn't all up in my face.

Absent minded-ly I start humming a song. It's stupid. I do it sometimes when I'm trying not to focus too much on something. Or when I'm doing my hair.

I don't notice Steve walk into the room where we are.

"Are you singing Donna Summer right now?" He asks.

I stop. "You were able to identify it quickly."

"Ju- keep going."

Just as I start up again I can hear someone else humming along with me. I know it's not Mickey or Steve. One because Mickey isn't too much into Donna and Steve just walked out the door. I lift my head up to look at the living room.

It was Max.

-

We all looked at the notepad to see what Will spelled out.

"Close Gate."

The phone rings.

We all run over but Dustin is the one to pick up the receiver and hang it up. My hearts still beating out of my chest though and it throws me for a loop when the phone rings again. Nancy doesn't waste any time as she throws the whole box down and it clatters to the floor.

"Do you think he heard that?" Max's voice asks all of us.

"It's just a phone. It could be anywhere. Right?" Steve answers but I don't think he's right.

I shake my head "Everyone knows the sound of their home phone."

Everything starts up again so fast. The kids all run to the window to see if any of the demo-dogs are coming our way. I take out my taser from my pocket and try to turn it on but it's out of juice. I put it down on the table and run over to the kids.

Just as I'm about to tell them to get away from the window, Hopper beats me to it.

They all back away and suddenly everyone is inside.

Hopper turns to Jonathan. "Do you know how to use this?"

"What?"

Jonathan definitely does not know how to use it.

"I got it." I reply quickly.

He tosses it to me and I turn the safety off, cock it too. I keep my eye on the door, making it my target with the shotgun. It wasn't my first time holding one of these. Dayton really did raise me.

There's screeching outside. And as quickly as it starts it ends because one of those demo-dogs is flying through the window. I move back making sure Mickey is behind me at all times.

Hopper nudges the thing to make sure it's dead.

Theres a sound from the door. I turn to it with my gun still raised. I see the lock literally un-lock itself. A couple of seconds later the chain is sliding itself too.

Miracles can happen right? If I were to wish it were El, the universe would grant me that wish right? Right?

"Wait." I alert them but I'm already putting my gun down.

The door creaks open slowly and I can see her. She's got a different look now. Still the same girl that saved us all that night. The blood running down her nose shows it.

[juleshq]

*  𝐡𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐠𝐨𝐬  here  and  do  i  have  the  tea  for  you  .  𝐉𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒 is  back  in  bridgehampton  for  the  summer  ,  living  off  the 𝐃𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐎 family  𝟐.𝟑 𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧  net  worth  .  must  be  nice  to  come  back  home  to  the  hamptons  ,  i  wonder  what  her  fellow  class  of  2017  grads  think  of  her  return  .  you  know  ,  she  was  known  around  town  as  the  𝐂𝐎𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄 and  for  bhs  senior  superlatives  pronouns  was  crowned  as  𝐌𝐎𝐒𝐓 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐎 𝐄𝐋𝐎𝐏𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐕𝐄𝐆𝐀𝐒 & 𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐃 .  i  wonder  if  that  still  holds  true  today  ,  a  lot  can  change  when  you  go  off  to  𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐃 𝐔𝐍𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐈𝐓𝐘 and  study  𝐁𝐈𝐎𝐋𝐎𝐆𝐘  .  either  way  ,  i  bet  she  is  still  very  𝐀𝐅𝐅𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐄 , 𝐃𝐄𝐕𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐃 , 𝐃𝐄𝐂𝐄𝐈𝐓𝐅𝐔𝐋 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐒𝐔𝐁𝐉𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄  . hopefully  this  time  next  year  the  plans  to  𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐌𝐄𝐃 𝐒𝐂𝐇𝐎𝐎𝐋 come  true  .  in  the  meantime  ,  i  look  forward  to  seeing  her  blast  𝐢 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐫 (𝐁𝐔𝐓 𝐈 𝐍𝐄𝐄𝐃 𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐂𝐄) 𝖇𝖞 𝐤𝐚𝐥𝐢 𝐮𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐬  at  every  hamptons  function  .  it’s  going  to  be  a  wild  summer  home  ,  welcome  back  .

i  don’t  think  i’ve  EVER  been  this  excited  to  plot  and interact with a group of people ,  u  all  seem  like  such  beaut  ppl  &  i’m  in  love  already  but   i’m  a  little  . . .  intimidated  ADFJH .  anyways  ,  i’m  not  going  to  ramble  bc  i’m  ready  to  get  down  to  business  ,  i’m  sammie  &  i  go  by  she  /  her  pronouns  !  under  the  cut  is  a  long  bio  on  jules !  i  will  GLADLY  give  you  a  synopsis  on  this  chaotic  mess  pls  just  ask  ,  HERE  is  her  pinterest  board  please  ignore  the  sudden  amount  of  pins  of  just  her  , also  i’m  down  to  plot  here  or  on  discord  ,  my  discord  is  @ᵘ ᵍᵒᵗ ᵃ ᵈᵒˡˡᵃʳ ?#3246  

* / BASICS

full name: juliana kaia dicaprio

nicknames: jules , julie / juli 

age & dob: twenty-one , august 14th , 1998

place of birth: long island , new york .

sexuality: heterosexual ( that she knows off )

bender: cisfemale

* /  MORE BASIC INFO

languages: english, french, some spanish.

religion: catholic

education: high school , majoring in biology at stanford

occupation: unemployed

drinks, smokes, & drugs: all of the above

* / PERSONALITY

zodiac sign: leo

likes: dark chocolate , tea in the morning , white roses , instigating bad situations , wine , black coffee , the smell of freshly brewed coffee , talking with strangers , long travels , adventures , being called “ angel ” , popcorn , quick tex responders , products made with silk , athletes , crime shows / films , crowded rooms , glitter .

dislikes: fake designer bags , people who don’t know how to lie , f , people who wear pearls regularly , long text messages , voicemails , men who are cheap , people who chew with their mouth open , humming ,  thrift shops , water-poof mascara , the smell of grass , extensive planning , and arrogance & stupidity combined .

bad habits: breaking promises to herself & others , not thinking before doing , fixating with her hair when nervous .

secret talent: juggling

fears: aging terribly , being widowed , drowning , being buried alive .

positive traits: alluring , convincing , affectionate , ambitious / devoted , systematic .

negative traits: manipulative , conniving , deceitful , dishonest , subjective .

* / APPEARANCE

tattoos: dagger on right index finger , “ devil ” on left index finger .

piercings: three in each ear , cartilage .

* / FAMILY INFO.

parent names: claire boucher & david dicaprio .

parent relationship: divorced .

sibling names: annalise , ashton , keller , & wade .

sibling relationship: step siblings & half .

children: none .

pets: 2 family dogs on her moms side.

* / BIOGRAPHY

i’m sorry it got long

             𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐈𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐘𝐋𝐄𝐑’s entire childhood was spent in the spotlight -- her father was a huge rockstar in the 70's & 80's, and her mother a model . Claire spent her childhood between Florida , California , and New York , attending red carpets , premieres , etc. Claire attended Stanford to obtain a bachelor in science but was in and out of modeling in her teens and early twenties .

            𝐃𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐃 𝐃𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐎  lived an affluent life more under the radar . His grandfather is CEO of JD banking , one of the four largest banks in the world . He attended Princeton as the rest of his family did . He got involved in the company business at a very young age as did his brothers , but went on to become the new CEO after his fathers unfortunate passing in 2002 .

            𝐉𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒 was and will forever be her parents pride & joy . her parents were high school sweethearts & got married young -- at a twenty-two / twenty-three . they had been trying for two years to start their own family but jules’ mother struggled . thanksgiving in the hamptons , a dicaprio family tradition the day is engraved in her mothers memory , in 1997 , they announced to their family that after years of trying , they were pregnant .

            𝐉𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒 grew up completely pampered ; bi-weekly trips to the nail salon with her mother and annual father-daughter trips . her mother was her best friend until she began morphing jules into what she thought was perfect . making sure she spoke at least one other language , was active in school , extracurriculars , how she presented herself . her mother cared about image due to her own childhood of growing up in the spotlight . besides the near brainwash to fit her mother’s image of perfect , everything was ideal &  ‘ normal ’ up until the summer before her freshman year of high school . her mother discovered the affair her father had been having for months with a woman he did business with . he claimed it was due to the fact that jules’ mother had returned to some normalcy and wanted to work again , modeling and doing some traveling , therefore he ‘ just missed her around ’ . jules was aware of everything going on  , heard the countless nights they spent arguing in the opposite wing of the house , she picked up on her father being late to family dinner because “ he had work to do ” . her parents tried their best to keep her in the dark for the sake of her sanity , innocence , and view on her father . jules went along with it all , the daddy’s girl in her was in denial for all of the months leading up to their divorce . at the end , her mother got full custody of her .

             𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐈𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐂𝐄 came two “ yes ” parents . everything became a competition between the two , trying to one up the other ; who took jules on the better summer vacation , had the most over the top christmas morning , etc . it  was insanely manipulative & jules there wasn’t a time period where jules felt more alone ; not having a sibling to relate to , she was embarassed to tell her peers the real reason why her parents split , it was so cliché . both parents didn’t take too long to remarry , her father found another stay-at-home wife and her mother lucked out with a lawyer ten years older than she . her step-father had two daughtes & son with whom jules hated in the beginning – it  was a lot to take in and she was used to being the only child . her father went on to have a child with his new wife two years after their marriage . it was all an immense amount of change within seven years .

              𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐄 for jules had been constantly changing since the news of her father’s affair , she’d spend her summers & holiday’s going back & forth between each parents in the hamptons until her father moved to calabasas to be closer to his wife’s family as soon as the baby was born . jules had always been a wild , reckless child at heart and the divorce between her parents only allowed her to push her limits even more . the two-three years her parents spent processing their divorce were her golden years -- she could not get in trouble with her parents and they never got upset with her . she took advantage of it all and abused drinking , hanging out with boys , you name it . she loved the attention she received from any male figure -- it made up for the lack of attention she was getting from her father once he got the boot .

              𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐆𝐄 was where jules found her safe space ; she could be her wild self , far away from home and only a five hour drive from her father that she still rarely sees . she joined a sorority , joined the exec board , was forced to join french club by her mother , all while maintaining a 4.08 gpa .

           *  ` 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐘 𝐖𝐈𝐒𝐄 jules has always been a wild child . she’s always had a desire for attention , all eyes & attention on her , though the B I R T H of her uncontrollable desire for attention from males stemmed after her parents divorce . the lack of attention from her father allowed her to realize her dad wasn’t the only one who could spoil her & every man was basically the same . she’s not super close with either of her dads at the moment and sees her father about three times a year , two of which are holidays & every now and then the spontaneous visit from him in cali .  

          𝐉𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒 is a h u g e  cry baby in the sense that she hates not getting what she wants . its not on purpose most of the time , it’s the way she was raised and the nature of her parents . she’s never had to ask for anything twice & hates doing so . though she’s a huge cry baby , she will try her best to mask her actual tears . she does a good job of seeming innocent , she’s that one friend that is super sus & lies a lot & keeps secrets but somehow is so good at convincing people other wise ? she’s a huge flirt , even when she’s not doing it on purpose , it’s sort of a weird practice or habit she’s grown into ? she feels empowered in the weirdest way of owning men and being able to form their opinion of her for them , this stems from her newly founded daddy issues  it’s more so due to the fact that her relationship with her father began to diminish once he moved out . she is & has been on her “ fuck love ” rampage .

       𝐒𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 do whatever she wants and will hide her bad intentions . she lives for chaos , loves enjoys pushing limits & boundaries . she loves a game of cat & mouse / teasing just knowing she has someone in her grip is what helps her sleep at night . she is a bit crazy . . .  the type to watch someone’s snap score go up . def that type to block and unblock someone 238473 timES . she has an underlying need of approval from others and she almost needs to be liked by everyone she meets .

     𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘 she wants to model & be a playboy bunny BUT her dad would literally disown her if she didn’t follow her family legacy and attend stanford or yale to use her brains for good . she’s in school to be a pediatrician because at the end of the day she loves children and always wanted to seek a job in the healthcare field . she has plans to attend yale’s medical school after her senior year is complete at stanford .

i really based her off of american beauty & angela in the movie ( if you’ve seen it omg ily ) g

[vagrantblvrd]

Everything Under the Sun (1/1)

Summary: Ryan does odd jobs for Gavin every so often. He’ll get texts with nothing more than an address and be expected to know what to do from there.

Notes: Because reasons.

(Read on AO3)

Ryan does odd jobs for Gavin every so often. He’ll get texts with nothing more than an address and be expected to know what to do from there.

Anyone else, and he could ignore those texts. Pretend he missed them while out and about on other jobs. Paying jobs, mind you, because Ryan needs to pay his bills, buy groceries, a million other little things, but he never does. (Anymore, at least.)

Ryan’s learned if something has managed to catch and hold Gavin’s interest, it’s important.

“Got a new job from Gavin,” Ryan says, glances over to where his roommate is curled up the couch. “You interested?”

The wolf lifts its head, lips curling up over its fangs.

Ryan doesn’t know why the damn thing chooses to live with him rather than stay with Gavin at that ridiculously large estate of his, but here they are.

Although to be fair, Gavin is trouble. Lives and breathes it like no one else Ryan knows and people in his orbit get caught up in it like breathing.

Hell, try to keep your distance the way Ryan did at first and you find yourself in trouble before you know it, and by the time you realize why you’re already past the point of no return. (It’s too late for Ryan, but maybe the wolf still has a chance.)

Ryan cocks his head, raises an eyebrow because the wolf is smarter than this, than him. Knows better than to blindly go along with whatever Gavin wants, and yet -

The wolf growls at him, annoyed that Ryan’s second-guessing it and Ryan doesn’t laugh, no. (That’s never a bright idea, because wolf, but he grins to himself because they’re both idiots, aren’t they.)

Ryan gets up to collect his wallet, keys. The jacket he tossed somewhere after a rough night.

Behind him Ryan hears the wolf hop off the couch, the click of nails on hardwood floors as it trails after him to the modest armory to decide what weapons to bring along.

A gun, because Los Santos is home to all sorts, supernatural and the more mundane. Throwing knives for that extra flair, non-throwing knife just in case, and okay, another gun because why not, and Ryan has so many. (He makes light of it as he selects each one, but the sobering truth is there’s a lingering ache in his ribs from the last time he did a favor for Gavin, and there’s no such thing as overkill in this city.)

“What do you think?” Ryan asks, checking to make sure his weapons aren’t noticeable.

Well, certain ones, at any rate.

The Vagabond has a reputation to uphold and people get uneasy when they can’t spot weapons on him.

The wolf snorts, unimpressed as always, and trots off towards the door. Not eager to get to get to business so much as annoyed at being handed another mysterious job from Gavin.

“Hey, thanks!” Ryan calls after it, and grabs another knife before he locks the armory up, just for luck.

========

Ryan’s human. (Mostly.)

Meets the main criteria at any rate.

He’s soft and squishy, bleeds red. Has breath in his lungs and a heartbeat in his chest, but things get a little weird on him after that.

Humans aren’t the only beings that are soft and squishy, it just depends on how you define ‘soft and squishy’, and the same goes for bleeding red. (Something, something, science, look it up.)

The whole breathing thing is fairly common, and again, science things. Most things that breathe have hearts and therefore heartbeats (science?), but that’s also where things get tricky.

Because that heartbeat of Ryan’s?  

It echoes the one he can feel under his feet sometimes, strong and steady and goddamned old.

Sunk deep in the earth beneath the streets of Los Santos and it never falters even under the worst circumstances. Ryan likes to use it to ground himself when things get weird(er), and is aware that being able to feel a city’s heartbeat is one of those Weird Things. (He’s a hypocrite, live with it.)

There’s nothing special about Ryan, except for the things that are.

Might seem strange, given the amount of people, beings, he’s run into who hiss and make warding signs at him when their paths cross. The ones who tell him death follows him as though he has no idea. As though he doesn’t visit it on the deserving every chance he gets, but that’s life for you.

Somewhere along the way he started painting a skull on his face and wearing a mask to match because death is in his blood, no matter how many generations back it goes. (His sense of humor has always been dark.)

Ryan’s human (mostly), but he fits in with the monsters and worse that have taken refuge in Los Santos far better than anywhere else he’s been, and that suits him just fine.

========

Gavin’s text takes them to an old warehouse by the docks, because of course it does.

Seedy looking place that has the wolf growling the moment it jumps out of the car. Amber eyes finding Ryan’s as it scents the air, ears going back.

“Yeah,” Ryan says, sinking feeling in his gut because for all that Gavin likes to play coy about things, he’s a predictable bastard. “I know, buddy. I know.”

Ryan knows sometimes, what a place is even before he sees the evidence for himself. Gets a feel for it, negative energy sunk into its foundation over time. (He doesn’t like to call it an aura, because that pulls out the skeptical looks like nothing else, but it is what it is.)

It’s all part of the same thing that lets him feel a city’s heartbeat, and the occasional head’s up about a situation before shit goes wrong on him. (Again, he doesn’t like to call it intuition or a premonition because for all that Los Santos is full of the otherworldly some things still get a sideways look, have people wondering if you’re just good at faking like you belong here.)

Then again, it could be the way people just do things without realizing it. Copying what they’ve seen work elsewhere, piggybacking on someone else’s trial and error and hard work because why fix it if it isn’t broken? Unconscious choice perhaps, but he’s seen it enough to recognize the patterns people fall into.

And this place -

Ryan’s seen others like it before. All over Los Santos, other cities and places he’s been.

Varies from place to place, city to city. Whatever people think they can get away with. From throwing animals or people into the ring to fight for the audience’s entertainment to here where some people are both depending on the cycle of the moon and so on.

The best ones police themselves, when it comes down to it. Operate by a set of rules governed by morals, but those are few and far between here in Los Santos.

Result in things like the wolf at his side, scarred up and fucked up, a lot of anger to it still.

Place like this, there are no rules, which means you get people, beings, trapped by some contract or other. (Worse, most of the time, and only one way out for them.)

Assholes who run places like this love going after the lost and the hopeless, and too often that means people with a little magic in their blood. Offer them food in their bellies and a roof over their head. Have them sign a contract and never mind the fine print, they’ll go over it later, promise. (They fight harder, heal faster. Draw in the crowds when the assholes running the place pitch the fights as wild, exotic, and rake in the rewards.)

Wrap collars and chains around their necks and lock them into a life of pain and suffering, just so rich assholes get a taste of something exciting without having to sacrifice anything on their end.

The wolf snarls, raw, angry, and Ryan’s gut twists when it ends in a low whine almost too soft to hear.

“You can stay with the car,” Ryan offers, even though he knows the wolf won’t go for it. “God knows I don’t like leaving it out here.”

It’s a pretty little thing, gift from Gavin way back when for services rendered dealing with a little problem of his. All kinds of magics woven into it over the years from Gavin and the Twins.

Protective wards. Things meant to keep him as safe as he can be in a city like this, but Gavin’s a menace and the Twins are almost as bad as he is and toss in little oddities here and there to keep things interesting. (He’d rather they didn’t because their definition of ‘interesting’ differs from his, but again, menaces.)

Ryan’s gotten attached to it, grown fond, and it responds in kind. Stubborn thing, metal warm under his hand even on the coldest days Los Santos has to offer. (Low purr of its engine in the back of his head that’s friendly and affectionate, got this little curl of a smile from Gavin the first time Ryan asked about it, so Ryan figures it can’t be a bad thing.)

The wolf cocks its head, eyes narrowing, and then huffs, Shows off its fangs with a little snarl and trots on ahead of Ryan. Stops a few feet away and looks back as if its wondering why the hell Ryan’s just lollygagging about like that when there’s work to be done. (Gavin never sends them out without a reason.)

“Okay, okay,” Ryan mutters, and hurries to catch up.

========

The wolf sticks close to Ryan one they get inside, head up, ears flicking back and forth as it pads over to watch a kid in the ring.

Short guy, wild grin on his face and manic energy to him. He’s up against someone twice his size with this gray-green tinge to his skin that hints at orc or ogre blood in the family tree somewhere, but the kid doesn’t seem intimidated in the least.

Just grins wider as he pushes himself back to his feet with a taunt ready to go, never mind the nasty hit he just took. (There’s a chain around the kid’s neck, shines silver under the light and angry red marks under that goes a long way to explain what someone like him is doing in a place like this.)

The wolf growls, and Ryan glances down when it presses against his leg, feels the anger running through it to cover the fear and dread.

“Yeah,” Ryan says again, answering anger in his chest because he knows why Gavin sent them here. “What do you say we pay the asshole running this place a visit, huh?”

Ryan’s made more of a name for himself since the wolf came along than he ever did when it was just him and his mask roaming the streets of Los Santos.

People in Los Santos know Ryan works for Gavin from time to time, knows the wolf’s part and parcel of that. Know goddamn well the kind of trouble to expect whenever the two of them darken their doorstep.

Ryan catches the eye of the bruiser running security. Gives him this little look, and the guy pushes off from the wall he’s leaning against to take them to his boss.

Stops just outside a door and puts a hand on Ryan’s chest and looks pointedly at the wolf.

The wolf snaps its teeth at him and gives him a warning growl.

“Trust me,” Ryan says, showing some teeth himself. “The wolf won’t be the problem here.”

You’d think it would be, wouldn’t you. Big bastard, all scarred up from past fights and this glint in its eyes like it’s just waiting for the right moment to rip your throat out, but you’d be wrong.

The guy looks Ryan over, mouth turning down as he thinks better of challenging the two of them.

The wolf dismisses the guy with a flick of its ears, gives Ryan this look like he doesn’t know why they’re wasting their precious time like this.

“We’ve got it from here,” Ryan says, and gives a perfunctory knock on the door before pushing it open.

There’s another goon inside.

Bigger, dumber than the one who escorted Ryan and the wolf up here and he’s sporting a shiny little gun in a fancy holster.

Not shy about it, and Ryan watches as the guy goes for it before a curt order from his boss stops him.

Ryan recognizes the voice, knows who it is before he looks over to see a mousy little man in a bad suit. Balding already even though he can’t be a day over thirty and this scar on his cheek from a past encounter.

“Corbin,” Ryan says. “Why am I not surprised to see you here?”

Corbin’s a slippery bastard, has a lot of powerful friends around the city and isn’t shy about calling on them for help when he lands himself in trouble. Earns his keep by overseeing the business side of things for his buddies, makes sure they earn profits from other people’s suffering.

Doesn’t like to get his hands dirty when he can delegate, and clever about it.

It wasn’t that long ago when Ryan let him live to deliver a message to his bosses. Another ring like this one up north, small dirty thing in an old barn and just pulling in enough money to keep the place running.

“Vagabond,” he says, eyes flicking to the wolf beside Ryan. “And his stray.”

The wolf growls, low in its chest. A warning, watch your mouth ad no mystery what happens if he doesn’t.

Ryan and Corbin have a little stare-down, the wolf watching silently. Doesn’t know that Ryan and Corbin have history, used to work for the same people way back when. (Both of them younger and stupider and Ryan  new enough to the city to think Corbin was someone he could trust.)

Ryan cocks his head and Corbin sighs.

Knows if Ryan and the wolf are here there’s a reason for it. (And the reason’s name is Gavin.)

“One of these days, Vagabond,” Corbin says, leaning forward in his seat. Ready to make a deal because his current boss knew Ryan would come sniffing around because Ryan’s gotten predictable about these kinds of things. “One of these days my clients won’t back down.”

Oh, Ryan knows.

Most of Corbin’s clients are idiots, but they’re smart enough to know when to pick their battles.

Places like this aren’t worth losing their people over. (They bring in money, sure, but not as much as their other operations. Figure throwing the likes of Ryan a bone like this will tide him over.)

The wolf snarls, out of the loop when it comes to Ryan and Corbin and this little dance they’ve been doing for years now because Corbin is a goddamned cockroach.

Corbin glances at the wolf, mouth pulling into a pained grimace.

“What do you and your...friend want?” he asks, impatience beating out his usual arrogance and smugness.

Ryan glances past Corbin at the window overlooking the ring where the kid’s picking himself up again. Mouth moving as he goes for what Ryan can only assume is another taunt as he wipes blood off his chin, cocky grin and so goddamned stupid it hurts.

He thinks about Corbin’s question for a moment, like there’s anything to> think about.

Not with Gavin’s text and the idiot kid in the ring. What he and the wolf have seen of this place so far. The fact Corbin’s even here.

As much as Ryan would love to burn this place to the ground on principle, he doesn’t want to kick off a war. (Bloody, messy, and too much risk of pulling bystanders into it.)

They have Gavin’s backing on this, but they’re still vulnerable as these things go. Can only push so hard until something gives, and Ryan’s learned to be smart about these things.

“Well, since you ask so nicely,” Ryan says, nods toward the ring where the kid’s dancing around his opponent, laughing like an idiot as he goads him into attacking. “His contract would be a good place to start.”

========

Corbin sends two of his lackeys with Ryan and the wolf when they go to get the kid. Escorts them to the locker rooms so they don’t get lost along the way.

When they step into the locker room where the kid’s been sent, another one of Corbin's lackeys is threatening the kid.

They’re too far away for Ryan to make out what’s being said, but the wolf does. (Or maybe it’s the sight of the burly guy with the knife in his hand with the kid backed into a corner that sets the wolf off, Ryan doesn’t need an explanation in a place like this.)

The wolf’s moving before Ryan can get a word out. Deep-throated growl that shifts into a more human sounding snarl of rage that echoes against the walls as he darts past Ryan. Clawed hand brushing against Ryan’s side and lackey’s startled cry as the wolf pins the lackey to the wall, one of Ryan’s guns pressed under his chin and the room goes silent.

Takes a few seconds for it to happen, human reflexes too damn slow by far to keep up and the wolf grins, vicious little thing with his teeth on display.

Ryan glances at the lackeys who escorted them down here. Hands on their guns and spooked as hell, but smart enough not to draw down on the wolf. (Yet.)

The kid’s staring, wide eyes and open-mouthed. His hands make this aborted motion like he wants to reach out to the wolf but isn’t sure he should, that he’s allowed, and shrinks in on himself. (Darts Ryan this look from the corner of his eye.)

Ryan steps forward, moves into the wolf’s peripheral.

“Michael,” Ryan says, low, quiet.

Never an order with him, because bullheaded as he is Michael won’t listen.

Will snap and snarl and bite the hand that feeds just to prove he can, that the collar someone wrapped around his throat all that time ago thinking they could control him isn’t there anymore.

“Uh,” the kid says, shooting Ryan a nervous look when Ryan waits for Michael to decide how this plays out. “Hey, pal. I appreciate the gesture, but you’d just be making so much work fr the cleaning crew, you know? All that blood, and let’s not even get into him pissing himself...”

It works. The meandering babbling coming out of the kid’s mouth Ryan wasn’t going to mention it, but the kid’s right. The lackey’s terrified, and rightfully so, because Michael's been in places like this before. Wore a collar around his neck like the one the kid’s sporting and treated like nothing more than a rabid animal.

He has no tolerance for people like these, but where he’d ignore Ryan he’s listening to the kid. Head cocked, grip on the lackey easing up enough for the idiot to pull in a full breath instead of the wheezing gasps Michael allowed him.

Ryan watches the kid as he talks Michael down, voice pitched low, soothing, as he inches closer to him. Reaches out to rest a hand on his shoulder, simple touch not meant to hurt. (To ground Michael.)

“C’mon, buddy,” the kid says, light tone because hey everything’s fine here, no need to kill this moron. “Guy’s not worth it.”

The kid says it like he means it, but the look on his face says differently.

Michael has to know, smell it on him, but the kid’s still working on talking him down because he’s smart enough to know the odds aren’t great for them.

Even with Gavin’s backing, they won’t make it a step past the locker room before Corbin’s people cut them down. (Pride’s a bitch like that, will make people fight a war neither side will call a victory when the dust settles.)

“Next time,” Ryan says, shows his own teeth when the other lackeys jerk towards him like they’d forgotten about him.

He gets it, he does.

Ryan’s human (mostly), and they’ve been trained to focus on the more immediate threat of a shifter like Michael, the kid. All the other poor bastards they push into the ring night after night for the sake of entertainment.

They forget, though, that Ryan’s got a reputation of his own that Gavin has nothing to do with. One that  gets overlooked in a city like Los Santos with all the things that go bump in the dark.

Forget what they’re capable of themselves, all kinds of atrocities humans think up on their own in broad daylight and see no problem with.

Michael snarls, shoves the lackey into the wall hard enough for his head to bounce against the tile and lets the asshole go. Flashes Ryan an indecipherable look before he tosses his gun to him and stalks off.

Ryan lets him go – couldn’t stop him even if he wanted – and looks at the kid.

“Grab your stuff,” he says, and shows his teeth when the lackeys look like they have something to say to that after Michael’s show. “We’ve got places to be.”

========

Gavin’s estate is in the hills above Los Santos. Large sprawling thing that backs up into a wooded area. Goes on for a significant distance, kind of real estate developers drool over but no one comes knocking on Gavin’s door hoping to make a deal.

“What the fuck is that?”

First thing the kid’s said on the drive out here.

Scrunched up looking as small and harmless looking in the back of Ryan’s car as he can while Michael scowled out his window, wind ruffling his fur. (There’s a reason Michael prefers his four-footed form these days, and Ryan just goes along with it because that’s none of his business.)

“It’s a dragon,” Ryan says, shadow falling over his car as they make their way up the winding driveway to the ridiculously huge house Gavin lives in. “Never seen one before?”

Broad-winged bastard from across the ocean, young for his kind, maybe, but still damn impressive.

Reckless, to have settled so close to humans. Fond of them in ways he shouldn’t be and breaking dragon etiquette all over the place. (To hear him tell it is why he picked America, found his way to Los Santos.)

He’s waiting by the house (mansion, really) when they pull up to it, two small specks of black on either shoulder in Trevor and Alfredo.

Ryan’s not sure if it’s luck or sheer coincidence they got here just as the three of them finished a flight, or if it’s something Gavin planned. (Likes to play these little games, Gavin does.)

“Uh….” the kid says, like he’s wondering if he’s any better off with his new situation or not. “What the fuck?”

Dragons are rare enough these days, all the old stories about them stealing princesses away and the knights tasked with killing them to save said princesses. Magical healing properties of their horns, their scales. Blood and talons and God knows what else and no reason they went into hiding so long ago.

Gavin took a risk making his presence known in Los Santos, but he has powerful allies in the city and beyond. The kind that make even the most ruthless here in Los Santos think twice.)

He’s a broker of sorts, has the Twin gather information for him and a network of contacts all over the city. Made himself indispensable, useful, enough that people don’t think to ask why he came to Los Santos to begin with. Why he’s set up shop overlooking the city, who sent him.

Michael snarls, pawing at the door handles to get his door open. It takes him a few tries, but Ryan knows better than to offer to help him, and he and the kid watch as Michael jumps out of the car to run up to Gavin.

Big bastard who towers over them, and there Michael is snapping and snarling at him while Gavin laughs at him, little hissing noises and small fluttering motions with his wings. Tip of his tail flicking like a cat’s.

The sight used to be cause for concern for Ryan, used to make him feel uneasy because dragons are...they’re on another level to most beings Ryan’s met over the years. Clever assholes with schemes and agendas all their own.

Ryan bites back a laugh when the kid mutters something that sounds a hell of a lot like what the fuck is my life?

========

“You know,” Ryan says, can of diet soda in hand and this mild sense of bewilderment at why the hell he keeps working for an asshole like Gavin. “You could have just told us.”

Would have been nice to know what he and Michael would be walking into, just this once.

Gavin hmms, gleam in his eye and this little curl to his mouth.

Back in his human form, shiny bits of gold and jewels, because it’s Gavin. (There’s the whole thing where he’s a dragon and it’s expected, but mostly it’s just...Gavin.)

“Where’s the fun in that, Ryan?” he asks, turning back to watch the wolves chasing each other, Trevor and Alfredo heckling them from the safety of the trees.

The kid – Jeremy – was on his best behavior, like he thought they’d throw him back into the ring if he stepped out of line, and Michael wasn’t having it. (Not when he knew why the kid is so skittish about that.)

Stood by while introductions were made and Gavin extended his usual offer to Jeremy. (Always sounds too good to be true, which is why Ryan keeps getting new roommates out things like they think he’s a safer bet than Gavin.)

The moment Gavin was done talking, Michael bullied Jeremy (gently) into shifting. He was nervous, awkward about it, like he wasn’t used to it.

Clumsy on four legs and stumbling after Michael at first, gaining confidence when Michael nudged him along until he got him to play. Chase him through the wooded area, a higher level of tag for a pair of werewolves like them. Tumbling him whenever he caught up to him, play-fighting and safe.

Ryan takes a sip of his drink, because he’s had this talk with Gavin before.

Gone round and round about it and Gavin either playing dumb or having no damn clue what Ryan’s talking about when he tells him Gavin is an asshole about things. (Michael’s tried the same, and gotten just as far as Ryan has, which is nowhere.)

“You and I have different definitions of what ‘fun’ means,” Ryan says.

Gavin laughs, and is absolutely not being a smug bastard about things.

New member for this odd pack he’s been building out here and this smirk whenever Ryan asks him about it. (Says things like ”it’s a secret”, and ”just you wait”, and ”oh, Ryan, it will be so much fun once everyone’s here.”)

It should worry Ryan more than it does, but for whatever reason he trusts Gavin. (Possible mistake, but Ryan likes to think he’s a decent judge of character.)

“Yes, well,” Gavin says, and shrugs as though that’s any kind of answer. “You’re still here aren’t you?”

Ryan doesn’t know if Gavin means Los Santos in general or the estate, but he does have a point.

“Maybe I’m just biding my time,” Ryan points out, because like hell will he let Gavin be right about everything.

========

“He’s an asshole,” Michael says later, back on two feet and watching Gavin and the Twins talking to Jeremy about something or other while Jeremy listens. Takes in everything he say far too seriously because he doesn’t know Gavin yet, doesn’t know he’s a little shit about things. (He’ll learn soon enough if he decides to stick around.)

Ryan doesn’t know who Michael’s talking about, but either way he’s not wrong.

“Yeah, well,” Ryan shrugs. “Never would have guessed.”

Shocking, really.

Michael snorts, gaze sliding towards him.

He always seems amused by Ryan and everything he chooses to be, which should be more insulting than it is, and yet?

“No offense,” Michael says. “But you’re the worst loner I’ve ever met.”

Ryan sighs, the bullshit he’d spewed when he and Michael met coming back to bite him in the ass.

“Look,” Ryan says. “Using my own words against me is a terrible thing to do.”

Ryan was a different person back then, sharper edges and more of an asshole than he’s comfortable admitting. Used to the way the world, this city, likes to fuck people over and expecting much the same from Gavin and whatever schemes he had up his sleeve. (Michael.)

Believed the bullshit coming out of his mouth because it had worked for him up to that point, and he hadn’t expected that to change.

Michael makes this little noise of agreement, mouth quirking into this almost-smirk.

“Yeah, well,” he says, mimicking Ryan because he loves giving him shit. “Deal with it, you’re stuck with us now.”

Funny, Ryan thought it would have taken Michael longer to come to terms with this new arrangement.

Ryan looks over when Jeremy’s voice rises in disbelief, expression on his face like he cant fathom how stupid Gavin is while Gavin’s laughing like an idiot. The Twins grinning like a pair of demented Cheshire Cats and none of it seems strange to Ryan in the least.

“Yeah,” Ryan says, that little itch he gets when it’s time to get the hell out nowhere to be found. “Guess I am.”

[that-was-anticlimactic]

Ninjago The Good Place AU Headcanons:

Okay so after yesterday, I decided to write headcanons because I wanted to and it sounded like fun so since you guys helped me out / seemed interested… @cakeking-cole @aeonthedimensionalgirl @darcpython @gayvoidprince (I hope these are worth ysince I’m tagging people oof)

“The Good Place”

It has been designed by Wu, who is the architect

Everyone in the town aside from the four humans (five if you include Lloyd… still trying to figure him out…) are demons, or idk Cloud Kingdomists or something? Like the Master Writer is the Judge, you know? oo or what about The First Spinjitzu Master as the Judge??

On the topic of soulmates, yes everyone has a soulmate there, but, it’s more of a friendship soulmate thing and a you have your legit soulmate here too, you just have to… find them over time… you’ll know

I still haven’t decided legit soulmates… I can’t figure out what ships to use whoops... like... do I want to go Bruise or Glacier or Techno or Opposite or Lava or Plasma or jinxdybwgeycfkubgewlu

lol this section is short haha

Kai

Kai is Eleanor in the AU

He was not the best person. He was conceited, rude, he treated everyone poorly and he blamed a lot of it on the fact that his parents left him and his sister. He was not a good person. And that’s why he ended up in The Bad Place. He was even trashy to his sister and friends.

He died at a restaurant with his friends and sister. He had just been super rude to the waiter and then choked on their appetizer and died.

So, Kai, like Eleanor, was told he was in The Good Place and that he was remarkable. But, it was the wrong Kai Smith.

The Kai Smith he was supposed to be this incredible Rehabilitation therapist who worked with people who needed a lot of help. He volunteered and went on mission trips and donated all of his money to charities... you know all that good stuff to make the real Kai Smith feel so much less than.

Kai was platonically paired with Zane, who he didn’t always like since he was so serious.

He told Zane about him not belonging in The Good Place and ended up asking him for help and to teach him how to be a good person

He hates the lessons at first, like despises them. Kai is more of a go out and do person rather than sit and listen so it takes some time to get used to it and to absorb and enjoy it.

Kai honestly hated Cole for awhile, not going to lie. He thought that Cole was so stuck-up and was a real, well, in Good Place language, a bench.

He ended up meeting the real him though and they got along fine afterwards.

He disliked Jay for awhile too, but they ended up becoming real great bros.

The others help improve Kai by teaching him how to be kind and selfless and understanding and empathetic and how to stop living in the past.

Kai ended up figuring out that they were in The Bad Place.

He also ended up confessing to Wu about him not actually belonging there.

He also helped Jay get the courage to confess.

The first night there, Kai ended up doing some stupid things like stealing all of the shrimp and calling Cole and some others name and that provided for the chaos sequence the next morning.

Kai was always loyal, it was one of his few redeeming qualities, and through it all, once he befriends the ninja, he stays loyal to them and would protect them with his life.

He actually still runs the Balcksmith shop, but since he hates his parents for leaving him and Nya and is a bad blacksmith, he makes terrible weapons and sells them at a super high price.

Some torture methods for Kai include: making him feel less, making him feel like he doesn’t belong, putting him in situations where he does things he hates like swimming or a fancy dinner where he has to be the happy welcomer or something

Zane

Zane is Chidi.

Zane isn’t an indecisive ethics professor. He is a teacher, though. Zane teaches science like physics and chemistry and such.

He has a super good moral compass and cares about others a lot and does study some ethics in his spare time.

The problem with Zane, though, and the reason he ended up in The Bad Place is that he is way too serious! He takes life much too seriously and doesn’t ever have fun. He could go weeks without smiling or laughing or taking a break because he believes that life is too important and serious to be take lightly. He tries too hard to be this perfect human being.

His intensity and seriousness often drive people away from him because they don’t like being around him.

He actually died from a heart attack from worrying too much about trivial things and being too serious and such in the staff room at his school.

Like I mentioned, Zane is Kai’s platonic soulmate.

Zane was so excited to meet Kai and like... have a friend, and then he learned that Kai didn’t belong there and was like are you kidding me?

Because he didn’t want to be in this situation, but he didn’t want to not help

He ended up deciding to help, and did the best he could to teach Kai and eventually Cole and Jay about ethics.

he didn’t teach ethics in school, like I mentioned, but he knows enough about them and can do research and study and make a good course, and he knows how to teach since he was a teacher.

The others help Zane become a better person by teaching him how to loosen up and see life less as this perfect systematic thing and more as a, yeah being a good person is important, but so is having fun and being weird and accepting that you can’t always be perfect

Zane also clicks with Cole rather well

Some torture methods include: having to keep Kai and eventually Jay’s secret, having students who don’t always listen to him, being pushed out of his comfort zone and being too all out, etc...

Cole

Cole is Tahani- hear me out!

I’m not saying Cole is this rich model that raises money for charity and is super conceited and arrogant

It’s more of... you know Tahani’s bad relationship with her family? That’s Cole’s relationship with his dad.

Lou expects a lot out of Cole. Lou is also relatively rich, and ever since this big injury that prevents him from dancing, he expects Cole to exactly like him.

He sends Cole to Marty Oppenheimers, makes him dance a trash ton, never lets him have a break, and always compares him to literally everyone.

Like. Dancing and performing is his job.

Because of this, Cole feels like he has to be a dancer and that he has to be this amazing guy who can do the triple tiger sashay and literally anything, He feels like he has to host fancy parties and be sophisticated and such.

Cole actually dies by practicing the Triple Tiger Sashay. He was doing his weekly update on how it’s going for his dad, when he messes up and hits his head on a rock, and in his dazed stance, he ends up stumbling in the middle of the street and gets hit by a car.

He is in the Bad Place because he is never truly himself. He hides his true self and is a completely different person on the outside than he is on the inside. He never ever thought for himself. He is super fake all of the time to literally everyone because he isn’t himself. He is literally the most fake person on the planet and people can tell. Like, most of the people he hangs out with are super snobby dancers and trash, so they expect that from him, but like Zane, Kai, and Jay can tell how fake he’s being, even though he doesn’t want to be fake. He’s not trying to. So, like Tahani, everything good he did kind of had the wrong motivation behind it. He wasn’t good because he wanted to be, he was good because he felt like he had to.

Heck, the first night, Wu had him throw a big welcome party. Wu was like “we just know how much you love hosting parties” and Cole on the inside was like ‘ohh great’

Plus, he hates his house. Wu gave him this huge mansion because that’s what “he” wanted, when really it’s what his dad would have wanted

His platonic soulmate is Jay, which sucks because Jay doesn’t talk for awhile and Cole talks to himself a lot when he’s alone, and living with Jay is essentially being alone.

He and Jay actually torture each other a lot, but then they end up becoming the best friends

Cole isn’t the biggest fan of Kai for awhile because he’s trying so hard to stick to his reputation and being this sophisticated, fancy person his dad wanted and Kai tries changing that once he realizes what Cole is doing and is like no stop and Cole’s like but I need toooooo

But they end up liking each other

The others help Cole by showing him how to be himself. They teach him how to have his own thoughts and that he doesn’t have to be anything for anyone but himself. That he doesn’t have to be fake and they essentially show him who he is.

Heck, Kai, Zane, and Jay are the ones who teach him how to climb trees and help him discover his love for the outdoors!

They also helped him come to terms with his sexuality and being gay!!!

Cole was the last one to get ethics lessons with Zane. He was also the last one to find out Jay wasn’t a monk and that’s what made him learn about the classes and asked to be a part of them because he felt like he needed to learn

Torture methods include: forcing him to be what he was forced to be on Earth, having certain citizens recognize him as Lou’s son, being forced to host and throw big parties and events because that’s what he had to do on Earth so he must love it here, etc...

Jay

Jay is Jason

No, I’m not saying Jay is on the dumber side and does illegal things. I personally believe Jay is incredibly intelligent but I won’t get into that now.

When Jay gets there, Wu comes out and is like ‘Jianyu, come on in’ and Jay is like ‘??’ so he says nothing and then Wu says stuff about how he was a Buddhist Monk who took a vow of silence at the age of eight and would he like to keep it and Jay panics because uhh his name isn’t Jianyu, it’s Jay Walker and nods.

Jay likes talking. A lot. It calms him down, it keeps him sane, it helps him destress and connect since he is a more extroverted person, so not being able to talk is- get this- torture.

Jay on Earth wasn’t a terrible person. He worked with his parents at the junk yard while he had an engineering internship in the city nearby. He invented a lot and he was good at it.

What put him in the Bad Place, though, was that he was super conceited and condescending. He knows he’s smart and he knows he’s a good inventor, but he likes to rub that in. He is a rather arrogant person. He doesn’t always mean to be, but he is.

He also belittles people based on their intelligence and speaks to them like they’re dumb, treating them kind of like they’re stupid. Sometimes it;s intentional, sometimes it’s not.

It actually becomes a big problem with his relationship with Cole once he starts speaking. Cole went to a dance school and never really got a proper education so he wasn’t always the smartest person, and Jay does that to Cole more than he realizes until Kai calls bullshirt.

Then Jay realized and flipped he felt so bad

Anyways, Jay died from an electrical accident on an invention he was showing off at his internship that he had been bragging about to some of the others interns.

Jay hits it off with kai really well, he and Cole fight a lot and struggle to get a long at first because, well, we all know how they used to treat each other on the show, and he and Zane like talking to each other.

Jay is actually really freaked out about not belonging in The Good Place. He didn’t think he was a rotten person who deserved to be in The Bad Place, and so the constant wondering what happened to make the, think he was Jianyu and whether he belonged in The Good or Bad Place was- get this- torture.

When he found out about Zane’s classes, he was kind of unsure about it, especially since he was like Kai and had trouble sitting and listening instead of doing, but he ended up agreeing and he loved it! He learned a lot!

Plus, he enjoyed learning from Zane.

He actually did leave Kai notes saying that he didn’t belong here and ended up asking him for help because Kai definitely drunkenly told Jay about not belonging.

And Kai helped give him the courage to confess along with him.

The others help him by teaching him how to be more understanding, more caring, more open, less overreacting. He is also taught how to loosen up, since he tended to panic at the drop of a hat, and they helped him see the brighter side of things, making him even more of a positive thinking person, because he did think positively, he just... also panicked a lot.

Jay definitely thinks he deserves a Medium Place.

Torture methods include: not being able to speak for awhile, Cole always talking to him, wondering where he truly belongs, etc...

Others

okay so Wu is Michael, the architect, like I said. he hates humans for awhile, but then ends up legit learning from them and liking them in the end

Garmadon is Shawn, the Bad Place leader guy. He hates humans, especially the four and wants them in The Bad Place.

Pixal is Janet. She knows everything and with every reboot Wu puts her through, she becomes more human, much like the Good Janet in the show. Also, to call for her, just say Pixal.

I saw someone say Harumi is Bad Janet and I love that ?? So much?? I’d say she’s either Bad Janet or like, Trevor. I like that.

Skylor honestly seems like a Mindy St. Claire who lives in The Medium Place type, you know? She helps them out and stuff.

I think I might stick with The First Spinjitzu Master as the Judge...

Lloyd was a tricky one. Like, he doesn’t fit in with the four humans, so I was thinking, maybe Lloyd as Vicky? Like he pretends to be the Real Kai Smith? And then instead of staying an evil demon the whole time, he ends up joining the group as a good guy. Maybe? Anyone else have ideas?

Nya is also tricky. I think she doesn’t die. She was the person who tried making Kai a better person. Like, she tried really hard. And (SEASON THREE SPOILERS) she would be the person Garmadon selects to be in the testing neighborhood to make Kai angry because that’s not fair and they have to wipe her memory because Kai really wants her to get to The Good Place and needs to prove that she can improve with the others (END SPOILERS)

What if Dareth was Derek? hA

anyways, that’s all for now! I’m super tired! I hope you guys like these, and that they don’t suck! Does anyone agree? Disagree? Etc... (sorry I am so tired but FSM I forking love this show so much guys)

[sincerely-us-imagines]

It’s all about the money, honey (pt 2) (connor murphy x reader)

alternatively titled “it’s not about the money, honey”

Part 1 is here

I got a lot of good feedback on part 1 so thank you so so so much for that!!

It’s almost 1 am and I have to be up in like 6 hours and there is no way in hell im proofing this tonight lmao

also this is seriously 10 pages long i’m soRRY ITS A LOT

warnings: swearing, a teeny tiny bit of angst, asshole cousins i think thats it? also i tossed in some of my personal hc’s for evan oops

“So does this mean you’re done prostituting yourself out to Murphy?” Jared asked after you told him what went down Friday night.

Evan shot Jared a disproving look.

“I’m not a prostitute, Jared. I was just--”

“Getting paid for the “girlfriend experience” by someone who can’t get laid?” he popped a baby carrot into his mouth. Evan and Jared were the only two who actually knew what was going on between you and Connor. And sometimes you regretted telling the latter. Like right now, for instance.

“I never slept with him, Jared. I never even kissed him. The most I ever did was like, hold his hand.”

“Somehow that’s even more pathetic on his behalf.”

“So what are you going to do now?” Evan asked, ignoring Jared completely.

“I don’t know. He’ll probably make up a story to tell his parents why we broke up.” you tried to sound nonchalant about the entire thing. You barely tolerated each other away from his family, so why did this feel like the end of an actual relationship?

“Uh oh,” Evan said, eyes locked behind you.

“Well speak of the goddamn devil.” Jared laughed.

You turned around to see Connor approaching you from behind. He looked horrible. There were deep purple circles under his eyes and his hair was a frizzy unwashed mess. You pushed down any feeling of pity you had for him as he walked up to you.

“I need to talk to you.” he said.

“Just tell them we broke up. It doesn’t need to be a discussion.”

Evan shifted uncomfortably across from you while Jared watched on, clearly amused.

“I don’t want to-- just. Please, can we talk?”

You sighed and gestured to the seat beside you.

“Fine.”

Connor eyed your friends.

“Away from them?”

You rolled your eyes but picked up your bag nonetheless.

“I’ll see you guys in econ.” you told them, giving a small wave before following Connor to an empty lunch table in the back corner of the cafeteria.

“Look, Y/n, I’m really sorry. You were just trying to play along and do what you thought would be best. I shouldn’t have snapped at you.”

“It’s fine.” you shrugged it off as if it were nothing. As if you totally hadn’t cried yourself to sleep Friday night after you got home, or spent all of Saturday at Evan’s place ranting about it.

“It isn’t. I was an asshole and you didn’t deserve it.”

“Yeah, you really were.” you agreed. His jaw clenched and he took a deep breath. It brought you a small sense of satisfaction to know you got on his nerves.

“If you’re still willing, I want us to keep… doing this,” he gestured between the two of you and took a deep breath, as if what he would say next was going to hurt him.

“And for you to come with me to my cousin’s wedding.”

You blinked at him, a bit taken aback.

“You… You actually want me to go? You can just tell your family I’m busy that day or something.”

“No, I, uh,” he sighed, “I want you to go. I don’t want to be alone with my family.” He looked down and began to pick at his chipped nail polish. “Things, um, they aren’t as bad when you’re there.”

You couldn’t help the smile that spread across your face.

“Aww Connie,” you cooed and poked his cheek, “do you like having me around?”

He flushed pink and swatted your hand away.

“No! You just… don’t always totally suck to be around.”

You put a hand over your chest in an exaggerated manner.

“Oh Con, that is the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me!”

“Oh shut the fuck up,” he grumbled, rolling his eyes at you, “And don’t call me ‘Con’.”

“If you say so, Lawrence.” you shrugged, smirking.

He only ignored you.

“So we’re cool?” He asked, glancing over at you.

“We are.”

“Okay so the wedding is the 1st of next month. It starts at 3 but it’s like an hour away so i’ll be there at around 12:30 so we’ll have time to get gas and maybe stop and get a drink for the road and still get there a little early.”

“Got it.” You nodded, punching the information into your phone’s calendar.

“Cool.” He stood up to leave but stopped. “Also, uh, do you maybe wanna come over for dinner thursday? My mom said she’ll make that casserole thing you like.”

“They asked me back already?” you were kind of surprised. It was usually every other week you came over.

Connor was quiet for a few seconds while he adjusted the strap on his messenger bag.

“Uh, yeah. They did.” he wasn’t looking at you. “I’ll see you in science, yeah?”

“Of course.” you answered, a little confused by his behavior.

He mumbled a goodbye and headed off, leaving you wondering what the hell was going on with him.

The last couple weeks of the month flew by and the 1st came up sooner than you’d expected. You were ready at 12, having had Evan come over to help you with your hair. He was actually really good at, which was surprising with how bad his hands shake. He said he learned to braid in boy scouts when he was little and used to do his mom’s hair all the time when he was younger. You’d have to ask him is he would do your hair for prom, too.

You wondered if Connor would ask you to prom. Just to appease his parents, of course. It would only make sense for a boyfriend-- a fake boyfriend- to ask his fake girlfriend to their senior prom. It’s all fake, Y/n. you remind yourself. He doesn’t actually care about you like that.

You shook the thoughts from your head and straightened out your outfit, a pretty swing dress with a  lace overlay. Connor pulled up at 12:15 and just kind of… sat in the driveway. After watching him from your bedroom window for a couple minutes you went downstairs to say goodbye to your mother (who was quite excited for you to be going on a “date”. And kept giving you that knowing Mom Look) and headed outside towards Connor’s car.

You approached the door and looked inside to see him sitting there, scrolling through his phone. You knocked on the window and he jumped, looking over at the window with wide eyes. He unlocked the door and you climbed in, laughing at him.

“Why were you just sitting in the driveway?” you asked, pulling on your seatbelt

“I was early and I didn’t want to bother you, so I was just going to wait until 12:30 to text you.”

“Since when do you care about bothering me? That’s, like, all you do.” You looked over at Connor to find his eyes fixed on you. You shifted uncomfortably and adjusted your dress.

“Uh, Connor? Is something wrong?”

“Yeah.” You tilted your head in confusion at him. “I mean- no. No, nothing’s wrong.”

He turned back to face forward and put the car in reverse, backing out of your driveway,

“Okay… Well, um, you look really nice.” you told him. And it was the truth. He had his long curls pulled back into a bun, wearing black dress pants and oxfords with a maroon suit jacket over a pink shirt with a tasteful floral print tie. It was a very classic look, but with a fun twist. And it looked great on him.

“Zoe said I look like a bellhop.” he grumbled. You couldn’t help but laugh.

“You don’t.” you assured him, “You look really, really handsome, Connor.”

The tips of his ears turned pink at your compliment.

“Thanks. You look okay too, I guess.” he said in a teasing tone.

“Asshole!” you laughed, hitting him lightly on the arm.

“I’m kidding, Christ!” he laughed too. “Really though, you look great.”

“Thank you, Connor.” you smiled and rolled your eyes, trying to fight the heat rising in your cheeks.

Connor pulled into the 7-Eleven down the street from your house, parking beside a pump and turning the car off.

“You want anything?” he asked as he opened the door.

“Nah, I’m good.”

“Nothing?”

“No, Connor. Thank you though.”

He shrugged and shut the door and you waited until he was in the building before pulling out your phone and snapping a picture of yourself, sending it to the group chat with Jared and Evan.

Jare-Bear: damn. hot mama.

Ev: you look great!

Ev: you sprayed your hair again before you left right?

You: yes, ev

You: thank you

Jare-Bear: evan ur gay

Ev: only half

Ev: ish

Jare-Bear: whats connor wearing

Jare-Bear: a trenchcoat and bandolier?

Ev: jared, thats not funny

You: can you not be an asshole for like 2 minutes?

You: he looks really good, actually

Ev: think you can get a picture with him?

Jare-Bear: why? So u can have material to jack off to both murphy siblings

Ev: shut the hell up

You glanced up from your phone to see Connor walking back towards the car with a plastic bag.

You: gtg

You: message you guys later <3

Ev: okay have fun!

Jare-Bare: use condoms

You stuff your phone in your purse and watch Connor leans against the car as he pumps the gas. He tugs the little curls at the nape of his neck, the ones that wouldn’t fit into the bun, twisting them around his finger and letting them spring free. A nervous habit, you assume. A replacement for his usual compulsion of running his hand through his hair, probably. Why do you know that? That’s so weird that you like, consciously recognize that. What the hell--

The nozzle clicks and you quickly turn to look straight ahead, pretending like you hadn’t just been analyzing his behavior.

He opened the door and folded himself into the driver’s seat, starting up the car. Once getting situated, he opened the center console and pulled out a bottle of hand sanitizer, squirting a few pumps into his hands and rubbing them together.

“What?” he asked when he realized you were looking at him.

“Nothing.”

“Do you have any idea how dirty gas pumps are?”

“I don’t suppose I do.”

“Well, they’re fucking filthy.”

“I believe you.” you couldn’t help the amused grin spreading across your face.

“Then what’s so goddamn funny?” he was pretending to be angry, but you could tell he was fighting back a smile.

“You’re just so…” Please don’t say it. Don’t fucking say it, y/n.

“I’m so…?”

Cute. You’re fucking cute, Connor, okay? Everything you’ve done today has been unbearably adorable and I can’t stand it.

“We should go.” you say instead, glancing at the clock on the dashboard.

He eyed you suspiciously but didn’t say anything.

“Okay, but first,” he dug around in the plastic bag and handed you a bottle of water and a pack of M&M’s. You looked down at them and then back up at him.

“I know you said you didn’t want anything but I thought since it’s kind of a long drive you might… y’know, change your mind or something.” his voice suddenly changed from it’s half bashful tone to something a little stronger, but still light. “And I’m not about to pull over for you to go get a snack or some shit. So really it’s in my best interest, y’know. Just so I don’t have to hear you whine.”

“Sure.” you smile, taking a sip of water

“Whatever.” there’s a ghost of a smile on his lips as he pulls out onto the road.

“Thank you, Connor. Really.”

Connor turns on the radio in favor of answering you.

Connor pulls into the parking lot of a rather large synagogue roughly an hour later. He finds a parking spot near his parents’ SUV.

“Holy shit,” you say, getting out of the car and admiring the architecture of the building. Connor snorted as he rounded the car to come get you.

“Oh, oops.” you covered your mouth, realizing what you’d just said.

“You are such a dork.” Connor smiled, holding his arm out for you to take.

“Shut up.” you laughed, nudging him.

Inside the synagogue you met up with Cynthia, Larry, Zoe, and their grandmother, who greeted you both with a big hug and kiss. and found your seats. You talked easily to Connor and Zoe until more people began filing in, filling up the pews. The ceremony was simple yet beautiful, and the bride’s dress was utterly breathtaking. You didn’t know them, sure, but you did tear up a bit (which made Connor smirk and poke you in the side).

After the ceremony and before the reception, Connor, after being instructed to by his parents, bashfully introduced you to some of his other family, all of whom commented on either how well Connor did or how beautiful you were. Except for one cousin.

He seemed to be a few years younger than you, maybe 15 or so. Connor immediately tensed when he saw him approach. He looked over towards his parents, almost like a scared kid would, but they were too wrapped up in a conversation with some third time removed somebody to even notice.

“Hey, hey! Larry Junior! How’s it going?” the kid said, clapping a hand over Connor’s shoulder.

“Don’t call me that.” Connor said, glaring at him, and taking a step back to escape his cousin’s grasp.

The kid put his hands up in mock-surrender.

“No need for aggression, buddy. Don’t need a repeat of your 6th grade summer, do we?”

You glanced up at Connor in confusion.

“Oh he didn’t tell you?” the kid continued, “He had to go to, what was it called, Connor?”

“You need to shut up. Now.” Connor growled.

Connor was at least a head taller than this kid, and one of the most intimidating people you’d ever met. Why wasn’t he scared?

“Oh yeah!” the kid snapped, “”Behavioral Correction Camp”! He didn’t tell you that, did he?”

You stayed quiet, chewing on the inside of your mouth anxiously.

“Anyway,” he continued after getting no response for you, “how long have you been dating this charming cousin of mine?”

“Three and a half months.” you said, grabbing Connor’s hand protectively.

“And what exactly are you doing with him?”

“What?”

“Why are you with him? We thought Connor would never get a girlfriend. He was such a problem child, freaked out over every little thing, threw tantrums.” the kid laughed a little, “Hell, the reason he had to go to Batshit Crazy Camp was because he beat the shit out of me when we were younger, isn’t that right?”

Connor was absolutely fuming. You could feel his hand shaking in yours. His jaw was clenched so tight it was a wonder his teeth didn’t just shatter. He was using a lot of self control right now, that much was evident.

“You wanna know why I’m with him?” you asked, squeezing Connor’s hand tighter, “Not that I owe you any kind of answer. I’m with him because he’s sweet and thoughtful. He cares about me and my feelings and my wellbeing. He’s got a great sense of humor and he gets me. He makes me feel like no one else can. He can be gentle despite everything he’s been through, despite what people like you say to him, and he admits when he’s wrong and he’s trying. He tries so hard to be a good person. And he is a good person. And that’s a lot more than I can say about you.” You didn’t realize you were crying until you finished talking. You wiped your eyes on the back of your free hand before tugging him towards the big wooden doors out to the parking lot.

“The reception is in half an hour, you two! We’ll meet you there!” you hear Cynthia shout cheerfully as you leave the building.

You walked to the car, not letting go of Connor’s hand until it was absolutely necessary.

Once inside, you pulled down the visor and looked in the mirror, wiping at your eyes with a napkin from your purse, doing your best not to smear your makeup. You took a swallow of water from the bottle he bought you earlier before taking a calming breath.

“I’m sorry.” you told him, shaking your head. “I-I didn’t mean to--”

“Y/n, shh. He grabbed your hand and laced his fingers through yours. “Thank you. For saying all that. You didn’t have to do that.”

“What was I supposed to do? Just stand there and let him insult you? Connor, you’re my--” you cut yourself off. He wasn’t your boyfriend. He wasn’t really your friend, either. That doesn’t mean what you said wasn’t true, though. “I care about you.” you finished, looking out the window.

“I care about you too.”

“Shut up.” you smiled, not looking at him.

“Wanna head towards the hotel for the reception?” Connor asked, removing his hand from yours. You nodded and he put the car in gear.

You pulled out your phone and opened your group chat.

You: shit you guys

You: this is bad

Ev: ????

Jare-Bear: did he hurt you

You: no

You: i think i like him

Ev: really?

Ev: like, LIKE like?

Jare-Bear: gay

Ev: hey jared?

Jare-Bear: ya

Ev: shut up

Ev: for once in your life

You: yeah

You: i think so

Jare-Bear: i thought you had better taste than that

You: shut up

Ev: shut up

Ev: just be happy for her

Ev: unless youre about to like

Ev: profess your undying love for her

Ev: then its really not your business

You: thank you ev <3

Jare-Bear: i think shes just in denial u know

Jare-Bear: using murphy as a distraction from her lifelong crush on me

Jare-Bear: its okay u can tell me

You: lmao

Jare-Bear: rude

You: thats me

You put your phone on silent so it wouldn’t constantly buzz with Jared and Evan’s inevitable bickering.

“You want something to drink?” Connor shouted over the music. The reception turned out to be one hell of a party. There was tons of food and drinks, flashing lights and balloons and streamers and a massive dance floor, and it was loud. Really loud. It was kind of like prom, but with a lot of old people.

You nodded and gave him a thumbs up in confirmation. He got up and wandered off towards the far wall where the refreshments were.

You made small talk with Zoe until he came back.

He handed you a clear plastic cup full of what you assumed to be sparkling cider, and clinked his own against it in a toast. You smiled and took a sip. You froze, eying him as you swallowed.

“Connor,” you said slowly, “Is this alcohol?”

“Yup.” he grinned, taking a big swallow from him own cup. You didn’t bother asking questions. You didn’t really care how he got it.

You laughed and talked about nothing in particular for a while.

“Oh, I like this song.” you commented absently as the first few notes played over the speakers. Connor stood up pulled off his jacket, laying over the back of the chair, and held his hand out.

“Dance with me?” he asked.

“What?” you almost laughed.

“Will you dance with me?”

“I don’t know how.” you admitted.

“I’ll show you.”

“You can dance?”

“Is that so surprising?” he feigned offense.

“I mean, yeah.” you laughed.

“Just come on, jerk.”

He took your hand and lead you towards the center of the dance floor.

“Okay, now put your hand here.” he placed your hand on his shoulder. “And I put mine here.” He rested his hand over your hip and you felt heat rise in your cheeks.

“And then we just,” he began stepping in a simple pattern. You picked up quickly and were able to keep up, only stepping on his toes a few times. It got easier with each song.

A slower paced oldies song came on and you laughed as he spun you around out of tune with the song, the skirt of your dress flaring out in a big circle around you. You came to a halt in front of him, stumbling a bit as you regained your balance. He held tight to your waist to keep you upright. A wide, crooked smile was stretched across his angular face as he looked down at you. You couldn’t help but smile back. He continued to sway you to the beat of the music.

“Thank you for coming with me tonight. You really didn’t--”

“Hush.” you smiled. “I’m having fun.”

“I am too.”

You leaned your head against his shoulder and he snaked his arm from your hip to your lower back.

“Oh!” you said, pulling back after a couple of minutes. “I told Evan I’d send him a picture of us together. Is that okay?”

“Oh. Uh, yeah. Sure.”

You hurried back over to the table and grabbed your phone, ignoring the flood of messages from Jared and Evan arguing, and opened up your camera. You took different pictures and chose a random one to send to Evan and Jared and promptly shoved your phone back in your bag.

You stayed a couple more hours, dancing and eating and having a good time with Connor, before you decided it was probably time to go home.

“Hey, Y/n. Come on, wake up.” Connor was shaking you gently.

“What?” you yawned, sitting up straight. “Oh god my neck hurts like a bitch,” you groaned, massaging the aforementioned area.

“Yeah, I bet. You fell asleep with it at like a 90 degree angle.”

“Ugh… wait. I slept the entire way home?”

“Yup. And you snored too.”

“I did not!” you gasped.

“Totally did.” he laughed, nodding. “Full on sawing logs over there.”

“Shut up oh my God.” you rubbed sleepily at your eyes, forgetting all about your makeup. “What time is it?” another yawn forced its way out of your mouth.

“Half past one.”

“In the morning?!”

“No, it’s just after lunch, Y/n.” Connor replied sarcastically.

You rolled your eyes and stretched out, grabbing your bag from the floorboard.

“Can I walk you up?” Connor asked. You nodded.

He walked around to your side of the car and opened the door for you. Your heels made you a  bit unsteady on your feet, having just woken up, so Connor looped his arm around your waist as he walked you to your front door.

You began digging through you bag for your keys, swearing under your breath at the ungodly amount of junk in your bag.

When you successfully found them and looked back up Connor was holding at least half a dozen twenties.

“No.” you shook your head, pushing the money away.

“Y/n-”

“No, Connor. I don’t want you to pay me.”

“We had a deal, Y/n.”

“Please, Connor, I’m too tired to argue. I had an amazing time with you today. I don’t need your money; it was my pleasure. Really.”

Connor hesitated before putting the money back in his wallet, still looking unsure.

“I, um. I don’t want you to pay me anymore.” you told him. “When we hang out. I… I like just being with you. If you want me to keep being your fake girlfriend or whatever around your family, that’s fine but… I don’t want you to give me money for it. I meant what I said to your cousin.”

Connor stared at you for a moment before speaking.

“I don’t want you to be my fake girlfriend anymore.”

Oh. That’s okay, Y/n. It’s fine. You freaked him out by saying that and he has literally no obligation to stay around you if he doesn’t want to.

“That, um, that’s fine. It’s totally your decision. Uh, whatever you wanna tell your parents happened is fine just-”

“I don’t want you to be my fake girlfriend.” Connor interrupted, grabbing your hand. “Maybe I could take you out next weekend? Like on a real date?”

Your stomach fluttered and you nodded a bit too fast.

“Yes! Yes I… yes. That would be amazing. I-I’d really really like that.”

“Okay.” he grinned.

“Okay.”

“Cool.”

“Yeah.”

“I should, uh, I should get home.” he gestured with his thumb at his car.

“Yeah, totally.” you couldn’t wipe the dopey grin off your face.

Connor headed to his car and you began to unlock the front door.

“Oh!” he called just before you stepped inside, “Can you send me those pictures?”

You nodded and he gave a thumbs up.

You snuck inside as quietly as you could, creeping into your room and shutting the door softly. You stripped off your dress and hung it up before pulling on a big t-shirt to sleep in and using a makeup wipe in a half-assed attempt to wash your face. You were too tired to go all the way across the hall to the bathroom. Your skin would give you hell, yeah, but that’s a problem for future you. So is the rat’s nest your hair will be when you wake up in the morning without brushing it out but you really couldn’t be bothered right now.

You climbed under your covers and unlocked your phone, seeing messages Jared and Evan had sent in response to the pitcture.

Jare-Bear: shit dude

Jare-Bear: hes got it bad for u

Ev: he really does

Ev: look at the way he’s looking at you

You tapped the picture to make it bigger. You were smiling at the camera, head tilted slightly to the side, while Connor watched you with soft eyes and a gentle smile. He looked happy just being there beside you.

You forwarded the picture to Connor and sent a quick goodnight message before settling into your bed, smiling even as you drifted off to sleep.

[embracehappy]

Don’t Fight It  | Shawn Mendes Imagine

Summary: You are on vacation, visiting a friend, when you accidentally befriended a coffee shop barista who does her best to set you up with her other “friend”

a/n: This is the first fic I’ve written. Sorry it’s so long. I really liked the idea behind it, and I’m pretty proud of how it turned out. Please please please let me know what you think! I am open and accepting to constructive criticism!! But I also really love positive feedback <3

Part 2

Warnings: Swearing, Angst (i think?)

Word count: 3.9k

It was ironic, really: how y’all met. It was pure happen stance. You weren’t even supposed to be there. One night you just got really tired of not being able to see one of her best friends in the whole world. So, you booked a ticket. And that was that. 

The next thing you know, it is four weeks later and you are hopping off a plane. 

“Y/N!!!” You hear Eden S C R E A M as you exit security. You embrace your friend in a hug so tight that you lose your ability breathe for a moment. As you rock back and forth, an old man walks by and mumbles toward you both: “That is true happiness right there, never let it go.”

Wiping the tears forming in your eyes, Eden helps steady yourself as y’all walk towards where Eden had parked. You hadn’t seen Eden in over a year, causing the mild tears of joy.

You had never been so excited to be in a foreign place. You had never even been to Canada, and here you are in Toronto. Eden was lucky. She transferred out of your college after freshman year. It broke her heart to say goodbye to the friend group, but she just really needed to find a school with a better Environmental Science program. So, she went home to Washington DC. She had been working for the last year at her Aunt’s company when she wasn’t in classes. Somehow, she got a promotion, and then another, and then one more, and now she’s in Toronto. (You aren’t even completely sure what she does; she was only a secretary when she was first hired at the company.)

~~ “Are you ready?” Eden asks as she is turning her lock.

“Oh just let me in!” You squeal, excited to start your girls weekend. You push past her into the apartment and quickly notice that her Pinterest boards were not a waste. Eden lives a one bedroom apartment, somewhere in downtown Toronto. It may have been small, but it was gorgeous. It was the perfect mix of vintage and modern. White and sleek, but with tasteful splashes of dark wood and antiques. You are quick to notice the small tree in the corner of the room.

“Well that’s a fake plant” you scoff to your friend.

“Is not!” She fights back.

“You have many things, Eden, but a green thumb is not one!” You say as you walk over and feel it to ensure you are correct. You are, it’s fake.

“Whatever!” She yells, carrying your small carry-on bag into the bedroom. “Is this really all you brought??” Eden yells to you.

“Well, yeah! I’m only staying for four days!!”

~~ Two days have passed. You’ve been enjoying the trip of your life in Toronto with Eden. However, last night got the better of you and you stayed up way too late watching movies. Knowing that it was the one last Netflix original that did y’all in, you were both planning on sleeping in. However, your body had other ideas.

You jolted awake sometime around 9am. You decided to be a little selfish. As much as you love Eden, you wanted to go explore. You were missing your usual morning routine and were desperate to go on a jog. So you decide that you might as well do both, explore and jog.  

Quietly slipping into your leggings and clean sports bra, you are sure not to wake Eden as you grab her house key, along with your wallet and IPhone. You wander over to Eden’s closet. Surely, she has something you can borrow. Due to your light packing, you only brought one sweatshirt. The same sweatshirt that you accidentally ruined last night by spilling ice cream all down the front.

You almost laugh out-loud as you pull a grey sweatshirt off a hanger.

I can’t believe she still owns this!? She was always so obsessed with his music!

You slip the crewneck over your head. Giggling to yourself when you look down and see the “I would date u but ur not shawn mendes” plastered across your chest.

It’s only fitting, you are in Toronto, after all! Usually you would never wear something that would blatantly label you as a tourist, but you’re only here for a short stay. And, it’s not even your sweatshirt!

Eden had been the one to turn you on to Shawn Mendes’ music. She first played you his album when you were studying for finals during first semester. After that, you had to admit, you were a bit addicted to his music. The melodies just had a way of making you move. They gave you a weird feeling somewhere deep inside you that you didn’t know how to explain.

You hadn’t listened to Shawn Mendes’ music in a while. So, deciding you might as well be extra ironic, you chose the SHAWN MENDES playlist on Spotify, hit shuffle, and step out the door.

~~ You ran for about a half hour, though the streets of downtown, before you are quickly realizing that you are lost. You slow your pace and start looking around, thankful you are in Toronto and not Montreal. (Eden had been telling you about a weekend trip she took to Montreal, but it was a disaster because there was a lot more French than she was planning for.) You know you can’t be that far from Eden’s apartment building, simply because you were careful not to go too far. You had purposely gone in circles, running down the same few streets more than once. But, you had gotten just a bit too adventurous on your last round and now you’re standing in an area you don’t recognize.

You start walking. Actually, you start wandering. You are trying to spot that one really tall and pointy tower, knowing if you can find it, you could correct yourself back into the right direction.

You walk for about 5 more minutes before you give up. All you can think about is a coffee shop that you had seen two blocks back. It has been consuming your thoughts because you are quite hungry now. You decide to turn around and walk back to it, feeling like the coffee shop is calling you.

~~ It is 9:45am when you walk into the shop. A very friendly looking red head smiles to you. The shop is empty. It is clear that the morning rush had already come through and now this local was just staying open in an attempt to be nice to any non-regulars.

“Hey hun! Don’t be shy! I promise I won’t bite!” She smiles to you as cautiously walk up to the counter, noticing her nametag reads “Anna”.

“I would like a medium vanilla latte… um, please.”

“Sure thing!” She says as she goes to prepare your drink, flashing you a smile again. “Can I get your name?” She calls to you from behind the machine.

“Y/N!” You say to her. Suddenly realizing that you are now smiling too.

“Y/N, huh. Pretty name!”

She must have recognized your accent: “If you don’t mind, we don’t get a whole lot of Americans through this shop. So, I’m officially declaring you my friend!”

You are taken aback by her forwardness. You are not sure if it’s just her personality or a Canadian thing.

“Oh. Ok!” You respond. “Well, I am officially declaring you my first Canadian friend!” You then explain to her how you had been visiting a friend from college, but were adventuring out on your own this morning.

The two of you really hit it off, becoming basically best friends almost immediately. It must be because you are in a different country, but you have no problem with opening up to the stranger. You even exchange Instagram’s at one point. Sitting at the bar, you discuss your whole life with her. She listens as you tell her about your exes and your family. And then you do the same when she talks about her girlfriend and her family. You are about the same age, so it is easy for y’all to relate to each other stories. You are laughing, about how you both had a family cat named Steven, when you hear the door chime.

“Anna!” you hear a booming voicing behind you call out. The voice is loud, but not intimidating. And vaguely familiar?  He sounds like he could be about yours and Anna’s ages. “Are you actually replacing me! I thought Sunday morning talks were OUR thing!” He says, drawing out the “our” in an unbelievably cute way. You cannot believe you are actually thinking someone’s voice was cute.

Suddenly, you feel his presence leaning up against the counter next to you. The next thing you know, a heavy arm is being rested around your shoulders, pulling you into him.

“Anna! When I said I wanted to meet your girlfriend, I didn’t mean for you to bring her to OUR morning coffee date!”

You saw Anna’s face turn bright tomato red with shock. The arm’s owner must have realized that he was mistaken, as you feel the arm tense and lift up slightly.

“Anna… please tell me this is your girlfriend and not a complete stranger that I just put my arm around…”

Anna responds sheepily: “Well…. Um…. She’s not a stranger… to me…. She my newest friend!”

Anna’s face is no longer red as she is now grinning. “Shawn, meet Y/N!”

Shawn turns to look at you and for the first time you actually look up at him. And all you can see is his jaw line.

Damn.

You can hear Anna begin to speak again: “She’s American! She’s here for the weekend, visiting a friend from college. She’s… like... actually super cool and I need you to be really friendly and open and to not make any judgements okay, Shawn?”

You look back at Anna and see how she is suddenly giving him a frantic look. She’s trying to communicate something to him with her gestures. You look up at him again.

He is staring intensely at you. His eyes raking up and down you, pausing momentarily on your breast. You can’t quite figure out which emotions are hiding behind his eyes. You can’t even figure out what is going on between Anna and him.

And then it hits you.

The sweatshirt. The jawline. Shawn.

Shawn Mendes has his arm around you.

~~ He looks older than you remember him looking. You hadn’t been following his recent activity. So, you guess it makes sense though, for him to look so much older. He is your age, after all. And you definitely don’t look the same from the first time you heard his music.

Shawn’s arm is quickly retracted. It looks like he has chosen to be cautious, that’s how his eyes seem to appear at least.

He stumbles over his words when he speaks to you.  “How did you find my favorite shop?” he says in an accusatory tone. “I’m so careful when I come here. The last thing I need is a superfan to ruin our mornings. I thought I told you to text me, Anna!” Shawn’s attention is now focused on Anna, who is getting very defensive very quickly.

Anna is throwing her arms up and begins raising her voice at him, something about how he needs to trust her and to just stop accusing her new friend of something.

You aren’t really paying attention.

Your head is spinning. You can finally get a good look at him. He is wearing a pink hoody under a jean jacket, black jeans, and a classic pair of black boots. And then your body goes numb and all you can hear is the word “superfan” rotating around in your head. Your vision goes blurry.

You fall off the bar stool.

~~ You’ve passed out. You can’t move or see, but you can hear. You can overhear Anna and Shawn.

“OH SHIT” Anna screams! An “oh my god” falls out of Shawn’s hushed voiced. “HELP HER YOU ASSHOLE”

You can feel a strong hand grabbing your arm and another suddenly on your back. You were being gently rolled to lay on your back.

“I CANT BELIEVE YOU REACTED LIKE THAT” Anna screams again. “Well I’m not going to pick her up while she’s unconscious!” “No! Not that! EARLIER! You dumbass! I didn’t text you because she’s insanely cool and you’re going to like her!” “SHE just WANTS you to like her, Anna! She’s a SUPERFAN!! She’s just trying to get CLOSE to ME! HELL! Maybe even she FAKED passing out! How do I know she hasn’t already tweeted my location to hundreds of followers on her FANACCOUNT--” “—OH MY GOD SHAWN! Did you even she her! Her phone is over HERE on the counter! And She didn’t move a muscle as soon as you wrapped YOUR ARM AROUND HER!”

You suddenly feel your body return to you. As you begin moving, a hush falls over the two.  Next thing you know, you can feel Shawn next to you, trying to coax you out of your fog. Saying gentle things like “That’s it. Take it easy. I’ve got you.” Shawn’s helping you lift your head.

“I only want you to be happy” You hear Anna mumble to him. “You’re not my match maker” He responds, almost inaudible.

~~ As soon as you completely come to, anger floods your body. You were livid.

Yes, you were a fan, but in no way were you a “SUPERFAN” and Shawn should NOT have risen his voice at your new friend.

You sit up. Testing your words: “I… I am not…” You feel confident as your anger is quickly becoming rage.

“I am NOT a SUPERFAN! And HONESTLY…. The FACT that you ASSUMED as much really wants me to REVOKE my status of REGULAR mediocre FAN… WHO had NO IDEA that this is YOUR FAVORITE coffee shop in all of FUCKING TORONTO!! IM just HERE to visit a FRIEND and I HAPPENED to make another FRIEND! IM SORRY we CANT have the SAME FRIENDS, YOUR HIEGHNESS. I didn’t KNOW you OWNED all YOUR favorite SPOTS in Toronto!... YOU are an ASSHOLE! I KNOW how this works! YOU’RE just being KIND TO ME right now because you HAVE TO BE! HEAvon forbid something SHOWS up on the INTERNET about how THE Shawn MENDES treated a fan POORLY! I heard what you SAID!! You think IM SOME CRAZY FAN with a FANACCOUNT and all the SHIT!”

You notice Shawn’s face growing bright red and he is staring at you in bewilderment. Anna is smirking. But you kept firing off:

“I CANT Believe you! All you FAMous people are the same! YOURE ALL STUCK UP ASSHOLES! And to think that your fans actually think you’re WHOLESOME!  WHAT THE FUCK, SHAWN MENDES?!?!”

You finally stop. He is hanging his head low. Anna glances down to you. “Couldn’t have said it better myself, hun.”

“But….. But your sweatshirt…?” Shawn questions timidly.

“It’s my friends FUCKING sweatshirt.” You say with a little less anger in your voice, but still firm. “In fact, I remember when she bought it. I made fun of her for A WEEK about it! I only wore it so that when I got back to her apartment, after my run, we could laugh about it...” you trail off, suddenly realizing that you are sharing way more information than you should with the asshole standing in front of you.

But you couldn’t help it. You had the weird feeling, that usually was caused by his music, currently fluttering about in your stomach. You were angry but you still wanted to talk to him. You decide instead to shut up, ignoring your gut.

Anna is helping you stand now, placing you into a chair at one of the tables. Shawn follows behind her like a sad puppy.

“Okay. You both stay here, eh. I’m going to get Y/N some water.” Anna says before she disappears into the back.

Anna has been gone a lot longer that she should’ve been. You assume this probably has something to do with those last comments you overheard when you were on the ground. Or you think you overheard. They were so quiet and quick at the end that maybe you may have hallucinated them.

You weren’t sure. Because of it, you didn’t know how to continue.

~~ In an attempt to ground yourself, you try reflecting on the current situation:

Okay, so I’m sitting in an empty coffee shop with Shawn Mendes. And I just YELLED at him? And now he’s looking like I just told him his dog died. What the fuck is even happening right now…

A few more seconds pass. You are about to give up waiting for Anna and just leave altogether. You’re really confused and just want to return to Eden’s apartment, when suddenly:

“I’m sorry…”

“What?” You say, shocked.

“I’m sorry.” Shawn says with more confidence. “I didn’t mean you any harm. I just… I need to be careful. I thought I could trust Anna… Er… I can trust Anna. But for a moment there, when I saw you, and then my name on your.. er… your friend’s sweatshirt… I… I panicked.”

There’s an awkward moment of silence. You didn’t know how to respond. You definitely weren’t expecting an asshole celebrity to be apologizing to you today… or any day for that matter.

Must be a Canadian thing.

Shawn looks up. His eyes are a little puffy and you can tell he’s trying not to cry.

Nope. This is a Shawn Mendes thing.

“Um… It’s ok… I totally shouldn’t have snapped at you… I understand why you need to be careful…. I guess…..”

Your gaze meets Shawn’s and he holds for longer than you expect. He seems to be accepting what you said, but still looks very sad.

“NO…no.. It’s totally my fault... I deserved to be yelled at… I treated you like shit. I’m so sorry.”

His eyes are still locked on yours.

“We haven’t even had a proper introduction yet” He says extending his hand.

“um… I’m Shawn” His mouth is curling up a bit at the corners, flashing you a bashful smile. His other hand is rubbing the back of his neck and for a moment his eyes glance to the ground. And you think you see him beginning to blush.

“Y/N” you say with a bit more confidence than he, but the lack of air in your lungs takes you by surprise. You can feel yourself blushing with embracement.

~~ Anna has returned with 3 waters. She places them down on the table and then walks over to the coffee shop’s door. Flipping the open sign to “closed” and locking the door. When she walks back, she sees the confused look on your face because she quickly shoots out: “I always close up when Shawn comes in… ya know… To give him… privacy.. from fans…”

Shawn looks up to her like he’s about to say something, but then everyone’s attention is quickly taken to the counter, where you phone is vibrating. Anna runs over and grabs it, running it back to you.

“It’s Eden, hun.”

You answer the phone to a frantic Eden: “OH my god!! Why didn’t you answer! I’ve called you three times already! I saw you weren’t here and I figured you went on a run, but then you didn’t answer and I assumed the worst!--”

You cut her off: “Eden! OMG Eden! Breathe! I’m fine! I’m in a coffee shop! I didn’t notice my phone going off because I fainted--”

“--OMG You fainted Why?? Are you Ok-”

“Yes, Eden. I’m fine. I just fainted because…” You glance up and see Shawn and Anna staring at you. Shawn is giving you an interesting look. Almost like he’s studying you.  Your eyes linger on his briefly, “because… well… I’ll tell you about it later. It’s not important. Anyway, what are we doing today... I leave on Monday…”

“How about you come back to my apartment and we can discuss that. I want to make sure you’re feeling ok?”

“Yeah sure, I’ll come back. But I didn’t faint because I don’t feel well… I fainted because I… I’ll explain it later…” you say as you stand up. Blood rushes to your head and you slump back down into your seat. “Actually… maybe you can come pick me up… I’m.. I’m at…” you glance up towards Anna to get the name of the coffee shop, but instead hear Shawn speak up: “No… I’ll take you… tell your friend.”

You try to cover the mic on your phone and pull it from your face. “No. You don’t have too. Eden can come get me. Really. I don’t want to be an inconvenience. Seriously it’s--”

“--NO. I made you faint. It won’t be an inconvenience it’s literally the least I can do… please?”

You feel the blood in your head and you can’t seem to find the will to fight Shawn. “Fine, I guess.” You to say to him, shaking your head in annoyance.  

Back on the phone with Eden: “Actually, I got a ride. I’ll be back at you place soon, okay?

But Eden is quick to catch on, clearly hearing everything you and Shawn had said: “Woah, woah, woah… First of all, if you’re not okay, I should be the one picking you up. You’re my guest! And also: Who MADE you faint? That’s… like…. Not ok? Are you sure you’re fine?”

“Eden, I swear I’m fine.”

“Since when did Y/N decide to accept rides from strangers? You’re clearly not yourself… you would never get into a car with someone you don’t trust! And it takes you FOREVErrrrr to trust anybody!”

“Eden it’ll be fine. I’m fine. I definitely think that the person I’m about to get a ride with is trustworthy. And I know his friend. She’s cool. It’ll be fine.”

“Okay fine, whatever. But if I have to explain to your mom why you went missing in Canada, you better believe that I’ll kill you, even if you are already dead.”

“Oh my gosh, Eden. I’ll be fine.”

“Send me your location. So, I can track you. Just to be safe.”

“Yes Ma’am. See ya soon.” You say jokingly as you hang up.

You quickly share your location with Eden.

God bless IPhones.

You look back up at Shawn and Anna. Shawn hasn’t taken his eyes off you. But for some reason it doesn’t feel creepy.

Anna is looking very pleased.

“Great! So you have a ride back. I’m glad. You’ll be safe. Shawn’s a really great driver.” Anna casually says as she stands from the table and shoots another look to Shawn.

Shawn is now standing and putting his arm around your waist, helping you to your feet.

“Oh, no I can do it.” You protest. But your comment only makes Shawn tighten his grip.

“Don’t fight it, hun!” Anna calls back to you. She has already begun bouncing towards the back of the coffee shop.

You think about what she said. Not quite certain what she was referring to with “it”. As Shawn and you move closer to the door. You are quickly considering that you and Shawn are about to be in a car alone, together….

“Don’t fight it, hun!”