#i’m pretty sure I read it ending the 15th so fingers crossed

[ryderart]

for @6y9brows dtiys <3

[princecharmingmendes]

Heart by Heart | Chapter III | Raul Mendes

                                               *secret agent AU*

Y/N and Raul have been friends ever since they could remember. And falling in love with your best friend can be pretty tricky and messy 99% of the times, add that to the fact they're constantly risking their lives side by side on the field since they're both secret agents, and the best team that's ever existed. Perfect recipe for disaster.

Hi, this is the third chapter of this series, you can find the first one here. Please read the warnings on this one, if you don't feel comfortable with the contents listed on the "warnings" section, please read something else, there are a lot of other works on my masterlist and on the "fic rec" hashtag on my blog. Please give me some feedback and I hope you guys like. Happy Reading!

                                 previous chapter | masterpost | next chapter

*Word Count: 4.1K+

*Warnings: cursing, probably wrong tips about physical fighting (I'm sorry, I know shit about it!),  therefore mentions of physical fight (only training though), jealousy if you squint.  

Please don’t read it if any of this subjects make you uncomfortable, feel free to check my masterlist for other writings. 

*Posted: July 15th, 2021.

                                                   -*-

Y/N wishes she could punch Raul’s perfectly aligned teeth and annoying smirk away. 

Ever since their mission was announced a couple of days ago, Raul made her work out hard, harder than she’s been doing for a while. It’s not like she was in a bad shape, she couldn’t exactly avoid training being constantly sent on field missions. But since she normally stood on a far safe distance, she didn’t need to run 10 miles everyday on the treadmill or on the streets -which was her best friend’s preferred spot since the terrain was irregular and they had to be alert every single minute so they don’t end up being hit by a car. And that’s precisely what he made her do. 

They had to be at work at 8:00 a.m. every day, so Raul picked her up at 5:30 so they could have breakfast before their run, she’d then curse him on the way back to her apartment so they could get ready. He would only laugh at her, promising it would be worth it. Then they’d go into a meeting to discuss final details with the people they picked to form their team. After a long meeting arranging mostly details and cover up stories, they’d go to lunch, only to come back and train using the new gear, shooting and physical fight. The group had to be ready to face pretty much everything imaginable, the risk of this mission was like no other Y/N could remember, so they had to be the best of the best. 

So yeah, maybe Raul was just being careful, but she was sure he was only finding new ways to torture her. 

That’s why the team consisted on Raul as the captain, or co-captain as she liked to tease, and Y/N as the responsible for the strategy. There was Jack who was picked to be Raul’s right hand on the field, he was an experienced agent and has worked with him on many occasions, meaning their chemistry on the field was great. He was a huge, strong man with the sweetest and kindest heart, always laughing out loud and making jokes around. Then there was Celine. Celine’s past is a mystery no one was able to figure out, at least not yet. She was not a person of many words, always quietly watching everyone and everything, ready to shoot the first one that comes her way. Despite being Daphne’s cousin, who was all soft touches and pastel colors, Celine was brutally honest and even a little blunt, but had a great soul with good intentions, maybe just not the best person skills on the team.

And despite all that, she seemed to like Y/N for some reason, wasn’t the biggest fan of Raul, but she didn’t deny he was a great agent. So Y/N picked her cause she trusted her with her life, knowing she would do anything necessary to finish their mission. And then there was Thomas. Tommy as Raul liked to tease, was a newly turned full agent (three month ago to be precise) and still lacked a bit of that intuition only time and experience could give you, nonetheless he was a suggestion the boss made herself. Thomas was a great agent, with fresh ideas and still a bit naive, but he was quick at thinking, new a lot about tech and was a great field agent high made him a lot more complete than older ones. And with that, the team was closed and all worked out together after lunch until their bodies gave out. 

And to make it simple, the beginning was hellish, the end of the week was just like the beginning. 

The first day they started training physical combat, she was paired with Celine, which she was sure was attempted murder. Five minutes fighting she was on the floor, unable to move and breathing hard. Raul quickly climbed on the ring, helping her to get up as he told Celine to replace him with Tom. He moved her to sit on the little bench and brought her a bottle of water as she shook her head. 

“You know I can walk and do this myself, right?”

Raul huffed an amused laugh and nodded, sitting beside her “of course I do, doll, just taking care of my girl, yeah?”

Y/N rolled her eyes playfully, bumping his shoulder with hers as she chugged the water down “maybe I’m way worst than I originally thought”

“No, you’re not bad” he said shaking his head and she let out an annoyed breath “I mean it, you’re just rusty, this is not your field anyway, and you can’t use any weapons on the ring, so it’s harder, come on, you just need to activate muscle memory”  Raul said patting her back as he got up. 

“Wish I could believe in myself like you do” she giggled sadly as she took his bigger outstretched hand, letting him pull her up.

“Me too, but don’t worry, we’ll get there, that’s why you have me, silly” he pinched her cheeks “now come on, you’ve got a lot to remember”

He took her to the punching bags, grabbing a pair of gloves for him to wear for her to punch. Then proceeded to bark orders and different combinations of moves, and surprisingly, she remembered most of them, not necessarily executing them perfectly, but it was a start. He then got rid of the gloves before carefully wrapping her hands and moving her to a punching bag. 

“Here’s the thing, doll, you know what you’re doing, you just need to do it better” He placed his hands on her shoulders straightening her position, one hand sliding down her right arm to correct the movement “try it now” he said, his warm breath on her ear, making her suppress a shiver and forcing her to focus on the bag in front of her. 

Y/N tried and it definitely improved, but it still wasn’t what she remembered doing, something felt off “okay, yeah, thanks”

“Good, now fix your legs, you’ll be fighting someone who possibly knows how to fight back, so rearrange your feet to gain more balance in case they come for you” he instructed, hands still on her shoulders as he used his own feet to fix hers in the floor “yeah, that’s it, now the strength” his gently glided down her arms, only for them to stop at her waist and stomach “this is where you have to focus on, contracting abdominal muscles will help the movement and impact of your punch, this is what you’re missing”

She knew he wasn’t necessarily teasing her or anything, this was just Raul trying to help her in his very touchy way, but that didn’t stop Y/N from becoming a bit speechless, not trusting her own voice to respond, she only nodded her head. To which he just laughed stepping back.

“Relax your shoulders and don’t forget how to breathe, doll” he said crossing his arms above his chest as he watched her finally letting go of her breath, taking a deep one before punching a few times

It wasn’t perfect, but it was almost there.

Raul knew she was good and completely capable of taking anyone down within seconds, her grades on every test they ever took serving as even more proof for them. She just needed to remember it a bit and he wanted her to be completely ready to face anything, he couldn’t afford her getting hurt on anybody’s watch, specially his. So he would do anything he possibly could to avoid that. 

“Good, now give a few more, try a few kicks” he said and she looked back at him to nod, her breathing a bit elaborate  “I’ll meet on the ring later, sweetheart” Raul added with a wink before turning around to see the rest. 

“Fuck you” he heard her mumbling before turning back to her task at hand, making him chuckle lightly as he moved around the gym. 

Raul walked around helping as he could, wrestling with Jack for old time’s sake, adjusting a few of Tom’s moves and helping Celine with the new guns they’re given. He even managed to train a bit himself, before he decided it was time to take her to the ring before Y/N gave up on him and moved to something else. So he walked up to find her talking to Jack, he couldn’t hear much, but he heard enough to know it was time to intervene. 

“-yeah, Adrian keeps asking me about you, I think he wants to take you out, you should go, he’s a great guy and word around he’s good in what he does, if you know what I mean” he teased wiggling his eyebrows at Y/N, making her giggle “you should go out with him, really, you’re both single”

“He can ask her out when we’re back, the only date she’s having for now is on the ring, come on, doll” Raul cut the conversation before he could listen to her reply. 

“Jealous, cap?” Jack asked with a lopsided smile on his lips as she just laughed.

“Of Y/N? All the time, a pretty girl like her always has everyone’s attention, you should see whenever we go out to eat something or whatever”

Y/N rolled her eyes “oh please, shut up, both of you”

“I mean it, doll, now come on, let’s see how you improved” he said cracking his knuckles “and you, haven’t you got anything better to do than gossip?”

“Of course not, I’m all done” Jack replied.

“Done of getting your ass beaten today, you’ll only be ready whenever you’re able to take me down” Raul said as he draped his arm around Y/N’s shoulder. 

Jack only threw a middle finger at Raul as both of the boys laughed. 

Y/N and Raul climbed on the closest ring, with her stretching a bit as he did the same, both in some sort of staring competition. Everything with them could easily become a competition -who drank water fastest, little races to get to a certain place, who could count the most amount of super specific cars on a road trip, but the most common and their personal favorite, staring competition. And that was a recurring thing ever since they’re basically babies. And they both hated loosing and would try as hard as they could to beat the other. 

Raul’s mind was racing. He wanted to ask if she was actually interested in someone at if she’d say eyes to whoever wanted to ask her out, or even if she actually looking for a date or maybe even if she didn’t want a serious relationship for now. All that while he had this beautiful sparkling with excitement eyes staring into his soul, leaving him bare for her to read. Meanwhile, she was only trying to concentrate on what was about to happen and also on trying to keep her heart at a normal pace, knowing full well she was about the get really close to her best friend. Also having the other stare at her so intently it was making it hard for her to breathe properly.

“Ready?”

Raul only smiled at her “Was born ready, doll”

Y/N then surged forward, getting him by surprise with her punch landing on his shoulder, and he had to admit, her punch was good. With the element of shock on her favor, she tried hitting him again, clearly avoiding his face. Raul then stepped forward regaining his composure and cornering her slowly, only blocking her attempted attacks, without fighting back. He then was kicked hard on the thigh, a surprised yelp leaving his lips with the painful sensation spreading through his muscles, and just as she was about to hit him in his chest, he grabbed her hand, the other being quick to join his grasp on his right hand. 

“Not so bad, sweetheart” he said with a triumph smile on his lips but she was quick to get her left hand loose moving around to get out of the space he guided her to limit her space.

Then she started her series of punches and kicks again, him dodging most of them, but still being hit a few times making him proud but at the same time breath heavier on the pain spreading on his abused skin. When her hand came to hit him in the chest again, he grabbed it, already bringing the other one to join, before bringing her to the floor and immobilizing her with his own body. Y/N stopped struggling quickly, knowing she wasn’t going to be able to do much to get out of his grasp. She was panting heavily, but it was worth it, cause she was able to make him sweat and be a little less composed than when they started. 

“Bet your secret admirer would be proud” Raul said still unmoved on top of her.

“Bet he would” Y/N sassed back and Raul chuckled, dropping his head to her collarbone and she swear her heart skipped a beat, her breath hitching on her throat. 

Raul got up, offering a hand to her, which she gladly took “are you going out with him?”

“I don’t know, I don’t even know if that’s true or the guy, maybe? I think this is not the moment, so maybe i’m the future, who knows?” she shrugged, grabbing her water bottle and drinking before offering it to him.

“Yeah, you’re probably right” he said closing it again, pulling the ropes for her to step out.

Y/N turned around to face Raul, and as she waited for him she asked “what about you?”

“Me? What about me?” Raul stared at her, noticing the others were already gone.

“Are you proud?” she asked with a teasing smirk, voice playful, but deep down, that was all that mattered to her. Not Adrian or anyone else.

“I’m always proud of you, doll” he smirked at her and she only shook her head giggling “but yes, you’re good at it, just a bit more practice, you’re a natural”

                                                  -*-

“Come on, sweetheart, climb up here and I’ll let you all go so you can get ready for tomorrow” Raul said as he was propped up by the hopes on the ring, a smirk on his lips as everyone started gathering around. 

It was the last day of preparing before they left the next morning. They’ve spent the whole week perfecting their skills and cover ups until it rolled out smoothly off their tongues. Y/N and Raul started a routine, they decided to set camp on his living room since it was a lot bigger than hers, so they would wake up already on his place, grab breakfast, run for a while before going straight to work. Then they’d meet their teammates for a brief discussion, after hitting the gym until their limbs gave out. When it neared 6 p.m., they’d leave for his place where they’d shower and order takeout or cook something simple, before talking until they fell asleep, most nights on the living room.

And despite she remembered as clear as day she fell asleep on the couch, she would wake up on his bed, wrapped on a heavy duvet, with the sound of water droplets hitting the ground from his bathroom. They never talked about it, both acting as if this routine was normal and settled for years now. And it was shocking how well they fit the role of this whole domestic situation. And Peter was loving it, always throwing knowing looks at her whenever she went to visit his lab area. 

Y/N only rolled her eyes at him and Celine bumped her shoulder on Y/N’s, a feline smile gracing her sharp gorgeous features, and then  she turned to the six feet man standing at the edge of the ring “fine, but you’re buying me dinner”

“Whatever you want, and if you’re able to win, I’ll even buy sushi for you and give you a back massage” he offered as he pulled the ropes to help her climb, bowing his head trying to hold back a chuckle.

She climbed on as he let the rope snap back into its place “And what would I have to do if I loose?” she teased, knowing full well she was going to take the offer only to have a chance to rub his smirk on the dirty and sweaty ground beneath her feet.

“Pack my bag and say I’m the most beautiful man you’ve ever laid your eyes on” he stated simply. And honestly, it wouldn’t be such a hard thing to do, but first, she wouldn’t want to add it to his already over inflated ego, second, she didn’t know if she would be able to say it without blurting out some other compromising feelings. 

But Y/N stares at him and smiled lazily, like she wasn’t bothered at all  and truly contemplating his offer “tempting”

“Come on, babydoll” he mockingly pouted at her and she playfully sighed rolling her eyes, cracking her knuckles and rolling her head. 

“Alright, but you better be ready to order from my favorite place and get me dessert” she added with a pointed look and he nodded eagerly. 

“You make the rules” he winked before walking backwards to his designated spot “ready?”

“Yeah, let’s get this over it so you can buy me dinner” she teased, watching from the corner of her eyes as her teammates and even Peter gathered around to watch “or we can just stay here all night watching you brag about yourself and being all talk no action”

Raul laughed before shaking his head and a more concentrated look latch onto his eyes “don’t hold back, sweetheart”

“Not my thing” she said before taking a deep breath and trying to remember all she learned this week, making her first move.

Raul blocked her relatively easily, and then their movements flowed in an intricate rhythm. With only a few days of training, the improvement on her technique was obvious as she maneuvered a lot more gracefully than before. Her hits a lot more consistent, her defense was up and she was able to notice her opponents weakness so she could plan the next move. Y/N was also able to notice patterns on their tactics and predict their next move. 

And he was a bit shocked. In a good way, but shocked nonetheless. 

He knew she was good, Raul’s seen her training before, saw all her tests and grading throughout the years. Hell, he even taught her a lot of tricks he picked up over the years, so he knew how she behaved on a physical fight, knew her favorite moves and her worst ones like the back of his hand. But she surprised him with a few new hits and tricks he hasn’t seen her doing before. And that’s what caught him off guard and made her hit him hard a couple of times. That made Raul proud. Sure, he would loose the bet, but giving her a back massage, buying her food and seeing her happy after defeating him was priceless. 

He didn’t make it easy for her, he never would. He wanted her to be the best of the best, always. So he hit back, avoiding her head or going to strong, she had to be whole for the other day. But that didn’t stop him from trying to take her down, but she was quick, she wasn’t too strong, but her agility made up for it.

“Come on, we have an audience, we should put on a show”

Y/N shook her head, concentration never leaving her determined eyes “I’m not an actress to entertain a crowd, nor a clown like you, baby”

“Hey!” he sounded offended, grabbing her fist in his bigger hand “rude”

She just shrugged, pulling her hand back before going back into action and it couldn’t be even more exciting. The teasing, the meaningless banter and still great performance on the wrestle was enough to put an ease on Raul’s heart. She could do it. Of course she could, but now there would be less collateral damage. 

So when he felt her kick him to the ground, quickly pinning him to the rubber type material floor, immobilizing him in a way he wasn’t even able to move his arms if she didn’t let go. Y/N was sat on his stomach, face hovering centimeters above his, breath on frantic rhythm, as he panted on her face, feeling the slow pain crippling on his back and limbs where it collided with the floor. Raul couldn’t help but smile at the surprised and amused glint on her eyes as she was slowly processing she was able t take him down. The cheerful screams around them were only white noise as they stared at each other’s eyes, and he already felt like his heart was going to burst with pride and happiness, that until he heard the gleeful flightless leaving her lips as realization finally hit her, her forehead hitting his clavicle as she laughed, pure joy coursing through her veins.

He ended up laughing with her, his cheeks hurting from the smile stretched across his face. Y/N nuzzled her face on his neck still buzzing happily as she laughed. Raul turned his head lightly, only enough to press a kiss to her temple as she recovered her breathing. 

When she finally did, she untangled her legs from his, getting up from his torso and offering a hand at him, which he gladly took as he stood up, facing his colleagues as they still laughed and cheered at her. Celine climbed up to meet her with a quick, sharp, strong hug in congratulations before dragging her down with her. Jack was quick to pat Raul on the back as he chuckled, mumbling a ‘good luck with your girl, dude, she’s a badass and you’re gonna need it’. When he finally met her eyes again, he offered her his hand and Y/N automatically took it, letting him pull her closer until she was in his arms. 

“That was insane, doll, shit, you did so good” he said, arms loosely looped around her waist and she beamed proudly at him. 

“I did work hard for that” Y/N shrugged trying to play it coy but he was only able to chuckle.

Raul nodded “yeah, I noticed, and I’m so fucking proud of you for that, and many more reasons, but that?! You’re the fucking best, you know?” he praised and she felt her body heating up. 

“Actually” she said softly, looking down at his silver necklace “Celine’s the best, she showed me a few new tricks that I combined with the ones you taught me and the ones I already knew, so yeah”

“When did that even happen?” he didn’t try hiding his initial shock. They’ve been basically around each other 24/7, how did he not notice her training with someone else the past week?

“Well, to be fair you’re too cocky for your own good” Y/N had that pointed look in her eyes as she poked him on his broad chest “so I kinda asked her to show me how I could take you down and we’ve been doing it in secret, mostly when you went down to meet with Peter or to practice shooting”

“So it was a whole scheme just to try to embarrass me and knock me out?” he’s tone in a playful accusation as his brows shot up in evident disbelief.

“To sum it up, yeah, pretty much” she shrugged innocently as Raul threw his head back laughing.

“That's fucking awesome, you’re amazing” he said letting go of her waist, only to turn to face their team, dropping his arm around her shoulders “alright, guys, it was a hard week but I believe it paid off. We learned a lot with each other and I believe we’re a lot better now. This is still a fucked up mission, but I think we’re ready to face it and as long as we keep on working together and communicating well, we’ll be alright and coming back home as soon as possible, yeah? Think we should call it a day and test tonight”

“Okay, cap” Tom replied eagerly making Y/N chuckle before shaking her head. 

“So what do you say, cap?” Y/N asked teasingly as the others laughed.

Raul smiled down at her as he shook his head “Think we’re ready, doll”

                                                   -*-

*Please reblog or like this post if you liked it so I’ll know.

*I’m sorry if there are any spelling mistakes.

*Please do not repost this without giving me the credit, this is a completely original piece and I do not give permission to copy this!

*Hope you guys enjoyed it!

*xoxo

-🌙

@mariamuses

[catalinaroleplay]

WHAT ARE YOU DOING NEW YEAR’S EVE...?

It’s a Thursday night. Maybe you’re in bed, curled up with a good book, or maybe you’re having drinks out with your friends. Maybe you’re even one of those folks that like to go out partying on weeknights, dancing the night away to music that’ll definitely give you static in your ears the next morning. Regardless, this Thursday night is different, because it’s New Year’s Eve. 

You’re in LA, honestly. Catalina Island, as idyllic as it is, has never held a candle to LA in terms of New Year’s festivities — or maybe you’ve just got friends throwing all the parties, with endless bottles of Veuve Clicquot to boot. Everything is absolutely perfect: you’re closing out the year with your friends, your family, or a bunch of strangers that are just as excited to ring in 2021 as you are. The clock strikes midnight and you’re cheering; everybody’s cheering. You stick around for another drink, but everything dies down pretty quickly after that. 

By the time you’re ready to go, you hop on the ferry; lucky, aren’t you, that they posted a special schedule for New Year’s Eve? You’re already a bit hungover and regretting that last glass of champagne, and you yawn, crossing your fingers that you won’t get sick. There’s two people swaying by the side, retching — and oh, look, there’s another to your right. 

1:06AM — You’re tired, you want to get your phone charged before it dies completely. You’re probably a little under a quarter of the way back, though after that, you’ll have to Uber home too. From behind you, you can hear somebody laugh loudly, and you sigh, closing your eyes. 

1:10AM — You jolt awake. Someone has screamed OH FUCK! from the bridge, and you look around. Everybody around you seems alarmed, but hey, it’s New Year’s. Everybody’s drunk, and you can’t be 100% sure it came from the driver. Surely it was some drunk kid who tripped on their way over to the bathroom, right? 

You stay awake this time, though. Ten minutes away, and all around you is the ocean, but it’s calming, in a way. Everybody has returned to their quiet chatter, and you check your phone — 1:15AM. 

And that’s when the ferry sputters to a stop. 

Not a moment is lost; the door to the bridge flies open, and the driver (you recognize him, it’s the Mayor’s no-good son) stumbles out, howling, crying, the front of his shirt covered in hot sauce. In his one hand is a burrito, in the other are remnants of pieces of something in his hand. His eyes are bloodshot, and all he says is I’M SORRY, I’M SORRY as he falls to the ground, crying in his little pool of sauce by his feet. 

You bolt up. You and few others take initiative and pop into the control room. You’re shocked at what you find, unsure of whether to cry or laugh. Everything is covered in hot sauce, and in the corner is a family-sized bottle, all empty. The label says THE DEVIL’S GHOST PEPPER, and when you pick it up to smell it, your nose stings with something wicked. 

Immediately, you crouch down next to him, trying to get the story out. It comes in pieces, but he explains: he’d been eating a burrito, he’d wanted some hot sauce. As he opened the new bottle up, some got in his eye, and he screamed. (So that was what the cursing was about!) In pain, he’d shaken the bottle out and covered the entire bridge in hot sauce, and that’d been when the ferry stopped. The cherry right on top of his bad day, he’d forgotten to check the tank on the ferry. They were out of diesel.

Sighing, you check your phone. NO SIGNAL, it rings out. Turns out the black pieces in his hand were remnants of the radio he’d broken apart while trying to fix it, and you feel defeated. What could you do? You ask the driver whether anybody would notice, if anybody would come their way, and he shakes his head, morose. I offered to close up. I - I wanted to prove to my dad that I could do something —

You ignore him. You have no patience for the apologies of a man covered in sweat, rice, and hot sauce, when you spot a red box in the corner. The flare! Of course! Somebody was bound to see the light and you rush over, opening up the box. From behind you, you hear the sobbing stop. Is that the flare? 

You nod, walking back out to shoot it into the air when somebody grabs you arm. I can do it! Let me do it! I need to — it’s the goddamn ferry driver, and he’s wrestling you for the flare, and you’d rather be thrown off the boat than let this idiot do anything else — and in the scuffle, the flare flies out of both of your hands, straight into the water. 

And that is the moment you know that you are all trapped. 

IN-CHARACTER INFORMATION.

SURPRISE — it’s plot drop time! IC information is as follows: 

Your muses are trapped on the ferry on January 1st, 2021, from 1AM – 3:30AM. 

Cell service is spotty. Every so often, you may get a call or a text, but it is difficult to hold a conversation. 

At 3AM, somebody finally gets ahold of the Mayor, who sends out another ferry to rescue everybody, shuttling everyone back to the island by 4AM. 

Please let us know by TUESDAY, JANUARY 5TH @ 5PM PST / 8PM EST / 12AM UTC if your muse(s) were on the ferry at this time.

If your muse(s) were not on the ferry, you are still allowed to interact with muses that are on the ferry through choppy texts or phone conversations. It is unclear what happened, as there is no communication going from the ferry back to the island. Your muses on the island are free to speculate what is happening and gather around the Catalina Marina for news. However, nobody is at the Marina, as the driver offered to close up. 

Feel free to go as lighthearted or as dark as you wish with the drop! 

OUT-OF-CHARACTER INFORMATION. 

Beginning Date: Wednesday, January 6th ─ 8AM PST / 11AM EST / 3PM UTC.

Ending Date: Wednesday, January 13th ─ 5PM PST / 8PM EST / 12AM UTC. No new threads related to the event can be created after this date.

Event Threads: Friday, January 15th ─ 5PM PST / 8PM EST / 12AM UTC. Have all event threads, whether you finish a thread, headcanon its ending, or shift it into a non-event related thread, completed by this date and time.

Previous Threads: We kindly ask all non-event related threads to be wrapped up or put on hold for the event, just so everyone can focus on their event interactions. If you have previous threads that you’d like to continue after the event, please draft them before the start of the event so you don’t lose them!

Acceptances: No acceptances will be held during this event. We’ll be bypassing January 8th (Friday) and January 11th (Monday).

Starters: All starters must be tagged #catalina: starter and #catalina: lost at sea and make sure to tag the starter blog ( @catalinastarter ). As always, group rules still apply during the event. Once there are four starters in the tag, you must respond to THREE STARTERS before posting your own. 

Tags: Any edit, such as your character’s outfit for New Year’s can be tagged #catalina: lost at sea and #catalina: media! All edits will be reblogged on @catalinamedia.

Self-paras: Feel free to write self-paras pertaining to the event! 

Lastly but most importantly: HAVE FUN! This is a chance to interact with characters and players you haven’t yet, so please use this opportunity to be inclusive. If you’ve read all of this, please REPLY with your favorite emoji so I know you’ve seen it! 

[matth1w]

I was wondering if you could write this please: Imagine being Lucifer Morningstar’s long term girlfriend but as a result of fearing the relationship isn’t going anywhere she leaves him. Then after some time she’s a witness in an investigation and Lucifer later will propose to her? Thank you!!

Witness

Pairing: Lucifer Morningstar x Reader

Summary: After the fear of your relationship going nowhere, you end things with Lucifer. End of the story, right? Well you just so happen to witness a drive-by and get wrapped up in the Devil again.

Warnings: Breakup, angst, language, some anxiety/panic

Rating: Everyone

Word Count: 4,715. Yes, you read that correctly, 4,715 words.

Note: This is mostly sad but does have a happy ending. I hope you enjoy this, Nonnie. It certainly took a life of its own!

Tags: @kittenlittle24

As a wedding photographer, you were definitely put off with the whole overpriced over the top wedding culture that infected LA. And you had to deal with a plenty couples and guests that were just straight jerks, entitled brats, and thought they could do your job on the freaking iPhone 4.

That said, sometimes it did get to you. You wanted it. Well some of it. None of the family arguments or drama but the ability to stand with your partner and dedicate yourselves to each other in front of your family and friends.

But alas, that didn’t seem to be in the cards for you. You and Lucifer had been together almost five years now and there was nothing that indicated he wanted to take the next step with you.

Sure marriage seemed trivial when you were with the literal Devil, but you couldn’t help but want something more. Of course you trusted him, you knew his flirting was harmless and he would never think of acting on his - or someone else’s - desires.

But… still

Sure you should talk to him like an adult and tell him how you were feeling but that doesn’t always happen.

You had come home after a Sunday wedding, a Catholic one nonetheless. With a full mass. And a reception across town from the ceremony. To say you were exhausted was an understatement.

The only consolation was that the couple was going on a technology-free honeymoon for a few weeks and wouldn’t be bothering you for photos tomorrow like some clients.

Sore feet, a slight headache, and just general annoyance were plaguing you. So it’s no wonder a fight broke out.

You were pouring yourself a glass of water when the elevator doors opened, revealing Lucifer. You paid him no mind but apparently he had other plans.

“Another wedding?”, he sighed as he gave you a once over.

You frowned at that, “Yep”, you bit back with a touch too much of bitterness.

“I don’t understand why you insist on doing those silly things.”

You slammed your glass down.

“Silly?” You spat. “Silly, Lucifer?”

He was looking at you, shocked but annoyed at your outburst.

“Yes, silly, darling. They’re just excuses to party and for women to pretend like they’re the most important princess in the world.”

You stepped forward and pointed your finger at him.

“Newsflash, Morningstar. Some people just want something more than being boyfriend and girlfriend for the rest of their lives.”

“Rest of their lives? Is this about us? It’s only been five years, Y/N.”

“Yeah, and some of these fucks get married after one. It’s been five years, Lucifer, and nothing has changed. You haven’t mentioned marriage once aside from criticizing my clients.”

“And what? You want to get married? Is that what this is about?”

“Yes, for God’s sake!”, you shouted.

“Well why didn’t you just say that?”

“Because, Lucifer, I know you don’t. And seemingly never will.”

His eyes narrowed at that. “And you’re so sure of that? Without having even spoken to me?”

You crossed your arms and looked at him accusingly.

“You want to get married?”

Lucifer paused at that, mouth open but saying nothing.

“That’s what I thought.” Tears started to build up in your eyes. “Well. I think that shows this isn’t meant to be. Wish you wouldn’t have wasted so much of my time.”

“Y/N….”

“It’s over, Lucifer. I’ll get my stuff and get out of your life by the end of the week.”

You didn’t look back as you stepped into the elevator and let the doors close.

— — —

15 months later...

‘Oh fuck’, was your first thought.

Not because there was a dead person in front of you, but because you witnessed it. And because you witnessed it, you’d need to go down to the station. And you just knew you would run into Lucifer.

You looked down at your phone to send a text to Dan. You hadn’t spoken since you and Lucifer broke up so you kept it brief. Hopefully he’d give you a break.

-Just witnessed a drive-by on 15th & Hill. Can I give my statement at a later time when you know who won’t be there?-

Your phone rang and you cursed. You thought about just shutting off your phone but you knew that would just cause more trouble.

You clicked accept and brought the phone to your ear.

“Hey D-“

“Are you alright, Y/N? Are you still on the scene? Stay where you are. We’re on our way.”

“Dan! I’m fine. I’m fine.” You pressed.

“And who do you mean by we? I’d prefer to not have to see anyone I don’t need to.”

“Sorry, Y/N, but Chloe and Lucifer are already on their way to the scene. I can be the one to take your statement but I won’t be able to get there before them.”

‘Great’, you thought.

You sighed, “That’s fine, Dan. See you soon.”

“See you soon.”

You hung up and looked around. A small crowd had begun to form.

‘Might as well try to blend in’.

You spent the next few minutes on your phone, trying to blend in with the crowd and keep your head down.

A throat pointedly cleared behind you and you knew who it was before you turned.

You met the eyes of Lucifer, unable to look away. He was trying to mask whatever emotions he was feeling and gave you a fake sugary sweet smile.

“A little douchie told me you witnessed the shooting. I have to say I’m glad you’re alright but I’m rather surprised you called Daniel. Actually, I guess I’m not since you blocked my number and all that.”

You looked down. You didn’t want to just go out and say ‘I was trying to avoid you because I was - and still am - broken hearted’, so instead you just looked away.

“Lucifer!”, Chloe yelled from her place above the body.

She looked at you and smiled with a visible amount of pity clear on her face.

“Well. If you’ll excuse me, Y/N.” He said with a huff, shrugging his suit jacket and straightening his cuff links.

Cuff links, you noted, that weren’t the ones you had gotten him for your third anniversary and had worn ever since.

You let out the breath you had been holding and slumped as he walked back to the scene.

Thankfully, Chloe was able to keep Lucifer preoccupied for the next few minutes until Dan arrived.

You felt mixed feelings seeing your old friend and ex-boyfriend’s coworker but relief overcame everything else.

At least you could get out of there.

Dan walked over to you with open arms. You accepted the hug and gave him a thankful smile.

“Well, wanna hop in and head over to the station? Shouldn’t take more than an hour.”

You shrugged, “Sounds good. Thanks again, Dan. Hope I’m not being too much of a bother.”

He waved his hand, “Nah, gives me a chance to get some fresh air. Plus I haven’t seen you in forever.”

You gave an awkward smile at that and didn’t comment. You didn’t know what all Lucifer had said about your breakup and realized how awkward the situation was.

Biting your tongue, you walked to the car and hopped in. Thankfully, Dan was pretty silent, turning on the radio to instead fill the air.

Once at the station, you walked in and were hit with a wave of memories. You would often come down to grab lunch with Lucifer, help celebrate birthdays, or bring treats to help when the team was dealing with a difficult case.

You tried to steel your face but Dan was already looking at you.

Thankfully he didn’t say anything. Opting instead to lead you to the interrogation room.

Once inside you sat down at the metal table. You took a moment to breathe, just trying to get through this then you could go back to how things were.

When you looked up at Dan, you saw him standing by the door, looking somewhat nervous.

“Hey, uh, can I ask you something?”, he asked while moving to sit down across from you.

You nodded. Fairly certain what he was going to ask about.

“What happened with you and Lucifer? I mean... you guys seemed lso happy.”

“Lu didn’t tell you?”

“Nah. None of the details anyway. Just that you had some big fight and he was an idiot about it.”

You chuckled dryly. “Yeah, that’s one way to put it. I mean, I was too. Probably more so than him.”

You cleared your throat, “Anyway, that’s behind me. I mean it’s been over a year, it’s time to move on.”

“You really think so?”, Dan asked.

“Yeah. Well I’m sure he already has. And then some. So I might as well...” you saw Dan looking at you like you sprouted another head. “What?”

He laughed, “Nothin’. I just...” he cocked his head and paused, trying to think of how best to phrase it.

“Between you and me, that’s not the case.”

You gave a half smile, knowing what he was trying to say.

“And who knows? It might be worth trying again.”

“I don’t think there’s any fixing things.” You sighed and lowered your head.

Dan gave you a gentle nudge on the shoulder across the table. Like he had so many times before.

“People reconcile all the time. I mean, look at me and Chloe.”

You looked up again at that.

“You two are officially back together?”

“Yeah,” he said with a laugh. “Surprisingly it’s thanks to Luc-“

He coughed awkwardly. “Well. Anyway... want to get into your statement?”

You sighed. Relieved to be talking about the shooting rather than hear more about your ex.

— — —

You stood up after giving your statement to Dan. He went to open the door but paused.

“Hey, I know things... you know... Anyway, it was good seeing you, Y/N. Even under these circumstances. You don’t have to be a stranger.”

You smiled sadly at that.

“Yeah. It was good to see you too. I’m happy to hear about you and Chlo.”

Dan smiled and pressed the file in his hands.

“Well, ready to go?”

“Yep. No offense but I just want to go home.”

He laughed in response to that, “Yeah I get that. Lucifer always said you never liked the whole crime thing.”

You started to laugh but fell silent, realizing how easy it was to fall back into your friendship with Dan and just how much you missed your old life.

Dan opened the door for you and you walked through. Unhappy but not surprised at the sight before you. Lucifer stood on the bottom of the stairs.

“Hey, you good?” Dan muttered to you, placing a hand on your shoulder.

You kept your eyes on Lucifer, who prickled at the sight of Dan touching you.

You looked away and smiled at Dan.

“Yeah. Thanks.”

You walked up to Lucifer and smiled briefly before having to take your eyes away. It was hard just being near him. Looking into those beautiful brown eyes was simply too much.

Lucifer smiled softly at you, that cautious, nervous smile he wore when you two had first started dating.

“Let me drive you home?”

You wanted to agree but then remembered home wasn’t what it had been for so long. Now you were in a new home. And you were unsure about letting him inside it. It was a sanctuary from him. You tried desperately to focus on life without him and it helped having a place he had never been.

“I...” you were unsure of what to do until you saw the pleading look in his eyes. You relented.

“Sure”

You walked side by side with Lucifer, and it felt so strange not holding hands or being close. You stopped once you entered the parking garage. For some reason your didn’t realize you’d be taking the Corvette.

You had so many memories in the passenger seat of that car. Driving through the hills and the wind flowing through your hair, late night drives with music blasting and singing together at the top of your lungs, holding hands on the shift, peppering kisses on his cheek and lips at red lights...

It was too much.

All too much.

Tears started to come forward and you sniffled, trying to conceal your emotions but only achieving in alerting him. I mean, you had stopped in your tracks at the sight of the Corvette and were now trying not to cry. But still, it was embarrassing.

And how would you ride in his car next to him? Being so close to him, in the car you two shared so many memories in, taking him to your new home.

House, not home. He was home. And nowhere you were without would ever be home.

Too much.

You wrung your hands, starting to panic. “I, uh, thanks for the offer Luci, but I actually forgot something inside so go ahead without me.”

It was a shitty lie that you knew Lucifer saw right through, angelic abilities or not. He looked down and tossed the keys in his hand before putting them back in his pocket.

“Right. Well, have a good night, Y/N/N.”

He tried to smile at you but it was just a pitiful look. You met his eyes once more, trying to ignore their shiny mistiness that matched yours.

You smiled one last time, knowing the dam would break any moment. You couldn’t trust your voice so you simply nodded and turned around to walk back.

Once you exited the garage and out of sight, you let out a sob as your back hit the concrete wall. This was all too much. There was too much pain, guilt, regret, and still... love.

That’s what was hardest about seeing him again. The love that was still there and would never leave.

— — —

Once the Uber dropped you off and you went inside your house, you slumped against the wall.

That night, all you could bring yourself to do was cry yourself to sleep.

— — —

The next morning you woke up to a missed call and voicemail. It was from the number you had blocked, then unblocked, then deleted, but never forgot.

You pressed the phone to your ear and heard the soft voice your heard a thousand times before.

“Hello, love. I’m glad to see my call went through. Though I suppose you’re still ignoring my calls. Or sleeping. You always were a sound sleeper... Anyway, just wanted to make sure you got home alright. The Detective said there’s nothing to worry about with the drive-by. Just a silly turf war so we passed it on the gang unit. So... I suppose we won’t run into each other again. It was nice to see you though, darling. I... I miss you.”

There was an extended pause at the end of the message and you expected more but were only met with silence as the voicemail ended.

You looked down at your phone, finger hesitating above the return call button. You didn’t move, instead letting the screen darken.

— — —

You had been avoiding your phone like the plague all morning and afternoon. Doing everything you could to avoid it. You cleaned the house, did laundry, and took a long shower. But finally, you gave in and grabbed it once more.

You saw no messages or missed calls and decided to make that call before you could think twice.

As it rang, your nerves grew.

‘What would you say? Would he even answer? Of course he would answer. He called you. Said he missed you. But would he answ—‘

“Hello?” His voice broke through your cycle of thoughts. Unprepared, you couldn’t reply.

“Y/N, darling, are you there?”, he said with a edge of worry.

You swallowed before responding.

“Yeah, Luci. I’m here.” Your voice broke at the last word.

“Are you okay, love?” Lucifer sounded understandably even more worried now.

You sniffled and nodded. Not trusting your voice but you realized he couldn’t see you.

“Yeah. I’m- I’m fine. I just uh, got your message.”

Lucifer sighed slightly, relieved you were alright.

“Yes. My apologies if I was too forward.”

You gave a halfhearted laugh, “No, it wasn’t.”

You paused. “I- I miss you too.”

Lucifer was silent. For so long you thought the call had been disconnected.

“Luci?”

“Yes. I’m- I’m here darling. Can I... see you?”

You smiled and sniffled again. Your tears slightly turning to ones of happiness.

“Yes. Of course. I would... like that.”

“How about tonight then? I’ll close Lux and we can order that Indian food you love.”

You smiled, “You don’t have to close Lux for me, Luci.”

“I’d do anything for you, darling.”

He cleared his throat.

“Anyway, tonight? Seven?”

“Yeah. I’ll... see you then.”

“See you then, my dear.” Lucifer said quietly.

As you pulled the phone away from your ear and ended the call, you felt lighter. Lighter than you had since...

You checked the time on your phone and decided to try to focus on getting ready, rather than think more.

— — —

At 6:55, you were standing outside Lux’s front door. With a shaky breath, you stepped inside.

True to his word, Lux was empty sans Lucifer sitting at the piano, playing an unfamiliar tune slowly. Lost in the song, Lucifer didn’t notice you until you had descended the stairs and were leaning against the bar.

He closed the lid and turned on the bench to you.

“Did you like it?”

You nodded. “Yeah. It was beautiful. Though, I don’t recognize it.”

He smirked. “Well I would hope not. I wrote it myself.”

You couldn’t help but be surprised. In all the time you had known Lucifer he hadn’t written anything. Especially not a full song.

He sighed then gave you a smile that you knew was hiding his true feelings.

‘Something about that song...’

Before either of you could continue, a man entered, carrying bags labeled with your favorite Indian place. Just as Lucifer had promised.

Luci climbed the stairs to greet him and grabbed the food. Slipping an extra hundred in the man’s hand as he held the door open for him.

You smiled at Lucifer as he came back downstairs. “You always were the best tipper.”

He laughed, “What, that? An old friend told me about the importance of tipping and I guess it’s been a habit ever since.”

You looked down and smiled. You remembered that. It was one of your first dates. Like Lucifer said, he was always extra generous after that.

“Anyway!”, he said lifting up the bags, “Ready to eat?”

You nodded, almost drooling. You hadn’t been to the restaurant since last year and you knew by the smell Lucifer had gotten your favorite.

Luci set the table, and by setting the table, you meant taking the containers out of the bag and opening the packets of plastic silverware.

You looked at the food on the table then back to Lucifer as he waited for you to sit. It wasn’t right though. You scrunched your nose without realizing and Luci laughed. That hearty laugh when you did something ridiculous.

“Oh, you haven’t changed one bit, dear. Come, let’s move to the couch.”

You smiled brightly at him, thankful he could remember your quirks.

You two sat down nearby each other, with some room in between, thanks to the large Lux couches compared to the ones he had upstairs.

You filled the air with happy noises of content and talking about what antics Maze and Amenadiel had gotten up to. It was light, fun, and exactly what you needed.

Once your bellies were full, you both sighed happily.

“That was wonderful, thanks Luci. I haven’t had them since...” you trailed off.

He nodded, “Me neither.”

You looked down at your hands, feeling the shift in the mood.

“About that, darling.”, Luci said, scooting slightly towards you.

You furrowed your brow, “Do we have to?”

Lucifer smiled at your whine. “Unfortunately, I think we do.”

At your silence Lucifer cleared his throat.

“I’ll start.” He looked at you and waited until you met his eyes.

“I’m so terribly sorry for everything I said and more so for the things I didn’t.”

You nodded, biting your lip and trying to hide the tears that were soon to come.

Lucifer scooted closer to you and placed his hand on your back, hesitantly and then more firmly after you hadn’t shaken it away.

“Darling, you have to understand the whole marriage thing was so foreign to me. And the whole swearing before Dad bit just seemed ridiculous.”

At your pointed look he stopped speaking for a moment.

“What I’m trying to say is that I didn’t realize it was so important to you. And I’m sorry. I should have asked. I assure you, if I had known I would have married you the day I met you, Y/N. I knew from the moment I met you you were the one for me.”

“Are you just saying that?”, you questioned. Somewhat insecure.

“No. Of course not, darling. You know I can’t lie.”

At your small smile he continued.

“After you left, I was broken, lost. And when I realized what a mistake I had made, I wanted nothing more than to make it right.”

“So why didn’t you?”, thankfully the tears hadn’t come and your voice was stronger.

“You looked happy,” he sighed. “You seemed to be doing things you always spoke about doing. I didn’t want to ruin that. I thought you were better off.”

“I wasn’t better, Luci. I was just as broken and lost as you were. The reason I was trying new things was because I had to distract myself. It was the only way for me to keep going.”

You leant your head against his shoulder with a sigh. “I’m sorry too, Luci. I should have spoken to you about it earlier. And I shouldn’t have blown up on you like I did.”

You pulled back to look up at him.

“I’m so sorry, Luci. I’m a terrible idiot.”

He smiled down at you and caressed your cheek softly.

“I forgive you, darling.”

The sincerity in his voice broke the dam and you let out a broken sob.

He pulled you in tight and let you cry into his chest, mumbling assurances that he forgave you every time you apologized.

You don’t know when you’d stopped crying. Maybe you ran out of tears.

All you knew was that you awoke some time later. Your throat was dry, eyes puffy, and neck hurt from how you had slept. But, you also felt relaxed. Lighter from the confessions and the tears.

You frowned as you were alone. You rubbed your eyes and picked up your phone on the nearby table. Underneath it was a folded piece of paper with your name written in Lucifer’s handwriting.

You opened and read the note.

My love,

My apologies for not being by your side as you wake up and instead having to leave this. I had to go to a scene. I tried not to but the Detective guilt tripped me. Awful thing to do, really.

Anyway, I assume you’re probably sore from sleeping on this couch. I assure you I tried to get you to come to bed or even on the more comfortable couches upstairs but, well, you know how stubborn and persuasive you can be. Especially when you’re half asleep...

I know you have things to do so I won’t expect you when I return. But I do hope to see you again soon, darling.

With love,

Lucifer

P. S. Maze insisted on watching you sleep. Not me.

You looked around and found Maze behind the bar. You jumped, she was always so quiet.

“Maze?”, you asked.

She frowned at you while she pushed away from the bar but when she approached she pulled you into a tight hug.

“I’m so glad you’re back. Lucifer’s been miserable without you.”

You laughed as you pulled away, “Sorry about that. But I’m not back.”

“But I thought...?”she said with confusion on her face.

“I mean... we just hung out last night. Nothing’s official.”

“Hmmph.” She smirked. “But from what Lucifer told me, you’ll be back.”

You shook your head in happy exasperation.

“Oh Maze. I could always count on you to say the things Lucifer was always too afraid to.”

Maze smiled proudly at that,

“Like how he wanted to marry you?”

You practically choked.

“I’m sorry, what??”

She shrugged, but had her signature smirk.

“Yeah...” she said with fake nonchalance, swirling her drink.

“He had a ring for over a month. But kept backing out because he was ‘unsure you would want to marry the Devil’.”

She added with air quotes at the end.

“And even though I’m dedicated to Lucifer for the rest of eternity, I totally take your side on this one. Dumbass said he didn’t need to talk to you about marriage and already knew how you felt. Saying you didn’t like weddings or something because you were always so sour after shooting them. And I told him, well maybe you were sour because you wanted to stop working them and have your own. But you know how Lucifer is.”

She rolled her eyes and took a quick swig of her drink.

“Once he gets a self-deprecating thought in his head, he can’t get it out. Ugh, daddy issues, am I right?”

You laughed, oh how you missed Maze.

— — —

“So are we doing this?”, you whispered into his chest as he held you tight that night.

He moved his head so he could smile softly down at you.

“Yes, I do believe so.”

You smiled back at up him.

“One condition.”

At his raised eyebrow you smirked.

“You have to ask me out again. You’re not getting off so easily, Luci.”

“Getting off, you say?” With a chuckle. But then he got more serious.

“But I’m afraid I can’t do that darling. Well, rather, I don’t particularly want to.”

Your heart dropped and face fell.

“What?”

“I don’t want to ask you out again.”

“But —“

Lucifer pulled away from you and reached into the pocket inside his suit jacket.

“Darling. I don’t want to simply be boyfriend and girlfriend again. I want you...”

He dropped to his knee, maintaining eye contact with you.

“I want you to be my wife, Y/N.”

You gasped, frozen in place.

“Darling, the moment I met you was the best of my life. And I’m so sorry for not asking sooner, but please. I’m asking now. Will you marry me?”

You stared at Lucifer on his knee before you, holding up a velvet box with an otherworldly beautiful ring inside. Your vision began to blur, and you hastily wiped the tears away.

Seeing him clear before you, nervous, in love, and vulnerable, you couldn’t help but laugh. You brought your hands to his face and gave him a searing kiss that spoke volumes, full of apologies, love, and dedication.

As you pulled back, lips lingering, and pressed your forehead against his, you opened your eyes to stare into his.

“Yes”, you whispered, nodding and smiling. Starting to tear up again.

Lucifer’s face lit up with joy.

“Yes?”

“Yes!” You exclaimed, your smile matching his.

You both looked down as Lucifer took the ring from the box and slipped it on your finger.

You admired its intricacy and perfection for a moment before looking up at your now fiancé.

“I...” you began, trying to quell the tears.

“I... thank you, Luci.”

He laughed at that, unable to stop smiling.

“Darling, I’m the one who should be thanking you. You’re the light of my life.”

You smirked, unable to help yourself. “That’s rich coming from you, Morningstar.”

He closed his eyes and groaned. Trying to hide his smile.

“Back to the puns are we?”

You laughed and automatically responded, “You love me!”

You paused. Partially at the old phrase and at his serious face. Lucifer stroked your cheek.

“I do, my dear. I never stopped and never will.”

[gothpanda]

A Little Bit of Attitude Ch. 34: Oakland

WORD COUNT: 9.4K

A/N: Finally. The scene I had in my head that started it all, is now in a chapter

TAGS: @madamsixx @emariehorror​

WARNINGS: ANGST

Read on Ao3

Previous/Next

June 15th, 1987

Los Angeles, California

"Are you nervous about leaving?" asked Sammi, right by Nikki's side with his arm loosely around her. The two sat at Nikki's house's front steps as the sun finished rising for a new day. It was a surprise to Sammi having Nikki wake her up so early to be told a mechanic was on his way. But there was the professional, examining the open hood of the old impala. Nikki kissed Sammi on her temple, hiding part of his face in her disheveled bedhead. Sammi wiped away the smudged black eyeliner she slept in that transferred to her under eyes.

 "Why would I be nervous about leaving? It's a tour like always," muttered Nikki, scrunching his brows together.

"No, it's not. You hate your singer, and you're trying to stay clean. You're not nervous by any measure?" asked Sammi.

Nikki cleared his throat and shifted as best as he could, running his hand through Sammi's scalp. "Vince and I have always been at each other's throats way before we tossed you in the middle. I'm not going to let him ruin my time on the road. If Vince wants to act like a spoiled princess, then that's his problem,"

"And what about 'that' drug?"

"Like I said last night, I kicked everyone who could bring it around me out. I'll be fine. You don't have to worry your pretty little head," smiled Nikki, reaching over and shortly kissing Sammi on the lips.

"My pretty little head will always worry about you, especially with my brother right by your side," said Sammi, running her hand over Nikki's morning stubble.

"Nice to know you'll always worry," teased Nikki, pinching Sammi's cheek. "How about I offer you a deal you can't refuse? One to show how great I'm doing,"

Sammi scrunched her brows together, giving an inch of space between her and Nikki. "What kind of deal?"

"We're going to be in Japan for December on my birthday. We'll be playing for about a week of shows to end the year. You should come with us," said Nikki.

"Japan?" smiled Sammi, wrinkling her brows in surprise. "Are you sure about that?"

"Well, if you don't want to go to Japan, there's Europe next year. You have options, Princess. I just think Japan would be nice since then we'll finally have that vacation I promised," said Nikki, smirking.

Sammi sighed out, pursing out her lips as she thought about the idea. "I don't know, Nikki. We're barely even together right now. I still don't even know what  this  is,"

" This is us trying, and what about wanting to work it out? It's a week, almost two, in a different county! We can stay in Asia and hop over to a different country. That's perfect to work on it! It can be great,"

"I'll think about it. It's not until December anyway, so I have time," said Sammi.

"Fine. I can agree with that. Just expect me to bug you over in Oakland," said Nikki, hanging his arm around Sammi's shoulders. Before Nikki or Sammi could say another word to each other, the mechanic came up to the couple, reading off his clipboard. Nikki stood on his feet, clearing his throat and crossing his arms in front of his chest. Sammi looked up at the men, wrapping her arms around her legs. "So what was the problem?" asked Nikki.

"The battery was dead. When was the last time you thought about changing it before it died?" asked the mechanic, frowning as he looked up at Nikki. Nikki didn't answer, only looking down at Sammi. She merely shrugged her shoulder, making Nikki scuff.

"I'm going to guess it's been a long time. Batteries only last three years, five years max," said the mechanic.

"I know, I know. You leave a lady in charge of a car, and she forgets to take care of it," teased Nikki with a smirk, earning a kick from Sammi.

"I know how to take care of my car!" objected Sammi, frowning at Nikki, who only giggled at her anger. He perceived it as cute.

"How much for the battery?" Nikki pulled out his wallet, counting the bills he had. For once, Nikki had cash on him that wasn't meant to pay off a dealer.

"50 for the battery and 60 for the service," said the mechanic writing down Nikki's receipt. They exchanged the two different kinds of paper, Nikki adding in an extra 20 as a tip for the house call. This made the mechanic a happy man as he drove out of the California valley. Nikki sat back down next to Sammi, handing her the yellow paper receipt. Sammi pouted to herself, almost glaring at Nikki.

Nikki raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"I could've done it," mumbled Sammi.

Nikki inched closer to Sammi's face, getting her to wrinkle her brows. "You could just say thank you and be nice," Sammi rolled her eyes, playfully shoving Nikki's shoulder.

"Thank. You. Nikki. For. Paying. Do you want to hear anything else?" sarcastically asked Sammi.

"Yeah, that you're going to miss me when I leave," said Nikki, wrapping his arm around Sammi again.

"Of course I'm going to miss you. You might drive me crazy, but I still like having you around me," said Sammi with a pout, resting her head on Nikki's shoulder. "What time are you leaving tomorrow?"

"Late at night in our new fancy jet. It looks so sick, Sammi. All black with the Motley logo on the nose. Maybe you can take a ride on it when we go to Oakland. Since it's fast, you'll have the luxury of a short fun trip,"

"Let's cool it with the idea of trips for a while. We're not all back on good terms," smiled Sammi, kissing Nikki on the cheek. "I think I should get going. I don't want Em and Sabrina to send out the search dogs,"

Nikki sighed out. "I guess. Do they even know you came out here?" asked Nikki, pulling Sammi on the feet.

"Yep. Sabrina's been on my ass to talk to you," said Sammi as the two walked hand in hand to the impala.

"Damn, have I mentioned how I love your friends? I love your friends. Way better than the last two I met," teased Nikki, snaking his arms around Sammi's waist, slowly pushing her to rest against the car.

Sammi chuckled, shaking her head. "Yeah yeah, I get it. You can thank Sabrina and Emma whenever you want," Sammi said.

"I gladly will. I'm guessing they don't hate me after everything?" asked Nikki.

Sammi shook her head. "Sabrina's been a way better 'older' sister with the advice than Athena ever could. Emma being there to show the silver linings to everything when I vent. They do like you. They've always liked you, Nik,"

"That's nice to hear. Don't tell them this, but I would look forward to seeing them when we'd all hang out. I missed it. They are nice girls," chuckled Nikki. Sammi only smiled and engulfed Nikki in a tight, comforting hug, arms around his neck. Nikki cradled Sammi's head, taking in the moment of warmth the two had. "I'm going to miss you," muttered Nikki.

"Please stay safe out there,"

"I promise," said Nikki, finally letting go of Sammi. Sammi balanced on the tips of her toes, kissing one last time until her birthday. Nikki didn't think to make the kiss more than it was, remaining romantic. As the two parted, Nikki opened the car and smiled sadly as Sammi sat in. "Get home safe,"

"I will," said Sammi, flashing a smile before driving out of the grand driveway and into the neighborhood. Nikki kept his eyes on the impala as it moved away, sighing out when he was left alone. He was bored already but knew he couldn't go to old habits just because Sammi wasn't around.

*

Even though it was well into the morning, almost afternoon, Sammi slowly opened the apartment door to not bring attention to her. It didn't matter how hard Sammi tried to be sneaky; Emma was already in the living room watching tv. "Shit," mumbled Sammi.

Emma turned her head like an alerted fox, relieved to see Sammi after an almost full 24 hours finally. "Sabrina! Sammi's home!" yelled out Emma, jumping onto her feet. Sammi sighed out, closing and locking the door behind her before Emma pulled her further into the apartment. "Where have you been? Your mother and I have been worried sick," joked Emma, sitting Sammi next to her on the sofa. Sabrina casually walked into the living room, keeping a calm demeanor in comparison to Emma. She smirked when seeing Sammi's makeup smudged and hair unkempt, wanting to poke fun at her as Sabrina sat down next to Sammi.

"I'm guessing the talk with Nikki went great?" asked Sabrina.

"Really great by the looks of it. Nikki couldn't have lent you a hairbrush for this rat's nest?" asked Emma, trying to tame Sammi's hair by using her fingers as a comb. Sammi rolled her eyes, pushing away Emma's hand. "Was it nice 'reuniting' with Nik?" Emma smiled mischievously.

"Shut up, we didn't do anything," said Sammi, chuckling.

"That has to be the biggest lie ever, Sammi. You leave to speak with your ex that you're still madly obsessed with only to come back the next day," said Emma, Sabrina giggling along.

"My impala was stubborn, and the battery died! That's why I stayed over," defended Sammi.

"In the same bed with Nikki?" asked Sabrina, raising an eyebrow.

"Nikki's other cars weren't enough for you to drive back home?" asked Emma.

"Or he couldn't bring you back on his motorcycle?" added Sabrina.

"Nikki lives far away from you guys, and it was late. I didn't want to drive anymore. And yes, we were in the same bed, but we seriously didn't do anything. Last night was too much for the chance of having makeup sex," muttered Sammi, dropping her head back onto the sofa.

"Well, what happened then? Was it a screaming match, a puddle of tears, or what? What happened?" asked Emma, like an antsy child.

"To cut it short, I heard how hurt Nikki was after I left. I knew I shouldn't have done it, but now I really regret it. He apologized for his mess as well then we went out to eat to talk it out more. He talked about wanting to work things out when he comes back,"

"How was that too much for the chance at sex?" asked Sabrina, scrunching her brows together.

"Oh, there's more!" Said Sammi. "Veronica was waiting for us at Nikki's, only for her to tell me that Nikki was her fiance," Emma and Sabrina's eyes shot wide, jaws almost dropping to the floor. "Before you guys freak out, it's not a real engagement. Nikki kicked her out. Veronica asked when they were both high, and Nikki's dumbass said yes. Which made me mad since he did the same thing to me, but it was still very different," Sammi rambled in one breath to fix the damage. She didn't want the high of a good thing to go away.

"How did Nikki tell you it was different if he did the same thing in Vegas?" asked Emma.

Before Sammi answered, a small smile crept upon her face, looking away as she almost blushed. "Because he said he could see us married when he asked," muttered Sammi, glancing to see Emma and Sabrina's reactions. Emma covered her mouth in shock while Sabrina smiled bubbly. "But I'm not going to think much on that,"

"As long as you and Nikki are on good terms, then that's great for you two. I'm sure Veronica will get the hint eventually that Nikki doesn't want anything to do with her," said Sabrina.

"And if she doesn't, there's always restraining orders on ex bitches!" joked Emma with a smile. "You just need to be happy and not worry about anything anymore,"

"I'm happy you talked to Nikki, Sam," said Sabrina.

"Oh, and so is Nikki," smiled Sammi. "Don't tell him I said this, but Nikki missed the four of us hanging out,"

"Awe! Nikki does have a heart!" said Emma, making the other girls laugh altogether.

*

August 30th, 1987

San Francisco, California

With a sleepy yawn and tired eyes, Sammi leaned back against her chair, hours of studying started to take a toll on her. The sun had already gone down in the San Francisco Bay area, the nightlife beginning to emerge throughout the city. College wasn't holding back on its difficulty; tests and projects planned already in full swing. It was only one more year of this for the young student, where Sammi could finally leave San Francisco to go back home and be a full-time adult, even though her life was unlike the average adult. Right when Sammi was about to dive back into the pile of books, the handheld phone beside her rang loud.

"Hello?" answered Sammi, hiding her tired voice with a polite one.

"Hi, Princess," said Nikki, sounding relaxed wherever he was across the country. Hearing Nikki's voice made Sammi's tired demeanor subdued, smiling as she rested against the table.

"Nikki!" exclaimed Sammi.

Nikki chuckled with slight glee from Sammi's voice. "It's good to hear your voice, Sammi. Sorry I haven't been calling recently. The days are starting to blur together," said Nikki, rubbing his developing dark eyes.

"It's okay. I get how pretty busy it can be. Where are you right now?"

"Somewhere in Virginia that has almost nothing. So I'm in my hotel room. We have the whole floor, which is pretty cool. What are you up to?" asked Nikki.

"Studying until my eyes bleed or I pass out. Whichever one will make me stop first," yawned Sammi. "How is everything on the road? Your Rolling Stone issue makes everything sound so crazy," said Sammi, smirking to herself.

"Oh, you got the magazine? I'm honored," teased Nikki.

Sammi rolled her eyes. "Of course I would get it. It's not everyday someone can say their brother and…" Sammi hesitated for a moment. Nikki bit his lip in a nervous habit to see how Sammi would finish that statement. "Boyfriend is on the cover of Rolling Stone. My parents are thinking about framing it,"

"That's sweet. Thank you for getting it," uttered Nikki, smiling to himself in the privacy of his hotel room. He cleared his throat, taking a swing of the beer by his side. "The craziness is kind of on pause. Right now, I'm currently bored out of my mind in my room alone because no one wants to hang out with me," grumbled Nikki. Sammi couldn't help but burst into a laughing fit, hiding her face in the palm of her hand. Nikki sulked in his bed, wishing he could pinch Sammi to get her to stop. "Why are you laughing at me?"

"Because you just sounded so cute, Nikki," giggled Sammi again, finally calming herself down. "Why doesn't anyone want to hang out with you, sweetheart?"

"Everyone has a chick! Tommy has Heather visiting. Vince has Hailey, Hedi, whatever her name is visiting too. Mick keeps sneaking off with stupid Emi. Then the tour crew is hiding with someone in their rooms," complained Nikki.

"I'm sorry, but would it kill you to be nice to Mick? He really likes that girl," frowned Sammi.

"She's a backup singer that we hired! You're not supposed to date or hook up with people you hired for your tour. Tommy and Vince agree with me on this one!" said Nikki, in a firm voice.

"But you and Vince have hooked up with someone that was a tour employee,"

Nikki curled his lip. "Please point out when Vince or I hooked up with someone on tour, Ms. Sammi. I would love to know!"

"You do remember I was Doc's assistant, right?" smirked Sammi.

Nikki rolled his eyes. "Hey, that doesn't count! Vince and I were trying before Tommy even got you that job! If we met on that tour, I wouldn't have tried anything. Until we were back home and you got a new job," objected Nikki, earning a laugh from Sammi.

"We had sex when I was already hired for the tour, Mr. Sixx. And Doc didn't hire me again after getting with my ex," Sammi said as a rebuttal.

"Don't try to argue this one. It doesn't count! I hit it when you were still just Tommy's little sister. Who is now getting on my nerves," grumbled Nikki.

Sammi snickered. "Okay, okay, I'll stop. Still Nikki, can you please lay off Mick and let him enjoy a relationship? For me?" asked Sammi.

"Fine. I'll lay off, but when I see you, I'm proving you wrong. I don't like her for Mick," mumbled Nikki.

"Speaking of seeing each other, I'm sorry you're left alone tonight. I can fly in next weekend if you need me to. We don't have to wait until October. I have no problem-" offered Sammi.

"No. No. No. You need to focus on school to graduate and get the hell out of stupid San Francisco. One of us has bigger things to worry about than if I'm lonely," said Nikki.

"That doesn't make me feel less bad, especially when the guys who have their wives or girlfriends visiting," pouted Sammi.

"Well, they don't have an intelligent girl by their side. No offense to your sister-in-law" smirked Nikki. "October will get here in no time,"

Sammi scuffed with flattery, smiling. "Thank you. I do really miss you, though,"

"I miss you too, Princess but stop worrying about me. I'm a big boy," said Nikki.

"You know you could pull a prank on everyone if they're all on one floor together," suggested Sammi. Like a lightswitch, Nikki's relaxed feeling turned intrigued, wanting to listen even more to what his intelligent Sammi had to say. "I'm not great with pranks. That was Tommy's department, but I'm sure you could think of something on the fly. You're clever," continued Sammi.

Nikki nodded to himself, narrowing his eyes at the wall as his brain began to plan. "Damn, do I love your ideas," muttered Nikki.

"Of course you do," proudly said Sammi.

"Listen, I have to go, Princess, if I wanna pull a prank. I'll call you at the next city, I promise," said Nikki, readying to jump out of bed. "Love you. Sweet dreams," Nikki added before hanging up.

Sammi only stayed quiet in her seat, slowly hanging up her phone and placing it down. With a few blinks, a smile crept on Sammi's lips. "Love you too," uttered Sammi to herself. She shook her head to get out of the little daze and back to the sea of books.

September 28th, 1987

The phone ring was the first thing Sammi heard as she unlocked the door to her apartment, rushing in to answer. On its last round, Sammi caught the phone in time to see who it was.

"Hello?" said Sammi, dropping a stack of mail and backpack on the kitchen bar, leaning against it.

"Hey Sam," said Athena. "How've you been?"

"Uh, hey Athena, I'm doing good. I just got out of class," said Sammi with a surprise in her voice. "What's up?"

"Well, I was wondering if you've watched MTV today or talked to Nikki recently since he's been on the road?" asked Athena, Sammi catching the tone as if something was wrong.

"Nope, I haven't watched tv all day or spoken to Nikki for months," said Sammi, only telling half a lie. She still couldn't tell Athena every little detail about her and Nikki. That would just cause more judgment from her again.

"In that case, I should probably let you know that Nikki's engaged. To Veronica," sadly said Athena.

Sammi almost chuckled from this, knowing it wasn't the truth. "What? What do you mean Nikki's engaged?" asked Sammi, playing along to the not so shocking news.

"It's got announced in the morning, and it's all over MTV and magazines. I wanted to make sure you found out from me before anyone else," said Athena. Sammi scrunched up her brows deeply, glancing down at her pile of mail. Scattering the pile, Sammi pulled out the only magazine from the bunch, seeing how Athena was right. In big, bold yellow letters read out,  'Motley Crue Bassist Nikki Sixx engaged to Dancer Veronica Andrews .' Sammi only stared at the words and photo for an extended period until Athena pulled back into reality. "Sammi? You okay?"

"Um yeah. Yeah, I'm good. I just didn't think he would ever propose to anyone," uttered Sammi with a deep frown, flaring nostrils out. Sammi crumpled the magazine in her hands, ripping the cover almost completely. "Is there anything else you know, Athena?"

"I haven't been able to reach Tommy, so no. Are you sure you're okay?" asked Athena one more time.

"Yeah. Perfectly fine. I'll call you later, Athena. I'm pretty tired from my walk. Bye. Love you," said Sammi, hanging up on her sister. With a fast thumb, Sammi punched in the numbers to the only number to reach the guys. It only took a short ring to get on the line. "Hey Doc, it's Sammi,"

"Oh, hi, Sammi. I haven't heard from you in a while. What's going on?" asked Doc.

"Nothing really. I wanted to see if you could get Mick for me. I need to ask him about something, and I didn't know how to reach him exclusively," said Sammi, sitting on the wooden dining chair.

"Of course. Hold on a minute while I get him," said Doc, a turning silence from his end of the line. Sammi anxiously tapped her fingers on the dining table, her frown getting deeper.

"Sammi? Are you okay? What's wrong?" asked Mick, almost in an anxious tone himself.

"I'm fine, Mick. I just needed to talk to you about something. Is Nikki around you?" asked Sammi.

"No, I don't know where Nikki went. I haven't seen him or Tommy. What did you need to talk about?" asked Mick.

"Please be honest with me, Mick. Has Nikki been speaking to Veronica?" asked Sammi, swallowing a hard lump in her throat.

Mick let out a sigh, mumbling a curse word under his breath. "It's not what you're thinking, Sammi. I can promise you that,"

"Then what is it?! Because right now, I just had to have Athena tell me about Nikki's apparent engagement being all over the news when he told me it wasn't anything,"

"And he's right. They aren't engaged. But after her little visit in July, Nikki stopped giving her any attention. I guess it pissed her off enough to run to the press,"

"She was with Nikki?" asked Sammi.

"Nikki didn't know she was coming. Veronica was able to get into his room at a hotel we were staying at in Arizona. He was pissed, but she stayed there," Sammi closed her eyes tight, inhaling deeply. "They didn't hook up,"

"How do you know that?" Sammi's voice almost cracked.

"I roomed right next to Nikki that night, and I had my connecting door open the entire time. There wasn't any moaning, but I did get to hear them talking about heroin again. Something about freebasing?"

"You've got to be kidding me? Nikki's been getting high again?"

"I wanna say yes. Nikki will hide in his room if we're in hotels sometimes and won't come at all. And now he knows not to use needles anymore, I guess. I'm sorry to tell you this, Little girl,"

Sammi shook her head and rubbed her temple as she listened. "It's okay, Mick. I knew you'd tell me the truth. Thank you," muttered Sammi. "You can't tell Nikki we had this conversation,"

"Of course I won't. I will say, though, if he does hurt you again, I will smack him," said Mick.

Sammi chuckled dryly. "I appreciate that. Stay safe out there and don't go too crazy,"

"I won't. Later, little girl," said Mick. Sammi hung up the phone, dropping her head down on the table. Nothing was ever a comfortable boat ride with the Crue.

*

"Hi, it's Sammi. Please leave a message, and I'll get back to you,"  Sammi stared at her answering machine as she laid on the loveseat, a bottle of half-empty wine in one hand.  "Hey-o sunshine, it's Nikki. I wanna talk. I'm sure you've seen MTV or something. Please, Sammi. I miss you. Call me back". The wine was Sammi's only response.

October 7th, 1987

Oakland, California

Sammi rested heavily against the red leather seats, watching passing city lights. The closer she reached the stadium, the more her anxious nerves ran through her body. Wiping away clammy hands on Sammi's black jeans, messing with the ends of Sammi's hair, nothing could calm the young woman down. It was considerate for the band to send a limo service for Sammi, but it didn't help with the anxiety. Sammi managed to keep a distance from Nikki without getting any form of questions from him. To Sammi, this was her form of validation. Validation of Nikki starting the disgusting habit that Sammi feared. As the limo slowed down, passing the colosseum, fans waited out in lines while paparazzi stood on the sideline. Sammi only let out a long sigh, waiting for the car to finally make a stop. It was a small surprise to Sammi when Doc would be the first familiar face, opening the passenger door for her.

"Hello Sammi, it's good to see you finally," said Doc with a smile.

"The feeling's mutual," said Sammi, stepping out of the limo, fixing any imperfections from her tied Motley tank she cut up. "How have you been? I'm hoping to hear something positive," Sammi asked Doc, the two walking through a dark alley to reach the infamous backstage.

Sammi heard a similar sigh come out of Doc, watching him dragging a hang down his face. "Personally, I'm alright. Professionally, I'm stressed beyond belief. It's unlike anything before from what's gotten into these boys,"

"Is it really that bad?" asked Sammi, halting under a dim streetlamp.

"I don't want you to get worried about them,"

"Doc, that's a little late for that. I'm always going to be worried about those four. Now, what's going on?" Sammi asked again, scrunching her brows together.

"To make a long explanation short, they're just wearing out. To the point I'm considering canceling Europe," said Doc, pressing his lips tightly together.

Sammi only shut her eyes, dropping her head back to groan out in annoyance. "So what am I walking into then? The last person I spoke to was Mick about Nikki," asked Sammi with a frown

"Vince's hand is in stitches. Nikki and Tommy are on benders. Mick doesn't care anymore. And there's a new band touring with us who think it's so cool, trying to match Motley. I'm sorry to tell you this, Sammi," said Doc, folding his arms against his chest.

"Whatever. Let's just get in there before I run back into the limo," mumbled Sammi, dragging her feet over to the backstage door. Doc gently rested his hand on Sammi's shoulder, showing a sign of reassurance. From the first steps of entering backstage, Sammi was hit with the familiar smell of cigarette smoke and almost sweat. The long curved hallways soon became louder when reaching the dressing room doors for both Motley Crue and the opening act. Sammi tossed her hair the other side, not wanting to hide away within it.

"Oh, look who it is!" exclaimed Tommy, arms wide open as he stood at the end of the hallway. Sammi matched the wide bright smile her brother had, running over to Tommy for a big hug. Tommy appeared sober to Sammi's eyes, a moment of letting her guard come down. He lifted Sammi in the air, twirling around in circles in complete happiness. "Happy birthday," said Tommy, setting Sammi back on her feet.

"And happy belated birthday to you," smiled Sammi. Before Sammi could say anything else, three men came behind Tommy, one with curly hair almost jumping on Tommy's back. Sammi stepped back from the bunch, turning her attention to see Doc had disappeared already. "Whoa," was all Sammi could say. The three men all perked their heads to Sammi, almost curious to see a new girl in front of them. The dark curly-haired man peeling himself off Tommy, straightening his shoulders. They were all different from the other in appearance, not mistaking one for the other.

"You guys know when the perfect timing is. I want to introduce to you three, my baby sister. Sammi, meet three of the Guns N' Roses guys!" explained Tommy.

"Hi," shyly said Sammi, waving shortly.

A redheaded man stepped in front of Tommy, smirking at Sammi. Sammi scrunched her brows in confusion to the redhead. "Hey, pretty thing, I'm Axl," said Axl. "I've heard about you, but I never thought you'd be this gorgeous," Sammi couldn't help but chuckle at Axl, smacking her hand over her mouth to stop. Axl looked shocked at Sammi, mouth ajar as Tommy and the other two chuckled. "Was it really that cheesy?"

"Axl dude, this is Sammi. As in also Sixx's girl," said the curly-haired man, smacking Axl playfully on the shoulder. "Hey, I'm Slash. It's cool to meet you finally," said Slash, extending out a hand.

Sammi wasn't shy anymore of accepting it, smiling at Slash. "I'm guessing Nikki talks about me?"

"Every time I ask why he keeps turning girls down, Blondie and I get a whole rant about you," said Slash, pulling the tallest man from the bunch, a shaggier blonde.

"Your brother also doesn't shut up about you and your other sister, but I got used to it," said the blonde, with a shy smile. "I'm Duff. It's your birthday, right?"

"Nice to meet you, Duff, and yeah, my birthday's tomorrow,"

"Happy birthday then!" said Duff in a gentle voice.

"Happy birthday," said Axl and Slash in unison.

"Thank you! And it's nice to meet you three finally. I've heard through the grapevine about you and your guys' band," said Sammi.

"I hope good things," said Duff jokingly, turning to Tommy.

"Well, I do know Slash might have partied too hard at Nikki's house," said Sammi, seeing Slash become a bit timid as Duff and Axl repressed their laughter.

"And unlike Nikki, I say great things about my friends, thank you very much!" said Tommy, putting his arm around Sammi. Tommy led Sammi to the nearest door, pushing it with all his force, opening up to a spacious dressing room that fit all of Motley. Axl, Slash, and Duff followed the Bass siblings' footsteps. "Guess who I just found!" yelled out Tommy in a singing voice. From the mirror vanity, Nikki jumped up from his seat almost like a prairie dog, instinctually knowing it was Sammi. Vince was unbothered to move from his spot on the long sofa, glancing over at Mick already on his feet.

"Sammi!" said Nikki, showing a bright smile that Sammi tried to replicate. He didn't seem to notice the thick facade, hugging his girlfriend lovingly with a kiss on the forehead. "Happy birthday," mumbled Nikki into Sammi's hair. Sammi melted into the hug, rubbing Nikki's back as insurance to him. "I was starting to get worried you were gonna flake out on us,"

"You know I wouldn't do that. Traffic was just hell on earth," lied Sammi, pulling away from Nikki. Sammi grazed Nikki's thin long sleeve shirt from the first impression, scrunching her brows at him. "You're not hot in this?" asked Sammi.

Nikki shook his head, cupping Sammi's cheek. "I'm fine," flashing a reassuring smile. Sammi only remained silent, stepping over to Mick. On a special occasion, the two gave each other a tight hug.

"Happy Birthday, Little Girl. We've missed you around here," said Mick, ruffling Sammi's hair with affection. Mick shoots a knowing look to Sammi, ready to have a conversation.

"I've missed you all too," sighed Sammi. She peeked over Mick's shoulder, spotting Vince sulk alone.

"Sixx, you were right about Sammi. She is pretty tiny," said Slash, snapping Sammi back to reality, shaking her head with his hand. The rest of the guys all chuckled with Slash, Sammi falling into the comfort of their shenanigans. "She makes Mick here look tall,"

"Okay, I get it," said Sammi, shoving Slash's hand away from her. "I'm short and small compared to all of you. Not all of us can be as tall as these three," Sammi gesturing to Duff, Nikki, and Tommy.

"Yo Vin, you're not gonna say hi to our guest," said Nikki over his shoulder, skillfully wrapping an arm around Sammi and pulling her into his side. Vince dragged his body off the sofa, shuffling his feet towards the small group. Sammi's eyes went straight to the cast on Vince's wrist, noting the discoloration around his fingers. Vince flashed a short smile to Sammi, folding his arms against his chest. Tommy would see the shit-eating smirk Axl had towards Vince, seeing how grumpy the singer was.

"Uh, the guys and I are gonna head over to our room. You four have fun with the girlie," snickered Axl, ushering Slash and Duff out with him.

"Hey, Sam,' said Vince.

"What the hell happened to your hand?" asked Sammi, her eyes only the cast.

"Ask your brother," accused Vince. Sammi wrinkled her brows to Tommy, seeing him roll his eyes.

"Dude, it wasn't Tommy's fault you had a temper tantrum," Nikki told off Vince, scowling at the singer.

"Again, what happened?" asked Sammi with assertiveness.

"Vince didn't like the fact that craft services put mayo instead of Miracle Whip for the condiments," said Mick, a monotone in his voice.

"So he threw it against the wall, and the glass bounced back, slicing open his hand," added Nikki, matching the monotone.

"And it's apparently my fault because I'm the one that put mayo on the tour rider," uttered Tommy, glaring at Vince. Vince curled his lip at Tommy, looking away from his band.

Sammi sighed out. "You guys do realize you have to put up with each other for two more months, right?"

"I don't care. I'm fucking done with these three after December," mumbled Vince, walking right past every, disappearing through the corridor. Nikki and Tommy both glared at each other, annoyed with the attitude of Vince. Before adding another word to the conversation, Tommy pulled Nikki by the shoulders, making him let go of Sammi. He whispered something in Nikki's ear, Sammi trying her hardest to listen but with no success.

"What are you two up to?" asked Sammi, raising an eyebrow at the Terror Twins.

"Nothing, babe," smiled Nikki. "T-Bone and I just need to get some things sorted out with GNR. We'll be right back," Nikki said, kissing Sammi on the cheek. Tommy flashed a quick smile to Sammi, the duo leaving the room as fast as they could. While this worried Sammi, it was the perfect chance for her and Mick to catch up. She closed the door for no one to listen, giving Mick a small repressed smile. The two sat down on the long black sofa, Sammi hugging a pillow to ease her nerves.

"Is there anything new you need to tell me?" asked Sammi, hesitancy in her voice.

Mick bit the inside of his cheek, remembering if anything has happened since they last spoke. "Besides Nikki hiding in that long sleeve, nothing. He hardly talks to me about anything unless it's busting my balls,"

"About Emerson?" asked Sammi, raising an eyebrow. Mick nodded. "I asked him to stop, Mick,"

"It isn't only Nikki. It's all three of them getting on my case about hooking up with Emi," groaned Mick. "They don't like her at all, but they don't even know her as I do,"

"Nikki said he doesn't think she's good for you, but if they still don't know her, then they're just assholes," comforted Sammi, gently squeezing Mick's shoulder. "I can try to talk to Tommy to knock it off,"

Mick scuffed with a small smile. "Thanks, Sammi. You can try, but I'm not going to hold my breath,"

"Doc told me how you guys are falling apart. Should I be worried?" asked Sammi. Mick didn't bother to respond, looking down at his feet and letting out a huff. Sammi sucked her front teeth, almost chuckling. "I'm going to take that as a yes," muttered Sammi under her breath, slouching further into the sofa.

Right as silence fell between the two, a loud shriek echoed in the hallway, Sammi and Mick shooting wide eyes at each other. Sammi sped over to the door, pulling it open to find the noise, Mick right behind her. It wasn't a crazy fan finding their way into the backstage area. Sammi laid her eyes on Veronica, hugging Nikki with a big smile and a giant floral bouquet of pink roses. Veronica showed everyone around the floors and her engagement ring, Tommy and Axl remaining silent. Tommy began biting on his nails, wanting to walk away. Sammi stood in the corridor, feeling her blood turn hot with anger to see the happy woman in front of her. Fortunately for Sammi, Veronica made no attention to her, almost giving the younger girl her back. Nikki didn't know what to do in his position, holding onto Veronica by the waist. When he glanced over his shoulder, Nikki frowned at Sammi, only for him to see the anger he caused Sammi. Sammi shook her head at Nikki, flipping him off without a care. She then stepped a few inches closer to the 'couple,' opening another dressing room to disappear in. Resting against the door, Sammi quickly realized who the dressing room belonged to.

"What was that screaming?" asked Duff, standing in the middle of the room, scrunching his brows together. Slash had the same expression, sipping his beer as he sat down on a smaller sofa.

"It was um," muttered Sammi, looking anywhere but Duff.

"You okay?" asked Slash. "Your cheeks are almost as red as your lipstick,"

"No, I'm not. The scream was Veronica… Nikki's fiance," said Sammi, walking over and dropping herself next to Slash. Slash and Duff exchanged confused looks at each other before responding to Sammi.

"I thought Nikki dumped that chick a while back ago? Who the hell let her back here?" asked Slash. Sammi shrugged her shoulders, sinking deeper into the sofa. Duff felt sorry for Sammi, passing her an open cold beer they had in an ice chest, earning him a smile. Duff sat down next to Sammi, sandwiching her between the boys.

"Clearly, that Veronica girl is crazy if she thinks she's going to marry Nikki. Especially if she's screaming for no reason," said Duff.

Sammi took a swing of the beer. "She screamed because Nikki got her flowers,"

"If the flowers were pink roses, they were meant for you. Nikki talked about you loving roses," said Slash, smiling sympathetically at Sammi.

"I figured that much. I don't care if Nikki got me flowers. The fact she's here ruins my mood. I had to hide in here so Veronica wouldn't see me,"

"You're going to hide away on your birthday in a smelly dressing room? Of a band you just met?" asked Slash, happy to earn a small smile from Sammi. "You're not staying in here, and besides, we have to get on stage in ten minutes,"

"We can sneak you past everyone. I'm tall enough to hide you completely just by standing behind you," suggested Duff, Slash nodding at the idea. Duff grabs Sammi's half-empty beer out of her hand, placing it on the floor. He hopped up on his feet, pulling Sammi up by her hands. "See, look in the mirror. I'll be behind you, and Slash can be in front," said Duff, grasping Sammi's shoulders as they faced one of the vanity mirrors. Sammi only playfully rolled her eyes to Duff.

Slash skipped over to the door, peeking his head out to check their surroundings. "Psycho bitch is gone. Actually, everyone is gone," said Slash. Duff guided Sammi in front of him, Slash staying near in front of her as they planned. The corridor was empty of Motley, only crew members walking up and down. The trio walked further until hitting closer to the stage.

"Hey guys!" said Duff to Axl and two other men Sammi hadn't met.

"We have a guest watching us from the sides," added Slash, stepping aside for the rest of Guns N' Roses to meet Sammi. "The quiet dude in black is Izzy, and that's Steven with the drumsticks," Slash told Sammi.

"Oh, wait! We know you!" exclaimed Steven, pointing his drumstick at Sammi with a goofy grin. "Your Tommy's little sister! Awesome to meet you!"

"It's nice to meet you all too. I thought I'd leave Motley for a bit to check out your band live," lied Sammi, Duff squeezing Sammi's shoulders before reaching out for his bass.

"Well, aren't you the sweetest," teased Axl, pinching Sammi's check as he inserted his earpiece for the night. Sammi perched herself upon a rolling storage crate with the perfect view of everyone on stage, legs dangling. She gave all five of the guys a thumbs up before they all ran out to begin their set. For a new up and coming band, the crowd of Oakland loved the feeling GNR showed from performing. Sammi herself found their music enjoyable, tapping her hands on the crate to the beat of Steven's drums. After twenty minutes of the Guns' set, Sammi felt a hand grip onto her forearm, tugging her in their direction. Sammi jumped off the crate with a scowl, pulling away to see Nikki was the culprit. Nikki bit his lip, lowering himself closer to Sammi's ear.

"Can we talk please," whispered Nikki. Sammi kept her scowl, walking past Nikki into the corridor, away from the loud music. Sammi folded her arms against her chest, back flat against the brick wall with a glare. Nikki shoved his hand in his jean pockets, head hanging low before speaking. "I'm sorry about Veronica. I swear I didn't know she was going to come. I don't even know who let her in here. You have to believe, Sammi," said Nikki, cupping Sammi's cheeks. By instinct, Sammi pushed Nikki away from her with all her focus, Nikki stumbling on his feet.

"Do not try to kiss me right now. Not when I look like the other woman in front of everyone," frowned Sammi.

"But you're not! She's a psycho that keeps telling people we're together!" explained Nikki with a sad frown. "I wanted to settle this last week after she ran her mouth to the press. Veronica only did it because I cut her off,"

"No, you didn't," uttered Sammi. "I know she visited you in Arizona. Mick told me everything. If you told her things were over, she wouldn't be taking  my  flowers as hers,"

"Mick doesn't know shit. We do anything. I kicked her out that night,"

"And if I go to the dressing room right now, you kicked her out already?" asked Sammi, inching closer to Nikki's face with a scowl. Nikki only looked away from Sammi, trying to calm his breathing.

"She's leaving as soon as I can get her to leave," whispered Nikki.

"All you have to do is kick her to the curb. You're just making this harder for yourself," said Sammi, walking away from Nikki. She let out a deep exhale, finding her seat back on the storage crate. Nikki wanted to punch the wall in front of him but knew out of everyone. He needed his hands.

Sammi stayed hidden in the small corner of the side stage, not even moving after Guns finished their set. With sweat all on his face, Duff walked closer to Sammi. "You okay?" asked Duff, wiping his face with a hand towel. Sammi nodded, remaining silent. "If you want now, you can chill in our space while Motley plays. Stay clear of the psycho,"

Sammi gave Duff a half-hearted smile. "Thanks, but Nikki said he's kicking her out already. I'll stay here to watch him,"

Duff shrugged his shoulder. "Whatever floats your boat, girly. Don't be a stranger,"

"I won't," muttered Sammi, watching the guys retreat into their dressing room. Sammi hung her head low, playing with her boots' laces as she waited for the boys.

*

Right as Motley was done with their set, Sammi cautioned her way down the corridor, watching out for Veronica to pop out of nowhere again. The afterparty had begun, everyone walking in and out of different places to get their fix of booze or coke. When Sammi peeked her head into the boys' spacious dressing room, it was like a punch in the gut to see Veronica still in the building. She continued showing off every groupie her engagement ring, boosting her ego to see girls jealous. Tommy was already passed out on the sofa throughout the party, very much unlike him after a show. This made Sammi worried for a moment before realizing Tommy was a grown-up. This is what he chose to do tonight. Mick was nowhere to be seen for Sammi, most likely with his girlfriend. In the corner, Vince stayed making out with a girl that wasn't his girlfriend back home, Sammi only rolling her eyes. She walked further down the corridor, halting when hearing Nikki speak to someone. Sammi looked into another hallway, catching Nikki exchange money for a crinkled paper bag. Nikki's back faced Sammi, giving her the chance to go unnoticed. In Sammi's gut, she knew it was more heroin Nikki bought. Sammi only sped away to the nearest exited door, in desperate need of fresh air.

To Sammi's surprise, Duff was outside as well, sitting down while blowing smoke into the air. "Hey, didn't think you'd be out here," said Sammi, sitting beside Duff. "Parties aren't your thing?"

Duff blew out more smoke into the air before answering. "No, I like them. It's just your dudes are pretty scary to party with," chuckled Duff. "I've already gotten tired of doing it after every show,"

"Yeah, I get what you mean. I was exhausted of it when I toured with them one time,"

"Doesn't also help. I'm not really a drug kind of guy," added Duff.

Sammi tilted her head and raised an eyebrow. "Really? You don't do coke with your band?"

"Once in a blue moon, I'll snort a line, but I'm more of a drinker. Slash is the one who won't say no to whatever is offered to him,"

Sammi scuffed. "He does a party with Nikki back in L.A. It would be surprising if it were his idea to be Motley's opening act," Duff nodded along, continuing to smoke his cigarette. Duff was almost entirely sober compared to every other man around Sammi, making her feel comfortable in wanting to question him. Maybe Duff could be what Sammi needed. "If I asked you something, would you be honest?"

Duff scrunched his eyebrows at Sammi, flicking his cigarette bud away from them. "Ask me what exactly?"

Sammi inhaled deeply, preparing for whatever could happen. "What do you know about Nikki and him doing more than just coke?"

Duff sighed out, dropping his head against the cold concrete wall behind them, staring out above him. "Listen, Sammi, I'm going to tell you everything I know because I think you're a lovely girl, so just be prepared," Sammi nodded, biting her nails. "From what Slash has told me, Nikki's been on heroin since August. He'll shoot up with Slash or smoke it or however they do it,"

Sammi let out a dry chuckle, shaking her head as she looked away from Duff. "And where is everyone else when they get high?" asked Sammi.

"You mean where's Motley?" Sammi nodded, tears starting to well up in her eyes. "Tommy's with them… trying it,"

"Fuck!" yelled out Sammi. "Tommy's shooting up?" pleaded Sammi.

"Not exactly, but Slash has told me Tommy's tried heroin as well. That's all I know from what Slash talks about when he goes and hangs out with Nikki alone. I'm sorry," said Duff. Sammi stared out into nothing, her mind running 100 mph. All of a sudden, she stood up and began stepping away from Duff. "Hey! Where are you going?" called out Duff, standing on his feet.

Sammi turned on her heels. "Tell anyone still conscious that I'm out of here," shouted Sammi, continuing to roam into the city.

*

After a short while of walking, Sammi could hear the footsteps of someone running behind her. She told herself to keep looking forward.

"Sammi!" called out Nikki. Sammi kept her eyes forward. "Sammi! Sammi, hold up!" Nikki called out again, finally getting close enough to grab Sammi's wrist. "Hey, where are you going? Slash told me you bounced,"

Sammi pulled away from Nikki, never looking him straight in the eye. "Home. I'm going home, Nikki," uttered Sammi, eyes on the sidewalk.

Nikki scrunched his brows and curled his lip. "What? Why?"

Sammi shook her head, finally looking at Nikki dead in the face. "Guess, Nikki. Guess as to why you think I want to get the hell out of here?"

"Listen, Veronica is already gone. Let's just get back and celebrate your birthday,"

"No!" shouted Sammi.

"Why not?"

"How do I know Veronica actually left? Huh? Your fucking fiance was showing off her ring to groupies,"

"She's not my fiance! I already told you!"

"No, you didn't! You lied! Like you always do! She's here and telling everyone you're engaged!"

"What? No, I didn't, come on. Let's just go back to the venue and keep arguing if you want. You can see she's fucking gone," said Nikki, grabbing Sammi again and pulling her towards him.

Sammi pushed Nikki away from her, scowling at him. "Oh fuck off, I'm done going anywhere with you. Just leave me alone!" said Sammi walking away.

"Sammi, what's bothering you? I know it's not just the shit with Veronica anymore," followed Nikki.

"Figure it out," mumbled Sammi.

Nikki rolled his eyes. "Sammi! Just blurt it out!"

"I know you're using it again!" shouted Sammi, halting to glare at Nikki. Nikki stopping in his tracks. I know you got your hands on heroin!"

"Sammi…"

"Admit it. After you told me you were off and finally wanted to stay off that shit!"

"It just happened," uttered Nikki, almost unable to look at Sammi.

"You've been saying that for a long time, Nikki. You getting high never just happens!"

"I'm trying not to make it bad again. You have to believe me,"

Sammi shook her head. "Why should I? You're just spewing anything you want me to hear,"

"No, I am not! I'm serious!"

"No, you're not. It never just happens. It's never been something that just happens! I just saw you fucking buy heroin almost right in front of me!"

"It was something else," lied Nikki.

"Really? I know what heroin looks like. I've had to flush down the toilet before, remember?" spat Sammi. "You know, I had to have a stranger tell me the truth! Out of everyone here,"

"Who? Who told you?"

"Duff. Duff told me how you like to help Tommy and Slash try some. My own brother,"

"Can you please cut me some slack? I've promised everyone that I will go to rehab and work it out as soon as this tour is over. I'm only having one last hit with junk,"

"You really think I'm going to believe that?

"Yes!"

"Why?"

"Because you care about me. Why should you not believe me?"

"Well, let's see? You lie. All the goddamn time, you've been lying! Time after time, for the past four years since knowing you, you've lied to me. You've never given a shit about anyone but yourself. You only care about drugs, and I'm the idiot for putting up with it!"

"That's not true. You know I care about you. You're the only person I still give a shit about,"

"No, I don't, Nikki. You don't care about me anymore. You haven't a single shit about for two years or however long we've been doing this. This is why I wanted to stay away! From this!"

"You still feel that way? You still want to be far away from me?" asked Nikki, a sting in his heart.

"Yes. Yes, I do. And I should've kept it that way. I should've never gone to talk to you. Only to have you put fake hope in my head that we can be together,"

"You can't be mad at me for the drugs. Look at everyone around us. We all do it! You've even done it!" shouted Nikki.

"Because of you!"

"It wasn't because of me," Nikki shook his head.

"Yeah. Yeah, it freaking was. You've given EVERYONE drugs! And take some into that dark corner you love to hide,"

Nikki couldn't look at Sammi. He knew she was right in her arguments. "Sammi, let's just go back inside and talk,"

"No. And another thing, Tommy and Vince never even knew where to find hard drugs before you. They didn't need you mumbling in their ears. They were great before without you. Everyone was great without you!"

"Please don't say that," whispered Nikki, tightening his fists by his side.

"Why? Because you know it's true?" asked Sammi with sarcasm.

"Sammi, please," Nikki begged.

Sammi stared at Nikki with a coldness like never before. "Let me add another person to the list. You are a selfish person who can't even see that your friend is in bad shape health-wise. Do you even know how bad you treat Mick? I bet he'd be living a nice comfortable life if he never met you either. But instead, he just became a punching bag for your sad, pathetic life,"

"You don't mean it. Please tell me you don't mean it,"

Sammi cocked a smile that was never pleasant. "I do. Everyone would be so much better off if none of us met Nikki Sixx. I wish Tommy never met you. I wish I never got introduced to you. Because then I wouldn't have to keep the fantasy that you and I can ever be together. So how about you do one last favor and leave me the fuck alone? I'm done with your shit, and I don't care how many times I have to repeat it to believe it," fumed Sammi with venom, ready to keep walking away.

Nikki closed his eyes, feeling every word like a punch in the face. "Sam," muttered Nikki.

"If you want to go kill yourself off heroin, be my guest. I don't give a shit if you do. You're bound to do it anyway," Sammi added, finally walking away from Nikki. As she stepped further away from Nikki, Nikki wanted to run after her but only stayed frozen.

"Sammi!" Nikki yelled out. Sammi ignored him. "Please! Sammi!" Nikki yelled out again.

"What?!" answered Sammi, scowling at Nikki as she turned to him.

Nikki stepped closer to Sammi, still managing to keep a distance. "I… I love you," uttered Nikki, feeling his head spinning.

Sammi pressed her lips tightly, feeling tears almost spilling. "Don't. Do not do that,"

"Please, Sammi. I love you. I'm begging-"

"No!" yelled out Sammi, tears streaming down her face. "Forget it! Forget me! Forget us! Forget we were ever together. You and I never happened!"

"Princess. I'm begging you, please don't cut me out like this. Not again," said Nikki, almost able to touch Sammi.

Sammi remained silent, staring Nikki down. If there was one way to get to leave her alone, she knew how. "Go. Away. Frankie," said Sammi.

That was it. That was the final punch in the face for Nikki. Nikki froze from the sound of that name, never thinking to hear it from the one person he cared about. Sammi didn't need to say anything else, finally walking away from Nikki for good. Nikki could only watch Sammi disappear into the Oakland streets, feeling the wind send chills down his spine. A shaky breath was let out by Nikki, a tear rolling down his face. Nikki rubbed his eyes viciously, dragging his hands down his face. The only thing Nikki was able to do was to turn around and walk back alone to the venue. The other thing Nikki was able to do was to hide from everyone around him. Not caring when hearing people decided to speak to him.

[bittykimmy13]

An Extra Roommate ~ Home (GT) (Final)

The 15th and FINAL installment of An Extra Roommate!! <3

Thank you so much for reading!  It was fun to see this little short story series take on an arc and have an ending. No plans for a sequel or anything, but I might write some one-shots every once in a while <3

(( Read from the beginning ))

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

Lily sprinted all the way back to the dormitory, abandoning her post at the library. People could make off with the stack of anatomy and philosophy books and sell them online for all she cared. She cut across snowy courtyards and lawns, slipping to hands and knees a few times when she bolted over sidewalks. It felt like a lifetime before the dormitories came into view. She skirted into the stairwell, digging out her keys.

She burst into the kitchen entrance, startling everyone inside. They were all there. It took a moment to process it as she shut the door behind her. Zoe, Natalia, and Amelie stared at her in alarm, and part of her wondered if she had imagined getting those texts and missed calls.

“Did you seriously come all the way from the library without a coat?” Natalia exclaimed.

Lily hadn’t even noticed the cold on her way over, but now her breath felt harsh in her throat. Before she could answer, her eyes landed on the kitchen counter.

Cassie…

Cassie.

“Cassie!” Lily whimpered.

It was Cassie who moved first, running across the counter to get closer to the front door. Even as her thoughts raced with a million questions, Lily noticed how Cassie struggled to move at full speed—as if she was hurt. Snapping out of her stupor, Lily closed the distance with a choked cry. Though her hands shook, she didn’t hesitate to scoop up Cassie. 

“You’re here.” Lily laughed breathlessly. “You’re here.” 

She cupped her hands close and hugged Cassie to her cheek. When she felt a squirm in response, she thought she had made a mistake by being so forward. But Cassie wasn’t trying to get away. She was trying to get closer, leaning fervently against Lily’s face. The tiny but desperate movement made Lily’s throat tighten with a sob, and she hugged as hard as she dared.

Cassie couldn’t stifle a little gasp of discomfort.

“Oh, sorry!” Lily pulled her away, eyes scouring her in cupped palms. She caught sight of bruises and deep marks that circled Cassie’s wrists. Cassie was also clutching her side as though the area was tender. Lily drew in a sharp breath. “You’re hurt…”

Her eyes flew to the other girls. She didn’t really mean to look accusatory, but still, she cupped Cassie a little more protectively.

“Hey—we did not hurt her,” Amelie said, crossing her arms. “Zoe already accused us.”

“Well, you gotta admit, things looked pretty shady,” Zoe said.

Natalia huffed. “We told you already! We saved her.”

As they argued, Lily looked among them all, then down at her hands. She couldn’t do this right now. She felt weirdly exposed, standing there in the kitchen, cradling Cassie, while her roommates threw glances at her. In the past couple months, she found there was only so much she could handle at once. As far as she was concerned, Cassie took the top priority spot right now.

Without excusing herself or even looking at anyone, Lily brushed past her roommates and headed to her bedroom. The other girls fell quiet in their argument, and though she felt their eyes, no one tried to stop her. 

As Lily entered her room, her eyes automatically darted to the bottom of her bookshelf. It had been second-nature to look there, to hope that she would spot some sign that Cassie had returned. Even though she was utterly aware of the tiny weight in her hands, it still didn’t quite feel real.

She went for the bed, unable to bear the thought of setting Cassie down on the hard surface of the desk. She put Cassie on the pillow, then crawled onto the bed with aching slowness, laying face down with her chin resting on her clasped hands. Her eyes darted fervently over Cassie, pinpointing every bruise along her pale skin. Before Lily could help it, her eyes flooded with tears. 

“Oh.” Cassie shifted to hands and knees, moving closer to the edge of the pillow. “Please don’t cry.”

Lily sniffled and looked up at the ceiling, whipping her cheeks. “You’re hurt. How… how?”

“It wasn’t your friends! It was—” Her voice choked off for a second, and she looked like she would join Lily with the waterworks. “Vince,” she said in a softer voice.

A little shudder of realization rattled through Lily. “Have you been with him this whole time? What happened, Cassie?”

Cassie’s lips pulled into a tight line as she looked down. Little tears glimmered on her face.

“Oh, no—” Lily reached out and touched her cheek, feather-light. “Never mind. I’m sorry. You don’t have to tell me.”

“No, I… I want to.” Cassie’s little hand reached up to touch Lily’s finger, tentative. “That night, in the living room… he showed up. He thought he was saving me from you and Zoe. When I didn’t want to go, he got mad. He knocked me out. The next thing I knew, I was in the walls with him.”

A coldness crept into Lily that she wasn’t quite sure would ever leave. “This whole time?”

Cassie met her gaze and gave a single nod.

“I’m—” Lily’s voice cracked as she started to pull her finger away. “I’m so sorry, Cassie. So, so sorry. He hurt you because you were talking to me and Zoe, didn’t he? He… maybe he would have left you alone if I didn’t—”

She stopped short when Cassie lunged out and took hold of her finger in a fierce hug. “It’s not your fault,” Cassie said. “You never forced me to be your friend. I wanted to be. I don’t know how much longer I would have survived without you helping me.”

Lily shook her head. “You would have been okay. You’re so strong, Cassie, you don’t even know.”

Cassie shook her head right back and held on stubbornly. “I don’t just mean the food. I mean… I was alone. I needed someone. I needed you.”

Speechless for a second, all Lily could do was stare. She brushed her thumb over Cassie’s shoulder, terrified of agitating any injuries. Angry heat rose up in place of the coldness in her gut. 

“Where’s Vince now?” Lily asked.

Cassie gave her a startled look. “He’s… he’s gone. We were moving to a new spot when Amelie found me. He’s done with me. He left me to die. Please—don’t look for him. I never even want to think about him again.”

Swallowing her anger, Lily sighed. “Fine. If that’s what you want.” 

It wasn’t easy. But if she hunted him down, what would she do besides prove his opinion of humans right?

“I’m sorry I didn’t find you.” Lily loosely curled her other fingers around Cassie. “If I had just been awake to stop him that night…”

“You helped me,” Cassie said, squeezing tighter. “Whether you knew it or not. I felt like I was hearing your voice telling me to stay strong. And then… I was so scared you would forget about me. I wanted to escape to make sure that didn’t happen.”

“What? Cassie, how could I ever forget about you… I thought about you every day. Every minute.”

As Lily’s voice cracked once again, and she crawled closer to lay her head on the pillow. She gazed at Cassie, but she wasn’t ready when Cassie leaned forward suddenly and pressed a kiss to her cheek. The gesture was delicate, fleeting, but it felt like a surge of electricity shot through Lily. She froze up, staring.

Cassie’s eyes were just as wide. For a second, it looked like she was going to apologize. Instead, she said, “I just missed you so much.”

Lily inched her hand close again and braced her fingertips to Cassie’s back. Then she leaned in and grazed her lips on the side of Cassie’s face. “I missed you more.”

~~~~~

When Lily left the room with Cassie in hand, she swore she heard shuffling on the other side. Sure enough, when she opened the door, the other girls were still striding away as if they hadn’t been trying to listen in. Amelie had one hand on the back of the couch, as if she had been there all along, and Natalia pretended to be interested with her phone all the sudden. Only Zoe still stood somewhat close to the door, her arms crossed and an expectant look on her face.

Without a word, Lily went over to the coffee table in front of the TV and set Cassie down. She promptly turned to hug Amelie by the couch, and then Natalia. She whispered “thank you” to them both, knowing she would break down again if she said anything else. 

After hearing Cassie’s explanation of what happened, Lily felt bad for even thinking they would do anything to hurt her. If it weren’t for either of them, Cassie would have not made it home as soon as she did. Maybe ever.

As Lily pulled away from Natalia’s warm embrace, Zoe huffed. “Are you kidding? I’m the one who texted you.”

“Oh, right.” Lily raised her eyebrows at Zoe and lunged for a hug.

Zoe squirmed away, pushing her arms off. “No hugs! Just buy me a coffee or something!”

“So,” Natalia said, moving to kneel beside the coffee table. Lily swallowed the protective instinct to get between her and Cassie. Natalia merely propped her elbows up. “What now?”

For the first time in months, Lily could actually be excited about the end of the semester. With Cassie back and no longer having to hide in the dorm, every piece seemed to fall into place. “I… heard you all saying something about watching a movie tonight? It sounds like a nice send-off before we leave tomorrow.”

Amelie beamed. “Nice for you to join us again.” Her eyes fell to the coffee table. “And nice to have you for the first time, Mausebär.”

As they settled in front of the TV, laying out the last of the snacks from the pantry, Lily felt an unsettling sense of unease. It felt so familiar. The last time she had seen Cassie was not unlike now—just with more participants. Natalia and Amelie curled up on the sofa, while Zoe and Lily were on the floor.

Cassie was in Lily’s hand, and by the look on her face, it seemed like she was thinking about the same thing. 

Curling her fingers closer and cupping her other hand around, Lily held her closer. “There’s more of us to keep you safe now,” she said softly.

Nodding, Cassie tucked her legs to the side and leaned against the curve of Lily’s fingers. “I’m not leaving you again,” Cassie said, even softer.

Reassurance gradually replaced the dreadful sense of deja vu.

“If you two are just gonna gaze longingly into each other’s eyes, you are welcome to get a room,” Zoe said.

Snapping her gaze away from Cassie, Lily felt her face flush. But Cassie was giggling, surprisingly and wonderfully unbothered by the comment.

Lily decided to be just as unbothered.

~~~~~

The world flew by at a speed that Cassandra didn’t know was possible. It was even more mind-boggling that Lily was controlling the speed of the massive car. Zoe held her up to the window as they watched the winter landscape fly by.

It was strange how everything was freezing outside, yet she had never been warmer in her life.

She should have been terrified. For the first time in her life, she was leaving the campus. It wasn’t going to be easy, still having to hide at Lily’s house, but at least she would be long gone from Vince for nearly a month. Even when they returned to the dorm next semester, there was something comforting about having the other roommates be aware of her. Less hiding. Less fear of being spotted.

More assurance that she was safe.

“Alright, my arm’s starting to cramp,” Zoe said. 

Lily scoffed. “She weighs literally nothing.”

“So?” Zoe pulled her hand away from the window, bringing her other one up to steady Cassandra. “Can’t expect me to hold my arm up for three hours.”

Without bothering to ask if it was alright, Zoe bridged her hand to Lily’s shoulder and tipped it. Cassandra slid down by Lily’s neck, noting the way that her skin seemed to turn warmer when she reached out to steady herself. Cassandra’s face flushed in turn, but it was a nice feeling.

Lily shrugged her shoulder, nudging Cassandra closer to her neck. Although they couldn’t see each other’s faces, it felt as though they shared a look.

“You guys are gross,” Zoe said matter-of-factly, somehow sounding totally endeared. She reclined her seat back, and yawned exaggeratedly.

With a huff, Lily adjusted her hold on the steering wheel. “She does this every time—passes out before we’re more than half an hour into the trip.”

Cassandra settled in, getting comfortable with the idea of being able to relax for once in her life. “Well… I’m here now.”

Lily was quiet for a moment, then gave a little chuckle. “I’m in good company.”

[anywhozits]

All I Really Want Chapter 7

Rating: M

Pairing: Kristanna eventuallyyy

Verse: 90s High School AU / frozen retelling

Chapter Summary: Anna celebrates her 15th birthday.

Notes: Thank you for reading!!! Also there is some language, underage drinking, and homophobia in this chapter - be warned! (also tw emotional abuse)

Read on Ao3 here!

June twenty-fucking-first.

Another year. Fifteen, now.

And… Anna was excited, objectively, sure. At her very core, she felt excited because she knew she should be excited. But still, the very nature of this date always left her with a huge pit in her stomach.

There was just so much pressure. So much hope and want and desire for the love she craved to fill her first moments of fifteen.

Anna used to think she loved her birthday. The attention… the entire day naturally being about her—like, she knew she was supposed to enjoy it. She loved attention. She’d never deny that.

But…

In reality, her birthday stressed her out. There were all these expectations. Wanting people to acknowledge her, surprise her, and do all these special things to show they care. And yeah, this was probably way too much to ask on her 15th birthday but she wanted to feel … desired.

And yet she worried that wouldn’t happen this year.

Because her birthday was and had always been so full of disappointment.

Elsa forgot. Her parents forgot. Over the years one or two or all three of them forgot. They would ignore her the whole dumb day and then Anna would end up sobbing alone in her huge stupid room that had no reason to be so huge when it felt so lonely.

So far today, not one member of her family had acknowledged her. Her mother was definitely taking a nap or something. Who the hell knew where her dad was… and Elsa hadn’t called (yet, Anna thought, maybe too optimistically), but she was busy at this pre-college academic program at Pomona. So she had an okay excuse.

At least this year Anna got to spend her birthday with Hans. With Hans, maybe it’d be different. He already made the prom milestone so special that she had no doubt he’d do the same for her birthday.

No disappointments this year. Fingers crossed.

And how could she forget? She had Kristoff, too. And Kristoff never forgot. Kristoff always tried his best to make it special.

In fact, he’d already done something for her—he’d left her a card and a mixtape. This had to be her 37th Kristoff Bjorgman mixtape. And every new tape was better than the last.

He... well, um—that gesture alone made her feel desired.

She was officially on her third listen of the mixtape, and the sweet sweet tunes of Modest Mouse’s Dramamine filled her room.

In the past, he tended to include recordings of Pissed Off Kids, but Kristoff had made it extra special this time—the final song of the tape was instead a solo of Kristoff’s smooth tenor singing Better Man by Pearl Jam. Naturally he also hit all of the epic guitar riffs.

Anna loved it.

This lovely thought paired with the swelling sounds of Dramamine put her in a trance. Deep in her emotions, Anna swayed to the beat, instantly craving something more.

Traveling swallowing Dramamine

Look at your face like you're killed in a dream

She crawled on the floor and under her bed, pulling out a blue plastic box that housed her entire stash. The stash was once discovered by the family’s housekeeper, Anna (pronounced A-nuh not Ah-nuh), who subsequently revealed it to Agnarr and Iduna. Obviously, they did nothing about it. Duh. They gave zero shits. Zero. And it had devastated her, somehow. To not be yelled at or grounded… to not have her entire stash confiscated.

And you think you've figured out everything

I think I know my geography pretty damn well

Clearly, Anna had no reason to hide it anymore but leaving it out in the open took most of the fun away. So here it was back in the blue plastic box under her bed. Various bottles of alcohol, rolling paper, a pipe, a lighter, some weed, and an unopened bottle of Xanax with Iduna Larsen’s name on the label.

You say what you need so you'll get more

If you could just milk it for everything

Actually, come to think of it—Anna’s entire stash had been collected from her parent’s room.

I've said what I said, and you know what I mean

But I can't still focus on anything

Looking squarely at the box and its contents, Anna bit her lip. She needed this. And, why? Well, it was a combination of her baseline birthday nerves and the aftermath of the intense sob-fest she had when the oh-so-topical So Unsexy by Alanis Morrissette played on Kristoff’s mixtape. Oh, and of course the fact that her parents probably fucking forgot her birthday yet again… So, she took out the rolling paper and the Ziploc baggie that contained a few grams of weed.

Then, some weird crashing sound echoed from her window, which made her gasp and spook slightly.

Walking over to the window, drawing the curtains, and emerging onto her Juliet balcony, she noticed Hans and his goofy grin, standing in the driveway like he was a regular John Cusack.

When she saw that he had a bunch of tiny pebbles in his hand, it all made sense.

Anna’s heart fluttered. She loved it. She, like, literally loved it. So romantic.

“Can I come up?” He shouted, and Anna blushed. She was basically real-life Juliet at this point.

“Of course!” Anna called, and Hans started off in a sprint toward the rose trellis that led up the side of the house and into her window. “You don’t have to sneak in, you know!”

But he smiled devilishly and yelled, “I want to!”

Anna laughed and rolled her eyes at his definitely not-necessary efforts, but her stomach also did a few backflips. It was literally 500 times more romantic for him to climb up the trellis than it was for him to simply walk through the unlocked front door.

He pulled himself onto the balcony and Anna kissed him deeply. She couldn’t help but sigh—she was so, unbelievably happy to see him today.

“Happy birthday, babe,” he cooed in between kisses.

“Aww, thank you! I’m so happy you’re here.” After kissing a few more times, they ended up back in her bedroom where Kristoff’s singing now boomed through the room. Anna’s eyes fell to the blue plastic box—right. She had plans. “I was gonna do a little something to, uh, match the general vibe of this mixtape Kristoff made for me if you maybe wanted to join?” Anna gestured to the rolling paper and Ziploc bag.

Hans shook his head but then did a double-take. “Kristoff made you a mixtape?”

“Yep! He’s made me, like, tons of them.”

She lies and says she's in love with him, can't find a better man.

“Who’s this? Pearl Jam or some shit?”

“Yeah, but not—"

“Damn, he really thinks he’s emo, huh?”

“—because it’s Kristoff who’s singing. Pearl Jam cover, yeah, but…”

She dreams in color, she dreams in red, can't find a better man.

Hans laughed, heartily. “He’s pathetic.”

…huh?

“What?”

“You’re telling me he specifically chose this song to sing for you, recorded it, and then actually had the balls to give it to you?”

“Uh-huh.”

Another robust chuckle from Hans.

Anna furrowed her eyebrows. “What’s the big deal?”

“Are you even listening to these lyrics?”

“Um, yes, I—"

Hans laughed again. “You have no idea, do you?”

Anna pouted. She hated feeling naïve. Especially now that she was such a woman. Fifteen and a woman. Not naïve, not anywhere near naïve.

“No, I ... I know. Duh. I totally know what you’re talking about.” But she really didn’t. She had no idea what the hell he meant.

“So fucking pathetic,” Hans said, shaking his head. “But whatever. He’s not even a little bit threatening, is he?”

Threatening?

Oh.

Ohohohoh.

Hans thought… no way.

Kristoff wasn’t pathetic. He wasn’t pining after Anna or whatever. No duh he wasn’t. Absolutely no way.

They were just friends.

And, besides, Kristoff chose these songs because he knew Anna would like them. There was no connection between the themes or lyrics of the songs and how he felt about Anna. None at all… there couldn’t be a connection, because if there were, then… the whole sister thing was bullshit. But it wasn’t. No way in hell. Like, it couldn’t be.

Then why was Hans so convinced?

Before Anna could give this another thought, her bedroom door flew open.

She reflexively ran to the plastic box stash and kicked it back under her bed. For no real reason beyond wanting to keep some kind of classic-teenage air of mystery about herself.

Not that she had any earthly idea who the hell was coming barging into her room on this particular day at this particular hour.

But then when she saw the hint of blonde hair zooming past her and then engulfing her in a huge hug, she beamed. Elsa. Exactly who she wanted to come barging into her room.

“Anna!” She exclaimed as she hugged and hugged and hugged her sister. “Happy happy happy birthday! Fifteen—wow. I’m absolutely thrilled that I get to celebrate with you today.”

Anna didn’t want to pull away. So she didn’t. She held on tighter, savoring this moment she thought would never in a million years come to pass. “I’m really happy too, Els. I thought… weren’t you at school? How’d you even get here?”

“Mom and dad picked me up.”

“…really?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Why?”

“So I could be here for your birthday.”

“They should really just get you a car or something so they don’t have—” And then the pin dropped. “Wait, what?”

Anna finally pulled away from her sister and stared at her incredulously.

“Yeah—they picked me up so we could have a proper celebration.”

“But…wait. You’re saying…a proper celebration for… for my birthday? Our parents wanted to do this? For me?”

“At Hans’s insistence, actually.”

“Hans?” Anna’s eyes darted to her not-boyfriend. “You… did this?”

“Only took a couple phone calls with your parents, a few with Elsa. And then magic was made.”

“I can’t believe you did this for me.”

“Of course I did, babe. I love you.”

Anna’s heart fluttered the most it had ever fluttered. It fluttered so much she honestly worried it might fly away out of her chest and off the balcony or something totally wild like that.

Hans was perfect. She was so lucky to have Hans. The perfect not-boyfriend who made her birthday okay again. More than okay, rather. Magical, wonderful. Perfect.

She didn’t even notice as Kristoff’s next selection, All Over You, started playing in the background.

And then the door swung open again and the two essential strangers she called parents walked in to also swarm Anna with massive hugs.

It felt… strange. Uncharacteristic. Almost like… almost like seeing a teacher at the movie theater, sitting down to watch the same movie you’re seeing with friends.

That level of weird.

But at the same time, it was a type of weird that Anna embraced more than anything else.

Because her parents were hugging her… they were acknowledging her.

They hadn’t forgotten her birthday.

“I rented us a Duffy boat for the afternoon,” Agnarr explained. “Kai set it all up for us—stocked with the best Cristal and naturally Anna’s favorite charcuterie board.”

“Ooh cured meats. A birthday delight.” Shit Anna had no idea how to interact with her parents anymore. Who even was this person—cured meats? Like yeah, she loved cured meats of course but damn this felt awkward.

“Actually, we should consider heading out soon. Don’t want to find ourselves on the blacklist at the Yacht Club, you know.”

That may sound like a joke but their close family friends actually did get blacklisted from the Yacht Club. Well, it had much more to do with some kind of scandalous drug and prostitute type situation than it did with being late, but… the fear was there.

“Should we bring your stereo?”

“Oh, yeah! Yes. Great idea. Kristoff actually made me a mixtape for my birthday, so—yeah. I’d love to have that along for the celebration too!”

They brought the speaker. They brought the Cristal and the charcuterie. Anna brought her now sunny and enthused birthday disposition.

Her family. And Hans. All together. Right now. On her birthday. Like, shit.

It felt like something out of her absolute favorite dream of all time.

And, yes, this whole Duffy boat thing was the most freaking Orange County plan of all time. But that meant her dad had to have planned ahead, since Duffy boats booked up ahead of time.

She felt so loved. So loved.

Once they arranged themselves in the boat, Anna turned on the stereo. So Unsexy played again, but Alanis didn’t get to her this time. Nobody had forgotten her birthday. She wasn’t alone. She felt, like, confident for once… damn. This was nice.

Hans moved to sit next to Agnarr, looking for a lesson about driving the boat, and Iduna sat close to the two of them, smiling. It was a Good Day. Anna could already tell.

“Aww, Alanis?” Elsa asked.

“Yeah!”

“Wouldn’t’ve expected Kristoff to put this on his mixtape.”

“Well, I mean, it’s because of you.”

“What? Really?

“Mmhmm. Because he, um, he knows how much Alanis means to you and because Alanis means so much to you she means so much to me. I really—”

“That’s so sweet.”

“You mean it?”

“Yeah.” Elsa leaned in to give her sister a huge hug. “I’m happy I get to spend more time with you.”

Anna relaxed into Elsa’s hold. She would thank the stars every day for this magnificent change. “Me, too.”

“Did you know the song You Oughta Know is about Uncle Joey?”

“Shut up. Really? For real?”

“For real for real.”

“No shit,” Anna laughed. “I didn’t think he had it in him.”

“Yeah!” Hans chimed in. “No pull for Uncle Joey.”

“But, wow, yeah. Um,” Anna’s cheeks flushed red and she locked her eyes with Hans. “Guess he must’ve been pretty mind-blowing in bed.”

Hans winked at her and Anna all but shivered on the spot. Hold it together, Anna. Hold it together.

But Elsa entertained them zero, shaking her head. “He took advantage of her,” Elsa explained, crossing her arms over her chest. “He’s fifteen years older than her. And they’d already broken up when she was 21, so who knows how old she was when they started…”

Anna bit her lip, worrying this was getting a little personal. Hans was only two years older than her, so. Different story, right?

Eh. Maybe not according to Elsa.

She needed to change the subject and impulsively blurted out, “I wanna get blackout. Right now.”

Elsa shook her head again. “Anna…”

“Yeah! I mean it! You too, right? You’ll do it with me? Let’s blackout on this Cristal. Yeah?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea…”

“Oh, come on. Ms. Boring! I didn’t ask for your judgmental-as-shit opinion. Do you wanna blackout or do you wanna blackout?”

“Uh—neither?”

Anna pouted. “Boo. Boring.” She looked to Hans for more support, but he’d turned his attention back to Agnarr and the steering wheel.

“I’ll drink with you, but I don’t want to blackout. I wanna remember you turning 15.”

Anna chewed on her bottom lip. “Oh… yeah. Well, I guess I do too. Since it’s so great and all.”

“I’m not boring,” Elsa smirked.

“Prove it.”

Elsa grabbed the bottle of champagne and twisted the cap a little hesitantly but still enthusiastically. It made a loud popping sound and a little bit of the liquid spilled from the top, but both Anna and Elsa cheered when the champagne was deemed officially free.

Elsa poured them both tall glasses, and then she poured three more, remembering there were other people on this Duffy Boat and not just the two sisters.

All five raised their glasses.

To Anna. Who was now officially fifteen. Old enough to legally drink Cristal on a Duffy Boat, right? Totally.

And then Agnarr perked up, suddenly remembering his eldest daughter was also on this boat. “So, Elsa… can you tell me again why you chose Pomona over Harvard?” The way he said both school names made it more than clear how he felt about Elsa’s decision. Pomona sounded like he smelled the sweet stench of vomit infested garbage. In contrast, Harvard sounded like a choir of angels sang at the gates of heaven.

“I needed a change of pace.”

Agnarr laughed. A literally massive guffaw. “Harvard could’ve been a change of pace.”

“I don’t really—”

“But, at the end of the day, fine, you’re majoring in what—finance? Which means that your classes at this bullshit liberal arts doohickey will be miniscule. And you’ll get more time with the professors, get better letters of rec, and then end up at the Stanford GSB like your old man. That’ll really seal that fucking deal, you know? You’ll be in tip-top shape to take over The Company. Harvard or not.”

“I’m not gonna major in finance, dad.”

“Oh? So what’s the plan, then?”

“I don’t know. I like Anthropology, or maybe something like PoliSci?”

“Politics? Really?”

“Yeah,” Elsa said, her jaw clenched. “I’d love to clean up some of the damage you’ve done to this country.”

A tense silence filled the air. Elsa crossed her arms over her chest and took a nice long sip of champagne.

Until Iduna piped up, “Well, if you want my opinion—”

“I don—" Elsa started.

“—a pretty young thing like you can’t work around Bill right now.”

Agnarr guffawed again. Profoundly. He raised his glass and cheered, “Oh ho ho!” Like he won some kind of stupid battle he wasn’t even in.

Anna was utterly lost. She’d already downed one whole glass of Cristal and poured herself an entire new one without anybody noticing. Hah. Classic.

She didn’t really want to admit she was, like, this stupid or politically unaware or whatever but she also wanted to feel like part of the conversation, so she said, “Wait, what? Has something happened?”

Hans gave Anna the benefit of the doubt. “Nah, but he’s known for being a pussy hound.”

“Okay! Enough! That’s not why I said I wanted to major in PoliSci. We don’t need to get into—"

“No, no, no. This is important, Elsa. You better watch out,” Agnarr said, ignoring her plea entirely. “Listen, I don’t know how a man like Bill gets it up for a woman like Hillary. She looks like such a dyke. Not that I respect the bastard that much, but he could have any broad he wants. Any broad like you.”

“No—” Elsa raised her voice, but Iduna chuckled.

“Since she’s got my cheekbones!”

Elsa’s entire face had turned a cherry red. She was mad. Fuming, really. “—you can’t say that.”

“I can say whatever the hell I want.”

“You can’t say that,” she repeated.

“Why not? You think you’re some holier-than-thou judge of character?”

Elsa’s jaw was still insatiably clenched. “I want to go home.”

“Els?” Anna reached out her hand to touch Elsa’s shoulder in a way she hoped brought at least a marginal amount of comfort.

“Seriously,” Elsa begged, her eyes glistening with what looked like fresh tears. “Can we turn this boat around? Please?”

A lump formed in Anna’s throat and she swallowed it down. She didn’t want today to end like this, so she tried to redirect. “Um… but—we’re having fun, aren’t we? You… how about we drink more champagne?”

Anna knew Elsa was mad. She knew that their parents had upset her beyond belief, but this was the only time she’d spent with all of them in the same place in… literally forever. She didn’t want it to end prematurely. No matter how mad Elsa was. Besides, Anna had been there, too. She’d been on the receiving end of comments like that countless times.

It stung, sure. But it wasn’t unexpected. That was just what happened when you spent time with Agnarr and Iduna. They were like parasites.

But the kind of parasite Anna still yearned to have in her life… if that made any sense at all?

Thankfully Elsa seemed to snap out of it a bit and turned back to Anna. “I’m sorry, yeah. You’re right. I…” She added in a whisper, “I shouldn’t let them get to me.”

“Yeah—no. Never!” Anna beamed. Crisis averted. “Drink more!”

Elsa took one big gulp of the champagne. “Maybe now’s as good a time as any. Um… I have something for you.”

“Oooh for me?!” Anna squealed when Elsa pulled out an envelope from her back pocket.

“Open it.”

It was the cutest handmade card ever. What Anna recognized instantly as something they would exchange as kids. Classic white printer paper, cut out into the shape of an A. And inside was the sweetest note of all time. Not long. Never long. Elsa wasn’t the most feelings-y. Or not so much that she wasn’t feelings-y, but she didn’t really have a knack for expressing all of the feelings that brewed deep inside her soul.

Inside this note of absolutely wonderfully sweet words was the fact that Elsa had decided to get her the most fun gift of all time—a night at the local roller rink. A disco roller rink night, too, which sounded five hundred million times more fun than any old roller rink night.

So, Anna squealed again. “Oh my God! Elsa! This sounds so, so, so fun! I’m so excited I can’t wait I’m, like, literally the most excited ever for real I’m, like, oh snap I’m rambling but that just means you know how excited I am!”

“I thought you’d like it.”

“Like it? I love it!”

“You can choose whenever you want to go. I can find a way to get here.”

“Okay! I can’t wait!”

Anna had always considered herself forever an experience over a material present person. And an experience present from Elsa of all people only made it all the more special. Quality time with her sister. Shit, she was so excited.

Honestly, ‘so excited’ hardly began to cover it. Anna was ecstatic. Absolutely ecstatic.

It felt almost like… everything was going perfectly. Kristoff’s music played in the background. Hans and her dad had started laughing and carrying on what seemed like meaningful conversation… Iduna was smiling to herself as she usually did on a Good Day. And here Elsa and Anna were. Together. For the first time in forever.

“I’m so happy!” Anna yelled this loud enough that everybody snapped to attention, expecting a speech or something of the like. “This has to be the best birthday I’ve ever had in my whole life. I… thank you for not forgetting. I know—that’s happened before, but—"

Iduna clicked her tongue. “What are you talking about? We’ve never forgotten your birthday. We’re your parents.”

…what?

Was Anna wrong? Had she made it up? She thought she remembered several birthdays in a row her parents had forgotten… since… probably since Elsa had been shipped off to boarding school. It happened at least every other year.

But.

Her mother seemed to think differently. And Anna knew she could be a bit dramatic sometimes.

So…

Maybe that was all a load of BS and Anna was actually absolutely bonkers.

Shit.

“Anna, dear, your mother’s right. We’d never forget your birthday,” Agnarr explained.

Okay, yeah. All right. So then she was literally bonkers. Batshit crazy. Living in some kind of crazy dream world?

“Okay,” was all Anna said, in a tiny voice. She didn’t know what to think.

Except that maybe she really was crazy after all.

But she tried to push that aside. Something to unpack a bit more later.

She needed to enjoy this moment.

And due to this decision, from that point on, the Duffy boat ride went smoothly. They drank their champagne. They finished a few bottles. More than any of them would care to admit, especially because Agnarr and Iduna served the alcohol to minors and whatever. But regardless, they had a great time. In the end.

Sure, Elsa refused to speak to their parents, but thankfully she was never put on the spot again so that really didn’t put a damper on anything.

Hans kept Agnarr company, Iduna kept to herself, and Anna and Elsa spent the entire time talking each other’s ear off about literally everything.

Anna made sure to include all of the dirty details of her own life. Her chest puffed out when she talked about Hans and everything they’d done to celebrate their not-relationship that Anna still continued to make Elsa believe was a real relationship.

But eventually, it came to an end.

The end of an era. The end of this somewhat happy family dynamic Anna wanted to have 100% of the time.

Agnarr and Iduna hugged the girls goodbye. They were getting dinner with some friends and had to dash.

Which left Elsa, Anna, and Hans to fend for themselves.

Anna was a little bit disappointed that her parents had left them alone, but after what she considered such a great afternoon, she didn’t want to dwell on it.

Focus on the positives, Anna! Keep those in mind!

So, she turned to Hans. The orchestrator. The one who made it all happen.

“Oooh, Hans!” Anna jumped up to give him a peck on the lips. “That was awesomesauce! Like, hands down the best birthday—I totally, totally loved it, thank you!”

“Hold that thought, babe,” he smiled, snaking one hand around her waist and using the other to cup her chin. “I’ve still got one more thing planned.”

“Really, really? You do?”

“To the beach house!”

Anna giggled. She loved him. She now officially loved her birthday. She couldn’t wait.

[a-soul-among-the-stars]

Freeze Your Brain

TW: Hypothermia, Talk of death, Logan angst, All sympathetic sides

Relationships: Loginceit/Roloceit, Platonic DLAMPTR

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

Logan hated the cold.

It was just fact. As sure as he was Logic or that Thomas was his host.

Everyone in the mind palace knew he hated the cold, but nobody knew why. Deceit had a real reason; he was only half-snake, yet fully cold-blooded. Virgil and Patton enjoyed the cold simply because it was a reason for hoodies. Roman always said he liked the cold since it gave a chance for his “hotness to stand out” (but everyone knew he just liked the excuse for cuddles). And Remus… nobody knew for-sure what Remus preferred. He didn’t talk about it much, but he often shoved ice down his pants. So.

But Logan… Logan hated the cold. He didn’t have a legitimate reason, but it always gave him a bad feeling. A really bad feeling.

But a nervous feeling was hardly a reason to forbid Thomas from doing anything that involved the cold. So when Thomas was invited to go out with friends for ice cream, who was Logan to deny him such a simple pleasure?

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

All the sides were sitting together in the living room of the mind palace.

Patton and Virgil sat by each other, Patton on a chair with Virgil on the carpet in front of him. Patton was carefully rubbing the knots from his shoulders while they exchanged jokes, giggles occasionally causing a pause in the onslaught of pun-related humor.

Across the room, Remus sat alone in an armchair, criss-cross, tablet on his lap and his hair in a bun. He had reading glasses on and his tongue stuck out slightly as he focused on his work.

Deceit and Roman were laying together. Dee’s head was on Roman’s chest while the latter dramatically recounted stories from the Imagination. Logan was sitting close enough that his shoulders occasionally brushed Roman’s, but far enough away that he could easily flip pages of the book he was reading, The CandyMakers by Wendy Mass (a bit of a childish read, but one of Logan’s favorites nevertheless.)

Everyone in the quiet room jumped as a small bell rung out from outside the mindscape, except for Remus, who simply pressed a button on the remote to turn on the television.

The screen showed Thomas as he walked into the ice cream shop with some of his friends, a few more inside. Thomas, along with two others, walked up to get their food first.

Meanwhile, Logan couldn’t seem to rid himself of the discomfort sitting in his stomach. He rested his head on Roman’s shoulder, hoping that nothing bad happened.

Then Joan proposed a competition. They and Thomas would see who could finish their ice cream first, and the loser would pay for the other’s ticket to the movie they were planning to see later.

Logan immediately opened his mouth to object, but looking around, everyone else seemed at peace with the idea. Even the literal embodiment of Thomas’s anxiety didn’t seem to have a problem. So when Thomas laughed and accepted the challenge, Logan stayed quiet.

It was fine. Everything was fine.

Talyn rolled their eyes, counting down from ten before enjoying their own ice cream like a sensible person.

Logan stiffened suddenly as a sound was ripped from his lips before everything went dark.

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

Deceit never saw what happened. He just remembered feeling Logan’s head suddenly remove itself from its resting place on his shoulder. He remembered hearing a strangled sound, halfway between a gasp and a scream. And then nothing.

The air turned with a bitter chill and frost crept onto the television. Everyone jumped into a standing position, looking around for their missing side.

Roman inhaled quickly before pushing the couch aside and diving through the newly formed hole in the floor. Patton brought his hands to his mouth. He ran into the kitchen, putting water on the stove and grabbing a pile of towels from a cupboard. He then dashed up the stairs, coming back down seconds later, arms full of blankets. He put all the blankets and towels into a pile, before running toward the bathroom.

Deceit shook out of his daze, reaching out to stop Patton.

“Pat, what’s going on?” Patton looked up to his eyes frantically before shaking his head and pushing Deceit away.

“No time to explain,” Patton called behind him. “But hurry!”

Deceit ran after him, following his instructions to grab the box labeled Emergency from under the sink. He was about to ask why, what was happening, when Virgil and Remus shouted their names from the living room.

Deceit ran, freezing in front of the doorway in fear, seeing a hand reaching through the hole in the floor. He gasped before running forward to help Virgil and Remus pull Roman out of the water, who in turn, pulled out another body. Patton ran in, instantly grabbing the towels and giving some to Roman who helped him dry off an unconscious Logan.

Remus grabbed a towel left on the stack, gently wrapping it around his brother’s shoulders. Roman thanked him, but there was no smile on his face. Not in a time like this.

Roman snapped, transferring Logan into softer, warmer clothing.

“Can’t you just snap him dry?” Deceit asked, slightly panicked. But Roman just shook his head sadly.

“Not from something like this. Believe me, I would if I could.”

“Wait a minute, you mean this has happened before?” Virgil asked. He looked at the two sides currently exchanging sad looks.

As Patton went off to take care of the hot water, Roman picked up his still-unconscious boyfriend, sitting down on the couch after Remus had moved it back to its original position. He gently combed Logan’s hair with his fingers, kissing his forehead softly. Roman looked at the others, guilt obvious in his eyes.

“A few years ago, before we knew any of you, it was just Patton, Logan and me in the mindscape. It was Thomas’s 15th birthday, and some friends took him out for ice cream. There was another thing that they were going to do afterward, so everyone had to eat quickly. Logan had tried to warn Thomas to be careful but,” he cut himself off to take a steadying breath. “It was too late.

“Logan suddenly froze. He couldn’t move. He tried to tell us something, but he-,” Roman cleared his throat, blinking away the tears in his eyes. “The floor gave way. We didn’t know what to do. He wasn’t coming up so we… I jumped through the floor. It was so cold. But I kept swimming down. Luckily cold water is really clear, but Lo was so far down. Eventually, I found him. He didn’t move and his eyes were frozen shut. I grabbed his waist and I swam as hard as I could. But I thought I was going to make it. I-I thought he was going to die. For some reason, the water wasn’t affecting me. I could breathe, and while it was cold, it wasn’t unbearably so. But Lo…” Roman clutched him tighter to his chest. “Maybe it’s because he’s Logic and I’m creativity. I can imagine a world where I could breathe underwater, but it wouldn’t be logical.”

Everyone was quiet for a second, simply processing his words, before Remus tentatively asked, “What happened next?” Deceit was almost surprised by his tone, but he shouldn’t have been. Everyone loved Logan, more than they would probably ever admit.

Roman sighed, readjusting the side in his arms before settling again to continue.

“I managed to get him through the hole in the floor in time before it sealed shut, but he didn’t wake up right away. Neither Patton nor I knew anything about hypothermia, so we did all we could to get him warm. Eventually he woke up, but… it wasn’t pretty. He was panicking. He became terrified of the ocean and the cold. In the end, we decided, Logan included, to wipe his memory of that. He’s still afraid of the ocean and fairly uneasy about the cold. But we were foolish. We didn’t tell him why. We didn’t tell Thomas either. But we always remembered. And today… we… I failed.”

“Y-you did-didn’t fail.” Everyone rushed over to the couch. And there was Logan. Stuttering, freezing cold, and clearly terrified, but Logan nevertheless. Patton ran in with a portable mug, smudged tear tracks clear on his cheeks. He grabbed a few of the blankets from the pile, along with the emergency kit. Deceit helped Roman gently sit Logan on the couch, wrapping more blankets around him and holding him tightly to help him preserve body heat.

Patton opened the box, taking out a few warm compresses, placing one on the back of Logan’s neck, another on his chest. He gave Logan two more for the spaces between his abdomen and each leg. He offered Logan the mug, smiling gently.

Maybe it was the gentle treatment Patton was giving him, maybe it was the pain of the cold, or maybe it was just the stress of it all. But whatever it was, it just became too much for the poor Logical side.

He curled suddenly into Deceit, hiding his face in his capelet. Deceit smiled sadly, picking up his small boyfriend and scooting next to Roman, who in turn wrapped his arms around the both of them. Remus and Patton surrounded the trio while Virgil walked over to the television to put on Big Hero 6. Logan was asleep in seconds.

Maybe Logan will be a bit more fragile for the next few weeks. And maybe the nightmares will keep Thomas awake a bit more often. But maybe… maybe that’s okay.

Maybe they’ll be okay.

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

Oneshot Taglist:

@kazoo-senpai

@ameliessanderssidesblog you said you wanted logan angst?

[bcimbatmandude]

Roronoa Rain- Part One

A/N: hello!! I started a new story on fan fiction, and I wanted to share it on here as well. It’s One Piece which is my true love of shows and stories. It’s a sibling fic between Zoro and the OC and a possible romance as well. Anyway, y’all enjoy!!

“Zoro-nii you said it wouldn’t take long to get to the next town!!” I whined, trying to resist the urge to stomp my foot. “It took forever!” “Stop whining,” he grunted. He was sitting cross legged in the boat, head reclined back and eyes closed. “I’m so hungry!!”

“Laaaand!!!!” I cried triumphantly, reaching over the edge of the boat and shoving my hands in the water, trying and failing to push the boat ever faster towards land. My eyes grew big as we got closer and I began chanting.

“Land..land..land...laaaandd!! Food food foooood!!!!!”

“Oi!” Zoro shouted suddenly. I got over excited as I usually did, and tried to jump out of the boat a little too soon, planting face first into the sand. I popped right back up though, and thrust my pointer finger into the air triumphantly. “Land!” I shouted for the final time, and made to take off towards the road that would hopefully lead us to a town.

“Oi!” I heard behind me, and suddenly my progress forward was jolted to a stop. I looked back towards my brother with a whine, my feet continuing to move but my body unable to.

“Zorrrroooo-niiiii!” I whined, pulling on my shirt that he’d grabbed on to. “Let go!!” I pinched his hand but it was to no avail, as Zoro just rolled his eyes and pulled me closer so I was forced to face him.

“Meet me at the town bar in an hour, and don’t eat too many sweets. Stay out of trouble,” he grunted again, and I quickly nodded. “K Zo-Zo,” I agreed, and he sighed, making me grin. He hated that name.

My brother and I quickly parted ways and I made my way into town. The first place I was stopping? A sweet shop of course. I hummed to myself as I passed a variety of stores, smiling at the vendors sweetly.

“Yay!” I cried, finally setting my eyes on a small bakery. My stomach growled just thinking about the awesomny goodness inside, and I rubbed my hands together in excitement before running towards the store.

“Sweets!” I shouted, bursting my way inside. There was a lady at the counter that jolted a bit as I did this, but then quickly continued what she was doing, muttering something about ‘dumb kids..’

My mouth began watering looking at all of the treats piled on for display and I slid back and forth from end to end, muttering to myself. “Which one should I get?? The strawberry pie looks amazing but that triple chocolate cake looks perfect!! Are those cookies?!” I yanked on my hair in distress, but finally, a solution popped into my head and I smiled, eyes lighting up.

“Excuse me,” I cleared my throat politely in front of the shop woman, and she gave me a dry look. “Yes?” “I’d like to get three slices of your triple chocolate cake, a dozen of your peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, and one slice of strawberry pie. Please.” I ended, remembering my manners. The woman’s eyes went wide, but she nodded and quickly gathered up my order.

I smiled in content as I walked down the road through the town, holding my bag of sweets in one hand and finishing off my fifth cookie in the other. I made my way to the bar, humming a song that had been stuck in my head for a while. I finally found the bar after getting lost three or four times, and asking an older couple for directions (sense of direction was definitely hereditery in this case). Making my way inside the bar, I walked over to the front counter, automatically taking in my surroundings as I did so, and was taught to do by my brother.

I got a few weird looks but was mostly ignored and sat down on a bar stool right as the bartender made her way towards me. “Hello!” she greeted cheerily, and I smiled, watching a little girl come up beside her with a notebook in her hand. “What can we get for you?” I thought about ordering food but was still pretty hyped up on sweets. “I don’t really want anything right now. I’m actually waiting for someone. Has a man carrying three swords made his way through here yet?”

The woman stiffened a bit then, which I noticed, and in turn my eyes sharpened. I retained my relaxed smile and facade though, hoping that it would calm her nerves. The little girl, her daughter I’m presuming, spoke up then. “We saw him! He came to the bar and was really nice to me. He saved me from Helmoppo’s pet wolf.”

“His pet wolf, huh?” I confirmed, rubbing my forehead. And he told me to stay out of trouble… I thought to myself wearily.

“Ye-huh!” the little girl replied excitedly. “I’m afraid the man you’re looking for has been arrested,” the woman spoke up then, and I looked up sharply. “What?” I questioned, and I saw her tense even more.

“I’m sorry,” I apologized immediately, feeling guilty. “I didn’t mean to scare you. That man is my brother and I’m just worried about him. Can you tell me what happened after the wolf incident?”

The woman nodded in understanding. “I understand your concern,” she said, and pulled her daughter closer to her. Her eyes filled with tears then and she sniffed, “After he saved my daughter from the wolf, your brother made a deal with Helmoppo. He agreed to be arrested if only they would leave my daughter be. He made a deal with him about lasting one month at the marine base without food or water. I’m so sorry,” she finished.

“Don’t be sorry,” I waved her off, and she gaped. “How can you say that?”

“It’s not like it’s a death sentence or anything,” I assured her. “Zoro’s tough. He’ll be fine.” I’ll make sure of it, I said to myself.

Zoro was older than me by 3 years. He was 19, I was 16. He was of course, stupidly over protective, and that had a lot to do with the fact that he practically raised me. We didn’t really look alike except for our green eyes, so people didn’t realize we were siblings most of the time until they got to know us. I was short, Zoro was tall. I came up to about his shoulders, on a good day. He was muscular, I was kind of tiny. I had a flat stomach, but I was curvy and muscular from the hard core training Zoro and I had done over the years.

Zoro had lightly tanned skin, which I had as well, but I definitely burned much easier than he did. I resembled a lobster when I got too much sun, he just darkened up more. Zoro-nii has green hair, I have auburn curly hair. I don’t have any piercings, unlike Zoro, but I do have a tattoo. It’s a compass done on my left calf muscle. It’s got blue and purple water colors surrounding it. I got it last year for my 15th birthday, and it’s my favorite feature.

Although Zoro was older than me, I was just as protective towards him as he was of me. We really only had each other growing up, and grew ridiculously close because of that. I looked out for him, he looked out for me. It would never change.

“Thank you so much for the information,” I said getting up from my seat and bowing towards the woman and her daughter. I made to turn around to leave the bar, but was stopped by the woman grabbing my arm. “Wait,” she said, and I turned towards her curiously. “If you don’t have anywhere to stay tonight, as a thank you for your brother saving my daughter, we would be humbled if you chose to stay in our spare room upstairs.”

I smiled at her brightly. “That’s very kind of you. I’ll gladly take up your offer,” she smiled in relief, but her smile dropped a bit as I continued. “On one condition.” “Yes?” she said, hesitant. “If I’m going to be staying here I need to at least earn my keep. I’m an awesome server!” I said brightly, giving her a thumbs up. The woman went to argue but then stopped, obviously sensing my stubbornness. “Well,” she began, “we are actually short staffed. I suppose that would be alright,” she nodded.

“Awesome!” I shouted, giving her a double thumbs up. Her daughter giggled and I threw her a wink. “Before all of that though, I need to go find my idiot brother.” “I understand. Please be careful,” she said in a motherly tone. “I’ll be fine,” I confirmed, touched by her concern. Suddenly, I felt a tug on my shirt and looked down to see the little girl peering up at me. “Tell your oni-chan I said thank you for rescuing me,” she said in a sweet voice, and I grinned towards her, kneeling down to her level.

“Absolutely!” I said, and reached into my bag for my sweets. Her eyes lit up when I pulled out a cookie, and she immediately snatched it out of my hand, making me burst into laughter, and causing her mother to gasp. “Rika! Don’t be so rude!” she scolded. “It’s fine!” I said, still giggling. “What do you say?” her mother said, nudging her daughter.

“Fank fu,” the little girl, Rika said, smiling at me through a mouthful of cookie. “You’re very welcome!” I replied, ruffling her hair before standing up to my full height again. “I’ll be back soon. I’m just going to see what’s going on with my brother and this Helmeppo guy. Bye for now!” I waved, and left the store in search of the marine base for my idiot brother.

A/N: so that’s part one!! I guess we’ll see if anyone wants part 2. I’ve got about 9 chapters written.

Thanks for reading!!!

Batman out. 😁😁

[tornbetween2loves]

The Christmas Surprise

Part 2: The 15th Day of Christmas

This story takes place in the A/U I created for my mini series, The Christmas Surprise. I know it’s not a popular ship, but pairings for this series are: Liam x Olivia and Riley x Drake. There is a previous part to this that can be read here. However, it is not necessary to read that part first.

This is a bonus day of @cocomaxley ‘s 12 days of Cordonian Christmas. This is Day 15. I am also tagging @leelee10898 to be added to the masterlist for this😊

I am also submitting this for the 12 Days of choices fanfics Christmas prompts. This is for prompt 4: visit a Christmas tree lot or farm. @littlecrookedheart @boneandfur

Writer’s tags: @ao719 @blackwidow2721 @bobasheebaby @brightpinkpeppercorn @fullbeaumonty @hopefulmoonobject @itsstillnotwhatyouthink @leelee10898 @riseandshinelittleblossom @speedyoperarascalparty @kenjikatsoros @zaffrenotes @mind-reader1 @cocomaxley @tornbetween2loves

Reader tags: @blackcoffee85 @likethetailofacomet @endlessly-searching-for-you

And here’s some tags of my own:

Taglist: @kennaxval @boneandfur @blackcatkita @drakewalkerwhipped @femmeshep @hhiggs @lizeboredom @pb-boeboe @klaudiana-beaumontkkreal @tmarie82 @writtenbycandy @kinkykingliam @darley1101 @katurrade @lodberg @bella-ca @indiacater @missevabean @walkerismychoice @eileendannie @museofbooks @jared2612 @h3llostrang3r @ooo-barff-ooo @alesana45 @stopforamoment @carabeth @debramcg1106

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Pixelberry. I am simply borrowing them.

The 15th Day of Christmas: Ugly Christmas Sweater Day

Olivia and Liam walked back down the stairs and into the sitting room to join their friends. They were donning the ugly sweaters. Olivia smirked as she realized the sweaters were personalized. They were all black and covered in white snowflakes with huge polar bears on the front. Liam’s bear was wearing a king’s crown and holding a scepter. Olivia’s had on a tiara. Maxwell’s had a breakdancing polar bear wearing a Santa hat. Drake’s polar bear had a grumpy look on it’s face as it roasted marshmallows. Riley’s bear was wearing a server apron with an American flag on it. And Hana’s bear was wearing a kimono. The back of all the sweaters read “Merry Christmas 2018”. “Wow Drake, your bear looks just like you,” Olivia said with a smirk. Everyone suppressed a giggle as Drake made a face that matched the bear’s exactly. Liam burst out laughing and everyone joined in. Drake’s face reddened as his scowl deepened.

“Cheer up, my marshmallow,” Riley whispered in his ear. “You promised you’d make an effort.” Drake shot her a glare, then his expression brightened a bit. He giggled half-heartedly. “I guess it really does look like me.” Maxwell smiled brightly. “These sweaters are awesome! And just in time for the 15th day of Christmas.” Riley’s smile faded and was replaced by a confused look. “15th day of Christmas? I don’t believe I’ve ever heard of that before.” Drake and Olivia both rolled their eyes. “No, you wouldn’t have heard about it,” Drake said. “It is a Maxwell Beaumont creation,” he said and made finger quotes when he said Maxwell’s name. “That it is, my little blossom,” he said with a big grin. Today is December 15th. Hence, the 15th day of Christmas. Which I have deemed ‘ugly Christmas sweater day’.” Riley shook her head. “I still don’t get it.” Maxwell sighed, as if it should be obvious. “Have you ever heard of the song ‘The 12 Days of Christmas’?” “Of course. Hasn’t everyone?” Maxwell shrugged. “Why is it only 12 days? If you start at the beginning of December shouldn’t there be 25 days of Christmas? That’s if you count Christmas Day as an actual day of Christmas.”

“So you actually made up 25 days of Christmas? Incredible,” Riley said with a grin. “Not exactly. The first 12 days are already spoken for. I just finished the song.” He sung the familiar tune for Riley. “On the 15th day of Christmas, my true love gave to meeee...15 ugly Christmas sweaters.” It had the same melody as the 5th day of Christmas verse of the song. Riley giggled as Maxwell sang the rest of the song all the way through to day 24. He stood up and took a bow as they all clapped and cheered.

“Ok, so we’ve got on our ugly sweaters. Now what?” Olivia said with a shrug. “Now we go get a tree,” Hana exclaimed excitedly. “A tree?” Olivia asked as she crossed her arms over her chest. “Usually the staff handles the decorating.” Everyone looked at her as the smile faded from Hana’s face. Olivia shrugged as she looked at the fallen faces of her friends. “What? I’m sorry that I’ve never decorated a Christmas tree before.” “You’ve never picked out and decorated a tree?” Riley said as her mouth dropped open in disbelief. Olivia averted her eyes from them all, mumbling more to herself than anyone, “I guess when you don’t have parents you don’t get to do stuff like that.”

Liam cleared his throat and placed his hand on the small of his wife’s back. “I must say that I also have never picked out and decorated a tree.” Olivia smiled up at him gratefully. “Then this is gonna be super awesome!” Maxwell said as he reached for his coat. “Come on, let’s go.”

They pulled up to the Christmas tree farm which was lit by several strings of multi-colored lights. There were several metal drums with fires burning in them, providing much needed warmth in the chill of the Lythikos evening air. “Holy shit, it’s freezing out here,” Drake said. “Can we make this quick?” Riley punched him playfully in the arm. “You can’t rush these things, babe. The tree has to be perfect.” “Perfect?” Olivia said snidely. “What exactly makes a tree perfect?” Riley shrugged at Olivia. “I don’t know. You just know when you see it.” Olivia rolled her eyes and sighed. “Ok then, let’s go check out some trees,” Liam said as he placed a hand on her shoulder. He leaned down and whispered, “Please, my love. Can you try and enjoy yourself? For me?” He expression softened as she covered his hand with hers. “Anything for you, my king. I’ll try harder.” He kissed her softly on the cheek. “Thank you.”

They wandered the rows of trees, debating over which one to choose. “What about this one? It’s nice,” Hana said, pointing to a massive tree, at least 10-feet tall. Olivia scrunched up her nose. “That is way too big. We’ll never get it home.” Maxwell pointed to another tree further down the row. “How about that one? It’s not as tall.” Olivia shook her head. “That one is too fat. I don’t even think it would fit through the door.” She continued to reject everyone’s suggestions. All the trees were either too tall or short or fat or thin. Drake rolled his eyes as Olivia rejected what seemed like the 100th tree. “We are gonna freeze to death out here. Can you please just pick a damn tree already?” Riley glared at him as Olivia smiled apologetically. “I’m sorry. I’m just no good at this. Someone else pick.” “I’ll pick a tree,” Liam said with an authoritative tone. “And I don’t care to hear anyone’s opinion about it. What I say goes.” Everyone looked at him in surprise. “Are you pulling the king card, Liam?” Riley asked with a smirk. He nodded. “Yes I most certainly am. Drake is right. It’s freezing out here. I can’t feel my toes. Besides, I’m pretty sure I found the perfect tree.” He pointed to a tree at the end of the row. It was a Douglas fir with bluish-green needles, about 7-foot tall and almost perfectly shaped.

“Oh my god, Liam you did it! That is definitely the perfect tree,” Riley said excitedly. Everyone nodded in agreement. Olivia slid her arm into the crook of Liam’s elbow and followed their friends as they paid for the tree and made arrangements for cutting the tree down. He smiled down at her. He could see her demeanor softening, and was confident that by the end of the night she would feel comfortable.

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

After much struggling, the men managed to get the tree set up in the sitting room of the chateau. The women were busy laying out trays of snacks and pouring mugs of eggnog for everyone. “I think the tree is ready for trimming,” Drake said as he and Liam took a step back. He nodded in agreement and smiled as Olivia approached them with two mugs of eggnog. “Thanks love. What do you think?” He gestured to the tree as he took a sip of his drink. “Mmmmm this is delicious,” he exclaimed before she had a chance to answer. Olivia smiled sweetly at him over the rim of her mug as she sipped. “Have you never had Nevrakis Nog my king?” He shook his head. “No, surprisingly, I haven’t. Have you been hiding this delicious recipe from me for all these years?” She chuckled. “It is traditionally only served on Christmas Eve. But I figured maybe it was time for a new tradition.” Everyone raised their mugs in Olivia’s direction. “To new traditions,” Liam toasted as he locked eyes with his wife. They shared a smile as everyone repeated the toast and drank.

“I have one more tradition to start,” Maxwell said as he set down his mug and disappeared into the other room. He returned with 6 small gift bags and handed them out. Olivia couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face as she looked in the bag. Everyone pulled a personalized ugly Christmas sweater ornament out of their bag. They matched the real sweaters and had each person’s name and the year on the back. Maxwell smiled big at Olivia’s reaction. “I think that every year, on the 15th day of Christmas, we should make this our tradition,” he said. “We should trim a tree while wearing ugly Christmas sweaters using ugly Christmas sweater ornaments.” Liam chuckled. “I think that’s a fine tradition. No matter what we have going on in our lives, we promise to make time for each other each year, on the 15th day of Christmas.” Riley raised her mug. “I’ll drink to that! Here! Here!”

They spent the rest of the evening decorating the tree as they laughed and talked. Liam beamed at his wife as she smiled brightly, talking animatedly with Hana and Riley. Even Drake was having a good time. He smiled as he realized how incredibly lucky he was to have such amazing people in his life. Olivia was finally opening up to their friends. He listened to them exchanging stories about their experiences in Lythikos.

“It was actually here that I first started falling for Drake,” Riley said as he exchanged a look and a smile with Drake. “He was upset with you, Olivia, and ran out into the cold night. I thought he was crazy, but I followed him. And we watched the sky light up with shooting stars. One after the other. It was breathtaking.” Liam interjected. “Wait. Was that when Lythikos hosted the court during social season?” Riley nodded. He smiled. “I believe that very same night was when I first realized I had deeper feelings for Olivia.” A slight blush came over Olivia’s face and she smiled shyly. Liam sat down next to her and wrapped his arm around her. “She was supposed to give me a private tour of the castle of Lythikos, but when I found her she was upset and had been crying.” Drake locked eyes with Olivia. “Wait. You were upset? After all those things you said, you went off and cried?” Olivia nodded and looked away. She couldn’t look at him. “Yes I did. I was ashamed of how I acted. Sometimes my temper flares and I can’t stop the things that come out of my mouth.” She took a deep breath and looked up at Drake, tears stinging the corners of her eyes. “And I don’t believe I ever apologized for being such a bitch. I’m so sorry Drake.” A tear slipped down her cheek as she tried to conceal it by wiping it away with her thumb. “In fact, I apologize to all of you. I know you all have been on the receiving end of my wrath at one time or another.”

Drake sat across from Olivia, his mouth agape, as he finally saw Olivia through his best friend’s eyes. Everyone stood up and hugged Olivia, one by one. Drake stood up last, kneeling in front of Olivia and looking into her emerald eyes like he was seeing her for the first time. He glanced at Liam and smiled. “I finally see it,” he said. Liam smiled and nodded. A look of confusion crossed Olivia’s face. “See what?” Drake took her hands in his. “Olivia, I’ve been trying to figure out what Liam saw in you since your engagement. Now I get it. You’re not so bad. In fact, I think you and I are probably more similar than I’d like to admit.” Liam nodded in agreement. “I would agree. It only makes sense that the two people I love most in this world would have similarities.” Olivia began to tear up again. “So you forgive me Drake?” He stood up, pulling her with him and pulled him into a hug. “Of course I forgive you. You’re practically my sister-in-law.”

Everyone sat back down as Olivia breathed a sigh of relief. She felt like the weight of the world had just lifted off her shoulders. She finally felt comfortable being herself in front of her friends. “So I just have to ask Olivia,” Riley said, “was that magical night here in Lythikos when you discovered your feelings for Liam?” Olivia smiled and gazed into Liam’s bright blue eyes. “No. Not at all. I already loved Liam long before that.” He smiled at her, lacing his fingers through hers. “Oh really? I’d like to hear that story,” Hana said. Olivia smiled as she looked around the room at her friends. “Well, it was here in Lythikos, but I was very young, about 5 years old, and I was all alone in the world, crying in my mother’s closet, clutching her skirts in my arms, begging for her to come back...........”

[lostwords-found]

TWEWYtober belated Day 23: Web, pt. 2

Previous: Web, pt. 1 | Next: Creature | From the top on AO3

(Note: I ended up needing this prompt for two things, so here ya go. Neku's first encounter with Vaugirard's Composer was in Light, pt 2)

The only warning Neku gets, before the Composer of Paris's 15th arrondissement appears in his borrowed studio for the second time, is a brief, blurry, dizzying moment where everything's haloed in light. He makes it to the nearest chair and sits down before the force of the Composer's aura bowls him over.

"Wear this," Vaugirard says without preamble, and holds something out. Neku's still blinking spots from his eyes; when he finally manages to focus, he feels like he's staring into one of those old Magic Eye tricks where you had to go cross-eyed to see the real picture. But he holds his eyes stubbornly still, and the world slowly resolves back into something like normality.

At least, as much normality as it can hold, when there's a glow-in-the-dark demigod standing in front of him and offering him a necklace. A smooth silver disc spins and winks on its chain, reflecting the Composer's light, and as Neku peers at it more closely he sees the delicate, glittering spiderweb carved into its surface.

"It won't hurt you," Vaugirard adds quietly. "And it will keep your imagination's effect on the world around you in better check, so you can avoid future… incidents."

Neku grimaces, but he reaches out to run his fingers along the length of the chain, watching the way the light glints along it. "No more closets full of gothic lolita, huh?"

A laugh ripples out of the Composer. "Not unless that's what you buy. But it doesn't strike me as your likeliest choice."

No more incidents. A week ago that would have felt like he was losing something, but—there was never anything there to lose, was there? His head's been playing tricks on him. Nothing more.

Neku takes the pendant and turns it over carefully, running his fingers over the web to feel the lines of the carving. It's beautiful, and what it offers is tempting; it tugs at him, even though the tugging is accompanied by a sharp twinge in his chest.

It's also a gift from a Composer, and he asks, carefully, "What's the catch?"

"No catch. This is to everyone's benefit, Neku." Vaugirard smiles, through the veil of light. "You won't be at constant risk of accidentally ruining your decor or turning yourself into a nightlight, and those of us charged with maintaining the stability of reality will breathe a little easier in your presence. Honestly, I'm surprised your Joshua didn't give you something similar years ago."

"Yeah, well," Neku mumbles. There's a warm sympathy in the Composer's aura that pulls gently on his words, urging him to speak. He can feel it easing him along, and a part of him digs his heels in, but then he thinks—screw it. He doesn't owe Joshua anything, except maybe a punch to the face. "Most helpful thing Josh ever gave me was a bullet to the head, so, you know." This comment passes without reaction, and through the haze Neku manages to file this away: either Vaugirard already knows that story, or Joshua's not actually as eccentric for a Composer as Vaugirard claimed. "I wouldn't really be too surprised. I don't think he's ever given a shit about making anyone's life easier."

"Even so, you can't have spent all your time in Shibuya?" Vaugirard hums at Neku's uncertain head shake. "But sending as volatile an imagination as yours into other districts on a regular basis—that would have been tantamount to a declaration of war."

Neku snorts. "I mean, for the guy I knew? That would've been on brand, probably."

"Still. You're lucky you haven't had trouble. If any one of the districts around Shibuya had taken offense… well." Vaugirard's light dims slightly, and he turns to gaze out the window, folding his hands behind his back. "No sense in dwelling on what didn't happen."

What didn't happen? Neku almost wants to ask, and then again he doesn't. He doesn't think he's quite ready to hear the details of whatever fate Joshua's apparently left him open to for the last ten years. The casual carelessness of it burns his throat and leaves a bitter taste.

He goes back to looking at the pendant, turning it over and over. "So—no catch," he repeats, softly. But he has the uneasy feeling he is the catch, that the instant he puts the thing around his neck the web's strands will spin out of their silver disc, and they'll stick, and he'll never get them off his skin.

He also doubts he's walking away from this conversation without putting the thing on, whether he wants to or not.

"Look, if you know how I got tangled up in the Game to begin with," he says, measuring the words out carefully, "you'll maybe understand why I'm a little… leery about Underground jewelry. However pretty it is."

"Ah. You're referring to the 2007 incident," Vaugirard says. "The red pins."

Neku's not sure if it's reassuring or not that the Composer's mind went there so quickly. "Yeah, got it in one."

"An understandable concern, from your vantage," Vaugirard concedes, and his light warms again, soft and kind. "Neku, there's no way for me to prove to you that that's not what this is. But will you believe me if I tell you that I have no desire to be the one starting a war? No one—well, no one sensible—wants a repeat of the incident you mention. It had repercussions enough that it's still fresh in the Underground's memory. If I were to start handing out mind-control devices, I'd be re-opening a very dangerous door, and my fellow Composers would take steps against me."

Neku digests this, and thinks: he could pretend he's actually being given a choice right now. It would be easy to pretend. It would be nice to pretend, but he's still never gotten comfortable with lies. "And if I don't put it on?"

Vaugirard sighs. "Then forgive me for being blunt, Neku, but I won't be the one starting a war." He meets Neku's sharp glare with placid calm. "I don't recommend it. You're one man, barely more than a child and far from home, with too much strength and no idea how to control it. If I acquiesce to your wishes and don't force that chain around your neck, someone else will."

Neku looks down. Well. He did ask.

"Or," Vaugirard continues quietly, "you go home to Shibuya now. And I do mean now; there will be a taxi at the curb by the time you reach the street, and first-class reservations awaiting you at the airport, if you so choose. You go home—to a Composer who has proven full well how poorly he values you, by the simple fact that he let you come here unwarned and unprepared—and you hope that whatever peculiar goodwill the rest of Tokyo has shown you, it continues to hold. And I suggest, once home, you leave as little as possible."

Neku stares at the web-laced pendant, and remembers a poem he had to read in an English class once, years ago. 'Won't you step into my parlor,' said the spider to the fly…

His movements feel stiff and strange as he lifts the chain and slides it over his head.

(Note: In other news, @surskitty is running a TWEWY gift exchange for fics, art, and icons/moodboards over on AO3. Signups are open until the 10th. So if that's your thing, come join us! \o/ )

[secret-rendezvous1d]

A Date For Christmas

DECEMBER 15TH, 2017.

for blogmas or regular hazza begs for a date night after one of the baby is born like 1 year old

This was one that I really enjoyed writing because I rarely get to write anything about Harry and the missus being married, without the children. It’s one of my favourites to write so I’m glad I had the opportunity to get this one out. Coming a bit late but I wanted this one to be absolutely perfect!

WARNING: MATURE LANGUAGE USED THROUGHOUT. A FEW MATURE SCENES IMPLIED. NOTHING GRAPHIC.

Feedback is welcomed, as always.

Enjoy. xx

DECEMBER 20TH, 2PM. HAMPSTEAD. LONDON.

The lower level of the house was swallowed by the harsh December chill of atmosphere. Clinging to the air outside the house, and seeping in to the inside through every gap and every nook and cranny it could find and wiggle its way through. The dull ambiance and the murky sky adding visual to the stone-cold feeling that washed over your bodies, evidently prepared enough to fit the cold, having been tucked into sweatshirts that were far too big for your bodies, with the warmest of socks on your feet and the baggiest and thickest of tracksuit bottoms hanging down your legs. The forcing urge to slip on more layers becoming stronger, occupying your mind and tearing your attention away from the brightly glaring laptop screen, opened on a word document, with pages upon pages open, as the seconds ticked passed through the day.

A blog post - festive themed for the last post of the year that was full to the brim of your own pictures and your own recipe recommendations and reviews from, not only yourself but, Harry also, and had been the outcome of a sweet smelling kitchen, the previous day, that had the counters full of baked goods, hat were now stored away in the cupboards and ready to be wrapped up in the most delicately designed ways and gifted to their closest friends and family - on the verge of being completed but barely up to a standard you knew you could reach. Your bundled up figure occupying one end of the sofa as you spread yourself out, leant against the arm of the sofa with your socked feet nudged beneath the closest of Harry’s thighs. Magazines and cook-books opened to the recipes you’d used, your camera set beside you, whilst its SD card stuck out from its slot in your laptop.

On the telly, and on a low volume, played old re-runs of Friends, and every so often, you’d hear the softest of chuckles or the quietest of mumbles come from the man beside you, as he recited the lines before they were spoken by the characters. A product of spending copious amounts of time watching episode after episode, where he was on tour or when he had the house to himself or when nothing was on the telly, that night, and it was something to pass the time. His legs kicked up on the coffee table, that homed two empty coffee mugs and sporting coffee rivulets down the sides, with his ankles crossed and his numb toes coiling and flexing every so often, his body slouched down on the sofa, with the most content and comfortably sleeping baby taking up the entirety of his chest, clad in her striped baby-grow. The sleeves rolled up to her elbows and the material sitting skewed from squirming to get comfy on his body. Her cheek pressed against the soft material of his jumper whilst the rest of her face became hidden in the hollow of his neck, and you were sure, that if you peeked over her tiny frame, you’d see her lips parted, only slightly, in a similar fashion to her father would fall asleep beside you.

They were your favourite Fridays.

Where neither of you were needed anywhere by friends and family or managers and work-friends. When you could work in the comforting environment of your home, with the comforting presence of your husband, who would offer his help and read over drafts and stay hushed when you knuckled down - the longer he took trying to distract you, the longer it would take to get you all to himself. Where you could switch off your phones and disable yourselves from social media and swerve away from checking emails so you could enjoy the company of the other. Because these days were rare and you never took them for granted and enjoyed them when they came because you didn’t know when the next one would be. Where you didn’t need to worry about deadlines being met and schedules that needed to be followed precisely in order for a day to run smoothly.

It’s just after the end credits of the fifth episode rolled over the screen, with the all-too familiar tune behind it, when he perks up with a hushed tone and a rather raspy voice. Craning his neck around his daughters head as she continued to sleep, completely unfazed by the rumble through his chest as he spoke.

“Let’s go out tonight. You n’me. Just the two of us.”

Your fingers came to a stop, mid-sentence, hovering above your keyboard and resting delicately against the keys, allowing your head to lift up and to look across to him on the other end of the sofa. His bleary eyes, still bright and vibrant and an emerald green, accompanying the lopsided smile that sat upon his features.

“And where would we go?” You wondered, “I imagine every restaurant is booked out for the Christmas period and, to be honest, neither of us are the heavy drinkers so pubs are out of the question. Also, we’re parents of a one-year old now. We can’t be seen in clubs. The papers would have an absolute field day.”

“Didn’t say we needed to participate in the heavy drinking of the festive period,” he chuckled, dragging his fingers up and down Persephone’s back as she whined, faintly, in her sleep and clenched her fist, coming to rest at the mid-point of his chest, “I can pull a few strings and get us up The Shard for tonight. It’s the one time when using my name can come in handy.”

“We are not using your name to get us into a fancy place for dinner, Harry. What’s wrong with a good takeaway and a Christmas movie? That’s enough of a date night for me,” you said with a scoffed attitude, drifting your eyes back to the laptop screen, dragging your thumb across the trackpad. A page full of photos, stored on the SD card, popping up as you scrolled through the array of pictures that you’d taken from all different angles, with all different lighting, with positions and arrangements changing amongst each shot. “Gemma and Michal can babysit for us, we can use the house to our full advantage, we don’t need to go anywhere because we, pretty much, have everything here for free.”

“Apart from the food.”

“Obviously,” you grumbled lowly, “although, I can cook up a mean chow mein. I can make us one.”

“Uh, I hate to break it to you, and I know m’your husband n’all that, and you know I love your cooking, but,” he took a pause before he continued, “your chow meins end up looking like chicken stir-frys, love,” he smirked toyingly, and he watched as your features pinched into a look of offence. Your eyebrows furrowed on your brow-line and creasing up your forehead, a dip forming at the top of you nose, whilst your mouth opened and closed, repetitively. Your mind trying to form a coherent and confident bite back at him, failing in doing so as he pressed further. “Besides, we haven’t had a proper night out in a long, long time, have we?”

“Well, actually-”

He shook his head, interrupting you with an obnoxious ‘ah-ah’, before you could go any further.

“Without Seff coming with us. Nick’s get together in August and Gemma’s birthday party don’t count. When was the last time we got dressed up in something that was a nice suit and a pretty dress and wasn’t a stained t-shirt or pyjamas? When was the last time we went out, just the two of us? To a place that wasn’t our kitchen or our living room? When was the last time we shared a bottle of wine, or a bottle of expensive champers, over an expensive meal?” A muted silence washed over the both of you as he used his thumb to turn down the volume of the telly. Persephone’s gentle breathing becoming louder as the speakers became quieter. The silence being all he needed as confirmation that, even you, couldn’t remember when the last time was. “Exactly. It’s Christmas time. Lets get out there and enjoy a dinner at the top of The Shard and take a walk through the Hyde Park and then go back to a hotel and just spend some time together,” he suggested, “because, as much as I love spit down my fingers and a baby asleep on my chest, I’d like to be able to have my wife do things to me, too. Preferably things that don’t include clothes.”

You scoffed, a smirk sitting heavy on your lips, as you glanced over in his direction. “Is this just another one of your ploys to see me naked?”

“Naked, yeah. Tucked up beneath me, maybe. Kissing me loads, of course. Plenty of touching and adult cuddling involved. You get the gist of this? You see where m’going with this, right?”

“At least you’re being a gentleman and treating a lady to dinner before you bed her and shag her until the morning comes,” you teased, closing the lid of your laptop and wiggling your feet from beneath his thigh, swinging your legs around to come into contact with the floor. Lurching forward to set it upon the coffee table, nudging the mugs out of the way. “Although, something tells me you’ve already got us booked in for dinner,” his cheeks flushed a deep magenta and he ducked his head and pressed his lips against Persephone’s forehead. “I’m right, aren’t I?”

“It might be an early Christmas present for you,” he murmured, a cheeky look stretching across his features as he swiftly swung his legs from the coffee table and set the soles of his socked feet against the ground, “I know how long you’ve been wanting to have a dinner up there and I thought this was the perfect opportunity. Gemma’s been asking to babysit Seff, the streets couldn’t look more romantic if they tried, our little lady is at the age where she won’t mind if we’re there for the night or not, and, we haven’t been out of these four walls in months,” he reasoned, his palm coming flat against Persephone’s back, whilst his other cupped the back of her head, keeping her stable as he sat himself up. “Lets get dressed up and lets go out for a delicious dinner. Lets go back to a hotel and lets get close, under the covers, with one another again. Because it’s been a while.”

“Didn’t think we could get any closer than we already are,” you informed him, settling back against the sofa with your thigh brushed up against his, “we’re close now. We’re always close in bed and under the covers, as well. We kiss plenty, too,” you craned your neck to look at him, “and, I’ve touched you plenty of times, as well.”

Whenever you had the chance, you were in contact with him, in any way possible and in any way that seemed comfortable and fitting to the situation. An he with you.  In any way that made it easy to leave behind if either of you were needed by your daughter in the next room. A hand dipped below the waistband of his boxers because, whenever you couldn’t sleep or whenever your hands felt full of ticks to play with something, anything, his cock was in reach and ready to play with - because, really, he didn’t mind when you swiped him from his boxers and stroked it like you would a mouse. His fingers grazing your inner thighs because he knew it was soothing for you - and because he knew, with the tickling smirk that twitched your lips, that he had an invitation to stoop further into your knickers. Your lips always sponging the softest of kisses around the base of his neck, whenever you had the chance, and his lips peppering the sweetest of pecks around your facial features, whenever he fancied showing you an ounce of affection.

“It never goes further than a few delicate kisses, some touches and some deep snogs though, does it?” He wondered, and even though he wasn’t aiming for the guilt-tripping tone, you couldn’t help but feel deep remorse. “Just think of how nice it’ll be, not having to wake up in the middle of the night, or having to be up early in the morning to get breakfast made, or even having to be quiet because we’ve got innocent ears in the house,” his lips quirked as he hid his pink flesh into the soft strands of Persephone’s hair. Sweet smelling of baby shampoo and feather-light against his skin, a result of the bath that the two of you had shared after lunch. “Just think of how loud we can be.”

“She’ll be okay with Gemma for the night, won’t she?”

Harry snorted. “I don’t think Gem is planning on cooking her for dinner and eating her like a Sunday roast, if that’s what you’re worried about, love,” his curled finger dragging over Persephone’s knuckles as her fingers stayed clenched and upon his chest, “she’ll be perfectly okay with my sister, love. We trust her. She’s been an absolute wonder over the last year and a bit, hasn’t she?”

“She has. And I’ll be always eternally grateful for that, of course,” you smiled, reaching a hand over to ghost over your daughter’s back, “I just hate leaving her. You know I do. I like knowing that she’s safe and content and happy and I know that she’s all three when I’m with her, Harry. I definitely know she’s looked after when I’m the one taking care of her.”

“My sister wouldn’t ever let anything hurt her, okay? I’ve always trusted my sister with everything, yeah?”

“I trust her, too. Of course I do, Harry. She’s one of my closest friends.”

“So, there’s nothing to worry about, is there? Gemma absolutely loves Seff. We didn’t ask her to be godmother for no reason, did we, hm?” Harry chuckled lightly, “she’ll be just a phone call away if anything does happen, or if she needs us. And we can always catch the tube back home, can’t we? We’re not too far away. The hotel I’ve booked us in to? It’s only in Mayfair. Only half hour away.”

“I know, I know.”

There’s a deafening silence as the both of you fell quiet. Your mind wracking for an acceptance of his offer, dodging the denial of your brain, because you really did want to seize the opportunity to spend time with him. You could go one night without being on mother duties... right? A simpered expression outstretching your features, your eyes crinkling, as your voice shattered the delicate silence.

“You have to ask me properly then. Make it seem like you really want to take me out for dinner in such an extravagant place.”

He laughed softly and nodded, adjusting Persephone as she stayed put against his chest. Chin now resting upon his shoulder as she gently wheezed and snored into his ear, flushes of warm air washing over his jawline as she slept soundly, completely unbothered by the changes of positions and .

“Alright,” he grunted as he shuffled forward, twisting slightly and bringing a bent knee to rest on the sofa cushion, his foot hanging over the edge and bumping up and down as he braced his attention upon you, “I mean, it would help if I didn’t have a sleeping baby attached to my chest because I could really get in there and be as physically romantic as possible, but, lets see if Mister Romantic can give it a go,” he laughed faintly, your tiny giggle sounding from beneath his gruff rumble, before it fell silent. Giving him an opportunity to go forwards.“Find you absolutely impossible sometimes but I love you and you deserve to be treated like royalty every once in a while.” “Actually, no. You deserve to be treated like royalty every single second of every single day that goes by. M’the luckiest man to be with you, to be married to you, to have a baby with you, and I would love, nothing more than, to show you off to everyone as we scoff our faces.” “Would you like to accompany me on a dinner date up The Shard tonight? Followed by a walk through the park and then, maybe,” “Most definitely, actually. Most definitely some time alone in a hotel suite? All expenses paid for, of course.”

“Bit shabby in some areas there, Mister Romantic,” you teased, amusement lingering your tone, “but, I would love nothing more than to accompany you on a date.”

6PM; HAMPSTEAD. LONDON.

The floorboards creaked beneath Harry’s boots as he took the stretch, upstairs, from the en-suite bathroom and the walk-in wardrobe, packing overnight necessities for the both of you as you stayed the occupant of the lower level of the house. An indirect confirmation that he was sprucing up the bedroom after the haste of getting ready for the night, and making last minute rounds to make sure everything was gathered and not left behind; he made sure condoms were placed in the side pocket, alongside your morning-after pills - because neither of you knew how the night was going to end - and he double-checked that a toothbrush was packed and clean underwear was folded, with socks pushed into the pairs of shoes sat at the bottom of his leather shoulder bag. He made sure he packed two cosy sweaters, and a shirt for you to sleep in, because he had the inkling that you were going to ask for one, come morning-time.

Gemma, having arrived half an hour before the both of you had intended to leave the house for the night, giving you a run-down on what they had planned for the night and ensuring that you knew your daughter was in the safest of hands. Cuddling her close to her chest once she’d shrugged out of her coat, and sent Michal on his way to make them a cup of tea to warm up from the chilled air outside.

“There’s small portions of food in the fridge from lunchtime if you want to feed her that for dinner. There’s some leftover chicken and some ham in a plastic tupperware box, with a red lid, that she can eat for her dinner and you can give her rice, which is in the cupboard with the pastas, or mash up some potatoes to put on the side. She’s taken a huge liking to sweet potato at the moment so there are some in the pantry, next door to the kitchen,” you apprised, grabbing the house keys from the bowl on the hallway table and slipping them into your bag, letting them fall into the empty space with a muffled jingle. Your purse following in suit before you zipped up the zip and let the bag fall to your hip. “The formula for her milk is in the cupboard above the sink. Her bottles are on the top shelf and the teats and lids are on the bottom shelf. All in the same cupboard. She tends to get a little fussy at night but all she wants is a cuddle and a bottle, maybe someone to talk to her. Harry usually lets her fall asleep on his chest whilst we watch the telly and she’s usually spark out by five minutes. You can try different ways to get her to sleep, obviously, and I’ve taken her out for drives when she just doesn’t settle and Harry rocks her and sings to her and both seem to work well,” Gemma nodded as she swayed her hips, blowing her cheeks up and blowing soft puffs of breath over Persephone’s cheeks. A smile, full of gum and dribbling with saliva, forming on the little girl’s lips. “If there are any problems or she just doesn’t settle, you have our numbers and the restaurant number is on the fridge.”

“Babe, don’t worry about this. You’re panicking a little too much. I’ve got her. Me and Michal have looked after her plenty of times before, haven’t we? And we haven’t had any major problems yet, have we?” She hummed, adjusting the baby in the crook of her arm. You shook your head and relieved a pent up breath of worry; one that you hadn’t a clue you were holding. “Exactly. You’ve got  absolutely nothing to worry about.”

“I’m just,” your shoulders slumped forward as your fingers dug into your temples, rubbing them soothingly, “I hate leaving her, Gem. It was worse when she was a newborn. It’s just awful now.”

“I know you do. But, it’s okay to have some time to yourselves every once in a while. We’ll send you both some updates as the night goes on,” she smiled, reaching her free arm forward and brushing her palm up and down your upper arm, “you can call and text us anytime you want to see how we’re doing. We won’t take any offence.”

“Thank you,” you giggled softly, “seriously. We’re really thankful that you’re helping us out.”

Persephone gurgled and babbled away to herself, legs kicking out as her took a liking to chewing and suckling upon one of her fingers. Your hands curling around each foot as you nudged your thumbs into the souls of her tiny feet. Her delicate toes curling and clenching tight as she sent grins and giggles in your direction.

“You look fit, babe. You wouldn’t even suspect you had a baby over a year ago. And, as gross as it sounds, my brother won’t be able to keep his hands off of you,” Gemma smirked, “be sure to make another baby tonight, okay? I wan a new little bubba to spoil rotten.”

“I don’t think new babies are on the cards right now.”

The stairs creak behind her as Harry scuffed his way down. Overnight bag slung over his shoulder and bumping against the back of his thigh with each step he took towards your small huddle in the hallway. Dressed in a dapper suit, from a past Gucci collection, grey with squares that were outlined in blue, each embellished with their own red decorative icon. Worn out loafers being loose on his feet, creased at the front from the copious times he’d worn them and permanent creases at the backs, from where he’d trodden down upon them on his journeys to take the rubbish to the bins before parking them on the street for bin day.

“Who knows what may happen tonight,” Harry commented, sending you a smile once he’d stepped away from the bottom stair and dropped the bag to the floor, “are we ready to go then?”

“Mm-hm,” you hummed softly, retrieving your hands away from your baby. Spinning on your heel to grab your coat from the hook before spinning back to face Gemma. “Oh, we’ve set up the spare room for the both of you so you dm’t need to worry. It’s the one beside Persephone’s nursery. Baby monitors are set up in case you can’t hear her, the en-suite bathroom is full of clean towels and extra shower gels and shampoos if you want to freshen up tomorrow morning. You’re more than welcome to use our bathroom, if you want to,” you twirled back to grab your coat, now gripped tightly, by the collar, in Harry’s hand, “I think I’m forgetting something.”

“You’re not. You’re just overthinking, my love. If we forget anything, we can just ring up and let them know,” he declared. Your body hesitantly turning back to face Gemma as he helped to slide the coat over your shoulders, pressing a kiss to the back of your head as you sided up to him, and send him a soft grin, “okay?”

“Okay, okay. I know,” you muttered. Head snapping up, much to the amusement of Gemma as, what you thought was vital, new information came to light. “Oh! She loves to sleep with the tartan blanket that’s hung over the railings of her crib. It’s not just there for show or anything. She likes to be tucked up under her covers with the blanket draped over her, okay? It’s Harry’s.”

Gemma nodded gently.

“Now, let me say goodbye to her,” Harry claimed, reaching over for his little girl and settling her comfy in the crook of his arm. Her eyes sparkling as she took in the familiarity of the comfort that she was all to content with. “Hello, my darling. Hi. Mummy and daddy are heading out for tonight but you’re gon’a have a lovely night in with Auntie Gem and Uncle Michal and you won’t even know we’re gone. Gon’a treat your mummy like she deserves and we’ll be back for loads and loads of cuddles tomorrow morning, okay?” “I love you, little love. Be good, d’you understand? Make sure you leave Auntie Gem some absolute stinkers before bedtime.”

Gemma gawked and gave his shoulder a gentle swat, “oi!”

His lips parted into a grin before they attached themselves to the downy forehead of his little girl. “I love you so, so much. Daddy will see you tomorrow, okay? I’ll make sure to bring your mummy back in one piece.”

“Harry, that’s disgusting,” Gemma grunted. Her features pinched up with disgust as he looked up to her with parted lips. “Honestly. She’s only 15 months, you donut. Can’t be talking so crudely with innocent ears around.”

“Unlike you, we have clean minds under this roof,” he frowned, passing her over to you as you accepted her weight and cradled her close to your chest, “there wasn’t anything dirty behind that sentence.”

“Mm-hm. We both know you’re going to get a little kinky tonight. You don’t need to lie because it’s written all over your face, Harry.”

“You’re annoying,” he huffed, shaking his head , and reaching down for the overnight bag that stayed close to his feet. You stepped closer to your sister-in-law and, willingly, passed over the one-year old before pressing your lips to her cheek, dropping them to Persephone’s forehead as a final goodbye. “We’re going to go now. Or else we’ll be late for dinner. Keep the PDA to a minimum, okay? I don’t my daughter to be scarred for life because you can’t keep your hands off of each other,” he warned, pointing an accusing finger in his sister’s direction, “I mean it, Gem. And you can let Michal know, too, wherever he’s gotten to.”

“He’s makin’ us some tea. Told him to throw out all of your coffee, too,” she teased, snickering to herself as his eyes widened, cocking an eyebrow up as he looked at her with stern. “Have fun tonight, okay? And I genuinely mean that. The both of you deserve a bit of a break from parenthood and you deserve a bit of time to yourselves without any interruptions or anything. Have a delicious dinner, drink plenty of wine and champagne, keep warm because it’s a bit chilly out, and use that hotel room to your absolute advantage whilst you have the chance,” she watched as Harry shrugged his coat on, buttoning the buttons up his chest, “and I’ll be expecting details when you come home tomorrow, as well.”

“Yeah,” you gave her a look of mild repugnance, shaking your head, “that’s not happening.”

7PM; SOUTHWARK. LONDON

“You know, I never thought I’d see the day when the Harry Styles took public transport to get places. I always imagined you to be the type of guy who would take chauffeur driven cars or limousines just to go to the supermarket,” you razzed, nursing your glass of wine as you cosied back into the chair. Your foot occasionally brushing over his with the gentle adjustments you made with your leg crossed over you other. “When was the last time you took the tube?”

“It was a few months ago, actually. Back in August, to be precise. When me and Grimmy did that pub crawl. He said it was cheaper than getting taxis all around London. Much more efficient, too. No traffic to worry about,” he riposted, with a cheeky roll of his eyes. His stomach twisting at the mere reminder of the one night he’d gotten royally bladdered and completely intoxicated. The memories of the night being a blur but the memories of the morning after being completely etched onto his mind. Grimacing at the thought before taking a hasty sip of the cherry-coloured wine. “Think we should start tubing a bit more.”

“Tubing? Really?” You snorted, setting the glass upon the table, “is that even a word in the English dictionary? Even in the English language?”

He shrugged and copied your motions. The sleeve of his shirt catching the knife, set neatly amongst the cutlery placed on a crisp white napkin. A complete stand-out against the dark blue, navy-coloured, table cloth that coated the table.

“Can you imagine me struggling to get on a busy tube with a pushchair and a fussy baby? Or a fussing toddler? I can already see the glares and hear the mutters that would come with that,” you commented, shaking your head slightly. “You can start using it but, I’m good with a brisk walk into town. Or the car.”

“What about when s’just me and you? Or when the kids are older?”

Your eyebrows pinched up. A crease between your eyebrows becoming prominent and visual to him. And if you’d had a mouth full of something, it would have been lodged in your throat, or pushed out from puckered lips, with surprise.

“Kids?”

His cheeks flushed pink as he tapped his fingertips against the table and turned his head to glance out the window. Lights glistening all around the city, alluring and looking somewhat photographic and like it belonged in galleries. “S’what you took from that? Not the idea of taking the tube and needing to have Oyster cards but the fact that I said the plural for child?” He wondered, looking back to you. Forearms braced on the tabletop and you perched upright with slightly widened eyes. “Of course I see us having more kids, yeah. I love Seff and she’s the light of my life but, god, she’s already a year old and I miss having a newborn in the house. She’s so independent. Getting her own little character now.”

“She still likes it when you feed her mash and peas and she loves a good cuddle with you in the mornings and I’m pretty sure she likes it when you change her because she’s always giggling away with you but all grumpy and squirmy for me. So, she’s not so independent, is she?” You reminded him, reaching a hand across to hold his, curling your fingers around his slender digits, rings cold against the pads of your fingertips, as you ran your thumbs over his knuckles, “she might not be our tiny little girl anymore, but, she still loves it when you do things for her. When we do things for her. She’ll always love that.”

“I know. I just miss all the little things that we never took for granted,” he admitted softly, lifting his arm up and bringing your fingers to his lips. His flesh wrapping around the words and brushing over your skin. “The way your body looked as it grew and homed what we created. The way your bump just dropped after 30 weeks and you just shone with this magnificent glow that had people complimenting you. The labour and the delivery that you went through. You say you hated it and you were consistent in saying that you never wanted to go through that again and you kept saying how you wanted to snip me, yourself, but, you have to be truthful,” he paused softly, “you miss everything about it. Their tiny toes and their tiny fingers. The tiny babygrows and the shoes that people brought. Oh, god, do you remember how small Persephone’s dresses were?”

You nodded softly before your lips parted. “Tonight isn’t about, you know, having more kids, is it? Because I thought we spoke about th-”

He shook his head steadily.

“No, no. We sidetracked from the whole tube thing,” he chuckled, reinforcing that all-too beautiful smile upon your lips. “When we’re ready to have kids, we’ll bring this back up in detail, of course. When you’re ready to go through all that again. I can wait, can’t I? S’not me going through it all. S’you that’ll be going through it,” he unlatched his fingers from yours and reached for the wine bottle that sat close to the window. Gripping the dark bottle and pouring more wine into both, near-empty, glasses. Setting it back down before clasping his glass in his hand, lifting it from the table top and tilting it in your direction. Jerking his head softly for you to copy. “I love you, you know that, right? I absolutely bloody love you.”

“I love you, too.”

You clinked your glasses before taking a sip. Eyes pinching at the sour taste as you allowed the sweet aftertaste to linger upon your tongues.

“You know, I never thought that I would be where I am today. You could have sat sixteen-year old me down, outside that Manchester arena, and you could have told me all about what I would be like, what my life would be like, at 25, and close to 26, years old,” he wavered, setting his wine back on the table. “I wouldn’t have believed anyone if they told me I’d be as huge in the music industry as I am now. I wouldn’t have believed anyone if they had told me  I’d have participated in a movie that was classed as the number one film of 2017, that was up for huge movie nominations, and that was directed by the Christopher Nolan. I wouldn’t have believed anyone if they told me I’d have the most beautiful woman taking my last name and I definitely wouldn’t have believed a soul if someone told me I’d be a dad to the most beautiful little girl in the world. I wouldn’t have believed a thing because sixteen-year old me never thought it was possible.”

His eyes turned glossy under the minimal light of the restaurant. His lips quirked into the biggest of smiles he could muster up. Tongue painted purple and he had a little bit of basil stuck, between his two front teeth, from the starter you’d both devoured.

“If you’d have told seventeen-year old me that I would be sat, eating an expensive and exquisite meal, up The Shard and in the middle of London, with Harry Styles, I wouldn’t have believed you. I genuinely wouldn’t have believed you. And, if you told seventeen-year old me that I would end up marrying Harry Styles, I would have knocked you back miles with a humoured punch to the arm,” you snickered faintly, “I never once expected my life to be as huge as it is now, you know? Never thought I’d meet the man of my dreams, but, here you are. Sat in front of me, in one of the most prettiest suits I’ve ever seen on you, with a bit of basil in between your teeth and a dribble of wine rolling down your chin.” He swiped his tongue over his top set of teeth before it snuck out from between his lips, catching the eyes of the customers seated around you, as he licked his chin. “Oh, yeah. Oh, wow. That’s too attractive. I married such a handsome fellow.”

“Yeah? Is this doing things for you?” He wondered, a spring in his eyebrows as he gave you the seductive eye.

“It makes me want to clean you up like I would when Persephone makes a mess of her face. Lick a napkin, wipe around your lips, scold you for being a messer and then feed you myself.”

“Would you bend me over your knee? Maybe spank my peachy bum? Probably make me beg for more, right?” He taunted playfully, coming to a sudden halt as your foot came into harsh contact with his shin, having jerked your leg forward. A alarmed wince, muffled by his faint laughter, escaping his lips as his eyes widened. “I’m kidding. No need to get so physical, missus. People see these bruises and they’ll have all kinds of ideas running havoc in their minds. What happens in the bedroom, stays in the bedroom, yeah?”

“We’re not even in the bedroom. We’re in public, you goon. They’ll be evidence to show people how bleedin’ annoying you are.”

10:30PM; HYDE PARK. LONDON.

The wind was bitter as you huddled closer into the warmth the radiated from his body. Your cheek pressed against his upper arm, the apple curve smushed up against the coat that hung down his torso and came to a levelled stop at the backs of his mid-thighs. Lapels flapping open with the breeze as it bit and froze your exposed skin. Your hand frozen in his hold, and his frozen in yours, as your other tucked up where his inner arm met his ribs. His free hand dipped into his pocket. The both of you making mental notes to bring gloves and scarves out, when you next left the house.

In the distance, and carried through the gentle breeze, and drowned out from the rustle of the naked twigs in the trees and the leaves being kicked beneath your feet, came the melody of the classic Christmas tunes played every single year, come December time. Hyde Park’s Winter Wonderland, a Christmas wonderland that was full of festivities and Christmas treats and goodies, with some of the best hot chocolates and cinnamon pretzels, being only a short walk from where the both of you were taking a brisk stroll on your way back to the hotel, in Mayfair. The lights, from the fairground rides and the brightly-lit sign, to signify each ticket-holders arrival, showing the hazy mist and the cold winter fog that hung in the night air. Your noses red and running and sniffling every so often.

“So, you know how Christmas is around the corner?”

“Yeah?”

“And you know how we’re having all the family around for Christmas this year?”

His lips kinked into a gentle beam.

“Mm-hm.”

“And you know how I cooked the dinner last year?”

“Yeah?” He looked down at you with curiosity on his features. “Where are you going with this, my love?”

“Can you, maybe, cook this years dinner? Not on your ow because I can help and muck in when you need a helping hand, of course. And your mum will want to help and my mum will want to get stuck in somewhere to feel helpful. But you make an absolutely gorgeous beef and it’s been a while since you made the kitchen smell delicious,” you grinned sweetly, squeezing his arm as he dropped his wet nose to your hairline, “just talking about it makes my mouth water.”

“You want me to cook a beef, as well as a turkey?” He gawked, “you really think I can handle all of that on my own? With the pressure of your mum and my mum and Gemma, who you know will bring up the bloody burnt Chinese takeaway fiasco of 2009.”

“You leave them to me,” you hummed, “because I want those potatoes cooked in the beef fat and I want that deliciously succulent beef that you make where it’s not too tough to chew but also not too pink and under-cooked in the middle and I want you to make those sautéed brussels sprouts so I can swat you for farting all day because they never settle on your stomach. You also make the best broccoli and your parsnips are never too soft. And I want you to make your homemade pigs in blankets because they’re the best I’ve ever eaten,” you stood up on your toes and nudged your cold nose into the stubble of his jawline, “and they won me over.”

“I won you over because I make my own pigs in blankets for Christmas?” He affirmed, your head nodding into his cheek, “I should have opened with that in the coffee shop, then. Would have had you as my wife there and then, right?”

“I probably would have jumped you then and there,” you whispered, “would have worshipped the ground you walked on, kissed your feet, n’all that. When you told me, or when I found out, we were two years into a relationship and I knew I had to keep you around. Even if that meant physically attaching myself to you with ropes and knots that I learnt over the years. I’d have done it,” you pressed a kiss to the hollow of his cheek before squeezing his arm again. His fingers gripping yours tighter. “Just kept surprising me, didn’t you?”

“How else was I supposed to keep you around, huh? Would’ve gotten bored of me if I didn’t pull all of those new found facts out the bag. I couldn’t have kept up the good looks and the lovely charm forever because you would have realised soon enough that I was just a bore. Had to keep surprising you more and more and more as we went deeper into this,” he confessed nervously, “don’t need to worry so much now, do I? Bagged you as my absolute better half.”

“Hmm, I think you might just be the better half.”

“That’s utter nonsense and you know it is,” he warned, “you are my better half and I’m your better half. Lets keep it at that because, that way, we’re both the better half.”

You nodded in agreement. A settling silence swallowing the both of you as you snuggled closer. This time, his arm being secure around your shoulders to keep you as close as he physically could. Especially since the area was becoming much darker, and much more chillier, and he couldn’t risk getting you sick. The entry gate coming into view, just a few short feet away, with a road outside that had passing cars and busses making the last runs of the evening.

“You think Seff’s alright? What’s the time now?” Harry peeked at the watch on his wrist before letting it fall limp. “She’ll be asleep, I reckon. If we give Gem a call, when we arrive at the hotel, do you think she’ll be passed out on one of them or do you think she’ll be causing chaos and tiring them out?” He asked you, feeling you hide your face into his ribs and grip tighter to his middle. “Although, knowing Gemma, she’d have probably fed her ice-cream because no one can say no to her when she pouts her lips and gives you that sweet little face. D’you know she has my mum wrapped around her little finger because of that face?”

“And you,” you murmured, “I’d like to think she’s asleep and cosied up with one of them. Nice and fed and happy and comfortable. But, I have a funny feeling that the both of them might have spoilt her rotten with some kind of sweet treat. Michal brought muffins and cupcakes over because some friend of his brought them into work and told him he could take them home.”

“She’ll be a nightmare for the both of them,” he laughed, “but, I told you there would be nothing to worry over, didn’t I? I’d trust the both of them with my life. Wouldn’t let a harmful thing come in her direction.”

“We can talk to them when we get to the hotel, right? I miss her.”

“I miss her, as well,” he held the iron gate open to let you slip through, before following in suit, wrapping his arm back around your shoulders once the gate closed with a rattle, “but, you’ve had fun tonight, yeah? I did alright for a Christmas date?”

“You did wonderfully. You’ve instantly won the award for being the best date in all of London.”

“Just London?”

“God, you vain bastard,” you cackled, swatting his hip, “alright, so, you’ve instantly won the award for being the best in all of the world. Hands down, my favourite date and I mean that, with my whole heart,” his finger stretched out to press the traffic-light button at the side of the road. Feet coming to a stop at the crossing. “Maybe we should, like, make it a monthly thing or something? Not necessarily the hotel part but just taking some time out of parenthood to be ourselves.”

“And we can even do Chinese takeaway and a movie, just like you suggested earlier. Maybe even a bath and a pamper night and I’ll let you put your masks on my face. Might even let you have a go at my nails or summink. Whatever date we might fancy at the time,” he suggested, lips tucked into your hairline as he pressed a soft, but cold at the contact, kiss to your forehead. “Promise me that?”

“Promise what?”

“Promise that we’ll have one night a month where it’s just us, taking a break from parenthood, and enjoying the time we have together before we’re back to being parents?” He unwrapped his arm from around your shoulders, slipping both hands into his pockets to warm them up from the air, clenching his fingers and forming fists. “Don’t let this be just a ‘say and not do’ kind of thing. Let’s really make it happen. Even if we’re not alone and decide that double dating with Emi and Adam would be a great idea or if we decide that going out with Nick and the London lot sounds exciting. Let’s make it a monthly thing where we’re not parents for one night.”

You nodded and followed him, his fingers flexing out for you to hold, as he stalked across the crossing.

“Okay, yeah,” you agreed, “and, I really mean that, as well, Harry. I love Persephone to bits and she’s the best thing to happen to us, and, God, I couldn’t think of anything bad to say about being a mum because I love it so much,” you puffed out a visible breath, “but it would be nice to go out with our friends and catch up with them because it’s rare that we do that now, you know?”

“A new year is on the brink. We’ll make it a tradition. Friday nights will always be out family nights in but one Saturday night can be our party night,” he snickered, “and I’m going to have you dancing on the tables again, missus. Just you wait and see.”

DECEMBER 21ST, 1AM. MAYFAIR. LONDON.

“What are you doing out here? It’s bloody freezing at this time o’ night. Gon’a get yourself a cold for Christmas, aren’t you? Tried my best to keep you warm and you go and stand out in the chill.” The balcony doors, that you had made sure were closed behind you upon your escape from the unfamiliar bedroom, creaked open, revealing a bleary and tired looking Harry, knuckling at his eyes as the skin of his arms and legs became littered with tiny goosebumps. The hairs upon the back of his neck standing on end as a shiver ran through his spine. “Are you alright? Can’t sleep or...?”

“I’m fine. I couldn’t get comfortable or anything. I think it’s just a change up from not having Persephone down the hall. I could always hear her gentle breathing through the monitor on the bedside table and it just, it feels a bit weird not having one there,” you twisted on your heels and tugged the sleeves of the jumper, drowning your upper body with wool and stopping beneath the curve of your bum, over your hands. Turning your back to the scenery that the room had been graced with. “It’s silly, I know. I’m a grown woman and I can’t sleep in unfamiliar territory.”

“It’s not silly. I thought I’d done something to upset you. Felt you get up but I thought you were just going to the toilet. Gave it a few minutes and I came to find you,” he admitted softly. Having just completed an act of passion, hours before and as soon as the both of you had stepped foot in the hotel suite, that hadn’t been completed in a long, long time. Embracing the normality of what was once a frequent act, come the act of intimacy. His boxers sitting askew on his hips, after he’d tugged them back on the dark, in a haste to find out where you’d gotten to, and his jumper sitting on his upper body, back-to-front because he’d had a struggle of working out what side was the right side. “C’mere.”

He perched down on a padded chair, patting his naked thighs as an invitation for you wiggle yourself upon his lap. Gladly accepting as you strode across the balcony floor and snuggled back against his chest. Nose tucked below his ear. The musky smell of sweat mixed with his cologne still lingering upon his skin, and would do until he showered the following morning. His thighs feeling a little sticky, against the backs of yours, after having you in a rather compromising position as he allowed himself to stay, balls deep, inside of you. His neck littered with dark bruises from hickies that you’d left behind - that would definitely attract the eyes of any paparazzi on the lurk to catch you both, in the morning.

“It’s really beautiful at night, isn’t it? It’s so quiet and peaceful and, despite it being a bit chilly-”

“A bit?”

“Despite the weather, it’s actually really relaxing. You don’t get to see all of this from Hampstead. Out here, you can still see pubs and clubs that are open and you can still hear taxis and Ubers going by below and there are still people roaming the streets,” your head lulled against his shoulder as your warm breath flushed over his skin, “and we rarely visit Mayfair so this is nice to see. We rarely go out of Hampstead or the centre so it’s really nice to drink it all in.”

“I’d take you anywhere you wanted, you know? Been all around the world with me so I think I can handle taking you on a few car journeys between London towns,” he whispered, “just tell me where you fancy going and we’ll go.”

“You’re the best husband, you know that?” You said with the softest of tones. Love and adoration being so pure and innocent behind your words as you pulled away from his shoulder and pressed a smacking kiss to his cheek. “Like, the best of the absolute best. I’m bloody lucky to have you in my life and I wouldn’t want it to be any different.”

“Achieved a lot with you by my side that m’starting to think you’re my good luck charm. If you think you’re escaping me, ever, you’re completely and utterly wrong,” he grinned, “I literally loved the pants off of you earlier and I don’t think that will ever change.”

“Good.”

You gave him a smug look before his face inched closer. The tip of his nose nudging against the tip of your nose as his pouted lips met your pouted lips, in a deeply passionate kiss that made you forget all about the surroundings that gave life to the place. Forehead resting against forehead, a pair of eyes boring into a pair of eyes, hands cupping hips whilst hands cupped shoulders. Breaths mingling and mixing.

“Thank you,” you declared.

“Wha’ for?”

“Just for being you. Just for being my absolutely crazy, incredibly talented, gorgeously handsome, baby-loving husband,” you croaked, coughing once to remove a tired lump and a rasp from your throat, “I fall more and more in love with you, every single second of every day, and I never want that to change. Harry. I seriously never, ever want that to change.”

* *

yourinstagram: we woke up in mayfair. 

[yandereshit]

Saeran x MC: the error. [Ch.2: in disguise.]

Masterlist for the story [updated regularly] Read on Ao3 Read on Wattpad ← Chapter 1.

“Saeran, you’re strong. It will be alright. You can endure everything.”

He trusted these words, echoing in his head along with the pounding pain, his head feeling as if it’s about to burst.

He didn’t know if he should trust her, but he felt as if this woman was his only hope now. He didn’t know her for too long yet, but he was sure she meant well. Unlike everyone else he’s met in his life. She wanted to make him happy.

She wouldn’t leave him, would she?

She said so and he couldn’t help but trust her.

Even in this pain he was going through just now. It was paralyzing, overwhelming, and yet it was nothing he couldn’t go through, because she kept telling him she wouldn’t leave.

And she didn’t. Every time he suffered like this, every time his head pounded from the substance she gave him, she’d stay with him, soothe him, run her fingers through his hair to comfort him, telling him it’ll be over soon.

He didn’t know if she wouldn’t sooner or later leave him as well. But he couldn’t help but let himself be naïve in this moment, letting her lead him forward.

He stared blankly at the wall.

“I need to go, take care of the others. But I will come back, I promise. So please, wait for me.”

He nodded shortly and so she left.

The place became suffocating and unbearable the very moment he was alone again. He didn’t know whether he wanted to cry, scream or run, but he felt sick.

It was stinky around him, he heard screams in other rooms too. Every single time someone screamed in pain, he’d sob in pain along. And every time someone yelled, he’d curl up, trembling, trying to push away all the painful memories.

His Savior never screamed at him. She wasn’t like that woman he used to live with. She didn’t scream. She said she’d come back; not to hurt him, but to help him.

He had to trust her. He didn’t have anyone else.

The walls were cold, the air – almost thick. His breath was shallow, as if there was no much oxygen left in here, ever since no windows would let more inside. He didn’t even know how long has he been here, but he knew lots of people were here before him. There were some dry substances on the plain, wooden bed he was also laying on, but he tried not to think about them. Ensuring himself it was only dried blood was the safest option to not overthink it.

In the moments when Savior came down here, it wasn’t so bad anymore. Her presence lightened up the whole space. She was beautiful and kind, albeit intimidating, making him almost ashamed that she had to go there for him and sit in such a dirty, awful place.

She deserved way, way more. He didn’t know her that well yet, but he was sure of it.

She made him feel at ease whenever she appeared.

“Savior…”

His heart clenched whenever she was away. It hurt to have to wait for her, because her presence made everything easier.

And yet, she never belonged to him to begin with. He wanted her to focus on him only, but she was the type of person who takes care of everyone, eventually not being close to any.

He was aware of that. And it hurt that she’d never be as dependent on him as he was on her.

He felt lonely once again, filled with sorrow. But the soft voice in his head didn’t let him cry, didn’t let him break down as he desperately wished to. It wasn’t giving him any relief.

“You can do this, Ray. You’re never allowed to give up.”

☀

Day 15th.

He kept repeating these words when his head felt as if it was about to burst. He curled up on the bed he was using now, trying to focus on anything else other than what he was feeling. Even pain from the burns wasn’t unbearable now,  only the numbness spreading over his body seemed troublesome.

Eventually, he decided to get up.

Miya, the woman that ‘rescued’ him, went out a while ago and didn’t tell him, where. She wasn’t telling him anything about how were the other Believers doing nor what happened to the RFA in the end. It’s been five days ever since he lost contact with the world.

He had to find a phone.

His own has been destroyed, that he was sure of. He left it in Mint Eye, no chance it’d be of any use to him now.

He took a few steps towards the door, leaning against the wall to keep himself stable. He didn’t feel sick at least, only a bit dizzy, but the pain wouldn’t subside no matter what he did anyway, so he just tried his best to ignore it.

He entered the bathroom and the moment his eyes accidentally fell upon the mirror, he froze.

He tugged off his shirt in an instant.

His whole torso was bandaged, along with his arm and hand. Another bandage was around his neck. It didn’t hurt at all. He couldn’t feel anything. Along with the elixir, Miya must have given him some painkillers, apparently.

Because when he ripped off the bandages, he was more than sure it should hurt as hell.

The skin on his neck and upper chest was red. Deep red. There was almost no skin left there at all. Ripping off the bandage so roughly reopened the wounds, making fresh blood run down his chest, along with the sticky ointment Miya must have treated him with when he was unconscious. From the way she wrapped bandage around the burns he guessed she didn’t have much experience with such things. Neither he had though.

The burn on his arm was a bit better, only covered with blisters that would sooner or later go off. But he guessed it would be more efficient to let them ‘breathe’, without the bandages. The woman must have supposed it’s not too safe to leave them out considering he’d thrash around while sleeping.

There was a scar on his forehead too, as if something heavy hit him hard enough to break the skin.

His ribs were dark from bruises.

It didn’t hurt. But it should.

He felt numb.

His stomach twisted and he kneeled by the toilet to throw up the food he was given a few hours earlier.

He didn’t know what else other than the elixir Miya stuffed him with, but at least it worked. He didn’t feel anything from these wounds.

And yet the pain in his head would be the one considered unbearable.

He sat on the floor, leaning against the wall. He felt cold, the wounds seemed to take all the heat away from him. Now that he didn’t have any clothes on his upper body, the cool air of the room surrounded him, making him shiver.

But he couldn’t let himself rest like this. He had things to do. He needed to find Savior, whatever happened to her. He only hoped she’d be safe. He needed to make sure other Believers were safe as well. And a lot of other things…

He rested his healthy hand on the toilet seat to support himself while standing up. He reached to the sink and took a cup standing by to fill it with water, then drink it – definitely too fast, but he didn’t care.

He decided to check the other rooms. There must have been a computer.

The kitchen was small and empty, he didn’t find any food, only a few bottles of water. He wasn’t hungry anyway, but the water would be helpful. In one of the drawers, there were a few small bottles of turquoise liquid. He ignored them.

He went to the small living room, filled with as much as sofa, a few drawers, wardrobe and TV. He supposed Miya slept there when he took the bed. He wandered around the room and checked the drawers, but – aside from TV – not a single electrical device was there to be found.

He turned on TV, but – as he expected, actually – the news didn’t show anything he’d be interested in.

He went back to the bedroom.

In the only drawer here, there were only some ointments, boxes and first aid kit that seemed almost empty by now.

He sat back on the bed and shifted to lay as comfortably as it was possible, which actually meant just avoiding touching the wounds, nothing else really mattered to him now more than to getting himself to a state good enough to leave this place and do what he was supposed to.

But he couldn’t even force himself to think about it for long as the peaceful dream took over his body, quickly giving him a release from the torture of living.

☀

“Please… Five minutes more, dammit…”

“You will sleep when you’re dead, MC.”

“Then hurry up and kill me…”

He smirked and ruffled your hair, making you grumble but – finally – open your eyes. You shifted slightly, acknowledging the surroundings.

You were sitting on the passenger seat in a car, covered with a black hoodie. The owner of the said hoodie was sitting next to you, focused on the road. He had only a red shirt on, the silver cross on his chest glistened in the glow of street lights.

It was a very early morning, as the digital clock on the radio stated. Soft music played in the background, probably the only reason why you managed to stay asleep for so long.

You were driving through suburbs of some city you didn’t recognize. The drive lasted the whole night and – after spending the whole day trying to help Seven (or actually, trying to not disturb him as you turned out to be quite useless), the whole night has been spent on the road. Your body was stiff from the position you were in and you tried to cover yourself with the hoodie even more, clearly unpleased with the cool, morning air.

“So, what are we at…?” you mumbled. “And aren’t you cold? We can stop and get my jacket from the trunk.”

You two were aware what you were doing may take longer than one day, so you obviously prepared for all the cases you could predict. Low temperature was relatively easy to predict.

“We can do it later, if you want. I’m fine. Anyway.” He was so in hurry last evening that he didn’t really explain much to you. “I looked carefully over the map of the surrounding area and, thanks to the satellite recordings I found, I figured out the only road he could have used while leaving. Or anyone else who would be able to take him away. And it turned out that yes, at that time someone used this road. Driving their way to some point and then in the opposite direction. If this person wasn’t looking for the hacker, then I don’t know what they were doing, considering it was pretty much middle of night.”  

He glanced at you, but you didn’t say anything, waiting for him patiently to continue. You only hoped he wouldn’t use any of his complicated slang to explain you how he came to these conclusions.

“Anyway. There are only two directions they may have used further, but the trees are in the way and I don’t know which one is the right one. I think it’s most possible they went to this city, because the other is way further away. They may have went even farther, but so far, we should start looking here for any hints. I can hack into the CCTV cameras everywhere, but it’ll be quite time consuming and we can’t ignore what we can find out from other resources.”

Now you looked up at him.

“Other resources?”

“People. In short. I suppose that most of these Believers chose to stay together, but it’s hard to find a place for so many people, isn’t it? Most of them were probably considered missing, coming back home would be troublesome, and I doubt they’d be even willing to do so. So I can bet if we look into the underground of this place, we’ll sooner or later find some of them. And that’s how we can find the hacker as well.”

“So… in other words, you’re gonna sit with the computer and look for the CCTVs, while I’m talking to strange people, yes…?”

His eyes widened as he stared at you, for a second forgetting about controlling the car. He quickly composed himself.

“A-are you crazy? I would never let you do something like this. Vanderwood will take care of it. He decided to go there on his own so he probably already started searching.”

“So… I’m useless again” you summarized.

“You can take care of food supplies since Mary will be busy” he offered with a goofy smile.

You rolled your eyes.

“Will try not to poison you guys.”

“Thankie~”

He chuckled and then fell silent again, focusing back on the road.

You leaned against the window and closed your eyes, trying to get a few more minutes of sleep, but it turned out you weren’t woken up for no reason; the car finally stopped and you looked around, memorizing the surroundings.

You still were in some rather poor district, definitely in the suburbs. Buildings were built tightly next to each other, not giving much space in between the rows, only as much as roads and the narrow paths for people.

Seven drove onto the path to stop the car and frowned all of sudden.

“…I didn’t predict that.”

You glanced at him, only partly suspecting what he meant.

“My car is… visible. Way too visible. I decided we should stay in this place to be unnoticed. But I… didn’t think about that…” He banged his head on the steering wheel. “…I’m so stupid.”

You couldn’t help but laughed softly.

“We’ll think of something. We can park somewhere closer to the city center and go back there some other way. By feet, for example. I doubt we’ll need to use this car too often, to be honest.”

“It’s still a long way to the center though” he whined.

“You can leave me with the bags here and I will wait for you” you offered. “You won’t have to drag everything.”

He whined once more.

Like a child, you thought.

“Can’t let you do that… This place isn’t the safest possible, especially now that we have cult members on the streets…”

You rolled your eyes.

“Then I don’t know what to do. Think of something, Zero.” You purposely used the other number, making him glare at you, a bit annoyed. Zero was definitely not a lucky number.

“…I will leave my baby for a few minutes. Nothing bad should happen. Nothing. Bad. Should Happen” he repeated. Paranoia much?

“No one will steal it, chill out.”

“But what if someone touches it and-“

“Oh my god, Seven, you’re exaggerating.”

“My baby…” he whined once more, but your glare made him quiet down in an instant. “…I-I will take you to the flat I rented and then come back here to find a good place to hide the car.”

“Well, that’s a good plan. I didn’t know you rented a flat though.”

“It’s… small. But it was the only place no one would ask us about anything. Our identity is safe here.”

“Unlike your car” you smirked.

Seven grumbled quietly.

“Get up, gotta hurry.”

“Aye~”

The place was rather quiet and empty at this hour, the road was rather narrow and didn’t predict larger traffic. As you remembered from your way here, another, wider road was on the other side of the row of buildings – old houses that looked as if they were about to fall apart – Seven stopped his car by.

As much as cars were rather rare here in general, you couldn’t not notice all the dirt around, trash and broken glass shreds laying on the street as if no one really cared about it. The smell was at least unpleasant.

“Let’s get in” you murmured, not really encouraged by these unwelcoming surroundings.

Seven looked around carefully before getting the bags from the trunk and going in the direction of one of the buildings. The elevator was out of order and so you were forced to go by feet onto the fourth floor. You didn’t complain much, but – what could you say – you were impressed Seven didn’t start to, considering he was carrying all these bags and even refused your help.

Obviously, he mentioned it before to be working for some agency, but you didn’t know what exactly was he doing there. It’d be obvious for him to just sit in front of his computers and… well, hack. But the way he seemed to easily do all this practical stuff made you suppose that he had more experience in this than it’d look like at first.

The flat he rented was, as he said, quite small. It was… well, it was furnished. There was a creaking bed with a pierced mattress in one room, along with an old TV that probably showed in greys, and a small drawer with an old, empty vase. In the other, also small room, there was a sofa and an old wardrobe… without doors. There was a kitchen and bathroom with only the necessary things inside; everything looked as if no one really took care of this place in years, even though people surely lived there in the meanwhile.

“Nice place, isn’t it?” Seven said happily and you weren’t sure whether he was serious or sarcastic, actually.

“U-um…” you stuttered. “Could… be worse” you noticed, trying to cheer yourself up. It didn’t work.

Seven smirked at your reaction.

“You’ll get used. Open the windows and let some air inside. We’ll clean it up a little and it’ll look pretty.”

“It’d look better… with some flowers” you said, staring at the vase standing lonely in the bedroom. “Hey, what about we hold a housewarming party? Maybe this one will be successful.” Your lips curled up in a very bitter smile.

“Oh, great idea, we can invite all the cats in the neighborhood” Seven chirped along, placing the bags on the floor. “Okay. Try to get cozy, I will be back in a few hours. Also…” His eyebrows furrowed slightly. “Don’t go out, and don’t open the door even if someone knocks. Just pretend no one’s home, okay?”

“What if neighbors want to say hi?” you asked, actually rather ensured no one would come.

“Just pretend not to be here. And, um… Don’t use the kitchen, I’ll need to make sure all the pipes work. We don’t want to have a fire here… Be careful with the bathroom too…” he smiled awkwardly.

You rolled your eyes but nodded. The idea of having to pay for any damage the previous tenant caused wasn’t really what you wished for on the first day here.

“I’ll just take a nap” you said, but he was already at the doorstep, probably not hearing you anymore.

“I’ll buy some food on my way here, so be patient.”

“See you later, Seven.”

And so you were left alone.

It was still early morning, but you seriously considered taking a nap. The night was longer than you’d wish and – no matter how comfortable – you were happy to not have to use Seven’s car any time soon.

You only hoped that your stay here would be as safe as he said.

 –– MC has entered the chatroom ––

MC: Hello, guys…

–– Zen has entered the chatroom ––

Zen: MC!

Zen: You’re here.

Zen: Haven’t seen you in a while, you didn’t even say bye after our night…

MC: …You make it sound weird, Zen.

Zen: lol sry

–– Yoosung★  has entered the chatroom ––

Yoosung★: MC!

Yoosung★: …Are you okay?

Yoosung★: You disappeared so suddenly…

Yoosung★: As I think about it, Seven hasn’t been here lately too…

Yoosung★: V, on the other hand

Yoosung★: Comes here almost every day and asks about you two.

Yoosung★: But he’s not here now…

MC: Did he want something from us…?

Yoosung★: It seemed so, but I can’t be sure…

Zen: Wait

Zen: Did you say

Zen: “us”?

Zen: Are you with Seven?

MC: …

Yoosung★: Whaaa

Yoosung★: Are you???

MC: Guys;;

MC: I’m

 You hesitated. Seven told you to keep it in secret from V. If you wrote it in the chat, he’d surely see it later. He’d surely figure out that you two ended up together like this.

No matter how much you hated to lie, you couldn’t reveal this secret. It wasn’t only yours, after all.

 MC: I’m at home, just this

MC: I think I need a break from everything… A lot happened, after all.

Zen: Figures…

Yoosung★: Guess you’re tired T-T

Zen: It’s understandable…

MC: I was about to take a nap now so

MC: See you later!

Zen: Good bye.

Yoosung★: See you!

Yoosung★: Ah, my classes start, I’ll be going off as well. Bye!

–– MC has left the chatroom ––

–– Yoosung★ has left the chatroom ––

–– V has entered the chatroom ––

V: Oh

V: MC was here, I missed her…

Zen: You ok?

V: I’m good. But a bit disappointed I didn’t get to talk to her…

Zen: She said she just needs some time…

V: Yeah, I saw it…

Zen: It must have been tough for her, don’t you think…?

Zen: The whole Mint Eye thing…

Zen: She’s been there for a while, after all

Zen: And now the whole place is

V: Zen.

Zen: destroyed

Zen: Hm?

V: There’s only the two of us here now, but

V: Please, don’t mention this if MC’s here

V: I suppose she should just

V: forget

Zen: …

V: About everything.

Chapter 3. →

[the-faxx-macheen]

Uhh so I figured I'd make a proper post about this since I really haven't, and well I dunno how many of you might be worried or not but these last couple months I've dropped off of nearly every site I normally use. So I figured I'd pop out a decent explanation for this year and my lurking, and I figured I'd do it here since most of my friends are here and I can make longer posts. Uhh... Nobody has to really read this if they don't care also I'd like to off an apology for lack of a readmore anyways. So ya'll probably noticed I stopped posting as much around the beginning of this year, that was um due to some personal problems I'm still coming to terms with. Won't say what, but it wasn't work related because I'd lost my job a month prior. Ahem anyways, it pushed me to working on literally anything that could come to mind so that I wouldn't have to think about the topic and avoid it as best I could. Hence why I'd been pushing out so... So... Much stuf. Eesh. Of course if you've been looking at my stuff you may have noticed everything has pretty much come to a grinding halt. Well uh y'see, and I know I've mentioned this before but just to reiterate. We've been having a bit of financial trouble. My gran has been incredibly sick lately, badly enough she's been hospitalized for almost months at a time this year alone. As such she hasn't been able to work and her business had been gradually slipping, which because of that we don't have quite enough to pay taxes on the house. So my gran's resorted to having to take out a loan, which means we have to have someone inspect the house make sure it's livable so they can grant her money. Which means cleaning and repairing a 40/50 year old house with 5 years worth of rot and junk piled to fill three houses, and it's not the easiest job in the world. Especially when two housemates are lazy bums and you have an 80 year old woman who's too sick and frail to do much of anything. But that's a different complaint... So I've been really busy, previously in November we had until the end of the month, thankfully we got it lengthened to December 15th, so I've been mostly offline working on the house as much as I can throughout the day. And I've still been having trouble finding a job, so after a day of work and piling through application to fill out it leaves little time for working on fun things. But I do still try to start one when the idea hits! But anyways, on to the real point of all this. I'll hopefully be able to get back to making content again hopefully around Christmas time, provided we succeed to get the loan and don't have to worry about the house being claimed and I don't wind up on the street because I can't afford a place. Uh, keep your fingers crossed yeah?

[noir-fuel]

SO i’ve been meaning to join charoix week since before it even started but i’m horribly slow at drawing and writing. also just horrified of posting things in general but thats besides the point - despite this being hella late I’m going to share it ;u; 

Day One | | August 13th, 2017 (Finished on the 15th but hush) | | Past

“ C o n t a g i o u s  

With the semester starting off rather calmly, the new school year was looking like it would be just as it was prior - Croix would be held up in the library every other day with her work done weeks in advance, but still grilling the information as thoroughly as mechanically possible.  The only thing different she had planned for the year was that she’d actually make a point in remembering basic human needs - seeing as the previous year … wasn’t something she’d like a repeat of.

In fact the mere thought alone had her cringing in second hand embarrassment, or was it technically first hand?

Croix sighed under her breath. This year would be better, but not because of the slight change she wanted to put into how she went about things - but because of something even she would never be able to plan.

With the intentions of reading forward in her classes, Croix ran a finger down the spines of various books - eyes scanning for a certain title in particular. Sidestepping the bookshelf, she succeeded in  growing more frustrated as she came up empty handed. Although she knew Luna Nova’s prestige library had the text she wanted - it was nowhere in sight.  Even daring to stand on her toes to reach the shelves above her head; Croix had to bite back a frustrated growl.

Surely she had to be blind! Which, technically she was. But that was besides the point she was trying to make.

Arms crossed over her chest, the lilac-haired witch took a few steps back to try and see the books she couldn’t reach on the shelves; maybe one of those was the one she needed. With the shelves being about eight feet tall at average. She was truly cursing her height. Although the school provided ladders at the end of every shelf - and the basic levitation spell was only a flick of the wrist away - Croix didn’t want to waste any more of her time in either.

Taking yet another step back, Croix hadn’t noticed the ladder behind her. Catching her leg on the bottom step, she let out an uncharacterized yelp of surprise followed by one that wasn’t made by her.

The ladder swayed at the contact of Croix bumping into it, and had she noticed the person at the top of it loosing their balance she might’ve been able to do something about it. But instead, all the young witch managed was to look up dumbly and immediately be thrown to the floor with a rather painful ache to the back of her head where it had made contact with the ground.

Glasses thrown lopsided on her face, even if she hadn’t shut them on impact she wouldn’t be able to see the face of the body sprawled out on top of her. Suppressing a whine, the dull throb in her head worried her of a concussion - but something told her she wouldn't be that lucky.

Risking the chance to look up, Croix cracked open an eye - and although it took a second to be able to perceive the ghosting images of red hair with how her glasses sat lopsided on her face. She had no idea who the girl was.

But that didn’t really matter as her body tensed up, physical touch wasn’t something the girl was all that accustomed to. Croix had no friends at Luna Nova, and honestly it was like she purposely went out of her way to not make contact with others. But here she was;

On her back in a rather compromising position, with the first year just barely gathering herself, sitting up so she straddled Croix, a hand reached to rub at a spot beneath her curly red hair. The girl didn’t even seem to notice that she was laying on the second year, that was until she jolted at the contact of one of Croix’s bent legs. Red eyes flying open - the girl stared openly, either too dazed to speak or too slow to comprehend all of what happened.

“Oh no!” eventually the redhead figured out as she exclaimed, moving her hands in the air as if she had been burned - purposely making sure she wasn’t touching the lilac-haired witch below her. “I’m so sorry! I - I was trying to get a book, I couldn’t reach it. I guess I lost my balance and then I? Oh my God, I’m really sorry!”

Still a bit dazed herself, Croix blinked as the girl animated talked. Though made no motion to speak - the girl had apparently saw this as her being hurt as concern flashed across her face.

“Are you okay? I’m really really sorry!”

“You’re… It’s fine. My fault honestly.” swallowing her own nerves, Croix hummed - refusing to make eye contact seeing as the first year had yet to get off her. “I walked into the ladder.”

“No no! If I had paid attention to falling I could’ve - why are you laughing? Hey!”

The first year sat back, her back leaning against Croix’s knees with her arms crossed over her chest. And dare Croix think, an adorable pout lining her lips. But more importantly - Croix was in fact chuckling at the poor girl’s ramblings, did she really think all this was her fault? It was Croix who stepped into the ladder.

“You know you have a really pretty smile.”

Nearly jumping out of her skin, the complement was unexpected. Leaving her averting her gaze even more as colour collected at her cheeks.

“Thanks?” Croix muttered, clearing her throat out of nerves if anything else. “Could you… ?”

“Huh? Oh OH! I am so sorry!”

With a bit of fumbling, the girl instinctively placing her hands on Croix’s chest to push herself up - there was a series of apologies until the redhead stood standing, her face rivaling the colour of her hair. Tentatively she reached out a hand to help the older witch up, a half smile on her face which only seemed to grow brighter when Croix actually took the offered help. Brushing off her skirt, Croix hummed to herself - finally taking a moment to right the glasses perched on her nose.

“I’m really sorry about - about well, all of this.”

“It’s fine… really it is.” shaking her head, Croix just couldn’t stop herself from smiling.

Something about the girl just bred happiness, and for some odd reasoning that interested the prodigy. For reasons, mostly do to her own antisocialness, it was rare for any student at Luna Nova to talk to her. Aside from the awkward conversation between her dorm-mates, and some peers in classes asking for help. This girl didn’t even seem to realize who she was, and that alone was appealing in of itself. Before she could even process what she was about to say, Croix glanced back to the top of the ladder - assuming that the one disturbed book was the one the redhead was trying to get. Her own search long forgotten as she unhooked her wand from stash at her side, its tip glowing in a light green she whisked the book from its shelf and presented it to the beaming first year.

“Magic pharmaceutics?” Croix inquired, stealing a glance over the book's title. “You know… I could help you if you need an-”

“Would you? Please!” before the words were even out of her mouth, the girl was back to animatedly explaining how she created an explosion in class.  “I don't even know why but I keep messing up on everythi-- oh!”

Croix looked up as the redhead suddenly stopped in her rambling, her red eyes shining brightly as she took either of the older witches’ hands in her own. Causing for the older to flinch, but for some reason the contact wasn’t as bad as she’d expect it to be.

“I’m Chariot by the way! Chariot du Nord.”

“Croix Meridies.”

“Pleasure to meet you Croix!” Chariot beamed, and her enthusiasm had to have been contagious as Croix found herself nodding in agreement.

“Pleasure is all mine Chariot, now how about I help you with that potion yeah? So you don’t explode the classroom this time.”

“It was one time!”

Almost as if they’d known each other their whole lives, the girls fell into an easy banter as their laughs bounced off the library shelves. Croix had lead them to a corner table to study the books, and Chariot stared intently with the idea of drinking in all of the information she could. It was the start of a very fulfilling year for them both, as their friendship only grew.

[siodymph]

Stanchez Apprecition Week: Day 3

And here’s day 3! Where Rick is making gifts for Dipper and Mabel’s 15th b-day and Stan gives him some help!

You can read it here under the cut or over on my AO3! 

And just a reminder I'm taking stanchez requests until March 24th. So if you have any ideas for stories don't be shy!

Rick still couldn’t believe it. The summer was already over. And soon he and the rests of the Smith’s would be leaving Gravity Falls and heading back to suburbia-hell Washington. It was so weird to think about. Just a few months ago it felt like time had literally slowed down, Rick had to check his one of his universal time tables just to make sure any freaky temporal shit was happening in this weirdo hick town in the middle of nowhere. It had been a real long, boring summer. The worst that happened was a gnome civil war and a unicorn revolt. It had been way to quiet for Rick’s liking. He ended up dragging Stan or Morty and the other kids off into the multiverse every other night just to keep things interesting. And even then things still felt so quiet.

While it was happening it felt so boring. And yet now that was the last week of summer vacation it felt like it all went by in an instant. It messed with his head. Not a lot, but just enough to piss him off.

At least summers in Gravity Falls never ended on a sappy depressing note, with everyone moping around and feeling like shit. It was always pretty nice that the Twin’s birthday landed right at the end of the summer so they could all go out partying.

And from all the commotion he heard upstairs this morning, this was going to be an interesting one for sure. The second summer the Smith’s spent up here but it would be Dipper and Mabel’s third summer, and they were turning 15.

Now knowing the two a lot better than last year or the year before, Rick wanted to make them presents they would actually like. Something they would actually use and not just set aside in the back of a closet to collect dust. He wanted to knock their fucking socks off.

So while they were all upstairs party planning or whatever he went down to Ford’s underground labs and got cracking.

Of the two Mabel was the easier. Honestly he could of made literally anything and as long as he bedazzled it in hot pink Mabel would of loved it. But this summer he’d gone forty steps beyond that. So he’d made a modified version of one of his old favorites before his portal gun. It was a gun where each interchangeable barrel had a different purpose, there was a grappling hook, glitter canon, laser, freeze-ray, hot glue, this guy had everything Mabel could need. And he also painted it hot pink and bedazzled it. He knew the kid always liked her sparkles even when she was in the underbelly of her “punk goth stage” in life which was “totally not a phase guys!”

Dipper had been a little harder to pin down at first. He ended up scrapping his initial plan because half-way through he realized he wasn’t really making something Dipper would want, he was making something Ford would want. So he tossed out his first idea for an electronic journal. But he did keep the concept of a database for his work. And instead of making it writing base, he set it up on a medium the kid used a lot more, camera. This camera could record and hold years of film, and all of it would go into a secure database for all his recordings and research.

Both the gun and the camera were completely finished, and just in time as the party was tonight at Fiddleford’s fancy mansion. All he had left to do was wrap the bastards.

Too bad wrapping gifts was the one few thing he sucked at. When it came to design, he was always functionality and price over looks and god did it show in his gift-wrapping. He already demolished one whole roll of paper, it all sat on the floor in shreds and coated in more tape than paper. And he was working his way to wasting one and a half roll of wrapping paper as he botched up his latest attempt at wrapping. It might have been easier if he’d made the gifts box-shaped, or put them in boxes, but they were so asymmetrical and always looked like shit once he had them secured in tape. He was just about to give up and go look for gift bags like a weakling when the elevator down to the lab came to life and started whirring.

As the cart came down Rick crossed his fingers hoping it wasn’t Ford. When it came to parties the guy usually ducked to find a hiding spot and wait everything out if he could and he really didn’t want him coming down here and seeing the shitty state of his presents.

When the doors finally opened though he was slightly less upset to see Stan there. Sure his Lee wasn’t as annoying as Ford, he was dating him again after all, but he still wasn’t happy with anyone seeing him struggle to do something as easy as wrap presents.

“There you are! Been looking for your sorry hind everywhere!” Stan called out as he stepped down into the basement laboratory.

As he walked towards the bench Rick had been working on he wondered if maybe he should bother hiding the presents, at least all the paper and tape on the floor. But Stan was getting close and it was already too late, he saw the mess and his eyes widened a little.

Then he just smirked at Rick, clasping his hands behind his back like a dick. “Wow! You still have no idea how to wrap presents?”

“It’s harder than it looks, ass!” Rick huffed as he looked back at his recent attempts at presents. This time round wasn’t too bad… on one side. When he turned it over it was a mess of taped-off papers. There were a few spots where the paper didn’t even cover the gift. Pouting he once again ripped off all the paper and tossed it on the ground.

Before he could start attempt number 23 Stan stopped him, nudging him aside and swiping the roll or wrapping paper out of his hands. “Here, let an old pro! Mabel’s been hounding me on proper wrapping etiquette ever since she first came here!”

“I’m fine!”

“Come on, it’ll take be like two minutes! Besides, you really want to show the kids these? You know Jerry would have a field day with’em!”

Rick caved in at that, he could take humiliation from anybody else, but never in his life would he ever let a Jerry talk shit about him. He hoisted himself up onto the bench to watch Stan at work.

As he worked he rolled out a sheet of paper double the size of Mabel’s gift and began marking off crease line with a pencil along all the funky little curve and nobules on the gun. Then after cutting a few of the creases, he folded them over so they were fleshed to the shape of the gun. Soon after strips of paper were stretched across and while you could clearly see it was a gun, it was still completely wrapped-up.

As Stan went to work on wrapping Rick’s camera, he flashed a cheeky grin at Rick.

“Show off.” He muttered, still pouty but unable to stop watching Stan at work.

“You’re welcome!” Stan said back mock-sweetly before he went back to marking crease-lines onto the paper. “Why are you even worried about this stuff? Usually you just wrap things terribly and don’t give a shit.”

“I dunno.” Rick replied, trying to keep a cool, apathetic tone. “I guess I’d rather not look like a complete embarrassment to your nibs’. Spent long enough on their presents. Nothing was half-assed so the presentation shouldn’t be half-assed either.”

“They look pretty neat, that’s for sure. How long did you spend working on’em?” Stan asked as he cut up some strips and began folding them over Dipper’s gift.

“Little less than a month, Dipper’s camera went a little longer cause I had to scrap my first idea.” Rick answered easily.

“Why’d you have to do that?”

“Eh, didn’t really seem like something he’d actually like once I started working on it. I wanted to make thing’s your kids would want use this year, you’know? Something they’d actually like? I think I got it right though, so both of them should be happy with their gear. I think they’ll appreciate them at-at the least or something like that-“

Rick hadn’t realized he’d been talking so long. When he looked back up at Stan he’d already finished the present and was beaming at him.

“What?”

Stan had his head leaned up on his fist and he still had that weird look on his face. “You really want to impress them, don’t you Sanchez?”

“Wha- No! The- those little bastards can go peddle these on the streets day after their birthday! I don’t give a shit!”

“You’re getting soft!” Stan teased.

“Fuck off!” Rick shoved him away but Stan just laughed.

And he leaned back his ruffling Rick hair, “Hey they’re pretty great kids, so it’s not all that surprising. But don’t worry, you’re secrets safe with me!”

“Whatever, get off me!” Rick squirmed out of Stan’s hold and readjusted his hair from its frazzled state back to its normal frazzled state.

And Stan stepped away from the bench as Rick hopped down and grabbed his newly-wrapped resents.

“So I got some other stuff to take care of but I’ll see you at the party right? You and you’re beautifully wrapped presents?” Stan asked smirking as he stepped into the elevator.

“Ya, if I don’t have anything better to do.” Rick replied stepping in right after him.

The elevator door slid shut and began pulling them back up to the surface. Rick tucked the presents into his coat pocket, he’d keep them there until the party then whip them out once they were done opening the gifts from everyone else.

On the ride up he caught himself wondering about how the two would react to his gifts. If it would blow them right out of the water. If Mabel would get all jumpy and screechy and thank him a billion times. Or if Dipper would start freaking out, asking a hundreds questions a minute about how the camera worked. If they would really like their presents.

When the hell did he start caring so much?

When all this began two years ago he'd started out a little distant to the younger twins. Sure they were cute, but Rick hadn't really seen much else in them. They both reminded him of Ford though, especially Dipper, all wide-eyed and excited to talk about aliens and monsters. And while Mabel wasn't as clear cut as her brother, she still had a lot of Stanford Pines to her, whenever she got on a project she dedicated her whole life to it, and that pride. And both seemed like they were always trying to impress. But over the past year or so of being around them and seeing them in action, they really grew into their own, weird, original people and wormed their way into his heart. Right next to Morty and Summer. And he realized he was actually hoping they had a nice time on their trip today, now he was the one trying to impress them.

Even as the elevator slid open and Stan pecked him on the cheek before stepping out his train of thought was stuck on the kids.

Maybe Stan was right, maybe he was getting soft…

Yet it was something he didn’t feel strongly happy, or upset about. It was just something that had happened ever since he came back to Earth. Sorta like his rekindled relationship with Beth. Or his now with Stanley.