#i’ll be so mad if this is sickness and i start getting sicker

[scholarhect]

feeling weird but the only symptom that isn’t basically nothing and completely ignorable (headache, chest discomfort/perceived difficulty breathing, perceived heart fluttering a little, throat ache lol it’s literally either stress or something i ate. probably most of these symptoms are due to me freaking myself out) is feeling weird standing up & propping myself up, feeling heavy. which means i’m freaking out over… feeling fatigued at nearly 2 in the morning 🤔

[wosoamazing]

Allergic?

Summary: You're sick and Alexia thinks its an allergic reaction.

Warnings: Vomiting

A/N: Decided to give you this tonight, I will also be releasing a fic tomorrow morning (the requested fic).

You were sitting in your room doing your school work, when you decided to go out to Alexia and ask her for some medicine as you felt kind of sick. You had felt funny for most of the day, however it got worse as time went on.

“Ale, I don’t feel the best,” you said as you walked into the living room, noticing some of your teammates were over. 

They all looked over to you, “Do you want some medicine Bebita?” you nodded. “Come on, follow me, does anyone want a drink while I’m there?” Mapi nodded and followed you and Alexia into the kitchen. 

“What’s wrong?” “I feel kind of itchy, and my stomach kind of hurts.” you replied to her as you scratched your stomach, Alexia lifted up your shirt which caused her face to drop in sorrow. You looked down to see your stomach was covered in big red splotches, “I think you’re having an allergic reaction, I’ll get you an antihistamine and then you should have a shower and we can put cream on the hives. Mapi can you fill up Y/N/N’s water bottle? It should be in the drying rack.”

“Si,” Mapi replied as she reached for your water bottle.

As Mapi was filling up your water bottle and Alexia was sifting through the medicine drawer, your stomach started upheaving its contents, out of nowhere. Tears started to roll down your face as your stomach continued to violently eject its contents. Mapi had moved by your side and was rubbing your back trying to comfort you. 

Alexia wiped your mouth with a cloth before pulling you in for a hug, “Oh Bebita, we aren't in a good way are we.” You shook your head, as a small whimper came out of your mouth, causing Alexia to pull you in closer. 

It was something she had realised pretty early on, the fact that you wanted to be with someone as close as humanly possible when you were upset, unwell or injured. When you got your first sickness while living with her, what could barely be considered as a minor cold, you wanted to be with her constantly, she was worried that you were sicker than she thought, so she called Leah. Leah told her it was normal, and to expect it, she had explained to Alexia that you would choose specific people to be with when you were unwell, some much more preferably than others, and that it sounded like Alexia had become your Spanish Leah. It wasn't that you were weak, Alexia literally had to stop you from going to training when you had food poisoning from Ona’s cooking, she had to pull over on the way to training so you could throw up, and then you got mad at her when she turned around to go back home. You just enjoyed comfort, and the sicker you were the worse it got.

You walked into the bathroom with Alexia, who saw the stream of tears on your face increasing, pulling you into a hug before you gagged. “Okay Bebita, it's okay.” she said as she turned you around and shuffled you over slightly, so that you were in front of the toilet. You emptied more of your stomach contents into it, and Alexia constantly rubbed your back as you did, trying to provide you some form of reassurance and comfort.

“Oh Bebita, how about we get you into the shower and then you can lie down and maybe try to sleep, see if that helps.” “Will you stay with me?” you asked softly “Of course Bebita, does that sound good though?” you nodded, “Okay, I’m just going to grab some clothes for you, just stay here.” she rushes out and returns very quickly. She had Leah’s hoodie in hand along with a pair of Peter Alexander PJ shorts, they were the Australian Vegemite ones, a gift from Sam and Steph. She chose the hoodie as you always wore it when you were down, she also thought it would be a good option as it had been worn heaps so it was soft and also hadn’t been washed recently-ish, as she did not know what you had your allergic reaction too yet, so she was being cautious.

You stayed in your crop top and undies whilst you showered, Alexia didn’t want to leave you alone so she got you to keep them on, you were glad she stayed when you started throwing up again. Just after you stepped out of your shower, you collapsed down in front of the toilet, heaving more of your stomach contents into it, Alexia wrapped a towel around your body before rubbing your back. As your stomach continued to violently eject its contents your body began to shake, and hot tears pricked your eyes, she helped you up and changed, before directing you out of the bathroom and into her room, sitting your shaky body down on her bed and crouching down in front of you.

“Bebita, I’ve booked a doctors appointment for you for tomorrow, I’ll come with you and stay with you the whole time,” you nodded slightly, before the tears that had been threatening to fall for so long started to stream out and down your cheeks.  You felt really really sick, your body was shaking, your whole torso was itchy and hot, and your stomach was churning, “Let's go out to the living room, you can lie down on the couch, the girls are out there but I can get them to leave if you want,” you just shook your head.

Alexia walked you out to the living room, there was a spot on the couch already set up for you, with your pillows, some blankets, and your water bottle, it looked very inviting, so you laid down, Alexia continuously had a hand on your back as she directed you out to the living room, however you lost contact as you started lie down, seeing her leave.  “Stay?” you said weakly, Alexia was going to get you some ice packs for your torso to help but you were clearly very unwell and you needed her.

“Of course Bebita,” she said before sliding in behind you, her legs were stretched out in front of her, so you shuffled back towards her for more comfort, she put a hand on your upper arm and you closed your eyes, to see if you could fall asleep, hoping that you would feel better after you sleep.

 Her hand lifted off your upper arm and you let a small whimper at the loss of contact. “It’s okay, I’m just going to put an icepack on your back okay, it’s going to be cold, but hopefully it helps.” She placed the ice pack against your back, it felt cool and stopped the itching a bit, and Alexia saw your body relax slightly. She put her hand back on your upper arm, moving her thumb up and down to help comfort you, before she spoke “There is a bowl on the seat next to you if you need it, and I think you should sleep Bebita, it would help, I’ll stay here with you the whole time,” “Th-thanks” you said before drifting off to sleep.

_____

You woke up and it must’ve been much later, the girls had all gone, it was dark outside and Olga was sitting on the couch in front of you, you couldn’t feel Alexia behind you anymore and so you were confused.

“Ale,” “She’ll be right back Bebita, she was just going to the bathroom, do you need anything?” Olga responded to you, you didn’t say anything but sat up and shuffled closer to Olga, who realised what you were trying to do and opened her arm out for you. You decided to move and sit in her lap, she always had her legs crossed, so it made things easier. She welcomed this action and helped you into her lap before she wrapped both her arms around you, you leant against her with your head resting on her shoulder. 

“Are you feeling any better?” “I guess”

“Olga Babe, I think we should wake the Bebita up and-” Alexia was cut off as she walked into the living room seeing you awake sitting on Olga’s lap.

“Yes?” you ask her.

“Are you feeling better?” “Kind of” “I was thinking maybe we head up to bed, it's getting kind of late, do you want anything to eat Bebita? We didn’t wake you up when we had dinner as we thought you needed the rest." You just shakd your head, feeling nauseous at the thought of food.

You all head up stairs and get ready for the night, Alexia told you to sleep with them tonight so you crawled into the middle of their bed, falling asleep almost immediately, Alexia and Olga weren’t even in their PJs yet, they both sent you a sympathetic look.

_____

You woke up during the night and suddenly felt the need to be sick, you bolted upright, frantically looking around, with a hand over your mouth, Alexia was a very light sleeper and so she woke up from your movement, she grabbed the bucket and placed it front of you, before you started to gag, your body was shaking and your eyes were watering. You had been gagging for the past 10 minutes but nothing had come up, Alexia had continuously rubbed your back and whispered reassuring words to you. After you had finally stopped gagging,  Alexia sighed before she pulled you into her chest, lying back down, you laid into her, you felt so exhausted and so sick. A few minutes later you started to gag again, so you tried to sit back up and grab the bucket but Alexia’s wouldn’t loosen her grip on you. “Bebita, it’s okay, I don't think you can be sick, your stomach is empty. But if you are sick and it does get on me and the bed it’s okay, it’s nothing we can’t wash. Let's just try and get back to sleep.”

[bagelrites]

“Go Home”

Fluffy DNF Antarctica Drabble

Dream can hear them playing outside his tent, and they sound like they’re having so much fun, he can’t even be mad at them for keeping him up.

It’s day two of camping in fucking Antarctica, and Dream is even sicker than he was yesterday. He woke up coughing blood and mucus, so while George and Sapnap and Karl get to run around like kids on a snow day, he’s stuck in his sleeping bag: just a little pile of misery, waiting for the hours to tick by.

Still, he likes listening to them.

George makes them drag him around on a sled, laughing gleefully, and then they all take turns pulling each other. They tackle one another, crunch into the snow, complain about lost hats and gloves, lay in sleepy piles until Sapnap—who somehow is always lying at the bottom—complains about his arms going numb. Karl pretends to give George CPR at one point, and Dream scoffs to himself, rolling his eyes, pretending he isn’t even a little bit jealous.

Okay, so maybe he is a bit mad at them for having so much fun while he’s miserable. Or, maybe not mad, but after a while, he does get a flicker of bitterness in his chest, sad that he can’t be out there with them, actually enjoying this trip even a little bit. He almost feels like he’s been forgotten about.

He knows it’s not true, knows they’re just leaving him alone because they care and he’s sick and needs rest, but he can’t help it. He wants to remind them.

“Hey guys, I’m trying to sleep,” he shouts after it sounds like Sapnap has hit George with a shovel. They all go silent for a moment, surprised that he’s even awake, then go right back to shouting, this time making fun of him.

He sighs, slumps back into his sleeping bag, and tells himself to forget it. Let them have their fun. They deserve it.

He’s surprised when a few minutes later, someone is unzipping the flap on his tent.

“George?” he says when he sees a flash of orange coat.

“Ugh, why does it smell so bad in here?” George says, scrunching up his nose as he climbs inside with him. “It literally smells like piss.”

Dream laughs, raspy, and George just zips the flap closed and awkwardly shuffles until he’s sitting next to Dream.

“Does it? I think my nose is totally broken,” he says.

“Yeah, it does. You’re all… stinky and sick.” George flicks his glove around, the second layer hanging loose from the first. “And sad.”

“Aww, George. Did you come to check on me?” Dream teases, rolling onto his side so he can see him better.

“No.” George wraps his arms around his legs, looking small even in his puffy jacket. “I’m pranking you. Making sure you can’t fall asleep.”

“Eh, don’t worry. I’m not getting any sleep anyways.”

George hums, and they’re quiet for a moment, just sitting in each other’s presence. Karl’s piercing laugh echoes outside, and there’s a thump as someone is tackled to the snow.

“Sorry for keeping you up,” George mumbles.

“It’s fine. Like I said, I don’t think I’d be able to sleep anyways.”

“You shouldn’t be here, Dream. You should go home.” George is frowning intently, flicking his glove around with more agitation. Dream knows he’s upset, but it still warms his heart to see how much George cares.

“Trust me, I would if I could.” Dream pauses to cough, then gulps to wet his throat. “You don’t have to sit here with me, you know. You should go have fun. I’ll be fine.”

“I wish I had soup,” George says out of nowhere, and Dream laughs, because he knows what he means.

“Thanks, George.” He reaches up out of the sleeping bag and just loosely pats George’s knee. It’s the best he can do, under these conditions.

“Not for you. Obviously.” George scoffs and starts to leave.

“Knowing you care is better than soup,” Dream says, because he likes to be cheesy sometimes, and he likes even more to see the involuntary smile that flashes across George’s red cheeks.

“Shut up. Idiot.” He rolls his eyes, fond as ever, and unzips the flap. “Get some sleep. We’re going home tomorrow.”

“I know,” Dream says. George shares one last glance with him, his smile twinkling in his eyes, and even though he was just trying to be cheesy, the feeling really is warm like soup in his belly.

[flareish]

Anxiety

kuroo x reader

summary: you hide your anxiety from basically everyone including your boyfriend, until he finds out for himself

genre: hurt/comfort

warnings: Emetophobia Warning! description of nausea/vomit, anxiety, bit of angst but ends in fluff

word count: 2.0k

a/n: I tried to make this as close to my anxiety since I hadn’t known anyone with my kind of anxiety(symptom wise) until I was seventeen, which was a good ways into when I realized I had anxiety. So here is some nausea anxiety representation!

masterlist

You tap your fingers in a mindless rhythm. Alternating the fingers and repeating them back and forth, trying to make it a game, a challenge. You did this over and over again to distract yourself from that all too familiar sinking feeling. That feeling like your stomach has managed to twist and knot itself a million times. Each bump of the bus made acid crawl up your throat. You crunched a mint in your mouth hoping the peppermint would soothe some of the nausea. It didn’t, but the thought was there. You just will yourself not to throw up on the bus, anything but that. The thought in itself makes you even more nervous, and in turn even sicker.

You don’t even know why you are anxious. Today is Kuroo’s big game, but it isn’t yours. You’ve been to a hundred of his games before but never before did you feel like this. Normally you get cute little butterflies, not an angry swarm of bees. The worst part is, there is Kuroo sat next to you happy as can be, completely oblivious. He keeps trying to drag you into conversations but you fear if you open your mouth for too long, all that will come up is vomit. So you keep your mouth firmly closed only smiling tightly or shaking your head at his prompts.

It's not exactly his fault though. He doesn’t actually know you have anxiety. It’s not something you really like to talk about. You are all for promoting the acceptance of mental health but you just find every time you tell someone the dynamic changes. Either they flat out don’t believe you since you “don’t seem like the type with anxiety”. Well duh, I don’t have social anxiety, I have situational anxiety. Like here in this situation. That or they suddenly treat me like I am incapable of handling myself. That whenever a slightly stressful event comes up, I am going to melt into a puddle of pure anxiety. Sorry but I’ve made it this far, I may have to throw up a few times on the way but I am still making it. 

So you just haven’t told Kuroo. You're just nervous that it will change the dynamic. You also don’t want to steal his spotlight. Today is supposed to be all about him. It's his big game. To suddenly speak up and tell him that his game is giving you anxiety would be selfish. So like you always have, you put a brave face on and face it head-on.

“Hey, are you okay?” Kuroo asks you, now facing you, “You look a little pale.”

“Hmm?,” You also turn to look at him, “Oh I am just a bit tired that’s all. I will be fine in an hour or so.” You hope at least. He nods relieved it's not something worse. 

You finally pull into the stadium and everyone is pushing their way off the bus. Luckily Kuroo is right by you to make sure you don't get accidentally pushed down the bus stairs and trampled. The team makes it’s to the bulletin board where they are given their matchups. Nekoma is paired with a pretty hard team. Suddenly, out of nowhere, you dry heave. You knew at the point you were going to throw up and within the next few minutes. 

“Hey I think I left something in the bus I’ll be right back.” You say to Kuroo before dashing off. He goes to reply but you are already gone. 

You make it around the back of the building before you throw up. At this point you’re kinda out of it, your mind is occupied on emptying your already empty stomach. Then you feel someone pull your hair back and gently rub your back. You don’t even have to look up to know it’s Kuroo. When you finish he hands you his water bottle.  You waterfall it and rinse your mouth out of that acidic taste. 

“What’s going on are you okay?” Kuroo asks full of concern. You hesitate for a moment, thinking of telling the truth. Then you remember this is supposed to be his day. 

“Sorry I must have caught a stomach bug.” He doesn’t completely buy it so you quickly add to it.

“I didn't feel great on the bus but I just thought it was because I was tired.” You feel bad lying, “I also don’t want to distract you before your game.” At that Kuroo quickly pulls you into a hug, “Your not a distraction, I just want to make sure you’re okay.” Your cheek is pressed against his chest and your hands grip the front of his shirt. 

“We should probably head back.” You mumble.

“Yeah.” He leans down to kiss you but you duck away. He looks incredibly offended and hurt at this.

“Dude I just threw up I don’t know if you want to do that.” 

“…Point.”

The two of you head back inside to the team, you feeling much better after throwing up. Before you know it, the competition has begun and Nekoma has won. You run down and celebrate with the team and it’s a happy day.

On the bus ride home Kuroo has a strange energy about him. Not like he’s mad more just like he’s just realized something. You nudge him and smile hoping to break him out of his little funk. He immediately smiles back and goes back to celebrating with the team. His reaction was almost like putting a mask on. You watch him for a moment before slipping into a conversation of your own.

When you make it back to school you go your separate ways. Him going to shower, and you to get home before it gets too late. A big hug before pushing away. You still refusing to kiss him after throwing up earlier in the day. 

You are laying on your bed, exhausted. Anxiety really takes a toll on your energy. Your thoughts are broken when your phone chimes with a text.  Leaning over to grab your phone off your bedside table you see it is from Kuroo. 

“Can you come over? I want to talk.”

No cute pet names. No slowly easing into it. Actually using proper grammar. Nothing in that message was a good sign. Just “I want to talk” was enough to make the acid begin to crawl again. You knew it had to be about today. Especially after you saw him zoning out on the bus. It had to be your anxiety episode. You knew he wouldn’t be happy you lied but going to this extent. Like he just found out you have anxiety and this is what he hits you with? The world’s most nerve-wracking text message. The only worse place than this would be “we need to talk”. That’s when you have really screwed up. So maybe you’ve only minorly screwed up since he said want not need. Does that mean you have the choice to say no? That was kind of tempting but you knew you would be tossing and turning all night thinking about what might be wrong. 

“Okay.” You reply to the text. Short and sweet. Putting on some shoes and grabbing a hoodie, you quietly slip out of your house. Kuroo’s house wasn’t too far but it was far enough. Enough to continue to stir in your intrusive and unstoppable thoughts. You eventually make it to his house and head in going straight for his room. Before you reach the door you hesitate and gather yourself. Preparing for whatever was about to come. 

When you go in you find Kuroo sat on the floor of his bedroom, back pressed against the bed. He jerkily looks up and you and gives you a tight smile. None of this is giving good signs. Something is very heavy on his mind. You sit down across from him, your back against the wall your feet almost touching. 

“So what was it you wanting to talk about.” You break the silence. He doesn’t respond for a moment. Just as you are about to try again he speaks up.

“Do you still love me?” Your face drops into confusion.

“Why wouldn’t I love you anymore?” You ask, suddenly realizing this wasn’t the conversation you were prepping yourself for. 

“You’ve been distant lately. You don’t tell me things like when you don’t feel good. I thought about it when I got home and I was wondering if you weren’t actually sick but just making the excuse because you got caught.” He’s very serious at the moment and his words hold a cold edge. 

“What do you mean get caught?” You match his tone. You weren’t planning on fighting but something about how he said it just set something off in you.

“You didn’t want to be there. Ever since this morning you were quiet and reserved. Even after the game, you wouldn’t even kiss me-”

“Yeah, cause I threw up! And how could I be faking it when I literally threw up.” You snap.

“You’ve been like this before though! Like last year’s big tournament you would barely talk to me.”

“That’s not true!” Although it kind of was just not the reason he thought.

“Oh yeah? What about at training camp you wouldn’t talk to me then either, you didn’t even eat with us you just sat on your own.” He threw back.

“Yeah, cause I have anxiety!” The words left your mouth before you knew it. Kuroo looked taken back.

“What?” His brow furrows, “Since when?” He’s not sure what to believe. You’re not surprised since you have worked very hard to hide it from everyone, accidentally sabotaging your own relationship without even knowing it. 

“Since forever. I just never told anyone.” You quietly say, ducking your head down.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” You didn’t even need to look up to see the hurt on his face, it was apparent in his voice. You start playing with your finger, tapping them in rhythms.

“I wanted to,” You mumble, “But whenever I do stuff changes and I didn’t want anything to change.” He shifts forward and you think he’s going to leave. Instead, he grabs your hands, stopping the pattern you had going. You look up.

“Did you think I would judge you?” He was staring straight into you, willing the truth to come out.

“Whenever I tell people they either don’t believe me and brush it off or treat me like I’m incapable of handling any amount of stress. I’ve never seen anyone react any differently so I was scared you would fall into one of those reactions and I didn’t know how I could handle that. I didn’t want my anxiety to be the thing to tear us apart. But I guess it still was.” By the end of your speech, your gaze has returned back to the floor, unable to hold eye contact for that long with him staring at you so strongly. You hear him sigh then you are pulled forward and into his arms. 

“I want to be your pillar of support. I want to be that third reaction that is one of acceptance, one that doesn’t drive you crazy.” He strokes your hair soothingly, his words making you tear up, “When you are ready I want you to tell me everything. From when you first noticed it, to where it is now, to how you deal with it, everything.” By now you are fully crying, absolutely collapsed into his chest. “I love you so much.” It gets muffled in his shirt but he hears it.

“I know, and I love you.”

It would take some time for Kuroo to get used to this change but slowly but surely he will be different from the rest and he will support you no matter what. Although he also respects your strength and knows you can handle your anxiety on your own, he is always there when you need it. He becomes the third unexpected and unheard-of reaction; acceptance.

[saturatedboy]

How about a fluff Donna oneshot with a gn!reader who’s sicker than a dog

If you’re ok with that ofc

Donna Beneviento x GN!Reader

Warnings: Mentions of sickness and throwing up

Words: 2.6k

You couldn't believe it. You're mind just couldn't process it. Your nose was stuffy with slight snot dripping from it and your eyes were swollen red from earlier crying. Somehow you had gotten yourself so sick to the point it hurt to even talk as your throat was dryer than the Sahara Desert. You had tried earlier to get up from your bed with little effort because of the quick wash of nausea had influenced all your senses to stop. You could feel your stomach turning every now again and decided that it was probably better to lay down in your bed then go rushing to the bathroom in hopes the cartwheels that passed through your digestive system would soon come to a halt.

A sudden cough popped out of your dry mouth as you raised your hand to cover your mouth, the heat of your skin feeling far more hot and sticky than when you were at the Lord's Heisenberg's factory to gather some materials for your lover, Donna Beneviento. After your coughing fit, you had closed your eyes in hopes of rest, but the sudden noise of the door creaking open had made you whine out. "Still in bed?" The voice had teased followed by a chant of laughter. Without moving, you groaned and sighed at the doll who had now floated into your confined room and made her way to hover over your laying down form.

"Angie...please." You croaked out, waving a hand in a 'dismissive' tone for the doll to go away. Once again, the doll had strummed up more laughter from her unknown vocal cords at your terrible state.

"You should hear yourself, it sounds like you're stuffed with saw dust haha!" Angie crackled away, floating down to sit on the other pillow that was at the side of you as she still stared down at your figure. Trying to not laugh at her remark, you had hauled yourself up to cough up a storm into your arm, tears springing to your eyes from the piecing strike of pain that stuck your head. The laughter from the doll came to a stop, now a worried Angie was staring at you.

"I-I'll go get Donna!" She stammered, backing away from you and flying as swift as she could to go find her owner who was most likely brewing tea like she did in the early morning hours. You wanted to call out to her, tell that you didn't need Donna but the warm feeling of something bubbling up in your stomach came back.

Flinging the covers off your body, you had scurried to find the closest bathroom to your room that happened to be next to Donna's anyway. As you were running through the hallways, you had rounded the corner and almost bumped into the jogging figure of Donna. Seeing your face flushed red and the hurried speed of your run, Donna was quick to turn and follow your trail to the bathroom where she was met with your kneeling body leaning over the toilet seat hurling your stomach contents out. She was quick however to attend to your side after rolling her long sleeves up past her elbows. Her hair was already tied back in her usual bun with two strands falling in front of her uncovered face after four months of getting to know you better.

With your vision slightly blurred from your sweaty tears, you leaned back up and tried to grab the toilet paper from beside you to wipe your mouth with, only for the soft clasp of Donna's hand around your wrist to stop you from proceeding. "Don't wipe your mouth with that, I'll go fetch a cloth for you my love." She spoke softly being aware that your senses were higher then usual because of your sickness. You pulled your hand gently out of her grasp to clutch hold of the seat once again as you spilled more sick from your mouth.

"This couldn't get any worse," You said out-loud as you pulled yourself back away from your now mess and leaned against the wall, pulling your legs up to your chest. "Why is it so cold in here?"

"Cold? COLD? Are you mad meat on feet?" Angie screamed out, going crazy over the fact you claimed to be cold when your skin was a tinted red from the world's hottest coal. You pushed your head between your knees, trying to drown out the loud squeals of Angie going off on a rant about you being cold. It was not pleasant to hear as much as you loved to here Angie talk.

Luckily for yourself however, Donna had rushed back into the room holding a bucket by its handle. Seeing you curled up and Angie speaking in a head-splitting tone, she turned to her partner in crime and gently hushed her. Angie at first had crossed her arms till she watched as Donna went to attend your needs. "Ohhhh right, they are sick." She stated plainly as she shrugged her shoulders and went to also aid your needs.

Donna gently took hold of the side of your head and gently pulled you up to face her. Tiny stands of your hair had stuck to your forehead, making her frown slightly. Seeing you in this state wasn't good. How she ever let you get so sick in the first place was a mystery to her. You had been perfectly fine the other day, playing in the snow with Angie and the other puppets but why had you gotten so sick...- "I told you to not go back out there in the storm." Donna disciplined you as she laid your head back to rest against the wall and went to grab the cloth in the bucket. You sighed and nodded weakly, humming in agreement. You couldn't help it though, last night the snow was so fun to play in with your snow boots and cloak made by yours truly, Donna and Angie. You had to go out though last night in the storm, You just had to go make more snow angels and wanted to build the best snow fort. Not to mention you swore you saw a deer running about and had gone to chase it in the forest for a little while before making your way back home in the late hours.

Rinsing the excess water out from the cloth, Donna gently pattered your forehead with the cold water making you sigh in pleasure. The coldness of the cloth against your hot skin had calmed the banging headache that was bashing against your brain. You closed your eyes in content as you felt a small hand brush against yours. "I apologise for shouting earlier," The sudden contact made you unknowingly brush your larger fingers against the doll's hand.

"Its alright, its okay." You spoke out feeling a little more better with some cold on you. Donna had left the cloth sit on your forehead folded as she moved the bucket to the shower and went to flush the toilet. After you had laid there for just a short while, Donna had spoken up again.

"It's time we get you back to bed my little voodoo," She said, clasping her hands in front of her as she picked Angie off the floor next to you. You groaned and lifted your hand back up, wanting to clutch onto Angie. Angie jumped out of Donna's arms and rushed to your side, holding onto your hand and stroking the back of it with her small structured fingers. Donna cooed at the sight, loving the way how Angie acted with you. It did take a while for Donna to convince Angie in the first place to not play her deadly game of 'Hide and Seek' with you but just like Donna did, Angie soon fell in love with everything about you. From your sneezes that you hated to your slightly taller height than Donna- what wasn't there to love about you?

Noticing she was getting of task, as much as she loved seeing you and Angie bond, Donna crouched down to gently, with a tiny bit of a struggle, lift your body off the bathroom floor and hold you in her arms. You were slightly heavy in her arms since Donna always had a frail body but she was persistent to get you back into the bed so she could care for you till and after your sickness left. She was determined to get you back up to full health.

As she walked down the corridors with you in her arms, Angie had placed herself to rest on your chest hearing your heartbeat pump blood around your body. The doll was on the verge of falling asleep, finding safety and comfort being near you. Dona had started to hum a song to fill the silence of the air, enjoying the task of getting to look after you. You normally had always helped her, ever since the first day she had gotten the choice to keep you from Mother Miranda. Now she could finally repay those days back and look after you- she would've either way looked after you but she tended to forget that you knew she loved you. It was a reason why she mostly made you small teddies on a Friday to give to you. Each of them had a name tag that was tied around their necks always held a note from either saying ,'I love you' to 'Forever my voodoo'. It was a sweet gesture to your heart and to show your appreciation for the gifts, you had placed them all on the shelves that were set up around your room.

Donna was relieved to see the sight of your door in sight, she could finally place you down and be at your side until your sickness goes away. Walking through the opened door, she slightly gushed at the sight of her creations up on your shelves. She pulled you closer to her chest as she slowly walked around your bed and leaned down to place up upon the cotton sheets. Pulling her arms out from under your body, she quickly walked towards your wardrobe and swung the door open to take out a folded white sheet of silk to place over your now sleeping body. When she walked back over to you, she unfolded the sheet and placed it over you, tucking the sides under and folding the top of it so it sat just over your chest. Readjusting the also sleeping Angie in your arms, Donna had leaned down and placed a kiss on both of your foreheads, moving more stray hair from your face. She was glad your skin was less hot, it seemed you throwing up had gotten rid of the bad things in your stomach and should make you better for when you wake up. However for now, Donna swiftly left the room to go search for some medicine, hot tea and easy to swallow food for your awakening. She would stick to her word of making you feel better.

You came to your conscience when you felt a hand shake your shoulder. Moaning in annoyance, you opened your heavy eye lids and faced the culprit of waking you from your amazing dream of Donna, Angie an you sitting in a field having a picnic. On other terms however, when your vision was less translucent,  you were blushing like you had spotted your crush- or in other words you did spot your lover. "Having a good dream?" She asked, holding a cup with something steaming out from it. You were loss for words, had you been sleep talking the whole time?

"No...no dreams just darkness." You were fast to reply, wanting to get out of the embarrassing situation quickly.

"Surrreee~" Angie sang out, teasing you as she was once again on the pillow at the side of you. You felt her shift about and felt her climb over you, only for her to nestle herself between your arms that folded under your head. You groaned playfully and kissed her head, laughing as she ducked further under the sheet that was placed over you.

"Now now Angie, I'm sure they need to have something to drink before anyone else sleeps." Donna placed the cup down on the night stand that you were facing and helped you sit up so your back was resting against the headboard of your bed and Angie was sat on your lap, singing softly to herself. Donna, once placing her had upon your forehead and checking to see how hot you were, took her hand away and grabbed hold of the cup that she originally had. Blowing on it herself, she took a little sip to make sure that the solution wasn't too hot or too cold for you to drink and then raised the cup to your lips. You tried to take the cup out of her hands but she wasn't having it. "Let me help you, please." She pleaded, raising the cup back again to rest against your lips. You nodded, knowing full well that you couldn't say no to her and parted your lips open. Feeling her pour the solution down your throat had made you blush deeply. Oh how beautiful she was in your eyes, such a Goddess- she was no Lady only a Goddess in your eyes...But she could be your Lady if she would say 'yes' to a future question you had intended to ask her in the further future.

Drinking what you could taste, which was Earl Grey tea, you sighed as you finished drinking it feeling the warmth in your now settled stomach. You felt grateful to have these people and doll in your life. These two were your home, this was your home and you loved every second of it. Watching Donna place the cup back onto the nightstand, she leaned over and kissed your cheek. You whined in annoyance. "I'm not kissing you on the lips until you are fully better," She accused as she smiled softly at your reactions.

"Then at least stay right next to me until I'm better," You claimed back, adjusting the veil on top of Angie's head getting a sudden yelp from her by your sudden actions. Sighing, Donna had nodded and tried to make her way towards a small rocking chair in the corner of the room that sat by the windowsill but was refused by your hand wrapping around her dress quickly. "Stay right next to me...on the bed." You stated, tugging at her dress with a pout. Nodding, Donna had crawled from the your side of the bed to the other, laying down next to you. You picked Angie's sleeping body up and placed her between bot you and Donna. Stretching your arm out after, you managed to reach over to wrap your arm around Donna who watched you with shining eyes.

"You still need to eat," She whispered, using her hand to place your out stretched hand onto her face so she could feel your soft touch.

"I will after our nap. I think your touch is making me feel better." You spoke, stroking her cheek and blowing a kiss at her to get the best reaction of her closing her eyes tightly and blushing. "So adorable," You whispered back to her, enjoying the moment you had with her.

"Sleep," She said back, keeping her eyes closed and keeping a tight grip of your hand on her cheek, not wanting to ever let go. You nodded and moved yourself slightly to get more comfortable. Although your sickness still lingered, you knew you were in good hands and vowed to never ever go out in a snow storm even if you thought you spotted a deer.

"Both of you sleep," Angie groaned as she yawed loudly and moved her hands to grab hold of both yours and Donna's clothing. Both you and Donna laughed in return- laughter was the best medicine after all.

[space-helen]

Stay

Words: 1275

Pairing: Severus Snape x Reader

A/N: Yeah I do enjoy writing Snape

Request:  You haven't written Snape in a while. Could I get a snape x reader where they're married and at the order. She gets really sick or injured and the others are really scared to tell him? Then he goes and nurses her back to health - Anon

______________________

“She’s been sick for days now. We should tell him.”

“She asked us not to.”

“You can’t tell me she’s getting better because she’s clearly not.” Remus gestured into the room that you were sleeping in.

Sirius crossed his arms and leant against the doorframe. “You know how mad he’s going to be that we kept this from him.”

“I’ve done all I personally can to help her. Molly has even given some of her remedies a go. He’s her god-damn husband and the only person that can help her right now.”

Sirius sighed “I’m not telling him.”

“I’ll contact Dumbledore.” Remus left Sirius in the doorway. The man looked over his friend and sighed sympathetically before following after Remus.

The door to Snape’s classroom slammed closed as Dumbledore entered. He approached Snape’s desk where the man was marking scrolls.

“News has been sent from the Order.”

Snape looked up and dropped his quill to the desk “Go on.”

“As you know Y/N has been with them helping -”

“What’s wrong?” The man pushed himself to his feet and started to pack away his desk in a hurry.

“Y/N has been taken ill. She asked Sirius and Remus not to contact anyone about it but they fear she’s getting sicker.”

“I’m leaving.” the man stated.

“I knew you’d want to. I have found cover for some of your lessons for the next week.”

The man nodded and looked up at the man “Thank you.”

Dumbledore simply gave Severus a single nod of his head in return before disappearing from the room. 

Snape ran to his quarters and began to pack a bag before going to his storeroom and grabbing all sorts of things not knowing what sort of illness you even had. Time went by in a blur for him and before he knew it he was inside Grimmauld place.

“Where is she?” he said moving through the corridors as his robes billowed behind him.

Remus began walking backwards in front of him, trying to explain the situation as he led him to you. “She begged us not to tell anyone that’s why we didn’t contact you sooner. We were all scared that you’d be mad and-”

“Well of course I’m mad. My wife is sick and no one contacted me.” He huffed “How bad is it?”

“She’s been bedridden. I’ve tried all I can and Molly tried some stuff when she popped around-”

“Weasley knew before I did?”

“Sirius you have to understand. None of us wanted to draw attention here. You know we’re all in hiding for different reasons. You know that if Y/N’s location is leaked they’d be here in an instant.”

“You were supposed to be looking after her. I only allowed it because Dumbledore assured me she’d be in good hands and she insisted because you were her good friends.”

“He tried his best Snape.” Sirius’ voice came from behind the man.

“I’m sure he did. But sometimes someone else can do better.”

Remus moved out of the way so Severus could enter the room you’d been sleeping in.

“She’s been like this for a couple of days. She’d started to feel sick last week and has just gotten worse over time.”

“Symptoms?” Snape asked as he placed his bag down and crouched beside you, pushing some hair back out of your face.

Remus rattled off the long list of symptoms and how much you’d been suffering. 

“She’s been in and out of sleep for the past three days.” Sirius’ voice was quiet and soft.

“Leave us.” Severus murmured

“She may be your wife but she’s our friend too.” Sirius response was sharp but Severus’ didn’t even react. His eyes stayed on you. He heard Remus close the door behind him as he left.

Severus slipped off his robe and rolled up his sleeves. He brought the back of his hand to your forehead to feel your temperature, he moved the back of his fingers along your cheekbone and pushed some hair behind your ear.

“Y/N.” he said lightly “Wake up for me.” 

Turning he started to rummage through his bag and pulled out some vials and potions. He took a seat on the bed beside you as he dumped down his armful of bottles. Sighing his hand found yours and he gently took it in his own. 

He looked over your body and took in your face. He’d seen you sick before but the image in front of him was different, sicker, and it broke his heart. He hated to see you like this.

“Y/N. We need to get you better.” his voice was slightly louder this time, enough to make you stir.

You felt a pressure on your hand and gave it the best squeeze you could muster as your eyes fluttered open. It was pathetic but it had Severus letting go of the breath he’d been holding. 

His image very slowly came into focus between long tired blinks. “Sev?” 

He could tell how confused you were “It’s me, Darling.”

“Did they get you?” your eyes were now open and you could see the man.

“They did. You’re really sick.” he helped you sit up in the bed properly and pulled the covers up over you more.

You felt the guilt trickle in and your eyes well up slightly “I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for ok?” he waited for you to nod your head “Remus and Sirius filled me in.” he picked up a vial “Try this for me first?”

You happily took it from him and drank as instructed. The man continued to sift through the pile and hand you new bottles to drink from. 

“I can’t guarantee that’ll cure you but it’s a start.” he began to pick up the bottles and put them away slowly.

You sat in silence and watched the man before speaking up. “I’ve missed you.” you looked down at your hands as you said the words.

“Yet felt the need to tell people not to ask for me.” he sarcastically quipped.

“I just didn’t want you to be mad at them. I thought I’d get over it.”

He walked back over to the bed and sat beside you, bringing his hand up to your cheek. “I forgive you. It’ll take longer for me to forgive them though.” he teased.

“They were only doing what I wanted them to.” your voice was quiet. You moved slightly and the pain was once again present and it sent shivers through your body.

Severus dropped his hand from your cheek and leant forward to place a kiss to your forehead. “Sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up.”

You eyes looked at him sadly while he pulled away “You promise?” 

His heart dropped at your words. “I promise.” he found your hand and squeezed it reassuringly. The two of you sat in silence for a moment. “I’m sorry for not staying here with you.”

“It’s ok”

“It’s not.” the man let go of your hand and slipped off his shoes before moving around the bed swiftly and crawling into it. He sat next to you with his back against the headboard and opened his arm to you.

A smile played on your lips as you sluggishly dragged your body into his embrace. 

He helped you get closed to you and relished the embrace. Kissing the top of your head he pulled the blankets over the two of you properly to keep you warm. In that moment he knew he wasn’t going to leave your side until you were safe.

“Sleep. I won’t leave your side for a second.”

Tag List: (open)

Snape:

@germansarechill​ @kydeestudies​ @mrs-l-mccoy @severuslovebot​

All Harry Potter:

@andreasworldisboring101 @obiwansjedi​

[ashintheairlikesnow]

Whumptober Day 21: Infection

CW: sick whumpee, abdominal pain, medical whump, emeto mention, nausea mention, pet whump references, recovering whumpee, fever, sickfic

TIMELINE: Chris’s first year after rescue

Nat makes the call, her jaw set in a grim line as she puts her phone up to her ear, and Jake has never seen the laugh-lines and crow's-feet wrinkles as clearly as he does in the dim yellowed light from the single lamp in the corner. 

"We can't do this," Jake says, softly, but he's outvoted by sheer necessity and he knows it, he knows before the protest ever leaves his mouth. It doesn’t stop his heart from racing, dread pooling deep inside him. "Nat, we can't, he isn't-... they’ll turn him in, Nat, god damn it-"

"Hey," Nat says into the phone, ignoring Jake entirely. "It's me. Yeah. I'm calling you for help." 

Next to Jake, lying on the couch while the big man balances himself seated precariously on the coffee table, Chris whines weakly in pain, pressing the back of Jake's hand to his clammy, sweat-soaked forehead. Coppery hair sticks to him, soaked the color of old pennies. 

Jake half-expects to see the blue-green tarnish growing and taking over.

"Hurts," Chris whispers, and Jake's heart breaks open. They didn't know - Chris had collapsed this morning, thrown up his breakfast and then blacked out in the bathroom, it was the first they'd seen of his illness.

Only when he'd been bundled down here to the couch, temp taken - 102 degrees Fahrenheit, holy fuck, he’d been fine yesterday, right? - had Chris admitted he'd been hurting for two days, a pulsing pain around his navel that felt like it was taking over his whole right side now. He told them he’d been so scared they would make him take medicine again that he hadn't told anyone. 

When Chris pointed to the right side of his stomach and said that it hurt there, and it kept getting worse... that was when Nat had given that serious, firm nod, said Dr. Masood couldn't help them this time, and picked up the phone. 

"Nat, he still has his barcode, they'll fucking turn him in-"

"My money’s on appendicitis," Nat says flatly into the phone. Her eyes move to Chris, lips thinning at his pale skin, freckles and two bright red splotches standing out on his cheeks, the way his green eyes are glassy, hazy, lost until the pain spikes and they briefly clear, just enough for him to start crying again. "Guarantee it. I can't use our guy." A pause. "Listen, he's eighteen - I think - and was routinely subjected to dehydration, starvation, and sleep deprivation. His medical care inside isn’t exactly nothing, but... this is appendi-fucking-citis and that motherfucker is going to burst if we don't get someone to cut it out of him ASAP. I don't have the time to waste going back and forth on this with you. Take one fucking look at him and you’ll know it!"

Nat never swears like this, with such intense hostility and insistence. Chris tightens his grip on Jake, and moans, frightened, turning to look up at him with wide green eyes far too big for his pinched expression. “S-sorry, I’m, I’m sorry… ‘ll... ‘ll b’good...” 

The plaintive haunted fear and hurt in him makes Jake wish there were an enemy, someone he could fight. Sitting here watching Chris get sicker by the hour, able to do absolutely nothing about it, is so much worse than anything else ever has been. 

“It’s okay,” Jake murmurs, stroking over his hair, carding his fingers gently through the damp, sweaty strands. “She’s not mad at you, little man, I swear. You’re sick and she’s trying to get help, it’s okay. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

Fuck those motherfuckers who made you too scared of pills to tell us you were hurting.

"Jake-" Chris starts, and then stops, swallows as his face goes a little green around the edges and he tenses, whimpering, torn between nausea and the way muscles tensing makes him hurt even worse. Jake watches his internal battle written openly across his expression. Tears slip from his eyes, running down his cheeks, as he chokes back a sob. "It, it, it hurts so much... Jake, I, I need… I could take, take, could… could could could take something now."

Jake nods and starts to move but Nat puts up a hand. "No drugs," She says, quietly. "They'll give him something there to put him under. We don’t want anything to interact badly.”

“Nat-”

“I’m sorry,” She says, her voice firm and calm. “But nothing until my contact has him.”

“Who is your fucking contact, anyway?”

Nat gives Jake a small, tired smile. “Not yet, Jake. Have to keep these things under wraps.”

"Mom, please," Chris pleads, and Jake and Nat both turn to look at him, shocked, eyes wide. "Mom, it, it, it… It hurts!"

Neither of them says anything at first, and Chris stares at them, eyes pleading but far away. It isn’t them he sees at all.

“Nat-”

“Just go with it,” She says, and goes back to the phone.

“Please, Mom-” Chris whimpers.

"Sorry, we can't," Jake whispers, fighting back the burn of hot tears himself as he goes back to stroking through Chris’s hair. Guilt twists inside him, sharp as any knife. Being helpless is tearing him apart.

Chris’s eyes move, lock on Nat, struggle to maintain their focus, go hazy again. His flush is layered over a gray-green paleness that makes him look like a corpse with makeup, pouring sweat that doesn’t cool him down at all. “Mom, please, please help me, please… don’t, don’t, don’t let them take you out, out of my head, Mom, please!”

Nat listens to the voice on the other end of the phone. Her eyes glimmer and her jaw is starting to tremble where she has it locked, visible in the low warm light coming from the lamps, but her voice stays steady. "No. Yes. Yes, that’s him you���re hearing. Yes… 102.3- yes, I'm sure. Fifteen minutes ago, more or less. Abdominal pain - he even said he thought it was a stomachache at first. Fever. Nausea, vomiting, yes. Getting worse and moving down and to the right. Yeah, I know. So how do we keep my rescue safe without the solution being to sit here and watch him die from infection?"

Jake ignores the cold fear that squeezes bony fingers around his heart and wipes Chris's forehead with a cool wet cloth. 

"Mom, m'sick," Chris whispers. "No, no school. Please, please…" His eyes track blearily over Jake's face. "Dad, tell her. Tell, tell, tell-... tell her m’sick…”

"I know," Jake says quietly, his voice shaking and thin. Nat is speaking softer now, lightning-fast whispers with her contact, somebody she's worked with for years with the hospital. "I know, Chris. We’re going to take you to see a doctor, okay?”

Chris blinks at him once, twice, and then his eyes are gone, shifting away. His lower lip starts to tremble, jerking fast, shallow breaths, nearly panting. “I’ll be, be, be-be, be good, don’t… don’t hurt me, sir, I’ll… I’ll be good.”

“I know, buddy, I know.” Jake can’t listen to this much longer. “I know you will.” Chris’s voice is small, losing all his sense of himself. Timid, scared, sweet.

“Be good… can, um, can, can be good f-for… you…” Chris whispers, eyes closing, new tears run out the corners as he whimpers and curls up against the pain. “Just, just stop… hurting me… b-be good, handler, good for, for, for you...”

Jake’s stomach flips and he has to fight the bile trying to rise in his throat. “Nat-”

“Hush, Jake.” Nat’s voice is still calm, and her attention is on the phone. "Mmhmmm. Christopher, um... say Yoder-”

“Stanton,” Jake says from the couch. 

Nat might smile. The expression is too tight, too pinched with worry, to really be called that. “Strike that. Christopher Stanton." Nat listens for a long time, then says quietly, "Eighteen…. We think. No known health problems or pre-existing illness. Autistic."

Jake looks up, blinking, and Nat calmly looks back at him, giving a firm nod while speaking into the phone. "Yes. Yes, I'm confident. He is sensitive to fluorescent lights, scared of needles, and terrified of sedation. Yeah, I realize that I just described the exact environment of a hospital.” Her voice starts to shift, then, and Jake watches her free hand close into a fist. She speaks with increasingly open anger, badly masking her worry and fear. “For the love of Christ, just put on the fucking papers that Christopher Stanton is fucking autistic, because that's what my goddamn rescue is and he still needs care - I'll sell someone else's firstborn to fucking Satan if he isn't autistic, god damn it, mark my fucking words - and we're wasting time goddamn dithering over whether you believe a diagnosis while he gets worse!"

Nat's voice rises, nearly shouting, and Chris whines and curls up closer to Jake, then winces and cries out in pain, straightening back out again. 

"Sssshhhhh, it's okay," Jake murmurs, but his heart is racing, too, his nerves are jagged with memories of swearing, shouting adults. Some part of him that has never stopped being a child braces for the sound of impact. "It's okay."

Nat is quiet for a long time, then snaps, "Yep, nope, I know, I know you needed to confirm," fast and angry. “See you then.” She hangs up, turning to look at Jake and Chris. "My contact is on their way. If the surgery works, two days and he's home. If his appendix bursts... Could be two weeks in the hospital, Jake."

"No," Jake says, lips barely moving. "No, Nat. Two weeks… he can't fake being someone else for so long."

"He better give it his best shot," Nat says, pushing herself to her feet. "I know this sucks, Jake, but sometimes what we do is make the hard choices they can’t make. And… and even if they turn him in, being turned in is better than dying."

Is it? Do you know that?

"What do we do, then?" Jake says, resting his hand on Chris's sweat-damp hair. Chris doesn't seem aware anymore, staring off into space, weeping silent tears and hitching soft sobs, promising in whispers to be good and obey his handler if only he’ll make the pain stop. “What’s the next step? Give me a fucking order, Nat, because I’m lost, and-” Jake gives a nervous, humorless laugh. “-I’m pretty fucking scared for him.”

"Yeah… yeah, I get that. Just pack some clothes and toiletries," Nat says flatly. "And prepare to swear on the fucking Bible to doctors and surgeons and fucking cops if we have to that his name is Chris Stanton and he's your little brother. We’re about to put on a show, Jake."

“What do you mean?”

“You’re not leaving him. You are going to be the most concerned and caring big brother the world has ever seen. When he gets out of surgery, you’re going to meet him in recovery, you’re going to stay with him in his room day and night. You’re there from day one until he walks back out the door.” Nat’s jaw is set again. “And he will be walking back out that door with us.”

“Visiting hours-”

“He can’t make his own medical decisions,” Nat says, leaning over a little, staring Jake right in the eyes. “So someone has to be there all the time. Do you understand me? He can’t.”

“He’s not-... he could, if he was a little further along-”

Chris whines, and his hand grabs weakly at Jake’s and squeezes. Jake can hardly feel it. 

“He’s not. Okay? He’s not that far into recovery yet. We’re going to pretend he’s a lot less capable than he is, to get him through this. We are going to pretend he can’t do it himself, because right now it’s not pretending, he wouldn’t remember what to do yet. And I feel like shit treating him like a toddler, Jake, I really do, but… but he can’t do this alone, and I can’t exactly tell them it’s because he was a pet and they’re trained to be dependent, now can I? We’re going to have to lie about his condition.”

“That wasn’t actually a lie, though, right? We do think he is actually-”

“Yeah. We do. But he’s not incapable - or he won’t be, once he’s older. That’s what we have to lie about. And I don’t-... right now I don’t give a shit about a damn thing except buying him more time to fucking grow up.”

"What about his barcode?"

Nat takes a deep breath. "My contact is going to bandage it over, say it was part of when he passed out and they’ve taken care of it and we're going to hope to Christ no one who they don't trust checks under it. We're out of options, Jake, unless you know how to do an appendectomy and you’ve just been holding out on me. I’m not prepared to do kitchen table surgery. Are you?"

There’s a pause while they stare at each other, and then Jake takes in a deep, steady breath.

You can do this. Chris needs you to do this.

"His name is Chris Stanton," Jake says, meeting her eyes, "and he's my little brother, and he's autistic. I’m his medical power of attorney, I make medical decisions when he’s incapcitated. He’s scared of hospitals because of bad childhood experiences and needs someone nearby at all times or he’ll lose it.”

Nat gives a terse nod. "Good. Pack your shit, and hope his fucking appendix hasn't burst while my contact dicked around." 

Nat went up the stairs like a lightning bolt, and Jake let out a shuddering breath. 

By the time they hear the ambulance pull up a few minutes later, sirens and lights carefully off, they're packed and ready to follow in Nat’s old truck.

Chris's fever is still rising. 

---

Tagging: @burtlederp , @finder-of-rings , @endless-whump , @whumpfigure , @slaintetowhump , @astrobly, @newandfiguringitout , @doveotions , @pretty-face-breaker , @boxboysandotherwhump , @oops-its-whump @moose-teeth , @cubeswhump , @cupcakes-and-pain @whump-tr0pes @whumpiary

[izukuwus]

Bunny Eyes

A/N: I JUST WANTED TO WRITE BUNNYZUKU GETTING DISAPPOINTED AND BEING CUTE HOW DID THIS HAPPEN BUT Y’ALL WANTED THE SICKFIC SO HERE’S THE SICKFIC

Summary: Saying 'no' to your boyfriend is hard enough, does he have to make you feel so guilty when you’re already sick? (bunny!Izuku x sick!reader, fluff)

Warnings: uh none, the reader has the flu and has flu symptoms but I didn’t go into like, gross descriptions

Word count: 2600+ (HOW THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE SHORT AND SWEET)

~

Your boyfriend might be just a little bit evil.

Not in the traditional sense, no, Izuku's too pure and kind and good for this world. Reckless, selfless, and all around perfect.

But he's evil and he knows if he just looks at you just right, you won't be able to say no.

Currently, you're bed-bound from a nasty flu that's been making you feel absolutely miserable. When you're not asleep, the farthest you've been able to go is being miserable on your balcony in the fresh air (usually at night, since this damn flu has absolutely slam dunked your sleep schedule) or sneaking on to your computer to game, exhaustion and dizziness and all manner of symptoms making even sitting up for too long a chore. 

You have to thank whatever powers are out there for Izuku's loving hand in your recovery. You don't trust yourself to make it all the way downstairs to the kitchen from your fourth-floor dorm room, and without even asking, he's stopped by every morning and afternoon since you got sick to bring you food, including a few simple pre-packed things to choke down for lunch and extra bottles of water. Not that you've been particularly hungry, but on the rare occasion you feel well enough to choke something down, thanks to him, you've actually been able to.

He's constantly been worried over you, since even before you started dating in your first year, but the flu picking you up and effortlessly slamming you through the floor certainly hasn't helped that. Still, he's so sweet, and by this point (day 5 since you got sick, but who’s counting?) he's basically the only sunshine you're getting. You're sure if your bunny-eared boyfriend didn't have class to go to (and Aizawa was adamant that he still attend class), he'd be at your side every moment, fussing over you and making sure you eat, stay hydrated, and take your medicine. 

Unluckily for you (or perhaps luckily—your medicine tastes utterly vile and isn't helping your stomach settle any more), he's had class every day since you got sick, and he can't afford to fall behind even if he's apparently spending most of his time in class worrying over how you're doing alone in your dorm.

Whether him being at class every day is lucky or unlucky, the opposite is true for today. (Or is it tomorrow? What time is it again?) It's the weekend, meaning he's got no other obligations to deal with, so you can and do expect him to want to spend every moment doting and fussing and using those damn eyes to get you to relent and take your disgusting medicine.

On one hand, score, cute boy acting as your nurse. On the other hand, if he spends all day in your room tending to your sick-people needs, he's gonna get sick, and it'll be an utter nightmare trying to get him to take his medicine and actually rest. God knows he'll be trying to sneak in studying when you're not keeping an eye on him. You'll probably have to confiscate his weights so he doesn't try to work out while he's still sick. (Not that you aren't almost just as bad, but at least you're not a rabbit with godlike ability in terms of sheer power and speed to make it harder to deal with.)

As much as you'd adore having his presence with you to make you go from miserable to "miserable but also very aware of how in love you are and being forced to take gross meds" (which kinda cancels itself out), you don't want him getting sick or wasting his whole day on you. Also, you get the feeling he's probably smart enough to figure out that you haven't been resting as much as you say you have. For now, at least, you're sat on your balcony, leaned up against the railing lightly to get some fresh air. And that's where you fall asleep, exhaustion hitting you like so many trucks.

~

When you wake up, you're being cradled against Izuku's chest and carried to your bed. You shiver, feeling both heat and cold overtake you, and tears prick at your eyes as you realize your fever has almost definitely come back in full force. Izuku pulls back your covers and lays you down, not noticing you're awake until he moves to drape the blanket back over your body. His rabbit ears stand at full attention, his face lighting up just a moment before a playfully chiding look comes on his face.

"You shouldn't be sleeping outside like that, love, you'll get even more sick. And based on how hot you felt when I picked you up, you did." He places his hands on his hips, frowning even as you note the sparkle of affection in his eyes. You're not sure he's even capable of getting actually mad at you.

"Sorry," you mumble, bringing the covers up to hide your face and how utterly awful you look before deciding almost immediately that you're going to overheat under these covers. You writhe about just enough to kick them off, already feeling sweat form on your skin. "The air felt really nice."

You end up throwing a pillow over your face so at least the worst part of you is hidden, hugging it close when Izuku laughs and tries to move it away. "I brought breakfast, please quit hiding so you can eat?"

"But I look like shit," you whine into the pillow. "I don't even have the energy to get downstairs. I had to wash my hair in my bathroom sink."

Warm hands find their way to your wrists, gently prying your hands and the pillow away so you can meet his adoring gaze. If you weren't already flushed from fever, you'd probably have the energy for a blush to find its way to your face. "You're perfect, starshine," he says softly, causing your heart to stutter and your body to instantly melt. His library of pet names never ceases to pull you further into love.

Before you can find some response, he crosses the room to your desk, where he apparently set his Nurse Deku Kit™ so he could carry you back inside. You shift a bit to lean up against your wall, watching in amusement as the giant cotton ball he calls a tail twitches a little bit. You hope, idly, that he doesn't notice that your computer's only in sleep mo—

He bumps the mouse by accident, and the screen lights up immediately, showing your games library with a very obvious "recently played" list. Busted.

He lets out a little sigh as he turns back to you with a thermometer in hand. "Princess..." 

You try hard not to look like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar, and smile innocently at him as he approaches. He sits on the side of your bed, and you tilt your head. "Something wrong?"

He holds out the thermometer, and you obediently let him stick it underneath your tongue, knowing he won't let you out of having your temperature taken. "Have you been resting?" 

You nod. He hums, clearly not believing you. "Are you feeling up to eating anything?"

Your nose scrunches up, your stomach turning at the thought. "Ughf," you force out around the thermometer. 

Izuku frowns, ruffling your hair as the thermometer beeps. He takes it from you, and his nose twitches as he reads the number. You'd fawn over how adorable it is if not for the look of worry that crosses his features. "Your fever's back, starshine. I really need you to rest more for me, okay?"

Not that you're planning on arguing, but it's really hard to have the will to when his ears drop down and he gives you a look like you just kicked a puppy. You nod, and he perks up just a bit, placing a new water bottle on your nightstand and reaching for a box of crackers. "I know you're not feeling up to eating, but can you do me a favor and eat just one cracker?"

You compromise with half a cracker before your body threatens to revolt for your hubris. You pause, forcing yourself to swallow it, and chase it with a bit of water. With Izuku's coaxing words and a minor break, you manage to choke down the rest without getting even sicker, and he gives you a strained smile that still manages to light up the room.

He leans forward, and you sense his intentions, narrowing your eyes and putting a hand up in front of his lips. "No."

Izuku lets out a disgruntled noise that's a mix between a grunt and a whine when his lips meet your fingers. "Baby," he whines out.

"No!" you insist. "You'll get sick, 'Zuku."

"But I miss you," he says as his ears fall all the way back, his eyes reminding you of one of those adoption commercials with all the sad animals that make you cry every time. "Please, starshine?"

Shit. You're already desperately trying to bring your resolve back. You swear he's figured out exactly how to get you to do what he wants, but you won't falter this time! "No kisses. I shouldn't even be letting you stay in the room to take care of me."

As if the bunny eyes and the oh-so-adorably-expressive ears weren't enough, he wiggles closer to you, taking your hand in both of his and running his thumb over it. "I got my flu shot, I'll be fine! I promise!" He pauses, pouting a bit. You can't tell if it's him thinking or another way to express how disappointed he is. "Please baby? Honey? Sweetheart? Starshine? Princess? Rosebud? Light of my life?"

"Nooo," you press with a giggle as he continues running through every possible pet name he can in a playfully pleading tone. "I know you got your flu shot, but so did I, and here I am."

"Still..." He keeps those damn green eyes (that's the official name for that shade, damn green) locked on yours sadly, and the guilt spikes in your stomach. "Just one?"

And like that, your resolve crumbles. "You're evil, you know that?" you mumble, tearing your eyes away. They dart back just in time to see his whole being light up, rabbit ears effortlessly perking up from their previous saddened position. "Using such a dirty trick. You get one."

You'd continue berating him for the crime of using his adorable face to get what he wants, but he immediately takes your face in his hands and begins showering your face with kisses–your cheeks, your nose, your forehead–everywhere except your lips, which he saves for last, a slow, sweet, chaste kiss that leaves you melting.

"Izuku..." you whine as he pulls away. "I said one."

He chuckles, resting his forehead against yours. "Sorry, starshine. I couldn't help myself."

Your playful ire melts at the way his eyes flutter shut in contentment, small smiles on both of your lips. He surely knows by now that it's impossible for you to say no, not when he's this damn cute. 

A giggle surges out of you, followed by a coughing fit that you desperately cover in your elbow. When you catch your breath, you smirk at him, eyes sparkling. "If you get sick because of this, I'm confiscating your weights so you can't try to train."

"Alright, alright, I get it. You haven't taken your medicine yet today, right?" You wince, turning your head away preemptively. "'Zu-kun..." you whine.

"[name]..." His tone is gently chiding as he prepares the medicine, unscrewing the cap with one hand and gently placing the other under your cheek and pushing you back to face him. "You're not gonna get better if you keep trying to skip your medicine and sneak onto the computer instead of resting."

"But if I take the medicine, I might throw up the cracker, and it was so hard to eat just the one..." You give him your best puppy eyes, but he only smiles fondly and shakes his head, continuing to measure out your dose.

“You'll get all the cuddles when you're better if you take your medicine like you're supposed to," he promises.

You pout, but when he extends the dose cup filled with liquid distaste, you begrudgingly take it, downing it like the least pleasant shot you've ever had in your life. You gag on the swallow, but you down every drop, pouting at Izuku when it's all down. "Happy?"

"Very. You did a good job, princess." He ruffles your hair, and you really wish you could muster the energy to be flustered at the praise like you normally would, but honestly, you already feel yourself kind of drifting back off. Determined, you shoot him a smile and try to distract yourself from sleepiness.

"I know it's a weekend, but if I stay in bed and promise to get rest, can I get away with asking to see your notes from class?" You plead, giving him your best puppy-eyed look.

"I don't know, you haven't shown me a very good track record of actually resting," he says teasingly, not yet having looked at you as he rifles through his little kit for something else.

"'Zu-kun," you whine, stifling a yawn. "I don't wanna go to sleep yet. Please?"

Izuku disappears into your bathroom for a moment, followed shortly by the sound of running water, and when he emerges to see your pleading look, you can see his own resolve crumble.

Two can play at his little pleading game.

He smooths a hand over your forehead to move your hair out of the way, laying a blue towel over your sweat-slicked forehead that's cold, far too cold—

You let out a whine as you shiver. "How is it even that cold?" You mumble, shifting into your blankets more in an attempt to balance the heat.

"Oh, it's one of those exercise towels," he explains. "They're made so they get really cold when they're wet. I want to try to bring your temperature down, but if it's way too cold, I can get a regular towel instead–"

You shake your head. The cold does feel soothing, underneath all the cold cold cold so cold making you shiver. "Notes?" you remind him.

He leans forward and presses a quick peck to the towel in your forehead before you can stop him. "I love you, [name], but it can wait until you're feeling better."

"So can kisses," you retort, swatting at him lightly. "I don't wanna be useless the whole time I'm sick, so—" You break off into a yawn. "—so please let me study a bit?"

"Try to eat half of one more cracker before you fall asleep and I might consider it when you wake up," he says with a teasing grin. You pout and hold out your hand for him to place the broken cracker in. 

"I hate having crumbs in my bed," you mutter, nibbling away at the cracker. You barely manage to eat the half you were given, your body protesting your attempts to actually eat and keep something down all the while, but you do manage it.

Izuku's fingers entwine with your own, a fond smile on his face as you feel yourself nodding off. "[Name]?"

"Mm?"

"I love you. Get better soon, okay?"

"Love you too," you reply sleepily, another yawn wracking your body. "Sorry. I wanted to stay up and... talk with you... but..."

A hand finds its way into your hair to play with it as your eyes drift shut. "It's okay," he says adoringly, "We'll talk later. Get some rest, princess."

[writingfeatherduster]

A Warm Feeling, Chapter Four

Chapter Four: Mutual Care

Part One | Part Three | Part Five Word count: 4268 Warnings for this chapter: Illness, panic attacks

Read this on Archive of Our Own and Wattpad!

“Yeah, I got him to eat a little bit when I brought him home. He just looks so… I dunno, dim? His temperature is only 317… Yeah, Al, I know that’s low, that’s why I called!”

Sans paced nervously as he glanced at the living room couch, talking to Alphys over the phone. Once again, he found Grillby laying there, but this time was much less endearing. The flames that formed his body didn’t seem to burn as brightly as usual, and he looked downright sickly. This wasn’t something that had come on suddenly, either. Sans felt like an idiot. Thinking back to the past few days, he should have noticed that Grillby was moving slower. The bartender had been having trouble keeping up with orders lately, and there were moments where he’d even spilled drinks because his hands were shaking. Sans chalked it all up to him being busier than usual, but he should have known better. The last thing Grillby needed- no the last thing Grillby deserved was for Sans to be dismissive of obvious cries for help.

Guilt gnawed at the skeleton’s bones. Why did he let Grillby go home alone the night before? Why didn’t he say anything when his food was underdone? Why didn’t he just pay more attention? If their places were reversed, Grillby would have caught on to Sans’s ailment and made him rest days ago. Grillby was observant like that. He was a good, attentive friend. Was it really that much to ask for Sans to return the favor?

Thankfully, it didn’t seem like the situation was dire. After giving Alphys a rundown of everything that had happened, she seemed optimistic. “W-well,” the scientist stuttered over the phone, “It sounds like t-t-to me that, um, that he’s just been o-overworked. When- well, um, when y-y-you work too much, it c-catches up to you eventually, right? A few days, um, a few days of r-rest should- um, it should help him perk right back up! I think, heheh, heh…”

Sans sighed in relief. “Thanks, Al. I’m just glad he’s not dying or something.”

“He’ll b-be fine,” Alphys reassured. “Just k-k-keep an eye on him, and, u-um, and call me if he gets- if anything else happens.”

“Will do. Thanks.” Sans hung up the phone, looking back at the sleeping bartender. It was nerve-wracking to see him so still. What would have happened if Sans didn’t check on him? The door was unlocked! Anyone could have come in, and that ‘anyone’ could have been a monster with way more malicious intentions than Sans! The thought made the skeleton shudder, ice settling into his bones. What if Grillby hadn’t gotten home safely the night before? What if he’d frozen to death? He should have at least walked him home. Isn’t that what Grillby did, when he was worried about Sans? He said something, he acted, he made sure that Sans was okay and safe and taken care of. Sans had noticed the bartender struggling, and what did he do? Looked the other way. Why would he do that? Grillby could have been seriously hurt! Not that he wasn’t already! What if he had a concussion from the fall? Or sprained something?

“...Sans…”

The skeleton gasped, head jerking up. Grillby was awake, weakly reaching out and putting his hand on Sans’s arm. Sans sniffled, only then realizing that he’d been crying as he spiraled. He wiped at his eye sockets with his sleeve, sitting on the edge of the couch next to the fire monster. “Y-you’re awake,” he mumbled shakily. “You really had me scared there for a second, heh.”

“Well, there’s nothing to fear,” Grillby said with a small smile, voice a little raspy from days of nonstop talking to customers. He sat up slowly, leaning back up against the pillows before opening his arms to Sans. “Come here.”

Sans hesitated for just a moment… and then he was in Grillby’s arms, hugging tightly as he started to cry again. “I thought you were dying! Or Fallen Down, or something!” Sans said through his tears. He felt silly and selfish. Grillby was the one who was sick, and yet here he was, comforting Sans again. The skeleton suddenly sat up, upset with himself. “No, cut that out. I should be taking care of you right now, not- ugh!” He pulled his hoodie up over his head, embarrassed and ashamed. “Now is not the time to be worried about me, Grillbz.”

Grillby frowned at him, adjusting his glasses. “Sans-”

“No,” Sans huffed, cutting him off. “You need to be resting. You can’t prioritize me over your own health.”

“Sans, please-”

“And you really should have taken a break days ago,” Sans interrupted once again. “I know I’m not one to talk, but you’ve gotta pay attention to yourself! I know you like your job and your customers and all but it does no one any good if you work yourself to-”

“SANS.” Grillby raised his voice a bit, reaching forward and lifting the skeleton’s chin to make him look at him. Sans immediately felt guilty for the lecture, seeing the expression on the bartender’s face. Grillby was hunched in on himself, shoulders hitched up slightly with tension. Sans could feel where the fire monster’s hand trembled slightly against his skull. What broke the skeleton, though? Tears were forming in Grillby’s eyes, shining under his glasses for a split second before disappearing in a puff of steam. Sand had never, ever seen Grillby cry, and the quickly growing trails of steam coming off the bartender’s eyes made him feel like his soul was cracking.

Grillby lowered his hand, bringing it to his chest as his gaze dropped to his lap. His voice was barely more than a whisper, vulnerable and wavering. “I know,” he said softly, “I know. I just- please… Can I have a hug?”

God, Sans was an idiot. “Of course, Grillbz, come here.” He really couldn’t do anything right, could he? He moved forward again, taking the fire monster into his arms and rubbing his back. “Shh, hey, I’m sorry, don’t cry. I didn’t mean it. I’m not mad at you, it’s okay. You’re gonna be okay. I’ve got you.” Grillby always knew what Sans needed. He knew the skeleton so well, from his schedule to his habits to his anxiety. How much did Sans know about Grillby, though? He never asked him many questions about his personal life. He didn’t ask about his family. Hell, he rarely even asked if Grillby was okay. He was starting to realize… this relationship was one-sided, wasn’t it? Well…

Sans would do everything in his power to remedy that.

Comforting his best friend on the couch, Sans made a silent promise to himself and Grillby. He was going to be a better friend, and he was going to take care of his bartender. This time, he would be the one making sure that Grillby didn’t come apart.

Grillby had stopped crying some time ago, but he stayed in Sans’s arms anyway, head resting against Sans’s shoulder as he took long, deep breaths. His head was pounding and his limbs felt like they were made of lead, a sore ache seeming to fill his body down to his soul. The past several days of unrelenting work and exercise were catching up to him, and he found himself feeling sicker than he’d ever felt before. He wasn’t sure why he pushed himself so hard. He’d been fairly good at taking periodic breaks when he needed them before, he just…

Well. He wanted to see Sans.

Business was business, but certain kinds of business could feel unwelcome and overwhelming in the moment. Customers were rude, offhanded comments stung, and the behaviors of some of his customers could get irritating. If there was one thing he could always look forward to, though, it was seeing his favorite skeleton. As soon as that familiar blue jacket came through the door, something in him would ease, and he would be able to push himself through the rest of the night with the promise of getting to talk to the one person he could consider a close friend. Recently, that desire to see Sans had been bordering on desperation. He’d considered asking Sans if he would like to meet outside of work, on Grillby’s days off, but was that overstepping? Would that be awkward?

Wrapped in Sans’s embrace, those fears felt silly. Of course Sans wouldn’t mind it. Grillby wasn’t sure what had pushed them past that line of a bartender/customer relationship, but he felt like they were suddenly much closer. Maybe it was the night Grillby had walked Sans home. Maybe it was the afternoon he’d coaxed Sans into resting, wrapping him in his coat and tucking him into bed before staying the night to make sure he didn’t feel alone.

Maybe it was the way he felt himself fluster at the soft compliments and praise Sans gave him to help him keep going. Maybe it was the familiar amusement and fondness that filled his chest when he and Sans went back and forth with their usual banter. Maybe it was because he still hadn’t mentioned his missing jacket.

Grillby felt Sans’s hand move up to the back of his head, the skeleton running his fingers through the flames that acted as Grillby’s hair. For some reason, it made the bartender want to cry again. Instead, he took a deep, shaky breath, and curled closer to Sans, seeking out that familiar comfort. For the first time in days, he was sure that he was going to be okay.

Sans wasn’t sure how long he spent comforting Grillby, but by the time the fire monster had relaxed all the way, it was nearly time for lunch. He could tell that the bartender had exhausted himself with his tears, but he needed to eat something before he went back to sleep. He had a lot of calories to catch up on, after all.

The skeleton slowly pulled away, cupping Grillby’s cheek. “Hey, I know you’re tired, but you need to eat something first. I’ll make up some ramen real quick, ‘kay?”

Grillby nodded tiredly, leaning into Sans’s touch for a moment. His hand came up to rest over Sans’s as he closed his eyes. “Thank you,” he sighed. “I… I needed that.”

“I could tell,” Sans chuckled gently. “Just try to stay awake while I whip up some grub. I’ll be right back.” He let go of the fire monster and stood, stretching before wandering to the kitchen. His soul was pounding in his ribcage. The warm, gentle way that Grillby looked at him was seared into his mind. The skeleton couldn’t quite identify what it made him feel, but he liked it way too much. He was pretty sure that if Grillby looked at him that way all the time, he would melt.

Shaking off whatever that feeling had been, Sans put a pot of water on the stove, rummaging around in the cabinets until he found a packet of instant noodles. He was glad he still had a few packs left. While there was plenty of semi-edible spaghetti in the fridge, the microwave was still sitting out in Snowdin Forest. Since, you know, Frisk hadn’t come through there yet.

The thought of Frisk made Sans drop the pack of noodles on the floor. Shit. He hadn’t been at his post once all day. What if the human had come out of the Ruins? And Sans wasn’t keeping an eye on them? How had he forgotten about them? He wasn’t sure what they were planning, but at this point, he was sure it couldn’t be good. He had to be there to make sure he was the first person they saw. He had to be keeping an eye out.

“Sans?” Grillby called out, sitting up a bit straighter. He’d heard the skeleton freeze up and drop the package, immediately worried. “Is everything alright?”

Right. Grillby needed someone to watch over him today. Sans could call Papyrus, but the taller skeleton brother could be a bit… much. Sans loved his brother, but when it came to caring for others, Papyrus’s constant energy could be overwhelming. He considered his options carefully. He could go out to his post and hope that Frisk hadn’t already come through, leaving Grillby alone, or he could stay home and just pray that today would be just like the past two weeks.

For the first time in a long time, Sans found that he had a higher priority than watching that damn door in the woods.

“Yeah, everything’s good. Just dropped something,” Sans called to Grillby as he picked up the instant noodles and opened the package, waiting for the water to boil. Even if Frisk did show up, it was unlikely that Sans would be able to do anything about it, right? Right. He could do something about Grillby’s condition, so that was what he would do.

Once Grillby had eaten something, he had enough energy left in him for Sans to get a better grasp on the bartender’s condition. Grillby admitted to having a headache, and he told Sans that he was so sore that he barely felt like he could move. He also hadn’t had much of an appetite over the last few days, but he was starting to get hungry again, so that was probably just the stress. Sans checked his temperature again and was relieved to find that it was steadily rising to normal now that the fire monster had some ‘fuel’ in him (Grillby groaned at that one). Once the little check-up was over, Sans gave Grillby some painkillers and brought a blanket for him. “You sure you don’t want me to move you somewhere more comfortable? I practically carried you to my house, I’m pretty sure I could help you up the stairs and get you into a bed…”

Grillby shook his head, regretting the action as it immediately started to throb again. “No, I’m- I’m fine here,” he managed. “The idea of moving at all is less than savory at the moment.”

“Fair,” Sans mumbled, handing him the blanket. “Well, just get some rest, okay? You need it. I’ll be right here if you need anything.”

Grillby didn’t have to be told twice. He laid back down with a sigh, covering himself with the blanket and pulling it to his chest. “Thank you,” he said softly, closing his eyes and letting himself relax.

Sans chuckled, some of his anxiety finally easing off. “Don’t mention it, Grillbz. Sleep tight.”

Over the next few days, Sans stayed home with Grillby, keeping an eye on his recovery. The fire monster was bouncing back pretty fast, though he did spend most of his time sleeping. They fell into a sort of routine. Sans would wake him- if Papyrus hadn’t already woken him up on accident- and ask him how he was feeling. Grillby would give him the rundown, then the two would have breakfast before Grillby went back to sleep. Sans would wake him up again for lunch, and at that point, the fire monster usually had a little bit more energy in him. He’d stay up for a few hours just talking with Sans before he ran out of steam and had to take another nap. Papyrus would come home in the evening and inevitably wake Grillby by accident, so Grillby would stay up for the rest of the evening, eating dinner with the skeletons and talking to Papyrus about his day.

Sans was a little surprised at how well Grillby and Paps got along. Grillby was pretty patient with him, even if he had to ask the skeleton to lower his volume a few times. He let Papyrus ramble about puzzle ideas and cooking, even throwing in a few tips of his own on how Papyrus could improve his spaghetti. People were polite enough to Paps, but Sans had seen plenty of times how other monsters could be dismissive of his brother. A few would even be downright rude, telling Papyrus that they didn’t care and asking him to just be quiet. With as composed and quiet as Grillby could be, Sans worried that he wouldn’t get along well with Paps, so it was a nice surprise to see them hitting it off so well.

The routine was nice. Grillby’s health steadily improved over the next weeks or so, to the point that Sans was comfortable leaving him home alone and going back to sentry duty. He was still nervous about the idea of Grillby going back to work, but he also had to admit, the bartender was getting restless. Sans managed to get him to agree to three more days before he opened the bar back up again.

Sans went over all of this in his head as he walked towards his station, feet crunching in the snow. It had been a long time since he felt this relaxed. He was… happy. Yeah. He was really, genuinely happy.

Of course, that wasn’t meant to last.

As the door in the woods came into sight, Sans stopped dead in his tracks. There were no footprints in the snow, no indication anyone had left the Ruins. The door was closed, undoubtedly locked tightly from the inside. Everything was as it should have been at a glance, but Sans had learned to pay careful attention to detail.

The snow at the base of the door had been moved. There was a small pile of it where the door had been pushed open slightly, as if someone had just peeked out before changing their mind and closing it again. It was a small reminder. Frisk hadn’t left the Ruins yet, but they were still there. Sans still didn’t know what they were doing, waiting all this time.

Why? Why did they have to remind Sans they were there, and why then? What the hell were they doing in the Ruins?

The skeleton teleported to the door, anxiety filling him as he did. He didn’t bother knocking, because he knew there would be no answer. Toriel never answered when Frisk was with her. She was too busy… or too dead. The thought made Sans go cold. What if Frisk hurt Toriel again? What if they were just coming up with new, crueler ways to torment them? And if they were, what could Sans do about it?

Sans sat in front of the door, trying to take deep breaths only to find his ribcage wouldn’t expand as far as he needed it to, making him gasp weakly for air. He was helpless. He was useless. Frisk had learned every trick Sans had. It didn’t matter if he confronted them in the judgment hall or the moment they left the Ruins. He would fail to protect anyone Frisk decided needed to die. Sans couldn’t breathe. Frisk could be fucking torturing Toriel and the innocent monsters of the Ruins and what could Sans do? Absolutely nothing. He couldn’t breathe. Frisk could be waiting right on the other side of that door, listening to Sans choke and laughing at him. Were they messing with him on purpose? Did it matter? No matter what they did, they never faced any real consequences. Sans did everything he could and every time, Frisk just Reset and started over.

Sans’s vision was starting to get blurry, his pupils fading out. He pulled his knees to his chest and covered his skull with his hands, shivering. Any moment, everything Sans had done in the last month could be erased. Every moment he shared with Papyrus, the friendship he found himself sharing with Grillby, all of it could be gone in a moment and the skeleton could do nothing.

The skeleton vaguely registered that he was spiraling, but he couldn’t pull himself out of it. He couldn’t protect the monsters he loved. He swore he heard Frisk laughing at him. He couldn’t protect their memories, their lives, their progress. “Sans.” He was useless. He couldn’t breathe. “Sans, look at me.” Look at who? He couldn’t see. He couldn’t calm down, panic pulling at his soul. Was he dying? “Can you hear me? Sans, you have to breathe.” He couldn’t. He was going to die. Everyone was going to die. There was nothing he could do. “Sans, stop, you’re going to hurt yourself.” Was he? It didn’t matter.

Whoever was talking to the skeleton seemed to understand what was going on, taking matters into their own hands. “Sans, I’m going to hold your wrists, alright?” Okay. Sans vaguely registered a familiar warmth envelope his wrists and pull his hands away from where he’d been digging them into his soul. “I’m going to put my arms around you, just for a moment.” Do whatever you want. The skeleton was wrapped in a gentle embrace, pulled forward so that he was sitting in someone’s lap. “I’m going to hold your hands now. Focus on your hands. Focus on my breathing and try to match it.” Sans could feel the steady rise and fall of someone’s chest against his back. He focused on the pattern as someone took both his hands and started to rub gentle lines up and down the bones. It was the same pattern as the person’s breathing, and surprisingly, it helped him focus a bit. Sans felt his ribcage start to relax as he fell into that pattern. He realized his eye sockets were closed and slowly forced them open.

Sans was facing away from the door and away from the road, staring into Snowdin Forest. He was still shaking from adrenaline, but it didn’t feel like his soul was about to be torn apart anymore. Someone had him in his lap, and after a moment he realized that someone was humming. He looked down at where they had started rubbing circles into his palms. The hands that held his so gently were made of familiar orange and yellow flames, the light reflecting off the snow in an oddly comforting way.

The skeleton looked up at Grillby, exhausted as he came down from his panic attack. Grillby smiled gently at him, letting go of one of Sans’s hands to brush away the skeleton’s tears. “There you are,” the bartender mumbled softly. “It’s alright. You’re safe. I’m here.”

And when Grillby said that with so much certainty, how could Sans not believe him?

Sans wasn’t sure how long he spent curled up in Grillby’s lap, but it was longer than he liked to admit. The bartender had carried him away from that godforsaken door and sat with him behind the skeleton’s sentry station, effectively shielding him from the world for a little while. God, what would Sans have done if Grillby hadn’t come to his rescue? Sans’s memories of the last who-knows-how-long were blurry, but he vaguely remembered Grillby warning him that he was going to hurt himself. The skeleton only had 1 HP. What if he really had hurt himself, and badly?

As grateful as the skeleton was, there was a more pressing question in the front of his mind. “Grillbz? What are you doing out here? You’re supposed to be resting…”

Grillby sighed, having expected that. “I know, I know,” he conceded, “But I got restless, and… you forgot to take lunch with you this morning.”

Sans sat up a bit, eye sockets wide. “You didn’t.”

“Well,” the bartender chuckled, “As… interesting as Papyrus’s spaghetti is, I had a feeling you might have missed this.” He shifted a bit and reached up to the counter of Sans’s sentry station, grabbing a brown paper bag that Sans had somehow missed. When Grillby set it in his lap, Sans could feel that the bar was still warm.

Sans eagerly looked in the bag, a particular craving he’d been ignoring the past few days hitting him at full force. A burger, a basket of fries, and a bottle of ketchup. He pulled the burger out and dug in, groaning through a mouthful of food. He swallowed and sighed contently, leaning back against Grillby’s chest. “God, I missed your cooking.”

“I’m glad you enjoy it,” Grillby said through another light chuckle.

“Enjoy it? I’ve been practically in withdrawal the last few days, Grillbz.” Sans took another large bite out of his burger, washing it down with a sip of ketchup. After a moment of consideration, he took a fry out of the bag and held it up towards Grillby. “Couldn’t help but notice you didn’t bring anything for yourself,” the skeleton explained.

Grillby smiled a bit. “I appreciate it, but I can eat later.”

Sans just held it up higher, insistent. “Dude. Just take the fry.”

Grillby arched an eyebrow, then gave Sans a small, mischievous smile. “Alright, fine.” He leaned forward and took it from Sans with his mouth, smirking at him.

Sans nearly choked, covering his face with his hands. “Oh my god, Grillbz, you can’t just do that.”

Grilby laughed at him. “What? I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about,” the bartender teased, wrapping his arms around Sans’s waist.

“You know what? Fine.” Two could play at that game. Sans picked up another fry, holding it to Grillby’s lips. “Eat something, you dork.”

The skeleton would never get enough of the beautiful way Grillby glowed when he blushed.

End Chapter Four

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[secretobsessionstuff]

hi hi! i hope you’re doing well & happy almost halloween! if you’re taking requests i’d love to read some sick riley :’) perhaps he gets in the shower to help him feel better but he ends up feeling really ill and pukes in the shower, madix hears the commotion and rushes in to take care of him? please remember that you are loved & you are valued!!! have a good halloween!! :)

Thank you Anon! You are a beautiful human being ❤ Happy super late Halloween lol. 

Every muscle in Riley’s body was screaming when he finally got home from class. His shoulders were knotted like a knitted blanket, and the rest of him sure felt like there was a weighted blanket draped over his back. If only his body temperature felt the same way. He would gladly have wrapped himself in a quilt if it meant that his chill would disappear. He torturously climbed the stairs and dragged himself into the bedroom where Madix was working at his desk. Madix was deep in his own work, so he gave his boyfriend a quick kiss on the head after dropping his stuff on the floor.

“You’re back already? Madix said, looking up from his textbook with confusion on his face. “Wait, what time is it?” He hastily looked around for his phone. “Well crap, I didn’t know it was so late. I haven’t prepared anything for dinner.”

“That’s okay,” Riley mumbled. He had his arms wrapped around Madix’s neck and was leaning on him heavily. Like always, he buried his face in his boyfriend’s neck and bombarded him with kisses. He may or may not have been trying to leech some of his warmth. “I’m not hungry anyway.”

With his right hand, Madix scratched the fluffy head of hair that was nuzzled into body. “Mmh, you’re warm.”

“I’m really not.” Riley released Madix from his hug so that he could wrap his arms around himself. “I’m fucking freezing.”

Once free from the hug, Madix immediately dragged Riley back to him by tugging at his shirt. “Come closer for a sec.” Before Riley could object, Madix cupped his hand under his boyfriend’s chin. Unfortunately, he wasn’t looking for another kiss. He ran his hand up to Riley’s forehead.

“Mads, I’m fine.” Riley grabbed his wrist.

“Tell your body that.”

“I’ll be sure to pass along the message.” Riley shook his head and started for the door. “Now, I’m gonna go take a hot shower.”

With his swivel chair, Madix spun himself so he could face Riley as he walked away. “Wait baby, you feel like you’ve got a temperature.”

Riley shrugged. He knew how Madix could get with stuff like this. He just wanted a goddamn shower to warm him up. “I’ve always got a temperature, that’s how humans work.”

“Ah yes,” Madix replied, “but yours feels alarmingly higher than normal.”

“Bye, Madix,” Riley said with a wink.

“Wait –”

“Love you.”

And Riley walked out of the room, but as he did, he felt a little lightheaded. Oh well, it’s nothing that a nice shower couldn’t fix. The decision to skip dinner seemed like a pretty good one, he thought, as he turned the water on to heat it up. His stomach was swirling beneath his palm, but that wasn’t his main focus. His main focus was to stop the chattering of his teeth before he cracked them. Taking off his clothes caused even more goosebumps to rise on his skin, which he tried to ignore as the water took its sweet time to heat up.

Once the hot water hit him, Riley melted into a pool of relief. Madix’s worry was probably justified given how achy Riley felt, but he was content to let the water wash away his soreness. He stood under the running water, not even washing his body, until his skin turned pink. Whenever he took hot showers, the colours of the world seemed dim and his vision seemed to blur. Closing his eyes was better but even then, he felt himself sway. A few times, he needed to reach out his hand towards the wall to keep from falling.

As expected, the shower did wonders to help with how cold he was, but now he never wanted to leave. Also, the shower was regrettably not doing anything to help with the churning of his stomach. It was after a wet belch that Riley thought maybe he was sicker than he thought. The burp rolled up his throat and left him with nausea so intense that he braced himself against the wall.

A sick gurgle emanated from his belly, which he could see was bloated. He put his palm flat against his stomach and felt it ripple under his hand. With his hand still on his midriff, his body shook suddenly as a retch tore up his throat. He felt his belly heave, causing him to double over.

As a surge of vomit came rushing up his mouth, he extended his arm to keep himself from slipping, but managed only in knocking a bunch of shampoo bottles onto the floor. A cacophony of noises echoed around the bathroom as the bottles clattered at his feet and a wave of sick splattered against the bottom of the tub.

That’s when Madix started knocking on the bathroom door. Well actually the knocking was more of a quick courtesy before barging in. “Ry, what was that sound? Are you okay?”

Riley wanted to answer but he was still in the process of emptying his stomach. He belched and a thick wave of puke fell from his lips.

“Oh boy, gotcha,” Madix said as he did a little jump on his toes. Without thinking too much about what he was doing, he pushed aside the shower curtain and got in. He was only thinking about the terrible sounds his boyfriend made with each heave, not the fact that he was fully clothed.

“Madix what’re –” Riley began but a gag cut him off. This time he was in no danger of slipping because Madix held onto him. He doubled forward and watched as another gush of puke spiraled down the drain. He wanted to speak but his stomach had other ideas.

And man, could Madix feel the boy’s stomach at work. With his hand on Riley’s belly, he felt it spasm and lurch. “I’ve got you. You’re okay, don’t worry about me.”

Even between bouts, how could Riley not worry about Madix? He was getting soaked, not to mention probably splashed with stomach contents. And it was all in the name of love. How romantic.

After a couple smaller waves, Riley finally had the chance to catch his breath. He first turned off the shower and then turned to face his dripping boyfriend.

Both boys stood there shivering. Oddly, Madix wore a faint smirk. A sick Riley was no laughing matter, but he couldn’t help the grin from appearing on his face.

“You’re insane,” Riley said with water droplets hanging off the ends of his hair.

Madix looked down at his drenched clothing. “It would seem that way, wouldn’t it?”

Riley coughed and cleared his throat excessively. Turning away from Madix, he spat onto the floor of the tub. Still shivering and still wobbly.

“Alright, let’s get you dried off,” Madix said as he helped his boyfriend out of the shower. “Apparently the fever wasn’t what I should have been worried about.” He grabbed two towels and began drying Riley’s skin – his burning skin, Madix couldn’t help but notice. “Still, I wish you wouldn’t have taken such a hot shower.”

“I’m sorry,” Riley stuttered out through chattering teeth. “I should have listened to my body.”

“Really? Just your body?” Madix asked as he took off his shirt. It stuck to his torso, making it difficult to undress. “There’s no one else who maybe expressed concern?”

Riley hoped that was a rhetorical question because he didn’t have much energy to come up with a clever reply. Of course, he could have given the correct answer, but they both knew it already. Instead, he settled on a more pressing matter. “I’m a little dizzy.”

“Why don’t you sit down.” Madix said, suddenly looking much more serious as he watched Riley’s eyes come in and out of focus. “How’s your stomach feeling?”

“Bad”

“Okay yeah, then you sit by the toilet and I’ll get us both clothes.”

Shirtless and now cold himself, Madix left his boyfriend on the floor for a few minutes while he changed into dry clothes. He cam back soon enough with plaid pajama pants and an old shirt for Riley. Upon return, he found his boyfriend shivering like a madman with his mouth hovering over the toilet bowl. The towel slipped form his shoulders while he burped up a thin stream of bile.

“Oh baby,” Madix cooed as he joined his boyfriend on the floor. “I’m sorry you feel so sick.”

“I’m cold.” Great! He was back where he started: Freezing. Only this time he was substantially more miserable.

Madix rubbed a light hand over Riley’s back. “When you get the chance, I brought you cozy pjs.”

“And a blanket?”

“I tell you what,” Madix began, “when your stomach settles, I’ll get you all set up in bed with a bucket. Does that sound good?”

Like a child swaddled in a towel (feel free to imagine one with animal ears on the hood) Riley nodded shyly, and sniffled.

[kingsuckjin]

The Enigma of Bunny --13.5

Warnings (spoilers): character death, kidnapping, abuse, torture, insane people, yandere behavior, and a fake pregnancy. (all of this is why it was so hard and took forever for me to write, please don’t send me hate or come at me, I’m sorry)

Words: 4.4k

TEOB Masterlist-

PREV // NEXT -----------------

Jungkook pushed open the doors to the police station and kept his head down, he was afraid to look up. He knew she was there although he didn't quite remember her or her appearance, he didn't want to remember.

"Jungkook!" A shrill cry tore through the quiet police station. He was nearly knocked over by a shorter body colliding into his and arms wrapping around him like snakes to constrict him.

He saw long brunette hair almost block out his vision. He turned his head away from this strange woman who looked and smelled nothing like his real home, his noona. He locked eyes with the detective and sent him a look of confusion as he refused to bring his arms up to hug the girl back

"Hey, maybe we should give him a second to process?" Detective Namjoon spoke up and the girl gave him space, but still kept her hands on him. Her big eyes looked Jungkook over in disbelief, taking him in.

Jungkook was still unable to recognize her.

"You-you really don't remember me, do you?" Her expression melted to disappointment as her hands dropped and she took another step back away from him.

He took in the sad look on her face first, and it truly did hurt him, some unknown part of him. That told him that at some point, maybe he had been in love with this girl.

His guilt shifted to horror as his eyes took in the rest of her.

Jungkook let out an audible gasp and felt eyes on him.

"I-I- need-" Jungkook stuttered out as he just stared at the massive, protruding bump on her torso.

"What do you need?" Officer Jung asked.

"I-I need to sit down." Jungkook felt his lips move but his vision was going hazy, his legs began to shake, his mouth had become dry as if he had eaten a whole fist full of sand.

"I-I-" Jungkook didn't know what he was trying to ask for anymore. His brain seemed so shocked that it was telling his body to just give up. And it did.

Jungkook felt something cold on his forehead making his eyes flutter open to only see silhouettes standing above him for a moment.

Part of him hoped it had only been another dream, that he hadn't really come here.

But here he was, on the floor of the police station with the girl that gave him a bad feeling standing over him with a look of concern along with the detective and police officer.

"Do you need us to call an ambulance? You might've hit-" 

"He's been through worse." Her words only made the bad feeling in Jungkook's stomach grow.

He tried to not look at her pregnant stomach as he slowly sat up. 

"I'm fine." Jungkook forced himself to speak. He had more than just questions for this girl, there were things he needed to know, not just for him. He knew he would never have what he wanted answered in this police station.

"I'll take you home and take care of you, okay?" The girl who definitely wasn't his noona told him. 

Everything in his body wanted to not let her drag him away out of the safety of the police station and into her car, but his brain told him to collect information on. Who he was, why he was with her and what had happened to him?

She ushered him into the passenger's side of her car and she of course took the driver's seat. As the locks on the car clicked locked the moment she began to drive, Jungkook wiggled in his seat just to feel the knife in his back pocket only to feel nothing.

"I was so worried about you, you have no idea." The brunette’s eyebrows furrowed but Jungkook couldn't tell if she was acting or not. On top of it all, he didn't know what to say, he didn't remember her at all.

His eyes drifted back down to her stomach and he felt sick again. Her eyes flickered over and noticed him staring.

"I know. It's been awhile, and you're probably wondering what happened, right? I was pregnant before you left me Jungkook." 

He swallowed hard to keep the fear from escaping in a scream of prayers that this was just another nightmare.

"I've been pregnant, alone and looking for you this whole time." She began to cry and Jungkook's eyes were now as wide as planets as he found himself pressed against the car door as if he could distance himself from this horrible situation.

"You just left me. I loved you and I told you I was pregnant and you freaked out and left." She was now not only sobbing uncontrollably but swerving all over the road.

"I-I-I'm sorry?" He still had no idea what to say, especially now that the pressure was on him to say something.

"No! No you're not!" She slammed her fist on the steering wheel as she nearly swerved off the road. Jungkook was panicking as he decided to try to persuade her to pull over.

"L-lets pull over and talk about-" 

"I'm fine!" She screamed over him. Jungkook watched as she took a few deep breaths and repeated her words more calmly now "I'm fine. You're here and safe." 

"Exactly. Everything is going to be alright now." Jungkook agreed even though he was scared shitless and didn't think it would be fine at all.

"You won't leave me again? us, your family?" She asked as she wiped at her tears with the back of her hand.

"I-uh-" Jungkook had to think fast, and he came to the conclusion he had no other options "no." 

"I'm just- I'm just scared. You moved in with another woman, the police had told me." She let out a sniffle and Jungkook was terrified she would start crying and swerving again.

"She- she just took care of me, that's all. She helped me find you again, right?" For some reason Jungkook didn't want this girl mad at his noona.

"No." Suddenly the girl's voice dropped into a dark tone. "No. She wanted to take you from me, BUT YOU'RE MINE JUNGKOOK! You are all I ever wanted!" She smacked at the steering wheel again.

He weighed his options. Would he be better jumping out of the fast moving car or staying in here with her?

The answer was obvious to him. 

He quickly attempted to unlock the car as she one-handedly tried to stop him. The car swerved again wildly but Jungkook was able to push in the button to unlock the car.

She screamed at him non stop but his brain was too far gone into flight mode to understand, mentally preparing himself for the pain of hitting the road as he grasped the door handle, positioning himself to face it and ready to jump.

Just as he pulled, what felt like a lightning bolt hit the back of his head. He couldn't think of anything but the pain and how it blanked everything from his mind. His ears rang as his vision grew bleary and dark. He felt his forehead hit the cool window and nothing else.

-----------

"Junkoooook"

For only a split second he swore it was you. He felt a chill creep through him and up his spine that made him not want to open his eyes.

He was sitting, the air was musty and the feel of cold metal on his wrist told him all he needed to know. It told him his dreams hadn't just been dreams. Everything was coming back to him. He had been locked in those basement so long before, so long until the cold damp air had caused him to cough and get sicker and sicker until she dumped him onto the street to die.

Internally he was panicking, he was screaming, he was holding back sobs of fear. On the outside though he sat there I think his head slumped to the side, playing dead as if she were a bear and maybe she would just leave him be.

"Jungkookieee, welcome back home." She called making his stomach churn. This was not his home, this was hell and he had made a terrible mistake.

His brain went through scenario after scenario of escape. His first idea was to lunge at her, lock her out and hope she had a key to the chains on his wrist.

But he couldn't do that, something in his heart wouldn't let him, perhaps it was the baby, perhaps it was something more that he had yet to remember.

A hand came to his face and he involuntarily flinched, giving away the fact he wasn't asleep. The hand on his face made him want to crawl out of his skin.

he gave in and opened his eyes and the familiar horror filled his vision.

From the old mattress he sat on to the cold stone against his back, this wasn't a basement, it was a cellar.

There she sat on the floor just a few feet across from him off of the mattress. She was just a silhouette in the dark room, a silhouette he had often dreamed of as a monster, because to him she was.

His head throbbed with pain to the quickness of his heartbeat making him groan.

"I had to stitch your head. Why do you do these things to yourself Jungkook? Why do you just keep trying to leave me? You said you would love me forever, can't you try to remember that?" She pleaded.

Jungkook’s mind flashed to looking at her head  laying on a pillow, smiling at him. Her features looked much softer and happier and less sharp with rage as they did now. He heard himself say "You know I'll love you forever, right?"

He had said that. He remembered he had said that. The words had come from his own mouth but they confused him. How could he ever say that to such a monster? Had she forced him? Why had he seemed so happy in the memory.

"I just want things to be good again. I just want you back. It could be like it was again." Her voice shook as if she were about to break down.

Jungkook's mind flashed to arguing, her throwing things and telling him to quit him to quit some sort of a group.

"I was your biggest fan, I did nothing but support you from the start. You're the reason I came here to Korea. Remember all the texts Jungkook? Remember getting me at the airport?" 

His mind now went to running towards her and swinging her around in his arms. He had been so happy to see her the first time.

It was obvious to Jungkook that she only wanted him to remember the good times, but he was now remembering everything in a painful onslaught of memories. Everything awful she had ever told him and did to him was quickly rushing back.

"You ruined my life." He finally spoke. "My family… you… Oh God my family." His eyes stung with tears as he remembered. He had threatened to tell his family how bad she treated him… he wished he hadn't. It had broken him and made him finally fear her. "I-I hate you." He sniffled.

"No you don't, I know you don't." She was obviously in denial "Take it back!"

Jungkook flinched at her sudden loudness that echoed off the walls. "Take it back or I'll find her." 

Every muscle in Jungkook's body tightened up.

"I'll fund her and do exactly what I did to your family but this time I'll make you watch." 

"I take it back! I take it back." His mouth rushed to get the words out.

"You love her, don't you? You love someone other than me." She accused with cold poison in her voice.

"No. I don't care about anything anymore." He lied.

"Except who?" She fished for a certain answer.

"Except you." He muttered the reply she wanted "I don't care about anything except you." His heart deflated at his own words.

"Good." Her tone seemed satisfied and watched as her dark figure stood. "Now take some time and think about how you want things to be with us. I dare you to tell me you want to leave me one more time." 

He heard her walk the stairs before a door opened letting the blinding light wash over him.

Jungkook's mind went so blank that not even his headache could hurt him anymore.

This was all his fault, he shouldn't have ever left his noona where he felt safe and at home. He swore that if he ever made it out of this and made it back to her that he would never let her go again.

Days passed, maybe it was months or maybe just hours. Jungkook lost count of how many times he had slept, or how many times she had come to the cellar to feed or talk to him. Sometimes she would talk so sweetly, bringing back memories of a time he loved her, or thought he had. Sometimes she would come down there just to threaten him.

he never asked about the baby, never what gender it was, when it was due, what name she would give it. He didn't want to know, he didn't want to talk about it, he didn't want it to exist. He was glad it was dark down there just so he couldn't fully see her form. 

To pass the time Jungkook sang to himself quietly, songs that he was sure came from his former group. When he felt so alone and would cry he would tell himself "It's alright, I'm alright." And would remember the time you comforted him after a nightmare and told him he deserved the world.

Unfortunately the more time that passed in the cellar the less Jungkook sang and tried to comfort himself. He was losing hope in ever leaving, no matter how many times he told his captor what she wanted to hear.

Jungkook needed to get out before he died somehow down here or worse… she got her hands on you.

Just thinking about her hurting you filled him with unbridled rage, a rage that fueled his plan of escape. He didn't care anymore about hurting her anymore, maybe it wasn't so much that he was hurting her as much as hurting the innocent being she was carrying, but he needed out.

 Jungkook shielded his eyes to the light from the open door that he had been waiting for. His pulse quickened as he went over his plan one more time in his head.

"Noona?" He called her the name she had always made him call her, he hated it so badly, but right now he would be willing to do anything.

"Jungkookie, I brought you food!" Her voice was chipper as he heard her come down the stairs and come closer to him. She would normally drop off his food and leave, but he knew she was in a good mood today and Jungkook knew he could get her to stay.

"Please stay? I- I've just been feeling so alone lately." 

"Oh." It sounded like realization in her voice "I'm so sorry Kookie, I need to pay more attention to you. I'm glad you told me." Her form took her usual seat on the floor off of the mattress. "I'm sorry I've made you feel so alone, I want to spend more time with you but…" 

"What? Why?" He questioned.

"But I'm afraid of you Jungkook." She admitted.

"But noona, I won't hurt you, you're all I have. You have…" Jungkook swallowed as he tried to force the words from his throat. "You have my baby. I won't hurt you. Actually… I want to hold you, I want to feel the baby move I-I-"

"No." Her answer was firm.

Jungkook felt warm tears beginning to slide down his face, not because he wanted to hold you like he had said, but because he was worried he couldn't make this plan work, that she was too smart for him. He began to sob as he brought his hands to his face.

"Please. Please noona I feel so alone. It's so lonely and cold down here." He begged using his emotions of despair to lie. "I just want you to touch me, hug me, anything. Please. I feel like you don't even care about me anymore." 

She was quiet for a while while Jungkook sobbed.

He felt a warm hand on his arm that he did his best not to flinch away from. His body rejected her hand on him and he wanted to squirm out of her touch, but instead he forced himself to place a shaking hand on hers. 

The only thing he could do was pretend it was his noona comforting him for a moment.

"Oh Jungkook. I…" Her guilt filled words trailed off as she listened to her scooting closer to him. He gently pulled her, she resisted a little but Jungkook wasn't letting go. Once he had dragged her onto his lap, his arms around her waist made a discovery.

Where was her stomach?

Where was the baby?

"Jungkook, stop-" She tried to pull away from him again but this time he could hear the nervousness in her voice as the cogs turned in his brain.

He had heard no baby crying upstairs when he could hear everything from up there, the TV turning on, her coming and going from the house, her making food, the shower turning on, but never the sound of a baby.

He didn't know what happened to it but he knew she was a monster so she had to have done something terrible.

Without another word and in one swift motion, Jungkook wrapped the chains attaching his wrist to the wall around her neck and pulled tightly.

She began to struggle and beg for him to stop as her hands scrambled to try to free her neck.

"Stop- I- no key- don't- you'll die." She shrugged to get her words out as she choked. Adrenaline pumped through Jungkook as he struggled to both make her pass out and understand her words while fighting her.

"If I die- you die. Search me." 

As it hit him like a car, he let the chain go lax.

She sat there choking and gasping as his hands now searched her body and pockets.

She had no key on her, no phone, nothing.

He was frozen as she got loose, as he let her get loose. 

She scrambled to her feet and landed a kick to his ribs, one which he only felt the impact and heard the cracking sound from, but not the pain. His mind was far too gone to feel the pain.

"You fucking idiot you almost killed us both!" She shouted as she still gasped. He could feel her shadow towering over where he still sat, but he didn't look at her. "You really think I'd bring a key or anything you could use to escape down here?!"

She landed another kick to his ribs, this one made him fall over and cough, but still no pain, he couldn't feel his body at all.

"To think I ever wanted a family with you, to think I ever thought we could work this out! You tried to kill me!" 

Jungkook just laid there while she screamed at him, the only word registering in his mind was “family”

"Where's-where's the baby?" He asked the only question he cared about knowing right now.

She let out an icy laugh before calling him an idiot again.

"You're stupider than I thought. There was never a baby. I made it up to guilt you into coming home with me." 

Her words were both relief and just unsettling to him.

Jungkook didn't know at one point she stopped yelling at him and left the room, he was feeling the pain in his ribs now and it kept him down. He laid there for what felt like eternity, just wishing he would've killed her. Maybe if he died down there with her it wouldn't be so bad as long as she was gone.

But now, Jungkook was scared. He was scared that she was going to find his noona and punish him for what he did just like when he tried to leave her before and she killed his family.

Jungkook groaned in pain often as he laid there, he couldn't roll over, he couldn't move or else sharp pain so bad it was dizzying would shoot across his ribs. It reminded him of the time when he got sick.  He remembered being freezing cold but sweating, his body had felt like he had run a marathon and he kept losing consciousness. She had unchained him, but he was unable to escape, he had accepted his fate. The last thing he remembered was her cleaning him up and hauling him to her car, thinking that she couldn't be taking him to the hospital. 

Maybe if she thought Jungkook was going to die again she would dump him again, but then again did she still have sympathy or worry for him at all anymore, especially after he had just tried to kill her?

She stopped feeding him as much, she stopped speaking to him, she stopped emptying his bathroom bucket by the mattress on the floor. Jungkook got weaker and weaker. He felt like she wanted him dead, but just didn’t want to have to come down here and do it, or maybe she just wanted to make him suffer.

Jungkook just laid there fading in and out of consciousness more and more often as time passed.

----------

“FINE! FINE ALREADY!” He swore he had heard her yelling from upstairs but he wasn't sure.His mind had been playing tricks on him a lot lately, once even imagining she had kidnapped his noona.

“Just come take him and bring the money! I don't care what you do with him, he tried to kill me! ...No liker I said I don't know why you want him and I don't want to know but I swear if you let him escape and this falls on me you're going to wish you had never contacted me.” 

Jungkook wondered if this was about him, it was hard for his brain to make connections and try to understand nearly anything when he was this hungry and weak.he just wanted to go back to sleep and hope for a good dream about his noona.

---------

 “Get up Jungkook!” 

Jungkook whimpered at her voice shouting at him and at the light he could see through his closed eyelids.

“So this is where you've been keeping him?” This new, very deep voice startled him. He felt like he hadn't heard another voice in so long.

Jungkook pried his eyes open only for the light from the open cellar door to nearly blind him entirely momentarily.

As his eyes adjusted and from his point of view with his cheek against the dirty mattress, Jungkook could see shiny, expensive looking dress shoes.

“Yeah, where else am I going to put him?” his captor's voice seemed to scoff at the deep voiced man.

“I want to see him before I buy him.” his tone seemed cold and matter of fact.

“Jungkook! I said get up you idiot!” she shouted at him once more, but Jungkook just groaned out again, feeling too weak to make sense of this, let alone to sit up.

“Don’t.” The man’s deep voice doubled in it’s power, even sending chills down Jungkook’s spine at the power of it.

Suddenly he was being gently and slowly lifted to a sitting position. His head spun as he tried to look into the piercing eyes of the man who was trying to look into his.

“So you’re the one she fell for, huh?” the man muttered as he looked him over.

“I did, but that was a long time ago, before he tried to kill me.” 

“Would you shut up already?” the man snapped at her.

“You're in my house, don't tell me to shut up” she snapped right back. All Jungkook could think was that someone would have to be positively crazy to argue with this man who exuded power.

“Do you want the money and for me to take him off of your hands or not?” he sneered back at her “Remember bitch, I’m doing you a favor here.”

“First of all don't call me a bitch." She retorted and he stopped her right there by standing and turning to face her. He looked down at her as he looked over her as he took something from his pocket and dropped it onto the floor in the small space between them.

"Give me the key. I don't want you touching him anymore."

She crossed her arms.

"I thought you didn't know him, why are you being so protective of him?"

"I don't, he's a gift for someone. I can't have you further damaging him when you've already beat and starved him."

"Whatever. Here" She held out the key. "As long as I never have to see you or him ever again."

"You won't." A smile spread across his face, it was the kind of smile that would fill someone with dread and Jungkook would've been but what happened next happened too fast for Jungkook to register anything.

The lowest sound Jungkook had ever heard ripped through the cellar, so loud he didn't even hear the thud of his captor's body fall to the floor, but he saw it with his now wide eyes.

The man tucked the gun back into the hem of his pants at his side before turning back to Jungkook and kneeling down.

It seemed now that Jungkook's brain was doing quite the opposite of what it was moments ago. He was thinking a million thoughts a second.

He was terrified of this stranger who was now once again looking into his eyes, that was until he spoke.

"Jungkook, let's go. Y/n is waiting to see you." His voice didn't seem so cold anymore, maybe it was just hearing your name from his lips that melted the frost of the man.

Just hearing those words made Jungkook sob as the man unlocked the chains that were so sore around his wrists.

This man was here to save him. He was here to take him home.

[lokilickedme]

Submitted by @fudgemuffinanon

Ok I think I’m up to date….

1. HOLY SHIT WOMAN! You had Covid and just learned about it? How did you find out? Was it with a test? And you handled the asshat at the grocery store way better than I would have. I’m not patient, nor diplomatic, and I have major RBF syndrome… The temper goes with the face more ofter than I care to admit…

2. Your grandmother’s story was incredible. I know you don’t need another project but this could be a beautiful book. No fandom incorporated, just her story.

3. As @mollage said, the Universe is after you! But you may be one of the strongest woman I know, going through all your adventures with that attitude. Thank you Elizabeth for passing down your fiery spirit!

4. With everything that happened to you in the last few weeks, I can’t expect you to write anything. I’ll just wait and take what you give us. Fuck, I just have to deal with Baby Girl’s online school - Big Boy is responsible enough to deal with his class mostly alone - and I have to tell her to go back to the computer every 5 minutes and I’m going NUTS! And we have one more month to go…

Ontario has been in stay-at-home order since April 8th, and non-essential stores MAY reopen mid-June at 15% capacity and outdoor activities in small groups MAY resume IF we have 60% of population vaccinated with their first dose. We’re about 58% now according to Health Minister but they stopped giving Aztra as first dose, so all the pharmacies that could give it now can’t. There’s a lot less Pfizer and Moderna doses available so I don’t know how fast it will happen. But it means I will most likely get my second dose quicker than August. Yay me! Second phase won’t happen until we get 70% 1st dose vaccination. So we’re stuck for a while. We’re going out in the woods for walks once in a while so we don’t get too close to people but I want to go to a fabric store sooooo bad!! I’m done picking ticks off hubby everytime we get out.  And I’m running out of crafts to learn on youtube. 

Ok, enough ranting…  gotta go finish knitting Baby girl’s bday gift. A 6" turtle. With clothes. And a shawl. And boots. Yeah… Love ya!

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

Fudgey!!

Yup. All four of us had covid back in November of 2019, before it broke wide and before anyone really knew it was in the US. Husband was able to track it back to a coworker who’d returned from a family visit to China (he works with a large community of Asian Americans who travel back and forth a lot). The coworker came home sick, and shortly after that our household got the worst “flu” any of us have ever had (that was what we thought it was, a weirdly violent flu that hit each of us differently). I’ve never been sicker in my life, my husband thought I was going to die and he claims I told him to just let me go if it looked like I wasn’t going to make it. I’m pretty sure I meant it…it was that bad. I may have actually requested an assist to the other side at one point.

So anyway, a little while later it broke wide and when the symptom lists started coming out we started wondering if that wasn’t what we’d had. Husband finally a few weeks ago went and talked to the guy that had come back sick from overseas and the guy said “Oh yeah, I had the covid, did you get it too?”

By that time there had been approximately 150 known cases at husband’s workplace and six confirmed deaths from it. Grrrr.

At this point it was too late for us to get confirmed, but husband contacted a friend in Colorado who is a covid specialty ER nurse and described our symptoms and the timeframe of our illness to her. She said we absolutely had it - she’d had it too during that same timeframe, before it broke wide and before anyone knew what it was.

So now all my lingering weird-ass symptoms make sense. Big and Little are fine, they don’t seem to have any long-term problems, though I’m keeping an eye on them (especially Big). Husband is fine as well. Me? I took it in the seat of the pants, but like I was telling someone the other day, as soon as one of the longhaul clinics sets up here I’m gonna be there.

The putz in the grocery store was nothing unusual for here. What really gets me is the way people glare at us for continuing to wear masks - it’s almost scary. WTF is wrong with people.

Glad you liked my grandma’s story. Honestly I don’t know enough to write a book about her without having to speculate on a lot of in-between stuff because she was a very secretive person (probably for a good reason tbh) but what a tale it would be. She was a mess :D My mother has always been mad at me for taking after her - she never liked my grandmother much, there was some bad blood between them from decades back, and yeah that’s kind of a good story too lol

Ah, speaking of writing, I’m going to toss out a short chap of that silly self indulgent side-thing for The Department tonight (probably as soon as I send this reply off) and then I’m shooting for a chapter of the actual fic tomorrow at some point. Taking advantage of the husbandary absence (yes I know that’s not a word but it works)

I feel ya on the homeschooling - the boys finished their semester two weeks ago and the stress of that final week for Big (9th grade) was insane.

I wish we were under a stay-at-home order, but where I live hardly anyone obeyed it when we WERE. I love living here but I swear sometimes the people make me want to move off-planet just to find a higher intelligence demographic.

Anyway, I gotta see this turtle when you’re finished with it. You mentioned it so now you gotta show it. I’m going to bug you every day until you provide pictures because even though I can crochet a blanket like nobody’s business I cannot crochet a doll to save my own ass. Gonna have to rely on you for that ;P

@fudgemuffinanon

[lmaohuh]

put your head on my shoulder

flarrie (flynn x carrie) au where everything is the same except it’s set in washington

request: none

word count: 2.9k+

tw: mention of character death, fluff with a little angst in the beginning (please let me know if i need to add more trigger warnings !)

a/n: i definitely got carried away but this was super fun

💜💜💜💜💜

Carrie's head slams down on the desk with a loud thud. She had been studying all day for her math test that’ll be in two days. She is in dire need of a distraction right about now. She finally picks her head up and looks around for an activity to keep her occupied for a bit to accompany her procrastination. Carrie catches sight of her window and does a double-take when she notices the small flakes falling from the sky. She walks to her window and quickly throws open her window and goes to lean on the windowsill before thinking twice and grabbing a small towel nearby to lean on to protect her clothes from the puddles that had pooled up.

Her first thought is ‘snow is the gayest weather’ which somehow makes so much sense in her head. After deciding not to dwell on that, she thinks about how different her life has become in the last couple of months. She’s friends with Julie and Flynn again after finally apologizing and having a very sad but very informative talk about what the hell had happened between the trio. It’s still a little awkward at some points but she hopes that in time they’ll be right back to where they were before ‘the idiotic incident’ as she likes to call it.

The boys, Luke, Alex, Reggie, and Willie now too, are very new to her and it took her a long time to comprehend. She saw them at school once after reconciling with Julie and Flynn, before she knew they were ghosts so she said hi and the looks on their faces were priceless. They had a very long and confusing talk as to why she could also now see them because the only people that could see them were her immediate family, Flynn, and her. They had yet to see if her father could see them but they decided that that was for the best because he just found out Julie was in a ghost band and being able to see them constantly is a whole different chapter that he nor Dr. Crystal are ready for.

After all this reminiscing she feels the urge to look under her bed. She walks away from the windowsill and looks hesitantly for the box she knew would be there since she hadn’t touched it in years. Carrie sits on her bed with a bounce holding a pale pink box with gold details that shimmer on the surroundings. She pulls open the magnetic lid to find many piles of crumpled notebook paper, photos, and so much jewelry. 

On the front and backs of the crumpled papers are notes scrawled in pink, orange, and purple pen. - they all had their color, Carrie was pink, Julie was purple and Flynn was orange. - none of them wanted to get scolded for talking in class so they would pass notes very discreetly. It took some practice and coordination but due to all of their dance skills, they had finally perfected the pass with grace and elegance.

Friendship bracelets, necklaces, and even a couple of anklets filled the majority of the box. Carrie remembered sitting on Julie’s bed for hours with Flynn making so many of these in varieties of colors and different patterns. They would talk and giggle the night away making jewelry for each other and rarely for themselves. Carrie decides to slip her pink, orange, and purple bracelet on for good luck.

Pictures. There are so many pictures. With Ray being a photographer, everywhere they went there was a picture of them and they all looked so happy. Whether they were at a museum or a theme park they always found a way to make anything fun because they were together. Towards the end of the pile carries stops for a moment and her eyes widen. The picture she’s looking at is from a specific night she will never and can never forget. The picture is of Rose braiding Carrie’s hair into a long french braid and a couple of feet away is Julie painting Flynn’s nails on the coffee table. Carrie’s eyes got misty looking at this picture because this was the place she had declared her home.

When Carrie was a baby her mom had taken off never to be seen or heard from again. Until she met Flynn and Julie in the first grade it was just her and her dad. Then she met Rose. Rose had acted like such a motherly figure and taught her everything her father couldn’t. When she was about eight her father was touring the world and was never home much so she usually slept over at the Molinas since her father deemed it unnecessary to bring such a young child on a tour. She loved the Molinas’ house because it always felt warm and comfortable there. When Rose got sick, she and Julie stayed optimistic. Flynn was always over a lot anyways but once Rose started getting sicker she practically lived there too to help. After Rose passed was when everything happened. Carrie had never been close to or met her biological mother but it still felt like a loss and having to lose another maternal figure in her life was too much to handle. She became cold and distant and when Julie and Flynn confronted her about it, she snapped and they parted ways.

THUD

“oh- shit shit shit”

Carrie looks up and sees a pile of snow on her floor, and she recognizes that voice, and a stupid grin spreads across her face and she forgets about the wet lump of ice on her floor. She runs to the door and peeks her head out seeing a disheveled Flynn panicking below after realizing the snowball soared through the window and didn’t slap against the glass like it should’ve, had Carrie’s window not been previously opened.

A wicked grin spreads across Carrie’s face as she grabs her puffy coat and gloves, closes her window, and runs out to the back door. She opens the door quietly to not alert Flynn and grabs a huge handful of snow and throws it right at the back of Flynn’s head.

Flynn whips around at lightning speed and you can tell from the look in her eyes that it is so on.

Both girls rapidly lean down to make more snowballs but Flynn is faster and chucks it at Carrie while she’s still making hers.

Although both girls are now drenched and covered in snow, Flynn has declared herself the winner because she was faster than Carrie. Carrie states that she had a better aim and the two bicker like a married couple until they both end up giggling at how ridiculous they sound. Flynn falls back into the snow to make a snow angel and Carrie follows suit. Carrie gets up first and reaches her hand out to Flynn who takes it and hoists herself up with it. While admiring their snow angels, Carrie breaks the silence.

“Why’d you come here in the first place, did you wanna talk?”

Flynn tenses up at the question. Carrie knows better than to push her to talk, so she walks toward her and rubs her back. Carrie flushes red at the action. She always used to do this to comfort Flynn but this time it feels different. Carrie had finally come to terms with the fact that she had a gigantic crush on Flynn. She had given up, but the physical touch was not helping her get over said crush.

The snow starts falling hard and the wind starts blowing harder making both girls colder.

“Hey, uh, Flynn, why don’t you come inside? It's getting chilly out here and I can make us some hot cocoa inside?” Carrie asks cautiously as to not rush Flynn into being comfortable around her again.

“Sounds great, I’ll just text my mom that I’m hanging with you for a bit.” 

Both girls’ grins are wide and filled with joy. They walk to the front door, arms brushing against one another. They get inside and take off their boots so they don’t lead tracks into the house. They hang up their coats to dry and Carrie glances over to Flynn's braids who have snowflakes littered throughout. Carrie runs to grab two small towels and hands one to her so they can dry off their hair and anything else that might be wet with melted snow.

Carrie walks to the kitchen and Flynn follows close behind. Carrie starts heading to the kitchen and Flynn sits at the island facing Carrie.

“So, where's Uncle T?”

“He’s super busy today with music and meetings and whatever. He hasn't been home since 10 am and he probably won't be home until pretty late tonight.” Carrie’s smile drops a little as she says this, Flynn sees this.

“So, home alone huh. What have you done today, where’s the mess?!”

“Um, I woke up and ate a bagel before my dad left, and then I studied for the math test on Monday.” Flynn's jaw dropped right when she said studying, “Why are you looking at me like that?” 

“Let me just clarify that you are home alone and decided to use this as study time?” Carrie nods, “Are you crazy? You could do anything you wanted to and you studied!”

The Keurig beeps that it's ready but neither girl hears it as they're too focused on each other.

“I have my math final on Monday and I really need to study.”

“So you've been studying all day? It's like 7 pm or something.”

“I told you, my math final is on Monday and I'm stressed and I had to study.”

“That's in two days, there's always tomorrow.” She sings the last part as a little jingle and pairs it with puppy dog eyes. Carrie can't say no to that face, how could she?

“Why don't you stay all day,” a small smile spreads across her face, “I’m home alone and we can hang and watch a movie for the rest of the night.” Realizing what she just did, Carrie flushes red. 

So much for not rushing.

There's a pause between the two where they just stare at each other. Carrie starts to feel the rage inside of her, she's mad at herself for thinking that fly-

“Yeah totally, that sounds really fun. I just have to call my mom real quick but I’ll be back.”

 Carrie’s thoughts were interrupted by Flynn's acceptance. The brunette leaves her stool with a little hop and wanders into the next room to make the call. Carries rage settles.

At this moment she realizes she should probably pour the hot cocoa now that it's been ready for so long untouched. Flynn wanders back into the room while she pours Flynn's mug.

“Hey, you have stuff that’ll fit me, right?” The thought turns Carrie’s cheeks pink.

“Yeah, yeah I have stuff that'll fit you.”

“Good, because my mom doesn't want me to walk back to grab clothes since the storm has gotten worse and it's dark.”

 Carrie nods and hums in understanding.

Flynn tries to take the mug of hot cocoa before it's finished.

“Wait, it's not done yet!” Carrie goes to the refrigerator and grabs the aerosol can of whipped cream and her jar of pirouline wafer sticks. She puts a stick into the mug so it sticks out and then sprays a huge dollop of the cream onto the cocoa. “There.”

“You remember my hot cocoa toppings?” She says with a chuckle

“How could I forget, if I did you probably would have thrown a fit and I can't handle crazy Flynn.” She teases, but you can tell there's love there.

“That is so MEANNNN!” She says with fake sadness and shock. Both girls are left in giggles.

Carrie pours her own mug and then grabs her jar of mini marshmallows. She grabs a handful and plops them into the warm pool of chocolate. She tops it off with whipped cream.

“Still on that mini marshmallow kick?”

“They are better than the other types of marshmallows.”

“Carrie, they are all the same marshmallows.”

“They taste different!” Both girls laugh at her ridiculous antics.

Carrie had been using only mini marshmallows for everything since she was a kid and refuses to admit that all marshmallows are the same no matter their size.

Carrie goes and walks around the island to go sit where Flynn is. They both drink in silence for a moment to embrace the warmth of the cocoa before Flynn sets her mug down and gets all tense again. Carrie opens her mouth to ask what's wrong but Flynn speaks first.

“Do you wanna know what I was gonna say earlier?” She whispers this as if what they're discussing is top secret. Carrie turns her head to the right and sees Flynn's hands wrapped around her mug as she stares into the mug. 

“If you want to tell me, you know I’m here for you.” Carrie matches Flynn's volume. At this volume, she feels like she and Flynn are in a bubble, floating above all. Speaking too loud would burst their bubble and would send both of them flying down to the ground.

“I like you.” Carrie's head whips up faster than anything she's ever seen. 

“What”

“I like you and  have liked you for so long and it's very clear that the feelings aren't reciprocated so I shou-”

Carrie wasn't always an impulsive person but right now seemed like a perfect time for impulsive decision making. Carrie cut Flynn off by kissing her. It took a moment for Flynn to realize what was happening but she soon started kissing back. It wasn't anything intense like their constant bickering, it was soft and sweet. She had always seen in movies these intense and hot kisses and read about them in books but this, this was way better. They break apart and stare at each other for a moment realizing what they just did. Both girls wear the largest grins on their faces. Carrie breaks the silence.

“Hi.”

“Hi, sorry, did you get lost or…” Flynn teases. Carries mouth drop open with a smile and she runs to the couch to grab a pillow and wack her with it, “What was that for!”

“That was for being mean after I just kissed you.” She pouts. Both girls laugh. Yeah, this is where they're supposed to be.

“What are we, like what is this,” Flynn gestures back and forth between the two of them, ”now.”

“Well, this is kind of like a date, right?” Flynn cocks her head to the side then nods, “Then I guess we are like ‘dating and we’ll see’ type of thing?”

“Sounds perfect.” Both of their hearts are filled with warmth in each other's presence.

“Hey I have an idea, what do you say to popcorn and movie night?”

“Can we watch Tangled?”

“Do you even have to ask?”

Tangled had been their movie ever since they were little. Flynn was always obsessed with the fact that her name was the prince's name and Carrie loved the pretty purple dress that Rapunzel wore. Their favorite part of the movie they both agreed on, the frying pan. The thought of taking a frying pan and hitting someone with it was so funny to them and a little concerning to their parents who were scared that their daughters were going to start wielding frying pans.

“I’ll make the popcorn, you set up the movie.”

“Okay, go team go.” Flynn mocks.

“You are the worst.”

Flynn answers her by shooting her the biggest smile she has and Carrie just rolls her eyes. God, she's so lucky.

Carrie grabs a bag of popcorn from the pantry and throws it into the microwave. She presses the popcorn button because after numerous amounts of tests the popcorn button actually pops the popcorn the most successfully. As Carrie is watching the popcorn, Flynn is sitting on the couch going through Disney Plus to find Tangled.

“It should be on my continue watching section.”

“You watched it without me!” Flynn whips her head around in fake dramatic form.

“Of course not, I'm not a monster.” Flynn raises an eyebrow and Carrie simply ignores the teasing. “My little cousin and her friend were over and they wanted to watch Tangled so I put it on for them. I can already hear your question, no I did not watch with them, I cleaned the kitchen to make sure I didn't.”

“I'll let it slide this time.”

The popcorn beeps so Carrie pulls it out of the microwave. She puts it into one big bowl and walks over to the couch and sits right next to Flynn. Flynn already had gotten down more blankets and pillows to snuggle with because she knows you can never have too many. As Carrie settles in, Flynn plays the movie. Flynn grabs a handful of popcorn and lays her head on Carrie’s shoulder. After Carrie's initial bluescreen moment she rests her head onto hers. 

By the middle of the movie, Flynn falls asleep first with Carrie not far behind. 

At around 10 pm, Trevor gets home and comes in quietly not sure where Carrie is and if she's asleep or not. That's when he sees two heads leaning on each other completely still. The tv has shut off by now automatically so he knows they fell asleep. He walks to the front of the couch to see their two little faces squished up against each other. He quickly snaps a picture for Carrie knowing she loved pictures and would want another to add to her stack that she had hidden somewhere. He walks up the stairs as quietly as possible and goes to sleep knowing that his daughter is happy.

(i don’t like how i worded the ending but yall get the gist)

[earthspirit10]

Ninjago Angst Week: Day Six - Sickness

@ninjago-angst-week​ klasdjfal;sjdfas AHHHH I’m sorry this is like, five days late, but I’ve been really busy and stressed and then research, but, uh, it’s here now? Hope it’s not too late :P

And well, this one isn’t as good as the others, in my opinion. (Well, I think it’s better than Day One, but for the others? Meh.) Writing someone sick (especially if I’ve never gotten that . . . particular disease before) is hard and I’m not even sure if I even got it all write. Also, Zane. Zane is hard to write too.

Trigger Warnings: Sickness (because that’s enough to be grossed out at), mention of death

---

As a nindroid, it wasn’t possible for Zane to get sick. He wasn’t a real lifeform like the others, nor was he prone to malfunctioning due to water or anything else a normal robot would suffer from. He was grateful for that, for even though he wasn’t physically human, he was human in his heart. It meant that he could take care of his siblings better without getting sick or injured himself.

When Jay had suddenly doubled over coughing, everyone had rushed toward his aid. Zane, of course, had helped whatever he could—he’d cooked warm meals for him, given him medicine, and made sure he was comfortable. (The others practically had to wrestle him into bed.)

It wasn’t unusual for Jay to be coughing these days due to a cough he’d developed, which wasn’t very uncommon or worrisome, but Zane was worried that the cold had progressed into something worse.

Zane opened the door to Jay’s room and poked his head through to check on his brother, who seemed to be curled up under layers and layers of blankets.

“Jay?”

Jay peeked out from under the blankets and blinked blearily, coughing a few times before giving Zane a reassuring smile. “Hey, tin can.”

Closing the door behind him, Zane entered the room and sat down on the bed next to Jay. He wasn’t afraid of catching whatever sickness his brother had, mainly because it was impossible. Still, he made a note to disinfect himself should he ever get close to any of his other siblings.

“How are you feeling?” he asked gently, remembering that Jay had sensitive hearing even without being sick.

“Bored,” Jay grumbled, huffing in indignation. “I mean, there’s nothing to do! I’m not even allowed to do anything! No video games, no tinkering, no—” His body suddenly shook as a coughing fit overtook him, and Zane watched anxiously as it dragged on. It seemed to take hours—though his internal clock told him it was only twelve seconds—before it passed, with Jay shivering and panting for breath.

Coughing. Fever. Chills. Immediately, Zane scanned the blue ninja’s body, his optical sensors switching into X-ray vision. It was difficult to do so with all the blankets surrounding Jay, not to mention that he was curled up.

“Jay,” Zane said softly, trying to keep his voice as even as he could. Jay blinked again, head tilting up in question. “Are you able to sit up?”

Jay nodded, though his expression still remained confused. Shifting around in his blankets, he sat up slowly, coughing weakly.

Now that his brother was sitting up, Zane was able to fully scan his chest, eyes narrowing. And as soon as he detected something, his metaphorical heart dropped, and he inhaled sharply, sensors switching back to normal vision.

No. That couldn’t— his brother couldn’t have—

“Zane, what— what is it?” Jay asked frantically, his voice edging on borderline panic. “What’s wrong?”

Zane swallowed, turning his head away. Now with this new knowledge, his advanced senses could clearly detect the wheezing whenever Jay breathed, the rapid pumping of his heart, the abnormal air flow in his lungs.

More worrying symptoms of— of—

“Zane, please, you’re really starting to worry me—”

Abruptly, he stood up, cutting off whatever Jay was going to say. Turning, Zane set his shoulder back, plastered on a smile, stopped his hands from shaking. He answered cheerfully, “Oh, nothing you should worry yourself about.”

Jay stared back. “Are you . . . sure?”

“Of course.” Zane nodded, already moving toward the doorway. “You should rest. Try not to exert yourself.” He said the last few sentences with more emphasis than he would normally put in.

“It’s not like there’s anything else I can do,” Jay sighed, but he flopped back onto the bed. Almost immediately, his body was wracked with coughs, but he waved aside Zane’s concern. “I’ll be fine, Zane,” he rasped. “Not goin’ anywhere. See?”

Zane eyed his brother for a few moments, then he exited the room, closing the door behind him. As soon as the door was closed, he laid his head on it, pressing his hands to his eyes.

Why was he overreacting with this information? It wasn’t like this was fatal, nor was it dangerous, so why was he acting like Jay had a life-threatening disease that could potentially take him away any moment? It wasn’t— it wasn’t like—

His back sliding down the door, Zane buried his head between his knees, tears springing to his eyes, tears that weren’t supposed to be there in the first place, and yet he was human enough to have them.

Sometimes, he wished that he didn’t have emotions, that he didn’t have to feel the pain, the guilt, the worry.

If Jay’s illness worsened, if fate decided to be cruel again, Jay might die. It was Zane’s fault for detecting it so late, for not scanning him the first time he’d shown signs of a cough a week ago. And that meant a higher risk for this sickness to become deadly.

And they had let him participate in training, in patrols, in crime scenes. Mainly because Zane had told them that it was okay, when it wasn’t okay. Not anymore.

What kind of brother was he?

Footsteps approached him, and Zane raised his head, blinking as his vision sharpened on Cole’s face.

“Zane?” the earth ninja’s voice was concerned. “What’s wrong?”

Zane inhaled. Exhaled. He shouldn’t lie to them. Shouldn’t give them the false sense of security he’d stupidly given to Jay.

“Jay has pneumonia.”

⸺

After that, everything basically descended into chaos and panic. Calls were made, antibiotics were bought, and new rules and patrols were assigned. Zane had to hold Kai back from bursting into Jay’s room and fussing over him, mainly because this type of pneumonia was contagious, partly because Kai looked incredibly mad and that wouldn’t do well for Jay’s mental health, which could also affect his physical health.

Eventually, Zane had to tell Jay of his condition, which he oddly took well. At least, considering how much the blue ninja would normally panic.

“It’ll just— it’ll just pass, right?” Jay asked hoarsely, though there was a hint of fear in his voice. “Nothing much to worry about?”

Zane could tell that the others were pressed against the door of the room, anxiously eavesdropping on the conversation.

He nodded. “If you get enough rest and medicine, and there are no complications, then you should be fine.” The word should echoed ominously, silently, and he knew that all of them knew that not everything went as it should go.

Jay breathed out a sigh, before he dissolved into a bout of harsh hacking. Immediately, the mood spiraled into worried buzzing, and the door creeped open the tiniest bit. Zane rubbed his brother’s back, anxiously waiting for it to pass.

“Jay—”

“‘m fine,” Jay murmured, voice raspy from all the coughing. He closed his eyes, snuggling closer to his blankets.

Zane eyed him for a few more moments, heart clenching at his brother’s pitiful form. Swallowing, he stood up and patted his shoulder. “You should rest,” he whispered. The lightning ninja didn’t reply, but the slow rise and fall of his chest indicated that he was already asleep.

Zane turned on X-ray vision for a brief moment, scanning for any other unusual activity, then on to infrared, before he switched back to normal human vision. Slowly standing up, he exited the room, closing the door softly behind him, and was immediately met with the anxious gazes of his other siblings.

“He’s fine, for now,” he told them, keeping his voice carefully even. “He’ll simply need more rest and medicine. His immune system will do the rest.”

They all relaxed, if only slightly, but Zane knew that they would never truly be at ease until Jay was completely healed. After all, they had a bad history with luck.

⸺

As the days passed, Jay only got sicker. Almost the entirety of the week was filled with him coughing, the tense atmosphere rising every time it worsened. Still, Zane knew better than to give him cough medicine, especially since coughing was meant to help with the pneumonia. He made sure to monitor his brother every hour, checking on his lungs, his heart, his blood pressure—basically everything. It hadn’t gotten bad to the point where Jay would need to be admitted into the hospital, but he was dangerously close.

Once, as Zane left Jay’s room, he nearly bumped into Cole, who always hovered near. He nodded silently at the earth ninja and was about to resume his day when he suddenly felt a hand grabbing his wrist, holding him back. Surprised, Zane glanced back, and he blinked in alarm at the barely noticeable tears in Cole’s eyes.

“I—” Cole swallowed, looking away, as if embarrassed. His hand let go of the ice ninja’s wrist. “Jay’s going to be fine, right?” His voice was small, but it was pleading, desperate, almost like he was afraid of Zane’s answer.

Zane closed his eyes for a brief moment, then opened them. “He will be alright,” he said quietly and firmly, but he couldn’t help the fear that surged in him as he heard Jay emit another cough from within the room.

“That’s what the doctors told me,” Cole whispered, squeezing his eyes shut, and Zane wasn’t sure if he was talking to him or himself.

After a while, Cole shook his head, his eyes reopening. “I— well, when I was little, my mom— she was really sick.”

Oh. Oh. Zane stared back at his brother, not sure if he liked where this was going.

“A-and the doctors said that she’d be okay, that she was going to survive, but—” His voice stuttered to a stop, and Cole made an odd noise that sounded like he was choking, and he turned away.

The silence stretched on, very painfully loud, with Jay coughing occasionally in the background. Zane continued staring at his brother, not sure what to do in this situation. He wasn’t used to seeing Cole like this—so vulnerable and open, and it made his mechanical heart clench.

But he knew loss. All of them do, all too well. And he knew how it felt to feel so hopeful, hopeful for the future, only for that hope to be shattered.

So Zane did what anyone would normally do. He hugged his brother, wrapping his arms around him. Cole stiffened in surprise, but eventually, he relaxed into the embrace, hugging the ice ninja back.

Patting Cole’s back a little awkwardly, Zane whispered, letting his emotions seep into his voice, “Jay will be fine.” A beat. “I promise.”

And it wasn’t an empty promise. Logically, Zane knew that pneumonia wasn’t deadly, especially since Jay had a really good immune system. But for the sake of his family, for the sake of Jay, Zane wasn’t going to let his brother die.

He’d die himself before that would happen.

[t-lostinworlds]

The Devil All The Time: A Review That No One Asked For

Well, I don’t know why I’ve been putting this off but here I am 48 hours later. Though the fact that I’m still thinking about the movie two days later is proof how long it stays with you right after you watch it. By all means, I’m not an expert reviewer aha so this maybe all over the place but: It is a good movie. It wasn’t perfect of course, the flow could’ve been a tad bit better, and the narrator threw me off sometimes, a few missing bits in terms of the characters but it’s still good nonetheless. I do want to point out that the movie wasn’t as dark and brutal as how the book went. It wasn’t a graphic or gore as I’d expected it because some critics did overplay it. So, if you’ve read the book, the movie will come off as a much lighter tone. Also, if you watched GoT, then you’ll be fine with the gore. But with that said, there are still triggering scenes so people should still be mindful when watching. A couple of changes but that’s a given with every book adaptation but there were a few that I thought was better in the movie than in the book, which I will get more into in a sec because I’ll try and keep this other half spoiler free.

The visuals, the cinematography, it was beautiful. I loved how everything looked on screen, scenery, colors, lighting, the whole lot. The music and the little added touches of sound effects was just so spot on that you just feel more on edge as the movie goes, like little ticks here and there. Now, the cast, whew. Nobody fell short with their performance. Some might have smaller screen times than others but still, nobody was lackluster or pushed to the side and they gave their best with the material they were given. Although, I may be biased but from what I’ve been seeing around I think we can all agree that Tom Holland struck out the most (I’ll gush about him more under the cut aha).

Long babbling short, I loved it. Right after I finished watching, it truly did feel like I went running lol, like I got so into it that those last few moments (or every intense scene for that matter) that it had me at the edge of my seat. But I also wanted to watch it again soon after. It may not be for everyone’s taste, although I am interested to see what the people who haven’t read the book thought of it because I do see how it can come off confusing in some parts. I already knew what was going to happen and some background on why it happened so it was easy for me to fill in the missing pieces. But with that said, it’s still a good adaptation and it stayed as true as it can get to the books. 8.5/10 would recommend watching, with caution of course.

a more detailed (specific scenes, characters, actors performance, and more) rambling below the cut aka spoilers ahead!!

I’m going to start off with Willard Russell who was played so well by Bill Skarsgård. I haven’t seen anything else of his before but he was so good in this movie. His interaction with Haley Bennett's character Charlotte was different from the book but I'm not mad on how it played out in the movie either. It was a cute and a little awkward interaction which was all good. Charlotte is exactly how I thought of her, a sweet, beautiful, caring lady and Haley played her just as well. Especially with the scene where she and Arvin were singing together, that was just the sweetest thing.

But back to Willard (Bill) and all his interaction with little Arvin (who was also so great btw), it was just damn. For one, in the truck after he beat the living daylights out of those men, that switch of him being out of breath and angry and him teaching Arvin about those bullies and finding the right time and him saying, "there's a lot of no good sons of b*tches out there." to when Arvin asked him if it was more than a hundred and he chuckled as if he didn't almost just killed a man? And then suddenly he was back to this loving father who cares so much about his family and would anything to protect and defend them (sounds familiar right? Apple doesn't fall far from the tree.) Although I will say that Willard is a much horrible person in the book than he was in the film. The prayer log could've gotten more… bloody and gross as time passed by. And the thing with Jack Russell (Arvin's dog, who wasn't actually a jack russell but oh well), they changed it so that he was with them longer so it did have more weight if you put it that way since Arvin has grown to love Jack, so killing him off screen was still going to be heart breaking. But in the book, it was a stray dog that wandered into their place and Arvin fed him, named him but on the same day, as soon as Willard got home he shot the dog right in front of Arvin. Now that would've been much crueler and could've showed just how far gone Willard is with his whole "faith" and how desperate he was on saving his wife who he's so in love with but damn, the things love can make people do. Or, they could've added the part where Willard killed the lawyer and poured his blood on the prayer log because that for me was a turning point in the book where I went, Willard has lost his freakin mind with the sacrifices. They did show the lawyer in the movie that's why I was a bit confused when it didn't happen but you can't cram anymore into a 2-hour movie. To conclude, this movie made me want to watch more of Bill for sure, but I'm too scared to watch IT (im a coward) so looking forward to what he does in the future.

Next I want to talk about are Helen, Roy and Theodore. Mia Wasikowska was great. She had so little screen time but whenever you see her on screen she just embodies Helen so well. Helen didn't have much to do in the book either aside from the fact that she was supposed to marry Willard and then didn't because Willard went off with Charlotte and Helen went to marry Roy which was kind of the starting to point as to why everything in their life has gone to hell, and then be a sweet mother to Lenora. But besides that, Mia gave her best and served the character well in my opinion. Theodore on the other hand could've done so so much more. Given that he was the driving force that made Roy kill Helen. If ever I haven't read the book, it would’ve look rather random how suddenly he wanted to try resurrection. Roy and Theodore's relationship could've been explained more, specifically Theo's feelings because that was why he pushed Roy to do it. Now, Harry Melling as Roy Laferty was great. The scene with the spiders and then the emotions you see in his face and his eyes when he tried to resurrect Helen? Remarkable. The slow realization that it wasn't working, the shift on his face was so clear and that momene where it crosses his mind that he just killed his wife it was just, Dudley Dursley who? Though his death came earlier than I expected, and they changed quite a lot and it felt so random how he just left Theo in the car and went on a hitchhike when in the book, Theo died first that's why Roy decided to try and go back to his daughter. But his death scene was still intense, and the fact that his last word was Lenora? His daughter? Amazing.

So, now we see Carl and Sandy Henderson, who showed immediately how crazy they were when they killed Roy (who wasn't their first kill but). Both Riley Keough and Jason Clarke were fantastic, and they really did bring the uneasiness so well on screen. And I love how you can actually see how Sandy change from the first time we see her to the last, like it looked like Sandy was played by two different actresses so huge props to Riley for smashing that role from innocent sweet girl to this troubled serial killer. Although I wished their story was showed better, more so Carl than Sandy because out of the two, Carl was much, much sicker in the head than Sandy. He was the one who'd constantly look at those horrible photos and do…stuff, which was so sooo gross to read I feel sick just thinking about it. But Jason Clarke did a great job at portraying Carl's creepiness as much as he could, like I couldn't bear looking at him on screen without grimacing.

Lee Bodecker. Sebastian Stan did a great job a making him insufferable that's for sure. I always love how the moment Lee is on screen Seb is just gone. He just never failed to feel like this weird and corrupt cop or sheriff. Although I will say, his and Sandy's relationship could've been showed better because I have seen where people didn't realize they were siblings until the end. But I do like how you see that Lee doesn't really care that much for Sandy, I mean he does, but not as much. His mind has always been about being re-elected and having these stories about Sandy won't make him look good does it? Though his emotions in the end when he was in that car with Sandy was really spot on.

Emma and Earskell, I won't really dive into much because there's really isn't much to say than they were both great. They both made Arvin and Lenora feel like they do have a family and that they weren't alone, like they just came off as kind people on screen. But gosh Emma, that woman deserves a proper vacation for everything that she's went through. But Lenora, oh gosh, her story and how it ended was the most painful to read and watch. She was just a sweet innocent girl who got bullied and she deserved none of that. Eliza Scanlen was just wow. I loved her in Little Women, loved her even more on here as well. And her chemistry with Arvin (Tom) in the movie was just amazing, like they bounced of each other so well and you can see with just one look how much she admires Arvin. But the last scene where you can see her face, that split moment when she paused and then slowly smiled as she thought how her grandma won't be ashamed, and that she will take care of her baby and give it the life that it deserves but then she slipped and that made the scene even more heart wrenching. Let me tell, I screamed "Nooooo!" when I read it in the book and I screamed just as loud when I saw it on screen despite already knowing how it ends.

That f*cking rev. tergaryen what's his face. I couldn’t stand him in the book couldn’t stand him just as much in the movie which says a lot on how great of an actor Robert Pattison is. Each time he's on screen I emotionally and physically just can't stand him. Mind you I watched all his scenes with the Reaster girl and his wife with a proper scowl and kept looking away. But his scene with Lenora in the car I was peeking through my fingers because I can't sit and watch it fully because it was just so disgusting to watch. Robert Pattison played him so well that even his voice was just so creepy like dude, shut up. And when he was manipulating Lenora, rambling about his freakin delusions? Ugh I really wanted to punch the screen, big kudos to Rob for bringing that disgusting character to life. And well, I'll say he did get what he deserved in the end so.

Last but definitely not the least, Tom Holland as Arvin Russell. Gosh, where do I even start with this lad? This boy has range I can tell you that. I'm going to be talking so much about him so haha sorry but he was just amazing and I need to point out so many things. First scene was his birthday, and you can see how he seemed like just a normal, happy boy celebrating with the people the he loves but the moment Uncle Earskell handed the gun and mentioned that it was his father, his whole mood changes, his whole face fell and the look in Tom's EYES, his eyes does so much to portray his emotions and goodness he's so freakin amazing at switching from one emotion to another in so little time. To be honest, Arvin in the book is much more cold and harsh, even when it's towards Lenora and his Grandma. Hell, he makes sly digs at Lenora in the book which is more of a way to make her see how cruel the world is, sorta a tough love kinda of thing. He's just not that affectionate, with how he grew up, it's a given.

But Tom brought so much more depth to the character that even I didn't see as much while reading the book. Which is why people are so drawn to him, it makes him easier to sympathize and like in the movie, all because Tom added even more layers (i need my onion emoji dammit). I mean, Arvin is complex as is in the book, a lot colder for sure, but with how Tom portrayed him you just get to think so much more on what could possibly be going on in Arvin's head. You can just see all sorts of emotions the character goes through, from being rash, to angry, to hatred, to fear, to sadness, to vulnerability and these emotions happen so close to each other that the switch is just incredibly impressive. When he charged towards those bullies to protect Lenora? This is where you can see that when he's filled with rage, he sometimes doesn't think things through. It was three against one with guys much bigger than him, it was obvious he was never going to win but he still did so anyway because he loved Lenora, he'd do anything to protect and avenge her, why? It's what his father taught him. It's what he saw when he was a kid, that no matter if it’s a violent act, he'll do it for the people that he loves. Like i said in the beginning, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

There so much like father like son moments in this film, which didn't even come off forced because I've seen in an interview where Bill and Tom read their lines together despite not having a scene together and oh did it pay off because you can see a little bit of the Willard you see on the first bit of the movie in Arvin all throughout, which is again, a testament to how great these actors are. Also, Tom's scenes together with Eliza are just wow. It's incredible how much they contrast each other but still be connected in a way, like Lenora is this sweet innocent girl who's kind hearted and is willing to forgive her father for whatever he could've done while Arvin, gosh, every mention of his father his face always falls stoic and it's so amazing to see Tom play that emotion so well with so little movement like a clench of his jaw or his eyes. Their relationship was just so wholesome. Even with that scene in the meat shop where Arvin was teasing his grandma, it was such a sweet moment to see that side of him because in the book, the interaction was just plain he said, she said which I interpreted as being nothing more than a casual conversation but in the movie it was more light-hearted which is so interesting given the a few moments later, you see Arvin's rage again and he was already in fight mode when that preacher insulted Emma's cooking (which was a so not okay that freakin imbecile) which again, slowly opens the doors to how far Arvin will go for the sake of protecting and avenging the ones he love. Also, the fact that they changed who found Lenora's body to Arvin instead of Earskell was far better. My heart freakin broke for that boy when he was screaming as he tried to keep her up in hopes that he could still save her. Thomas Stanley Holland man, that scene was just wow, it was a lot to take in. But that change only added as to how he was going to handle the preacher later in the movie.

What did impress me the most was the quick switch Tom makes with his emotions. First off, that moment with those bullies. He was relentless with how he handled them, just full on anger and hatred like when he beat those boys best believe I kept flinching because it looked painful as hell. And then he says, "I'll kill you." (with that thunder sound which was a really nice touch), and this is where you just see how he's someone you shouldn't mess with who can potentially do so much more damage (which he does). But the moment he gets in his car and closes the door? You see nothing but a kid who's downright scared of what he just did, he knew it was somewhat wrong, like he couldn't actually believe he did that in the first place but as he'd said, he did it because had to and felt like it was the only way, which is again, a callback to what he saw with his father with them 'bullies,' it drilled on him how that's the only way. But my goodness the way his hand shook, his breathing, the fear in his eyes, and then when he wiped the blood on his hand then that flashback with Willard? Yes yes yes, another like father like son moment.

It's the same thing with the way he handled the preacher, it was much more different in the book but I liked this version better. There's just something poetic about it being in the church all while Arvin confessed the preacher's sins for him, it was just amazing writing. But the way his hands shook when he was standing the first time he enters? Like he could’ve done it right then and there but he can't because he's scared. I mean the way his voice was breaking with that sinner line (which was so funny how they made it seem so badass in the trailer) he was trying to get himself together, like the way he was breathing so shakily shows his nerves and his fear. But as he reiterated all the disgusting things the preacher did, you see that rage bubble inside him, you see him slowly grow more confident because his fear was now replaced by anger. And once that his rage was at full capacity, the moment they started talking about Lenora? (Tom and Rob's exchange was amazing btw) He was able to shoot him down with one hand, shaking gone all because he was angry. But as soon as he's dead and the anger subsides, the fear is so quick to consume him, you see it the moment he sits down. And again with his eyes you see it all in his eyes, just Tom Frickin Holland everybody. That exchange was easily the best one.

As for his interaction with Carl and Sandy, his expressions in the back seat as he slowly realizes what was going to happen to him, it was just amazing. This is where you see more of Arvin actually being smart, he's a bit rash and compulsive sure but he is definitely smart. But now, you don't see his anger because he doesn't know this people, the only thing he knows is that they were trying to kill him. So notice how he shot Carl with two hands this time? and how he was shaking exactly as he pulled the trigger? Same with Sandy? Compare that to how he handled the preacher. Also his fear when he thought he got shot? The utter panic was just, though he did puke in the book which would've showed just how much he didn't like what he just did and how he felt so wrong. Same with his interaction with Lee, he knows how asses his situation and damn, I don’t know if its sheer dumb luck or this boy just got incredible aim, I mean he's practiced in the books and he's gotten good but you don't see it in the movie though. But still the same, you see more of him being regretful which just shows how complex he is as a character. And Tom showed all these emotions so freakin well without saying much at all. You just see it, which shows just how talented he is.

Everything somewhat came full circle in the end, he buried Jack's bones which what he's been wanting ever since. And he also buried the gun, which was somewhat him saying how he's had somewhat a closure with his father and that he's putting it all in the pass. And then we end the movie with him trying not to fall asleep which honestly what it felt like after watching the movie. I needed a breather. That last shot was so calming though it does make you wonder where he goes on from here.

My goodness I could go on and on about Tom's performance and I definitely missed so much more but I feel like this is long enough lmao. Also feel like i’ve missed a few moments in the movie as well. Now I hope people will see what good of an actor he is and to show that he's more than just playing Peter Parker. Right, that's enough. I'm going to say how many words in total this was but, it's a lot.

And that is it for The Devil All the Time. A very good movie, would want to watch again but damn, I feel like I need a nap because what a movie indeed.

[anonymous0writer]

Saving You III JJ Maybank

Part Two: Toeing the Line

Author: @anonymous0writer

Summary: You and JJ had been best friends for as long as you lived. But the feelings that would change your status haven’t been said. Will the words ever be said?

Warnings: Parental abuse/abuse, (more in detail..) swearing.. Going into detail about emotions? I don’t know...

A/N: This one is really long bc I went back to edit and added a shit tom of detail and angst ig. Also, I tried to edit it the best I could.. Anyway, I really like this series, and I’m gonna be so sad when its done even though I’m on the second part, lol.

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There was something in the air. Maybe it was the tang of rain just before it hit. Or maybe it was the way the clouds looked a little darker than the hour before. Whatever it was, it was there. Twisting and churning feeling that sat in his gut, making his face twist in sickness. It was like stepping off a plane, the indescribable feeling of you not begin right. Like you were meant to be in the air, pressure against your ears and flying in the sky, not dropped to the ground, heavy and lost. But no matter it was, the foreboding was there. Settled into his stomach like a lithe creature, ready to strike when the moment came.

He didn’t know what it was, but it was like the calm before the storm. The crispness of the air, the sharp tang of rain about to fall, and then it hits. The consuming, hoard of dark clouds, rolling over the sky in a furious march. Clouds that left the bone quivering, earth shaking booms of thunder and the wicked crack of lightening that light up the world for a second, before plummeting it into darkness.

The storm that brought destruction and havoc and sorrow. But so elegant in the way it destroyed you didn’t even think about it until you were left with the pieces of its aftermath. 

It was like a hurricane. Blowing and whipping furiously, making it way to you, eating up the miles in its path, determined to destroy everything. It was hurtling toward you, and you were powerless to stop it, only able to hunker down and let it happen. 

Whatever it was it was going to bad, and it made him sick. It was a knot in his stomach that tightened and made him sicker. He leaned forward, eyebrows pressed together in worry. What the hell was going to happen today?

---------

Y/N batted her friends grabby hands away, laughing at the same time. JJ smirked, able to get a loose fry with his agile fingers. Y/N squawked, her lips tugging into a frown as she watched the boy munch on the food happily. 

“JJ!” She called, her agitation masking the way she melted and loved that he felt so comfortable to do the simple act of stealing a fry. 

The boy smirked. “I’ll let you beat me to a wave today,” The boy winked, trying to make it up to her. 

Y/N hide her smile as she moved her head so her long hair slid off her shoulder, dropping in front of her face. However JJ feared that he had actually made the girl mad at him, and leaned forward, fingers subconsciously brushing her hair back, tucking the loose stands back in place.

“Are you mad at me?” 

Y/N gasped softly at the feeling of the edges of JJ’s fingertips ghosting her cheek and tucking her hair behind her ear. Her throat bobbed, and her eyes flickered to meet JJ’s. But Y/N was good at recovering fast, and she giggled, pushing the boy away again, 

“JJ, stop!” Her lips split, revealing a full smile that lit up her face and made the edges of her eyes wrinkle. JJ loved that smile with everything he got, and always hated the way it disappeared. So, trying to get the smile back, his fingers reached out to attack her sides in tickles.

Soon enough, Y/N was laughing madly, head thrown back and hair in her face, as she tried to take a much needed breath, her hands pushing away the relentless ones of her best friend. JJ grinned, blue eyes shining as he continued his playful assault, coaxing gasps and squeals from his best friend. 

“Alright, alright! J!” Y/N gasped, and the blonde let up, allowing her to catch a breath. 

Across from the best friends sat the rest of their group. Pope was staring with eyebrows raised, and John B. was smirking at the pair, while Kie was cleaning up their mess so her father wouldn’t get mad.

“You two are on crack, I swear.” John B. muttered, popping a fry in his mouth as he leaned back in his chair, tipping it slightly. 

“Shut up, John B!” Y/N yelled, a mischievous smirk plastered on her sunlit face. She reached into her basket of quickly diminishing fries and hurtled one at the tall boy across from her. 

A thud sounded as John B.’s chair dropped and he retaliated with a fry in Y/N’s face. The revenge blew into a full on fry fight, and the friends were laughing and ducking from the onslaught of fries headed their way.

As JJ chucked a ketchup soaked fry toward Pope, he felt so happy. His eyes wandered to see Kie and Y/N huddled together, battling away the fries raining down on them with loud rounds of laughter. He took a split second break to admire his best friend since he was eight. She was beautiful, with her laugh that made everyone join in, with her kind words and big heart and her smile that had every person that met her falling in love. 

But the fun was ended by Mr. Carrera and his sharp yell through the empty restaurant. 

“Hey, knock it off.” He frowned, eyes landing on his daughter. “I thought I told you not to waste my food.” He grumbled, soon focusing on cleaning a spot on the counter. 

“Sorry dad.” Kie winced, and smacked Pope’s hand with a glare as he tried to pick up a fry. “It’s getting late,” She comments, looking out the window of the Wreck, watching the sun sink lower into the horizon. “If we want to catch some waves,”

“We gotta go now.” Y/N finishes for her, hands scrambling to clean up the table now littered with grease soaked fries and splotches of ketchup and mustard. “John B, come on!” She chided as the boy waited a second too long to join in the collective work to clean up. 

He jumped in, but JJ held back, struck frozen by the sinking feeling in his gut. His stomach knotted, giving him the feeling he woke up with this morning. 

The calm before the storm.

“JJ?” Y/N prodded, eyes finding his as her eyebrows pushed together. She stood, brushing off her cutoffs with harsh wipes of her hands. Her eyes fixated on her friend, confusing pulling her eyebrows together.  “Hey, J?” Her voice cooed, calling out to the blonde.

“Shit,” The surfer muttered, taking his hat off to run a hand through his messy hair. His blue eye seemed distant, but they were wide, like a child who forgot to do a chore and their parent was soon to catch them. “Fuck, you guys I gotta dip.”

“What? Where are you-” Kie started, but the boy was already off, spiriting through the Wreck’s door. His figure jumped on his bike, and soon he sped away, gravel spewing and the blue shirt he wore fading into a small speck until it was gone from sight.

Kie sputtered, eyebrows pulling down as her lips curved into a soft frown. “What the hell was that?”

Y/N takes a second before pulling her eyes away from where JJ ran off. Worry churned in her gut, as she finally lets her eyes tear away from the scene.

“I don’t know.” She breaths, trying to quell the bad feeling. 

But she knows it hopeless. She’s always had a sixth sense when JJ was in trouble. Yet this time, that horrid feeling is coupled with another. It feels like her fear of something bad happening, but you have no control of it. 

To Y/N, it felt exactly like the calm before a storm.

--------

“You worthless piece of shit!” The screams curl into JJ’s face, stale beer and bad breath hitting him in a wave. The boy presses himself back farther, the untamed wood digging into his back. His face scrunches up, and he tries desperately to block out the words.

The words crest and break in the blonde’s ear, settling deep into his brain, and joining the other nasty words thrown at him by his father. The words shook him to the core, bone quaking, eyes swimming and blood sizzling. His anger built higher and higher, growing rapidly, morphing into a beast. Anger at his father, for the shitty life handed to him and the only thing in the refrigerator was a week old beer his father downed every day. Anger at the world, for turning its back on him, shutting him out and letting him suffer. Suffer at the hands of his father. Who couldn’t stay sober for his life. And couldn’t ease the anger towards his son either. It all came to a 360, didn’t it?

But another feeling roared in him, unable to be put out like a simple fire. This feeling was almost as powerful at his anger, close, but not quite. This feeling wasn’t powerful in the ascend. Only in the descend. The emotion, the feeling that ran through his veins, running with the anger and doubling its strength was helpless pain. It was like being too close to the edge, where you looked down, breath catching, eyes watering at the wind, heart speeding. Where even though you tried to calm yourself with ragged breaths, your heart sped up into a gallop, beating wildly in your chest cavity, palms slick with sweat and ragged breaths pulling your chest in and out. It was when your hands shook, and your eyes burned and you were so angry that it took over every sense. When the anger was the only thing. Anger at nothing and everything. Anger burning in your chest as your hands lost control, and your mind reeled. Anger that clouded your brain like a disease, so fast and quick you didn’t even realize. The feeling that brought you to your knees when it rose to its height. Where your thoughts streamed so fast you could process everything and nothing. Where your bones stopped, and you sagged, the fight escaping you like a soul to a body. The fight, the survival instinct, the anger, it all faded, leaving you to break down, mind still reeling, hands still shaking, breaths still ragged. It was that feeling. The feeling of everything in you giving up to a break down. Where your thoughts broke on you, turning against you and watching you fall apart.

“Shut up!” JJ screams back, face contorting as he tries to handle the emotions raging in his chest. They were too much. He didn’t handle emotions well, not when they were like this. Not when they exploded and raged and screamed like this. He couldn’t handle the wailing symphony of his fathers words and the feelings of pain and anger rose to a crescendo in his ears. “Just shut up!”

He was yelling. Trying to block out the orchestra in his ears. To stop the emotions beating in his chest like they were alive. To stop his fathers lying, withering words from taking root in his mind and growing like a weed. He was trying to shut everything out. Because he couldn’t handle it. Couldn’t handle the way his fathers hands never failed to hurt, and his father words never failed to sting, and the way eyes never failed to pity as they landed on the bruises that seemed like permanent markings on his skin.

Luke’s fist slams into his son’s cheek, filed by rage and the abundance of alcohol. The hit sent JJ sideways, knees slamming into the floor with a hard thud as pain split across his face like a rapid spiderweb. It worked it’s way into every fiber of his face, searing and never ending. His jaw clenches, sending another wave of pain through his body, making his brain go fuzzy as his vision danced. His mind was slipping, trying to process the amount of pain, but failing to do so.

But magically, it cleared. The fog dispersed and gave way to sharp images, sending the boy back into reality, where his fathers fists were too real and the pain was too clear. But the haze only cleared to let another emotion peek through as he heard it. Heard the sound of gravel crunching under tires and brakes squeaking as the engine rumbled, dying. Pain slithered away into the corners of his brain to give way to a more powerful emotion. Fear. Fear because he knew exactly whose there’s that care belonged to. Knew exactly the way the gravel surrendered under the weight of a certain tire. Of a certain car. The car belonged to her. Y/N.

She was here, knowing something was terribly wrong the second the boy stopped reveling in the childish food fight. Because she always did. Her gut always twisted a certain way, giving her a bad feeling that never faded until she investigated. She always seemed to know when he was in trouble and came running, eager to ease the feeling and help. She’d gotten that sense the moment the boys eyes landed on her all those years back. It was a gift. A gift, a connection between two people who’s love ran deeper than blood and deeper than words itself. But in most cases, the gift was a curse. Because every time her gut twisted that way, or she’d frown because she felt undeniably wrong, JJ was hurt, beaten bloody by his own father. Most of the time she showed up when Luke was passed out drunk on the couch, chest rising in falling in a drunken slumber, JJ visiting a world of pain on the floor or gripping his head like it was going to burst as he sat, door locked in his bedroom. But now she’d shown up when Luke was towering over the blonde, words bellowing out of his heaving chest. 

“No,” JJ whispers, fear spiking in his chest, hitting a certain place in his heart. Everything- the anger, the helplessness, the crescendo of wails and words screamed by his father- died. Faded into the background to bow to the new comer. Fear. Not fear of his father. Not fear that his father would go too far and actually kill him. Not it wasn’t fear for him. This fear was for his best friend. His bright eyed, smiling friend who he’d fallen in love with,

His fear was for Y/N. Fear that she’d get hurt. And if she got hurt- JJ wouldn’t even allow the thought to fully develop or form into a real sentence. He couldn’t- wouldn’t go there. The thought brought too many already present emotions and more to the front.

As the surfer tried to scramble away, the pads of his fingers digging into the fought grain of the wooden floor, he was grabbed. Luke flipped JJ over, hands rough, and words hitting JJ’s ear, making the boy flinch. Fists started raining down on his face, head smashed into the worn floorboards of the house. The blondes eyes fluttered shut, his brain threatening to stop. JJ was in too much pain, his mind clouded and vision swimming to hear the porch door and the main door smack open. It was too late. Too late to get up, shove his dad off and beg Y/N to leave, let his father run his course. But pain was a powerful thing, leaving JJ prone on the floor as the door to the house of pain opened to reveal Y/N.

“Stop!” Her screams ran through the air, snapping her best friend out of his haze of misery. “What are you doing?” Her voice wavered, breaking as it gave away to fear and distress. Worry seeped into the words, making her cries desperate.

The boy on the floor groans, heat splitting in pain as he moves, picking himself up. He stumbles, knees threatening to give way, and face bruised and bloody. His lips are cracked and parted, blood leaking from an open wound, thick and dark. His cheek is swollen, red and puffy with purple blooming across it like a wildfire. It was like the purple of the fading sunset, elegant and soft for such an alarming, pain filled color. A cut mars his right eyebrow, breaking up the symmetry of his abuse. His eyes are sad, the azure color dulled and faded, weak without the light of his usual smile or carefree laugh. His lips don’t tug into a flirty smirk, but frown in a soft, giving up manner.

When he opens his mouth, he finds his might too dry and throat too clogged to speak. So he tried again, voice hoarse and broken. “Get out of here!” He begs, fear and desperation thick in his rough voice. His pleas reach his friend, sounding harsher than he intended. Subconsciously, the JJ places himself in front of Y/N and his seething father. His hands are still shaking, weak and bruised as he holds them up, trying to keep his fathers hands of misery away from the perfect light of his best friend.

“What is she doing her?” Luke barks, his voice rapsy with the gruffness of a man with only anger and cheap alcohol in his blood can obtain.

“I’m gonna get her out dad. Alright? We’re gonna leave.” JJ’s hands shake more as he plays mediator, eyes beseeching his unforgiving father. He swallows the lump in his throat, trying to quell the soreness. He’s begging. Begging with his father to let them go- or at least Y/N. And begging with his best friend to leave, leave so his father can keep his reign of terror focused on the blonde and not her.

“You’re not leaving!” Luke thundered, brows glaring down as he surveyed the two kids. His stained tank top lifted at uneven intervals as his chest heaved, ragged breaths pulling in and out of his frowning mouth. His lips were screwed into a disgust filled sneer.

But Y/N wasn’t having it. JJ’s cerulean eyes flickered to meet hers, seeing them spark with fire and sadness. A combination her best friend knew too well. So, with a rare surge of bravery, fear and adrenaline coursing through her veins at the best of her thundering heart, she stepped forward. Her feet groaned against the wood as she went forward, short, quiet gasps falling from her dry lips. She was now exposed to Luke’s fury. JJ was no longer in front of her, protecting her. And it was her own doing.

“Stop it! He doesn’t deserve it.” Y/N’s voice was ragged, seeping with desperation as she begged with the inconsolable man in front of her.

JJ’s heart twisted at the words, squeezing painfully as it hammered against his bruised ribs. Breath caught, he stopped, but he was too late. He wasn’t in front of her in time, wasn’t meditating like he was begging for life. He was too late. Luke’s hand was already flying, and the loud sound of skin hitting skin filled the room. The sound was enough to make JJ flinch, a smack and cry sounding. The cry ripping from a familiar throat, provoked by the shock and pain. Y/N fell, the power of the slap sending her to her knees. She hit the floor, ground thundering as her hands flew to her cheek. Her fingers were gentle, exploring the source of pain now stinging across her face.

JJ was positive that he could hear his heart crack. Positive that the sound of it was breaking wasn’t only in his ears, adding to the decrescendo of wails and words in his ears. The boy was sure, if you looked hard enough, you could see the soft, yet strong webbing of his heart break and fall into tiny, sharp pieces, lost in his rib cage.

“Dad!” He screamed, shock forcing the words from his constricted throat. His ocean eyes brimming with tears and clouding his vision as he watched you gasp, red blooming fast on your cheek from where his father hit you. His father. Leaving his own abuse mark. On you. On the one person JJ cared about more than himself. On the one person he wouldn’t think twice about giving his life for. On the one person he promised nothing would happen to. On the one person he loved with every bit of his fucked up self.

He broke his gaze on your to look at his father. Despite his mind still trying to process everything- everything from the downhill spiral of his roaring emotions and the increased climb of his pain- he thought fast. Quicksilver. Turning to his father, he put his hands- now less shaky- up in surrender. His cerulean eyes were back to begging. “Alright.. We’re leaving. I’m getting her out of here, alright?” 

Luke’s lips curled into a sneer, and he spit on the floor, eyes hard and filled with disgust and to JJ’s relief, disinterest. His father turned away, searching for a beer like a lost man at sea for land. Once he was sure, his fathers mind was only on the cheap alcohol littering the house, JJ spun, eyes zoning in on his best friend. His blue eyes locked on your figure.

Breathing her name in a ragged whisper, JJ dropped to his knees next to her, ignoring the pain exploding like rouge fireworks in every part of his body. The wince didn’t hide the pain, but the boy was used to hiding. He ignored his pain, lips pressed together in a thin, determined line. Because the bruised ribs and face that were throbbing and screaming were nothing compared to the way his heart broke and seized at seeing you fall victim to his fathers vicious hands. 

“Hey,” He whispered, voice barely audible as he called out to his friend. His fingers reached, touching the soft underside of her jaw as his hands cupped Y/N’s cheeks like they were glass. 

Y/N’s heart ached at the way JJ cupped her face. Like she was so fragile and could break with the slightest pressure. Like he didn’t want to hurt her, and only craved to protect her. Alike he was sorry, and he couldn’t convey it in words, so he tried in touch. Like he was heartbroken over seeing her like this.

JJ’s eyes swam with unshed tears as they pooled. His attentive eyes saw the familiar welt form on your cheek bloom like a flower in spring. The welt was big and angry, making the boy clench his jaw tightly. His nostrils flared as his ears registered the gasp falling from your parted lips and the hurt look in your eyes. 

And he realized. The bad feeling this morning. The creature settling in his gut, waiting to strike. The feeling that reminded JJ of the times a hurricane would be broadcasted on the TV screen, the brightness of the pictures blaring and the detached voices of newscasters loud. This, this right here- his best friend sitting on the floor, bruising cheek cradled in his rough hands, both of them victims of his father- was the foreboding in his gut in the early morning. 

Before- that was the calm before the storm. 

And this- this was worse. This was the crashing of the waves after cresting to a scary height. This was the raging wind, coupled with the stabbing rain. This was the crescendo of the deafening music where you covered your ears with your hands, eyes squeezed shut. This was the sharp crack of lighting exploding across the night cry. This was the moment where all the fight left your body, leaving you empty and hollow, a husk of your emotions. This was the silent scream of mind tearing pain. This was the rising panic in your chest. This was the feeling of seeing Y/N and her abuse. This was the feeling of helplessness as you looked up, neck craning back as your eyes tracked the rising wave, fear heavy in your chest as your realized your fate and there was nothing you could do about it.

This was the storm.