#ihop au

[edenishitsing]

Since I saw the femboy hooters nari, i wanted to make a mini comic about it, lol.

Here's the eng version for ya my sistes, brothers and they

[jtl-fics]

Fluent Freshman - Part 12

PREVIOUS

If there was one thing no one would ever guess about FF it is that he unapologetically LOVES Black Friday.

You may be thinking. Ugh Black Friday. Everyone is so rude and tired. The deals aren’t even that good. It can turn into a blood sport at the drop of a hat over a toaster that is 15% off.

You are correct.

That is why FF loves it.

It is the one shopping day of the year where every single one of his instincts are correct, valid, and useful. He has pulled his gran out of the way of elbow drops, he has avoided the gaze of a woman in PINK sweat pants who was looking for someone to steal a blender from, and he knows without a doubt that the cashier hates him already so there’s no need to worry about whether or not they hate him.

It’s like a breath of fresh air!

Everyone is just as antagonistic and awful as he thinks they are!

Shopping is actually the blood sport he always feels like it is!

So there he is standing in a line at the nearest store (Target) waiting to be let in with the masses who all look ready to stab one another for better positioning for a TV. The jokes on them though because his only goal is the grocery section and he deals with the threat of repeated stabbings for BREAKFAST.

He spots an IHOP in the distance and hopes his gran doesn’t feel too lonely. They’ve gotten buttermilk stacks together at the IHOP by the mall for years after the two of them finished Christmas Shopping.

Someone elbows him in the side to get his spot in line but FF does not really care. Again, he doubts any of these people are going to be racing him to the all purpose flour.

It’s 4 AM and the barricades come down.

There’s a rush of people pushing and shoving but FF just steps to the side and watches as they all rush in. He’d mostly stayed in the line because the throng of people made it easier to stay warm. He had left his jacket back at the house because the five hour energy might be making his skin feel super sensitive but he is pretty sure that if he wore his nylon jacket he would die.

The five hour energy also may be upping his anxiety just a little bit.

He walks into the store at a leisurely pace and while the crowd fights over the carts he grabs one of the baskets. He can feel the eyes of other shoppers all wondering if he has some insider knowledge on a good deal that would only require the basket or if it’s a matter of who gets to the back to receive the ‘redeem’ coupon.

He sees a few shoppers get lured in by his siren call and much like a siren following anything that FF is about to do will undoubtedly lead to their downfall.

But FF doesn’t care about that.

He cares about HIS downfall.

So he makes his way to the grocery section and ignores the six different shopping assistants who try and guide him to where he ‘should’ be shopping and each of them only give him increasingly confused looks when he states his intention to go to the grocery section every single time.

Is it easier to ignore their stares when the five hour energy have set his baseline heart rate to something that might be too fast to register as a heartbeat? Maybe.

It is easier to ignore the confusion on their faces when he can see both the past (he asked for TWO favors from Andrew in one day how is he still alive???) and the future (still malleable at the moment apparently. There’s even a future where Andrew actually just is trying to make overtures of friendship but he dismisses that one as INCREDIBLY unlikely and looks at the far more viable one where Andrew at least makes his death quick while he enjoys his great gran’s brownies.)

It’s good to set reasonable goals for yourself.

So he arrives at the grocery section which is deserted aside from one employee who may or may not be asleep against a shelf. FF looks and….not a shelf he needs so he is not about to wake that poor man up.

So he gets everything he needs for his great gran’s brownies (he’s trying to buy his life here so he is not about to assume he can use ANYTHING in the house), the ingredients for a good breakfast (because he really needs to eat something that is not a five hour energy or sugar for the sake of his poor stomach and he may as well get enough for everyone), and (since Captain Neil mentioned it & he is trying to buy his life here) the ingredients to bake another pie.

While he grabs cinnamon he checks to see if they have grandma’s love in stock but, alas, it continues to be unavailable commercially.

He stares at the whipped cream for so long that the employee asleep in the other aisle woke up and asked if he needed help and, startled, he dropped it in his basket. “No I’m good.” He says before power walking out of the grocery department and deciding to brave the Home Goods section to buy some incense so that he can hopefully channel the spirit of his great gran to assist him in this, the darkest of his baking hours.

He arrives at the check out stations and finds the shortest line .

He can feel eyes on him, inspecting his purchases, judging them, judging him, who the fuck goes grocery shopping during the Black Friday rush?

FF.

FF goes grocery shopping during the Black Friday rush.

The cashier looks for hidden cameras but FF has no such thing accompanying him today or ever (as far as he knows.)

After a moment the cashier must look at the ever growing line and decide that whatever scheme they think FF is up to isn’t worth trying to figure out. They offer a membership card, FF valiantly declines to get one despite the two attempts.

He is out the door with four bags of groceries that all have a target on them that feels a little too correct. It’s 6 AM now (he really did lose a lot of time at the whipped cream section) and he’s walking back to the house in Columbia.

He actually feels a little bit better since he at least got to experience his actual favorite blood sport (sorry Exy) and he even got another 2 five hour energies while he was in the check out line so he could replace some of the ones that he had gone through.

“Smith?”

He would like to thank the combined weight of the groceries for keeping his feet on the ground when he heard Captain Neil’s voice.

He turns and Captain Neil is looking at him wide-eyed in his running gear that Smith has seen him in. “You were shopping??” He asks.

FF nods and lifts up the four bags as evidence. “Why didn’t you pick up your phone?” He asks.

FF almost scoffs but he doesn’t, “You can’t be distracted when you’re in a Target on Black Friday. That’s how you take an elbow to the eye.” He responds because it’s like Captain Neil has never experienced the WWE-like environment of Black Friday shopping.

Captain Neil blinks at him.

“Text Andrew or me next time you’re going to go off into the night or just let us know beforehand. Andrew would have driven you.” Captain Neil says and grabs two of the bags out of FF’s hand. “C’mon let’s get back and maybe you can get some sleep.” Captain Neil sighs.

“I’m fine.” FF adjusts the bags so he has one in each hand.

Captain Neil does not say anything so FF assumes that he has accepted that.

***

FF had not been asleep on the couch when Neil had walked through the living room. Neil, in a move that had Andrew fully waking up, went back to the room to check his phone to see if FF had texted him an update on going out. All that greets Neil is the impersonal series of texts that mostly confirmed when practice times had been changed, when the bus was leaving, and spelling on various Spanish words.

FF isn’t a big text person.

He’s more of an in-person kind of friend.

Neil likes that about him most of the time.

“What.” Andrew asks face still half buried in Neil’s pillow.

“Smith isn’t on the couch.”

That has Andrew getting up despite the early hour and their activities the night before. Neil watches as Andrew grabs his own phone to scroll through but seems to come up with the same lack of communication that Neil does.

Andrew does do the extra step and hit the call button.

But all he gets is the confirmation that the VM has not been configured that has greeted them every time FF misses their calls. (Voicemails make FF anxious so when he got his new phone he just…never configured it.)

Neil knew that FF was not pleased with them and somehow the calm request to either stop fooling around or let him out had hit him and Andrew harder than any of the screaming demands that the two of them were usually met with from Nicky, Kevin, Aaron, or any of the other Foxes.

“You said he wasn’t mad.” Neil says.

“He nodded.” Andrew confirms.

“Maybe he went on a walk?” Neil tries as they come out to the living room. They look at the front door and find that it’s locked but it looks like Aaron’s keys are gone. “He probably is going to come back if he took Aaron’s keys since Aaron wouldn’t be the one he’d be irritated with.” Neil rationalizes.

“He didn’t bring his jacket.” Andrew says looking at the black jacket still on the hook by the door.

“We can go and see if we spot him.” Neil offers.

Andrew nods and Neil heads out first since Andrew is still in his sleeping clothes and will need some time.

Neil had not expected to find FF walking back to the house with groceries for breakfast and the pie that Neil had mentioned hoping they could bake at the house.

“Is this for the pie?” He asks looking down at what was in the bags he was carrying as the walked back to the house. Neil managed to shoot off a quick text letting Andrew know that it was fine, FF just went grocery shopping.

FF just nods, “Got everything but Grandma’s love.” He says.

FF is a nice guy to brave the stores on a morning like this but FF also looks like he hasn’t slept a wink.

“Did you sleep at all last night?” Neil asks.

“I’m fine.” FF repeats.

Neil really is starting to understand his friends’ hatred for the phrase.

They get back to the house and Andrew is sat out in the living room. FF stops and blinks at the sight of him sitting there.

It is a well-known fact that Andrew does not willingly wake up early most days unless he has to. Neil is glad that Andrew has a friend that he’s coming to care about the way Andrew cares about FF.

Andrew gets up and yanks the bags out of FF’s hands. “Go to sleep. Today will be irritating if you’re half-asleep.” He says with a scowl and walks to the kitchen to put away the groceries FF had bought.

FF just looks at where Andrew had gone uncomprehendingly for a few moments and Neil figures he’s just tired. Neil feels guilty that him and Andrew messing around in the car like that had rendered FF unable to sleep and the two of them had agreed last night that from now on when FF is in the car they can talk all they want but hands stay on the wheel and eyes stay on the road.

FF is plopped down on the couch when Andrew and Neil come out of the kitchen after putting away the groceries (“These are the ingredients for brownies.” Andrew had noted as he put away melting chocolate.) and he’s looking through his flashcards again and not sleeping. He hears Andrew make a disgusted noise next to him and the next thing he knows Andrew is smacking the cards out of FF’s hands.

“Go. To. Sleep.” Andrew enunciates.

FF stares at him, then down at the flashcards. “I don’t think I can.” He says which is better than him lying and saying he wasn’t tired even if the truth had Andrew’s mouth stretch into a thin line that meant he was beating himself up for something.

“Try.” Andrew orders. “Just lay down and close your eyes. Nothing will happen to you while you’re sleeping.” He says.

FF blinks but nods turning on the couch and laying down. The blanket is still over on the lazy boy that Neil had set it on the night before and Andrew rolls his eyes before grabbing it and tossing it over FF.

“Thanks.” FF says before closing his eyes.

Neil looks to Andrew who nods and Neil accepts that there’s nothing else to be done for now and heads out on his run.

***

FF can admit that he’s a bit adrift in what Andrew and Captain Neil are doing right now.

He really should go grab another five hour energy because falling asleep IN FRONT of an irritated Andrew Minyard feels like a death sentence but “Nothing will happen to you while you’re sleeping.” And having a blanket thrown over him did not feel like a threat even if he can feel Andrew’s eyes watching him.

FF is tired and when he’s tired he tends to make stupid decisions. So FF lets himself drift off to sleep while the man who was likely going to move him to a secondary location sat and watched.

His dreams are not peaceful.

He’s running, can’t escape, an echo of words he should have considered before letting himself drift off and he knows he’s going to DIE.

He wakes up with a start to the smell of bacon, eggs, and hashed browns with Nicky standing over him. “Hey there sleeping beauty! I made you a plate!” He says and hands FF a plate of breakfast that smiles up at him with a bacon mouth, egg eyes, and hashed brown hair.

FF takes the plate and digs in immediately. He needs his strength.

“Today will be irritating if you’re half-asleep.”

Andrew Minyard was going to hunt him for SPORT.

NEXT

Do your civic duty and: CAST YOUR VOTE TODAY ABOUT MEMES (closed)

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As stated before if you’re up here and I spelled it right but you didn’t get a notification there might be something switched around in your settings that won’t let me tag you properly? (Cheesecookie whatever you did let me actually select you this time)

[naffeclipse]

Hi! I had a dream recently that SJ Eclipse took me out on a date to a restaurant and he bought me pancakes XD

He's going to treat you to a tall stack of flapjacks because he takes care of what's his <3

[eggs-can-draw]

FNaF AU where Byakuya's dad is a kiddy strangler and Makoto is just there looking for a job while Kyoko is doing all sorts of detective work in the background.

DO YOU UNDERSTAND HOW MANY TIMES IVE REWATCHED THE FNAF MOVIE BECAUSE OF THIS ASK

[five-nights-at-fujisakis]

another shift down!!! i'm really proud of myself!!! this time none of them got anywhere close to my office!! being happy about this accomplishment is keeping me from freaking out more!!!

also i managed to have a successful coworker interaction!!! i didn't get any advice for the animatronics but i did still text a coworker and i think it went pretty well!!!

i did kind of wonder why it was vanessa who always showed up at the end of my shift and not one of the day guards. now i know! i wonder why there's a time of day where there's no security aside from her, that's kind of weird. but i guess i shouldn't question it if i want to get paid. i'm already dealing with enough.

i also wonder if the previous night guard actually quit or if he was... well... a victim. it sounds like he was having about as much fun as i'm having now.

on the plus side!!! i now know what ihop is! i looked it up, we haven't had those in japan since like 2000, no wonder i haven't heard of them until now.

[twicethetrouble]

Writing Family Web Daily: Day 6

Leo perked up as the X-rays finally appeared on the screen. Until he got a chance to actually look at them then he froze.

"What is it?" April called. He hadn't said anything but she somehow figured out that he figured out something. Leo ignored her, studying the images closer. "Leo, I can't come over there to see it so you have to tell me what's going on."

Leo sighed, transferring the X-rays to one of Donnie's spare tablets and bringing it over to show her.

"It's the bridge," he said, plopping it down in April's lap.

"The what?"

"The bridge. The shell bits between our plastron and carapace. That's the problem. That's probably what's been the problem the whole time," Leo explained, his explanation quickly devolving to ranting. "I should have seen this coming. Should have realized this could be a problem. I-"

"Leo, breathe," April ordered. Leo took a breath. "Now take it from the top."

"His arms, his new arms, are growing in under the bridge. Which, thinking back, is very fucking obvious."

"Leo."

Leo took another breath.

"It's growing in underneath but, unlike Mikey and his skull, the bridge isn't making space for them on it’s own.”

[electricfied-wolf]

Thinking about them again (stex human au in which the main characters are a bunch of teens in the early 1980s and they start a roller skating club)

[hauntedziosportrait]

HIII OBSESSED WITH YOUR AU STORY was wondering what all the alphas are up to during this time? are they still a team, off doing their own things, or gone entirely? (question extends 2 mira and zios too!)

i hope you write more for your au, im so invested !!!!!

heehee hi!!!!!!! i am Happy to answer this!! already in the au, Greely is a protagonist but otherwise has little to no connection with the alphas. ever since the events of the phantom uprising they pretty much argued about the best steps to take and all either split up or cut complete contact with one another. Greely, being a natural and literal lonewolf of course ventured off by himself but Liza and Sir Gilbert have teamed up aiding surviving jammers and foraging for resources. Cosmo and Graham are, in the present moment, keen on gathering intel, which is becoming difficult without someone like Greely who's a pretty sneaky spy Peck is by herself. Whereabouts pretty much unknown. And possibly slightly insane but presumed dead or kidnapped by the other alphas.... Let's just say something is inspiring her to paint more than ever. and Tavie will also become a very important character in the story so I cant spoil anything but I can say she's dwelling in the waters of moku'ahi alongside three troublemaking spirits..... >:) As for Mira and Zios, they aren't entirely dormant, especially not the latter. but they're not exactly themselves

[notenoughmuses]

@pagetreader

They'd gotten out alive by the skin of their teeth. Twice. The first time was getting off world after their planet wide Civil War that was sparked by their father and ignited and engulfed the people by their brother. Viserys had hoped mother would live long enough to at least see her new babies name day but alas, that's not how the Gods worked. So off to a bit city in a Inner Rim world was daunting for the near Outer Rim sibling duo. They'd been lucky enough to get a accomdentation for five years but no longer. Dany was starting to show signs of the Dragon, just as Viserys had when he was her age, just as Rhaegar had when he was alive. But here, it was called the Force. And people who had it were called Jedi.

Of course the moment Viserys and Dany approached the temple to finally see what having the force was all about to these Jedi, he found them saying even Dany at 6 was too old and he at 13, way too old. Just as they were being turned away, the temple became alive with the sounds of blaster fire and screams and the ex-royal sibling found themselves scrambling to make it out of the temple alive. It wasn't till he heard a voice ushering them to safety that he realized it was a woman, she looked distraught and Dany latched to Viserys, unsure of the woman and Viserys nodded to tell her it was okay. Anything was better then here. Besides the woman looked kind, if a bit sad and panicked.

[nateslehky]

maybe one day i'll write the pick up basketball au that's been floating around in the back of my brain for a while

[sablespiders]

he coughed so hard he frowed up🤧

[woonhakist]

WHO!

INSPIRATION — the storyline of boynextdoor’s music videos/songs from their debut single, WHO!

GENRE — social media au, summer break + school au, rom-com, reverse harem, choose your own adventure (for part 3)

PAIRING — non-idol!boynextdoor x fem!reader

CHARACTERS — boynextdoor, jisung + chenle (nct), jake (enhypen), eunseok (riize), winter (aespa), natty (kiss of life), possibly more

WARNINGS — cursing, death jokes, suggestive/sexual jokes (no smut), mainly boynextdoor-focused, no y/n + friends tweets til part 2 (but y/n is mentioned ALL throughout part 1), mainly y/n-focused during part 3, ignore time stamps and all that, characters are works of fiction NOT an accurate representation of the people used (more to be added in upcoming chapters)

TAGLIST — (OPEN) send an ask, dm, comment, etc!

STATUS — ongoing!

NOTES — it’ll probably be a little while before this is officially out, but i wanted to release the masterlist because i am SO excited about this omfg i’ve been so absorbed in boynextdoor lately and i figured that’d be the perfect fuel for my second smau🤞another thing, my default for the parts is 10 chapters, but i may give or take from the length depending on how i see fit

first knock!

inspiration!

SYNOPSIS — sungho, riwoo, jaehyun, taesan, leehan, and woonhak all find a summer crush to call their own, but it turns out that you’re the one they all call their own.

PROFILES (1) | PROFILES (2)

1. i know where my baddie lives

2. overglorified wattpad fanfiction

3. bagging the bitches (literally)

4. the circumference of a goldfish

5. to rep or to love, that is the question

6. can picasso ride these wheels?

7. pregaming a housewarming party???

8. stop being happy it’s making me uncomfortable :/

9. IHOP UHOP WEHOP

10. smells like teen spirit…and axe body spray

second knock!

inspiration!

SYNOPSIS — each boy—self-deemed as “the most desperate”—scramble to gain the courage to ask you out before the others can. amidst the rivalry, they decide to call it off to make the playing field even. in other words, they decide to confess to you together with an utmost chaotic serenade.

PROFILES (3)

1. coming soon!

2. coming soon!

3. coming soon!

4. coming soon!

5. coming soon!

6. coming soon!

7. coming soon!

8. coming soon!

9. coming soon!

10. coming soon!

third knock!

inspiration!

SYNOPSIS — the boys’ midnight fiasco tips over your internal dominoes, sparking a conflict between your head and your heart. despite your brain’s chants to reject all of the boys, your heart rebels, beating faster and faster for…

❥ SUNGHO — coming soon!

❥ RIWOO — coming soon!

❥ JAEHYUN — coming soon!

❥ TAESAN — coming soon!

❥ LEEHAN — coming soon!

❥ WOONHAK — coming soon!

EXTRAS!

the pop princess posse

start — 7/18/23

end — n/a

© woonhakist 2023

[pillowspace]

What does sun and moon or eclipse if he included thoughts about there is many different versions such as daycare attendant, mers, gods, flowers, fairies, cryptics, aliens, vampires, steampunks, cyberpunk, ihops, candies, humans, cowboys, mafia, pirates, naga, magical beings, worms etc etc of themselves created by the love of artists and writers? And which one of it peak their interests the most?

It's incredible! Humans are so creative!! I like the one where I'm a DRAGON! Ohh, I love candy ones, there's a candy store too!

There's a lovely butterfly one. A firefly squid one, too. Those are good. (What's ihops? Is that a rabbit one?)

We like the cryptid and knight ones.

Sun was easy because I already knew he likes dragons and candy. The OTHERS? Fought for my life to think of what AUs they would like

Sun is referring to @newts-and-sharks and @suntimeswolliw AUs. Moon is referring to @zus-a-fungi and @mocha-illustrates AUs. Eclipse is referring to @naffeclipse and @artrider180 AUs. Apologies to be tagging y'all :sob:

(They do not actually know of AUs, this was just for the question)

[tojipie]

ahhh truck driver toji so cute ur aus for him are srsly superior i swear!!! i think it’d be so cute if maybe you wrote abt the items/souvenirs toji has collected and gifted you as you travel together :D the emotional meaning and why hehe

hii ! here’s a list:

disposable cameras: he buys them more for himself then he does for you. he’s the type to refuse to delete photos to free up storage on his phone, and won’t pay for the extra gigabytes, so naturally he just started opting for hard copies.

there’s shots of you two tucked into every crevice of the truck, and he has an old shoebox full of them tucked under the driver’s seat. he usually keeps his weekly favorite tucked away in the visor mirror.

coins! he’s constantly sifting through his change from gas station purchases to look for older or unique coins to gift to you. he loves how excited you get when you come across those vintage coin press machines and insists he be the one to press the lever down.

trucker hats again, these ones are more for him than you. you just end up wearing them more than he does (and he lets you). he literally can’t help himself when it comes to getting new hats. and when he decides to bring one up to the counter you always have to remind him that he has at least 6 just like it.

he’ll send you into gas stations with a crumpled 50 from time-to-time, telling you to go ham as long as you make sure to get him a case of beer. you’ll sometimes get yourself a gag gift out of boredom, showing it off to him with a smile.

you bought him a gag hat one time that read “#1 MILF.” he found it funny at the time, using it to push back his fringe once the sun started beating down on you two. he ended up forgetting that he had it on by noon, sitting through an entire meal at an ihop not knowing why everyone was giggling at the two of you.

keychains! he loves giving you the ones with little snow globes attached, you have a key ring where you keep all of them. they always change depending on what season you’re in. if it’s cold he tends to go for winter themed charms, and if it’s warmer he likes to get you the kind with pressed flowers.

bottle caps: random sobriety checks are frequent depending on where the two of you are driving through, so toji knows not to let himself get caught with alcohol in his system before the two of you have gotten to your destination for the night. when he finally gets to crack open a case, he’ll give you the bottle cap to fiddle around with.

you’ve since started saving them in a jar after learning they could be exchanged for cash! you’re saving up to buy him something for his birthday.

[wildemaven]

bloom : one | joel miller

→ pairing: no outbreak joel miller x f!reader

→ WC: 2494

→ warnings: meet cute vibes, reader is single mom, small injury at work, Joel to the rescue using nontraditional techniques to help (I don't want to give it away), daughter is a teen and bleeds sarcasm, fluff and more fluff, mention of divorce and adoption.

→ a/n: some of you are probably like “wait, what is happening?!” i started this series on another account that i was using to take a break from this one. I had plans to finish this series out over there and then just abandon the account and move back here. but i love this series and want it to live here with my other work. so, im getting things set up so i can post part two later this week and move back to this account for good. also, this is series is a TLOU AU, so I've fudged all timelines and relationships to make it work for me. Ihope you like it, am very nervous to share it with you all.

two | series masterlist | main masterlist

You’re staring. 

It would feel less awkward if it were somewhere else, anywhere but where you are right now. Like sitting a table away at a packed restaurant, enough people crowded around to lessen your obvious ogling of a handsome stranger, eyes locked on his profile as you hide behind the empty glass you’re pretending to sip from. The crossing of paths in a grocery store would also feel less awkward, a quick glance back over your shoulder after your carts squeeze through the nearly claustrophobic aisle, your gaze on him as he stares at the shelves filled with sugary snacks— he most definitely would have a wicked sweet tooth you think. 

Unfortunately for you, or fortunately depending on how you look at it, it’s just you and him, alone in the store front of the floral shop— your floral shop. 

He’d walked by the front window, stopping instantly to read the shop’s name in gold letters above the entrance, then hands cupped over his eyes and face pressed close to the glass contemplating the shop’s worthiness of his time. 

It’s a corner spot, sitting at the crossroads of two of the town’s busiest shopping streets— prime location. Bold was a chance you took with painting the exterior black, even with the apprehension of the city council deeming it too “gothic” for the town's rather conservative appeal. The dark exterior paired with black and white striped awning over the door was the perfect balance of moody and romantic. 

It was worthy enough, pushing the front door open he stepped inside, the automated bell signaling through the shop. The heaviness of his boots scuff across the wood floor a few steps, his broad body stopping in front of one of the cold displays that held an array of dramatic arrangements. His hands tucked securely into his pockets as he looks around aimlessly, it’s evident this isn’t a regular occurrence for him. 

“Welcome to Wilder Floral. Is there anything I can help you with today?” You greet him from your workbench. 

Your hands busily work to trim the ends and dethorn the stems of a bundle of antique mauve roses, one of your best sellers, then trimming off the lower leaves before placing them in a bucket of water. 

“Not really sure at the moment. Just browsin’ for now.” His deep voice sounds through the small space, the raspy tone sending a tingle down your spine. 

“Okay. Well, if you have any questions don’t hesitate to ask.” He nods to you, catching the way his gaze doesn’t immediately break from you, he gives you a half smile then continues to look over everything again. 

You’re staring. 

Your mind is filled with thoughts of only this handsome stranger, quietly watching him over the now full bucket of cleaned roses. 

You note the way his hip cocks out to the side as he stands with his large hands secure against his small waist. His eyebrows pinch together briefly, a look of deep thought painted over his face accentuating the little crinkles around his eyes. After a moment, his beautiful face relaxes into a calmer expression. 

You can make out every muscle that runs the length of his arms, the weight of the arrangement he’s now holding provoking the defined musculature. His arms lifting and turning the vase with ease, examining every detail of the floral design you created. 

You’re still staring. You can’t help it though. Actually, you can, but your brain convinces you that you are just admiring, so that makes it more than okay— right? 

“You know, if you take a picture it lasts longer!” A hushed voice pops up from behind you. 

“Ouch!! God dammit, Ellie! Why do you do that?!” You yelp, tossing the rose stem you were holding onto the table. 

“It’s too easy! You were lost in la la land over some grumpy guy looking at flowers. I saw an opportunity, so I took it.” She laughs, pushing your buttons brings her a weird satisfaction. 

There’s a throbbing pain coming from your hand. Looking down you see  part of a thorn had broken off and was now embedded deep into the pad of your finger— a rookie mistake at this point in your career. You wrap your other hand around the base of your fingers, hoping some pressure will elevate the pain. 

“I’m glad you enjoyed this. Can you just go grab the first aid kit in the back, please!” 

“Yeah, yeah. Try not to fall for him too hard while I’m gone— don’t think you have enough bandages to fix that mess.” She sulks away into the back room. 

“Shit!” You hiss, the pain getting more intense and now radiating through your entire finger. 

“You okay ma’am?” The handsome customer asks you, stealthy in his approach to where you’re standing, still clutching your hand.

He places the floral arrangement he was holding down on your work table, his feet still moving in an urgent manner until he is standing in front of you. 

“Yeah— actually, no… The thorn broke off and it’s in there real good. It hurts and I’m trying really hard to not be a baby about it. Someone’s getting a first aid kit out of the back for me.” You hold your pained finger up to him. 

“Do you want me to take a look at it?” His hands slowly reach out, your lips parted and ready to speak but words fail you, only managing to nod a response. 

Your mind briefly wonders what Ellie is up to, but the thought vanishes instantly once his hands wrap around your wrist and he brings your injured finger closer to his face. 

“My name is Joel.” He looks over to you, heat pricks over your cheeks as he holds your gaze. It’s a cosmic thing, his touch activating warmth you’ve longed for. A corner of his mouth lifts, you can’t help but fixate on the dimple that forms resulting in a barrage of flutters erupting in your chest. 

“Hi Joel.” Giving him yours in return, his smile growing louder as he repeats it back to you softly, like he couldn’t wait to say it out loud. 

He refocuses back on your injury. A pinched expression, similar to the one he wore earlier, is even more adorable up close— zeroing in on the small wound that was tormenting you.

Joel’s movements are dizzying, an unbridled enthusiasm that elicits a sudden burst of desire you hadn’t experienced in ages, but he senses you trust him at your willingness to let him take control of the situation. Bringing your finger to his mouth, he wraps his pillowy lips around the tip of your finger and sucks with a gentle pressure. You watch him unabashedly, completely mesmerized by the way he jumped into action, how his cheeks draw in from the suction. 

Your eyes lock when he looks up from your hand, sensing your eyes already on him, his thumbs drawing circles over your wrist, soothing over your racing pulse, as he continues to suck at the fleshy pad of your finger. It feels nearly overwhelming, the fierceness of his warm brown eyes has an inebriating feeling blooming inside you. 

A gasp shoots through your throat at the feeling of his tongue slightly flicks over the part of your finger that is in his mouth, pressing the back of your other hand against your lips, embarrassed by your reaction to the erogenous sensation. 

The whole thing is over as quickly as it began. Joel is pulling your finger from his lips, his grip still holding on to your wrist as he lowers your arm down to your side. You watch as the tip of his tongue breaches his lips, his pointer finger and thumb picking at the small little thorn that was once lodged into your skin, now resting on his tongue. He rubs his lips together almost nervously, the weight of the whole situation kind of sinking in. 

“Got it!” He rasps, holding the annoying culprit up between his fingers. 

“How did you know that would work? I usually have to dig those out with tweezers. That was— wow, thank you.” 

“I get splinters regularly— I’m a carpenter. Sometimes when I’m out on the job, gotta use what you have. I hope I didn’t make you feel uncomfortable, just knew it needed to come out— the last thing you want is an infected finger.” He rubs nervously at the back of his neck, hoping he didn’t over step in anyway. 

“No! Not uncomfortable in the slightest!! Thank you, seriously. Rose thorns can cause a mean infection too. I appreciate it—“ 

“I leave for two minutes and you’ve already moved onto second base with the guy?!” Ellie announces her reemergence, holding the first aid kit in her hands and a grossed out look on her face. 

“Ellie!” Your body runs cold, completely mortified, ready to crawl into the nearest hole. 

“He had your finger in his mouth— probably more like rounding to third if I’m being honest.”

You grab the kit from her hands, setting it on the counter, turning to see Joel still rooted in the same spot with his hands tucked into his front pockets and a tinge of red across his cheeks. 

“I’m so sorry! Sometimes I think my daughter forgets she has a filter and that she can actively choose to use it before she speaks.” You try to make sure he isn’t the one who feels uncomfortable now. 

“Adopted daughter, actually.” You roll your eyes at her need for technicalities. Adopted, yes, but daughter nonetheless. “Also, in case you were wondering, cause I’m sure you are, she’s single.”

“Ellie!” You look back at her with a sternness in your voice, eyes blown wide in hopes she picks up that she can stop at any point in time. Turning back to Joel, you mouth an ‘I’m sorry’, your shoulders dropping in defeat. 

There’s an awkward silence that settles over the three of you. Joel looks like he doesn’t really seem to know how to diffuse the awkwardness at hand, Ellie has a shit eating grin she wears proudly when she knows she’s embarrassed you just enough, and you simply would like to evaporate into thin air. 

“So, this is the part where you give your relationship status to her— makes this whole ‘her finger in your mouth’ thing feel a little less weird for all of us.” She has a point. You had been wondering that very thing, but how were you supposed to bring it up when he’s sucking a thorn out of your finger with his gorgeous mouth. 

“Single— very much single.” He laughs at how forward she is, knowing she’s just looking out for you. “I do have a daughter, probably about your age too.”

“What, your wife die or something?” Ellie asks with zero hesitation. 

“No. Just an ole fashion divorce. Anythin’ else you wanna to know?” He looks to Ellie, ready for whatever comes next. 

She studies Joel for a beat, “Nope, that’s all.” 

You release the breath you hadn’t realized you were holding, grateful to what ever greater power decided to switch Ellie’s filter back on. 

Ellie turns to head to the back room, where she had previously been working on her homework, but turns on her heels in the process to look back at Joel and you.

“One last thing, she needs to be wined and dined before you even think about kissing her.” Then she's gone before you can say anything else. 

The awkwardness creeps back into the room, you’re not really sure how to come back from all of that. You open the first aid box, rifling through the contents for a cleaning pad and small bandage.

“She seems like a fun kid.” Joel decides to take the lead, watching you swipe the alcohol pad over your finger. 

“She is— she definitely keeps me on my toes at all times. But, she’s got a big heart under all her sarcasm.” You tell him. You grab for the bandage, but Joel beats you to it, snagging it off the table and ripping it open before you get the chance. 

You hold your finger out in front of you, ready for him to wrap it up properly for you, but instead of sticking gauze, your wounded finger is met with his plush lips for a few seconds.

“Obviously, a kiss to make it better.” He smiles again and you melt, biting at your lower lip as he wraps the dressing around your finger. 

“Thank you, Joel.”

“Speaking of daughters— mine is the reason I came here in the first place. I was wanting to get this arrangement for her. She passed a test she’d been stressin’ about. Thought I’d get her a little something to celebrate her.” Joel points to the flowers on the cash stand that he had been holding earlier, grabbing his wallet out of his back pocket and pulling out his credit card ready to pay. 

“They’re on the house today.” You tell him as you walk up to your computer, imputing the information to zero out the sale. 

“No— no, I can’t let you do that. Lemme pay for them please. Least I can do for all your time and talent you put in.” Holding his card out to you, insisting he pay in full. 

“You practically saved my life,” A slight exaggeration, but he laughs anyway. “How about you come here for all your flowers in the future, instead of my competitors, and we’ll call it even.” 

“I can do that. I might just have a need for flowers soon then, I’m sure I can find an excuse to come back for more— you think you can handle that?” 

“Yeah— I can handle that.” Handing him the vase of flowers, hoping he does find an excuse to come back and tell you how much his daughter enjoyed them. 

Joel walks a few feet in the direction of the door then stops, turning back to see you’re already busily back to work with a handful of flowers. He says your name, falling from his lips like sweet honey, and you don’t think you could ever get tired of him saying it the way he does. “I’ll be seein’ you around. Try to be safe until then, m’kay?” 

“See you around Joel. I’ll keep the injuries to a minimum until then.”

“I’d prefer no injuries at all, actually.” 

“I’ll do my best.” 

You exchange goodbyes, watching him cross the street and get settled into his truck from the store front window. You’re not sure why you miss him, having only just met, but there’s a longing that’s started to burn inside your heart. 

Joel’s truck merges onto the road, he takes one last glance in your direction, his hand thrown out the window waving at you as he drives off, planning his next visit so he can see you again. 

next

[five-nights-at-fujisakis]

By the way, can you sketch up a map of your location? Like, floor plans. I'm going to check out the location where the MCI happened, (I don't think it was ever torn down), urbex rules. If I'm right about a little theory that I have, this could get very interesting. Good luck on your shift, and stay safe. I still don’t think that thing stalking the area near the restaurant has been identified.

ohhh i think i know what you're getting at! but i did check and this building definitely isn't the same one as the old location. i'm pretty sure the place you're talking about was in hurricane, which is down on the south side of utah. i'm currently living in magna, which is in a different part of the state! ...that being said, i guess i do wonder if this building does intentionally resemble the old one. i've looked it up and the storefronts definitely LOOK similar!!! maybe that's another branding thing?

i'll see what i can do about getting a map. if i can't find blueprints maybe i'll be able to make one myself, but that might take a bit... i'm really sorry....

i was totally jumpscared when i checked the news this morning, though. apparently those rumors about that thing you've mentioned are getting more and more substantial, and there's this one really eerie pic that's been going viral. it's hard to see but it looks vaguely like some kind of person??? with a clown mask??? i am NOT A FAN.

i travel around by bike and live in a small, relatively unsecure apartment. the idea that this thing is still around is going to make me want to invest in some extra locks for my front door. i get scared enough at work! i don't want to have to fend off monsters while i'm at home, too!!!!