#i wrote this a bit ago but didn't post it anywhere!

[monbons]

WIP Wednesday

Posting actual WIPS on a Wednesday? Imagine that.

As long as we are all baring our hearts on tumblr, I have to admit that I have been struggling to write anything since I wrapped up Eternal Life (back in the first week of April). At first I figured I was simply burnt out since I wrote all 42k words of that fic in just about a month, but given that I've started three separate WIPS since then and made zero progress on any of them, I'm wondering if I am just out of stories. I hate all my words--even though I really love some of these concepts. So, as you may have noticed, I've been distracting myself with sewing projects because good progress is so clearly visible there...

Anywho, to motivate myself, I decided to post a snip of each today and hope that having bits out in the world will motivate me to finish at least ONE of them! All untitled. Set up and snips below the cut.

Very creatively titled "Party Robot," this WIP is a silly/fluffy one-shot inspired by an article I read a while ago about a growing trend in American weddings. This one is the furthest along and will likely see the light of day eventually...

A nervous bounce.  From a robot. I recognize that bounce. “I thought you said Shepard was working tonight.” My voice is tight. “He is.” Bunce replies, similarly strained. “What did you say he does again?” Panic rises in my chest.  “He’s in entertain–”  Whether Bunce trails off or I simply don’t hear the rest is irrelevant because the music has changed from easy dinner instrumentals to much-too-loud techno and the show is clearly starting. As the synths build, driving towards a crescendo, my brain reels with the growing realisation that Simon would never just abandon me at the last minute, would never send me anywhere alone, certainly not my cousin’s gay wedding, which is every kind of milestone given his Old Families lineage and Pitch blood specifically and– “PARTY PEOPLE!” The DJ booms into the mic. “Have the grooms got a treat for you!”

A multi-chapter AU I have lovingly nicknamed "Baz in a Bubble." It is sad and angsty and is proving significantly more difficult to execute (despite having a complete outline) than I once thought it would be. Who could have guessed having one home-bound character would make me too sad to write? Thanks to @thewholelemon and @hushed-chorus who've listened to more than their fair share of my griping about this one. Anyway, here's the first bit of BAZ POV:

There are exactly 297 stars in the sky above me. I count them while lying in my bed every night. They do not twinkle or flicker hello like real stars. Instead, they glow a constant yellowish-green that reminds me of the colour artists always make toxic sludge in the cartoons I grew up watching. It's the colour of superhuman villains and their evil plots. Of poison. Of danger. It's the colour of the plastic star stickers Fiona put up on my ceiling when I was 10 and spent the whole year crying and begging her to go outside. Just once. Just for a minute. Because I was starting to forget what fresh air smelled like or how it felt to have grass prickle against your bare feet or how the stars lit up the night sky in Hampshire. There are no stars in the middle of London. Not outside my window. Not in this room.

And then the WIP I have the least progress on (literally almost nothing) but I so desperately want to write and could really use a thought partner to help me brainstorm/plot/figure out what the hell I'm doing--- a canon divergence where Simon successfully exposes Baz as a vamp and Malcolm steps the fuck up as a father. Here's a bit of Simon POV:

It didn't matter anyway. Pitch Manor was empty. While [the Mage] ranted and raved, I wandered into Baz’s living room. The TV was still on. Peppa the Pig was playing. A half-dressed Barbie was splayed on the couch next to a small bowl of grapes, all cut in half. I picked up the doll and brushed her tangled hair out of her face.  Why didn’t I know Baz had a sister? A family that ate snacks together in front of the TV? Parents who loved him so dearly they fled their whole lives under cover of night? In the days that followed, I sat in meeting after meeting with the Coven, listening to The Mage. He demanded the casting of tracking spells, pushed through more dark creature reforms, and rambled about the miscarriage of justice and the dangers of harbouring monsters.  But Baz wasn’t a monster.  He was just a boy.  A scared boy.  A boy who ran because he wanted to live. 

Anyway...here's to accountability via tumblr. Maybe once I've slept for several weeks and feel more refreshed I won't be so frustrated by every word I know, or more precisely, all the beautiful ones I can’t seem to find…

Thanks for the tag @bookish-bogwitch. Cannot wait to devour the new chapter of BPD!

Hellos and high-fives to all. May your words (and art) be faring better than mine: @raenestee, @cutestkilla, @roomwithanopenfire, @facewithoutheart

@emeryhall, @artsyunderstudy, @aristocratic-otter, @larkral, @rimeswithpurple

@drowninginships, @valeffelees, @shrekgogurt, @blackberrysummerblog, @iamamythologicalcreature

@run-for-chamo-miles, @thehoneyedhufflepuff, @arthurkko, @you-remind-me-of-the-babe, @youarenevertooold

@beastmonstertitan, @supercutedinosaurs, @rbkzz, @fiend-for-culture, @theearlgreymage

@brilla-brilla-estrellita, @skeedelvee, @ic3-que3n, @talentpiper11, @ivelovedhimthroughworse

[blackwolfstabs]

FALL FOR THOSE EYES

No matter what their parents say, Sam can't ignore Tara. (or Tara has separation anxiety)

fandom: Scream characters: Sam Carpenter, Tara Carpenter, Christina Carpenter, Mr. Carpenter content: pre-movie (Scream V) // Tara (4), Sam (10) a/n: i wrote this MONTHS ago (like 10 months ago, back when i first started my account lol) didn't expect to post it, didn't plan to post it, but here we are because i can't be fucking consistent. having said this, if you don't like what i write about, i don't need to hear about it, just skip over it please :) side note: Mikey is Tara's cat plush.

Sam lay awake in the darkness of her room in the early hours of 1:00 AM, staring at the ceiling as she listened to her baby sister cry relentlessly. She was going back and forth from her bedroom to their parents’ room, where she’d just be taken back by one of them. Having gone through this for countless nights, the older sibling knew that Tara would spend her time targeting their mother first, and then, when she wasn’t getting her way, she’d start to ask for their father.

But it never worked.

She hated to hear Tara cry so much, but she couldn’t understand why it was so hard for her to just go to sleep. Their parents weren’t going anywhere. They were just in the other room. She’d see them in the morning. Why was it so hard for her?

This time, she heard her mother bring Tara back into her room.

“Tara, you need to go night-night.”

By the sounds of the youngest’s shaky moans and sniffles, Sam guessed she was clinging to her as she put her back into her bed.

“I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Noo-hoooo!” And her hysterics stirred up again. “I wa-hant you to sta-hay, Mama-haaa!”

Christina left the room, leaving her daughter’s cries echoing down the hallway.

“Mama, pleeee-hease! Mama!”

Tara’s hitching breath was sharp, which made her listening sister start to worry that she would work herself up into an asthma attack. She heard her crying be interrupted by a few coughs, before it continued, her voice getting closer as she made another attempt to leave her room.

“Mm- Mmm– Mm-hmm… Mo-hommy…” She struggled to get out words in full sentences from her accumulated mucus. “I– Ih-hi… want yo-hou… Mommy…”

Great, now she was talking to herself. Samantha covered her face with her hands and lay still, hating how sad her baby sister sounded. And she couldn’t do anything for her. She had been told by their parents to ignore her crying, because she needed to learn. But it was so hard. She just wanted to go lay with her, so they could both get some sleep. She heard Tara’s footsteps retreat into the living room. Again.

A couple more seconds and the cycle repeated, but this time, it was their father bringing her back. Judging from where her whimpers came from, he was carrying her.

“Daddy, nooo-ho-hoo…” 

“Shh-shhh, Tara,” her parent soothed. “You’re okay.”

Even though she wasn’t there, Sam could see him putting her back into bed and actually making the effort to tuck her in around her resistant squirms and sobs.

“Goodnight.”

However, Tara started to cry again as she tried to make him stay, “B-but… my-hy tummy h-hurts, Daddy!” She was already trying to get out of her blankets to prepare to follow him out.

“That’s because you’re crying so much, sweetheart,” he reasoned. A few quiet seconds passed, before he concluded his stay. “Calm down, you’re okay. Hug Mikey and take some deep breaths. Your tummy will feel better soon. Goodnight.”

“I want one more hug!”

Sam bit her lower lip. She hated it when Tara said that.

He must’ve given it to her. “Goodnight, Tara.”

Even after her last hug, the youngest Carpenter was thrown into another fit. “No, Da-ha-ha-ddy! Noooo!” Her bedroom door shut. Uhh-huh-huuhhh!”

Her older sister felt her eyes go hot as she dropped her hands to continue the one-sided stare-off with the ceiling. How long was she going to have to sit here and listen to this before Tara wore herself out? Her cries didn’t leave her room anymore, but they stayed coming through the wall, leaving Sam guessing that she was just lying there sobbing by herself. Their parents were across the house, so they didn’t have to hear how heartbroken she sounded…

A few minutes passed before all went quiet, and she thought that she must’ve cried herself to sleep. But then what she was most afraid of happened…

“Saaaam! … Sa-ha-hammy!”

The owner of the name screwed her eyes shut, but her sister’s pleas grew louder.

“Mmm– Saaaammyyy!”

She covered her ears with her hands, doing what she could to keep herself from running to her rescue. Only it wasn’t a rescue. Tara simply didn’t want to be alone in her room, but she could be. She was being trained to be. She could do it. She remembered what her mother had told her after she and her father had found out that she was sneaking into Tara’s room to keep her quiet.

“She’s a big girl now, Sam. She has to learn how to self-soothe.”

But it was so hard to ignore her.

The shaky moans grew louder, until the door to her room opened and Tara padded in, sniffling and jumping her breaths while she clutched Mikey close. Now, it was of no use. Samantha lowered her hands from her ears and picked her head up to see her sister coming up to her bedside.

“Sammy…” she whined, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I–I… I wa-hant…”

Before she could finish her broken sentences, Sam pushed her covers down and sat up with a sigh. This made Tara start to whimper again, fearful that her last resort would shut her out too. She took her hand and began to guide her towards the door, but the younger just started to break down again.

“I wa-haanna sleep with yo-hou, Sammy!” The little girl was too tired to try and hold herself back, so she was pulled against her will.

“Shhh, I know, Tara. Come on,” Sam continued to hush her as she tugged her past the threshold. She could hear her start to wheeze when she sucked in breaths, her asthma catching up with her from the inability to calm herself down.

But the other hadn’t realized it yet. She was too focused on wanting her way. “I do-hon’t wanna be by myself!” she sobbed, wiping her tears away with Mikey’s marbled faux fur.

“You’re not,” her older sister assured her, “I’m gonna sleep with you.” This seemed to make her start to calm down, sniffling and giving quiet moans to stabilize her crying onslaught. Once they got to her bedside, the taller girl picked her up and put her on the bed. “Lay down. I’ll be right back, okay?”

Tara only gave a partial nod as Sam left the room to grab the tissue box from the bathroom. When she came back into the room, she shut the door and climbed up on the bed to settle next to the recovering occupier, who had willingly got under the covers and was facing her.

She blinked up through drying tears. “Sammy, m-my tummy… hurts,” she complained.

So she wasn’t just pulling strings after all. “I know. It’s because you cried for a long time,” she answered, then went to pull a tissue out from the box, “You know how you have a hard time breathing so you swallow all of the snot in your throat to breathe again?”

Tara nodded.

“All of that snot goes into your tummy and makes it hurt.”

“I… I feel full, too…”

Sam nodded, “Yeah, so don’t swallow it anymore.” She then held the tissue up to her sibling’s nose. “Blow.” She did, and then, she went on to wipe the excess snot draining from her runny nose. “Good girl.” As Tara took in a deep breath to get an adequate amount of air, the other tucked the used tissue into the space between the pillows. “Better?”

Another nod had her placing the tissue box aside and laying down next to her baby sister. She tugged the blankets up to her shoulder and watched Tara roll onto her back to breathe better, where she softly pawed her throat, a small whimper emitting from it. “Remember what Mama said to do,” she reminded, knowing she was scared of having an asthma attack, “Smell the roses, then blow out the birthday candles.” 

And her little sister obeyed, taking a deep breath in through her nose, then letting it out of her mouth.

“Slower, Tara. You can breathe. You’re okay.”

She did so, finding it easier when Sam did it with her. She fiddled with Mikey’s fur while curling and relaxing her toes as she repeated the cycle, a tactic used to decompress her muscles as well.

Eventually, after many breathing cycles and a few tissues, she was able to exhibit a normal breath pattern, making her feel more at ease. But there was still one problem. 

Samantha, on the same hand, had relaxed too, the tactical exercise having her nearly falling asleep. She stirred herself awake. “You getting sleepy yet?” she asked as she suppressed a yawn behind her hand.

But Tara turned her head to look at her with her still-wide-awake puppy eyes. “My tummy still hurts…” she confessed.

Her big sister moved closer to her with a gentle grunt. “It’ll stop hurting in a little bit.” She laid her head down and shut her eyes. Beneath the blanket, she reached her hand over to place it over the gist of the younger’s stomach, where she began to rub in a small circle. “Does it hurt here?” 

“Mm-hmm,” was the reply. The little girl tugged her arms up to allow the caressing hand to do its work as she sank into her pillow while holding her stuffed cat close to her face. “Mama always gives me tummy rubs whenever it hurts,” she whispered.

Eyes still closed, Sam smiled with a short chuckle, “I know.” She knew that was true from seeing it many times. She knew Tara milked stomach aches from time-to-time, just so their mother would hold her. As weird as it might be, being petted like that made her baby sister feel secure. It calmed her down, kinda like a dog. “I don’t think I do it as good as Mom though,” she joked.

Tara giggled. “That’s okay. It still feels good.” She blinked at her sister’s closed eyes, happy that she wasn’t alone anymore. 

“You better not be faking,” the other then opened one eye to glance at the smile on her face.

The younger’s face dropped. “I’m not!”

“You fake stomach aches to Mom all the time, I know you do.”

“Do not!”

“Do too!”

“Liar!”

“Faker!”

“Meanie!”

If she was going to name-call like that, Sam was sure she was feeling better, and she slipped the hand that was caressing her sibling’s abdomen beneath her shirt to tickle her bare, on the offense.

Tara squealed and drowned into laughter as she tried to shove her hand away. “No-ho-ho! Sa-hammy!” She twisted onto her side to curl into herself, then reached out to retaliate, snaking her little fingers into her attacker’s neck.

The new victim pulled her shoulders forward in an awkward block, beginning to snicker herself. But then that caused Tara to move one of her hands to her open underarm, which made her shriek. She then made use of her other hand, which she plunged into the side of the younger’s neck, the side between the pillow that would make it hard to block.

Tara squirmed against the mattress, outdone by aged-strength. She kicked out, inadvertently catching Sam off-guard and having her tickling cease. This made her defend harder, moving her hands from her sister’s neck and underarm to her ribs, sides, anywhere she could to prove her dominance. 

Now, both sisters were in hysterics, trying to get the upper hand from each other, which was a losing game. So, Sam took the initiative to break it up. “Oka-hay, Ta-hara-ha! Stop! We-he need to slee-he-he-heep!” She pulled her hands away and pulled her arms close to her in order to prove her surrender.

Luckily, her sister took it, and backed off as well, her laughter fading to leave a sleepy smile. She may not have been ready to go back to sleep after crying so much, but after all of that, she was tired. 

Samantha panted, readjusting her clothing that had been disheveled from the fight. Tara didn’t seem to care about hers, so when they reverted to lying on their sides, facing each other, she took it upon herself to tug her shirt down and her shorts up.

When they both recovered, the older sibling settled with a content sigh, while the younger one nestled into her pillow with a soft hum. At first, Sam had shut her eyes to welcome the recurrence of sleep, but something possessed her to open them again. And when she raised them to check on Tara, she had done the same.

Her baby sister blinked, the flood of tears that had once ruled her having left no trace on her precious face. “I love you, Sammy.”

The other smiled and tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. “I love you too, Tara.”

Tara shuffled closer to her and nuzzled Mikey’s fur. She felt safe, happy, and sleepy now that she was with her sister. When her mother and father wouldn’t be there to give her that security, she knew Sam would always be there. “Promise you’ll stay with me all night?” she quizzed, knowing she’d usually leave in the early morning, before the sun came up, so their parents wouldn’t know.

Sam nodded, her tired blink not strong enough to pull her into darkness before she was able to promise, “Until the morning light.”

───────────────────────────

[tokoyamiaddiction]

Sick sense of two | MHA reader insert

Venom! Reader

Genre; Angst, Action

Pairing; A little bit of Todoroki x reader

Sypnosis; A weakened Reader, who was abducted alongside Bakugou in the training camp, is amidst a battle between the heroes and villains, trying to prevent the villains from taking them and Bakugou back into their stronghold.

Warning(s); Slight mention of blood, mentally distressed reader

Context; The Reader has a venom quirk, a symbiote that interacts with them, heals wounds, fights, can control their body, can shoot out tendrils, but needs a specific substance only found in brains and chocolate to function, or else he resorts to feasting on Reader's organs. This takes place in the training camp arc when All might was fighting All for one and Bakugou was trying to escape the league.

I wrote this exactly a year ago..

So basically I wrote this based on a Wattpad fic called 'Symbiote' (I'm pretty sure it got deleted), I really liked the fic but I didn't like this part so I changed it (for myself). I never planned on posting this anywhere but I'm bored haha. I don't expect many people to read this but oh well, I wanna see how active the MHA community still is on tumblr...

FIRST PERSON P.O.V

"All Might is holding back...!" I hiss, my voice laced with hurt and agony. Agony from the horror of knowing why the mighty hero who had come to our rescue, the number one savior in Japan, the ultimate power and symbol of peace, was being absolutely demolished by this savage villain with a mask that hid his harrowing disfiguration.

"Because we're here, he can't risk hurting us," Bakugou said as if completing my sentence. I could hear the uneasiness in his voice, and as I was about to turn to look at him, my attention was hurled away when Toga, the blonde schoolgirl, lunged in our direction with her knife.

The grip around the wooden plank in my clutch tightened as I jumped away from her reach, just in time for bakugou to throw a small explosion in her wake, preventing her from stepping closer and propelling bakugou back to widen the gap between them.

My being tensed when I heard someone's footsteps quickly rush in my direction from behind me. I quickly turned around to find the green lizard man only an inch away from me, his hands outstretched with clear intentions to tackle me. I crouched and recklessly jumped under and past him, my balance betraying me.

I grunted as I fell to my side, but I hurridly propped myself up and slammed my makeshift weapon into the side of the green villain's knee. He yelled in pain and doubled over. I took the chance to shuffle to my feet and scurry to bakugous side.

Our backs are pushed against each other, our heaving in sync. I chew the inside of my cheek whilst I try to ignore the aching in my bones, the pounding against my ears, and the burning of my blistered palms, all while the ringing in my ears sounds louder.

"We can't keep dodging them like caged rats!" I yell, raising my voice in order for bakugou to hear me amongst all the commotion.

"I'M NOT FUCKING STUPID, PARASITE FREAK! I KNOW THAT!!" He snapped his head in my direction, veins bulging from his neck. My eyebrow twitched as I looked back at him.

"Well yeah- we need to find a way out of here, or move this fight somewhere else. At least for all mights sake or in the hopes of the heroes-" My words are cut short when Bakugou hastily yanks me by the neck of my sweater and pounces back using his explosions to move us away from more attacking villains.

"QUIT STATING THE OBVIOUS AND GIVE US ACTUAL IDEAS!!" He yells in my ear as we land, my legs barely holding me up. I grimace at his loud voice then scowl in annoyance. My gaze moved from Bakugou to Compress who was charging at us with his hand outstretched. I was quick to react and through the girthy wooden log at him, my aim precise and my swing strong— the echoing 'crack!-' sounding after the log had collided with his mask serving as evidence.

Bakugou whipped his head around but I swiftly grabbed the collar of his shirt to refocus his attention back to me.

"Make an explosion- a BIG one, one that'll sprain your wrists- at shigaraki's direction. I'll use venom and quickly get us out of here, but we'll have to make a stop at the grocery store right after- before venom's done chewing down on my kidneys!" I announce, a stern, and exhausted, look piercing my face "Ok??!"

Bakugou gazes at me for a moment or two, his brows knitting as usual, with one raised slightly higher than the other. He looked as if he was considering my words, or perhaps calculating them? Then his eyebrows sat back on the same level, dropping closer together in a deep scowl.

"No."

"WHAT?!"

He pushes me aside and I stumble a little, he then throws an explosion at one of the villains that I could only assume was rushing towards us, obviously. He brought his palms together and made an explosion that launched him back, over shigaraki. He threw another explosion, closer to the blue-haired male which sent him tumbling to the side, making a path for me.

I run to his side.

"It's not going to work, and you're going to die. I can tell that you're barely holding yourself together trying to use the least amount of energy so your alien quirk doesn't start chowing down on you."

Another explosion goes off, and another villain is sent back.

"I can see your arm. Even when you were knocked out cold the black thing was covering it cause it was injured. You clearly have nothing left." He concludes, not meeting my gaze. My mouth falls agape then my teeth clenched in frustration.

"I'm saving my energy for the finale!" I retort, grabbing a mid-sized stone for defense. I hear my classmate's gruff voice scoff.

" 'finale', please, stop shitting yourself. I'll tell you what'll happen if we go with your plan, Your quirk'll turn on you halfway through and you'll die and we would have accomplished nothing. Or, we'll get out, then you'll STILL die because WHAT STORES ARE GOING TO BE OPEN NOW!?"

"STOP SAYING I'LL DIE-" We dodge another attack.

"We keep dodging until we wear them down, then we'll find an opening. And stay on your feet, dammit." He says and I get up from my crouching position. I turn to him with a mix of a jarred and frustrated expression on my features.

"Wear THEM down?? Pompom, they're not the ones with a goo-ey mass of garbage about to maul them from THE INSIDE OUT-" My exaggerated gestures pause when a large ramp of... ice suddenly materializes a distance away from the battlefield. The air suddenly stills as we all turn to the gigantic crystal, startled. The shock lingering in the air is only doubled once I see a figure slide on top of the icy surface before it's flung across the air.

The figures glide above ground in the sky, the sky filled with smoke and concrete residue and dust, but in spite of it all, they resembled a shooting star. A shimmer of hope shining amidst the devestation and choas.

And my eyes are wide. Wide with confusion and scenarios and hopes, the warmth of the hopeful star envelops me, And I squint,

But I don't know what hit me until another force does.

An explosion, an explosion from right beside, a large explosion, an explosion strong enough to strain his wrists. Bakugou's explosion.

I'm warm then I'm hot then it's burning and I'm grimacing and flying and falling and I tumble and my sides hurt, but god my face, my face burns from the-

The explosion.

My breath hitches, and I force my hot face up from the ground. I stare at them. I stare at Midoriya, Iida, Kirishima, Bakugou. I stare at them in dread. I can barely make them out as they fly across the sky. Fly further and further away from me. It's like the warmth I had only felt a second ago was ripped cruelly out of my chest. blood drains from my face. I feel cold now, and I realize how cold it is and how cold I am. My hands are quivering under my weight as they press against the floor, stones, and pebbles jabbing into my rusted palms.

I'm feeling too much and I don't want to feel anymore, I feel betrayal and sadness and hopelessness and worthlessness and anger.

I don't want to feel anymore

I really don't want to feel anymore

"[Name]! Focus! Run!"

Venom  is the one who snaps me out of my stooper, despite running out of energy and saving what he could so he doesn't have to resort to his instincts. The tiniest amount of dread is lifted off my chest when I hear his voice, it reminds me that I'm not yet alone. That if I die I can choose to die by him rather than those lowlife bottom feeders. And in the sickest way that gives me more comfort than deemed ordinary.

I blink a few times and regain my focus, while the league is distracted with my classmates and fussing over Bakugou, I shuffle to my knees, wincing at the stinging in my arm.

"Venom" I whisper.

"I can't. If I do anything I'll kill you."

My eyes screwed shut for a few seconds. 'Bakgou was right'

"They abandoned you." Compress looms over me, his mouth visible while his broken mask covers his eyes. I jolt and my eyes dilate. "They left you here to rot."

My throat goes dry and my lips purse together, sweat beading down my face. I'm speechless. And I'm ashamed. Ashamed of how I'm believing- agreeing, with his words.

"I have to say, that was quite the heartbreaking display. The way your eyes lingered on them as they swept away, almost unaffected by your doom. The longing behind your eyes... I felt my heart tremble a bit at your expense." He lifted his hat from atop his head and pressed it against his chest, a melodramatic gesture. " I might be a villain, but I'm not completely void of any emotions."

My mind is quick to start making excuses for my friends, 'they couldn't have known', 'they must've thought I could still use venom', 'they expected Bakugou to take me with him'

"My, your face is tattered with burns... not only did Bakugou leave you without a second thought, he also injured you, knowing that you're quite sensitive to fire. It's as if he intended to hurt you" He continues, his voice more sinister, more hypnotizing.

My face scrunches up and my knees grow weaker and my stance is feeble. The hurt and the pain and the anger and the Realisation is all building up once again, and I can feel myself cracking under it all. Under all the pressure, under all the emotions.

"You know nothing...!" I hiss, glowering at his form. He heaves out a soft sigh of defeat. He places his hat back a top of his head and hums.

"Perhaps you're right,I don't know much about you, or your friends. But from what I've seen, you seem... unwanted, by them at the very least." He says it so casually, and I know his play of words is nothing but a ploy to break me. And my does it work.

It's like a bucket of cold water was dunked over my head. That was exactly it, that was the word that summed up the tens of hundreds of emotions I was feeling all at once. I felt so unwanted, so unimportant. Something you could so easily discard without a second glance. I'm colder and my heart starts to hurt, and all the exhaustion and pain in my body is starting to win as I start to buckle under it all.

There is nothing else I can possibly do, if I stay here and fight, All might will be held back, and there is no doubt that I'll be captured either way, and there is no way for me to escape. I'm helpless.

I'm still glaring at Compress, and I know he sees it. I know he sees it all. I know he sees the way my brows are drawn inwards, and how my irises quiver, and how my jaw is clamped so tightly against itself, and how my face is twisted with anguish. And he can see defeat creep up my back.

He can see me give up. He sees my face finally scrunch up and my eyes shut in defeat. He sees my figure loosen, he sees me slide on my knees and sit, my back slouched and my head down. I'm defeated. I feel humiliated that I let them win. That I'm letting them win.

The pain is worse, the pounding is stronger, the ringing is louder, the prickling in my palms and knees and the stinging burns littering the side of my face and the tightening in my muscles and the rattling of my bones and I'm so cold I fear my hands and feet might start to lose all sensation in them.

My expression tightens as I practically feel Compress's relief and the grin stretching across his face.

A click, a second click, then a boom, and it's an explosion. A small one, but it still manages to make me gasp and jump back onto my hinde. My heart is hammering against my chest again and I'm no longer composed, not the way i was composed when I was dodging attacks from the villains just a few minutes earlier. For whatever reason I'm panicked, I'm petrified, and I'm so incredibly tired. Tired from another devastation occurring one after another. Compress yells something I don't catch, and then I suddenly can't see him anymore as thick, pink smoke surrounds me. I'm breathing heavily and my head's swerving in every direction, my pupils darting at every movement.

A hand appears from within the smoke and grabs my arm, yanking me to my feet and running, pulling me with it. They say something but my head tunes it out. Their voice is familiar, but I'm in too much of a daze to match the voice to the individual. I can't see anything as we zoom away through the smoke, I can barely make out the back of their head.

Am I being saved? Who's saving me? Is it a hero?

My knees start to weaken involuntarily, and now I'm being dragged more than I'm being escorted. My savior realizes this and stops running for a split second. He's a man. I can tell from his build. He sweeps me from the back of my knees and cautiously throws me over his shoulder.

"I'm sorry" He utters. Then he continues to sprint away. I don't understand the apology, and I don't bother to, because relief is all I feel at that very moment, and I feel so much stress and paranoia and panic seep from my muscles. Then my eyes are heavy, they're really heavy and I'm so tired.

"NO! [NAME]! STAY AWAKE! [NAME]!"

I hear my slow breathing against my ear, my chest rising and falling against the man's shoulder, and I'm slumping forward.

My gaze falls on the person's hair, it's grey.

My eyes are closed and everything aches.

I'm so cold.

___________

I'm so warm

My hands are really warm. They're hot. But the good kind of hot.

Something is on my face. It stings.

My eyes flutter open. I blink a few times trying to make out my surroundings. A low rumble echoes through my chest then I hiss as I feel something cold press against the burnt side of my face. I weakly attempt to shoo the thing away but something is grabbing my hands.

"[Name]? [Name] Are you awake!?" A voice speaks. That same voice. My eyes are blown wide and my heart begins to beat so furiously I can hear it roar in my ears. My back straightens against the ragged wall and I'm about to jump up, push, pull, hit, run, anything my mind deems necessary enough to protect me. But I pause when I make out the figure sitting before me.

"Shoto-?" My voice is barely above a whisper. His eyes are slightly wide, I'm not sure if it's because he's panicked or he was simply startled by my reaction. He nods.

"Yeah, I got you out of there." He says, his voice as monotone as ever. I gape at him for a few seconds, my pulse steadily slowing down and my breathing calming. My shoulders relax and my back leans on the hard concrete wall.

I blink.

Then I blink again.

Then I realize my feet are cold, and I tell him for some odd reason, and he blinks, unsure of how to react. Then I realize my hands are really warm. And the side of my face is really cold and it stings. He's holding something cold to my face, and he's holding both my hands in the other.

He's holding my hands.

My breathing stops and I stare down at my hands, my shoulders tensing yet again. I'm frozen in place as I'm not sure what to say or how to react. Chilling silence falls between us, and I can tell he's confused.

"Please don't make out"

He finally realizes why I've been gaping silently down at my hands and he hurriedly lets go of my hands and pulls both of his hands away, removing the cloth from my face and taking away the warmth my palms once possessed.

"Oh- sorry-... you were freezing." He mutters awkwardly. I nod slowly then shake my head, murmuring a small 'it's ok' under my breath.

I pulled my hands closer to me and rubbed them together.

They didn't abandon me. They were planning to rescue me too. They had a plan for me. They wanted and were ready to save me, despite the risks. Todoroki walked into an active fighting zone just to save me. My lips press together and I grip my hands tighter, overwhelmed by relief, and joy, and guilt.

"I thought you left me." I whisper. "I thought... i thought you guys were... I was so scared, I was so upset, I was so... mad." I huddle into myself further, my teeth gritting together.

"I'm so sorry, im so sorry you had to risk your life like that, I'm sorry I ever doubted you. I'm really sorry." My voice cracks. And Todoroki is silent for a while.

"Don't be sorry. It's understandable." Is all he said, and that seemed like more than enough from him. I look up at him with a deshevled look on my face, then I frown as I meet his gaze.

"Why are you wearing a wig...?" I ask, looking at the grey wig on his head. He pursed his lips awkwardly and removed the prosthetic. "Wait why are we here- where are we??" I look around, and we appear to be in an alley, a really narrow one for that matter.

"It was for a disguise... it was Yoayorozu's idea." He answered.

"Yoamomo's here?" My eyes widen. It made sense, where else would they get smoke bombs from.

"Yes. We need to meet up with her. The others are probably starting to worry." He says. "Can you stand?"

"Uh yeah I think so..." I slowly push myself up, leaning on the wall next to me. Todoroki follows suit, his hands slightly outstretched so he could catch me in the scenario of my balance faultering. I test my balance and I'm relieved to find myself with the energy to walk, I glance down at my clothes and exam them, my face scruntching up as my eyes travels across the dirt and blood and rips tainting my attire. And I remember the pounding in my head.

"Oh- Also," Todoroki reached for something in pocket, then pulled out two large, dark chocolate bars. My eyes widen as I stare down at the wrappers before me. "I remember Midoriya saying something about you and needing chocolate so I figured..."

"Thank you...!" I say before Venom takes control over my body and snatches the chocolate from his hands, quite recklessly.

"Can you be any slower!? Hello, I'm starving!"

Venom's words echo in my head as he shoves the chocolate down my throat.

[joelslegalwhre]

Surpriseee. Smile!

pairing⁀➷ lando norris x reader

word count⁀➷ 450 more or less

summary⁀➷ Knowing some german comes in handy for Lando when your best friend is around.

warnings⁀➷ reader is german, fem!best friend of reader, fluff, reader works for mclaren, use of y/n

a/n⁀➷ i wrote this very selfishly (bc i'm german) but i hope you still like it Imao (tell me if i've missed a warning pls! x)

"Bitte lächeln!" = "Smile!"

You were sitting in a beanbag, while the team worked on analyses. You were working on the next Instagram post for the McLaren account and prepared some stories for later in the day, when Lando came in to talk with his team about the upcoming race. 

As he entered, he walked straight to you, smiling. He gazed at your mobile, a silent question on what you were doing. You turned your phone in his direction, so he could see it and smiled at him. Lando bent down and stopped millimetres in front of you. He was so close, you could feel his breath when he said, "I love you, baby." and gave you a quick kiss. "I love you too." you whispered and smiled as he went to Jarvis. 

Some time passed, you were working on some more media posts and Lando still talked about strategies, when your best friend sneaked into the room. Normally this was the place where only a handful of people were allowed to, but she had asked Andreas about it and he gave her his okay to go anywhere she likes as long as the pictures she took weren't published.

You and your best friend loved to be at the races together. Since you worked for McLaren as a part of the media team, she came along whenever she could, taking photos of the weekend. Not really with the intention of publishing them but to make memories that would last a lifetime. In your free time, you sometimes met at Lando's and your house and had a whole night, watching photos of race weekends, laughing and telling each other things about the moment the photo was taken, sometimes things the others didn't know yet.

"Surpriseee. Bitte lächeln!" your best friend shouted across the room. Since you and Lando were dating, he learned how to talk and understand the basics of German, his head shot up and he gave her his best smile.

Jarvis, on the other hand, was a little bit confused as he didn't understand her speaking German. You had to laugh from where you were sitting when he finally understood what it meant. You could literally see that it's dawned on him. A little bit too late, because she had already shot the photo.

Lando turned to Jarvis, "Well, that was a bit too late, man." he said, joking with him. You had to laugh again at Lando's comment because he said the exact thing you were thinking just seconds ago. You got a look from Jarvis for that but you couldn't stop giggling, so you just shrugged your shoulders. "Sorry, Jarv."

(picture: Henrik Ringnér's Instagram)

༄ Don't copy, translate or republish any of my works on any app or other platform please. I only post my work on Tumblr and Wattpad.

Reposts are always appreciated, they really make my day🧡

[gloomysoup]

Did you seriously just off Steve to an OD or is there another part to that?!

And Eddie hitting Steve in the other fic? Especially pregnant Steve? HELL NO.

okay listen...

first of all, steve is not dead i promise. i currently have 3 total parts up, and there's like AT LEAST one more part to that fic. maybe more i haven't decided yet. i have been working on the next part and it will start to get better soon i swear 🫠

as for the other fic, uhhhh i don't know what to tell you about that one. it was kind of this one off thing i wrote like MONTHS ago that never went anywhere just on a whim yknow like i think it was originally a scene for another draft i have but it didn't really fit anymore and i didn't wanna just delete it bc i liked some of the imagery, like when they're arguing and steve describes it in his head as standing on the cliff. i still liked it even if it didn't fit the characters i'd originally written them as.

and then i forgot about it and i found it the other day and just kinda posted it as a haha idk what this even is kinda post but then it kind of blew up a tiny little bit and a lot of people like it for some reason?? idek man i honestly had no intention of doing anything with it but now i've been playing around with ideas so we'll see ig

although, i appreciate the ask! i don't get many of them honestly and i do really enjoy talking about my work and explaining some of my thought processes yknow it's just fun for me to be able to interact with people more 🤷‍♀️

[blindrapture]

The Rake, drawn by RealaChao Seen in the June 28th log

The Rake was a creepypasta. It didn't originate in the Fear Mythos, or the Slender Man Mythos, or anywhere like that; it was just a creepypasta. We in the Fear Mythos didn't really get "permission" to use it. I, myself, didn't super care about the Rake? I had a hard time seeing him as a Fear. When I wrote the Rake into Rapture on the first log, it was acting as a creepypasta, same as why there's SCP references and secretcity in there. And my general dismissal of the Rake is partly why there's four of them, though that's also meant to be The Four Horsemen, there are four Rakes because Revelation had four horsemen.

Once we get towards the end of Act 1, however, I had decided, quite confidently, that the Fears would be in this story. And I wanted every Fear to appear in Rapture with a twist, I wanted these to be unique portrayals of all the Fears; the Harlequin is a prime example of that, as she is a distinct portrayal of the Wooden Girl, rather than just copying the original story like I did with creepypastas. But I already had the Rake in here, and I already had the slender man too, so how the heck was I gonna add twists on them?

Well. You gotta wait for that.

But anyway, Reala actually drew this Rake many many years ago. I don't know because I don't remember ever seeing it back then. I only eventually saw it when Reala sent me her complete archive of rapture art, unfinished scraps and all. I found this in there and was like "WHAT THE FUCK, THIS IS GREAT, WHY DIDN'T WE EVER USE THIS."

We're using it now. :) Enjoy it, a "new" piece of Rapture art. :DDD feels so good to say that

BONUS:

Early in the Fear Mythos, a guy named Bound by the Moon made us some music for a handful of the Fears, calling them leitmotifs. He did one for the Rake. Here's a "cover" of that I did, "by the Sunsetters."

It's partly just a fun little challenge for myself, transposing these old mp3s into sheet music completely by ear. The rhythms of this one took me a bit of time. But I do these because those old leitmotifs do mean a lot to me. Bound by the Moon did some cool stuff, and we were crazy flattered to have music for our monsters. And, uh, also the Rake. It's a cool piece. Frantic and visceral. Quite appropriate!

This is kinda the only real opportunity I'll have to post this one.

[cloud-somersault]

Hey, how are you doing? I hope you’re alright. 💕 I’ve been reading your status updates on Constellations and the Epilogue, and I just wanted to let you know that I think you’re amazing. Your writing is incredible and I love it. Your stories are so well thought out and the characters are ✨on point✨, and the plot is complex and detailed and aaahhh! It has me hooked! 🤩

And I understand how it hurts when you put so much effort and love into a story, only to post it and not see others be anywhere near as excited or invested as you are. I know how discouraging it can be. And it may be a little silly, but I do want to apologize for not commenting lately—life took some difficult turns for me healthwise around the end of last year and I haven’t been able to catch up! I’m still on Chapter 4 of Constellations! 😭 BUT Chapter 5 is open on my phone, and I am READY to read it as soon as I have the time (and mental energy, but that’s a whole ‘nother issue 😩). Don’t worry that your writing isn’t enough, or be discouraged if some readers don’t catch hints while others are figuring it all out seemingly too easily. Everybody reads and comprehends stuff differently, and it’s not a sign that your writing is bad if they don’t catch it! Honestly, I’m pretty bad at catching hints the first time I read a story unless they’re pretty darn obvious. I don’t usually notice subtle hints until the second, or third, or even seventh read-through, haha! (on the bright side, rereading stories and rewatching TV shows is always fun!) 😅

I guess what I really wanted to say is… don’t give up hope. Don’t lose your love and enthusiasm for your works, or feel like they aren’t worth writing because others don’t seem interested in them. At the heart of it all… at the end of the day… write because you love to. Because it makes you happy. And know that it doesn’t have to be “perfect”—the main goal should be that you enjoy it. That’s something I’m trying to teach myself, too. 💕

Thank you for taking the time to write this message and send it. I appreciate you're very kind words 💕I'm doing okay, I just had to take a step back for a bit from socials and stuff. I'm gonna keep that up for a while.

Please don't apologize for not commenting or taking your time reading. Your health always comes first, and I'm sorry if I came off as childish or needy, that wasn't my intention. Two things just happened that set me off and the timing of it was incredibly poor 😓

Please take your time reading; none of it is going anywhere, and don't feel obligated to leave comments either. i'm realizing that, even if chapters are short or long, finding the time to finish things is difficult, and everyone lives different lives. And I'm sorry about all the spoilers on this blog, I'll tag that better from now on.

But I really do think I got confused or disjointed in my perceptions; everyone here knows so much because i've been asked questions and given answers and people have interacted, so people following me here have more context than the average ao3 user. But I've kinda been expecting everyone to be on the same page, which will never be true.

I'm also the same way where it takes me a while to pick up on hints. I actually changed my writing style to prevent this. I got tired of reading books in college where you had to dive into every little thing. the hints and clues weren't obvious to me. I decided then that, when I wrote, I wanted things to be bold, obvious, but beautiful. I didn't want to make readers feel like they're missing something. I wanted them to trust that every answer, every clue would be answered in time. I made that promise to myself a decade ago, and being reminded of how different people interpret things just...made me remember.

I take writing really seriously, probably too seriously, but I've been doing it for so long and I love doing it. I want to be good at it. When it feels like I've gone back on that promise to myself, I get frustrated. I think of ways I could've fixed things. But I also remember that those books and those writing styles just weren't for me. I wasn't the target audience.

Sorry to go off on a tangent, but I wanted to explain why I got upset. I still love Constellations and I'm posting it on ao3 out of convenience, really. It's easier to reference and search there in one "Entire Work" than to have 5 documents open. The fact that others can see and read and have fun is a bonus. But I'm committed to telling this story, and I'm gonna finish with a bang.

Thank you, I won't forget why I'm doing this and that my thoughts/feelings come first! 😤I hope your health concerns are taken care of soon. Take it easy, and thanks again! 💕

[stars-and-darkness]

20 questions for fic writers!

many many thanks to @garglyswoof for tagging m

How many works do you have on ao3? 63. i need to calm down.

What's your total ao3 word count? 747 502. i need to calm down.

What fandoms do you write for? the vampire diaries, shadow & bone, avatar: the last airbender, star wars, marvel. also, that one suez canal x ever given fic, and that one goncharov fic.

Top five fics by kudos: A Queen's Gamble (you know it's an old one if the title is capitalised lmao), make them bow., the fate makes for a lousy poet., where the heart moves the stones, nyctophilia.

Do you respond to comments? i try. i am not very good at it, but every now and then i sit down, crack my knuckles, and go about emptying my poor inbox.

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? the end. is like ... the only fic i ever wrote that ended unhappily.

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? see above, lol, literally everything else. i'm a wuss.

Do you get hate on fics? i mean ... not really? i would mostly classify the rude things i got as entitlement rather than hate. the impression i usually got was that those people liked my writing style, or the plot, or characterisation, or whatever--there was just one thing or several that they wanted to happen differently, and they felt the need to tell me that.

Do you write smut? looooooo, no, my ace ass would probably spontaneously combust.

Craziest crossover: i don't suppose i've ever written an actual crossover, but today i put dracula-the-historical-figure into the vampire diaries universe, so ....

Have you ever had a fic stolen? ... maybe? okay, strap yourselves: a few years ago someone asked if they could translate a fic of mine into spanish and post it on wattpad, and i said yes. (THIS is one of the reasons why i don't allow translations anywhere but ao3 anymore). they did, and they sent me the link. i linked the translation to my fic, the usual. then, a lot later, i actually went to check their post, and i realised that i wasn't credited though the person said they would. yaaaaay.

Have you ever had a fic translated? well, other than the fiasco up there, the incredible @winterandmistletoe, who made the edit that graces the beginning of make them bow., has two chapters of the russian translation of that fic up on ao3. there's also been an offer to translate The Manifesto of a Last Love into russian, but that one hasn't been posted yet.

Have you ever co-written a fic before? i have not! and honestly, i don't think i'd be very good at it. i'm a bit of a tyrant, so in an effort NOT to be perceived as such i'd probably be super lenient of whatever the other people came up with even if i didn't necessarily like it. i'm pretty particular in my tastes, and one of the things i love about writing fic is that i have nobody but myself to answer to.

All time favorite ship? ehhhhh, nooo, i can't choose between my children!

What's a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will? considering that tvd has had me in its claws for two years now, it feels unlikely i'll ever go back to my wips in other fandoms. you never know of course, but it feels that way. i mean. those unfinished wips don't exactly haunt me, but sometimes i remember them and feel awful about it, lmao.

What are your writing strengths? i'm told i do dialogue and humour well!

What are your writing weaknesses? ughhhhh probably action? it's so hard. oh! and my tendency to describe how a character's eyes look in every other sentence.

Thoughts on dialogue in another language? SO fun fact that dracula fic that i posted today? the one where half the dialogue is in french? i had originally written it all IN FRENCH, and then decided to take mercy on my readers and just put the english translation into italics. yeah. anyway, rule of thumb, ig: if the pov character understands what's being said, then english in italics (or if it's just a sentence or two the spoken language with a footnote). if they can hear individual words, then the language that's being spoken, without translation. if they hear only gibberish--maybe they're super unfamiliar with the language, maybe it's being spoken very fast or with an accent--then just 'character x says something in z'.

First fandom you wrote in? marvel, for my own peace of mind. star wars is the first one i actually posted for.

Favorite fic you've written? again, you can't ask me to pick between my children.

tagging: @morningstargirl666 @kirythestitchwitch @helpless-in-sleep @marxandangels @purplesigebert @darkestgrays @averseunhinged

[yobotica]

New Fic: All Those Days

All Those Days Assassin's Creed | 1,105 words | Teen & Up Audiences| Read it on AO3

Summary:

What does happily ever look like for Assassins?

I think it might look a little something like this.

--

I wrote this over a year ago, apparently, don't think I ever posted it anywhere! Hope this makes up for the Desmond whump from October - tried to write for febuwhump but didn't write a dang thing (for febuwhump, anyways, I did write a little bit on a few things)!

[harudnae]

The Great Draft Eradication Plan was a good idea, there were a lot of honorable deaths but at least the WIP folder is starting to look good. Today I deliver a Gaban x Reader 420-friendly one-shot!

(Fun fact: I started writing this such a long while ago that I quit smoking since... Anyway, I wrote it so I might as well post it.)

Also posted on AO3 on 2024.01.19

Rating: Mature

Pairing: Gaban x GN!Reader

Summary: You're smoking pot on the Oro Jackson's decks when Gaban invites himself in.

Content warnings : weed smoking, flirting, kissing, rated M for drugs & naughty thoughts, no smut in here, no pronouns used for Reader, no body description either

Word count: <2.5k

🌿 Zamalia

It's late at night and the party is as lively as ever on the decks of the Oro Jackson.

You're already pleasantly buzzed from the rum you looted a couple of days ago from a rival crew, but alcohol isn't the only thing you enjoy in such circumstances. You leave the rowdy crowd and lazily make your way to the prow, then you glance behind you to check that nobody followed you, and finally you lean against the railing and roll a joint. You light it up facing the endless sea, sparkling with moonlight and reflections of stars. You exhale a cloud of smoke and smile to yourself, content with your life at sea, more so as a proud Roger Pirate. You haven't been here for long, but the crew quickly grew on you and you'd never dream of being anywhere else right now. You tilt your head up and let your body relax while you smoke and observe the starry sky.

"What are you doing here?"

You stiffen a little at Gaban's voice behind you, then you turn your head around. You nod towards your half-smoked blunt, a sheepish smile on your face. "Smoking pot."

Gaban grins as he approaches you. "Ah, you don't want to get scolded by Crocus now, do you?"

You shrug. "I was avoiding the cabin boys, mostly."

"That's fair." He leans against the railing next to you. "Would you share?"

You raise your eyebrows. "Didn't know you smoked, too."

Gaban chuckles. "Sometimes. I'm just better at hiding", he winks.

You draw your tongue out as you pass him the blunt.

He offers you a sly grin in return.

You observe the way his lips wrap around the tip as he takes a first drag, and how they part as he exhales a cloud of smoke. Fuck, I never thought I'd wish to be a blunt.

"Thanks. It's good stuff, too... Where did you get that?"

"A couple of islands away. A guy at an inn..."

Gaban smiles wide as he asks, "The one in New Marla?"

You squint. "How...?" Oh, right, he smokes too. You exhale a chuckle. "Okay, never mind", you slide him a knowing glance.

"Yeah, I bought him some, too. I stashed some from Zamalia as well before you joined us, I can spare some if you want."

You open wide eyes. "Zamalia? You bet I want to try! I heard they've got the best stuff there."

Gaban chuckles. "You heard right."

"So you're a connoisseur, huh? How did you pick the habit?"

Gaban tilts his chin towards the ruckus of the partying crew. "It's hard to sleep sometimes with these ones around", he says, smiling.

You heartily laugh. "Yeah, I know..."

He hands you the blunt. "How did you?"

"It helps me relax", you explain as you grab the smoke, your fingers slightly brushing against his. "Somewhat."

Gaban removes his glasses and tucks them across the collar of his shirt, leaning a bit towards you to meet your gaze. "You nervous?"

You barely maintain eye contact for a second before glaring back at the sea. Your face feels warmer in such close proximity to Gaban, and your heart beats faster, too. How could you have known that he'd join you right now? Now you're high enough that his voice does weird things to you, not to mention you acknowledged your crush on him only a few weeks ago and his last sentence sounded like something straight out of a wet dream.

"I didn't think we were so intimidating", he continues, voice deep and slightly playful.

You exhale a soft sigh. "You aren't." Well... in a way, you are, but I'm not about to tell you that. You pointedly keep watching the glimmering sea, but you still see him tilting his head to the side, from the corner of your eye.

"Why the need to relax, then?"

You slightly grin. "It's just... a way to unwind, same as having a drink. Back in my homeland we party more often around blunts than booze, mostly because weed grows literally everywhere while alcohol is pretty expensive in comparison. I do enjoy drinking, but not as much as I like being high."

"That's fair. Do you need a refill, by the way?" He eyes your empty jug.

You nod the negative. "I had enough already, I'm going to keep to smoking now. Thanks, though."

Gaban smiles. "Hm. Wanna try some of of that Zamalia stuff, then?"

A delighted grin curve your lips and your whole face lightens. "Ooh, I'd love to!"

He exhales an acknowledging hum and nods. "Wait here", he says as he gets off the railing and puts his glasses back on, "I'll get a refill and the rest."

"Cool, thanks." Your gaze follows him as he retreats to the lower decks, and you turn your head around only once he's out of sight. You lick your lips and take a deep breath. Okay, so Gaban and I are going to get high together, that's a thing that's actually happening. Wow, holy shit, I hope I won't get awkward, or... horny. Either way I'm going to feast on eye candy for the rest of the night. You take another deep breath and lean onto the railing. Your gaze drifts across the calm sea, a giddy smile curving your lips as you contemplate your luck.

Gaban's unmistakable tread on the Adam wood interrupts your daydreaming, making your heart race at the prospect of quality time with your crush. His footsteps slow down as he gets closer, then they stop a little behind you.

You breathe a little more heavily as you feel the weight of his stare behind you, wondering what he's up to.

"The view's really nice", Gaban says.

You straighten up in alarm, suddenly very aware that you're bent over the railing and presenting your whole backside. A split second after you turn your burning face around.

Gaban doesn't move from where he stands, a couple of feet from where he stood earlier at the railing, not quite right behind you but far enough that he could see both the sea and you. He grins, chin up and moonlight shining in his glasses.

You squint, mentally cursing said glasses for concealing his eyes because you're pretty sure he wasn't staring over the railing just now. Then you reason that you're probably getting ideas because you're already a bit high and you've got a huge crush. "Indeed", you exhale after a quiet while.

Gaban turns to you, smile widening, and hands you a pouch he fetches from one of his pockets. "Do you want to roll one?"

Your eyebrows shoot up. "Oh, sure, thank you." You breath hitches a little when the warmth of his hand briefly brushes against your fingers, and you try to stay focused on your task, instead of hoping for more than just partaking.

Thankfully, Gaban chit-chats while you roll, a pleasant distraction from your dangerous thoughts. He's always been easy-going with you, from your very first day in the crew, as well as attentive to your well-being as much as the rest of the crew's even though you came aboard later than most. Until now, he's shown nothing but kindness towards you.

You assume that, being so close to Captain Roger and Rayleigh in terms of authority over the crew, Gaban acts the same with every other new recruit. Calm down, heart, there's nothing personal.

Gaban removes his glasses and tucks them across his collar, gazing at you while you light the new blunt.

You make eye contact when you inhale the smoke, keeping it inside your lungs a bit longer than necessary. You turn back to the sea to exhale, cheeks a little warmer. "It's really good", you comment. Your eyes drift to the wisps of smoke rising from the blunt while you focus on the taste. "I can tell it's strong stuff just with one drag... It's not overwhelming, though."

"Yeah! I really liked the the lemony kind of tang, too."

You nod the affirmative. "Mh-hmm". A few puffs in and your skin is a little more sensitive, tingling where the wind blows, heating where Gaban's gaze lingers a little too long – your hand that holds the blunt, your lips when you exhale, your nape or shoulder when you look upon the calm waves under the moonlit sky. Your heart beats faster too. Being high certainly doesn't help, but you're absolutely positive that it's not the only reason... In such close proximity to Gaban you're all fuzzy inside. When did smoking become so intimate? Am I overthinking things? Or am I just hyper aware of things now that I'm high? You turn to him when he detaches his gaze from you to drink from his jug. Warmth coils inside you as you observe the way his Adam's apple bobs as he swallows, and you repress the sudden urge to plant a kiss there.

Gaban turns back to you, absentmindedly licking a stray drop off his lower lip. "So? What d'you think?"

Very hot. You blink, clear your throat, and look at the blunt. "Oh." You stumble on your words, "Um, very good. Tasty, strong stuff. Thanks for sharing." You huff an awkward laugh, unable to tell if you're talking about the weed or about him. You purse your lips and pass the joint. "I'll have to take it easy with that one", you confess, already feeling much higher than you expected with just a few drags.

"Alright", Gaban says as he takes his turn, then he laughs. "Now you know why I still have some of this after all this time", he reveals, "so don't feel pressured to smoke or anything. I only want to share if you enjoy it."

You crack a soft smile. "Thanks, I appreciate."

Gaban wraps a hand around your shoulder and gently squeezes, eyes diving into yours. "I don't want you to get sick, okay?"

Your heart misses a beat at his touch, warm and tender. Your smile widens and you look back at the sea as your cheeks heat up again. "Yeah, don't worry, I won't. It's really good, I do enjoy this", you mumble, once again unsure whether you're talking about getting high or not.

Gaban squeezes again, then his hand slides off your shoulder as he leans back onto the railing.

You fight against the urge to lean towards him and chase his body warmth. Instead, you prop your elbows on the railing and lean down to rest your head, purposefully avoiding eye contact. You exhale a small sigh.

"You wanna go to bed?"

Your shoulder tense a little at the mental images of a bed that spawn into your mind – every single one featuring you and Gaban over it in various positions – and your face heats up in embarrassment.

"I mean, I understand if it's strong enough to make you sleepy."

You shake your head to clear your mind of dangerous thoughts yet again invading it. Then you crack a smile and turn your attention back to him. "No, it's okay. I'm just... glad to be here, it's nice."

Gaban grins wide. "You like this crew, this ship?"

You eagerly nod. "A lot." Your gaze idly drifts to his hands. "But I was talking about right now, here."

"Less noise around?"

You meet his gaze again. "Yeah. It's nice to have some calmer moments, too."

He still smiles when he passes you the blunt. "More so in good company."

Your fingers brush against his slightly longer than necessary. You have no idea.

Gaban glances at you, a curious eyebrow raised.

You briskly turn your attention back to the sea as you realize that you just said that out loud. Your smile falters and your heart threatens to burst while you wait for the inevitable, terrible predicament.

"(y/n)?"

Your shoulders tense.

"Is this mutual interest I heard?"

You take a long drag from the blunt. Interest, sure. Mutual, though? Wait– You hold the smoke inside your lungs and turn back to him.

He looks at you expectantly, a small smile curving his lips when your gaze lingers there.

You exhale the smoke and finally breathe out, "Yeah."

Gaban's smile widens, turning mischievous. "Then I'm glad I saw you leave the party earlier."

"You came here on purpose?" You lean back up and turn around to face him. "Not just wandering around and finding me randomly?"

Gaban raises his hands. "Guilty as charged."

You raise an interested eyebrow. Emboldened by your recent findings, you step into his personal space and confess, "Well, you've been on my mind for a while..."

He places a hand on the small of our back, pulling you closer. "How long?", he asks as he leans in, his warm breath fanning over your lips.

"Too long", you exhale before closing the last of distance between you. You close your eyes when Gaban's lips touch yours, full and soft and warm, and you almost melt at the contact. Your hands find anchor on his hips, gently pulling him flush against you when your tongue slides against his lower lip.

Gaban's free hand wraps around your nape and tilts your head to deepen the kiss.

Fuck, he's good at this. You sigh into his mouth and answer in kind, warmth pooling in your gut while your hands mindlessly explore the broad expanse of his back.

He breaks the kiss at some point, and he softly smiles when your lips chase after his. His gaze dives into yours and he runs his fingertips around your neck, following your jawline before tilting your chin up.

Breath short, tense with anticipation, you lightly bite your lower lip.

Gaban softly sighs, then confesses, "I really want you right now..."

You crack a smile. "Me too."

"Wanna move...?" He trails out, tilting his head towards the other side of the ship.

You heartily nod.

Gaban leans in for a searing kiss, and doesn't leave you time to recover before he grabs your hand and leads the way to the lower decks.

You all too happily follow him, elated at the prospect of spending some private time with him. Your heart drums loud within your chest by the time you reach his cabin, and you're absolutely certain it's not only because of the weed you shared.

[sarandipitywrites]

saran's year of writing (2023)

hey y'all! saw a couple posts like this floating around and thought i'd hop on the train, because this year has been WILD for my writing (in a really good way). let's start with the bullet points version and i'll put the details under the cut. here we go:

I JOINED WRITEBLR

shared snippets of my work with other, actual humans!

made friends?!

started (and finished!) draft 2 of Dead Roots, Dark Water

wrote 1 short story for every week in october (that's 5 stories in a month! that's great for me!)

first NaNoWriMo in 10 years (and i finished it!)

drafted and re-drafted The Art of Empty Space

started draft 3 of Dead Roots, Dark Water

details, links to projects, me getting maybe a tad too personal, and those all-important wordcounts under the cut:

I JOINED WRITEBLR

i just realized i only started participating at the beginning of october, but it feels like i've been hanging out with you all the whole year 😅 maybe that means i should cut back a bit? nah...

really though, this year was the year i started taking my writing more seriously (not in a 'gotta get published' kind of way, but in a 'writing makes me happier than anything else and that's enough reason to set aside time and energy for it without feeling hella guilty' kind of way) and seeing you all posting your work and being so positive and encouraging to each other was what helped me get up the nerve to join in. and i can say without a doubt that it's the best choice i've made all year. y'all are such a supportive community and i've never once felt like i was encroaching or didn't belong here (and for me, that's really saying something)

so i guess what i'm getting at is: THANK YOU! i've loved reading your snippets and projects this year, and i'm way more confident in my own than i've ever been 💜 y'all are good peeps

Dead Roots, Dark Water

word count (edited and written): 187,789

that's a lotta words! DRDW is both my longest work wordcount-wise, and the work i've dedicated the most time to... probably ever. and i'm SO happy with it, it's a little concerning (/positive)

DRDW is now on its THIRD draft, and (assuming i don't do a massive re-edit) should be ready to start posting in 2024! *excited screaming* i've never released anything i've written in its entirety (the snippets i've been posting are actually a lot more than i've ever shared before), so this is MASSIVE for me and i'm both excited and terrified! overall, though, it's a very, very good thing

Short Stories

this october, i decided to challenge myself to do several things i don't ever do: write short stories; write them on a timeline; and share them. and i did! i wrote one short story for each week in october, and posted them here. they're far from my best work, and due to the timeline, they never could have been my best, which oddly i think helped make it easier to post them? they were also the first pieces i shared here (or anywhere)! they're not awesome, but i'm proud of them and i'm proud of myself for sharing them

NaNoWriMo and The Art of Empty Space

i've done nano once before, ten years ago. i was in college and had a lot more time then (and a job where i could spend the entire day just writing - i didn't know how good i had it), and even so i remember struggling to reach my word goal. but by the power of writing everything in wingdings so i can't second-guess my word choices, i made it this year! and even though i decided to challenge myself by writing a romance-heavy project (something i've historically avoided because IT'S HARD FOR ME, DAMNIT), i love AES and its characters and that feels fucking awesome.

even though my brain decided to spring a surprise plot restructure on me and now i have to rewrite like half of it. it'll be better for it, though, so it's all good 🥲

What's Next?

my plan for early 2024 is, of course, going to be to work on draft 3 of DRDW with the hope of getting some chapters posted (they are LONG, so i'll probably post to tumblr in chunks and the full, unbroken chapters on Ao3 due to formatting). once that's ready, i'll be able to return my attention to AES and getting draft 1.5 all written up. i've mostly figured out where the plot's going there, so it'll just be writing it up to figure out the gaps. if i'm able to write something for november again next year (which i really hope i will; nano did some great things for AES), it'll probably be one of the other Jak & Daxter fics i have kicking around in my head, because i am Obsessed (and switching it up between working on fanfic and original fic seems to work well for my brain).

i've been not super active here for the last month or so because Real Life Work is kicking my ass, but hopefully that will calm down and i'll be able to do more of what i want: writing wild shit, reading your wild shit, and screaming about it together 💜

good vibes and best wishes to everybody in the new year 🥂

[pardonmydelays]

Let’s talk about Lin! Have you seen his recent posts on IG about Warriors?? … It’s still a no from me. Sorry babe!

didn't really expect anyone to ask me about lin, but yes, let's talk about this cause it's still in my head and i still feel so weird about it...

i think i said everything i had to say in the tags of this post and honestly i don't think i will change my mind about it. i am a bit excited because it's lin for fuck's sake and when this man makes music, it's almost always good. however... for me it's a huge step back. i wanted something original. the plot of the warriors doesn't even sound interesting to me. i know hamilton wasn't his original story either, but it's also worth pointing out we're talking about the man who wrote in the heights. and this is what i expected from him... i wanted something original, with original characters... and definitely not with major pop stars??? look, if i want to listen to pop stars, i just listen to pop stars. i want to hear the biggest broadway stars on this album. seriously, what the fuck, lin?

it truly breaks my heart, because i thought i would be more excited for his new project and right now i feel nothing. honestly i am much more interested in "three houses" cast album that we might be getting in the future (dave malloy's new musical) than this. which is fucked up if you think about what my blog looked like a few months ago (and i know who's asking this question so i know you know lmao). so like... yeah i still follow him on instagram and i still try to keep up with all the updates but i have literally no power to post anything about him here because it just doesn't make me happy anymore. i don't know what to say. i had high hopes and now i feel like a clown. also this fandom kinda drained me, ngl. that's also one of the reasons i don't talk about him here or anywhere, really. maybe something will change in the future but for now, thinking about all the things he's working on, i am only interested in moana live action. still kinda disappointed in new lion king (which i believe i already said a few months ago) and like... yeah i will definitely check it all out. you know me. but i expected something better from him so like you said, that's a no from me too.

[dtmsrpfcringe]

Hi, so I was aware of the account around the same time that I think you were told about it in your anons - they started following me. I didn't think much of it when I looked at it (I tend to check followers for bots etc), other than 'christhs1' potentially being his middle name, and it kind of having the same structure to his old account, 'mchshe1'. But for a time, I just dismissed it.

Anyway, the account then updated, and added the dog/meme pfp, the pronouns, and then the name. The name especially threw me for a loop, a) because it's Sheen's middle name, and b) Thomas is his mother's maiden name. Then when they rb'd your anon, and I thought 'okay, this could potentially be him, that'd be fair enough because that anon seems the most likely (and level-headed) explanation to the whole Michael/David thing, rather than "secret relationship being kept hidden by PR" shtick'. This is the point where I wanted to keep an eye on the account, because if it /was/ him, lol that's brilliant. I followed, thinking that if the guy just wants to lurk, good for him.

So then the pfp changed to one of him in a pub, and I couldn't find it or trace it back to /anywhere/. Which doesn't necessarily mean much, but if someone was impersonating him, I thought, it seems weird that they'd use a 'rare' pic, when there are others on his Twitter etc that they could have used instead. Why would they go to the effort of deep-diving for a specific image, and tbh - /how/ did they managed to find it? Again, I therefore thought that it could potentially could be him, using a picture only he would have.

I then noticed that they had been commenting on igv's posts, but even then it seemed plausible, if a bit bold, that it was him. Then the @ngo callout post, which was even bolder. Then they posted a meme/image post yesterday, having deleted the @ngo post, and /then/ they deleted that one (the 'x' they put on the end of it was interesting, though!), and posted this new callout one directed at @igv.

In between all this, they've changed the pub pfp back to the dog one a few days later, and then a few days after that (a couple of days ago, I think?) changed it to an image of his eye.

The @igv one is the post (that, and the new pfp) that has swayed me to thinking that it isn't him. It /could/ be that he's now read through all the posts they've made, especially the ones where they're ripping the shit out of Georgia and Anna - and ultimately fabricating a whole story, contrived from the very limited things that have been posted by media and on social media - and he's lost his temper about it. Plus, the spelling of 'socialise' and 'behaviour' support it - British spellings. Even 'fantasying' (sic) could be that he wrote 'fantasy' first, changed around the wording of his post, added on 'ing', and didn't quite proof-read properly.

But the issue for me is how the post describes the rumours of him being queer. The language comes across as .. well, to be honest, a bit derogatory; describing the /possibility/ of him being queer as disgusting and vile and nasty lies. Speculating about his sexuality is a horrible thing to do, no question about it; it's his business and his alone (whether he's straight, bi, pan or anything else) and he may not want to come out if he /is/ queer, or! Actually may not feel that it's necessary/that he needs to - that previous Tweets/interviews he's done speak for themselves.

But the way "a queer", and "SUCK DICK????" is also worded seems... Idk. Whilst obviously you can never know someone - especially a celebrity - from their interactions on social media, it just appears so far removed from how he's spoken in the past on social media, even when he's been pissed off at people.

So, despite all the other things that made me think 'Ha, would be cool if it were him! Also - mortifying!', that one post has put me in two minds; either a) it's not him, and just someone messing about impersonating him (at which point... Ok), or b) there's the very slim chance that it /is/ him, and he's understandably lost his rag... but at which point the wording of it is rather poor, in my opinion, even if that's not at all how he intended it to come across.

For my money, right now, it's the first explanation - that it's/not/ him, and was doing a good job of impersonation (being a bit mysterious, rare picture, using a pseudonym, using 'x' etc), but if they want to drop a selfie in my inbox or something lol, I'm more than happy to change my tune.

this!!!! This is what I was saying

[bookuce]

10 QUESTIONS FOR WRITERS

Shouts out to @whatdoeseverybodywant for the tag!!

How many works do you have on AO3? - None on A03, I have a few writings on Wattpad (2 published there, 6 drafts). On Tumblr, I have 4 (2 being chapter stories, 2 being one-shots). So, I have about 12 writings in the world for now.

What's your total AO3 word count? - I couldn't tell you, partner lol

What fandoms do you write for? - WWE (Jey and Roman for now. I did have a VERY popular CM Punk series on Wattpad years ago. It's only available for me to see now.), Hiddlestoners (on Wattpad).

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? - I try! Which is why I urge everyone to leave a comment that can lead to conversation! It's hard to respond to emojis or just being added to a tag list. I'm a yapper and I love being able to break down what I'm writing or fangirl with you lot about the characters or the story!

Have you ever had a fic stolen? - Not yet, but I have no problem opening a certain book and unleashing a bit of misfortune for anyone who tries...

Have you ever co-written a fic before? - Several years ago with someone. It was a Randy Orton/CM Punk love triangle story. It's still up. TaintedChaotics was our name on there. I was the only one that posted a chapter though...so it didn't go anywhere lol

What's your all-time favorite ship? - Edward and Bella or Buffy and Angel. Big Vampire girl. VERY big Vampire girl.

What are your writing strengths? - Romance, Angst! I'm obsessed with love, and all the trials and tribulations lovers go through just to love each other. When you read any of my work, I want you to smile at some point while reading. If you aren't, I'm not doing my jooooob!

What are your writing weaknesses? - Smut. I don't write it. I usually do a cut scene to the next day or scene. I understand a lot of people read fanfic for the smut and that's fine. I'm teaching myself how to write it for you lot. This is also good practice for when I publish my first book! I haven't made myself cringe yet, so I guess we're good.

First fandom you wrote for? - WWE! I loved CM Punk down back in 2013 lol

🏷️: @thesamoanqueen @southerngirl41 @zillasvilla @empressdede

idk anyone else off the top of my head I'm sorry lol

[demetriandelibinaryboyfriends]

@ckfemslashnetwork

COBRA KAI SAPPHIC SUMMER WEEK 1 HEATWAVE

***

I don’t want no drama But I know you’re looking at me Got the body of Madonna Like a virgin, make it sticky, sticky

Take me to nirvana Get me up out of this city And I know you got a woman So the situation’s sticky

Know you like what you see You look so damn good on me Like you’re good enough to eat Now you’re stuck in my teeth Got me picking out a ring Baby, I got an idea

Hey, I should be your next girlfriend And she should be your ex girlfriend Hey, you should be my next girlfriend La-la-la, ooh, mmm, la-la-la

Hey, I should be your next girlfriend And she should be your ex girlfriend Hey, you should be my next girlfriend La-la-la, ooh, mmm, la-la-la

California summer Like a popsicle, it’s dripping You’re an Arizona stunner Like a tea, I wanna sip it, sip it

Let me give you sugar You’re my spicy tuna, sticky, sticky Spicy like a rumor You’re my hallelujah, sticky

If you like what you see You look so damn good on me Like you’re good enough to eat, ah-ah

Now you’re stuck in my teeth Got me picking out a ring Baby, I got an idea

Hey, I should be your next girlfriend And she should be your ex girlfriend Hey, you should be my next girlfriend La-la-la, ooh, mmm, la-la-la

Hey, I should be your next girlfriend And she should be your ex girlfriend Hey, you should be my next girlfriend

***

AKSDJNHKUYFGDRKY YES ONE LAST MINUTE SUBMISSION BEFORE THE EVENT IS OVER I KNOW I'M CUTTING IT CLOSE

So this was actually the first fic I started writing specifically for this event, and then I didn't get anywhere near how much I wanted of the preview done by the end of the first week D: So I'm submitting what I have now! Still didn't get to what I was really hyped about (i.e. the spicy bits lmao), but oh well! Can't have time for everything, I guess. At least this post probably won't get filtered now?

So since this was the first fic I wrote for YasMoon in a while, it was absolutely the clunkiest when I went back to edit ^^; I had to spend way more time than I thought just cleaning the damn thing up and getting it on par with my later (and comparatively much better) fic snippets for the femslash event XD With that said, forgive me if it's still a little rough--I was kinda rushing to finish by the event ending D:

For anyone wondering about the ship tags--I know this is YasMoon-centric right now, but I promise MoonPiper will play a bigger role in the finished fic! Moon is dating Piper at the time this fic takes place, which is, ah...definitely going to complicate things. And also make Yasmine really salty. This girl is not one bit happy that she missed her chance like an idiot XD

BTW that top left pic of Yasmine giving Moon a once-over is the Screenshot of All Time. Girl is so ready to take her on the floor that instant. Like!!! Get it together, Yas!!! You are in public, babe!!!

Yasmine's older influencer sister Rosalie who lives in Big Bear makes an appearance here!!! I really love writing about her for some reason. Like I genuinely can't remember the last time I've been this jazzed about fleshing out a fandom OC, aside from some ship lovechildren I made ages ago XD But idk idk I just think she's neat!!! And I wanted to give Yas a family member she has a quasi-good relationship with, since I HC she has difficulties with homophobic parents.

CW for open-ish discussions of teen sexuality and some dirty innuendos.

***

“Thanks for coming out with me today.”

Yasmine watches Moon climb in the new Porche. Hair tied back, smile relaxed, patterned orange dress sweeping in a delicate cloud around tanned legs.

So much of her’s just the same. Impressive that a whole summer full of karate drama bullshit didn’t even bruise that carefree, easygoing spirit.

If anything, it strengthened. Perhaps out of spite, whether or not Moon was consciously aware of it.

Some parts have definitely shifted, though. There’s an iron resolve that’s grown under those thin shawls and short skirts. An extra coat of armor she’s sprouted, thanks to Hawk. Thanks to Yasmine.

Her stomach twists guiltily. It’s the kind of protection someone like Moon should never have to develop.

The world is a cruel place. Unfair, cutthroat, brutal to anyone who doesn’t fit the proper “mold.” Yasmine’s always known that.

She just never thought she’d be the one to teach it to Moon, with her friend’s wide-eyed naiveté and innocent hope that no one was that shitty a person—only misguided.

Yasmine knows she’s the exception to that rule.

“Are you okay?”

She blinks. Reclined in the passenger’s seat, Moon’s fixing her with the kind of concerned gaze she almost never deserves.

“Yeah.” It comes out sharper than she means. A habit she should probably work on. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You…were staring at me and idling the car. You’re kind of out of it. Should we stop for iced coffee?”

“Right.” Yasmine forces a smile. “Was just, ah…thinking about how I’m relieved we can hang out again. Don’t make fun of me for being a sappy bitch, but I missed you.”

Moon laughs—and oh god, she missed that too.

Not that she’ll ever admit it aloud, but it was horrendously stupid to think she could cut Moon off. To think she wouldn’t come crawling back, mesmerized like some idiot in a spy movie falling into the world’s most obvious honey trap.

Not that Moon would ever intentionally honeypot anyone. But she has a way of making you care too much, and not realizing it until it’s too late to save yourself.

“Same,” Moon says. “Actually really glad you’re not still mad at me.”

“Oh, no, I am. Incredibly lame of you to ditch me for a guy who looks like the main character of a budget Sonic the Hedgehog live action remake. But I guess I’ll let it slide this once.”

Moon bursts out snickering—the same way she always has when Yasmine’s bluntness catches her off-guard. There’s something comforting about the familiarity.

“Appreciated,” Moon says.

As they weave out of the hilly Encino neighborhood, Yasmine’s grip on the steering wheel loosens. She didn’t even realize she was squeezing.

“Although I’d be an idiot to turn down iced coffee,” she adds. “Maybe if we wait ‘til we get there, we can Instagram it.”

“Damn. If I knew you were in the mood, I would’ve made you some for the cooler.”

Yasmine winces.

It was a habit they’d fallen into their freshman year. Moon fiddled around with her parents’ coffee machine, using Yasmine as her guinea pig to test out various experimental lattes. Yasmine had tried just about every plant-based creamer under the sun now—and shockingly, even found a handful that didn’t taste like shit. It never failed to make her feel pampered and cared for, even if some of Moon’s combinations were a little…unconventional. (She’s pretty sure Moon spiked her oat milk hazelnut latte with hemp once.)

Something about Moon being so ready to pick the kind gesture back up—after everything—makes Yasmine feel like a horrible person all over again.

“It’s fine.” Her voice is tight. “My mom doesn’t give a shit if we get some food on the credit card. And those kinda covert promo posts get more likes, anyway.”

They turn onto the 405 entrance ramp, where 11 a.m. traffic is already moving as if the entire freeway is stuck in a swamp. Apparently they aren’t the only teenagers trying to get in one last beach trip before the school year.

Speaking of. Moon’s end-of-summer party is in a few days. Which Yasmine will have to miss because…reasons.

Or one reason, mainly. One sharp-eyed, curly-haired, leather-jacket-wearing, much-hotter-than-Yasmine reason.

Ugh.

Her concern isn’t her and Piper getting catty with each other—although she certainly wouldn’t rule it out. She’s much more worried about what’ll happen if she actually likes Piper.

Because Moon deserves someone kind and considerate who treats her well. And the past year or so, she’s had pretty shit luck with that.

And yet. Yasmine has a feeling Piper could be the best girlfriend to ever grace the planet, and the sight of her would still feel like a knife to the gut.

I’m sorry, I wish I could. Ros is having this influencer mixer thing in Big Bear and my parents will kill me if I don’t go.

She’s ironed out the excuse a thousand times, and it sounds plausible enough. Moon knows Yasmine’s parents are crazy, and obsessed with everything their precious Rosalie does.

Hopefully it’ll suffice to not further strain an already-frayed thread. A thread Yasmine’s trying to duct tape back together.

“It’s a shame Sam couldn’t make it,” Moon pipes up suddenly.

Yasmine freezes.

She’s not sure where she and Sam stand. If Yasmine had her way, they’d be done. She seriously doubts there wasn’t any truth to what Kyler told her and Moon.

Besides, Yasmine would bet good money Sam’ll throw her lot in with Aisha next year, now that Aisha’s everyone’s favorite fucking wedgie-giving bitch, apparently.

But Moon’s fond of Sam. Apparently, they rekindled their friendship while she was in France.

While Moon still didn’t know if she and Yasmine were going to patch things up. While she believed it was best to let Yasmine go and make things right with all the people her ex best friend hurt.

And Yasmine doesn’t think trying to get her way in the Sam matter will do much to help her hold onto the friend that, against all odds, she managed to get back.

“Yeah,” Yasmine lies. “A shame.”

“Guess she’s too busy with her new dojo boyfriend.”

Moon snickers again. Yasmine glances over, eyebrows raised.

“Her what now?”

“Didn’t you see her Instagram story? She and this guy she met through karate, they’re totally—wait.” Moon’s eyes widen as Yasmine frowns in confusion. “Did you unfollow her?!”

Yasmine’s eyes flick back to the road, chest turning in embarrassment. Before she can think of an excuse, Moon gasps in smug delight.

“Oh, you petty bitch.”

Yasmine huffs. “Look, her stupid ex-bestie embarrassed me in front of the entire school! Forgive me for thinking we weren’t really on following terms.”

Her friend only laughs, seemingly content not to rib any further. Another thing Yasmine’ll have to add to the list of neverending things she’s grateful to Moon for.

How annoying. She already owes Moon so much, and it’s only getting worse.

“Then I guess I’ll have to catch you up myself,” Moon says. “So when Sam started doing karate again, her dad was training this other guy, too. They hit it off, apparently. But she hasn’t told her dad they’re together yet because this kid’s also living with them because his home life is really bad so the LaRussos invited him to stay in their spare room so he could actually get regular meals—”

“Wait, wait.” Despite herself, Yasmine’s overcome with morbid curiosity. “Miyagi Do or whatever, right? Please tell me Sam’s new boytoy isn’t the same freakshow who tried to hit on me on my birthday. Donatello, or whatever the fuck you said his name was.”

Moon chuckles. “What, Demetri?”

“Yeah, that’s the one.” Yasmine makes a face. “The I-promise-I’m-not-a-stalker-I-just-watch-you-across-the-cafeteria guy. I’d honestly be shocked if he ever landed a girl.”

“Well, he does karate, too. Not like Miguel and Robby, though.” She lets out a dreamy sigh, gazing out the window. “I’ve gotta take you to the next AVT. So many hotties there.”

Yasmine might be sick.

“Right, yeah. Totally my dream to land some shrieking, possessive, testosterone-loaded freak who tattoos my name on him without me asking and then tries to use it to guilt me to stay with him after he beats people up over Yelp reviews. Husband material right there.”

Moon winces. Yasmine doesn’t hold back a smug grin.

The hopeful naiveté can be endearing, but Moon really should have known better than that one.

“They’re not all like that,” she mumbles.

“Come on.” Yasmine scoffs. “In what world would I want some gross, sweaty braindead maniac rubbing himself all over me and acting like I’m his pretty little bitch on a leash? Hard fucking pass.”

She’s thrown off by Moon’s dubious look.

“Didn’t you used to get Kyler to beat up anyone who got in your way?”

“Well, yeah, but that was different. It was a convenience thing—I didn’t get some disgusting girl hard-on because of it.”

The very thought makes her shudder. Boys are good for intimidation purposes, but their uses end there.

Yasmine shuffles her legs, stomach tightening. If…well, that was the rent she might have to eventually pay for guys like Kyler to do her bidding, then to hell with it—she’d do her dirty work herself.

***

“So Rosalie really got lost at the Cannes film festival.”

Moon’s body bends gracefully as she flaps the beach towel out behind her. The wind catches it perfectly, straightening it as she guides it to the ground.

Yasmine tracks her movements, insides aching. Gleaming, sun-kissed skin, perfectly curved body, silky chestnut hair…

She’s such a fucking tease. And from the way she’s deliberately taking her time squatting to put down the towel and stretching up again…

She damn well knows it.

Well, two can play at this game.

“Oh, yeah.” Yasmine sets their cooler down and strides over to her friend. “She knows some actor who was supposed to get us into this premier, but he got sidetracked schmoozing on the main walkway. Apparently Christopher Nolan was there, and—”

Moon begins to open their umbrella. Yasmine gently but firmly takes it away. “Here, let me.”

“Are you sure?” Moon looks worried. Cute. “It’s big, Yas. It’ll crush you.”

“Oh, please. I’m taller than you! Besides.” She fixes Moon with a conniving smirk. “You and Sam aren’t the only ones who get to feel up long, hard rods.”

As she slides her fingers across the umbrella handle, Moon giggles, scandalized. “I…didn’t know you liked that sort of thing.”

“See, umbrellas aren’t whiny, boring little shits who never shut up about how great their handle is, or cry when you tell them a different umbrella has a better handle.”

“Anyhow.” Yasmine slung the umbrella over one shoulder. “Ros’s actor friend vanishes, so she runs off to find him, right? In, y’know, that one slutty green gala gown she wears in all the party makeup tutorial livestreams. She got yanked into some side tent because they actually thought she was co-starring in the new JLo movie! Was like an hour before we found her.”

She saunters across the towel and plants the umbrella in the sand as she recounts the story. Moon’s eyes wander across her, as palpable a sensation as heat rays tracing her back in a tanning salon.

Yasmine smirks. Moon likes strong people? Girls in leather jackets and boys who dive into punching showdowns?

Hell, she can be strong, too. Just because she prefers others to do the work for her doesn’t mean she’s not capable.

She stands on her toes as she cranks the umbrella open, making a point to flex long, thin legs as she does it. She takes her time adjusting the thing, letting the sun catch a blinding gleam in her summery cyan manicure.

A breeze ruffles the skirt of Yasmine’s sundress, cool air brushing against her back legs. She makes no effort to stop this.

Maybe Moon will enjoy the view. Would do her some good to remember what she’s missing.

“You, um…you doing okay with that?”

Moon’s completely flustered. Yasmine’s so self-satisfied it could eat her up.

“Yeah, yeah, it’s fine,” she says airily. “Just a bit awkward. But if Kyler’s not gonna be around to lift shit for me, then I’m not about to wait around for someone else who will.”

“I mean, I could go bat my eyelashes at one of those surfer guys and get them to help us. Not like it would be hard.”

Yasmine shudders.

“What, and have to deal with him trying to menage-a-trois us all day? It’d cause more problems than it’d solve.”

She loosens her fingers—strategically enough that the umbrella tie toppling to the sand looks like an accident. As it hits the beach, she groans.

“Ugh. Damn thing.”

Yasmine slowly inches her feet apart, bending at the waist and making sure her…well, her back end is as noticeable as it will go without looking ridiculous.

Maybe it’s her imagination, but she swears Moon sucks in her breath.

Yasmine spends several seconds plodding through the sand, umbrella tie in full sight the entire time. When the search is convincing enough, she grabs the tie and quickly stands back up.

“Did you just use the Legally Blonde Bend-and-Snap on me?”

It’s Yasmine’s turn to blush.

“What are you talking about?”

“Oh, come on. The thing where you pretend to drop something so you can lean down and get it and show off your ass. I know you’re not that openly slutty unless you want someone to see.”

Yasmine stares at the umbrella, face probably making her look like she ditched the sunscreen today. She’s not about to let Moon see.

“Oh, don’t be so enamored with yourself! Not everything is about you.”

Moon snickers. “Yeah, but that sure was.”

“Ugh. You can’t prove that.”

“I may as well be able to. Your aura’s all full of it.”

Yasmine fingers the hem of her dress, growing more and more flustered.

Moon didn’t used to be this cheeky. Or this…bold. Learning to stand up for herself sure gave the girl a self-made remodel.

And it’s driving Yasmine absolutely insane.

She wants to scream. Wail. Pull her hair. Beat her fists in the sand.

Anything to fight off the effect this New Moon is having on her.

But to hell with it. She hasn’t pulled her last ace yet.

“So are we ready to hit the waves or what?” She takes a deep breath, finally turning back to Moon and gesturing toward the lapping ocean. “It’s hot as shit out, and I didn’t come here just to tan.”

“Sure. But let me grab a drink first.”

As Moon reaches into the cooler, Yasmine starts to peel off her hot pink sundress. She makes a point not to rush, wanting to savor her friend’s reaction.

Oh, she’ll love this.

When Moon turns around, she nearly chokes on her Arizona iced tea.

“You didn’t.”

Yasmine smirks. “I did.”

The other girl shakes her head, mouth tightening. “You really just—ugh.”

“What?” Yasmine bats her lashes, feigning innocence. “It’s a perfectly good bathing suit! What’s the problem?”

Moon groans, yanking off her own sundress in one frustrated motion. “Well, one of us is going to have to change!”

And for a moment all Yasmine can do is stare, taking in the tie-dyed blue, black, and white bikini identical to the one she’s sporting. Matched not for some giggly best friends stunt, but out of a sort of mutual pettiness that still lingered from that fateful night by the bonfire.

The next moment, she’s howling with laughter.

“Oh, you catty bitch. And here I was thinking you didn’t have a mean bone left in your body.”

Moon crosses her arms, glaring. “It was my bathing suit to begin with,” she says, tone snippy. “You were the one who copied my style!”

“Yeah, because I thought it’d be cute if we matched. And you thought so, too, until you went drooling after Spikehair McRage Issues. And now I’m ripping you off? Convenient.”

Her smirk widens as Moon splutters incoherently, arriving at some kind of logical dead end.

“Come on now.” Yasmine pushes her bottom lip out in a fake pout. “All our drama’s water under the bridge, isn’t it? It can be a quirky bestie thing again, you know.”

She knows damn well Moon’s annoyance goes deeper than having her outfit plagiarized. And she also knows that playing dumb as Moon gets more and more quietly exasperated is one of the funniest things she’s ever seen.

Yasmine’s willing to let bygones be bygones. But the Old Yasmine—the one with her heart still torn out from the only person who mattered to her abandoning her at a moment’s notice—can’t resist a few jabs here and there.

“Don’t pretend you don’t know why I’m upset.”

Yasmine blinks, taken aback.

So Moon’s directly voicing gripes regularly now. That wasn’t just a one-time thing.

It’s a little intimidating.

“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.” She keeps up the act, wondering how far she can get.

Moon takes a long swig of tea before speaking, as if to gather strength.

“When you posted those social media pics over the summer…you wore it as a dig at me, didn’t you?”

She opens her mouth, trying to think of a justification and coming up short.

“Not about to believe you ‘just felt like it’ or ‘just forgot.’” Moon snorts derisively. “I know blue tie-dye’s not your style. You only ever got one of those because I did, and you thought it’d be funny if we looked the same.”

Yasmine hesitates, a stone forming in her stomach.

Perhaps if Moon’s ditching her filter, then Yasmine doesn’t need one either. Perhaps brazenly voicing the unsaid with 0 reservations is their new normal.

Strange as that would be.

“I wanted to remind you what we were,” Yasmine admits quietly. “What we had, that you…decided you didn’t want anymore. And I guess also remind you that you could like…turn your back on me and do the ‘reform’ thing all you wanted, but that wouldn’t ever change the fact that you were my best friend. That there’s a lot about us that’s exactly the same, and you can’t pretend you didn’t go along with all the shitty stuff I did for a long-ass time.”

“But I stopped. I apologized to people. I tried to change.” Moon frowns. “Isn’t that what matters?”

“I’m not saying you’re not like…a way better person than me.” Yasmine smiles sadly. “I’ll admit that now. But you’re not some flawless saint. And you can’t just erase the person you were when you were with me.”

“I guess not. But I was never that happy when I felt like…like I was your obedient little pet or something.”

The words cut deeper than Yasmine expects.

“Is that—is that really how you think I saw you?”

Moon realizes she’s hit a nerve.

“I—I don’t know.” Some of the steel is gone from her voice, guilt poking through. “It felt like that sometimes. I know you cared about me, and you were working through a bunch of shit and couldn’t be super open about it. But you always made everything about you.”

And fuck—Yasmine can’t argue with that. She stares at the beach towel, shuffling her feet.

“And why did you wear it today?” Moon’s voice hardens. “To needle me again?”

Yasmine crosses her arms, finally looking up. “And why did you wear yours?”

Moon stops, caught at an impasse. Yasmine’s smirk returns.

“See? We’ve still got a thing or two in common.”

She saunters over, swaying her hips and shifting the tie-dye bikini back and forth.

“I knew there was some mean bitch left in you. Otherwise you’d never have agreed to hang out with me again, hmmmm?”

She smiles, and it’s every bit as smug and conniving as the mask Old Yasmine always hid behind. Moon inhales sharply, leaning back as Yasmine sweeps through more and more of her personal space. By the time her friend gets within inches of Moon’s face, she’s a tensed-up, flustered mess.

Interesting how her feet stay planted when it’d be easy to back up. Maybe that new assertiveness of hers is pressuring her to stand her ground. Or maybe…

“I think we’ve both been feeling a little petty about that whole mess on my birthday, haven’t we?” Yasmine murmurs the words against Moon’s lips, tantalizingly close. Their bodies are brushing now, electricity fizzing under Yasmine’s skin at every point of contact.

She’s burning to know if Moon will close the distance. Give into temptation and finish the job, like Yasmine knows she wants to.

Moon’s eyes start to shut, lips pursing. Yasmine’s smile widens, reaching out manicured cat claws and devouring the metaphorical canary.

In one quick motion she turns, sweeping one arm around Moon and using her other to pull out her phone and snap a selfie. Then she’s gone, stepping away to drop the photo on Instagram and type a caption.

“Twinsiessss!” she hums, reading it aloud. “Missed beach days with this girl. X x x x.”

Moon shakes her head, scoffing. You tease, her glare says.

Well. It’s only payback, isn’t it?

“We’re ridiculous,” she says, sighing. “This is one step away from those annoying ‘his’ and ‘hers’ t-shirts.”

The implication isn’t lost on Yasmine—and it’s all the proof she needs that Moon was one bad decision away from breaking Piper Elswith’s heart.

Is it wrong that she takes a fucked up sort of pride in it?

Shoving the quandary from her mind, Yasmine claps her hands. “Okay, enough of all that. Let’s go for a fucking swim.”

She crams her phone in their swim bag, haphazardly throwing a spare beach blanket over their belongings. Grabbing Moon’s wrist, she tugs them toward the sea.

It’s nice to hold her again. That tanned, lotioned-up skin never fails to feel perfect under Yasmine’s.

Moon laughs, expression coy. “Feels strange to be running around in our bikinis again. Brings back memories, doesn’t it?”

Yasmine’s face grows hot. It’s Moon’s turn to get her blushing, apparently.

“You remember the last time we did that?” Moon prompts. As though one rubbing around the sensitive spots of her memory wasn’t enough to trigger them.

“Oh, yeah.” She chuckles, and it’s a little bittersweet. “How could I forget?”

***

Random author's notes, in no particular order:

I realized that I put not one but two spy movie mentions in my recent YasMoon fics...so now I have a headcanon that her dad is super into James Bond and spy/thriller movies and that's how she's familiar with all the tropes! I like to think it's one of the few things they can still bond over and enjoy together, since I HC that Yasmine's relationship with her dad has gotten more and more strained over the years as she feels like she has to hide the fact she's a lesbian (and he's probably also out of the country a fair bit, if S4 is anything to go off of).

I actually find Yasmine and Sam's relationship so interesting??? Like Yasmine showed 0 guilt when she dropped her in S1 and readily sided with Kyler over her (in contrast to Moon, who looks guilty about cutting Sam off and seems upset by Kyler's public slut-shaming stunts). But then come S3, they're friends again??? I'm left to think they only really made nice because they both care about Moon and want to make her happy, because otherwise I don't think they'd have any reason to forgive each other. (Which kinda further proves my point about Yas being gay for Moon--"ugh I can't stand this shit-talking blowjob-giving bitch, but I'll be nice to her for you and you ONLY, babe!" Like Moon is really the only person who can keep Yasmine's bitchiness at all under control lmao. Even Demetri does a shit job of calling her out XD) And then by the time S5 rolls around, she and Sam seemed to have developed some genuine friendly affection for each other--which I think is kind of neat! The power of Moon's influence, amirite???

Yasmine's hapless lesbian ass really can't think of any better way of flirting than being like "oh nooooo!!! Kyaaaa!!! The wind went under my skirt!!! KYAAAA!!! I bent over to pick something up and you saw under my dress!!!" like a cringey anime girl. I would attest in a court of law that she is just THAT much of a disaster when it comes to openly and publicly flirting with girls. Like she hasn't the faintest idea what she's doing!!! She wants to get the point across but god forbid anyone notice she's gay!!! It needs to look accidental for plausible denial reasons, okay!!! Oh, the joys of writing a deeply closeted sapphic flailing her way through life <3

I just KNOW that Yasmine and Moon know Legally Blonde. Like how could they not??? The main character is a California valley girl XD Yasmine claims she watches it over and over because she loves Elle's aesthetic, but she secretly envies how smart Elle is and kind of wishes she could get a high-end kick-ass businessy job she could show up to in a bright pink suit. She also aspires to have a little purse dog, although she's partial to pomeranians and Japanese spitzes a little more than chihuahuas.

It's our lord's year 2023 and I am still saying the matching bikini bit from S2 was gay as fuck. Like Yasmine definitely knew what she was doing and she definitely wore that shit on purpose. And girl has enough basic fashion sense to not get an identical garment as her bestie unless she wants them to be matchy matchy. Y'know. Like a couples costume. Pretty damn fruity innit

Writing Yasmine as the most unapologetic lesbian tease is so funny. Like by god this girl WILL seduce women with everything she's got while wanting every dick on earth at least 400000000 feet away from her at all times. Iconic!

[erixyin]

Poison Running Through My Veins | Part 3

Summary: Reader has a mental breakdown and its bad, her friends cheer her up and lots of fluffy moments with more angst thrown in. It is a short one I'm sorry! But hopefully it's something that will keep you all happy for now.

Thank you so much for al your lovey comments on tumblr and AO3, they have motivated me to keep writing. I'm sorry I'm so bad with consistency.

Warnings: eddie munson x reader, billy hargrove x reader, past relationship with billy hargrove, current relationship with eddie munson, angst, little bit of fluff thrown in, possessive! eddie, jealousy! eddie, mentions of injury, mentions of food, descriptions of injury, bruising, alluding to being sick, mentions of being ick, fluff, platonic fluff,

[lmk if I've missed anything!]

Tag List:

@sidthedollface2, @yaskna, @ancheyew, @samurai-hearts, @bucky-hydra-hoe-barnes,

Words: 1976 words

No minors allowed please and thank you.

Please do NOT repost anywhere. I will be posting on my AO3 account and linking it here.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Seeing Robin and Steve still over by the stage. Their faces said calm, but their body language said concerned. In between listening to the hellfire club and picking at your food, you kept checking on Steve's face.

As they walked over to you guys, Max didn't say anything but gave you a small smile as she sat down. You tilted your head at Steve, but he just gave you nothing. Same with Robin you thought to yourself.

Eddie was sat next to you. Talking with the hellfire kids and acting like yesterday's explosion had never happened. Still, Steve didn't miss the way Eddie covered your wrist with his hand, exactly where the bruise was. As if to act as your little reminder. Your eyes quietly pleaded with Robin as you watched Steve shove more and more mashed potato into his mouth.

He wanted to give Dustin an excuse as to why he wasn't talking, which meant Dustin just turned to you and Eddie.

"When did you write that song you guys sang? It sounded pretty good." He gave you a little wink as to which you just chuckled. You did not miss the way Eddie's grip around your wrist tightened. "Someone almost fell off beat with the tambourine" He looked at Steve as to which Steve just sent him a middle finger with his tongue sticking out. Only earning him an eye roll in return.

"Oh I-" You looked at Robin quickly as she slightly shook her head. You weren't gonna tell him and the whole hellfire kids, but you didn't really have the best cover up answer. "I just wrote it this morning" You looked back down at your food, continuing to be disinterested in it.

"You guys have a fight?" Mike piped up, asking what all the kids were thinking. One quick glare from Eddie was all the younger boy needed to shut up again.

They had seen Eddie drive off with you in the car yesterday. They had seen your faces and the interaction with Billy. Ooo boi.

The question still lingering in the air, you realised you had waited a beat longer than you had wanted to answer, "No of course not. No, the song was about something else..." You looked at your best friends for help, but their blank stares back answered your own question.

"Something else?" Asked Dustin leaning in. He was such a little gossiper. Steve was shooting him death stares and a 'cut it out' hand gesture but Dustin was ignoring him.

"Or someone else..." Eddie muttered as he leant across and stole some of Gareth's fries. Thankfully the kids hadn't heard, but the wide eyes of the band members and the way they looked from you then back to Eddie made you swallow any words you were about to say.

"I wrote it ages ago; the lyrics were already done. It was holding me back." You tried to keep your voice normal as you could feel the rings that you loved so much on Eddie imprint onto your skin again. The bruise throbbing underneath your sleeve and you knew he knew what he was doing.

With your stomach turning, you felt your body begin to sweat. Looking around you at the familiar faces, for an escape - you felt your eyes lose focus. It felt like the whole room was swaying.

Someone was speaking at you but nothing was registering. The grip on your wrist the only thing you became aware of. The pain making you bite the inside of your cheek.

Then it felt like all eyes were on you, and still your mouth refused to function. No sound. The room swayed harder. The sounds became more muffled. You felt the pain on your wrist cease and that's when you bolted.

You hoped the words out of your mouth was some sort of excuse and not just panicked noise. Running. You were running. You didn't know where at first but your subconscious did. Muscle memory at its best. Falling back to the place you knew you could always escape to when things got too much. Shoving past people to get there fast.

Run! Just get out of here! Run!

Making it to the bathroom, you found an empty stall, thank fuck.

And then everything came out. All of the words that were said last night, all of the thoughts surrounding your head, the bruised skin on your wrist. All of the upset and the pain inside of you, you forced out through your mouth.

Once you had exhausted your body, it literally rejecting you to get rid of any more - you sat on the floor, quietly shaking. You hugged your hands around yourself and you whispered to yourself, "it's okay. It's gonna be okay. You're gonna be okay" over and over again until you would believe it.

Flashbacks to the mall and hiding from the men with guns with Robin and Steve. How you had felt so strong. And then your strength being removed from you when you saw the monstrous thing from the Upside Down in the centre of the mall. The place where you had just begun to be yourself.

The memories coming to the front of your mind in flashes. Hiding like a child. Holding yourself tight. Messy mascara falling down your tired cheeks. Billy stood there and him being teared apart. Max screaming-

You clamped your hands over your ears as if to drown out the noise. "No please no, I want to forget. I want to forget!" you half-choked out.

Remembering where you were, you quietened yourself down and went back to repeating the same thing over and over. The rest of school didn't matter. You just needed to be away from it all.

Wiping the snot from your nose on your sleeves. You rolled up both of them and looked at the two black and purple bruises, one for each wrist. You could see the indents from where his rings had embossed themselves into your skin.

Honestly, if it wasn't Eddie being the one to have done this, you would have killed the person who hurt you like this. But after everything you two had been through. And how he made you feel safe, even after the trauma of last summer.

But you never knew this side of Eddie. And you never thought he would be this way towards you.

A gentle knock from the bathroom stall door, woke you up from your thoughts. Pulling your sleeves back down, you managed a, "hello?" Your voice sounding shaky and tired.

"Is everything okay?" you heard Robin's voice on the other side. Sighing, thanful that it wasn't someone else but also taking a deep exhale trying to calm yourself down.

"Not really, no" You admitted, shakily reaching up and being just able to unlock the door without getting up fully.

The door slowly opened and Robin was there with Nancy. Seeing your face, she gave a kind smile and said, "I brought reinforcements"

Smiling back your tears returning to you except these were tears of love. Nancy held out her hand and Robin held out another and you were gently pulled to your feet by the both of them.

You were pulled into a tight hug by Nancy and you melted. Nancy wasn't the type to be physically affectionate. She was better with her words than anything. It just wasn't her love language, unlike Robin. But when you really needed a hug, Nancy would always be the first one to give it to you.

"I'm sorry-" you started to apologise but Robin shushed you gently, using a soft tissue to wipe away the dried tear stains under your eyes.

"Where do you wanna go? What do you wanna do?" Nancy asked you, looking at you directly. Her eyes filled with concern and love.

"I can't make you miss school" you looked a her worriedly.

"Oh please, anything to get out of science class with Mrs Bustleby." You heard Robin say from behind you. Her hands gently finger brushing your hair back in place.

"I wanna stay here with you guys. Wherever you go I go." Nancy looked at you, her brow furrowing as she grew more concerned. "Please." you pleaded.

You hadn't been this bad since everything that had happened. You couldn't be alone, you had stayed over at one of their houses [usually Steve's] because you couldn't sleep, the nightmares plaguing you everywhere you went.

"Okay" Nancy said finally, glancing down at your hands quickly before taking one hand and leading you outside the bathrooms.

As you opened the door you saw Steve leaning against a wall and talking with Jonathan. Both of them turned to look at you.

"You could have come in ya know" Robin said, teasing Steve. Now that you were back to focused reality, you were aware of how many people were in this corridor again. Your breathing was still shaky.

"I'm not a girl dumbass" Steve said, gesturing in a confused manner and raising his eyebrow at her.

"Never stopped you before" Nancy chimed in as to which Steve then shut up and almost went a bit red and Robin had the biggest grin on her face. Jonathan took a minute to process it before clapping Steve on the back as if to say 'You walked into that one'.

"Is everyone still at lunch or...?" You looked at Steve nervously. It's not like you were going to avoid Eddie. You just really didn't need to see him right now.

"He went off with the hellfire gang. I actually think Dustin took an emergency meeting. Kid's pretentious as fuck but he means well." You knew an 'emergency meeting' was used when it was to either talk about the Upside Down or deal with an issue.

"Part of me is kind of intrigued as to what they are saying." Robin said before realising that that would be a very bad idea.

"I'll find out later from Dustin. Or you will." He pointed at you.

Before you could ponder the thought, the bell rang. Signalling the end of lunch and soon to be science class. Steve, Robin and Nancy lead the front of the pack - as a protective shield to anyone not welcome and to guard you.

Jonathan walked beside you. Fidgeting with his hands he looked at you and then looked down, then looked back at your hands that were crossed, holding yourself up. "I've got a first aid in my car, for after school" he said quietly enough so that only the four of you could hear him.

You gave him a small smile. He then went back to being silent and you felt your breathing even out. You were just about to say thank you when you heard him say, "You have to leave him if it gets too bad. If he won't get help and he makes you empty promises, you have to leave before it gets worse."

You looked at him. You saw Nancy slightly straighten up. You didn't know Jonathan as well as the rest of the group, but you had grown closer in the last 12 months, along with Nancy. He was the only one who understand your situation with your parents. He understood and got Nancy to help get you into the trailer park when you moved out. He was one of the first to know how bad it was.

And here he was telling you the same piece of advice he told you then. You silently promised him, meeting his eyes with a look of sadness mixed with agreement. Then you both looked down as you walked into science class and managed to get the seats five seats at the back. You put your head down and dissolved into your dreamland, and for once, Eddie was not invited.

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