#i have never been happier in a movie theater in my life. holy god

[fivemonsturzzzwowz]

this is the only thing i can draw and send anywhere without spoilering the movie for literally everyone i know. 10000/10 . i will be watching it 1000 more times

[akp-1327]

dear diary // chapter one

Hi, everyone! This is the first chapter of the new series I’ve started. I hope you enjoy and stick around for future chapters! 💕

Find a series “description” and other detailing here!

Word Count: ~ 5.3k

(*) Warnings: none

July 16th, 2020

Dear Diary,

Nothing would make me happier than to visit the city. The bright lights, the busy streets, the shops, the smell of car exhaust. For all the wonders I’d discover, for all the opportunities I’d face. For the experience, for the fun.

Living in a small town is boring. It’s the same, day after day. Then as soon as you bat an eye, you’ve turned eighteen and have barely left the state. Some would call me a hobbit, some would call me lazy. But it’s hard to get out of town when your family can’t really leave because of their job and you’re too scared to learn how to drive.

The diner that my parents own is great; awesome pancakes, delicious milkshakes, and every single pie flavor you could ever imagine. It’s called the Golden Griddle and it’s located right in the heart of Cedar Cove, Oregon. You’d have to be blind to miss the sunny yellow paint (that’s ever so slowly chipping away, but don’t tell my dad) smeared on the bricks.

Anyway. I’m Charlotte, but you knew that already, didn’t you? Of course you did. Well, if you needed a reminder of my sob-worthy life story...my brother and I are adopted. But you probably remembered that, right? Wow, I need to stop ranting about how you probably remember me. You’re a literal book for God’s sake.

Wait; back on topic. I want to go to see the city. So badly. Oh, and have I mentioned that I got accepted into my dream school? New York University, here I come. How have I not written about that yet? Holy crap. NYU preparations have been coming along nicely. I already have half my room packed and almost all my dorm stuff that my mom insists on buying. My brother Henry, too. He’s going to Ohio State on a football scholarship and a desire to pursue athletic training. Big dreams!

Me, you ask? Good gracious, Diary, stop interrupting! (Oh boy, I’m talking to myself. Skye would laugh...). I’m pursuing acting and theater, of course. A major in drama and a minor in production. I’m chasing the sun here, okay? I am a future Broadway star and actress with dreams as far as the eye can see!

I am ecstatic to make the big move at the beginning of August. More updates to come. Sorry if this ending was abrupt. My dad made his famous chili tonight and I gotta go get it while it’s hot and before Henry inhales it all like the vacuum he is.

Yours, Charlotte :)

*

*

The faint, familiar smell of spices filled my senses as I put the old and tattered diary down. It was a gift I got years and years ago from a friend, but I never used it. May as well start before the wild ride of my new life starts, right?

I threw my blonde hair into a bun as I walked out of my room, avoiding boxes piled up high on the floor. Right as I stepped into the hallway, however, my foot met a ball of fluff curled right outside my doorway.

“Aw, Cooper,” I cooed, leaning down and scooping the little snowball I called a dog into my arms, cradling him close, “you’re missing all the food downstairs, buddy!”

A small whimper came from him as I made my way down the stairs. Henry was spread out on the couch and watching some sort of European soccer, er, football on the TV.

“Hey, just in time!” Henry smiled, waving me over to sit next to him. I obliged, setting Cooper down onto the floor and taking a seat next to him. 

...It was crazy how he was twice my size. And how I was the older one by three whole minutes.

“What’s up, Henry?” I asked, nudging his arm. A laugh escaped his throat as he gestured to the screen and unpaused the video (wait, it was paused this entire time?). I watched the screen to see a player get hit in the head with a soccer ball.

“Hah!” Henry laughed, his deep pitch echoing off the walls. I gasped and swatted his arm.

“Henry! Laughing at someone else’s pain is so rude! What if he got a concussion that ended his career?” I said, a twinge of amusement in my tone. All in all, I loved to see my brother get all flustered. He was such a goody-two-shoes that even something like this comment would make him blow a gasket--

“He’s laughing, sis. I don’t think the dude’s hurt.” Henry said, his tone smug. Maybe college was finally really going to his head.

I shook my head with both surprise and disappointment as I stood up, gesturing for the walking vacuum to follow suit. “C’mon, knucklehead. Dinner’s almost ready.”

We both walked into the kitchen to see the finishing arrangements being set up for dinner; Mom was retrieving bowls and utensils as Dad strained the water from the elbow macaroni at the sink.

“You two are in here early,” Mom teased, giving us a side glare as she placed the bowls and spoons on the counter, “what about?”

A sweet, innocent smile crossed my face as I batted my eyelashes at her. “It just smells so good that I couldn’t stay away!”

“I’ve heard that one before, you jest. Come get your bowls.” Mom chuckled, stepping away. Henry and I grabbed a bowl right as Dad turned to us.

“Get it while it’s hot!” Dad said, grabbing a bowl of his own. Henry and I both dove for the noodles and chili, somehow managing to get our servings without making a complete mess like we usually do. It’s crazy to think of how people mature over time...

The old seats at the table squeaked as we all sat down and started to dig into our chili. A comfortable silence blanketed the table and just as I got used to it, Mom broke it.

“So, you two have been packing, yes? Even the stuff you aren’t bringing?” Mom asked sweetly, dabbing a napkin at the corners of her mouth. She’d always been the politest one in the family; too bad no one else at the table had her mannerisms.

“My room is basically packed except for some of my clothes and books,” I said in between chews of the (extremely hot) chili in my mouth, “but otherwise I’m good.”

Henry nodded and pointed his thumb at me, his eyes never leaving his bowl. “Mhmm.”

“That’s great! Your flights leave in only a matter of days!” Dad cheered, giving Mom a high five. It was such a weird but common thing to see parents do: act like teenagers.

“You sound excited about that?” Henry questioned. I looked over to see half his bowl already gone. 

Mom heaved a sigh.

“We’re excited for you both to finally experience the world. We can’t wait for your lives to truly start!” Mom said, a smile encompassing her features. Her kind, brown eyes flitted between Henry and me.

“You two have the world at your fingertips,” Dad added, glancing at Mom. They shared a fond look. 

At that moment, for the briefest second, I wished that I had a connection like that; a soulmate, someone who you could spill your heart out to. Someone who you could love and be loved by. Someone who’d want nothing more than to see you happy. 

Also at that moment, I decided that I would make it a small goal of mine to make this wish come true during my time at NYU.

*

*

My blankets were soft around my legs as I sat propped up against my pillows. Leila and I had been talking on the phone all night. I felt like I was in that moment in Mean Girls where Gretchen was switching between Cady, Karen, and Regina. Except...I wasn’t switching between anyone at the moment. 

Leila Maciel is my best friend. She’s someone with a sarcastic personality and a snarky remark to anything. She’s as smart as a whip and could, without a doubt, put you in your place if you stepped out of line with her intimidating strength. Though, she also has a soft and caring side that she only reveals to those who she deems trustworthy. A confident, kind, and bold girl indeed. 

We’ve been friends for our entire high school careers, but it feels like I’ve known her my entire life.

During our freshman year, Leila was in an extremely toxic relationship. Her ex-girlfriend, a “sweet” but a rather manipulative girl, was to blame for our friendship. This girl, Sadie, ticked all of Leila’s boxes; beautiful, smart, compassionate, sweet... 

Remember that Leila and I had only known each other for a month at this point.

Leila and Sadie’s relationship was adorable from the outside. Both bright-eyed and bushy-tailed freshmen with hearts in their eyes. It was something you’d see in a more realistic version of High School Musical because let’s be real...those movies aren’t realistic. (I still love them, though!)

About a year into their relationship, though, Sadie transformed from sweet to sour. She used Leila to get what she wanted like she was her very own puppet. Her antics ranged from cheating on tests to almost stealing a designer handbag before I intervened. Then, like the cherry on top of this extremely nasty sundae, Sadie revealed that she cheated on Leila with a college girl for the majority of their relationship. Let’s just say that their relationship was terminated seconds after that bombshell blew up.

Leila was broken for months. She truly believed that she loved Sadie, but upon further examination, I found that Leila felt guilty whenever she had the opportunity to say no. It had never been any sort of love; it was an obligation. Also after that relationship, Leila decided that instead of focusing on liking girls, she’d be open and love anyone. She was sick of limits.

So, here we are today.

Now, as we talked on the phone, I thought about how she’d also be going to NYU, majoring in business. We were roommates! It was like a dream come true.

“Uh, Charlotte?” Leila asked with a laugh. “You alive?”

Reality snapped back into place as I blinked my eyes rapidly. “Oh, uh, yeah. What’d you say?”

“Did you buy a fan for our dorm?” Leila asked monotonously. This made me laugh for some odd reason. “Dear Lord, what’s so funny?”

Honestly, though. What was funny, Charlotte? One could say that I was losing my mind.

“I don’t know, spur of the moment? But otherwise, yes; I got the one you pointed out at Target.” I said, surprising myself with how even my voice sounded. A familiar hum came from the other end of the line in response.

“Cool. Then you’re all set to go for next week?” Leila asked, her voice making it sound like she was smiling. I laughed again and nodded to myself.

“Yes!” Was all I could say.

Leila’s sigh was so loud that I could swear that I felt her breath through the phone. “You’re not stressing out over this, are you?”

My eyes widened at her question. Was I stressing out about this? I’d been packing for days on end without breaks. I had folded, re-folded, and re-re-folded all of my clothes several times in my duffel bag. I had splurged on so many things, like that fan Leila mentioned, without a second thought. I don’t think I’ve had a proper shower in almost a week; I was too busy being a nervous wreck.

“Maybe a little bit, but not too much,” I responded, my tone a bit somber as I tried to conceal my lie. My fingers twirled the fringed fabric of my tie blanket around as I waited for Leila’s retort.

“Stressing out over this is like a circle, Charlotte. It’s pointless,” Leila said, her voice starting to reveal her exhaustion, “and you need to relax. We’ll be fine.”

Thoughts buzzed through my mind as I contemplated her words. Would we be fine? Is “fine” even the correct word to describe this situation? How about rephrasing the entire statement entirely by saying “there is a chance that we’ll survive, but it definitely ain’t high.”? That version was more accurate, in all honesty. Moving across the country for school didn’t sound like a situation that could only earn the word “fine”.

“Aren’t you worried, though? A big city, a new city, a scary city...we’re diving into the deep end here, Leila! We have no idea what the hell we’re doing!” I panicked, squeezing my eyes closed.

Now it was Leila’s turn to laugh uncontrollably. Though, hers was more of a witch’s cackle.

“Wow, okay. First of all, we’ll stick together. Second, not knowing what we’re doing is all apart of the college experience. We’ll seriously be okay if we stick together.” Leila assured, still laughing - she never was the sympathetic type in these types of situations.

“If you think so, then I guess I need to believe it.” I yawned, tucking myself further into my blankets. Leila broke out into a yawn as well, making me think that she was actually tired for once (the girl was the definition of a night owl).

“We should get some sleep. We’ll have plenty of time to talk later.” Leila stated. I could imagine her rolling her brown eyes at her own words. A laugh escaped me instead of the hum I intended on.

“Jesus, why do you keep laughing? Why do you have so much energy?” Leila groaned, making my laughter subside.

“I honestly don’t know, I’m a complete and utter mess. We’ll text tomorrow?” I suspired, resting my arm over my eyes to completely block out this embarrassing reality.

“You bet. Love you lots.” Leila said. Her declarations of love truly became more meaningful after that whole spectacle with Sadie. She had a ginormous heart of gold beneath that rough exterior.

“Love you more! Good night!” I said, hanging up after she murmured a farewell. I tossed my phone onto the soft fabric of my blanket and stared up at the ceiling, a nostalgic feeling washing over me. All of the nights during elementary school where I’d do this exact thing, except I would be thinking about my Barbie dolls or my recess adventures. Now, I thought about the future and what waited for me.

College better live up to its well-known reputation.

*

*

Before I could comprehend what was even happening, I was standing in the middle of Portland’s airport with the arms of my family around me. 

Days legitimately whizzed past with nothing short of a greeting. I mean, it was already August 4th...somehow.

“You have all your bags, right?” Dad asked, his voice wavering the slightest bit. I looked down at my belongings for the fourth time; a large duffel bag of clothes, a chest full of dorm stuff and personal items (including that stupid fan, yes), and a very large and heavy carry-on stuffed with all of my technology. And, for the fourth time, I confirmed that I had everything.

“It’s all here, Dad. For the last time.” I giggled, shaking my head. He could only respond with his usual eye roll and grin.

“What about Leila? Are you completely positive that she’s on your flight?” Mom asked, her eyes inspecting mine. A sigh freed itself from my lungs as I nodded.

“She’s already waiting for me by the baggage area, Mom. You even saw her when we walked in, remember?” I stated, returning her inspecting gaze as she fondly smiled in remembrance.

My hands were reaching down to pick up my bags before Henry lightly punched my shoulder. “Wait, whoa, where’s the love, sis?”

“It’s hiding from you,” I teased, punching his shoulder before I pulled him close for a tight hug, “I’m gonna miss you bunches, you know.”

Henry’s grip tightened before he pulled back to show me the tears in his eyes. I gave him a sad smile, knowing that familiar look in his eye; he agreed but didn’t want to admit it.

“Don’t worry, Henry. I’ll only be a call away if you ever need to talk to me,” I said, putting my hands on his shoulders, “and I’ll be a nine hours’ drive away if you ever need me in person.”

He cracked a smile that was identical to my own and let out a deep breath that turned into a shaky laugh.

“Shut up, midget. Go catch your flight.” Henry laughed, shaking his head to compose himself. His blonde hair was tucked away in a red hat with a big, fancy ‘O’ embroidered in gray and black on its face. My heart swelled with pride to see it, too.

“Ditto!” I laughed while reaching down to grab my bags. “Well, I ought to get going. Leila’s been waiting on me for a while”

“Travel safely and call us when you land, no matter the time!” Mom said, hugging Dad and pulling Henry close. My eyes burned with tears as I nodded.

“Can do,” I shakily breathed, “I love you guys.”

Mom blew kisses my way and Dad smiled. Even Henry gave me a rare, genuine grin. I waved, and with a final glance, turned around and headed to the gate that was just behind me without looking back.

The weight of the bags in my hands doubled with each step towards Leila. She was sitting in the waiting area, her bags all around her, scrolling through her phone. Her straight black shoulder length hair was accessorized with a jade green headband, matching her comfy outfit that consisted of a matching jade green tee and a pair of workout leggings.

“Took you long enough, you slowpoke!” Leila smiled, patting the blue seat next to her as she tucked her phone in her backpack. I dropped my bags in relief as I sat down next to her. “How emotional were your parents?”

“Enough to make me almost cry?” I laughed, wiping the wetness below my eyes. “Well, maybe I did cry a little.”

Leila laughed and wrapped her arm around my shoulder. “It doesn’t take much to make you cry, Charlotte. But I am beyond glad to see that you held in most of your alligator tears.”

We both laughed, though our laughter faded after about a minute, turning into a stressed silence...

“We’re really doing this, aren’t we?” I said while taking a deep breath. After almost a year of building up the nerves, the day was finally here.  College...adulthood...life...

Leila turned to me, her eyes showing the most vulnerability that I’ve ever seen in them, and took a deep breath with me. “We may be crazy, but at least we’re crazy together.”

*

*

Bag security was a surprising breeze; little to no lines and no troubles. The security guys even smiled at me. Talk about weird.

Waiting for the flight time was tiring. I did, however, get a text from Henry saying that he’d successfully reached his gate and would be taking off for Ohio at dusk. So that was at least something to keep me occupied for a good two minutes.

Another distraction was to play matchmaker with Leila. It was our favorite pastime in high school, so why not continue the tradition?

“Ooh, that business guy over there wearing the red tie, and...” Leila trailed off, scanning the rows of seats until her eyes focused on a woman talking animatedly on the phone only a few feet away, “her.”

“Wait, the Adrian Raines-looking guy paired with that preppy woman?” I asked, my eyes narrowing. Leila hummed with approval next to me, making me cringe immediately; why, and how, would that work? They were polar opposites!

“Leila, listen. He looks like the type of guy that’d bite your head off if you gave him the wrong coffee order and she looks like the type of girl to organize a charity event. It’s all in the eyes and the cheekbones, even the eyebrows.” I explained, shaking my head. Leila, however, disagreed like she always did.

“They’d balance each other out. He’d soften up and she’d harden up. It’s that simple! Plus, it helps that they’re both very attractive...” Leila smirked, her eyes examining them both with a wistful sigh.

“And they’re probably much older than us, so don’t even get ahead of yourself.” I sighed, rolling my eyes. “But back on topic. Are you talking about the whole ‘opposites attract’ lore? Because that’s just not...plausible. Maybe it is in the movies--”

Leila let out an exasperated breath that hindered the rest of my thought. “It is plausible, though! Just think about how you would feel in this situation. Would you want a guy who has a prickly exterior and a mushy-gushy heart?”

My heart started to palpitate as my hands started to sweat. I have learned to loathe Leila’s ‘boy talk’ because it’d always turn into her setting me up with guys that were either way out of my league or guys that just didn’t meet my expectations.

Her question, though, did deserve some deep thought. I guess I can set my pride aside for a mere second and give her some sort of approbation...

So, the question on the table: did I really have a thing for those types of people? Snarky but also impossibly soft? I guess I’ve never really been invested in relationships of my own. The idea of romance, sure, but not for me. It just never really seemed as important as the ACT or my GPA. I’m starting to regret my valedictorian title; I focused so hard on my studies that I forgot about the fun aspect of high school like the average, rebellious boyfriend with a leather coat and a motorcycle.

“You know what, Leila?” I started, carefully testing this ground as to not lead her down the matchmaking rabbit hole, “I would like a guy like that. A sarcastic and snarky guy with a secret soft side? Yes, please. Oh, and glasses that he’d push up his nose when he was frustrated? Even better.”

An uncharacteristic snicker escaped Leila; she was never one to snicker like that, and now that I actually think about it, our boy talk always had that stereotypical effect on her. Man, this hobby was melting her brain. Is there any research out there on how the quietest whisper of romance can turn the human brain to goo? If so, I need to get my hands on it ASAP. 

“I knew that you had a thing for that! I’ve been scoping this out for years, Charlotte!”

Of course she has.

“Glad you’ve been looking out for me. That or stalking me, but that’s up to you.” I teased, bumping my shoulder with hers only to receive a tired groan in response.

“Oh, hush. You know exactly how damn predictable you can be sometimes. Don’t even try to contradict that, either.” Leila stated, giving me a side glare. I gave her a bright, innocent smile in response as I fiddled with my duffel bag’s handles.

My mouth opened to bring up another round of matchmaker, but I was overpowered by a loud speaker.

“Flight one-hundred two for New York boarding at gate fifty-six!” A voice said gently over the speakers. Leila and I instantly looked at each other with the same anxious looks that slightly weirded me out.

“Um, Leila--” I stammered, trailing off as Leila hopped up and started to grab her things. She wore the biggest and brightest smile when she glanced at me out of the corner of her eye.

“C’mon, slowpoke! We gotta go! Move those short legs of yours!” Leila beamed, grabbing my duffel bag with her open hand. Before I could retort, I was ushered into standing and walking towards the luggage area.

“Alright, eager one, slow down a bit?” I asked through a huff. Only two months off of the cheer team and away from drama and I’m already bent out of shape.

Leila threw my duffel bag and her own suitcase onto the conveyor belt and so I followed suit.

This...this entire experience was moving faster than I expected.

*

*

The plane ride wasn’t really all that exciting. Just Leila falling asleep on me, like I expected. Throw in a couple packs of peanuts, a dash of watching Dirty Dancing and Grease religiously, and a sprinkle of a baby’s obnoxious tantrum...and you end up with the definition of a typical plane ride.

Woo, college. Already kicking off with such an exciting start.

*

*

We were about thirty minutes out from The Big Apple when Leila finally woke up from her sleep. I felt my shoulder lighten and then felt the instant soreness from the five and a half hour flight.

“How’d you sleep?” I asked, busying myself by pausing Dirty Dancing on its second playthrough. Of course it was right as Baby started to awkwardly dance down the staircase and onto the bridge.

Leila’s response didn’t come when I thought it would, so I looked over to see if she fell back asleep on the plane’s wall. To my surprise, I saw that her eyes were glued to a figure a few seats over. 

The girl who sat there had this gorgeous auburn hair that cascaded over her shoulders. Her black headphones stood out against her pale complexion and revealed the slightest trace of taupe freckles scattered about her cheeks. Also from the girl’s side profile, you could just barely see the tint of matte black lipstick on her lips.

A gentle but teasing smile formed when I looked back over at a wide-eyed Leila, her cheeks now starting to redden with embarrassment.

“See someone you like over there?” I asked, softly nudging her arm with my own. She cleared her throat and blinked rapidly before turning her attention to me.

“I thought she was snoring?” Leila stammered, now rubbing her tired eyes. I looked back over at the girl - her head bobbing slightly to whatever she’d been playing on her laptop - and let out a laugh.

“Sorry to break it to you, Leila, but she’s completely awake.”

Leila whipped her head back around to see and then let another deep blush cover her cheeks. It was hard to notice against her olive skin, though it deepened enough to see from miles away.

“Okay, um, she was snoring a little bit ago. I swear on your life.” Leila said, pressing her hands to hide her bright red cheeks. 

I let out another laugh. She had never let herself get this flustered...ever. This was so rare that I’d only ever seen it once and that was back in high school. Leila locked eyes for a solid twenty seconds with a junior guy named Michael Harrison at lunch during our freshman year. She couldn’t stop blushing or stuttering for the rest of the day, and that’s not mentioning the dejected look she had when Michael walked out of the building with an unfamiliar girl on his arm after school.

As expected, Leila only responded to me with her notorious deadly side glare.

“Shut up right this instant, Charlotte Parker.” She hissed between her gritted teeth.

Did I listen? Of course not.

“Looks like Miss Maciel has been struck by Cupid’s arrow...” I teased, dramatically leaning into her lap with my hand against my forehead. She grumbled and leaned her head on her palm, looking out the window. After I sat up, I could see her brown eyes flit over in the girl’s direction every once in a while and couldn’t hold back my smile. Not teasing, but happy.

I knew that wistful look in her eye well enough to know that she’d been enamored.

*

*

The plane landed at about seven in the evening. Before getting off the plane, I looked over to the girl. She was frantically putting her computer away in it’s decorated case. I saw a patch with the familiar NYU bobcat...right next to another patch with the name “Skye” in this sort of horror-ish calligraphy.

Huh.

“I think her name is Skye,” I said, leaning in to whisper to Leila, “and I think she’s going to NYU.”

Leila glanced over as she stuffed her neck pillow (that she never used) in her bag.

“Cool. Um...Skye, you said?” Leila said, a blush blooming across her cheeks again. 

I’m seriously loving this.

“Yep, Skye. Maybe she’s a freshman like us?” I said. Leila bit her thin bottom lip.

“Maybe,” Leila said, a smirk crossing over her features, “just...maybe.”

*

*

Waiting for our luggage was so boring. I decided that it was even worse than waiting for our fight.

“Ah, it’s mine!” I heard a girl a few feet away from my tired figure cheer. She rushed forward to grab a gaudy pink suitcase bedazzled with fake gems. Leila pretended to gag next to me.

“Gross,” Leila sighed, though her eyes suddenly lit up, “hey, wait, those are our bags!”

She pointed toward a cluster of familiar bags on the conveyor.

“Ah! C’mon!” I stammered, rushing forward and grabbing them. We both started to laugh as we lugged them off.

“Jesus, this is heavier than I remember.” Leila huffed, lifting her bag onto her shoulder. I did the same, though almost toppled over because of the weight.

“Are we sure that these are ours?” I asked, unzipping the duffel bag to see my familiar coat. Relief flooded my features as I looked back at Leila.

Her face was a sickly greenish pale.

“Uh, Charlotte, this...this isn’t...” Leila stuttered, carefully shuffling through the bag. There were lots of black sweaters and lots of striped shirts. A couple pairs of ripped jeans, a few rock band tees along with an NYU sweatshirt...and a tag on the strap.

I reached out for the black tag on the strap and flipped it over. It read...

Skye...Crandall?

“Leila, remember that girl from the plane?” I asked, showing her the tag. Her face immediately fell, though I could see the flame of hope flickering in her deep brown irises.

“Oh. My. God.” Leila groaned, taking the tag into her hand. “You’re kidding. Charlotte, this seriously isn’t happening right now.”

Despite her panicked state, I laughed. And laughed. And laughed.

“I’m officially calling you Eliza Schuyler because you are helpless!” I giggled, doubling over. Leila loudly sighed.

“No, no no no...” Leila whispered, zipping the bag closed, “how are we going to find her now? I bet she left already with my bag.”

I sadly let my laughter subside as I wiped the humored tears from my eyes, being careful to not let my light layer of mascara run or smudge into a huge mess. That was the last thing I needed right now.

“Alright. Well, I think we should wait and see if your bag is still here. We don’t know for sure that she has it,” I stated, patting Leila’s shoulder, “but if it doesn’t show, we’ll track this Skye girl down and give her the right bag. Okay?”

Leila nodded, her face still contorted with a mixed emotion of annoyance and helplessness.

“Welcome to New York, where we lose your freaking bags and make you chase after freaking girls that you like,” Leila mumbled in a bad imitation of a New York accent, pinching the bridge of her slender nose.

“So you do admit it! Aww!” I cooed, booping her nose. She caught my wrist and gave me another glare, though this one was downright teasing.

“Shut it or I will mercilessly write on your face tonight with a Sharpie while you sleep,” Leila teased, “but let’s get going. We still gotta find our dorm and the sun’s already starting to set.”

I nodded and gathered up my stuff, taking another look back at the conveyor...

“Oh, everyone’s gone?” I questioned, my eyes scanning the now empty area around us. Leila rolled her eyes and started to drag me along towards the masses of people with her free hand.

“Yes, but now let’s go find this girl before I lose my mind. I need my bag and I can bet that she needs hers.”

[lifeofafangirl1234]

My Best Friend’s Brother Pt.4

I went home that morning and slept all day considering I barely slept that night. I woke up to a knock on the door from my mom.

“Honey!” 

“Come in.”

“So, how was the party last night?”

“Mom, I’m not suppose to tell anyone this but I need you right now.”

“What is it sweetheart?”

“Mom, I’m going on a date with Stiles tonight.”

“Stiles, as in Stiles Stilinski? Allison Stilinski’s brother?”

“I know. I’m a terrible person.”

“No honey, you’re not a terrible person. You’ve been in love with Stiles since you were 5 years old. I knew this would happen one day.”

“He kissed me last night.”

“Was that all that happened last night? You never came home.”

“Mom!”

“Listen honey. It’s really not fair of Allison to keep you and Stiles apart. I know she loves you both very much but she’s being selfish about this. She’s only worried about losing her best friend because of him, she’s not thinking about your feelings.”

“So it’s okay if I go out with him?”

“Follow your heart. You just have to be ready to handle the consequences.”

“I know.”

“What is your heart telling you?”

“It’s telling me that I should get ready for my date.”

I started to put on makeup and decided to only do the minimum. 

“I’m not going to do a lot of makeup. If we run into someone we know, I don’t want them to know this was preplanned.”

I finished getting ready and Stiles picked me up.

“Holy shit. You look beautiful.”

“Thank you.”

“Have you talked to Allison today?” He asked.

“Yeah we talked about our hangovers. Nothing special.”

“I talked to Scott and he said they seeing Avengers Infinity War at 7:00 and we’re going to the 10:30 so we shouldn’t see them.”

We got to the restaurant and Stiles pulled my chair out for me.

“Did I tell you how beautiful you are?”

“Yes but I love hearing it.”

“Well you are fucking beautiful.”

“Thank you.” I blushed. 

“What will you be having tonight?” The waiter asked.

“I’ll have the steak with a coke.”

“I’ll have the chicken parm with a lemon water please.”

“Your food will be out shortly.” He said as he took away the menus. 

“So do you still like to write?” Stiles asked.

“How do you know about that? The only person I ever let read my stories was Allison, but I think she got bored so I stopped showing them to her.”

“I’m going to tell you the truth. About 2 years ago I was snooping in Allison’s room looking for a phone charger and I came upon one of your stories and I read it. It was amazing.”

“Well this is embarrassing.”

“No, you’re really an amazing writer. You are so talented.”

“Which story did you read?”

“The one about the werewolf. I still have it in my room actually.” He admitted. “When I can’t sleep at night I read it.”

“That one is probably my favorite story, I titled it “Teen Wolf”. I have so many chapters to go along with those first 5 chapters I gave to Allison.”

“There’s more!?” Stiles got so excited. “I need to read them now!”

“If this date goes well maybe I’ll give you the next 5 chapters.” 

“Well then I have to make this the greatest date of your life.” He smiled. “Anyway, how did you get into writing?”

“I’ve never actually told anyone this. My dad would write a new story every week and on every Sunday night, he would read me his new story. It was something special that we kept between ourselves, my mom didn’t even get to hear the stories.”

“You don’t have to explain anymore (Y/N), I know talking about your dad is rough. Allison spent that whole week sleeping at your house taking care of you. I remember hugging you for what seemed like hours at the funeral.”

“I remember that.” I smiled. “I felt so safe in your arms. Anyway I want to finish the story. I really do like talking about my dad, even if it makes me upset. When he died I knew that I wanted to keep the tradition going so I got a head start. Every other week I write a new story and I put them away so that one day I can read them to my kids every Sunday just like my dad did with me.”

“Your kids are going to have the best mom in the world.” He said.

“Oh hush.” I blushed. “Let’s talk about a happier subject. What about Mr. Anderson’s plastic surgery? He looks like a Ken Doll.”

“He’s crazy! I want to know how he could even afford it, he’s a high school biology teacher. He definitely does not make enough money to get that much work done on his face.”

“I think he has a sugar mommy.” I suggested. “He definitely likes his women older.”

“Here’s your dinner.” The waiter said as he placed our meals in front of us. 

“Thank you.” We both smiled.

“Dude, this looks delicious.” I moaned.

“Now I know what to cook for you next time to get you in the mood.” He winked.

We finished our dinner and headed to the theater.

“I’m going to run to the bathroom quickly.” I said. “Don’t ditch me while I’m in there.”

“I would never.”

Stiles waited outside the bathrooms and ran into someone he never wanted to see.

“Stiles!”

“Oh shit.” He whispered.

“Allison? Scott? What are you guys doing here?”

“We were suppose to come to the 7:00 show but we slept through it.” Scott explained.

“What are you doing here?” Allison asked.

“I came to see Infinity War, you know I’ve been dying to see it.” He said.

I walked out of the bathroom and they all turned and stared at me.

“(Y/N)?” Allison asked.

“Oh hey!” 

“What are you doing here!?”

I could see Stiles staring at me, wondering what I was going to say.

“My mom and I just saw Deadpool 2, you know how she loves Ryan Reynolds.”

“Where is Mama (Y/L/N)?” Allison asked. “I miss her.”

“She’s in the car, I had to pee so she went to bring the car around.”

“Well why don’t you stay and come watch the movie with us? It seems like big head over here is gonna third wheel anyway.”

“Yeah I’d love to. Let me just call my mom, save me a seat next to you!” I said.

“I’ll wait out here with you.” Allison said. “Scott save me the seat next to you. I know you like the aisle so poor (Y/N) has to sit next to Stiles.”

“Ugh.” I pretended. “I’ll plug my nose the whole time, he wears way too much cologne.”

“You love it.” Stiles smirked.

“Ew, go get the seats you loser.” I said.

The boys walked into the theater and I had to call my mom.

“Hey mom.” I said as she picked up. “I ran into Scott, Allison and Stiles so I’m going to stay for another movie.”

“What?” My mom questioned. “I thought you were out with Stiles.”

“Yeah so you can just go home, I’ll get a ride home. Okay, love you, bye.”

I hung up, probably leaving my mom so confused but I would explain it to her when I got home that night.

“So how was my house last night? Did Stiles bother you?”

“No he actually took care of me.” I remembered his fingers tracing hearts on my back. “I think he felt bad because of the whole Jackson fiasco.” 

“Yeah I respect him a little more now. I really like that he helped you. I wish he just punched Jackson instead of kissing you but whatever, I’m over it.”

“Yeah, same. Kissing him was different than kissing any guy I’ve ever kissed. It was strange.”

“It’s Stiles, of course it was strange. It was probably like kissing a frog.”

“So true.” But it was nothing like a kiss from a frog, it was like kissing a prince.

We walked into the theater and the boys were two seats apart talking about how excited they were for the movie.

“Are we interrupting your date?” I asked as we walked to the aisle they were in. “Wow, what a conservative couple, keeping a two seat distance. It’s better to wait until the fifth date to sit next to each other anyway.”

“Oh shut up.” Stiles said.

“Are you sure you don’t want to sit next to him?” I asked Allison, trying to show her that I wanted nothing to do with her brother when in reality all I wanted was to be on top of him.

“God, did something happen last night? It seems like you guys hate each other.” Scott asked.

“Nah it’s just fun to bug her. She’s like my little sister.” Stiles said.

“Yeah, and he’s an ass so.” I said seriously. 

How could he compare me to his little sister? God, out of all things to say it had to be that.

“You’ll live.” Allison said. “I want to sit next to my boyfriend.”

“Fine.” I said. “Just for you I’ll deal with your brother.”

We took our seats and Stiles whispered something to me.

“Why do you seem so mad?” He asked.

“You said I was like your little sister.” I said. “We’ll talk later.” 

The movie came to an end and we all left the theater.

“I’m staying at Scott’s tonight.” Allison said. “But I can drive you home if you want and then go to his house.”

“No I can call my mom, she’s probably awake.” 

“I can give her a ride.” Stiles suggested. “I’m passing by your house on the way home anyway.”

“Is that okay with you?” Allison asked.

“Yeah, I feel bad calling my mom to come back out anyway.”

We said goodbye and I got into Stiles’ car.

“If you ever tell anyone I’m like your little sister again this is over.” I said. “That is the grossest and creepiest thing ever.”

“It was a way to make sure Allison didn’t get any ideas. You know I don’t think of you like that. I think you are the sexy next door neighbor who I’ve been chasing my whole life.”

“Nice coverage.” I smirked. “Okay, you’re off the hook. Now take me home and treat me like the sexy next door neighbor needs to pay for hitting your car with her’s.”

“Oh hell yeah.” Stiles said as he sped up.

Part 3 | Part 5

[deanssexplorations]

Thank God for Plan C (Part 1)

Tuesday evenings are some of my favorites to go out. Of course I prefer weekends - I can stay out later, I can visit one of my favorite sex clubs. Saturday nights are truly the best. But I only get one or maybe two Saturday nights out a month, and since Tuesday nights are my weekly fencing lessons, it’s easy to play hooky every now and again and have a date with a lovely lady friend instead.

Last Tuesday I did just that, taking advantage of the chance to (finally) have a make-up date with Cora, a lovely, polyamorous woman whom I first met about four months ago, but with whom circumstances didn't allow to seal the deal. Our first date was actually super hot, even though no clothes came off. We just mashed up against the back of a movie theater and made out like teenagers, but that was it and we hadn’t been able to get together since.

That’s partly because she’s juggling like 10-12 regulars, two of which she’s in “I love you” status with, and one she’s living with. At least she's living with him nominally, meaning she sees him two or three nights a week.

My kind of girl.

Cora and I met at a bar in San Francisco, had a delightful drink, then ventured to the taqueria next door for margaritas and tacos. She is intelligent, charming, and absolutely adorable, and I was thoroughly enjoying my conversation with her. And looking forward to getting into her pants.

All that changed when she got an emergency text. One of her close friends was being admitted to the hospital with a kidney stone - ouch! - and the friend group was rallying to see who could drop everything to be with him. Unfortunately, the other contenders had children or firmer obligations that evening (the firmness of my obligation notwithstanding). She apologized, and was as bummed as I was, but I completely understood. Friends in need is real life, grownup shit, and I absolutely wanted her to be there for him. I told her I’d at least drive her to the hospital so we would get another ten or fifteen minutes to flirt and plan our next encounter.

Which is three weeks from Tuesday. Cora’s next open slot.

After dropping her off with a hug and a quick kiss, I considered my options. It was probably around 8:30 or 9:00. The night was still young. My friend Wendy lives in the City only a few blocks away. I didn’t know if she had anything on that evening and was tempted to send her a quick text, but then I recalled that this was the one week my friend Ellen was in town this month, and just the other day we lamenting our inability to find time to take advantage of it.

So I sent her a text, asking about her hot tub plans for tonight. She texted me back that she was just warming it up. Ellen considers her hot tub her happy place, and so far I’ve joined her for two or three sessions. Naked, of course.

Because every place is happier when you’re naked.

I didn’t tell Ellen that she was Plan B, only that I was in the City and happened to have the evening free up. She was free as well, and invited me to join her. I had been looking forward to finally fucking Cora, but a naked hot tub with Ellen was a pretty decent alternative.

I stopped for wine and showed up about a half hour later, bottle in hand. Ellen greeted me wearing a lovely blue and green sarong, with (obviously) nothing on underneath. She invited me in and poured wine for each of us, and we chatted  on her couch, the hot tub steaming outside.

After a while she stood up, poured our wine into plastic glasses (for the hot tub), and said “Come on, now you need to get naked.”

I love it when women say that.

So we went out to the tub, and I peeled off my clothes while she removed the lid. We climbed in, enjoying the rest of the wine along with some Vivaldi and 420.

Now, the story with Ellen is she and I haven’t had sex. We’ve talked about it quite a bit, but never had it. I met her through another (more adventurous) mutual friend who tried for a spontaneous threesome on our first meeting. But Ellen takes it slow, and even though she’s done plenty of non monogamous play in her life, she’s at a stage where she has to be in the right frame of mind, can’t be getting up early the next day, and all that.

As it turns out she did have a relatively early morning. After exiting the tub we kissed and cuddled on her couch for a while. Still naked. She did play with my cock a bit, which was nice. But she told me she had to bid me adieu. This didn’t really come as a surprise, although if I’m being perfectly honest I had sort of expected that that would be the night we would cross the threshold and actually have sex. But I knew the deal, and was happy simply to have had a lovely evening with her. So I got dressed, wished her a good night, and drove home.

Even so, I was sort of shaking my head at my lack of luck that evening. Two dates, both with established friends with benefits, either of whom would have been first-time sex. And somehow I managed to get away with little more than some cock fondling.

Hmph. 

Regular readers won’t be surprised that my motor was running pretty hot at that point, so when I got home I headed up to my home office for a good masturbation session. It was around midnight by now.

At the risk of TMI (if that’s possible in this blog!), when I want to really masturbate, I like to pull out the stops. Which usually consists of getting completely naked, standing in front of my computer (I have a standing desk), and pulling up some fun porn. With my trusty lube in hand of course.

I was in just this position when I decided to check messages on my phone. There were a few from FWBs on Kik and WhatsApp. Nice. Then I swiped to Tinder.

On Tinder I saw that several women whom I’d matched in the past few days had responded to my notes. I noticed that the response from one of them, Kristy, had come in just a minute or two before.

Cool. She was probably still up. In my horny mood, standing naked with a full-on erection, I wouldn’t mind texting a lovely new woman.

Even better was the content of her note: “Please know the no hair thing makes me shiver. ;-) A bit of a fetish.”

Holy shit. This was in an initial, first-time-ever text to me.

So I messaged her back. “Yeah? I’m all about fetishes.”

Her response included the following: “Where r u? I had a girls night and am a lil drunk … so excuse me.”

I told her I just got back from hot tubbing with a friend and was a little stoned and drunk myself. She asked what I was looking for, and knowing that the answer to that question can be fraught with peril, I told her it was a long story, asking instead what she was looking for.

Her reply: “No commitment, fun casual awesome sex…that’s discrete…”

Aha. One thing I’ve learned is when it seems too good to be true, well, it is. Or almost always at least. She was probably a bot. Or a scammer. Sitting in Indonesia. I quickly put my expectations back in check, and responded “For real? Sounds like a bot.”

She proceeded to tell me she wasn't a bot, that she understood my skepticism, that she hasn’t had anyone to her place without meeting first in public, etc. I told her I am in an open marriage and she told me that was a buzzkill, so I quickly backfilled the rest of my story (we’ve been at it a long time, it’s all above board, we’re not sneaking around on or hurting each other). That seemed to bring her back to a place of interest.

After a bit more banter about open relationships she came back to “Funny, you just caught me at a super horny moment.” I told her I was in a horny mood too - although I refrained from telling her I was watching porn at my computer, naked with a full-on erection, and then I typed the most pivotal line of the exchange:

“I can go there.”

I meant I can go there psychically with you, and if you want to sext then great, let’s do it. After all, we'd already established that she doesn't have guys to her place and always meets in a public place first. But she interpreted it as I could come to her place. She replied that she was nervous that I’d show up and one or the other of us wouldn’t like what they see. Realizing where she was taking the conversation, I went with it, assuring her that I rarely left women dissatisfied and I doubted she would for me.

After a bit more back-and-forth she typed “how fast can you be here?”

She was only about a 15 minute drive, so after securing her address I quickly pulled on some pants, a shirt, and shoes, not bothering with socks or underwear. Grabbing my sex kit - condoms, cock ring, and lube, all in a handy Ziploc bag, I jumped in the car.

I was fully aware that all of this could still be a scam. That I could walk into someone’s apartment and get jumped by two big guys. But logic dictated that the chances of that seemed pretty remote, and I’ve always landed on my feet. In situations like this and others in life.

Beside, I like to think my motto is “fortune favors the bold."  If there was ever a moment to prove it out, this was it.

Leaving my wallet in the glove box of my car (just in case) I found her apartment and opened the door. We had already established that she was going to take a shower and would leave the door unlocked. True to her word, the doorknob turned and the door swung inward.

I took in a small, nicely kept apartment (she is going through a divorce), and was delighted when my gaze fell upon her. Kristy is medium height and build, with a crazy mop of curly blond hair, and a pink streak in the front. She was dressed in a slinky, silky, burgundy-colored robe that was barely long enough to cover her private parts and which accentuated her nipples as they poked into the fabric.

She met my gaze and gave me a smile. Which is when my heart melted.

This was no ordinary smile. It was a crazy, sexy, bedroom smile. It was a smile that said "I want to fuck you up and down and every which way until you’re pumped dry, and I’m going to enjoy every last moment of it.” It was mischievous and naughty and appreciative all at the same time.

It was a smile that every man lives for.

I was getting a very good feeling about the evening…