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intoanothermind · 3 years

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Beauty Queen - Chapter 10

B E A U T Y Q U E E N

Synopsis: You are the Ice Princess of Narnia during the Long Winter. Your sister Jadis, the White Witch, hates that you’re always helping Narnians escape prision. She decides to hunt you down and you have to run away from the palace. What happens when you find the four humans lost in Narnia?

- Edmund Pevensie x reader

Masterlist

(There’s probably a lot of errors, but I just translated real quick because there’s been ages since I updated.)

—-

C H A P T E R T E N

They walked through the snow that lazily melted. Their footprints showed the path they passed through towards the frozen river. Of course, no one could erase the footprints so the maximum they could do was to speed up the pace so they wouldn't get caught.

“Come on, humans! While we are young!’ yelled Mr. Beaver, who went ahead to show them the way.

“If he rushes us again...” Peter said, bending so Lucy could jump on his back. “I'll make him into a very cute hat.”

Susan let out a quiet laugh.

“Quick! Come on!” cried the Beaver, a few meters in front of others.

“He's getting bossy!” said Lucy.

“No!” cried Mrs. Beaver. ”Look behind you! It's her!”

They looked and saw a few meters away, a carriage that glided easily through the snow. Lucy jumped off Peter's back and they all ran.

“Run!” cried Mr. Beaver.

They heard the reindeer hooves getting closer and closer and knew it wasn’t a good thing. They ran across the snowy field and came to the edge of a forest, where they spotted a small cave between the roots of a tree. They saw the snow fall slightly to his feet only when they saw a big fat shadow walk close to the rock where they were hidden behind. They could see the person's shadow reflected in a snowy dune in front of them. They saw the shadow moving away, almost giving up.

They looked at the dune curiously while the beaver sniffed the air in a desperate manner.

“It seems...” whispered Lucy. “That it’s gone.”

“I better go see it.” said Peter, about to come out of hiding.

“You will not serve Narnia dead.” said the Beaver, turning to the opening.

“And neither do you, old man.” said Mrs. Beaver.

“Thank you darling.”

That being said, the Beaver got out of hide, sniffing and crawling to find out if they were gone or not. There were moments of tension between those present. Suddenly, the beaver appears on the edge of the rock, causing Lucy to cry out.

“Get out! Get out!” said the Beaver. “I hope you’ve been nice, because you have a visitor!” And then left.

They came out of hiding, a little afraid. In front of them was a fat man with a white beard. He wore a wine red cloak over ordinary red.

The man laughed.

“Merry Christmas, sir.” said Lucy, approaching.

“For sure, Lucy.” He said, his voice hoarse. “Ever since you arrived.”

“ Look, I can take a lot of things since I arrived...” Susan said to Peter. “But this!”

“We thought you were the Witch!” interrupted Peter, addressing the man.

“I'm sorry, sorry for the bad way, but I must say that I've been driving one of these for longer than the Witch.” He said, referring to the carriage.

“I thought there was no Christmas in Narnia.” said Susan, also approaching him.

“No.” the man replied. “Not for a long time. But the hope you have brought, Your Majesties... it begins to weaken the Witch' power. However, I dare say you might need these.”

He turned and took a big red bag from the sled .

“Gifts!” said Lucy, excited.

The man opened the bag, revealing boxes, teddy bears and many other things. He took out a small dagger sheath and a flask with a dark liquid.

“The juice of the fire flower.” he said, showing them the vial. “A single drop heals any wound.”

He handed the vial carefully to Lucy, who studied it carefully.

“Although I hope you never use it...” he said, handing her the red scabbard that contained a small dagger.

“Thank you, sir, but...” said Lucy. “I wouldn't be able to not be afraid.”

“I bet you would.” he replied. “But battles are ugly fights.”

Lucy nodded and walked away. The man picked up a basket of arrows with an ornate bow.

“Susan.” and called her and Susan approached. “Trust this bow. It will almost never go wrong.”

Susan took the bow.

“But didn't you say that battles are ugly fights?” she asked.

He laughed.

“Although I have no trouble expressing myself...” he said, showing her a small white trumpet. “blow this, and wherever you are the help will come.”

“Thanks.” she said.

The man turned and took a sheath from a large sword.

“Peter.”

The boy approached, afraid.

“The time to use this may be close.” said the man, handing him a sword and a shield.

Peter drew his sword and they all could see that there was something written on the blade.

“Thank you sir.” said Peter analysing it.

“They're guns, not toys. Use it well and wisely. Now I need to go. Winter is the almost at the end...” he said, turning to the big bag into the sleigh. “and everything accumulates when you disappear for a hundred years.”

He turned to everyone and said, before getting on the sled.

“Long live Aslam! And Merry Christmas!”

And he was gone, while everyone shouted different farewells.

“I said he was real!” said Lucy, turning to Susan.

“He said that winter...” said Pedro. “it's almost over.” and turned concerned to the girls and the beavers. “Didn't you notice?!”

When the girls looked at him confused, he continued.

“No more ice.”

~ * ~

Y/N ran like never before. She heard the howling of the wolves behind her. She could almost be sure that they would surround her from the front too, but didn't have much time left. She could try a spell, but that would only slow them down a bit. She could fight, but there were too many and they would surely defeat her. She needed a more complete plan. Then, while running through the forest, trying to lose them, she finally looked at the trees. Of course! The trees! She could hide in the trees for a while, until she was sure the wolves were far away.

Then, without warning, she brought up an extensive wall of ice in the snow between her and the wolves. And while they were thinking about how to overcome the obstacle, she quickly climbed a tree, a little further away. She used a spell to hide her scent and make it seem like she continued running. When the wolves came around the ice wall, they moved on without noticing Y/N's location. When she was sure that the howls were gone in the distance, she descended from the tree and continued her walk towards the frozen river. She knew that there would be the best way to go towards the Stone Table. She just didn't think she would see a shocking scene before that.

Several meters ahead of her, near the frozen waterfall, was the three Pevensie with the beavers, surrounded by the wolves that chased her on both sides. And their voices were propagated to her.

“Go while you can.” said the wolf, approaching them and forcing them to join closer to the liquid water. “and your sister goes with you.”

“Stop, Peter!” shouted Susan above the noise of the ice breaking. “Better do what he says!”

“Smart girl.” said the wolf.

“Don't believe him!” shouted the beaver, struggling. “Kill him! Kill him now!”

Y/N looked around uneasily. She knew that Maugrin was lying, but wouldn’t be able to reach them time. She would be caught by the wolves before that. But she needed to do something to help them. Next to her there wasn’t much she could use, but then she returned her gaze to the discussion the just a few meters away from the frozen waterfall. The waterfall!

“Oh, please, that war isn’t yours!” Said the wolf, getting closer. “My queen just wants the good of your family and they disappear.”

“Look, just because a man in red handed you a sword, you can’t pretend you’re a hero!” Susana said. “Put it down!”

“No , Peter!” cried the beaver. “Narnia needs you! Kill him while you still have a chance!”

Y/N quickly gathered the snow that was on the banks of the river and transformed it into an bow of ice. She also made some arrows of ice and aimed right at the waterfall, at its weakest point. Ice and snow were her specialty, so even from afar, she could make out the weakest part that had been frozen. She lauched five arrows in that point, which went unnoticed by all.

“How will it be, Son of Adam?” asked the wolf, near Peter's sword. “I won’t wait forever. Neither will the river!”

Y/N threw her bow and arrow in the floor, and it quickly returned to snow. She concentrated on the crack she had made in the waterfall. Melting the ice was far more difficult than forming it, but she always did it anyway. This time, however, instead of helping, the adrenaline was holding her back. Then she gave up trying to melt the ice, she needed to think about something else. And fast.

Lucy looked at the waterfall. It was collapsing.

“Oh no!” She murmured to herself and then shouted. “Peter!”

Y/N then had an idea. She stared at the frozen waterfall, that was starting to crack, and the extended her hands in front of her.

Peter looked desperately for the next safe thing to do.

“Hold on to me!” He shouted.

With a sudden movement, Y/N pulled her arms away, and the waterfall came down.

#edmund pevensie #King Edmund #edmund the just #edmund pevensie x reader #edmund pevensie imagine #edmund pevensie x y/n #pevensie #lucy pevensie #peter pevensie #susan pevensie #aslam #narnia #narnia imagine #The Chronicles of Narnia

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lurkeresq · 4 years

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“The Washington Post keeps track of all the victims of police shootings. Let’s look at some of the tragedies of the last 3 years.

In 2017, Police shot and killed 223 black men.

Most of the victims were armed. 131 had a gun. 35 had a knife. 21 were unarmed.

Many of the victims were fleeing the scene of the crime, on foot or by car.

Let’s focus on the most brutal cases, where police killed an unarmed victim who was not fleeing the scene of a crime.

There were 9 unarmed people who were shot. You can Google the names of each one to see what happened.

The first name on that list was Jean Pedro Pierre. You can watch the video of the encounter here:

https://youtu.be/4y9s0jRajdc

In short, Jean punches one cop, gets tased ineffectively, drags the cop around by his feet for about a minute, charges towards a second cop, then gets shot.

The second is Brian Easley, who took hostages in a bank:

https://www.mdjonline.com/news/cobb-officer-who-killed-man-in-bank-standoff-cleared/article_6eabd398-b607-11e7-879a-27eff6a5c746.html

The 3rd is Dejuan Guillory. Circumstances are unclear, it sounds like he got in a verbal and then physical altercation with a cop, then walked away, then the cop got him on the ground and shot him. At some point, Dejuan’s girlfriend jumped on the cop’s back and bit his neck. This one’s totally not obvious to me, the victim was needlessly aggressive, but it could also be that the cop lost his temper and murdered Dejuan, in which case the cop should definitely be in jail.

https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/death-dejuan-guillory-article-1.3315102

4th, Marc Brandon Davis, I can’t find enough information to comment on.

5th is Ricco Devante Holden. Sounds like he was drunk, got in a fight with a cop, got tased, fought his way into a police car, and then got shot.

https://www.ktbs.com/news/man-killed-in-altercation-with-police-chief-has-criminal-record/article_ebb7aba0-3f2e-11e7-b3a0-fb770fb2376c.html

6th is Jordan Edwards, a 15 year old victim. You can watch the video here:

https://youtu.be/l2M75moIXFY

It’s kind of chaotic — the cops are breaking up a party, someone starts firing gunshots outside, people are fleeing, one car ignores multiple police demands to stop and keeps driving, one officer shoots. He says that he was worried that the car would hit him or his partner, it looks like he made the wrong call. The officer got a 15 year sentence for the shooting.

7th is Alteria Woods, a 21 year old pregnant woman hit in the crossfire during a SWAT raid. Cops claim that her boyfriend used her as a human shield. There are not a lot of other details available:

GIFFORD, Fla. - A 21-year-old pregnant woman was killed during a Sunday morning shootout amid a SWAT raid at Florida…www.cbsnews.com

8th is Nana Adomako, who went into a Verizon store, grabbed a phone from an employee, hit him, and threatened to kill him. The officer found Nana outside, got into a fight with him, couldn’t win the fight even with the help of his police dog, and shot the suspect:

FREMONT, Calif. (KGO) -- The brother of a man Fremont Police shot and killed last week is talking with ABC7 News about…abc7news.com

9th is Darrion Barnhill. Officers approached him after being called for someone beating on a door, they found he had multiple outstanding warrants for assault (and his girlfriend had filed for protection from him). He assaulted the officers, threw one on the ground. Officers tazed him and shot him, it’s not clear whether they could have simply tazed him.

CLOSE A 23-year-old man was shot and killed Tuesday night by Henderson County deputies after officers responded to a…www.commercialappeal.com

These are just the unarmed victims of 2017.

Maybe I just picked a bad year?

In 2019, the number of similar victims (unarmed, not fleeing from a crime) dropped to 4.

We have Atatiana Jefferson, who died from some very bad police work, the cop acted like a prowler outside her house, and then shot her through her window:

https://youtu.be/UHFpP8Vma_0

But we also have Channara Tom Pheap, who assaulted a cop. He choked the cop, grabbed the cop’s taser, and used it on him:

Knoxville Police Department Officer Dylan Williams was justified in fatally shooting Channara "Philly" Pheap in August…www.knoxnews.com

We have Melvin Watkins, who came to a party, had a few drinks and got into a fight. Other partygoers called the cops, hoping they could escort him away. For unclear reasons, the officer shot Melvin instead. This looks like an unnecessary homicide:

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - The wife of a man killed by an East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office (EBRSO) deputy Saturday…www.wafb.com

And we have Kevin Bruce Mason, who threatened to kill a cop and later got shot. He’d shot a cop earlier in his life.

A man was found dead inside a Northwest Baltimore home after a Baltimore police officer fired shots at him during an…www.baltimoresun.com

When we talk about lots of unarmed black victims, murdered by police, it’s rare. It’s often people that are assaulting cops. It is sometimes cops that have lost control of a violent situation, after having already tried using a taser.

It’s not always George Floyd or Philando Castile or the other, most tragic events you see on the news. These tragedies do happen. Innocent black men are killed by the police. Several people get killed for holding a toy weapon, every year. Those cases are fucking tragic, as well. But the average black man killed by police is armed with a gun, fleeing the scene of a crime, or assaulting an officer.

Are you surprised by this? Does this sound different than the news you read?

As riots begin to sweep the nation, NPR writes about police brutality.

They give examples of how black people have died:

We wanted to learn more about each person’s final moments before the police ended their lives. Here’s some of what we learned:

Eric Garner had just broken up a fight, according to witness testimony.

Walter Scott was going to an auto-parts store.

Philando Castile was driving home from dinner with his girlfriend.

Eric Reason was pulling into a parking spot at a local chicken and fish shop.

Dominique Clayton was sleeping in her bed.

Breonna Taylor was also asleep in her bed.

I recognized some of the names. Eric Garner. Philando Castile. Breonna Taylor.

And I didn’t recognize some of the other names.

“Dominique Clayton was sleeping in her bed.”

That sounds horrible. A cop murdered a woman sleeping in her own bed. Why would a cop do that? Google the name:

A Mississippi officer has been taken into custody for the murder of a 32-year-old woman who was reportedly his…meaww.com

The cop was having an affair with the murdered woman. But he didn’t want his wife to find out. NPR is billing it as racist police brutality, when it’s a love affair between a white man and a black woman. He’d bought her a car and was buying her a house. I don’t know what to call it. A tragedy? Domestic violence? Not police brutality. It appears that he’s still under trial for her murder.

Or, NPR says,

“Eric Reason was pulling into a parking spot at a local chicken and fish shop.”

You can watch the video of what happened:

VALLEJO - The city of Vallejo has released four videos showing a resident pulling a gun on an off-duty cop as the two…www.mercurynews.com

Eric Reason and an off duty cop got in a fight over a parking spot. Eric went to his car, got a gun and shows it to the cop, threatening him. The cop got his own gun out and killed the man. The cop shot him as he was running away. A fucked up incident in many ways! Also, both men are black!

A lot of the cases are ambiguous. Walter Scott got stopped in traffic, ran from a cop, got in a fight, got tased, kept running. Cop shot him in the back. Pretty awful, sounds like incorrect police behavior. But NPR only reports that Scott was driving to the store.

NPR gives the impression that if you’re black, you’re not even safe in your own bed. You can’t even pull into a parking lot safely.

The reality is that you’re usually safe, as long as you do not wave a gun at cops or assault them.

The number of unarmed police shooting victims has declined since 2015:

The news publicizes the shit out of the worst cases, because that’s what gets clicks. And it has consequences. The riots right now are one consequence. And people are dying.

As of June 2, 2020, eleven deaths have been confirmed during the George Floyd demonstrations.

In today’s social media dystopia, you can watch the people dying. Here’s one black man who was killed by looters.

https://twitter.com/stillgray/status/1267945466357927936

And violence has generally risen in some cities. In Chicago, shootings soared over the weekend, 92 people were shot, 27 were killed:

27 people were killed and at least 92 were wounded by gun violence in Chicago’s most violent weekend of the year so…www.wifr.com

And, if you’ve forgotten, we’re still in the middle of a pandemic. People of color have been disproportionately represented among the 100,000 Americans that have died so far. We’ll have to wait and see if these mass gatherings accelerate the spread of the virus.

The sad reality in all this is that blacks in America really are struggling. But police brutality is only one of their worries. Black people are unemployed and impoverished at high rates. Many live in violent communities. The murder rate in Black America is 6 times what it is in White America. About 8,000 black lives are lost to murder every year, mostly young black men in big cities shooting each other.

And the murder rate has gone up, as of late. After 2 decades of declining, America’s murder rate went up in 2015 and 2016:

Some people think the increase in murders is because of less policing that started after the Ferguson protests. Others say that it’s because black people are afraid to call the police, because they think that the police will murder them, now more than ever.

Regardless of the cause, black people need safer communities.

This is not a struggle between good guys (BLM, antifa, white liberals) and bad guys (cops, Republicans, the alt right). But I see people on Facebook saying that, every day.

This is a very complicated discussion about how to make black neighborhoods safer, how to reduce criminal behavior in black neighborhoods, how to help with poverty, how to help with mental health, and how to improve policing.

Let me be clear. None of these protests will help black communities. People have lost lives. They have lost apartment buildings that have been burned down. They have lost the stores they need to shop at and work at.

This will trigger even more white flight to the suburbs, leaving poorly funded, segregated schools, and less jobs and opportunities for the people left behind.

And this will likely empower the Republicans. If the Democratic mayors and governors can’t provide law and order, voters will turn to the alternative.

I don’t have the answers to fixing our world. I think this event is ultimately driven by high unemployment and inequality. It’s driven by tribalism and dehumanizing the other side. I think police brutality is just the catalyst. Once this is over, I think we’ll have to work on improving all of these things. But, at the moment, all I can say is:

Stop the fucking riots.

Keep the protests peaceful. It’s the only way to win.

WRITTEN BY

The Gift Of Fire”

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harley-sunday · 6 years

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Truth

Request by ‘Detective Pirate’: Hi! Can you write an imagine (Jay x reader) where they work together and are BFFs. Reader gets strapped to a suicide bomb and Jay refuses to leave their side until the bomb squad takes the bomb off. Afterwards, they hug and cry and it’s really fluffy. And could they maaaayybeee go to Jay’s/reader’s home and have a movie night (they actually do this on a daily bases, they practicly live at each other’s places) and confess their undying love for each other? I love you so much, thanks in advance😘

Pairing: Jay Halstead x reader

Warnings: language, violence, angst, & spoiler alerts for Old Yeller and Marley and Me, apparently. Weird.

AN: At seven pages this is my longest story yet. Crazy. Anyway, I hope you’ll like it, I’d love to hear what you think! Enjoy :)

You bite your lip, trying to hold back the tears that have formed in your eyes but failing. Not daring to move too much you carefully dab at your eyes, silently thanking your emotionally charged teenage years for teaching you how to cry without making any sound. You quickly look down at Jay, who’s lying on the couch, his head on a pillow in your lap, only to find his eyes are glossed over too. He lets out a ragged sigh and it makes you chuckle ever so slightly, “God, we need to stop with these super sad dog movies.”

He looks up at you then, a single tear running down his cheek, his eyes narrowing, “I will never forgive you for this.”

“Dude,” you counter, “Old Yeller last week? Way worse than Marley and Me, I mean, when Travis shot his dog and-” you let out a sob, really crying now thinking back to last week’s movie. “Marley had a good life,” you hiccup, pointing at the screen, “John was there with him when he died and,” another sob, “at least he didn’t get shot.”

Jay’s sitting up now and pulls you into his chest, “We’re so watching 21 Jump Street again next week.”

You let him hold you and allow yourself cry just for a little while longer, because you know he doesn’t mind. When you push yourself away from him eventually he lets out a quiet snore and you laugh, shaking your head, because of course he’s fallen asleep. You stand up and grab the blanket that’s draped over the back of the couch, carefully covering him and pressing a kiss to the top of his head, whispering a quiet, “See you tomorrow, partner,” before you grab your phone and jacket and let yourself out.

“Alright, Ruzek and Atwater, I need you two to cover the back of the building,” Voigt barks his orders in rapid succession, “Dawson and Olinksy, you take the side entrance and Halstead and (Y/L/N), you two take the front. I want all of you in and out in ten minutes, you hear me?”

You nod, like the rest of your team, as you take another look at the building plan that’s laid out on the hood of the car, trying to memorize the layout while searching for any tricky spots and blind corners. Voight’s CI told you what to look for to get you to where they keep the drugs stored, guaranteeing that there’d be nobody there this time of day, so it all looks pretty straightforward, but after working Intelligence for almost four years, you know that it never really is.

Jay taps your shoulder to let you know he’s ready and you raise your first for him to bump, “Let’s do this, partner,”

He does this thing where he gives your fist a high five instead, and you just smile because this has been your spiel for the last three years, ever since Voigt partnered the two of you up. You both consider it to be a lucky charm of sorts so neither dares to comment on it, but you know it makes you look like a couple of dorks.

You check your bulletproof vest one last time and unholster your gun, quickly following Jay to the entrance. You hear the other two teams telling you they’re ready in your earpiece and you tense up, waiting for Voight to give you the signal.

When he does adrenaline takes over and then Jay’s kicking in the door and you’re slowly following him through a maze of corridors and doors that weren’t on the plan you looked at just minutes earlier. Damn it. You’re clearing rooms left and right and you’re almost at the rendezvous point in the middle of the building when something feels off. It seems like the others share your sentiment when you hear Ruzek utter a quiet, “Shit,” in your ear, just as a door on your left swings open and something is thrown inside.

It takes you a moment to realize it’s a smoke bomb and before you know it the room you’re standing in is filled with smoke and it’s getting harder to breath. You hear Voight yell something over the communication device but before you have a chance to answer something heavy hits the side of your head and you’re engulfed in darkness.

A slap on your cheek wakes you up and you slowly open your eyes, only to find a balaclava-obscured face staring back at you, the eyes narrowed and mean-looking. You’re sitting on a chair in a dimly lit room, your hands tied behind your back. Your mouth is dry and your head hurts and you try to piece together what has happened. But then flashes of the events leading up to this flood your mind and you wince because shit has obviously hit the fan.

“Hello detective,” the man speaks, his warm breath hitting your face. You want to turn away in disgust, but you’re afraid it will only upset him so you will yourself to keep looking at him. A million thoughts run through your mind, but most of all you wonder where Jay is. The concern must show on your face because he laughs at you, even though his eyes stay cold.

“Don’t worry about him, sweetheart,” he says, running a finger over your cheek, “they’re safe. Probably waiting for you outside, planning your rescue mission.” He stands up, “I hope you understand that I can’t hang around for that, doll,”

You glare at him, “Bummer,”

“Please don’t get cocky, sweetheart,” he holds up a mobile phone and points at your chest, “one false move and *poof*, you’re pink mist.”

You can hear him chuckle as your eyes look down at your chest, where you see a timer ticking down, currently at 1:28:15. There are wires connected to various explosive devices around it and it’s then you realize he’s put you in a bomb vest and you feel your heart drop. You take a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm your nerves, but fail and you let out a quiet, “Oh God,”

He tuts and shakes his head, “It’s quite simple, sweetheart. I’m about to leave and you are escorting me out of here, telling your team not to follow me because if they do, I will press this button,” he shows you, but you can’t focus and just shake your head, but either he doesn’t notice or doesn’t care because he continues, “and well, you knows what happens next.”

Biting your lip you try to figure out if there’s anything you can do, but it’s obvious he’s the one in charge, so you let him haul you off the chair without too much of a protest.

“Alright, we’re going to walk outside nice and easy, sweetheart, don’t try anything, you hear me?” He doesn’t wait for your answer and opens the door, pushing you ahead so you’re walking in front of him, down a long corridor. You feel his hot breath hitting your cheek, his voice close to your ear when he finally makes his demand, “I want Voight to meet me at the docks with a signed release form clearing me from all charges he wants to put me away for before that timer of yours runs out,”

“Who even are you?” you manage to ask, your voice surprisingly calm.

He lets out a strained laugh, “Just tell Hank that Pedro says hi and he’ll know exactly what this is about.”

Your mind starts making the connections then, “So this is all one big setup to get a message across to Voight? Jesus, you should’ve just called him.”

He laughs for real then, but it’s a wicked one and it gives you chills, “Where’s the fun it that, sweetheart? I know how much you mean to him, what with him having trained you ever since you came out of the academy, and I want him to know what it feels like when the one thing you care about gets taken away from you.”

You’re at another door then and before you have the chance to ask anything else he pushes you outside, pointing a gun at your head. Your eyes blink from the bright sunlight, but slowly the scene in front of you comes into focus. Fifty yards from where you are there are several cars lined up, including two patrol cars, and you see your team standing behind them, guns drawn.

“Don’t shoot,” the man shouts, his head nodding towards you, “Don’t want to set her off now, do you?”

Your eyes find Jay’s and when they do you shake your head ever so slightly. You see him relay something to the team and one by one they step down.

“Thank you, sweetheart,” the man says. He pats you on the shoulder, “Good luck with this, huh,” and lets out another wicked laugh before he steps back into the building, closing the door behind him. You wonder how he’s going to get away, but then you hear the faint humming of a helicopter coming closer and you stare in shock when seconds later it lands on the roof and the man jumps in. The helicopter is back in the air in under a minute and all you can do is stare at it as it flies off.

Your mind then registers the next sound coming towards you and you look back to where your team is, only to see Jay running towards you at full speed. You hold out your arms, “Jay, stop!” Your voice breaks a little and it’s that that grabs Jay’s attention, making him stop dead in his tracks about twenty yards away from you.

His eyes take in the device strapped to your chest and you watch as his face drops when he pieces together what it is that’s going on. He closes his eyes for a second, scrunching his nose the way he always does when he’s trying to figure something out. Opening his eyes he looks at you again, a small smile on his lips but you know it’s just there to try to keep you calm. He holds one hand up to you, raising his voice, “How long?”

You look down, “One thirty-three twenty-five,”

“Ok,” Jay runs his hand over his face, “Ok, we’ll fix this, ok?” He turns towards Voight, relaying the information you just gave him and you hear his voice drop when he says, “He’s got her in a vest, Hank.”

You let your head fall back against the wall of the building you’re sitting against, not really having moved since you first stepped outside. You don’t want to look down, not really, but you can’t help yourself and gasp when you see the timer is now at 0:59:35. For a moment you watch the seconds tick away from you, but then you feel someone sitting down next to you.

“I’m sure Voight doesn’t want you this close to me,” you simply state, not looking up.

“Well, Voight’s not here right now, so tough luck,” he counters. He offers you a bottle of water, “The bomb guys are on their way, ok?”

You take the bottle from him and nod, “Yeah,”

“Voight’s back at the station, rounding up a crew to take this guy down, got Dawson and Olinsky to come with him to the docks,” he continues, “I think maybe the feds are involved too.”

“No shit,”

“Yeah shit,” he echoes. His hand finds your knee then, giving it a gentle squeeze, “You okay?”

“I’ve had better days,” you bite back, immediately feeling guilty about it. You clear your throat and sit up a little, “Sorry, I didn’t-”

“I know,” another squeeze, “but I’m here ok? I’m not leaving you.”

You nod, “You know I’m going to make you once this thing drops below ten minutes right?”

He chuckles, “I know, but it’s not even going to get that far, so I’m not particularly worried.”

“Truth?” you ask him, using the phrase you both use when you want an honest, no bullsit answer from the other.

He lets out a sigh and shakes his head, “Of course I am. Jesus,” he grabs your hand and kisses it, “You have a bomb strapped to you and there’s nothing I can do and,” he lets out a frustrated groan, “It’s just fucked up, okay?”

“Same,” you agree, squeezing his hand just a little. You drop your head on his shoulder and feel him kiss the top of your head, his thumb rubbing circles on the inside of your wrist.

You don’t know how long you’ve sat like this, well, you do, because when you look down the timer shows 0:32:18 and your heart drops. But then you see a car pulling up to where Ruzek and Atwater have been keeping watch and there this small shimmer of hope when two men in EOD suits make their way to you.

Jay lets go of your hand and grins, “Bomb squad to the rescue, partner.” He stands up and greets the two with a nod of his head.

You let him pull you to your feet before you introduce yourself to the two men, “Hi, Detective (Y/L/N/),” you want to say something funny to defuse the tension, but you find yourself unable to, suddenly all too focused on getting this thing off of you.

The one on the left introduces himself as Eaton and his colleague as Hale before turning to Jay, “Detective Halstead, I’m going to need you to step back.”

Jay shakes his head, “No, I’m staying here.”

“Detective, with all due respect,” Hale says, but Jay interrupts him before he has the chance to continue.

“With all due respect, I’m not going anywhere,”

The two men look at each other and you swear you can see them actually shrug before they turn back to Jay, “Fine, but you need to get yourself some protective gear from the car. It’s in the trunk, help yourself.”

“Thank you,” Jay says, before he grabs your hand and gives it a squeeze, “I’ll be right back, ok?”

You nod and watch him jog towards the car. You turn towards the two men in front of you, your eyes meeting Eaton’s. He tries to give you an encouraging wink but all it does is flare up your nerves and all of a sudden panic takes over and you find yourself gasping for air.

Both men try to calm you down, but nothing they say reaches you and you close your eyes, trying to focus on your breathing, muttering a quiet, “Take it off, please, just take it off,”

“Where are we at?” Eaton asks as he inspects the second device, having already examined the first for what felt like ages.

Hale looks down at the timer, “Seventeen twenty-two,” before he continues to his tablet, putting various pieces of data into a software program that will help them defuse the bomb. Something like that, anyway, because you weren’t really paying attention when he explained, too busy trying not to completely break down.

Still focusing on your breathing your eyes find Jay’s again and he smiles at you encouragingly from behind the visor of his helmet. He’s wearing a full-on bomb suit now, whereas you are just wearing a helmet even though you refused at first because what good would a helmet do if the thing went off? But Hale wouldn’t take no for an answer and so here you were, an 8 pound helmet pressing down on your shoulders, not doing anything to make you feel better.

It’s then the tablet starts beeping and Hale looks at his screen, eyebrows knitted together, “I think I’ve got it, Eaton,” he says, almost like he doesn’t believe it himself. He shows the tablet to his colleague, who studies the outcome before nodding, “I think you do.”

“You think, or you know?” Jay asks, an angry tone to his voice, “because I need you to know for certain, ok?”

“No, no, I’m sure,” Hale replies with a grin, “We got this.”

You let out a shaky breath and feel tears starting to form in your eyes. Holding up your hand you try to get the attention of the two men working on you, “Wait!”

They look up at you in confusion, Eaton already holding a pair of pliers.

“Just,” you shake your head ever so slightly, “I need a minute, ok?”

“I’m sorry, Detective (Y/L/N),” Eaton says firmly, “we don’t have a minute. We have to disable the devices one by one, so we need all the time that’s left.”

Your eyes find Jay’s, “I’m scared,”

“I know,” he nods, trying to give you an encouraging smile but failing. “I know,” he says again, “but I’m here, ok? I’m not leaving you, remember?”

“Truth?” you ask.

“Yes,”

You nod and take a deep breath, “Ok, I’m ready,”

Your eyes never leave Jay’s while Eaton and Hale are working at a slow but steady pace, and for a moment you lose yourself in them, but then you hear cheers and feel Eaton cut open the vest and gently taking it off, disposing it in the bomb proof container a couple of feet away.

You let Hale take off your helmet and then Jay envelopes you in a hug, already having taken his protective gear off. You wrap your arms around him, and he pulls you even closer and you don’t know who’s comforting who at this moment, because you feel him shake and you know he’s crying as well.

“Ready to go home?”

You nod and grab your phone and keys from your desk. Voight has just finished debriefing the team, informing everyone that Pedro is now in a better place after he resisted arrest, and has dismissed you and Jay for the rest of the shift, insisting you’d both take a day off tomorrow too.

You follow Jay downstairs and he puts his arm around your shoulders as you walk outside. You lean into him just a little and feel him kiss your temple, “Your place or mine?”

“Yours,” you reply. You watch as he opens the door for you and you climb inside the car, sinking back into the seat, lost in your own thoughts.

The ride home is quiet, the latest Imagine Dragons album playing softly over the radio. You let Jay take you by the hand when you get out of the car, because he somehow knows you need physical contact right now and only let go once you’re safely inside.

Without saying anything you go into his bedroom and grab a pair of your sweatpants from your drawer, and retrieve your hoodie from the chair in the corner. You take a hot shower, wanting to wash the events of today off of you before you dress yourself again and find your way back to him.

He’s in the kitchen, making soup from scratch, because that’s what he does after you’ve had a tough case and the comforting gesture makes you smile a little. You stand behind him and wrap your arms around his waist, your head resting against his back as he continues his soup.

Your feet are up on the coffee table and Jay’s lying next to you on the couch, his head resting on a pillow in your lap as your fingers absentmindedly trace patterns on his arm. Your eyes are on the TV screen, but without really focusing on the movie he’s put on. You’ve seen 21 Jump Street at least ten times already anyway.

Without warning your mind flashes back to the events of earlier today and you let out a gasp. You haven’t really talked about it yet, not for real anyway, only relaying the facts back to Voight once you made it back to the station, and you know processing everything that’s happened will take a lot of talking and time.

Jay’s sitting up now and he looks at you, concern flashing in his eyes, the same way it did when Eaton and Hale were working on you and it takes you back to that moment and how afraid you were then.

Jay cups your cheek, whispering a soft, “It’s ok, I’m here,”

You nod and try to smile, but fail. Tears well up in your eyes again when you speak, “I know,”

He sighs, letting his hand fall into his lap, his eyes on his hands as he clears his throat, “I thought I’d lose you today,” his voice breaks somewhere mid-sentence and when he looks up at you again there are tears in his eyes, “and it made me realize that I,” he hesitates for a second, as though he’s trying to gather up some courage, “I love you.”

He holds up his hand when you try to say something, “I love you,” he says with more confidence this time, “and I think I’ve known for a long time already, but I didn’t want to rush anything, thought it would ruin our friendship or us being partners if I made a move, but after today, I-”

“Sssh,” you put a finger on his lips and smile, for real this time, “I love you too, Jay.”

“Truth?” he asks, smiling now.

You nod, “Yes,”

He leans in then and brushes his lips against yours, and it’s soft at first but then his tongue traces your lips and there’s a sense of urgency that has you open your mouth, your hands in his hair, pulling him closer. He pulls back a little and you find yourself panting, resting your forehead against his, “Truth,” you confirm once more, before your mouth finds his again.

Part 2

#chicago pd #chicago pd imagine #chicago pd x reader #jay halstead x reader #imagine

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survivor-tierradelfuego · 4 years

Text

Ep. 2: “My secret alliance is over before it even started” - Tyler

James Hayden

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9f9uh2olp1Q&feature=youtu.be

Amy A.

Definitely more people coming up to talk to me and that makes me excited. Have had about 4 or 5 people tell me they wanna work with me and that’s amazing. Formed an alliance w Ryan and (totally forgot his name) called outsiders which is basically all of us not from USA. Hope they’re true allies. Excited for what’s going to happen next.

Najwah

Tribal council was insane and intense. I understand why it's so easy for people to slip up when asked questions. My heart was racing to the point of me feeling nauseas haha. I can't believe we blindsided Neil. He took it well though. Aimee is feeling a little left out and I think she's taking it personally. I really like her though and would love to work with her too. I think it's about time we start a strong girls alliance. I may get Amy in on it too. And Sarah. We'll see. I can't guage where exactly I stand with people yet but people can lie lmao and I made more of those who lied very easily. Like James and Sarah. Watching them.

Leanne

Mixed feelings on tribal. At least we are all still here, and at least I was on the right side of the boat. I didn’t have any bond with Neil so I didn’t care about seeing him voted out. But now I’m rethinking my relationship with Zach. What he decided to do today was dumb. Big moves just for the sake of big moves usually are. He kept repeating, the easy vote isn’t always the right vote, but sometimes it is, and I didn’t see a point in doing that, especially if it’s only for the sake of playing hard. You don’t play to go hard, you play to win! Of course I didn’t say that for three reasons. First, I didn’t care at all about Neil; he was perfectly expendable. Second, I still regard Zach as a close ally, at least for now. Third, once again no one will dare to be the dissenting voice. Right before Zach dropped that bomb shell, at least on me anyway, we were talking about how we trusted each other and wanted to go the distance together. He asked me who I was closest to, and I said him and Najwah. with Ben as a distant third, then floated the idea of starting a power trio with him and Ben. That’s when he told me Neil was the target. I asked whose idea it was, and he didn’t give me a name, he gave me reasons. I’m not sure if it was his move or not.

The other likely suspect is Cody, especially because when Zach brought the big group together, most were clueless... what’s going on here? Then Cody said, how about we summarize the events of the last hour? Well, I’d known about it for maybe a few minutes prior, but certainly not an hour. Cody at least knew about it before I did. I’m almost positive the idea was at least one of their’s. right as it was all going down, when it was up in the air and I didn’t know which way it was going to go, Aimee messaged me and asked me for a name, and I told her Amy because at that point Zach made me promise to keep it confidential. I later found out that Zach wanted to bring her in but she had told him she was close to Neill. Oh, so *that’s* why you asked me who I was closest to. I’m wondering exactly who else he spoke to before he made the big group chat, and to what degree. He’s unpredictable, and I don’t like it. And in case I haven’t mentioned it, I very much don’t like making moves for the hell of it, with no good reason beyond that. But back to Aimee.

I don’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing that she got left out of the vote. I was on the verge of messaging her privately and saying, I have new information but you have to promise it stays between us: I just found out the target is Neil, but vote Amy anyway in case he plays an idol. If I were her right now I’d be pissed and confused, and I wanted her to think I was on her side, and build a relationship, especially if she thinks everyone else is against her. But I didn’t trust her enough not to rat me out. Besides, the reason she was left out in the first place was because she was close to Neill. How close I don’t know, and I don’t know if she would have fought to protect him. So I am happy to have been included and on the right side of the numbers. It shows I’m not on the bottom tier, which seems to be Aimee, The outsider, and Amy, Who wasn’t around. And I knew she’d vote for me, I knew it, I knew it, because if I were her and didn’t have any information at all, that’s exactly what I’d do. Doesn’t mean I liked it but fair is fair.

The group consensus is that we can vote Amy as an easy vote next time. I just hope *someone* doesn’t flip again without a good reason. Amy TI am shocked, but also not shocked. I knew I was taking a HUGE risk not jumping on the initial video chat, but I slid through this vote. I had a feeling an alliance formed there. I almost reached out to a few I thought would be in that alliance before this vote, but didn't want to look like I was scrambling. I am thankful to make it through to the next round, and after today I no longer have company and will be semi settled into my new apartment, so I am really going to try to be more active in video calls so that I can bond better with my tribe.

I fear I am the next vote otherwise. I am also going to bring this up, and I don't know if I should, but I will say it anyway. I am actually quite disappointed in the vote, but it falls in line with the pattern of all survivor votes: first vote is most always a person of color or an elderly individual, and we have no one old. Sure, it's a coincidence, and I didn't really know Neil, but it's not a great pattern to uphold. But as others quoted Sandra, a will do the same: anyone but me. Now I am playing from the bottom, which is nerve-wracking.

Pedro A

i feel like i will sit out ..cause i dont feel good about this challenge

Pedro A

Also we came from Winning and if i screw it up...it will be all blamed on me...so its better if i just keep my name out of this one

John B

Watching the other tribe's tribal council has me stressed because it seems like Neil went because he was a threat. That does not sit well with me because I already have Ryan telling people I have the "winner vibes" I need to simultaneously kick it into high gear and keep a low profile if that's going to be the tone for the game. hopefully we can kill this challenge, this feels like something that is going to be up my Alley because I love Survivor Trivia. Hopefully this goes well because I do not want to get voted out!

Zack M

ok. setting a scene. let's pretend this is big brother. wrong show but play along with me. hey neil. if you seeing this, it's nothing personal. you were out of the chat all day yesterday and then had everyone eating out of your hand within 10 minutes of being back. you were ready to play but not as hard as me. i started with cody, worked it up through ben, added sarah into the mix, and then sprinkled the rest in. the recipe for your ending. sorry about it! hope to stay friends outside of the house.

wait .... but srsly ... i did that. I CAUSED A BLINDSIDE. what?! i'm shook. i can't believe these people are listening to me. so wild. honestly knowing 4 people drafted me really put the fire in me. i always draft and i hate when i lose. this is me winning for me and you. feel free to venmo me to show your support.

in all honesty. it was strictly a game move. neil was a threat. we all saw it. that's it. i know i could possibly have a huge target on my back but i feel like i'm playing a strong social game. i hope the people in my final 4 trust me (sarah, ben, and cody) because i'm ride or die for them. i asked to make sure getting neil out wouldn't hurt their game. look at me being thoughtful. hopefully they notice it and hopefully the rest believe all the lies i tell him. because truly, it was so last minute. *evil smile*

Zack M

am i confessing too much? i don't know BUT challenge 2 is survivor knowledge and i have none. -oop. i'm a fake fan. i live tweet and forget. hoping my team pulls this one out because i'm going to MCDs for some chicken nuggets and then continuing with my social game.

also, amy thanked me for keeping her but she didn't thank any of the other people in my alliance. does amy know more than we think? also, your'e welcome amy.

Pedro A

I feel this challenge will be a MESS...we will for sure lose, ...Tyler is not even seeing any of the messages...and some people are seeing the messages and not choosing A PAIR....i kinda feel like we will lose...the other tribe will bring they're A game....i just hope at this point...THAT A MIRACLE WILL HAPPEN

Tyler H

Ok I’m very upset my secret alliance is over before it even started! But I don’t think I’m in a bad spot right now, I think I’m growing an army slowly and all I can do is hope we don’t lose the next challenge and I can gain momentum

James Hayden

https://youtu.be/hvUgCa6joQc

Aimee

NEIL! BUDDY! I’m soooo sorry!!!! I had no idea the majority was going to blindside you like that! It was just horrible to watch. I’m gonna play my heart out for you! You deserved a chance to play this game! I hope you make it on the real Survivor! I don’t understand what made these people so threatened by you, I did not see anything of the sort. You were voted out I guess because you were pleasant????? Well...We’ll have to play Dead by Daylight on PlayStation once this is over for me. Take care of yourself and I’m sure we’ll talk again real soon.

As far of my read on the game....I am not clueless. The second the votes were read I knew Amy voted for Leanne, Neil and I were set up to vote for Amy and everyone else voted for Neil. I messaged people who bold-faced lied to me about the vote and they all confirmed my suspicions without me having to say anything about it. Hahahahahha. Do these kids really think I am that simple? I might’ve been recruited but this is absolutely not my first rodeo.

Oh, and for the record... and this is obvious: Leanne Zack and Sarah are all working together. You heard it here first. Guys, your messages to me are extremely telling. I guess I truly am Michelle playing this game now...how fitting. But get ready for your girl to pull all the stops from the underdog position. It’s where I honestly will thrive.

Already hopped right onto Amy before anyone got a chance to set me up and say “oh well Aimee wanted to vote for you”. Yeah that wasn’t even true, everyone adamantly told me to do that and it was the majority. They set her up too. Also checked back with my girl Najwah (think we are in it to win it), Cody, as well as James and Ben. (Hoping these guys are being genuine with me too) Think that is my best bet moving forward. All 4 of these people claimed they were told last minute...which I believe. NOBODY bothered to tell Amy anything. It is absolutely bizarre to me that they thought me and Neil were so close that they couldn’t tell me about that vote? All night and day no one said anything about the vote and I had the hunch that Zack probably had the most social capital out of anyone so I reached out to him first. He is honestly the biggest threat but it’s no kidding that he and Leanne chose Neil to be the target. Leanne absolutely shit the bed with the typing challenge! Okay? I tripled her score and I was not going that fast. Let me just talk about that again real quick....600 numbers in an hour?! Did that math.... that’s one number typed every five seconds. Did she like, stop typing and go grab a snack or text her friends on her phone or something? How is that possible?! Make it make sense.

To be honest, for everyone not bothering messaging me after the vote to smooth things over and try preserve my relationship with them proves how sloppy they are being with this vote. AGAIN I had to be the one to reach out to almost everyone, just like yesterday. They think they are playing next level 4D chess but they are severely underestimating me. Could’ve been an easy vote but I guess people to want to make “big movez” even when it is detrimental for us as a tribe. I could cause a lot of damage and I have the knowledge; know that! If I made the jury, would I give them a vote for that kind of gameplay? Nope. I am keeping all this information in and playing it very chill and “yes girl” but I will absolutely strike when I need to. I have an ability to make people feel comfortable and trust me and maybe even feel guilt about how they treated me. I will ride that wave as far as I can until I can set up shop for the next vote.

Zack M

here to nervous rant .. i thought got a strike because i sent a screenshot of my call log to a group i accidentally cheek called when a friend's phone disconnected. lol what?! trust me .. i know. TODAY HAS BEEN A DAY FOR ME.

look the truth is .. i would do it again! i know there is a target on my back after switching the votes and getting neil out. i don't need anything extra working against me at the moment. breaking rules, lying, .... am i the bad boy of the season? because like i'm not cool enough for that title.

Zack M

ok. i'm seriously over this challenge. who even knew survivor wiki was a thing? why would you remember / want to remember this stuff? i'm reading some of the things that the tribe is adding and thinking to myself, "did i even watch survivor?"

the only thing i can remember is wendy freeing the chickens, kim not winning winners at war, and chris underwood's penis bulge. that's his last name, right? like i could literally draw it for you. why can't that be a challenge?

anyways, tomorrow should be fun. i'll have to pretend that i'm contributing if jay doesn't accept my idea to play the word game with their names. fingers crossed we win. however, i'm not too hopeful. i have a feeling the other team has some good players. is it bad i'm ready for the merge this early? also, if we don't lose ... what do i do with all that free time? how am i supposed to bond more? all i care about is making sure that ben, sarah, and cody stay loyal to me. i know i should want to merge with numbers but i think it's clear i like a challenge. i want a resume and a cover letter when i get to the end.

Ryan

I've put so much effort into this challenge. Kinda desperately hoping that my tribe sees that and realise I'm valuable. Or more valuable then some at least

John B

Lol remember when I said I might throw Maddison under the bus? Well strike that because we are for sure working together now. We may be behind in the challenge but honestly I’m not worried because it’s super close so far and half the tribe hasn’t done anything yet so I think we will be fine. If we don’t end up pulling out the win my target will still probably be Ryan. I could see people going for Tyler or honestly even Amy (just because she’s not on very often) but if I have a say I definitely want Ryan out. I do not trust him at all. Hopefully it won’t come to that but at least I have a plan.

Alan B

I think this game is gonna be pretty hard to manage alongside work especially while covid has got my mental health just blasted, i might end up dropping out before my time, but for now i think i'll hold on for at least a little while longer

Zack M

omg we still have two hours left of this competition. i've done all i'm willing to do to pretend like was helping out. finger crossed the host doesn't share how many facts each person contributed. i would have like 3. lol.

real note, i thought this game was one night like sequester. i didn't know what i was signing up for. i feel duped. but i needed a second to step away. i started out playing so hard. i need switch up my strategy. this is a sprint, not a marathon. i don't need to run the tribe. i just need to be in all the conversations. haha.

i have a feeling we will be losing tonight so i'm just chilling. ready to see what everyone says. again, i feel like i have a huge target on my back.

i'm like kat on big brother last season, "are you bitches conspiring against me?"

the only people i haven't talked to one on one is james and najwah. james is in my 5. i'll have a conversation with him tonight or i'll have a conversation in the group of 5. one or the other. i feel like i should talk to najwah as well but i like is that obvious. maybe i'll start it right when the challenge is done, before we know if we won or lost. that's a little more chill, right? ugh.

amy would be the easiest vote but i feel like she would be on my side. najwah is the only person i would care to vote out but i feel like cody and leanne are close to her.

oh, not sure if i shared this but leanne wanted to start a trio with ben and i. that's cool. i like leanne so i'd like to keep her as long as possible.

this confession is starting to get lazy so i'm going to go back to watching real housewives of potomac. i'll check in win or lose .... because we have to. :)

Alan B

I'm trying to be a team player so that we don't have to vote anyone out for as long as possible, but i feel like this is a bad strategy long term - especially once the merge happens then it'll be gone and i'll be a threat

Zack M

told you we were going to lose. that's it. that's the confessional.

Olivia A

I’m super proud of us for winning the second challenge! I feel really good about my contribution and our team work. I think the excitement from continuing to win will keep motivating us and hopefully lead to a significant streak.

Pedro A

im so happy that we won...even tho some people that dont understand the concept of team work

Maddison

This challenge really showed who is pulling their weight. Even though the doc was anonymous, the chat activity and general conversation led me to believe there are a couple of slackers that should be first to go when the time comes. I hope my tribemates don’t grow complacent after these two wins. The other tribe will be out for blood.

Amy A

So far I’ve spoken privately with everyone except Tyler and some two others. So I’m guessing my social game isn’t shabby. Also, we WON again. Such a delight because I don’t want to do tribal council this early in the game. Idol hunting was a bust today too but hoping for the best. Madison and I seem to be getting closer by the day. She checks in with me most of the time and hypes me up for challenges. Definitely want to be aligned with her.

John B

Winning feels AMAZING, especially since half of the tribe hadn't started until half the time was gone. Our tribe feels really strong right now. That being said, I definitely noticed some people not participating as much as everyone else, Tyler disappeared and didn't contribute for most of the challenge. I think it is safe to say he will probably be first out from our tribe at this point if we lose, but who knows anything can happen. I'm still gunning for Ryan. Hopefully we can keep this positive momentum going. I am going to keep working on my alliance. I have all of the pieces with my relationships with Pedro, Maddison, Grae, Olivia, and kind of Alan, I just need to wait for the right time to bring the pieces together.

James Hayden

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V96zovCVssg&feature=youtu.be

James Hayden

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RVOZFYZc24

Sarah

SORRY FOR THIS BRICK. Wow. There is too much to talk about after tonight. Lost another challenge in which everyone kicked ASS. This vote at tribal council is definitely not based on a lack of effort on anyone’s part.

Right now, we have our majority of five (Cody, Zack, Ben, James, and I) so we can decide who goes home. We are leaning toward Amy (with a Y) because she’s not as available and we really need people on the tribe to be all in. We have made a large group with everyone but Amy saying it’s Amy so everyone feels included and we aren’t exposing our majority alliance. Of course we are worried that Aimee may be talking to Amy and expose all of us. Or that Amy has an idol so maybe a 7-1-1 vote would be safer. Amy is really just trying to get in a group and is reaching out to everyone to the point where she is copy and pasting her messages that she’s sending us. 😂 Leanne told Amy that people are saying Aimee so if we need to tell Amy that as well we can. I am a little worried about Leanne if she is telling lies that easily. I have really enjoyed getting to know my alliance well these past few days. HOW HAS IT ONLY BEEN FOUR DAYS. Zack is always bringing the comic relief and Ben and James are so loyal and genuine. Cody is my RIDE or DIE. I am hoping that people don’t catch on to how close we are but we do have so much trust in each other and just are always on the same page. Having a ride or die has always been my Survivor strategy. Cody and I are praying to those Survivor gods that we can stay on the same tribe come tribal swap time. Amy T

Right after challenge results 7/13. https://youtu.be/dC7ORD2w4BQ

Amy T

update 10pm pst 7/13. Well I have reached out to everyone and I am so confused. Right after the challenge Leanne threw out Aimee's name saying everyone is saying that. Which was odd because it was so soon. I quickly learned there is a large group chat which I'm not in, so it is possible. But I asked around and people either didn't say a name or know what they were doing, or they said they heard Aimee from Leanne. So here's where I stand either they are all saying the same thing to me and it's actually me going home. or Leanne is trying to run the show and she is making up who to vote for on a whim and then saying everyone is saying this. I tend to think that it's actually too early for them to have a large group. And I honestly think Leanne is misinforming people on purpose. I'm fine with whoever as long as it's not for me but it rubs me the wrong way to think somebody you know next to vote can just say my name or someone I'm working with name on a whim and just tell everyone that you know everyone is saying this and everyone goes with it. Because it seems like the last vote she also fed information to people. So as it stands now I am leaning towards Leanne but I haven't made a move on that because I'm scared I'm coming off as playing too hard and I know that's what got me all voted out. In the end it doesn't make a difference if they do have a large chat because they already know and I'm already gone but if that's not the case I Maybe the only one sticking their neck out. And maybe it's stupid me because it's not even my name on the shopping block that I know of. Well we'll see if I make it through this but if I do and if I can gather votes, There is a possibility to get numbers. I think I have Ben on my side Aimee on my side I think Zack is on my side unless he is close with Leanne and it seems like Cody might want to work with me. That everyone's lying to me and I'm going home so haha.

Leanne

Feeling a bit frustrated and discouraged at the moment; two losses will do that to you. Trying to organize my thoughts into something resembling order. I was relieved and optimistic when I saw what the challenge was going to be. We had a fighting chance. It was close and it was intense. These last few days on the whole have been intense, and I don’t think I realized that would be the case. There’s definitely a question of just how much I’m going to be willing to give to this. How many more times am I willing to stay up way too late because somebody wants to get on a call? How much more am I going to make myself available at damn near any hour to drop everything and jump on Skype every time it goes off? If you absent yourself from any of it you’re a target, and that’s what’s going on with Amy right now. I’ve been talking to a few people, most notably Zach and Ben, and the consensus seems to be Amy. I would be fine with this, but their reasoning alarmed me somewhat. They said Aimee had been going around talking to people, trying to figure out why she was left out of the vote. Well, she hasn’t been talking to me. Amy, on the other hand, has. We’ve had a few good conversations yesterday and the night before, and it doesn’t look like she’s talked to anyone else. So it would be a lot more beneficial for me to have her around, who is presumably talking to me over and above others, then to have Aimee, who is talking to others and not me. But I don’t think I’ll try to change things for a number of reasons, not least of which because I have no idea how to justify my position. Also I’m not sure how strong our little power trio is or isn’t, and I don’t want a repeat of last time, a shakeup just for the sake of a shakeup. Let’s not set the precedent that that’s a thing that will just happen. The tribe seems so unified against Amy. Cody put us all into a group without her and we all agreed summarily to get rid of her. She might have made a good ally but I think I may just have to sacrifice her; she probably isn’t worth fighting to protect. I reached out to Aimee... Best start trying to build that up. We got in a few superficial commiserations about losing but nothing more than that. I don’t feel good about her.

In other news, I’ve been trying to solicit info on the idol hunt, with little success. Najwah and I have taken similar paths. I asked her about it, and she got back to me, but she did so just as my turn was happening. I really wish I had more Intel on what’s on the mountain. Zach says he’s found nothing, and I hesitate to go there in case there’s something bad. I thought that earlier on but doubly so now that I know we have a disadvantage in the next challenge, dammit!!!!! I’m going to ask Najwah if hers was in the perfume, so I know what not to do. I’ve been considering trying to pole coins with her and go in together on the jewelry box or something. Haven’t decided yet. I may go up the mountain after all. First I want to ask a few of my tribemates where this disadvantage was. It tells us as a team not to go there, and if it’s a binary option, go left or right down the road for instants, and left leads to something bad... Well anyway I haven’t decided what to do yet.

Pedro A

Okay, so today I wanna talk to Kalle, Maddison, and Tyler...I didn't have the chance to talk to them yet...so I wanna see where they're head is at the moment.

Also, I feel like I can trust Alan... I gave them my coins...and now they have an idol...... I feel like they can trust me now....and also....i feel like we can use the idol to our advantage...since no one else knows were in an alliance..except for John.

John is my nº1 person in this game....which could later in the game kick my butt....I'm afraid he might be more respected than me down the line... I guess only time will tell...now I gotta go the bathroom byeeeee

James Hayden

Morning of day 5 and I'm nervous/paranoid AF! I talked to Ben last night for twenty minutes about short term and long term strategy. We both agreed that voting out Amy is everyone's best move and will cause the least amount of waves. I went to bed feeling good about my position in the game. This morning I woke up to a message from Sarah suggesting we do a 7-1-1 in case Amy has an idol. I responded saying I don't think she has an idol, but if she does should we do a 6-2-1, so we can decide who goes and avoid a revote? That was around 8:00am CST and she hasn't responded. I know she read it which is freaking me out. Did she just throw that out there to see my response and to throw me off he scent of my blindside???? I'm nervous that some shady shit's happening.

I also sent a good morning message to the vote out Amy group chat around 8:45 and no one responded!!! We are active chatters and the fact that no one responded worries me. I hope I'm just overthinking this, which is on brand for me, and nothing bad will happen tonight. But I don't know. If it's me, I wouldn't be surprised. I hate that I'm thinking about this on day 5. I'm not even close to finishing this game.

Note: Cody and Ben just responded in our group chat as I typed this. we may be good then???

Note: I lost power this morning, so I'm at my parents house who have power and AC. No AC in the summer in New Orleans is no good. I would've recorded this, but they're sleeping and I didn't want to disturb them.

Cody A

https://youtu.be/gSbNCp7UBLY

Leanne

So, idol hunt news. Go figure, I was so freaked out about finding a disadvantage that I didn’t want to do anything at all, and of course I went and got one. A certain Alanis Morissette verse about being afraid to fly comes to mind. I am now debating whether I should quietly tell a few people, so that people know what not to do. We are in serious need of a win here, and this next round isn’t looking good. I told Zach, in a, don’t make the same mistake, kind of way. Even though I don’t feel quite as fantastic about him as I did before the last tribal, I still do consider him an ally, at least for now. So for now I will give him good info about things, if only because I want good info from him in return. This next tribal should make things more clear. We were talking about Amy this morning. He said she’s scrambling and wanting to know where the vote is going, and pointing out how there’s a whole chat going on with everyone except her. So I said, in a way I hoped would get the message across, well at least we know that this is going to be easy and no crazy stuff and no drama. He affirmed that, and brought up several times the easy vote thing. So at least it looks like he doesn’t want to rock the boat. If something crazy happens between now and then he’ll be marked in my mental file folder as unpredictable and suspicious. If not then I will move forward trusting him.

John B

Alrighty, so many developments since the challenge ended. SO! Pedro and I have been talking about the possibility of a tribe swap/expansion which has us both STRESSED. I also found out that Alan has the immunity idol because Pedro donated some coins to them. This is great to know even though it is terrifying. Hopefully Alan and I are on good terms, I feel like we are but until we vote and we can see where everyone stands, who's to say. Kalle and I have been talking a lot more and I think we are definitely settling into an alliance. We are both getting bad vibes from Tyler which feels like the general consensus so far. He disappeared from the challenge yesterday which I think we all noticed. I love that we keep winning but I think if we go too long without a vote things might get messy. For now, we are perpetually in a state of the calm before the storm, at least I have Pedro.

Kalle N

While I'm glad that we won another challenge, I'm also sad bc this means we still don't really have to strategize. Thankfully people have still been reaching out to me though. The "rox the sox" alliance is still good I think even though it's been quiet and no strategy has really been discussed. I've been talking a lot to John, and we actually both started throwing out names of people we've talked to and who we don't like so far. John told me he's good with Pedro and Maddison after I said I was good with them (I said their names bc I know they've talked to almost everyone and I wanted to see if he would agree or give other names but he didn't). We also both agreed that we get bad vibes from Tyler which is reassuring bc I really want to vote him when we get the chance. He also said he trusts me 100% and wants to talk real strategy and I don't think he'd have any reason to lie to me yet so I'm also trusting him.

Zack M

oop- i drank a bottle of wine last night and forgot to confess. my b. i mean, really nothing has changed. back to the first tribal vote .... it's amy's time. some of my alliance members want aimee out but i'm really trying hard to push that out of their mind.

do i trust aimee? absolutely not. is she a bigger threat than amy? 100%. however, amy suffers from a common disease called "not being able to read the room". i know she is scared and she is scrambling but it's messy. when you are in the majority alliance and everyone is sharing that you're copying it pasting it's low key embarrassing and like that's nothing against amy! truly. she is a pleasure and like i would totally facetime her in the future and gossip with a beer. a lesson in the future if you're reading this amy, make sure to be around on night one! gotta build connections. also, copy and paste is not your friend. get creative. i always write these and then think at the end ... lol what if i go home? i'm going to look so stupid. but honestly my social game is so strong right now. hoping it pays off. if not, whatever it's a compliment. let's be real for one second. we all know i'm the biggest threat on this tribe at the moment. if i fall from the top, at least i was at the top. and it was beautiful. oh and also cody and i thought we were slick and were going to get the idol at the market today so i gave him 5 coins. it wasn't the idol. that sucks. but i would rather be the one holding it so i'm not sweating it.

Najwah

Yesterday's immunity challenge is still haunting me. I was literally working on that shit for over 12 hours and TRIED SO HARD, however it seems as though some people just didn't try at all? So many people were just tapped out and made ZERO effort. They're the same people that seem to be running things and making the big decisions? Also there is talk of someone having found the immunity idol. I approached Aimee with the idea of starting a women's alliance because honestly, I got annoyed at the guys (EXCEPT MY BOY CODY) yesterday. My alliance with Leanne seems solid. Sarah hasn't spoken to me since the first day. Today is also the first day of shark week so I feel very shit and tired. If I stay up until 3am only to be voted out I am going to be big mad. Zack reached out to me last night. I actually have a lot more in common with him. We have unanimously decided to vote Amy out but I don't really trust any of them.if it were real life survivor and I could see people's eyes and read their body language, I'd have made a move to somehow let Amy stay and get someone else out. Perhaps someone else is doing that and they're getting me out lmao. I can't believe we lost again. I hate it here.

James Hayden

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2LsbITMPpw

Ben Kessler

Dear Confessional,

Hello Jay. It's me, Ben. Every tribal council makes me nervous but I will take these people down one by one using my charm and good looks. After 2 challenge losses, I'm fairly content just losing every challenge and voting all these paranoid people out one by one. I'm cool with that. Might make it happen, who knows. The Amy's are scary because they won't say anything concrete. But I am 20 years old and therefore invincible. If I get voted out tonight I am going to look like a dumbass. Feel free to send this to the VL. I will win this game but it is a marathon, and people are playing it like a sprint.

John B

YIKES! As if he wasn’t already a Target Tyler just shot himself in the foot. He made such a rude comment about the other tribe and I am uncomfortable. I think if we lose it’s pretty set in stone who the first out is going to be at this point.

Olivia A

On my first idol hunt I went to the market and found the prices of various items. There was a jewelry box for 20 coins and I feel like there’s probably a clue or something in there. Right now I have 10 coins that I found in the boat and I’m hoping to find more so I can buy the jewelry box before anyone else does.

Aimee

You know? This confessional would’ve looked a looooot different last night after we lost again and just the sheer amount of mind games going on, and anger and frustration but you know what! I feel like I have come full circle. This won’t be the same daily bitchfest as usual. At least not at the moment. Right, so, tonight I am either being blindsided, or I finally actually have my footing in this game. The vote will test that. I am going home...or not. All I can do is rely on my social skill and connections I have with people here who actually talk. I have my roots in almost every contestant and I am hearing things that match with other people are saying...so if I leave then EVERYONE is lying and EVERYONE had to play me not just some. It’s a little doubtful but anything can happen within fifteen minutes as we seen last time. Information is everything! I feel like although I am playing from the bottom, I am not playing blind. By having the Individual connections with people like Cody, Ben, Najwah, James, and Zack, I can compare and tell if what people are saying is true or not. Amy is another huge piece of the puzzle people overlook. I really wish Amy wasn’t on the outs and I really like her but everyone on this tribe formed a group chat without her in it and said it’s her. Interesting thing is, they have no idea how much I have talked to Amy and the tea she is spilling about what they’re saying too.

I learned that Leanne told her that they all had a group chat episode one as well that didn’t include her me or Neil fifteen minutes before the vote. Amy told me she is going around asking people who the vote is which Leanne apparently told her it was me. I think it’s a ploy so she votes me but the vote hopefully really is not. Knowing she is talking to people, I can cross check with the people who I am closest to in the game besides Amy. Which they confirm she is running around talking to everyone making people paranoid. The people I am closest to don’t want another fifteen minute thing again and are saying no one is talking to them and it makes them nervous and at least I am taking. Like........?????? That has been exactly the case. No one really seems to ever be talking?!?!?!?!? They say they trust me because Im not quiet and I don’t just spit names out at them last second. And guess what? That matches up because it’s how some people talk to me too. I caught people who never talk to me just coming up to me like episode one being like Sarah asking “are you okay with the vote?” I’m like....uhhhh what vote? The one that I talked only with Zack about? Oh! So he told you? Great now I know you’re together hahahahaha.

Leanne is another one who doesn’t really talk to me at all but always seems to be leading the vote after someone. Other people confirm this with me too. Oh and don’t forget people using the SAME VOCAB WORDS I USED to one person and repeat them to me minutes later. Pretty obvious. I think by just playing a half way decent normal social game I can start really getting a foothold here if I can just make it through this vote. But apparently that is what made Neil such a threat last time. I have to adapt constantly, whether it is talk more or don’t talk too much. It’s really hard to play when no one says much to each other but that’s the mold I have to break through.

Grae G

Hewwooo uh so busted my ass on that challenge that shit was ROUGH but you know you gotta do what you gotta do. I’m officially aligned with: Olivia kalle Maddison (as an alliance), individuals: John, & Alan. I’m talking to Pedro and Amy but we aren’t aligned. I feel like I have pretty good movability W all the talking but I definitely get the sense that everyone is talking to one another far more than I am, but I just don’t have the time to do more :(( Tyler seems like the consensus first vote out if that has to happen but from there not sure what’s next for everybody. Honestly if we can keep winning cool because I’m nervous about my place in the tribe so if we don’t have to go to tribal alright be me. If I felt more confident w the ally’s if had I’d say differently... but ya! Feeling like ok at least bc I know people want to talk to me and are starting lots of convos with me so I know my approachability is going well.

Zack M

tribal is coming up. the worst thing would be if amy and aimee are playing together. one of them has an idol that they play for amy and write down someone else.

i feel like that's a long shot though. if it does happen ... dear god, please don't let it be me. i wonder what i would do if i were amy. i feel like i would have been more vocal to more people at once. not just hit up people individually. i would have felt around to see who i think are in groups and message them. i really hope people are as obvious when they are voting me out as they have been with her because i have no problems addressing the entire tribe with gossip i may be hearing. can you imagine? first tribal, blindside. second tribal, fight? amy kept asking who "everyone" is ...... it would have been iconic if she messaged the entire group "leanne said everyone." i would have screamed. but that is my game, not hers. this is more fun then i thought it would be but i'm also so tired of it. thank you for helping me realize i don't actually want to be on the show. i also just found out the the VL people don't read this immediately and i'm bummed. but like i'm still going to act like they can. ugh, i love you guys. hopefully i'm still around tonight. xoxo.

Amy T

DAMN IT I SAW IT COMING like right after last tribal then I tried to play my way out and they convinced me it was Aimee. https://youtu.be/gHm3J6X9fvE < this was minutes before tribal. I was walking home earlier and almost made one simply "It's me." haha It's so funny because I kept almost saying "well it's either everyone is for Aimee or it's me" then there were just so many hints that it was me, but I was hoping to sneak my way in to the main active people and those willing to talk, who I think they are running the game. so I can't tell if zack is with leanne or what but I have a feeling ben and cody have a hand in running things based on how they jumped right at working with me and the timing of their responses lol. I am KICKING myself for not making a girls alliance. I hope they do it. But let's be real scores haven't been great against the other team. The youths are killing it haha! also everyone was nice, so as much as I want to be like EFF YOU, I did enjoy getting to know them even though they were openly lying to me hahahaha whoops damn it. I hope to play again when I can dive in day one instead of immediately being on the outs.

Amy T

Final after vote out thoughts : https://youtu.be/1hzWKy5aCVE

#episodes

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robertkstone · 6 years

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Celebrity Drive: Alice in Chains’ Jerry Cantrell

Quick Stats: Jerry Cantrell, Alice in Chains’ founder/lead guitarist/singer-songwriter, co-lead vocalist Daily Driver: 2016 Range Rover (Jerry’s rating: 10 on a scale of 1 to 10) Other cars: See below Favorite road trip: Tacoma to Alaska Car he learned to drive in: 1976 Volkswagen Super Beetle First car bought: Early 1990s Ford Explorer

After the dust settled from touring with Alice in Chains to promote its hit first album, Facelift, a grungy-looking Jerry Cantrell was excited to buy his first car. But with checkbook in hand, his enthusiasm was squashed in a real-life Pretty Woman moment with an uninterested salesman. But Cantrell played out the movie scene in the way only a rocker could.

“I remember having cash in the bank to write a check, not put it on a plan, but actually to buy it, and that’s what I wanted to do. … That was a sense of pride that I had earned the money to do that and that I could. So that was special, and it’s funny because the first car lot that I walked on, the guy wouldn’t even let me get in the car because of how I looked,” he says.

Photo by Scott Dachroeden

Cantrell laughs, recalling how they dressed back then—combat boots, long johns under cut-off jeans, leather jackets, and long hair.

“I’m like, ‘Dude, are you serious? I’ve got cash to buy a car, a brand-new car. I don’t have to have somebody to cosign it. I need to buy a car,’” Cantrell recalls.

He was determined to buy that car at that moment. “So I looked across the street—it was an auto row area—and I’m like, ‘You just lost a sale, dude. I’m going to walk across that street, I’m going to buy a car. I’m going to come back over here and I’m going to show it to you.’ And I did. I walked across the street, bought a f–kin’ Ford Explorer, and when I got the paperwork done, I came back by the window and probably flipped him off and then drove off,” he says with a chuckle.

Cantrell got an SUV since he lived in the Northwest. “It’s pretty much all SUVs, it’s rainy all the time. Sometimes it’s snowy and icy,” he says. “That’s just the practical ride for everybody in that zone.”

He would later flip the SUV in the early morning hours, returning from a Jane’s Addiction concert when he hit black ice, he said.

2016 Range Rover

Rating: 10

Today, Cantrell’s SUV of choice is his Range Rover. He still likes having an SUV to haul his guitar and amps. “It’s a solid car, it looks great, it’s a good ride, it’s well built. It’s my first Rover,” he says.

The vehicle is good for trips like driving around the mountains as well as out to the desert in L.A. “I was a big Escalade fan for a number of years,” Cantrell says. “My friends Dime and Vinnie Paul from Pantera, my good brothers, drove those and they turned me on to driving those. My drummer has always been a Rover fan, and I finally decided to give one a try, and I now I think I’ll probably never go back.”

1967 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray

Rating: 10

Red Corvette photos by Kremer/Johnson

After he bought his Ford Explorer, Cantrell bought this eye-catching convertible with a removable hardtop, which was the most “extravagant purchase” he made for himself. He paid about $60,000 back in 1994.

“I’m not too much of a gear head, but it’s red with a black hood scoop, it’s got side pipes. I think it’s all matching numbers. There might be a couple of things I’ve added to it, but I kept the original parts,” Cantrell says. “It came with a 427 Tri-Power, which I took out not to further damage and put a 454 in, so I can drive it around like a regular car. It’s just cool, it’s loud as f–k, it rumbles when you drive it, it smells of leather, oil, and gas. … I don’t drive it that often, but I’ve maintained it throughout the years.”

1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray

Rating: 10

1963 Corvette photos by Scott Dachroeden

Cantrell loved Corvettes so much that, a year after he bought his 1967 Corvette, he bought this Sting Ray, which is a split-window coupe. “I grew up in the era of the astronauts, and a lot of those guys drove Corvettes. I was a big Speed Racer fan kid too, and that was a car that reminded me of the Mach Five,” he says.

To Cantrell, this is just a classy-looking car. “The ’67 is like a sexy pig,” he quips. “It just rumbles and it’s so throaty, but it looks so good and it really just drips power, as well as looking amazing. But the ’63, I call it a little bit more refined, a little sleeker, doesn’t have the side pipes. It’s got a leather interior. The ’67 has a red, red on red. The ’63 is Ermine White on the outside with a saddle interior.”

When I mentioned that Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir was a former Celeb Drive who also had a 1963 Sting Ray, Cantrell recalled meeting Rush’s Neil Peart a few years ago at what was the old A&M Studios. “He’s a big ’Vette fan too, and we talked ’Vettes for a little bit. He’s got a ’67 and a ’63, as well. He likes the silver, chromy-gray-looking car. All his cars are within that range. So I met another ’Vette brother in one of my heroes. It’s pretty cool.”

Car he learned to drive in

Cantrell first learned to drive when he was very young, sitting on his dad’s lap steering a pickup truck. Later, he learned officially on his mom’s manual-transmission 1976 Volkswagen Super Beetle in Washington.

“That’s probably the car I learned to drive as a teenager and moving into being a young adult. But my dad had me driving—I’d go visit him in the summertime, in Oklahoma. He’d … take you out in the fields or on the dirt roads and put you in the truck and let you roll,” he says.

Cantrell recalls a story that highlights his dad’s liberal nature when it came to letting his young son drive without a license.

“He had a Z28, and it was killer looking. He and his buddies were hanging out, and he wanted something from the store and I wasn’t old enough to drive,” he laughs. “He’s like, ‘Go get me such and such at the store.’ I jumped in that, in eighth grade. I’d cruise around town in that, hit the store, stop by a spot where some of my friends can see me driving the car. I could barely see over the steering wheel.”

Photo by Scott Dachroeden

When it came to taking his driver’s test and learning how to operate a manual transmission, it was all with the help of his mom and her VW. “That little tiny, whiny motor. It’s funny, Volkswagens always have the same smell. All of those Beetles, when you get in them they smell exactly the same. It’s a similar thing to the ’Vette, they have a very unique odor. … If I get in one blindfolded I could tell I was in a f–kin’ VW Beetle,” he says. “Same thing as a ’Vette, as well.”

Although he passed his driver’s test, Cantrell’s mom needed the car, so he mostly took the bus. “That car was her lifeline to work, so she couldn’t afford me [damaging the VW],” he says. “So other than getting some driving tips and practicing on some back roads with her to get a license, I didn’t get to really drive it too much. I didn’t have a car again until I bought that Ford Explorer. I inherited my grandmother’s Toyota, but I needed to get it licensed and I never did, and it sat outside the place we were living until it kind of rotted away, when we were living at the Music Bank in Seattle.”

Favorite road trip

Cantrell has been on many road trips, and he says most of his life is about driving. “From the time I was a kid and my dad was in the service, he didn’t fly, so we drove everywhere,” he says. “We drove to Alaska, we drove back. We drove from Washington to Oklahoma, from Mineral Wells, Texas, to Pennsylvania, we drove everywhere. He didn’t like to fly, he liked to drive, and my job is constantly travelling.”

When Cantrell was a kid, he traveled with his family on the Alcan Highway in Alaska, where his dad was stationed to serve for a year in the army. “That was pretty amazing. It took a while to get up there, and most of it at that point was still dirt roads in the early ’70s,” he says.

Although they drove everywhere his dad was stationed, this road trip from Tacoma to Alaska was memorable for many reasons, especially the scenery. “The majesty of it … it was so f–king wild to be driving through these forests and mountains,” he says. “Pretty amazing.”

New album Rainier Fog and worldwide tour

Alice in Chains just released its first new record in five years, which hit number one on Billboard and iTunes’ rock charts.

Photo by Pamela Littky

“We worked really hard on it, and I think that we hit the quality level that we always try to shoot for,” Cantrell says. “It’s unlike any record that we’ve ever done, and we’re a band that is known for that,” he says.

Cantrell says the band really doesn’t make one album that sounds like another. “At the same time, we keep our musical identity. [The album is] strong from top to bottom, and it’s named after where we come from,” he says. “Mount Rainier is the big mountain that dominates the skyline in Seattle, and we recorded the bulk of the basic tracks in Seattle at Studio X where we also recorded the self-titled record years ago, so we went home to make this record.”

Recording at the original studio was a full-circle moment for Cantrell. “We made the third full-length record in that studio, which may not exist [for much longer]. It may get torn down for a f–king high-rise. I hope not.”

Alice in Chains is supporting this new album on the current leg of the band’s worldwide tour, which stops in Texas today and tomorrow. The album dropped when the band played its hometown of Seattle.

“We’ll play a handful of tunes from this record, but we’ll play a handful of tunes from all our records. We try to represent all eras,” Cantrell says. For more information, please visit AliceinChains.com.

Photo by Scott Dachroeden