#it felt so nice to load it up and hear the neighborhood music again

[simper-fi]

GUESS WHO JUST REINSTALLED TS2

now I need to remember how to get it to behave with Windows 10 :’)

[married2myphone]

Chapter Four: Sleepover

Life As The Avengers' House Keeper

Pairings: Platonic! Avengers x Female Reader

Tags & Warnings: humour, fluff

Chapter Summary: Y/n was ready to spend the night alone and get some well needed me-time at the compound when she's greeted by a few guests she forgot were supposed to be there.

Word Count: 4.1k

Tag List: @olsensnpm, @natasha-belova, @caroldanvers2, @matchat3a, @venomsvl, @glxwingrxse

Main Masterlist | Series Masterlist

—

Y/n hummed along to the music she was playing on her phone as she put on the face mask that May gifted her the last time she saw her. The rest of the house was incredibly silent and Y/n was making the most of it.

She had spent the entire day doing a whole load of chores, and normally she wouldn’t mind. But the Avengers decided to be especially messy today, so after getting tired of cleaning one room, cleaning the other, and going back to see that the room she just cleaned was messed up again, she had kicked them out of the compound so she could get things done in peace.

Now, she was done and the others weren’t set to come back for around two or three more hours like she asked, and Y/n had the house for herself. So, she decided to take some time to relax and have some leisure time.

She was wearing one of those huge, puffy, and soft robes that were so long that they hit the floor. She was also doing some skin care even though she didn’t actually know what she was doing, she just wanted to wear the mask cause it felt fun. 

Once she was done, Y/n suddenly felt the urge to drink some alcohol. But not any hard liquor. She was feeling classy today because of how productive she had been. There was always champagne in the house somewhere, and she might even cook herself a nice meal.

No, scratch that. She had done chores all day, she wasn’t going to ruin her leisure by cooking. She was gonna order shitty fast food instead. Y/n had put a ban on any fast food in the compound because Tony and the Twins kept ordering burgers and it wasn’t good for them.

But the rules didn’t apply to Y/n, and what nobody knew wouldn’t hurt them. Y/n grinned to herself in the mirror and grabbed her phone, pausing the music and pulling up the McDonald’s app. She walked out of her bathroom and made her way out into the living room, still humming the tune that was now stuck in her head.

“Ooh, nuggets.” Y/n said to herself as she walked into the kitchen and took out one of the wine glasses before looking through the bar and deciding what she wanted to drink. She gasped loudly and grinned at the bottle in front of her.

“I’m sure Tony wouldn’t mind me drinking this five hundred dollar bottle of Rosé all for myself, right?” Y/n mumbled as she took off the wax and started taking off the cork.

She was struggling a bit. Y/n turned around and tried pressing the cork against the counter. Sudden movement caught her eyes, and she looked up to see three figures sitting in the living room watching her.

“Oh my god!” Y/n yelped in shock just as the cork popped off, causing the champagne to explode and shoot out. 

Y/n stood in shock as she looked back to the living room to see Peter, Ned, and MJ watching her with confused looks on their faces.

“Do you normally talk to yourself while you’re alone?” MJ asked casually and Y/n let out a huff, placing the bottle on the counter before resting her hands on her hips, sending a narrowed look to the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.

“Peter, what the hell are you doing here?” Y/n asked. How did she not hear them come in, and why didn’t Friday inform her?

“It’s Wednesday. I told you a week ago that me and my friends were coming here for a study group because we couldn’t hang out at mine.” Peter said and Y/n paused before grabbing her phone and checking the date, letting out a sigh once she realized the boy was right.

“Oh, Peter, I’m so sorry, I forgot. It completely left my mind.” Y/n apologized.

“No, no, no, it’s totally okay. We can leave if you’re busy and-” Peter said as he started packing his things.

“No, it’s fine. I wasn’t doing anything anyway, you guys can stay for as long as you want to.” Y/n said and Peter stopped what he was doing. 

“Are you sure?” He asked and Y/n smiled at the boy.

“Yeah, of course. I was about to order some McDonald’s, do you guys want anything?” Y/n asked, pulling up the McDonald’s app once more as she leaned against the counter.

“Oh, it’s fine, Y/n. We just ate and-”

“Could I get a Big Mac and large fries? Oh, and a sundae too.” MJ spoke up, cutting off Peter.

“Sure thing! Ned, do you want anything?” Y/n asked and Peter let out a sigh once he realized he was ignored.

“I’ll just have some nuggets and a chocolate shake. I’m already a bit full because I already ate before coming here.” Ned said and Y/n nodded.

“Peter?” She asked, raising her head to look at the boy who looked between Y/n and his friends before shrugging.

“I’ll have a double quarter pounder with cheese and a large diet coke.” Peter said as he sat back down.

“Ooh, I’ll get the same as you.” Y/n said as she put the order in, setting it to Tony’s card before laying her phone back down on the counter.

“I like your outfit by the way, Y/n.” Ned said and Y/n sent the boy a smile.

“Thank you, Ned. I worked really hard on it.” Y/n said, giving them a twirl as the bottom of the robe flared up a bit.

“You look relaxed.” MJ said and the three watched as Y/n grabbed the bottle of champagne and her wine glass (Tony would say she was being a disgrace which was even more of a reason for Y/n to do it), making her way over to the other side of the couch.

“I was going to spend the next few hours getting some well needed r&r before everyone came back, but I don’t mind the company.” Y/n said as she poured herself some Rosé before leaning back, raising her legs so they could rest on the table.

“Can I have a sip of that?” MJ asked as she watched Y/n drink.

“Sure, but don’t go too crazy. Wouldn’t want your parents blaming me for getting a bunch of teenagers drunk.” Y/n said as she handed the glass to MJ who took a sip. She seemed pleased, taking another one before returning the glass to Y/n.

“So, what are you guys studying?” Y/n asked as she leaned back against the couch.

“Oh we’re studying chemical compounds for a test coming up next week. It’s basically all about how-” And that’s when Y/n tuned out whatever Peter was saying.

“I don’t think she’s listening anymore.” MJ spoke up after Peter continued for two minutes.

“You lost me a chemical.” Y/n admitted honestly before letting out a groan.

“God, that reminded me of Dr. Kepler. Not a fun man, slowest talker I know.” Y/n said with an eye roll as she took another sip of her rosé.

“Who’s Dr. Kepler?” Peter asked and Y/n let out a huff in response.

“This creepy old scientist dude I used to work with when I was still in HYDRA. He’d supply me with these bombs and serums and stuff whenever I went out on mission and he would debrief me for hours and hours about how I should be careful with them. He had this nasally ass voice and he would not stop getting on my ass about how I was misusing his creations and stuff.” Y/n said, remembering all those times she had to sit and listen to that man talk about every single thing that went into making his serums, and not a single time did she listen.

“You used to work at HYDRA? Isn’t that, like, S.H.I.E.L.D.’s arch nemesis or something?” MJ asked with furrowed eyebrows.

“Y/n used to be one of the best agents in HYDRA and she went undercover as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and Avenger, but she was really trying to get information and stuff that HYDRA could use against them. But after becoming friends with everyone, she realized what she was doing wrong and helped them snuff out all the HYDRA agents pretending to be S.H.I.E.L.D. agents.” Peter explained happily, recalling the time Y/n told her the same story.

“That’s so cool! You got a whole redemption arc!” Ned said excitedly and Y/n shrugged nonchalantly, but she had a smug smile on her face.

“What can I say, I work better with the good guys.” She said, playfully brushing her shoulder and taking a sip from her rosé.

“As a housekeeper?” MJ asked with a raised eyebrow and Y/n scoffed.

“I’m telling you, kid, the Avengers can kick ass all they want and be the greatest heroes in the world, but without me, they wouldn’t last a day in this compound. You know how messy it gets in here when they’re left alone? Absolute chaos, and cleaning this entire compound after a party is the hardest thing I’ve ever done, and I’ve seen some shit.” Y/n said and MJ smiled at Y/n, greatly impressed with her.

“Can you tell us some more stories about your time in HYDRA?” Peter asked with an eager look on his face.

“Aren’t you three supposed to be studying?” Y/n asked with a smile on her face, gesturing to all the books and notebooks they had laid out on the table.

“Yeah, but we can do that any day. Listening to you is way cooler.” Ned said, an equally excited look on her face. Y/n couldn’t help but feel incredibly flattered at this, grinning at the three in front of her and shifting in her seat.

“So there I was, trapped in a locked metal box that was sinking all the way to the bottom of the ocean, about to do some Houdini shit to keep myself alive.” Y/n started and the three shifted closer to hear Y/n’s story better. 

The three of them spent the next few minutes listening to Y/n’s stories, raising their hands whenever they had questions which Y/n gladly answered. When the food arrived, they all ate and continued to tell stories and just hung out like any regular group of friends.

“Alert. Unauthorized guests are making their way into the premises.” Friday suddenly said and the four of them froze where they were after processing the information.

“Friday, where are they and how many are they?” Y/n asked as she quickly got up.

“There are two of them, and they are currently entering from Ms. Romanoff’s balcony.” Y/n’s eyes hardened as she turned to the three.

“Peter, get Ned and MJ somewhere safe, I’ll handle it. I’ll call you if things go wrong.” Y/n said and Peter nodded, urging the other two to stand.

“Should I call Mr. Stark?” Tony asked and Y/n shook her head.

“There’s only two of them, so we should be fine. I wasn’t HYDRA’s best for nothing, after all.” Y/n said, giving the three of them a reassuring smile.

“Can we watch you fight?” Ned asked with bright eyes.

“As much as I’d love to show off my skills, I’m not risking you guys getting hurt. Now go on, I’ll take care of it.” Y/n said.

The three didn’t wait another second longer as they left the room. Y/n took a deep breath and downed the rest of her Rosé before carefully making her way over to Nat’s room.

She stopped in her tracks when she heard two voices approaching from around the corner. Y/n pressed herself back against the wall and carefully listened to the sound of them speaking. Right when they made the corner, Y/n stepped out and attempted to elbow one of them in the face.

“They always have a full bar, it’ll be fun, I- Woah!” Y/n felt her elbow be pushed off and Y/n used that momentum to spin and kick at the intruder, but they stepped away and grabbed her leg.

Y/n felt someone grab her shoulders and she quickly twisted her leg out of its hold before turning around and shoving the person behind her against the wall. She reeled her fist back, about to sock whoever the person was, but her eyes widened when she saw the face in front of her.

“Kate?” Y/n asked in confusion and Kate opened her eyes, letting out a sigh of relief when she realized they weren’t really getting attacked.

“Oh, look out!” Kate exclaimed, grabbing Y/n’s shoulder and pushing her down, ducking in time as the other person aimed a punch at the back of Y/n’s head, but their fist met the wall.

“Yelena?” Y/n asked once she saw the blonde hair above her, standing up so she was face to face with her.

“Y/n?” Yelena asked in shock before furrowing her eyebrows and looking the woman up and down.

“What are you wearing?” She asked, touching the soft fabric of Y/n’s robe.

“It’s my leisure suit.” Y/n answered and Yelena nodded her head with an impressed look on her face.

“It’s really soft, where did you buy it? I want one.” Yelena said, continuing to run her hands up and down the material.

“Oh, I have tons of them in my closet. I got this one as a gift, but I wanted more in different colors. You could borrow one if you’d like.” Y/n said and Yelena opened her mouth to answer, but was cut off by Kate.

“Sorry to interrupt, but what the hell? Why did you just attack us like that?” Kate asked in an exasperated tone.

“I thought you guys were intruders! Why were you guys sneaking through Nat’s balcony instead of taking the front door like normal people!” Y/n retorted.

“My sister told us that everyone was out, we assumed the door would be locked and we don’t have a key. We told Friday we were friendly.” Yelena said as if the answer was obvious.

“Friday, why didn’t you tell me the “unauthorized guests” were just Yelena and Kate this whole time?” Y/n asked while looking up.

“I was told by Yelena not to inform any of the Avengers of her arrival, but I thought it would be appropriate to tell you that someone else had entered the compound.” Friday answered and Y/n let out a sigh.

“It was supposed to be a surprise.” Yelena said and only now did it process in Y/n’s head that Yelena and Kate were in the compound.

“Oh my god, I’ve missed you two so much!” Y/n said, pulling Yelena into a quick hug before pulling away and doing the same for Kate.

“It was only really supposed to be Yelena, but she dragged me out here to join her at the last minute.” Kate said sheepishly and Yelena let out a scoff.

“Always such a party pooper, Kate Bishop. We were supposed to just get drunk while waiting for everyone to come back, but apparently you’re here, so the three of us can get drunk together!” Yelena said while raising her arms up in excitement.

“Oh, I’d love to, but Peter and his friends are here.” Y/n said and Yelena let out a scoff.

“The more the merrier! They can get drunk with us.” Yelena said as she started walking to the main area.

“Yelena, they’re minors. We can’t get them drunk, that’s irresponsible.” Kate said and Yelena rolled her eyes.

“Are you trying to tell me you never drank alcohol before you turned eighteen?” Yelena asked.

“No, and I didn’t drink until I was twenty-one because the age limit here is different from where you’re from.” Kate said.

“Boo, you’re so boring. I had my first drink when I was fourteen.” Yelena said and Kate gaped at the blonde woman before turning to Y/n who shrugged at her reaction.

“I had my first drink when I was sixteen.” Y/n said before walking forward.

“Peter, come out, it’s safe!” Y/n called out once they made it back into the living room and Peter quickly stepped out of the broom closet with Ned and MJ, each of them wielding a broom in their hands as a makeshift weapon.

“Hey, spider.” Yelena said with a lazy wave as she jumped over the couch and rested her legs on the table after landing.

“Oh, Ms. Romanoff!” Peter said with a sigh of relief as he put the broom back into the closet.

“Kate’s here too.” Y/n said as she went over to the cabinet and took out two more wine glasses for Kate and Yelena.

“Hi, Peter.” Kate greeted as she went around the couch and sat next to Yelena.

“Nice to see you, Kate! Uh, these are my friends, Ned and MJ. Guys, that’s Yelena, Black Widow’s sister, and Kate, Hawkeye’s protégé.” Peter introduced as the three stepped back to their original seats.

“Oh, what, you ate McDonald’s without us?” Yelena complained when she saw all the wrappers on the table.

“If I had known you guys were coming, I would’ve ordered more food.” Y/n said as she set the glasses on the table while Kate pulled out her phone.

“What do you want, I’ll order for us.” Kate said, showing Yelena her phone and the woman hummed in thought.

“Get me the biggest burger they have. Oh, I also want one of those leisure suits of yours and whatever is on your face.” Yelena said and Y/n nodded.

“Sure thing. Do you guys want one of these robes and facemasks too? I probably have enough for everyone.” Y/n said, knowing full well she had more than enough, but they didn’t need to know that.

“Oh, I want a red one!” Peter said, raising his arm.

“I’ll take blue!” Ned said, raising his hand as well.

“I’ll take black.” MJ said, raising her hand lazily and Y/n smiled at them before turning to Kate.

“I’ll have a purple one.” She said as she poured herself some of the Rosé on the table.

“What about you, Yelena? Pick a color.” Y/n said and Yelena hummed.

“I want a nice, soft velvet one.” Yelena said and Y/n grinned.

“I’ll be right back.” Y/n said as she went to her room.

It didn’t take that long for Y/n to come back with everything she needed, but to her surprise, the five of them were sitting around the table playing a round of Uno. Y/n guesses Peter was the one who took it from the board game cabinet.

“Parker, I will snap your neck off if you skip my turn one more time.” Yelena threatened the boy who gulped in fear.

“Y/n, we set aside some cards for you so you can join in.” Ned said, pointing to the seven cards laying face down on the table.

“Yelena peeked.” Kate said as she placed her card down causing Yelena to let out a gasp.

“I did not!” She exclaimed.

“She did, we all watched her do it.” MJ said and Y/n rolled her eyes playfully as she started handing out everyone’s robes and face masks.

“So how do we put this on?” Peter asked when he opened the pack, scrunching his face when he pulled out the gooey mask from inside.

“Just peel off the thing and put it on your face. Here, wear this so your hair doesn’t get in the way.” Y/n said, tossing a familiar bunny headband to Peter before tossing a simple headband to Ned.

“Thanks, Y/n.” Ned said and the two boys put the headbands on as they helped each other put their face masks on. 

“Oh, how did you do that?” Kate asked as she watched MJ put her hair into a braid.

“Do what?” MJ asked in confusion.

“Your hair. I could never figure out how to do a braid.” Kate said and Yelena whipped her head over to Kate with furrowed eyebrows.

“You don’t know how to do a braid?” She asked in shock and Kate shook her head.

“I was always more of a ponytail girl.” Kate said and Yelena gaped at the girl beside her.

“You can shoot a target better than Cint Barton, but you can’t do a simple braid?” Yelena questioned.

“Well, I wouldn’t say I could shoot better than him, but-”

“It’s a braid, Kate Bishop.” Yelena said.

“Hey, no, it’s fine. Here, I’ll teach you. Y/n, come here, I’ll demonstrate.” MJ said, waving over Y/n who went over to next to MJ before turning around and facing her back towards her.

“Here, watch, You divide her hair into three strands. Hold two in your dominant hand, and one in the other. Let’s call them a, b, and c. You cross c over b, a over c, then b over a. Then you just keep going until you have no hair left to cross over.” MJ said, demonstrating slowly before letting Y/n’s hair drop.

“Yelena, turn around, I want to try and braid your hair.” Kate said to Yelena who was putting her face mask on for her.

“My hair is already in a braid, braid your own hair.” Yelena said as she started putting her own face mask on. 

“But it looks so much more complicated when you do it on yourself.” Kate said and Yelena let out a groan.

“Fine.” She said as she turned around, undoing her braid and letting her hair fall.

“Here, Kate, I’ll braid your hair.” Y/n said as she started running her hair through Kate’s hair seeing as she was already seated in front of her.

“Peter, could you put my face mask on for me?” MJ asked as she started braiding Y/n’s hair again, but this time, she did two.

“Sure.” Peter said as he grabbed one of the face masks and carefully put them on his girlfriend’s face.

“Can I braid your hair too?” Peter asked and MJ sent the boy a smile.

“Go for it, but do it properly this time.” MJ said.

“Yes!” Peter cheered as she hopped over and sat behind her, pulling out her unfinished braid and started braiding her hair like she taught him.

“Oh, I want to braid your hair too! I’m gonna make a bunch of mini ones.” Ned said as he went to sit behind Peter, reaching up and starting to braid as well.

“There should be a bunch of hair ties in the box with all the face masks. Just grab one of those if you’re done.” Y/n said and they all started braiding each other’s hair while Yelena told some story about a mission she had just come home from.

Natasha let out a sigh as she made her way up the stairs while grabbing her keys out from her pocket. She had spent the first hour of being kicked out by Y/n by having a drink with everyone else, but eventually she just went driving around the city because she had nothing else to do.

By now, Y/n should be calm enough to not kick anyone out at the first sound of the door opening. 

When she made it to the door, she stuck her key inside the keyhole, but was surprised to see that the door had already been unlocked. With a shrug, Natasha walked into the compound and shut the door behind her.

“Y/n?” She called out, placing her keys on the rack before walking into the main area.

She stopped in her tracks when she saw the egregious sight of Y/n, her sister, Kate Bishop, Peter Parker, and his friends all lined up on the couch in long robes and face masks on, braiding each others hair and giggling as they told each other stories,

When they heard Natasha approach from behind them, they all turned to face her at the same time and Natasha would be lying if she said she didn’t almost get chills at the sight.

“I’m not even gonna ask.” She said with a sigh as she walked past them, pretending she didn’t see them in the first place.

[writinginthedarkwood]

Werewolf! Kirishimia Eijiro: A New Meaning to Golden Retriever Boyfriend.

Thank you so dearly for this request, it was so much fun to write. Prompt #16 “Not this again.” For the fictober event. If you have a request, please send me an ask I would love to write it. 

No warnings, fluffy and cute.

"You've got to be kidding me, not this again." You looked down at your phone, a long paragraph typed up from your boyfriend Eijiro in the same format as last month. An excuse, an apology, canceling tonight's plans, and about two more apologies. Tonight he's claiming stomach issues, but you know the truth. You sigh and check your bank account. If he would just tell the truth you could tell him that it wouldn't be a problem for you to pay for the movie tickets tonight! He makes good money, he must really spend over his budget. He's so chivalrous and sweet, it might insult him to try and pay for things sometimes. You don't mind, if only he'd just open up.

You decide that enough is enough, you're going over there and you're going to put an end to the lying! He's going to let you pay for the date if you have to drag him out by his ears. You throw on the outfit you had planned for your date, cleaned up your hair and head down the street into the night air. Eijiro's house is just outside of city lines in the suburbs. He has a nice end lot with a large field behind it. You're so jealous of his view. You hop on the bus and ride with head phones on, listening to a playlist he made you. The bus can be a little scary at night, but nobody is on here except for you. It's kind of peaceful just listening to music and staring at the full moon. It's large and round face is staring down at you like a caring grandmother.

 Another text pops up.

"Are you okay? I'm sorry I disappointed you. I have to get some sleep, I love you baby." You rolled your eyes. It's just past 10pm! You're not letting him sit and sulk in the dark alone all night. You resisted the urge to throw your phone into your bag in frustration. He is such a wonderful boyfriend 99% of the time, but he always seems like he's hiding a part of himself. What is it? A bad childhood? A gambling addiction? Is he secretly apart of the mafia??? The bus halted to a stop and left you outside of his neighborhood, you stomped all the way down the sidewalk to the end of the line of houses and stared at your boyfriends place. The porch light is off, but the lights are on inside. You know where he keeps the hidden spare key and jam it into the lock. You almost kick the door down as you shout for your boyfriend.

 He was sitting on the couch, tying his shoe laces. He's putting on hiking boots this late? "Hey! You're awake!" You slam the door behind you and scold your red headed sweet heart. "Babe what are you doing here? It's almost midnight!" His voice is shaking. He nervously looks at the clock on the wall and stands up. "You have to go baby, I'm really embarrassed! My stomach is-" "Stop lying! Your stomach is fine!" You want to raise your voice and yell, but his giant puppy dog eyes are so cute. You jam a finger into his chest and scrunch up your mouth, doing your best to look irritated. "I knew I would get here and see you're not hunched over a puke bucket!" He put both hands on your shoulders and gently rubbed up and down on your arms. He's such a large man, he's practically a wall he's so solid. Yet he always has the sweetest touches, making sure to be so gentle with you. His callused finger tips brushed against your skin and gave you goosebumps.

 It took every ounce of restraint in you not to fall right into his arms. "I'm sorry honey, but you really can't stay here tonight. I need you to head back home." He said hardly above a whisper. He kissed your forehead and you shoved his chest with all of your might. He didn't budge, but understood you wanted him away from you so he stepped back. "Oh I'm sorry, is your booty call on the way over and I'm interrupting?" You felt like someone had stabbed you right in the heart. It couldn’t be true, he has never showed any signs of being disloyal. You’re just tired and confused.

 Eijiro looked panicked. "Oh god of course not! No, no its not like that I swear!"  He swallowed you in his arms pushing your cheek against his pecks and kissing all over the top of your head. "There is nobody other than you, I could never even think of betraying you, you're my soul mate." He said between kisses. You wrapped your arms around him and snuggled in. His warmth overwhelming. "Well then what is it...?" You whined a bit, it's getting later and you want to just fall asleep in his arms. "Are you going to turn into a wolf at midnight?" You chuckled. His hand stopped running through your hair and he stiffened completely. You look up at him puzzled, he's staring down at you with a look of panic. "That's crazy why would you even say that?" He says all too seriously. You nervously laugh. "What's wrong? I was just joking. It's not like I really believe you're about to start howling at the full moon." Eijiro stared off into space, like his brain was loading and he couldn't think of what to say. "Right...?" You cocked an eyebrow at him. "It might be a little bit like that." He scratched his head. 

You two sat in the quiet for a little bit. Every time he tried to elaborate he ended up getting caught up in his own words. You two sat awkwardly in his living room until its about 5 minutes til midnight. "I- I'm going to go to the bathroom." He quickly dismissed himself, running to his bedroom and shutting the door. You followed quickly after him. Is he insane? Does he really expect you to just sit out here while he hides pretending to shape shift to get out of movie night? He's obviously  having a difficult time, maybe his money troubles make him feel emasculated? You softly tap on his bedroom door and it slips open. The bathroom door is closed shut with the light peaking out under the crack. You walk past his bed and dressers and hear weird scuttling sounds the closer you get. You knock again. "Hey honey, why don't you come out so we can talk about this? It's okay if you didn't want to go out because of money..." You leaned against the door. "It doesn't make you less of a man to let me pay sometimes." He's so wonderful, you don't think there could be any other reason why he can be so flakey.

The sound of shampoo bottles and shaving cream canisters falling to the ground startle you. "Babe are you okay?" You turn the door nob. The door flings open, a large shape tackles you, knocking you to the ground. You let out a large wheeze, the wind escaping your lungs. "What the fu-" Your face was assaulted with a large flat tongue, licking all over you. Slobber flew across the room as a giant red dog panted and whimpered as it gave you kisses. "You're a dog! Oh my god you're a dog!" You pushed your monstrous boyfriend off of you and took a good look at him. He's huge, and even a little scary looking. His fur is bright crimson and his eyes are a daring shade of yellow. But he sat there, panting like a normal dog. You waved in front of his face. "Are you in there babe?" The dog playfully nipped at your finger, trying to pull your hand into his mouth. "Hey! No bites!" You retracted your hand and held it close to your chest. His fangs are giant. 

The wolf man got down low to the ground in the stance you've seen puppies do right before they-

 He takes off, zooming across the floor and into the living room at full speed. Pictures that lined the hallway crash to the ground. You rush to your feet and chase after him. "Wait!! Down boy! Down!!" You shout. He's already on the couch, gripping a throw pillow between his powerful jaws and shaking it. Cotton stuffing flies across the room, coating the floor. "No! Bad Eijiro! Bad doggy!" You try to wrestle the pillow away from him and fail. He topples over you, knocking you back down onto the floor and taking off across the room again, this time to the kitchen. You tenderly rub your arm, you landed on it weird and it's a little sore. Another crashing sound prompts you to get up onto your feet and run after him. The trash can is toppled over on its side, trash strewn across the floor. His snout was pushing around the garbage, looking for something to swallow. "Are you kidding me? What is with you?" You grab the wolf by the scruff of his neck, and pull him to the other side of the room away from the trash. "You sit!" Eijiro whines and sits down, looking up at you with the saddest eyes. "Oh don't look at me like that. This is not what I thought a werewolf would be like." Eijiro's large head pushed against you, rubbing his face all over your stomach as you pet his head. "You just need to burn some of this energy off." 

You can't help but love the silly thing. He is still your boyfriend, even if he is a little different than usual right now. He followed you down the hall,  staying right by your side. He takes up most of the space, his large frame almost tipping you off balance with small bumps into your hip. You dug through a pile in his hall closet until you found an old baseball and plastic toy bat. Wow, he really needs to clean up his closet, you think to yourself. "Okay babe, let's go-" He looked up at you with all of the love in the world, hanging on your every word. You crack into a smile. "Let's go outside and play you big goof.

"The two of you trampled through the tall grass behind Eijiro's house, he seemed to use little to no effort at all. His massive paws stomping down the weeds like it's nothing. You decided you were far enough away from the neighbors and took a strong stance. You haven't hit a ball in ages, but this plastic bat is wide and should make it a little easier on you. The baseball flew high into the air, you focused and swung the bat, smacking the ball across the field. Your wolf ran, faster than any animal you had ever seen after the small object, passing it and having to loop around with a terrifying pin point turn. He grabbed the ball off of the ground so quick you barely saw the motion, and in a flash he was back at your feet. You could do nothing but shake your head and laugh. "Are you kidding me? You're amazing!" Eijiro looked pleased, so you scratched his neck fluff.

 "Alright let's see if I can hit it a little farther." 

Again, and again, and again he chased the ball across the field and back happily dropping the ball at your feet. He only made you wrestle for it once, he could probably keep the ball away from you forever with those intense muscles, but that's not as fun for him. Seeing how pleased you looked when he brought it back was filling the beast with all the pride in the world.

Eventually your arm got tired, and he seemed to have about run out of energy too. He laid down in the field and looked up at the moon. You laid your head on his stomach, the rhythm of his breathing so comforting. You just talked to him, venting about life and how weird things are in the city now. You found yourself thinking about how a simple bus ride was starting to feel too far away from him at this point. "I know you don't really understand me right now, but I really love you. I know we've said it before, but I love you. I think you're my forever person." He was laying on his paws, looking up at the starry sky. "I know you felt like you had to hide this from me, but it doesn't scare me, or weird me out." You talk quietly and close your eyes, snuggling deeper into his fur. "If I have to come throw a ball for you once a month, I'll do it. I've got friends that deal with way worse with their boyfriends." You smirked, thinking you're pretty funny. That'll make Eijiro laugh in the morning, you'll save that for later. 

The rising sun burned your eyelids, scaring you awake. You hadn't meant to stay out here for the rest of the night, but it was so late and he was so comfortable. He's much more familiar to you now, he slept peacefully as you rested on his chest. He looks worn out, but the two of you can't stay out there forever. You gently tap his face. He popped one eye open and looked around. "Oh man!" He gasped and looked down at his hands and feet. "I'm so stupid! You could get sick staying outside all night!" He put a hand on your face and cupped your chin. "Are you alright my love?" He asked with the soft voice only you get to hear. "Yeah I'm fine. How are you feeling?" "I feel fine. I'll be a little more hungry today, but it's no big deal." He looked down at the ground with a sheepish smile. "Thanks for staying with me all night." "Aw come on, it's no big deal. You're... a good boy." You teased while ruffling his hair.

 "Hey!"

My Ko-Fi -> https://ko-fi.com/writinginthedarkwoods Please send spooky requests!

[greenninjagal-blog]

Deja Vu

I spent some time thinking about Remus having the superpower to see the future and this happened, whoops. Might write more if I get some free time.

Summary: Remus sees the future and it often involves Roman’s death.

Words: 2284

Quick Taglist: @chelsvans @faithfulcat111 @felicianoromano @holliberries @jemthebookworm @killerfangirl3 @lunasfriendgabby @never-end1ng-suffering @silverflame-wc @stricken-with-clairvoyancy @thenaiads @treasureofpriam

TW: Death, attempted murder, not being believed/listened to, unhealthy sibling relationships,

Read on Ao3 || My general Writing Masterlist

Remus is eight and only eleven minutes younger than Roman the first time he sees his brother get run over by a car.

He’s eight and only eleven minutes younger than Roman and its the middle of the day in summer and Roman has on bright red sneakers that match his favorite jacket. They’re on their front lawn because Mom said they were being too loud and they can’t decide on a game to play because Roman wants to play Wizards and Knights and Remus wants to play Escape from Monkey Island. Roman calls him a name, a mean one, a childish, dumb, cruel one that would mean nothing in a year, a month, a week, a minute. Remus picks up the ball by his knees and throws it as far as he can, because he doesn’t want to be the wizard who fights the knights again.

The ball hits the ground, bounces twice and drops off the curb right into the street.

And the teenager driving the silver sedan is going twenty over the speed limit because they still believe nothing bad can ever happen to them.

Remus is eight and only eleven minutes younger than Roman.

Roman is on the ground and not moving and not breathing. 

The silver sedan screeches to a stop ten feet past, ten feet too late, ten feet. And everyone is screaming: The teenager who just ran over Roman, the neighbor who had been mowing their lawn, Mom who came sprinting from the house. 

And then Remus is eight and only ten minutes younger than Roman because Roman is dead in the middle of the road. 

That’s the first time.

When he blinks, the vision is gone and Roman is in front of him calling him a mean, childish name and Remus has the ball in his hand ready to throw and a grey sedan is turning down their street going far too fast--

And Remus stumbles back and falls off his feet. His butt hits the ground hard and before he even knows what he's doing he's sobbing.

Roman twiddles over him with a bunch dumb, stupid apologies because he thinks that Remus is crying over name calling.

Not because he saw himself throw a ball towards the road and Roman died, or he threw it softer and Roman was quick enough that he survived to hear the ambulance arrive but not to make it to the hospital, or he threw it towards the house and it broke a window and Remus got grounded, or he threw it at Roman and it left a bright red mark that Remus got sent to his room for, or he dropped it and it fell in the gutter and Roman didn't talk to him for a week--

And Remus doesn't know how to explain it to anyone. He doesn't stop sobbing until Roman is grounded for making him cry and he's bundled under a mountain of blankets with Mom right next to him holding him tightly and whispering softly in his hair. When Dad comes home and joins the hug, he asks Mom what happened and she can’t answer any better than Remus can.

They talk about keeping an eye on him, about doctors, and therapy and the words quite literally go over his head. Every time that Remus closes his eyes sees the bumper of the grey sedan, and his head echoes with the sound of his brother’s body hitting the ground again and again and again.

He’s eight and only eleven minutes younger than Roman when he first sees his brother die. 

There’s no explanation for it. No reason why. But it happens again and again and again: Roman goes running around the pool and slips on the concrete turning the water red, Remus gives him a playful shove off the play set and he hits the ground just wrong enough that he never gets back up, they leave their shoes on the stairs one time too many and Remus finally knows why Mom is always so insistent that they not do that.

Mom and Dad take him to the nice doctor, who tells him these pills will help him get better.

They don’t.

Even though he wishes they would so badly. He clings to the hope that every time they change the number of pills or the amount of them or the type of them that he’ll stop seeing his brother die or get hurt or cry.

(Its not just his brother: Dad falls off the ladder while putting up Christmas lights, Mom gets scared by a spider and hits her head on the cabinets, the next door neighbor and his wife get into a fist fight, his teacher chokes on a sandwich,---)

By the time he’s ten he knows the truth: He isn’t going to get better. There are no magic pills that will save him, no amount screaming or crying or begging that will make the visions stop coming, nothing.

“Remus!” Mom cries frustrated, when he won’t let her leave for work on time because there’s ice on the deck and she’s going to fall. “You’re too old to be doing this!”

Too old to be crying about every time his family gets hurt, too old to be worried about things that can happen, might happen, won’t happen. He’s too old for anyone to believe him when he says he knows whats going to happen.

In the middle of the night, he wonders what will happen if he runs away.

And that’s when it starts: the vision of Remus in the pajamas he’s currently wearing packing his dinosaur bag with t-shirts and pants and Roman’s jacket and sneaking down the stairs only to be caught by Dad who was up for a midnight snack; the vision of him in the pajamas he’s currently wearing packing his dinosaur bag with t-shirts and pants and Roman’s jacket and struggling to get his window open, which wakes up Roman who starts crying loudly and Dad comes running; the vision of Remus packing nothing and running down the stairs to hug Dad; the vision of Remus rolling over and going back to sleep--

That’s when it starts to make sense.

Remus is ten and eleven minutes younger than Roman when he realizes he can pick and choose what vision he wants to happen of the millions of ones he can see all in his head in that instant. 

When Remus pulls Roman back before he gets scratched by the neighborhood wild cat he smiles and tells Roman, “I’ve seen it before!”

“Oh! Like Dejavu,” Roman says and Remus doesn’t correct him.

He stays closer though, watching and wondering what happens if “x”, and preventing bad things from coming to them. When the seventh grade bullies coming looking for them, Remus convinces Roman to follow him to the theater room to hang out; when there’s the pop quiz that no one studied for he memorizes the answers from the version of reality where he steals steals the smartest kids paper; when it snows Remus doesn’t shove a snowball down Roman’s back because he knows that it will cause him to get sick.

“Hey Roman!” Some kid in eighth grade says during lunch, “Wanna hang out?”

And Roman who is fourteen and only eleven minutes older than Remus grins brightly, “We’d love to!”

And Remus sees every version of how the conversation goes: Every version where that nameless senseless kid shrinks back and awkwardly admits the invitation doesn’t extend to Roman’s crazy weird brother, where Roman gets angry and mad and destroys his own reputation, where Roman falls to peer pressure and admits Remus is pretty weird---

“Nah!” Remus says before anything can actually happen, “I don’t wanna hang out! Ro, you go ahead.” (Because he’s seen ahead and knows that Roman comes back bursting with excitement and happiness and really thats all Remus has ever wanted for him, isn’t it?)

Even if the whispers through the highschool begin because of it. Remus can take a few rumors, a few snide remarks, a few isolations, to make his brother happy.

“He’s on drugs you know,” One girl says once Roman is out of earshot. Always out of earshot. “Totally crazy.”

“The way he looks at everyone is creepy.”

“Sometimes he acts like he already knows what people are gonna say and its annoying.”

Remus never felt the need to experiment with his power that much. 

“Just leave me alone, Remus!” Roman yells when they are seventeen years old and only eleven minutes apart.

“I’m not gonna let you go to that party!” Remus yells back.

“You don’t control me!”

“You’re going to do something stupid!” Remus snaps back, “You’re going to get drunk, and then drugged and then--”

“I’m not gonna get drunk! I’m not even gonna drink!” Roman throws back.

“Yes you are!” Remus snarls because he’s seen it time and time again, the way that Roman loves attention the way that he becomes pliable the second an older boy looks at him and compliments his hair and the second he’s convinced to have just one drink. Remus has seen the way his own knuckles look bruised and broken against the skin of those college kids that had looked so cool, the way that metal handcuffs feel as he’s loaded into the back of a police car with the sounds of two ambulance sirens wailing over the music.

He’s seen this, seen the way it ends if Roman goes to the party with or without Remus.

He’s always been able to see the way it goes.

“Shut up!” Roman yells.

And that--- that is not what he’s supposed to say.

“Shut up, Remus!” Roman yells, again. “You’re just mad because I got invited and you didn’t! I’m sorry I have friends, Remus! I’m sorry they like me more than you! Maybe if you weren’t such a freak you would have been invited too!”

Remus doesn’t know what to say. It feels a lot like he was shoved on stage without being told what show they’re preforming.

Roman shoves by him, which is not something that Remus saw him do in any of the visions. Why hadn’t he seen this version of the future? Why wasn’t this going as expected?

“Roman--”

Roman whips around to face him, and his red in the face, bursting with angry and emotions and Remus feels himself get angry too. 

“I don’t need you!” Roman spits like hellfire is in his veins.

“Yes you do!” Remus shouts back, because he can’t even count the number of times that Roman almost got hurt this week. There’s a terrible taste in the back of his throat, like fresh squeezed limes and hot sauce that makes his head pound. It makes him want to laugh, want to cry, want to pick something up and throw it, but his future visions are all messed up and nothing works--

“You can’t see the future, Remus!” Roman says and it sounds like he’s wanted to say it for a long time.

Remus is seventeen years old and only eleven minutes younger than Roman, when oh. 

When he realizes that he’s far too old to cry over watching Roman die, far too weird to get any friends at school, far too much to keep having Roman believe him when he says anything.

It’s Deja Vu. Its Coincidence. Its a trick and a joke and nothing more than that.

Oh.

Roman doesn’t know a single thing about him, doesn’t know how much time Remus put into making sure everything great happens for him, doesn’t know how much of himself Remus gave up for Roman to be happy. He doesn’t know, doesn’t want to know.

And Remus, with his blood boiling because Roman was his brother and clearly he didn’t feel as strongly about Remus as Remus felt about him, wonders what would happen if he punched Roman in the jaw--

They end up fighting on the floor in the hall between their rooms, Mom and Dad come running and Remus gets grounded while Roman gets to go out to the party with a black eye.

--if he shoved Roman down the stairs--

Roman screams as his arm breaks and he spends the night in the ER, Remus is grounded and Roman stops talking to him for a very long time.

--if he grabbed the snowglobe on Roman’s desk and slammed it into Roman’s head--

He topples to the ground, screaming glass and silver sparkles shatter all around them like pretty little snowflakes, Mom and Dad come running and the screaming doesn’t stop.

--if he fit his hands around Roman’s neck and squeezed and squeezed and squeezed--

Roman claws at Roman’s hands, but he’s too off balance, too surprised, too unprepared. He gasps for air and it takes longer in the real life than it does in the movies for Roman’s pretty brown eyes to roll back in his head and his pulse to flutter to a stop and Remus keeps hold him for three minutes more before he lets go and Roman is… Roman was… suddenly there’s only ten minutes between them, nine, eight.

Remus digs his nails into the doorframe of Roman’s room. He laughs.

“Fine,” Remus chokes on his laughter, his mouth tasting like his own stomach acid. “Fine, go to the party, Ro. I’m done caring.”

“Good!” Roman yells.

The door slams in Remus’s face and he can’t stop laughing about it. He drags his fingers through his hair and laughs all the way to his room, gasping for breath as he empties his backpack of school work and notebooks and everything. 

Remus is seventeen. 

And he runs away from home.

(Part two)

[flipnegg]

Under the Lights [Modern AU/Fake Dating AU] 02

Pairing: Itachi x Kousuke [OC]

Words: 2,118

Warnings: None

“Do you have everything you need?” Itachi asked as he loaded the last bag Kousuke gave him into the trunk of his black SUV. He sounded so much like a mom that it made Kousuke want to laugh.

“Pretty sure,” Kousuke hummed tiredly, rubbing his eyes.

When Itachi came to pick Kousuke up at his dorm, it was so early that the sun hadn’t risen yet. That night, or should I say this morning, Kousuke stayed up late enough that he reasoned there was no need to fall asleep and that he would fall asleep in the car. The sight of Kousuke walking out of the dorm exit in his pajamas while carrying his packed bags and pillow was certainly a sight for Itachi to witness.

Itachi told him earlier that the car ride would be long, so he would pick him up in the early morning. He also mentioned that they would probably arrive at his parent’s house around dinner time. Hearing that Itachi would be driving all day concerned Kousuke, and when he offered to drive so Itachi could rest, he just smiled and said he was fine with it.

Soon enough the two of them get in the car, Kousuke grabbing his pillow, while Itachi begins to drive off.

After a few minutes, Kousuke’s soft, quiet snores filled the car. Itachi took his eyes off the road for a split second, taking a look at the white-haired boy that sat next to him. He couldn’t help the smile that crept onto his lips and was grateful that Kousuke agreed to help him. Eventually, Itachi turned on the radio while driving down an empty highway. He listened to the music softly, careful not to wake his passenger up.

...

Kousuke stirred when he felt the car slow to a stop. Opening his eyes, he saw the sun was up and then his stomach grumbled, indicating it had to be around lunchtime. He let out a pitiful groan as he stretched, causing Itachi to let out a small snort before getting out of the parked car.

Getting out as well, Kousuke saw that they were at a rest stop of sorts after looking around. They had some fast food restaurants, travel aids to help with directions, and bathrooms. Speaking of bathrooms, Kousuke had to use the bathroom badly. That woke him up immediately.

Before closing the car door, Kousuke grabbed a duffle bag that contained a nice change of clothes to replace his baggy pajamas. He flashed Itachi a grin when he gave him a questioning look at the bag.

“Gotta look nice for your folks,” Kousuke laughed. “Unless you want me to show up like this.” He gestured to his ungraceful appearance.

“It’s probably for the best,” mused Itachi. He was sure his father would throw a fit seeing them like that. He quickly locked the car before the two of them headed off to the entrance.

Kousuke looked around as the two of them walked inside. The rest stop was clean and simple. It had a few scattered families that were travelling for the holidays, some walking their dogs or hurrying to get their kids to the bathrooms, where Itachi and Kousuke were headed towards. They relieve themselves quickly, and Itachi let’s Kousuke know that he was going to pick up some food while Kousuke changes.

After Itachi left to get the food, Kousuke quickly changed into his other set of clothes. He put on a nice pair of tan khakis and a dark blue sweater then changed from his slippers, yes slippers, to his black converse. The final touch was his jean jacket to protect him from the chilly, winter breeze outside.

Once Kousuke stepped out of the bathroom stall after changing, he took in his appearance in the mirror. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to laugh or cry because of how messy his hair was. White strands were sticking up in multiple directions except for the right side of his head. The side that had been pressed against his pillow for the whole car ride had been sticking up and matted against the side of his head.

Quickly, he turned on the sink, running his now wet hands through his hair. He prayed that gravity would take mercy on him. At the end of his efforts, his hair was wet but stayed down and lay flatter than normal.

Looking around the bathroom, he made sure no one was looking before he began to use one of the hand dryers to dry his hair as quickly as possible. He looked ridiculous with his head shoved beneath the loud air blower, but Kousuke didn’t think twice about it. He already looked crazy enough walking into the rest stop with his pjs and baggy clothes, hair sticking up in ways that defied the laws of physics. This was a piece of cake.

At least, that’s what he thought before Itachi walked into the bathroom and made direct eye contact with him while his head was underneath the hand dryer. Kousuke jumped, gracefully banging the back of his head against the bottom of the drying machine. The loud bang echoed throughout the, thankfully empty, bathroom, taunting Kousuke for his horrible decisions.

“I got the food.” Itachi said holding up the bag, not commenting on whatever he walked in on Kousuke doing.

Kousuke thanked the gods above for not shaming him any further, but that didn’t stop his face from burning red. He gingerly rubbed the forming bump on the back of his head. Grabbing his duffle bag full of his dirty clothes and slippers from where he left them on the sink, he walked past Itachi, too embarrassed to say anything.

“Your hair looks better,” Itachi said once he started following him out of the rest stop, the bag of food in hand. From position, he could see the tips of Kousuke’s ears turn a bright red, but didn’t point it out and kept walking towards the car.

What Kousuke didn’t know was that Itachi thought he looked nice before and after changing. There was something domestic and endearing about seeing Kousuke in such a relaxed state around him. Throughout the past few years of university, the two of them had a few classes together and only talked here and there. Itachi only saw him in those professional environments, so it was a nice change of pace to see Kousuke walk out of his dorm in his pajamas.

A faint smile fell upon Itachi’s lips when he watched Kousuke fumble with the car door handle before finally opening the door.

He hoped his parents would like Kousuke because he sure did.

…

They drove for a few more hours, taking stops here and there to let Itachi walk around and stretch his legs. While driving, they played music, talked about their finals and Itachi’s family, eventually got dinner, and when things fell silent, Kousuke dozed off. The lull of the car helped him fall asleep quicker, getting the rest he needs because of all the allnighters he pulled in the past week due to finals.

The next time Kousuke woke up, the sun was setting. He figured that they were almost to their destination and felt the butterflies in his stomach flutter once again. Fake dating or not, Kousuke was meeting Itachi’s family and that was a nerve wracking thought. He was positive that he’ll mess up at least once. With Kousuke’s luck, he’ll probably mess up his own name or worse, Itachi’s parent’s names. Oh no. What if he did mess up their names?

As if sensing his distress, Itachi gave him a quick pat on the knee to catch his attention. He gave him a small smile before returning his eyes to the road ahead of them.

“You’ll do fine.” Itachi tried to reassure him, and Kousuke felt a little better. His shoulders felt less tense. “Even if you do mess up it just shows you’re human, and there’s nothing wrong with that.” And the weight is back on his shoulders.

The displeased look on Kousuke’s face made Itachi laugh. “Thanks, I feel loads better.” The sarcasm practically dripped off of his words. The white-haired boy turned to look out the window, pouting, which resulted in another laugh from Itachi.

“Hey, my pain isn’t for your entertainment,” Kousuke muttered through his pout, but he couldn’t help the twitch of his lips.

Soon enough, Itachi took an exit off the highway, stating that they were almost there to his parents house. Kousuke fiddled with his hands, a habit of his, soon feeling them become damp with his nervous sweat. Itachi paid no mind with Kousuke’s nervous antics, letting him be as he made the familiar turn into his neighborhood.

As they drove through Itachi’s neighborhood, Kousuke couldn’t help but gawk at how gorgeous the houses were. Some were decorated with simple Christmas lights, while others had a classic look to them, perfectly lit with spotlights and wreaths hung on doors and windows. He was pretty sure Itachi’s family was rich. They had to be to live in a neighborhood this nice.

Itachi let out a soft sigh once he pulled up to his parent’s house, feeling relaxed as ever. Although, he couldn’t say the same for his passenger. Turning off the ignition to his care, Itachi looked over at his companion. The Uchiha took in the stiff posture of Kousuke and slowly grew concerned.

“You sure you’re up for this?” Itachi asked, pulling Kousuke out of his thoughts. It’s not like he could back out anyways. They were already there and his parents were expecting them to knock on the front door any minute now.

Kousuke nodded before looking at Itachi in the eyes. With a shaky exhale he spoke. “Yeah.. um yeah. Let’s go.”

It’ll be fine, Kousuke thought to himself. Itachi and you went over this before. You know his family. This is no sweat.

Itachi unlocked the car door before they both stepped out into the chilly night air. “I’ll introduce you to my family first and we can unpack everything after.”

The two walked up the Uchiha’s driveway and that’s when Kousuke got a good look at his companions house. It was large with a nice yard and clean landscaping. If Kousuke looked closer, he probably wouldn’t be able to see a single blade of grass out of place. They had some decorations for the holiday on their front porch and a classic wreath on the front door. He wished he grew up in a house like this.

Once they both made it to the front door, Itachi grabbed his hand. Kousuke’s brain stuttered for a second. Fake dating. Gotta act like a couple. Kousuke thought back to their conversation earlier in the day during their drive.

“I don’t want you to be uncomfortable, so we can stick to simple things like holding hands and hugs,” Itachi responded when Kousuke asked about what was expected of him for this fake dating ploy to work out. “I won’t make you kiss me or anything beyond that, so don’t worry. I’m prioritizing your comfort over anything else.”

Kousuke was relieved. Holding hands was probably the best he could do. He just hoped Itachi would look over the fact that Kousuke gets nervous sweats in the palms of his hands. In the past, he’s heard that it’s pretty gross from girls he’s “dated.” So you can add that to the long list of insecurities Kousuke has.

“If my parents ask about the lack of affection or skinship, I’ll say that we prefer to keep it private.” Itachi really thought this through.

Kousuke hummed softly. “Do we have nicknames for each other? You can call me anything except for Babe or Bae.” Kousuke said before pointing a finger at Itachi, suddenly turning serious. “If you do, I will jump out of this moving car right now.”

Itachi let out a laugh. “I’ll just call you Kou, and you can call me what ever you want. I’m not really one for nicknames and all that, so I’ll probably use it sparingly.”

Kousuke felt a little better knowing that Itachi wasn’t expecting much. At least things wouldn’t change too much. Just two friends who hold hands. He could do it.

Kousuke gripped Itachi’s hand tighter before Itachi knocked on the front door. He tried to focus more on the man’s soft hands instead. They were warm which contrasted the biting cold from the winter air. His nerves were still getting the best of him, but the black haired man gave Kousuke a small, reassuring smile, telling him that it’ll be okay.

That’s right. Kousuke told himself. It’ll be okay.

[starsscribble]

Must Have Been the Wind

Fandom: Overwatch Inspiration: Alec Benjamin - Must Have Been The Wind

The team of three was forced into hiding; for the time being. With not only Talon but the local police on their trail. They couldn’t risk one of the few hideouts for the reformed Overwatch. In the meantime, the trio needed a place to lay low. Jesse seemed to already have a back-up plan; as he and the Shimada brothers entered a ratty apartment on the east side of town. It was far enough away from the case they had been apart of only hours ago. Police presence in the neighborhood was slim to none. Hanzo wrinkled his nose as he rested his bow and quiver against the couch. 

“It might be shitty,” he turned to look at the brothers. “But it’s better than sleeping on the streets.” Genji hummed in agreement with the cowboy.

“Please tell me there are at least two beds,” Hanzo asked walking towards the windows to keep an eye if anyone had followed them.

“There is,” Jesse confirmed; as he quickly flopped onto the couch.

“Then it already loads better than the Blackwatch safehouses,” Genji reminisced causing Jesse to let out a loud annoying groan.

“Please don’t remember me. My back still hurts thinking about it.” He complained causing Genji to chuckle.

“Nah I just think you’re getting old,” Genji said as he scouted out the kitchen.

“Well, we all can’t be blessed with cybernetics.” The cowboy threw back to the ninja.

“I am blessed.” His reply only causing Jesse to groan again and Hanzo to give a chuckle. “Jesse, it might also be best to get some food.” Genji reminds the cowboy who slowly stood up.

“How about I just get up a few pizzas for the night?” Jesse asked as he went into one of the side rooms “It’s a little late for some real shopping.” He called out.

“Sounds best,” Hanzo said still watching the darkening streets. 

“Ya,” Genji called out as he left the kitchen. “Also something to drink. I don’t trust the water in this place.”

“Got it!”

It had to be only fifteen minutes since Jesse left to get food for them. The brothers sat in silence; one watching the poorly lit street as the other meditated. The quiet was easily interrupted by a booming voice and glass shatter in the apartment above them. A quiet more feminine was voice trying to calm down the louder voice. However, it didn’t seem to work as another glass met the wall causing the other person to let out a cry. Genji stood make his way towards the door.

“Genji,” his brother called to him making the cyborg stop. “We must lay low.” Yes, he knew that. Yet he also knew he couldn’t sit back and act like he heard nothing. Not saying anything also Genji exited the apartment and headed towards the stairs that lead to the floor above theirs.

You couldn’t tell what had set your father off; at this point, you felt like you were living with the human version of nitroglycerin. Anything from the way you walked to if you dare cough was a sure-fire way to get yelled at. Brushing the glass shards into the dustpan you made a note to get more plastic cups. Hopefully, that would save money in the long run since you didn’t have a lot to throw around. Dumping the dustpan into the trash you heard a knock on your door. 

“I’ll get it,” you quickly said. You grabbed a nearby jacket. You threw it on as an easy way to hide the scars and bruises you had on your arms and chest. Even if your old man was a piece of shit; he earned money allowing you to eat and have a roof over your head. Zipping the jacket up you felt the heat hit you almost immediately; you need to keep the conversation short.

Opening the door you were thrown back by who was standing there. They looked to be omnic but their face was human. 

“I’m sorry to bother you,” They began taking a look at what you were wearing. “But I think I heard glass breaking and crying. Are you ok?” The stranger seemed truly worried about you; something you didn’t think would happen in this part of town. You wanted to cry out saying that you were not fine. That you wanted help getting out of this apartment. Still, everything else in you pushed that away. You didn’t know this person, and you needed your father or well his money. 

“I’m sorry,” you start shaking your head. “But I think your ears are playing tricks on you.”  The person in front of you opened their mouth to begin speaking. However, the booming voice of your father cut them off.

“Who are you talking too?” The yell caused you to flinch before you called back.

“Just a neighbor,” you couldn’t hear it but know your father; he was most likely grumbling now. After you close the door there was a high chance of getting your head chewed off for taking so long talking the person at the door. You need to wrap this up quickly.

“Thanks for caring, sir. That’s nice of you but I have to go back in.” You threw your thumb back towards the apartment as you put on a fake smile. “ Wish I could tell you about the noise but I didn’t hear a thing.” You shrugged simply dismissing the nightmare for earlier. “It must have been the wind.” With that, you closed the door and quickly took off the jacket that was causing you to overheat. 

Genji didn’t need sleep; not like Jesse and Hanzo did. If even if he did; he wasn’t sure that he could sleep after the encounter with you. It was very clear that something was going on in your apartment. Genji didn’t want to be yet another person to turn a blind eye to so one in need. Yet he also couldn’t force you to get help either. You just needed to know that someone was here and willing to help. Hearing movement upstairs he figured he might just take a chance. Exiting the apartment he headed up the floor above once more. 

Knocking on the door he was greeted once again with you wearing a jacket. You also seemed to have been listening to music was you had one headphone in and a phone in your hand. You looked puzzled as at just what he was doing here this late at night. Genji scratched the back of his head giving you a boyish smiled as he spoke.

“So I’m currently staying in the apartment below you.” You went to spoke only to stop yourself and allow him to finish. “If you need anything.” You smiled at the cyborg, he seemed to be sincere. He wasn’t pushing you to tell him everything yet also telling you that he was willing to listening. 

“Thank you,” you said in a lighter more uplifting tone. “I will keep that in mind.”

It was the third day in the apartment; the lack fo anything to do seemed to easily get to Jesse. The cowboy along with Hanzo had left late in the afternoon. This left Genji in a quiet apartment; he was perfectly fine with that. It would allow him to meditate without distractions, that was until a knock came on the door. Carefully the ninja walked over towards the door. The police might have found where they were hiding out. Looking through the peephole he saw no police; just the girl from the apartment above. Opening the door he quickly saw the scars and bruises on your arms. You look unsure if you should even have come. Yet with your father late blow up you needed to get away; even if it was to a stranger apartment.

“Is that offer still open?” You questioned, worry filling you that he would say no and turn you away. Instead, he moved aside allowing you to enter the apartment.

“I hope,” entering the apartment you saw the walls were still the light beige, no pictures hang on the wall, the apartment seemed to have no personality given to it. “I’m not bothering you.” Genji had shut the door and moved passed you smiling towards you.

“Not at all,” he said before gesturing to the couch as he sat down. “My roommates are currently out of a date night. Even though they are no dating yet.” You smiled as you sat down beside him. It made more sense why the living was void of personality; the roommates couldn’t agree on what it should look like.

The conversation was awkward at first; it had been so long since you talk with someone without getting yelled at. However, as time moved so to did the conversation. Genji would talk about his childhood in Japan; leaving out the whole yakuza parts. You would do the same by sharing some of your favorite memories as a child. As you both talked Genji watched as your smile grew from forced to genuine. Your laughs seemed to fill the apartment; as you held your stomach from the pain. It was clear from this interaction that you needed a friend. Genji was happy to be that for you, yet he knew his time would be short. He hoped that in the time he was here; he might be able to get you the help you needed.

The duo had just started up a card game at Genji's suggestion as Hanzo and Jesse entered the apartment. They seemed to be having a pleasant chat; upon entering the chatter stopped when they saw a stranger in the apartment. Hanzo was about to scold the younger male; Jesse, however, was quick to stop him. The cowboy had noticed the scars and bruises on your arms; so this was the person Genji had talked about only yesterday. Jesse wasn’t about to kick someone that needed help out, so he put on a smile.

“Ma’am do you like Thai food?” Jesse questioned as you replied with you had never tried it. As Hanzo closed the door you had rushed off to help Jesse with the food. If you were going to stay and eat might as well help. Genji looked towards his brother waiting for the scolding. Hanzo turned from the door looking at the young Shimada.

“We are no staying here for long. Don’t get attached.” The elder Shimada spoke before heading towards the kitchen with the bag of drinks.

Hanzo’s word echoed in his head one night as you and he sat on the roof of the apartment building. Not getting attached to you was only getting harder. Tonight he was so close to going back to his Blackwatch days. Simply taking action without a single thought of what happens after. You had come to the apartment later than normal. Your left arm wrapped in a shirt; blood showing through the cloth. Jesse was quick to act as he pulled you into the single bathroom. Genji rushing behind the two, he watched from the doorway as Jesse pulled the shirt off the wound. A long cut; clearly a slash wound ran up your arm.

“I,” you looked away from Jesse towards Genji. “I didn’t know where else to go.” His heart broke; you had not only put trust in him but his fellow teammates.

“This is deep. It’s going to need stitches.” Jesse said looking towards Genji. Both knew there was no way they would get you to go to the hospital. Genji left to get the whiskey Jesse brought a few days prior. It was clear where their priorities were; whiskey but no aspirin. Still, it was the only painkiller they had in the apartment. Bring it back Genji shuffled his way into the bathroom to stay beside you as Jesse stitched you up. Along with the whiskey, Genji made you focus on him and talk. 

Once Jesse finished everything he needed to do; Genji suggests that maybe you both should get some air. Which is how the pair ended up on the roof. You looked over the city, the noise almost drowning out your thoughts; almost.

“I wish this would end.” You said out loud forget that Genji was even sitting beside you for a second.

“You could leave. Try and-” You quickly cut him off.

“I have no skills. No money, no one that cares. I would just end up homeless if I left.”

“I care,” Genji said softly as he rested a hand on your shoulder.

“You’re not going to stay!” You yelled as you stood you. “As soon as the heat dies off you, Jesse, and Hanzo will return to your base!” Genji was in shock; just how did you figure that out? He stood up about to ask but you once again spoke.

“I heard Jesse talking. After that, I did some digging online. I found articles about how Overwatch was making a come back.” Tears began forming in your eyes as you stared at the cyborg. “Why did you come into my life if you were only going to leave!?” You yelled at him as the tears fell. Genji moved without thinking; pulling you into a hug you tensed. Genji held you there as he began to explain himself. He told you how at first he just wanted to help. How he hoped that if you could open up to him. Maybe just maybe he could talk you into getting the help you needed. Once he stopped you pulled him away. He couldn’t read the expression on your face. Without saying a word to him, you turned and hurried to the exit from the rooftop. Genji watched as you left unsure where this had left the two of you.

The day had come for the trio to leave the apartment. Genji and you hadn’t really spoken since the interaction on the roof about a week ago. They would still hear yelling and object being thrown above them. Genji at least wanted to say bye to you before he left; maybe even exchange numbers that way you could contact him. As he got up the first set of stairs towards the next floor; he stopped. There you stood in front of him, a backpack was thrown over your shoulder. You were just as surprised as him as he was you. You opened your mouth to spoke but quickly closed it. You didn’t know want say; you wanted to apologize. You had blown up at him then refused to speak with him. Genji noticed your hesitation so he started up the conversation.

“Where are you off too?” He gestured to your backpack. You glanced towards it then towards him.

“I’m taking your advice. I’m leaving.” Genji nodded, happy that you were taking steps to separate from your father.

“Any idea where you will go?” You replied to his question with a sigh and shrug. He went to speak but heard Jesse calling his name in the hall. That’s when it clicked for him.

“Whydon’tyoucomewithus?” He rushed over his own words startling you a bit.

“W….what?”

“Why don’t you come with us?” He asked at a slower pace; allowing you to understand.

“I don’t have skill Overwatch needs.” You countered.

“But you could learn. Some people are more than willing to teach.”

“I..” it was better to have a place to stay as you figured out what you were going to do with your life. “I guess I could give it a shot. It’s better than my plan.” Genji smiled at you as he gently took your hand in his.

“You won’t be alone. You will have not only me but others supporting you.”

“This is sounding better already.” You chuckled as you followed the ninja down the stairs and towards his waiting teammates.

[baddadjokez]

514 Dad Jokes

What do you call a fake noodle? An Impasta.​I would avoid the sushi if I was you. It’s a little fishy.​Want to hear a joke about paper? Nevermind it’s tearable.​Why did the cookie cry? Because his father was a wafer so long!​I used to work in a shoe recycling shop. It was sole destroying.​What do you call a belt with a watch on it? A waist of time.​How do you organize an outer space party? You planet.​I went to a seafood disco last week... and pulled a mussel.​Do you know where you can get chicken broth in bulk? The stock market.​I cut my finger chopping cheese, but I think that I may have greater problems.​My cat was just sick on the carpet, I don’t think it’s feline well.​Why did the octopus beat the shark in a fight? Because it was well armed.​How much does a hipster weigh? An instagram.​What did daddy spider say to baby spider? You spend too much time on the web.​Atheism is a non-prophet organisation.​There’s a new type of broom out, it’s sweeping the nation.​What cheese can never be yours? Nacho cheese.​What did the Buffalo say to his little boy when he dropped him off at school? Bison.​Have you ever heard of a music group called Cellophane? They mostly wrap.​Why does Superman gets invited to dinners? Because he is a Supperhero.​How was Rome split in two? With a pair of Ceasars.​The shovel was a ground breaking invention.​A scarecrow says, "This job isn't for everyone, but hay, it's in my jeans."​A Buddhist walks up to a hot dog stand and says, "Make me one with everything."​Did you hear about the guy who lost the left side of his body? He's alright now.​What do you call a girl with one leg that's shorter than the other? Ilene.​I did a theatrical performance on puns. It was a play on words.​What do you do with a dead chemist? You barium.​I bet the person who created the door knocker won a Nobel prize.​Towels can’t tell jokes. They have a dry sense of humor.​Two birds are sitting on a perch and one says "Do you smell fish?"​Do you know sign language? You should learn it, it’s pretty handy.​What do you call a beautiful pumpkin? GOURDgeous.​Why did one banana spy on the other? Because she was appealing.​What do you call a cow with no legs? Ground beef.​What do you call a cow with two legs? Lean beef.​What do you call a cow with all of its legs? High steaks.​A cross eyed teacher couldn’t control his pupils.​After the accident, the juggler didn’t have the balls to do it.​I used to be afraid of hurdles, but I got over it.​To write with a broken pencil is pointless.​I read a book on anti-gravity. I couldn’t put it down.​I couldn’t remember how to throw a boomerang but it came back to me.​What should you do if you are cold? Stand in the corner. It’s 90 degrees.​How does Moses make coffee? Hebrews it.​The energizer bunny went to jail. He was charged with battery.​What did the alien say to the pitcher of water? Take me to your liter.​What happens when you eat too many spaghettiOs? You have a vowel movement.​The soldier who survived mustard gas and pepper spray was a seasoned veteran.​Sausage puns are the wurst.​What do you call a bear with no teeth? A gummy bear.​Why shouldn’t you trust atoms? They make up everything.​What’s it called when you have too many aliens? Extraterrestrials.​Want to hear a pizza joke? Nevermind, it’s too cheesy.​What do cows tell each other at bedtime? Dairy tales.​Why can’t you take inventory in Afghanistan? Because of the tally ban.​Why didn’t the lion win the race? Because he was racing a cheetah.​What happens to nitrogen when the sun comes up? It becomes daytrogen.​What’s it called when you put a cow in an elevator? Raising the steaks.​What’s america’s favorite soda? Mini soda.​Why did the tomato turn red? Because it saw the salad dressing.​What kind of car does a sheep drive? Their SuBAHHru.​What do you call a french pig? Porque.​What do you call a line of rabbits marching backwards? A receding hairline.​Why don’t vampires go to barbecues? They don’t like steak.​How do trees access the internet? They log on.​Why should you never trust a train? They have loco motives.​Is your refrigerator running? Better go catch it.​The future,the present and the past walked into a bar.Things got a little tense.​I saw an ad for burial plots, and thought to myself this is the last thing I need.​I just found out I'm colorblind. The diagnosis came completely out of the purple.​I'd tell you a chemistry joke but I know I wouldn't get a reaction.​Have you ever tried to eat a clock? It's very time consuming.​I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger. Then it hit me.​Read enough of our funny puns, and you'll be punstoppable.​Yesterday a clown held the door for me. It was a nice jester.​I used to go fishing with Skrillex but he kept dropping the bass.​The wedding was so emotional even the cake was in tiers.​What does a house wear? A dress.​Why can't bicycles stand up on their own? Since they are 2 tired.​I owe a lot to the sidewalks. They’ve been keeping me off the streets for years.​Imagine if alarm clocks hit you back in the morning.It would be truly alarming.​Why is a skeleton a bad liar? You can see right through it.​What do you receive when you ask a lemon for help? Lemonaid.​A man sued an airline company after it lost his luggage. Sadly, he lost his case.​What does a dog say when he sits down on a piece of sandpaper? Ruff!​What do you call crystal clear urine? 1080pee.​At my boxing club there is only one punch bag. I hate waiting for the punch line!​An untalented gymast walks into a bar.​Einstein developed a theory about space, and it was about time too.​I was accused of being a plagiarist, their word not mine.​My friends say they don’t like skeleton puns. I should put more backbone into them.​Let me FILL you in on my trip to the dentist.​Why does the singer of Cheap Thrills not want us to Sia?​Traveling on a flying carpet is a rugged experience.​Cartoonist found dead in home. Details are sketchy.​The old woman who lived in a shoe wasn’t the sole owner,there were strings attached.​Did you hear about the crime in the parking garage? It was wrong on so many levels.​My new diet consists of aircraft, its a bit plane.​Have you ever tried to milk a cow which has been cut in half? Udder madness.​Why are there fences on graveyards? Because people are dying to get in.​Why do trees have so many friends? They branch out.​Models of dragons are not to scale.​Never discuss infinity with a mathematician, they can go on about it forever.​Why don’t some couples go to the gym? Because some relationships don’t work out.​Don’t trust people that do acupuncture, they’re back stabbers.​A persistent banker wouldn’t stop hitting on me so I asked him to leave me a loan.​I ordered a book of puns last week, but i didn't get it.​People say i look better without glasses but i just can't see it.​Don’t judge a meal by the look of the first course. It’s very souperficial.​I heard Donald Trump is going to ban shredded cheese, and make America grate again.​I relish the fact that you’ve mustard the strength to ketchup to me.​What do you call a young musician? A minor.​Police were called to a daycare yesterday, where a 2-year-old was resisting a rest.​If artists wear sketchers do linguists wear converse?​I changed my iPod name to Titanic. It’s syncing now.​Jill broke her finger today, but on the other hand she was completely fine.​I smeared some ketchup all over my eyes once. It was a bad idea in Heinz- sight.​I flipped a coin over an issue the other day, it was quite the toss-up.​I got hit in the head with a can of soda? Luckily it was a soft drink.​I heard that the post office was a male dominated industry.​Why isn’t suntanning an Olympic sport? Because the best you can ever get is bronze.​What do you mean June is over? Julying.​Why is Kylo Ren so angry? Beause he’s always Ben Solo.​These reversing cameras are great. Since I got one I haven’t looked back.​The candle quit his job because he felt burned out.​Our maintenance guy lost his legs on the job, now he’s just a handyman.​Going to bed with music on gave him sound sleep.​A magic tractor drove down the road and turned into a field!​I met some aliens from outer space. They were pretty down to earth.​The plane flight brought my acrophobia to new heights.​My phone has to wear glasses ever since it lost its contacts.​I, for one, like Roman numerals.​How do mountains see? They peak.​The show was called Spongebob Squarepants but everyone knows the star was Patrick.​This is not alcohol, water you thinking?!​Novice pirates make terrible singers because they can’t hit the high seas.​I told my friend she drew her eyebrows too high. She seemed surprised.​The earth's rotation really makes my day.​If I buy a bigger bed will I have more or less bedroom?​Two peanuts were walking in a tough neighborhood and one of them was a-salted.​Two ropes were walking in a tough neighborhood and one of them was a-frayed.​What kind of shoes do ninjas wear? Sneakers.​I got a master’s degree in being ignored; no one seems to care.​After eating the ship, the sea monster said, I can’t believe I ate the hull thing.​Smaller babies may be delivered by stork but the heavier ones need a crane.​A bartender broke up with her boyfriend, but he kept asking her for another shot.​I had a pun about insanity but then I lost it.​He couldn’t work out how to fix the washing machine so he threw in the towel.​Why does the man want to buy nine rackets? Cause tennis too many.​Why don’t cannibals eat clowns? Because they taste funny.​If I got paid in lots of Pennes I would make loads of pasta.​I thought I saw a spider on my laptop, but my friend said it was just a bug.​A doctor broke his leg while auditioning for a play.Luckily he still made the cast.​The tale of the haunted refrigerator was chilling.​Why are frogs so happy? They eat whatever bugs them.​If you wear cowboy clothes are you ranch dressing?​I was addicted to the hokey pokey but I turned myself around.​Simba, you're falling behind. I must ask you to Mufasa.​I bought a wooden whistle but it wooden whistle.​The bomb didn't want to go off. So it refused.​The sore mummy needed a Cairo-practor​I feel sorry for shopping carts. They’re always getting pushed around.​The display of still-life art was not at all moving!​On Halloween October is nearly Octover.​Pig puns are so boaring.​Why couldn’t the dead car drive into the cluttered garage? Lack of vroom.​What do you call Samsung's security guards? Guardians of the Galaxy.​What does Superman have in his drink? Just ice.​How does a penguin build it’s house? Igloos it together.​Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.​The safe was invented by a cop and a robber. It was quite a combination.​What do you do when balloons are hurt? You helium.​One hat says to the other, "You stay here, I’ll go on a head."​How many tickles does it take to make an octopus laugh? Ten tickles.​When does a farmer dance? When he drops the beet.​When the scientist wanted to clone a deer, he bought a doe it yourself kit.​If people ask how many puns I made in Germany I reply, "nein"​Did you hear about the invention of the white board? It was remarkable.​If Donald Trump becomes president, America is going toupee.​Can February March? No, but April May.​I hate Russian Dolls, they are so full of themselves.​What do you do to an open wardrobe? You closet.​The magazine about ceiling fans went out of business due to low circulation.​So what if I don’t know what apocalypse means? It’s not the end of the world!​Some aquatic mammals at the zoo escaped. It was otter chaos.​A backwards poem writes inverse.​Getting the ability to fly would be so uplifting.​I asked my friend, Nick, if he had 5 cents I could borrow. But he was Nicholas.​The soundtrack for Blackfish was orcastrated.​Where do you imprison a skeleton? In a rib cage.​There’s a fine line between the numerator and the denominator.​I used to work at a hairdresser but i just wasn’t cut out for it.​Why is metal and a microwave a match made in heaven? When they met, sparks flew.​The lumberjack loved his new computer. He especially enjoyed logging in.​Garbage collectors are rubbish drivers!​When the church relocated it had an organ transplant.​Lettuce take a moment to appreciate this salad pun.​The scarecrow get promoted because he was outstanding in his field.​Sleeping comes so naturally to me, I could do it with my eyes closed.​I never understood odorless chemicals, they never make scents.​What do prisoners use to call each other? Cell phones.​Why was dumbo sad? He felt irrelephant.​When a clock is hungry, it goes back four seconds.​Old skiers never die. They just go down hill.​Did you hear about the pun that was actually funny? Neither have we.​You know why I like egg puns? They crack me up!​Want to hear a pun about ghosts? That's the spirit!​I used to make clown shoes… which was no small feat.​Did you hear about the human cannonball? Too bad he got fired!​What happened when the magician got mad? She pulled her hare out!​Did you hear about the circus that caught on fire? It was in tents.​The one day of the week that eggs are definitely afraid of is Fry-day.​A hen will always leave her house through the proper eggs-it.​The man who ate too many eggs was considered to be an egg-oholic.​All the hens consider the chef to be very mean because he beats the eggs.​Eskimos keep all of their chilled eggs inside of the egg-loo.​Under the doctor’s advice, the hen is laying off eggs for a few weeks.​I had a real problem making a hard-boiled egg this morning until I cracked it.​The best time of day to eat eggs is at the crack of dawn.​The chicken coop only had 2 doors since if it had 4 doors it would be a sedan.​Crossing a cement mixer and a chicken will result in you getting a brick layer.​That reckless little egg always seems to egg-celerate when he sees the light turn yellow.​Hopefully this egg pun doesn't make your brain too fried or scrambled.​Don't ever have multiple people wash dishes together. It's hard for them to stay in sink.​People using umbrellas always seem to be under the weather.​I dissected an iris today. It was an eye-opening experience.​What was Forrest Gump’s email password? 1forrest1.​What planet is like a circus? Saturn, it has three rings!​Before my father died he worked in a circus as a stilt walker. I used to look up to him.​Why did the lion eat the tightrope walker? He wanted a well-balanced meal!​I really look up to my tall friends.​I hate negative numbers and will stop at nothing to avoid them.​Long fairy tales have a tendency to dragon.​It takes guts to make a sausage.​Why shouldn’t you give Elsa a balloon? Because she’ll “Let It Go”!​What do you call cheese that’s not yours? Nacho cheese!​How do you make a tissue dance? Put a little boogie in it​What do you get when a witch goes to the beach? A sand-witch!​Where do cows go on Friday nights? To the mooooo-vies!​What did the mommy tomato say to the baby tomato? C’mon, ketchup!​Why did the banana go to the doctor? Because he wasn’t “peeling” well!​What did one snowman say to the other? Do you smell carrots?​Why didn’t the skeleton go to the dance? Because he had no body to go with!​What is a pirate’s favorite letter? Arrrrrr!​What does a piece of toast wear to bed? His pa-JAM-as!​What does one eye say to the other eye? Something between us smells​Why did the chicken cross the playground? To get to the other slide!​What happens when an egg laughs? It cracks up!​What do you call a bear with no teeth? A gummy bear!​Why didn’t the teddy bear want dessert? Because he was stuffed!​Why can’t you tell a joke while ice skating? Because the ice might crack up!​What do you call a pig that knows karate? A pork chop!​What’s mommy and daddy’s favorite ride at the carnival? A married-go-round!​How did Cookie Monster feel after eating all the cookies? Pretty crummy!​What do you call a skunk who flies in a helicopter? A smelly-copter!​What do you get when you shake a cow? A milkshake!​How do you catch a squirrel? Climb up a tree and act like a nut!​Why did the bee get married? Because she found her honey!​What did the ocean say to their airplane? Nothing, it just waved!​Where do eskimo pigs live? In pig-loos.​What’s a dinosaur called when it’s sleeping? A dino-snore!​What did the cookie say to the annoying cookie? Crumb on!​Why did Mickey Mouse go up in space? To find Pluto!​What does Olaf eat for lunch? Icebergers!​What letter is always wet? The C!​How do you throw a space party? You planet.​How was Rome split in two? With a pair of Ceasars.​Nope. Unintended.​The shovel was a ground breaking invention, but everyone was blow away by the leaf blower.​A scarecrow says, "This job isn't for everyone, but hay, it's in my jeans."​A Buddhist walks up to a hot dog stand and says "Make me one with everything."​Did you hear about the guy who lost the left side of his body? He's alright now.​What do you call a girl with one leg that's shorter than the other? Ilene.​The broom swept the nation away.​I did a theatrical performance on puns. It was a play on words.​What does a clock do when it's hungry? It goes back for seconds.​What do you do with a dead chemist? You barium.​I bet the person who created the door knocker won a Nobel prize.​Towels can’t tell jokes. They have a dry sense of humor.​Two birds are sitting on a perch and one says “Do you smell fish?”​Did you hear about the cheese factory that exploded in france? There was nothing but des brie.​Do you know sign language? You should learn it, it’s pretty handy.​What do you call a beautiful pumpkin? GOURDgeous.​Why did one banana spy on the other? Because she was appealing.​What do you call a cow with no legs? Ground beef.​What do you call a cow with two legs? Lean beef.​What do you call a cow with all of its legs? High steaks.​A cross eyed teacher couldn’t control his pupils.​After the accident, the juggler didn’t have the balls to do it.​I used to be afraid of hurdles, but I got over it.​To write with a broken pencil is pointless.​I read a book on anti-gravity. I couldn’t put it down.​I couldn’t remember how to throw a boomerang but it came back to me.​What did the buffalo say to his son? Bison.​What should you do if you’re cold? Stand in the corner. It’s 90 degrees.​How does Moses make coffee? Hebrews it.​The energizer bunny went to jail. He was charged with battery.​What did the alien say to the pitcher of water? Take me to your liter.​What happens when you eat too many spaghettiOs? You have a vowel movement.​The soldier who survived mustard gas and pepper spray was a seasoned veteran.​Sausage puns are the wurst.​What do you call a bear with no teeth? A gummy bear.​How did Darth Vader know what luke was getting him for his birthday? He could sense his presence.​Why shouldn’t you trust atoms? They make up everything.​What’s the difference between a bench, a fish, and a bucket of glue? You can’t tune a bench but you can tuna fish. I bet you got stuck on the bucket of glue part.​What’s it called when you have too many aliens? Extraterrestrials.​Want to hear a pizza joke? Nevermind, it’s too cheesy.​What do you call a fake noodle? An impasta.​What do cows tell each other at bedtime? Dairy tales.​Why can’t you take inventory in Afghanistan? Because of the tally ban.​Why didn’t the lion win the race? Because he was racing a cheetah.​Why did the man dig a hole in his neighbor’s backyard and fill it with water? Because he meant well.​What happens to nitrogen when the sun comes up? It becomes daytrogen.​What’s it called when you put a cow in an elevator? Raising the steaks.​What’s america’s favorite soda? Mini soda.​Why did the tomato turn red? Because it saw the salad dressing.​What kind of car does a sheep drive? A lamborghini, but if that breaks down they drive their SuBAHHru.

[divineluce]

What Good Can Drinking Do? || Nicole & Luce

Timing: August 26th

Location: Around the Bend

Tagging: @nicsalazar & @divineluce

Description: Nicole and Luce bump into each other after a long night of drinking and unwittingly become knights of the drunken table.

“C’mon, Luce, you’ve had enough. Time to call it quits.” Jake said as he gestured for one of the guys doing security with his hand. Scowling, Luce stood up from the bar, the room spinning a bit as she did so. “Fuck off, Jake. I know when I’ve had enough. I’m just,” Her words slurred together slightly as she headed towards the door, “Leaving because I want to.” She insisted before stepping out into the warm air of summer. Letting out a sigh, she ran a hand through her hair before heading down the street towards Ink Inc. She could crash on the couch there for the night. Sleep it off. Sleep off the bourbon she’d drank to forget how her mother had abandoned the three of them. Sleep off the whiskeys she’d consumed because of the weirdness with Remmy. Sleep off the scotch she’d drunk because of her fucked up situation with Nadia. Sleep it all of and just be left with a hangover in the morning. As she headed down the street, she blinked blearily as she realized she wasn’t the only one stumbling around The Bend late at night. As the other person neared, a drunken smile slid across her face. “Oh. Sup Nicole.”

Nicole couldn’t remember that last time she had been drunk in the streets of White Crest. Probably two or three years ago. She was supposed to be past those days. Or so she thought at least. She wasn’t sure what had triggered her to drink more than she could handle. Maybe it hadn’t been the best week, maybe she had only miscalculated, either way it was too late to ponder on it. What mattered was that she made it home safe. When she left the bar, she let out a breath, willing her brain to focus. She took a few slow steps, hands reaching all over in search of her phone. Where had she put the damn thing? Uber was probably the way to go, if only she could manage to get one. Frustrated, she continued walking, slightly aware that there was someone approaching. As the figure came closer, she realized it was a familiar face. Relieved, she stopped fumbling for her phone, forgetting why she even needed it for. Her lips pressed together into a thin smile, and she tilted her head up in acknowledgement. “Luce...” she could tell she also had some drinks on her too. “Where you going...all good?”  

Running a hand through her hair, Luce did her best to focus on Nicole’s face, though it wasn’t easy in her current state of inebriation. Phew. She’d had more than she’d thought, fuck. Waving a hand, she grinned slightly as she saw that Nicole was also in a similar situation. “Ah, I was just headed back to Ink. Bartender at Soul figured I’d had enough so I’m… making my way downtown.” She laughed, shaking her head at the stupid song that had popped in her head. “Well, down-Bend. Howsabout you?” She asked, the words slurring together slightly as she spoke. “And yeah. Yeah.” Luce paused, her mind drifting back to Remmy’s face, the way she’d held them in the hallway of Morgan’s home, back to the messages from Nadia, desperately trying to hold on. “I’m super good.” She gave two thumbs up and a drunken grin that didn’t quite reach her eyes. 

"Gotcha, you do--you do look like..." nodding, she trailed off, weakly gesturing an invisible bottle. Eyebrows knitted together, and she hummed for a moment as her brain searched for words to answer the question. Why did she make it all the way from The Outskirts to the Bend just to drink? She vaguely remembered. It probably made a lot of sense when she was sober. "Getting an Uber" at that, she reached the inside of her jacket, finally finding her phone. She paused though, when she looked up after a few attempts at unlocking her phone and noticed Luce's face. She wasn't exactly great at reading people, but even she could tell Luce was bullshitting her. Had she been sober, Nicole wouldn't have pushed, she respected everyone's decision to lie or keep stuff to themselves. "Tell that to your face, dude" she nodded, lifting her arm and poking Luce in the forehead. Leaning against the wall, she grinned lazily. "We punching anyone?"

“That obvious, huh?” Luce said, letting out a puff of air in amusement. As Nicole pulled out her phone and leaned against the wall of one of the buildings near them, she stared out idly into the darkness of the Bend. Maybe it was just the slight ringing in her head, the pleasant buzz of alcohol making her senses nice and dull, but it seemed quiet. Quieter than normal. Most nights, she wouldn’t be the only one stumbling back home drunk-- there were all sorts who wandered around this side of town, good and bad. Nicole’s sudden poke to her forehead caught her off guard and she raised a hand to lightly swat her away. “Yeah, yeah--” She said, about to rattle off some insult to take the pressure off her when she heard a scream pierce through the night. Standing bolt upright, Luce looked at Nicole in alarm. “We might be. Fuck. Did you hear where that came from?”

“Yeah, yeah” Nicole nodded absentmindedly, struggling for a second to recall what Luce was replying to. Glancing down at her old phone, she grew annoyed as she waited for the app to load. Maybe it was time to finally invest in a something newer. The scream took her by surprise, which was unusual for Nicole. Just then, as she managed to look at Luce, Nicole felt herself sober up slightly. She pushed herself off the wall, looking back to the street she came from. If only her senses weren’t so numb, it would’ve been a lot easier to figure things out. Her and Luce’s breathing seemed to be overpowering any sound her ears could pick up. She huffed, willing herself to focus. A beat, two beats, and then she heard it. “Couple of streets down… turning the corner” she wasn’t as sure of her accuracy as she would be sober, but it had to count for something. “C’mon, that can’t be good” smacking Luce in the arm, she took off —or rather stumbled—in the direction of the scream.

Nicole’s slap to the arm sent Luce staggering forward, but that was just what she needed to get her stubborn feet moving. She followed behind Nicole, doing her best to keep the other woman in her field of vision as she ran after her. The streetlights were shifting slightly, the world spinning as the two of them made their way towards whoever had screamed. If she had been more sober, Luce might have questioned how Nicole had been able to figure out where the cry had come from. But right now? With alcohol, adrenaline, and no shortage of rage coursing through her system? She didn’t really care. As they rounded the corner, Luce was startled to see that a woman was standing there, alone. But, she looked visibly shaken, the strap of her handbag shredded. “Are you okay?” Luce asked, slightly out of breath and slurring.

In hindsight, attempting to sprint to the location she believed the commotion was, had been a poor idea. It didn’t take long for Nicole to figure that out. Still, powered by the adrenaline and the booze clouding her  judgement, she continued on, almost face planting the ground at least once. Still, she retained some gracefulness, if anything thanks to her ancestors,recovering before she hurt herself. She was the first to turn the corner, spotting a woman clearly rattled trying to gather herself. She reached out, trying to hold the woman's shoulder but miscalculated the distance. She ended up grasping nothing but air instead.  “...Kay?” breathing out, she managed to get half her sentence. Luce seemed to arrive just after her, and did a better job at getting words out. She looked around in the meantime, eyebrows furrowed. If the attacker had attempted to steal the woman’s purse it made no sense for them to run before succeeding. “Where is--” wondering out loud, she turned the opposite direction. Apart from them, it was unusually empty. Yet still, something in her could tell they weren’t alone. “Got a look on your attacker?”

“I-- I don’t-- it was like, someone came out of nowhere--” The woman said, trembling with fear. Luce did her best to maintain some amount of composure, but the alcohol in her system was making it hard for her to stand completely still. Her head bobbled as she swayed, her feet stumbling as the world tilted beneath her. Ohhhh, running had been a bad fucking idea. Leaning against the nearby lamp post, she nodded at the woman emphatically. “Yeah, what she said. D’you get a good look at who attacked you?” Luce asked. The shaken woman shook her head, clutching onto her ruined handbag with a tight hand. Letting out a puff of air that blew her bangs from her forehead, Luce nodded and tilted her head. “Your car nearby? Or house or whatever?” She asked, “You oughta get home. The Bend’s not a super safe place.” Luce said. If she’d been a little more observant, if she’d been a little less drunk, if she’d just listened… maybe she might have noticed the shadowy thing lurking behind the post office box.

Nicole’s eyes darted from Luce to the woman, slowly taking in the words they were saying. Her chest was still heaving after running a few streets. For a brief second she frowned, unable to remember why she and Luce had decided it would be a good idea to run while drunk, but as her eyes landed on the distraught woman once again, all the things spinning around her slowed down. “Yeah, yeah...only idiots  walk alone ‘round these places”. Despite looking the worse of the two, Luce seemed to be handling the situation decently, so Nicole’s attention drifted once again to her surroundings. At the distance she could hear the loud, pounding  music of the many dance clubs in the neighborhood, but focusing on everything close to her was difficult.  Her body turned  instinctively, stepping  away from the pair as she eyed the dumpsters and the trash bags spilling some feet away. The sensation they were being watched was hard to shake. Maybe it wasn’t her annoying gift warning her this time, but just drunken paranoia. However, Nicole was certain she had seen part of a tail behind the post office box. Strange, as all she could see were shadows. There was some sort of animal scent in the air, but in her state Nicole couldn’t be sure of what type. It wasn’t common. Turning back to Luce and the woman, she caught her explaining how she lived a few blocks away and was taking a shortcut home.  “Vural. Gotta get her somewhere safe. Her place isn’t that far, right?” she interrupted, eyes still trained anxiously on the box.

Rolling her eyes at the other woman’s words, Luce offered her most winning smile at the frightened woman. “She didn’t mean to call you an idiot. She’s just drunk. Well, so’m I, but I’m not calling people names.” She said as she did her best to stand upright on her own without the assistance of the lamppost. Squinting at the other woman, she let out a loud puff of air, trying to sober up a little. Christ. She’d really gone hard. Fuck. The woman shifted from foot to foot anxiously, more distressed than she had when they’d first arrived, but that went right over Luce’s head. “My apartment is only a few blocks away and my car’s in the shop. I didn’t think anything would happen if I just took a shortcut home.” The woman mumbled. Luce nodded, though she wasn’t paying much attention. She was too busy fumbling around in the pocket of her shorts, cursing quietly in Turkish at her silver knuckle dusters. They’d gotten stuck and eventually, Luce gave up. Whatever. At Nicole’s words, Luce snapped her fingers and shot a pair of finger guns in her direction. “Yeah-- we should definitely do that. How’d you feel about an escort home? Not one of those escorts. I’m not that easy.” She snorted before patting Nicole on the shoulder. “How’s about it, Nicky?” Luce said, not seeing how the other woman was staring intently at the letter box. 

“Yeah I did” shooting a glance at Luce, Nicole didn’t understand the problem in her words. She scoffed, wanting to explain herself. “We’re all idiots here” to her, ignoring the dangers of walking at night in the worst neighborhood was pretty high in terms of idiocy. The kind of reckless decision only drunks would make. She stopped herself though, when she noticed the woman next to them bouncing anxiously. Guilt turned her stomach. What was the point in being an asshole? Bringing both hands to her face she rubbed her eyes vigorously, wishing it would magically sober her up. She hated being wasted and interacting with people, it usually went even worse than her sober interactions. She let out a groan, shaking her head. “Sorry, it’s...” she looked at the woman, offering an apologetic smile. “You've been through enough in one night, ignore me”. The escort joke went over her head, and she gave Luce a confused look. What was she on about? “How about…?” she trailed off, struggling to follow the conversation. She focused on the box again, still sensing something behind it. It appeared that if she and Luce stayed with the stranger, whatever was waiting on to pounce wouldn’t dare. Why did that make any sense? Nicole didn’t have the mental capacity to ponder on it. “Yes. Yeah, we’ll get you home. She really knows her way around the bend, don’t you Vural?”. Placing a hand on the woman's back, she let her lead the way, careful to keep her from the letter box. 

“Yeah, sure do,” Luce snorted, shaking her head vigorously at the joke before looking at the woman who was still eyeing them with a nervous expression on her face. “We just wanna help, honest.” She said. As Nicole reached out a guided the woman away, Luce watched as some of the tension faded from her body. “Okay. Okay, thank you. I’d really appreciate the company.” She said with a relieved smile. Luce nodded, her head bobbling more than she’d intended. “For sure, for sure. Let’s get you home, okay?” She said before glancing at Nicole. The other woman seemed distracted, but she wasn’t entirely sure why. Lowering her voice to what she thought was a whisper, Luce nudged the woman with her elbow. “If somethings bugging you, let’s get her home first, cool?”

Nicole didn’t say much for the remaining of the walk. Her focus split between her efforts to keep one foot in front of the other, and shielding the woman from the mysterious attacker behind the letter box. As they walked past it, her head turned to check once again for any signs of whatever had hurt the woman. She believed she had seen a dark shadow move behind the box again, but no visible  body. Was it all in her brain? Or maybe...it was a ghost? Nicole scoffed shortly after the idea came to her. No. That was even more stupid. They wouldn’t have shadows, which she definitely saw, right? Thank god she didn’t say that out loud, not even drunkenness would’ve justified that. Her thoughts were luckily interrupted by an elbow to her arm. “Weird shit, man. Weird shit going on” she retorted, lips barely moving. She couldn’t shake the feeling that the night could’ve ended much differently for the woman she was guiding home. Nicole could still hear her erratic heartbeat and she was certain it wouldn't change until she was safely home. “I’m crashing wherever you do, by the way. Can’t take my ass home tonight”. Her last words floated between the three for a while, as they silently made it to the woman’s place. There would be time for regrets in the morning --the hangover would definitely punish her-- but even if she had promised not to get wasted again, part of her was glad she and Luce had been at the right place and the right time to give someone a hand. 

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #276

“all the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you better run, better run, outrun my gun.”

Favorite dried fruit? Dried fruit is fucking disgusting. Would you rather wear a dress or a suit on your wedding day? A dress. If you chose dress, will it be long or short? I prefer longer wedding dresses. If you chose suit, will you wear a bow or a tie? Hypothetically I’d wear a tie, probably. Have you ever wanted to be a police officer? No. Do you have a nut allergy? No. Do you accessories with chains? Put chains on fucking EVERYTHING and it is an improvement. How often do you cook dinner? If you’re excluding the microwave, like… never. What have you given up on recently? Nothing important; the only thing I can think of applies to a game. I was after the way-too-fucking-expensive dinosaur mount that is very soon going away in World of Warcraft, but the stress it was causing me wasn’t worth it. The time investment and how it was only a “maybe” of getting it in time Favorite condiment for fries? Ketchup. Ever had bangs? I did as a little kid. Do you know any Italian people? Well yeah, people of Italian descent are common in the U.S. I don’t know like, someone straight from Italy though. Have you ever dated someone LGBTQ+? Yeah, a demisexual. What color would you like your future bathroom to be? Uh… I don’t really care. It would depend on the house. Do you add sugar to plain cornflakes? No. Are skeletons cool? Skellyboiz are dope. Favorite Selena Gomez song? I don’t know any. Do you like coffee flavored cake? I don’t like coffee, so guess. Is that even a thing, though? Do you still watch your favorite kid shows/cartoons? I don’t watch TV. I would though, sure. Do you like going on walks? What's your favorite thing about them? How far do you normally walk? Ugh this question is gonna be embarrassing considering I went through muscle atrophy in my legs from being so sedentary. When we move (HOPEFULLY the start of October, a wrench was kinda thrown in our plans), I intend to absolutely start walking in small intervals now that we’ll be in a nice little neighborhood with a sidewalk. And a PokeStop nearby to bait me lmfao. Plus the weather will be cooler, so I intend to make a lot of progress. BUT ANYWAY I like just listening to either music or the sounds of what’s going on around me. Last time you had a hot drink? That’s a good question. Idk. Have you ever lived in a city? Was it crowded? Never like… a “real” city. Just small towns or in the middle of nowhere. Would you prefer to live in a big city or the woods? THE WOODS!!!!!!1 THE WOODS!!!!!1!!!!1111!! GIMME THAT SHIT!!!!!!11!11!!!! Have you ever climbed a mountain? No. Do you hear owls or crickets at night where you live? LOADS of crickets and toads during the summer. Ever run away from home? When I was a stupid pre-teen. I was mad at my mom and she wasn’t home, so I took Teddy and left. I had my phone though and Mom – when she got home – threatened to call the cops, so yeah, I came back. Are you scared to ride public transport alone? Why? No. Is marriage on your mind? No time soon. Did you own a dollhouse when you were younger? I didn’t, per se, but my younger sister did, and we would play together. Does the room you're in have a tiled floor? No, it’s carpet. How many pairs of earrings do you own? Not that many, not too few. Are you looking for a boyfriend/girlfriend? I’ve never thought *looking* was a good idea, so no. I think bonds of any kind need to come naturally to avoid lack of genuineness, force, or rush. I don’t think me having an s/o is a smart idea right now anyway. Do you prefer a call or a text? Don’t call me unless you’re dying or something. Do your parents drink coffee every morning? Mom almost always does. I don’t live with Dad, so idk. Have you ever donated blood? Yes. One song that's meaningful to you? UM a LOT. Most meaningful, probably “Stairway To Heaven” by Led Zeppelin. I physically can’t listen to it. Like I refuse to. Are you addicted to anything? Technology, big oof energy. What were you last listening to in the car? Something on my iPod, idk. When was the last time you sang out loud? I don’t recall. I rarely sing. What did you have for breakfast? A microwaveable sausage, egg, and cheese biscuit. Mom is currently out of state with her mother because she’s literally on her deathbed, so she STOCKED ME THE FUCK UP on groceries. The freezer is literally jam-packed, so I’m focusing on eating food from there. Did you have a nap today? Yes. I almost never, ever make it through the day without one, especially now with having nightmares every fucking time I sleep. Are you named after anyone? No. Well, not my first name, anyway. “Marie” is a middle name theme in my family, though. What kind of music do you like? Metal, rock, alternative, indie… stuff like that. What’s one hobby that you’d like to take up? Ugh, I miss a LOT of my old hobbies. I’ve lost interest in so much. I wish I drew way more than I do, which is almost never. What did you think you wanted to be when you grew up? The first job I ever wanted was a paleontologist. I was obsessed with dinosaurs. Still love ‘em. What’s the biggest project on your to-do list right now? It’d be great if I could finish designing Ashley’s cancer tattoo, but again, yeah, drawing motivation. ;_; If you weren’t in your current job, what would you want to be doing? I’m unemployed. Is the last person you kissed older than you? No. Are you happy right now? No. Haven’t been “happy” for a while now. Who makes you happiest right now? Probably my cat tbh lol. Especially being home alone for so long, he’s keeping me company. In school did/do people put a label on you? If so, what is/was it? I was considered one of the “emo” kids. Do you laugh every day? lol wow no. What is the last thing you laughed at? This Spongebob meme I saw on Facebook got me fuckin good. Have you cried today? If so, why? Nah. When was the last time someone saw you naked? Been a long time; even when I’m going in or coming out of the shower I do all I can for Mom to not see me because I hate my body a fucking lot. What is the greatest loss you've endured? My first boyfriend. When was the last time you did something you were embarrassed by? WOW I do this like every fuckin day, fam. What was the last thing you lied about? I’m not sure. What type of a drunk are you? Never gotten to the point of drunk, but I was more talkative the closest I got. What is your philosophy on life/how do you generally choose to live or conduct yourself? What a big question. I personally think you should do all you can to make a positive impact on the world – make it better than when you entered. Don’t contribute to the bad, treat people how you want to be treated… all that jazz. When was the last time you were up all night and why? I can’t remember quite why, but I remember doing that with WoW some time ago. Idr what I was doing that had my attention that long, though. That’s rare now. What is the worst thing you've done to yourself? What is the worst thing someone else has done to you? Part one: hand over all of my worth to someone else. Part two: show me exactly why I shouldn’t have in a very unhealthy way. What is the most personal thing you're willing to reveal? I dunno??? Can ya give me a topic?? Is there a situation or person you haven't been able to get over/forgive/what have you? I honestly doubt I’ll ever be entirely over Jason. Who was the last person to yell at you? Did you yell back? Probably Mom, and idr. Doubt it. Just probably raised my voice. Where did your last injury come from? My cat, rip. What is the worst thing you have said to another person? Something along the lines of “thanks for sending me to the ER (or mental hospital?) again.” Fucking disgusting. Do you wear your seatbelt in the car? Without fail, always. Please wear your seatbelt. Are you scared of flying? Not really. What do you sleep in? Men’s pj pants and tank tops. Who was the last person you kissed? Sara. What are you listening to? I am fucking HOOKED on 3TEETH's cover of "Pumped Up Kicks." Do you prefer soupy noodles or noodles without the broth? Without. Have you ever missed someone but felt like they had other friends and didn't miss you as much as you did? This. Is the story of my motherfuckin life. I feel this all the time to a very deep level. Who, out of all your friends, do you hang with the most and could never get tired of him/her? Sara. Do you like the taste of white chocolate or does it taste kind of fake? Nooot a white chocolate fan. Too sweet. How would you react if you just found out your mom had an abortion before? I would be VERY surprised just given who she is and her adoration for children. Are your pets spayed/neutered? Yes. Hottest guy you know and actually talk to? I don’t regularly talk to any guy I consider “hot,” but the closest to that would be my friend Leon, whom I’ve always seen as very attractive. It is fucking UNCANNY, his resemblance to Leon Kennedy from the Resident Evil series. Like he’s dressed as him before and it is astonishing. Name sharing is a coincidence, too. What time of day do you like to shower? I don’t have a favored time anymore. I just do it when I feel like it at some point during the day, but pretty much never night anymore. I do think starting the morning with one though is great, though. When you go out to eat, what sides do your order with your food? Fries are almost guaranteed, but of course it depends on the type of food, too. What do you spend more money than necessary on? I don’t and never have had a stable source of income to answer this, really. What video game or computer game are you best at? Uhhh I’d probably be rusty with the Shadow of the Colossus controls by now, I’ve don’t have the maps or every puzzles memorized from the Silent Hill games, so I guess my answer’s World of Warcraft if I’m on my hunter. Not to flex but I’m a bomb-ass beast mastery hunter. Been my main in the game since I started in MoP. What do you keep your keys on? They’re in my purse on a keychain. Is your favorite color different than your favorite color to wear? Oh yeah. Do you buy books or get them from the library? Buy them. What section of the food pyramid do you neglect the most? Veggies for sure. What do you use your stovetop for most? Well, I don’t ever. Can you focus on studying if there's music on? No, I need silence. In what types of situations do you demand absolute silence? Well, see the above answer, for one. Also going to sleep. Well, maybe not, as I have a fan as kinda like white noise, but I can sleep without it. Did you do well at fitness testing in grade school? I didn’t score bad, but I wasn’t exceptional either. Do you own more shoes or less shoes than the average person? Less, I’m sure. Do you still have anything from when you were a baby? Yeah, up in the attic. I think my mom has some stuff that’s super important to her in a case somewhere. Do you use hairspray much? I never do. Are art museums interesting or boring to you? I enjoy them. What subject in school do you feel is the least necessary? Well, this is a difficult question to answer when you consider I think depending on your career focus as well as personal values and interests, this answer changes from person to person. Like for me, I could say I don’t give a shit about complex math, but advanced math courses would be valued by certain people down specific paths. But anyway, I’ll bite and say least necessary for *the most* people, in my opinion anyway. Gym. It’s very discriminatory towards people with more limited physical capabilities (and I don’t just mean literally disabled), and it’s also just very uncomfortable and/or embarrassing to some people. Like I’d fuckin cry if in my current state, I was forced to “run” a mile, because I physically couldn’t come even close. A person, a younger one especially, should never be subjected to humiliation at the hands of a class schools deem “necessary” when it absolutely is not. Okay I’m in a talkative mood and this is turning into an essay so I’mma move along now. When you were a kid, what games did you always play on the playground? I think for as long as I had recess, my go-to was ALWAYS the swings. I fucking loved swingsets. I loved playing 4 Square or whatever it was called. And then of course there was me digging tunnels in the sandboxes because I wanted to feel like a meerkat lmfao. Do you enjoy power outages or do you get annoyed? For some reason, I still have this childlike excitement *early* into a power outage. Especially when it’s dark and we have to get out the candles, and I might play my old GameBoy or Nintendo DS, or I’ll probably just chill talking with Mom. However, that phase is pretty short nowadays, being a snake mama. My mind very quickly goes back to “Venus needs her lamp,” so as time passes, I get more anxious than annoyed. Basically, I’d rather not have one. Do you know how to use an ATM? … no lmao How about write a check? No. Are you pretty politically correct? To a degree I consider reasonable. Personally I find political correctness as having gone too far by now, but it’s certainly appropriate in some instances. What is one fashion trend you'll never understand? I… don’t really care to think much on this. Wear what makes you feel confident in yourself. There are things I think don’t look good, but they may look great to you, and it’s on your body, so guess whose opinion matters. What do you wear when you exercise? Oh yeesh. Just sweatpants and a tank top, normally. What is usually the last thing you do before you go to bed? I turn the brightness on my phone waaay down. I’m always going to wake up throughout the night and check the time, but I don’t want to be blinded.

[taexual]

HOLIC - 30 | jb x reader

pairing: Im Jaebum x Reader

genre: enemies to lovers au | roommate au

warnings: angsty fluff (my new favorite kind, apparently)

words: 3.6k

disclaimer: i do not own the gif, please let me know if it belongs to you, so i can give proper credit

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Each day after you’ve listened to Jaebum’s countless reminders and finally managed to compose the e-mails with your portfolios to send them to a few galleries around the country was more stressful than the previous one. You tried not to check your e-mail too obsessively but it was proving to be difficult and Jaebum, who was to blame for your newfound anxiety because he’d made you press the final button and send those e-mails, was now your only distraction.

He noticed your nervous expression each time the e-mail app wasn’t loading fast enough – because, of course, he’d notice these things about you – and he promptly suggested taking you out someplace that wasn’t home to get your mind – and his, too, though he tried to keep himself in check for your sake; he’s made you anxious about his music plenty of times already – off of this.

Now because both of you were mature adults who didn’t want to get drunk and then wake up early the next morning for work – obviously, what you didn’t want to deal with here wasn’t a hangover but rather the consequences of drinking alcohol with each other – Jaebum ended up taking you to the potentially least harmful place on the whole planet.

His favorite ice cream shop in his old neighborhood.

You had to bite the inside of your cheek to stop yourself from grinning when the two of you stopped outside of the old building and he introduced the store downstairs as a place where he’d come whenever he had stayed up drinking last night and needed something sweet, or when Mark was no longer willing to give him drinks on the house at his bar.

It felt special to be in a place that used to be a prominent part of his life and you were glad he took you here, but the butterflies nearly imploded inside of your stomach after he opened the door for you, allowing you to enter first, and one simple thought popped into your mind: this felt an awful lot like a date.

You tried to resist the impulses to smile and instead focused on Jaebum’s voice as he talked about the last time he’d been here with a group of friends after a night-out, and all of them have collectively agreed that ice cream was simply the best drunk food.

“Why didn’t you come here after that?” you asked him after the two of you sat down by the table next to the big, floor-to-ceiling window at the back of the store. It was sunny outside so you both found yourselves squinting at each other as you ate your ice cream.

“I moved,” Jaebum explained simply. “There was no need to go back here and, besides, it felt weird to return to a place that held so many memories after I’d set my mind on moving on. I thought it’d be a step back to come here again.”

The waffle cone you’ve brought to your mouth seemingly froze for just a second. You debated asking him if Suji lived nearby, too, but, eventually, decided against it. There was no point – you wouldn’t have learned anything new, just satisfied your curiosity which could honestly do with a little starving after you’ve gotten the answers to so many questions already.

“How does it feel to be back now?” you asked instead, focusing on the cold, sugary sensations in your mouth. The ice cream here really was good.

“Normal,” Jaebum replied, “which is surprising. I wondered what it’d be like to come back here and I feared it wouldn’t be the same and I’d be disappointed, or worse, I’d get overwhelmed with the memories and leave immediately, but, hey, the ice cream here is still good, the company is still good, so it’s… all good.”

You smiled at this. “Have you considered finding a new ice cream spot to eat in after getting drunk?”

“Mark won’t let me,” he said, making you snicker. “He used to come here with me and the rest of the guys but then he got that job at the bar – he’s, basically, a manager there by now – and now he insists we eat there. And, you know, when you’re eating in a bar—”

“—you end up drinking even more,” you finished knowingly. “Yes and that’s how alcoholism develops.”

“I’m sure that’s Mark’s end-game for us all,” Jaebum sighed. “Be careful. You’re one of us now.”

You tried to hide your smile behind your ice cream cone but it was probably still obvious in the way your entire face lit up when he said this. One of us meant he didn’t have – or tried not to have – any problems with you being friends with his friends anymore. It meant you’ve truly reached a new period in your relationship with each other, hopefully having buried all of the insecurities-turned-obstacles on your way here.

“I think I’m good,” you said, hoping that Jaebum will consider your wide grin as a manifestation of simple happiness instead of figuring out just how much hearing this meant to you. “I don’t drink that often anyway.”

“What constitutes as ‘often’ for you?” he asked, curious. “Sure, I’ve only seen you drunk a handful of times since we started to live together so you may not have a problem right now, but wait a couple of months. Mark and I are a horrible influence.”

You were laughing as he said this. “Mark? No way, he’s such a sweet guy! You, on the other hand…”

“Me?” Jaebum raised his eyebrows, mock-offense decorating his features. “I am the absolute epitome of the perfect child! My mom always said that any mother would be lucky to have a son like me.”

“Oh, that’s nice,” you replied, actually pausing for a second because that was nice, but then continuing anyway because teasing him has become your favorite hobby, “except, see, all mothers say that to their children.”

“I hope you’re not calling my mother a liar.”

“I’d never! I’m sure she’s a wonderful lady,” you replied, “so, I really don’t know where you get your attitude from.”

“Hey, watch it,” Jaebum warned you, the playful glint in his eyes mirroring the one in yours. “I’m paying for your ice cream but I might change my mind if you keep at it.”

Taking a bite of the waffle cone, you gave him a mischievous smile. “Why? Can’t handle a little roast?”

“That’s not a roast,” he said. “That’s slander.”

You laughed. “Slander means it’s not true and we both know that everything I’ve said is—”

“Here’s your check,” a female voice cut you off and you both raised your heads to look at the waitress that had stopped by your table, a metal tray with a check on it in her hands.

The waitress gave Jaebum a smile – and, to make her intentions even more obvious, she didn’t even bother to look at you – and then turned around to walk away. She was very pretty so you couldn’t help but follow her with your eyes as she returned to the register, but, when you turned back to Jaebum, you’d found out that he hadn’t done the same. He was watching you.

“I—” he started to say but then he picked up the check instead. “In all the times that I’ve been here, they’ve never brought the check over. I always had to pay at the register.”

“Hmm,” that didn’t surprise you. The sudden rapid beating of your heart, however, did. “Maybe she liked you.”

Jaebum almost scoffed. “No, I don’t think so.”

You couldn’t see why not – especially not after you glanced over at the cash register and caught the waitress still watching Jaebum – but you tried to continue to eat your ice cream as nonchalantly as it was possible while your chest proceeded to fill with surprising amounts of bitterness and—yeah, let’s be honest—jealousy.

“When I was a waitress, I also used to bring the check over to the table myself,” you admitted, “if I found the guys there attractive.”

Jaebum seemed surprised to hear this.

“Wow,” he said, his eyebrows raised. “I never pegged you for someone who’d do that.”

“I was lonely,” you shrugged, not proud of your choices from back in the day but not exactly ashamed of them, either, knowing that nothing you’ve done had any long-lasting consequences. “Desperate times call for desperate measures.”

“It’s not desperate,” he disagreed, not trying to put you down for anything. Honesty was a virtue for him, though, so he found himself adding, “it’s just… kind of unfair for the other people that you didn’t find attractive.”

“It is, yeah,” you agreed and then sighed somewhat wistfully. It was so easy to romanticize memories, making it seem as though certain periods of your life were far more glorious than they actually were and you were guilty of doing that. Whenever you looked back at your days it college, it just seemed like a simpler time even though you knew that wasn’t true. “Oh, but, to make it fair, that method never worked out. I never got asked out by any of those guys.”

Jaebum leaned back in his chair, even more surprised by this confession. Clearing his throat, he finished his own waffle cone and then grabbed a napkin from the table between you.

“Okay,” he said once he’d finished wiping the corners of his mouth. “I might believe that you were eager enough to hit on guys by bringing their checks to them but I will never believe that not a single one of them asked you out.”

His words were like a sudden match, lighting you on fire and dragging you out of the fountain of nostalgia that you’ve caught yourself bathing in.

“I’m serious,” you said, your face very warm all of a sudden. “Must have been the planets aligning themselves to restore the balance of fairness because I gave certain people the special treatment.”

“Were there a lot of certain people?” Jaebum wondered, a small smile tugging at his lips.

You were unsure why he’d ask you this. “No, I wouldn’t say so. Why? Is there a limit as to how many people a waitress can hit on? Because they didn’t fire me so I must have not reached it—”

“No, no, I was just curious how many guys there were who had no taste at all.”

Frowning lightly, you asked, “what do you mean?”

Jaebum shrugged his shoulders, toying with the check. He didn’t particularly like it when you didn’t understand his subtle flirting and he had to explain himself in more obvious terms but he’d have hated it more if he didn’t get his point across.

“Well, they haven’t taken the chance of asking you out, so, you know,” he said, “they have no standards. Or a horrible, horrible taste.”

You were going to die right then and there, you were sure of it. He was going to kill you.

“Well, are you going to ask her out?” you tried asking to redirect the attention from your flustered state to the waitress who’d approached you before. “She’s beautiful.”

“No, I’m, uh…” Jaebum was the one who looked down this time. “I’m actually not interested in that.”

“In that?”

Although your mind may not have quite understood his words, your soul seemed to know exactly what he was talking about as your heart – that was in the process of melting – suddenly focused on anxious beating instead. Even the butterflies inside of you settled down to listen, weighing heavily on your stomach.

“Well, you know,” he waved his hands around as if that explained it, “in dating her. In dating any other girl. I don’t want that.”

He looked at you when he said the last few words – somehow, hopeful that you’ll catch what he was really trying to convey without having to explain himself yet again – but you remained frozen in your seat, the ice cream now starting to melt inside of the cone.

“Oh,” you uttered and then, to hide the obvious disappointment in your tone, tried to cough. “Okay. Well, anyway—”

“Jaebum?”

The two of you were interrupted once again only, this time, right before you turned your head in the direction of the voice – it was coming from behind you – you caught sight of Jaebum’s eyes widening in surprise. He didn’t look quite as alarmed as he had when he’d thought Suji had rung his doorbell that one time – his skin had passed pale, and gone straight to translucent back then – but he didn’t look very pleased, either.

There was a—very pretty—girl, smiling at him from across the room. When his eyes landed on hers, she started to approach your table. He hadn’t indicated for her to come over but she was doing it anyway because, apparently, your table had suddenly turned into a hotspot for beautiful women.

Not that Jaebum wanted to date any of them because, as it turned out, he wasn’t interested in dating anyone. Funny.

“Wow,” the girl spoke after having stopped next to you. Her eyes were on Jaebum. “I never thought I’d see you here again.”

“I didn’t think I’d come back,” Jaebum replied, his eyes nervously drifting to you as you tried to let go of his previous confession and make sense of what was happening right now. The girl must have been one of his old friends but he looked awfully uncomfortable in her presence.

You busied yourself with finishing your ice cream and then reached for a napkin, successfully hiding yourself from the almost penetrating gaze of the girl next to you as her eyes landed on you.

“Who’s your friend?” she asked Jaebum. “I don’t think we’ve met.”

He didn’t like the question – frankly, you didn’t either; she could have asked you directly instead of treating you like you weren’t there – and you felt him reach over the table and place one of his hands on yours in a completely uncharacteristic manner. You nearly flinched and pulled away but, after noticing the determination in his eyes, you remained frozen instead, his hand resting on yours.

“This is my roommate,” Jaebum told the girl, giving her a meaningful look.

Her eyes were on your hands as a knowing smile spread across her face. “Oh, so this is her!”

She said it as if she’d heard about you before and you dared to raise your head to give her a good look. You were certain you’ve never seen the girl before – let alone heard anyone even describe her – and yet you saw recognition in her eyes. She did know you. Or, at least, she knew of you.

You weren’t sure if you should have said anything – she didn’t ask for your name or even bothered to introduce herself, after all – so you decided to just let their conversation play out and stayed quiet instead, allowing Jaebum to keep in control of the situation.

“Yeah,” he cleared his throat, his hand still on yours. “It is… her.”

“Well, it was very nice to see you again,” the girl said, more awkward now. She must have started to notice the unwelcome tone in Jaebum’s voice. “You should stop by here more often. We’ve missed you. And… we would all love to get to know your, uh, roommate.”

Jaebum wasn’t even trying to be pleasant as he dropped a very unenthusiastic, “I’m busy.”

“Of course,” she was clearly expecting to hear that. “Well, if you change your mind, give me – or any one of us – a call. I’m sure Suji would be ecstatic to see you again, too.”

You didn’t think it was possible for two people to flinch at the exact same time but it almost seemed as though an electric current had suddenly run through your body and straight into Jaebum’s – or, maybe, it was the other way around – as both of your gazes widened. Yours because you weren’t expecting Jaebum’s old friend group to include his old girlfriend – although, that made sense, knowing how in control of his life she was – and his because he wasn’t expecting this girl to be so obvious about her intentions, even though he should have probably expected her to bring Suji into this after she saw him take your hand.

“It’s good to see you, Jaebum,” the girl said after Jaebum didn’t respond to her previous statement.

Not removing his eyes from yours, he merely nodded in acknowledgment. “Cassie.”

The girl left you alone without another word – although she did hesitate which could have meant that she’d have loved to stick around for longer – and you let another moment pass before you dared to turn around. She was standing by the cash register, paying for three cones of ice cream. You turned back around as soon as you saw her glance back at you.

Both you and Jaebum waited until she left the store before finally speaking again.

“So…” you started, unsure where to begin.

Jaebum removed his hand from yours and used it to pinch the bridge of his nose instead. “Yeah. I didn’t think—I thought coming here during the day would save me from running into anyone I knew.”

“Was she one of your friends?” you decided to inquire first and foremost.

Jaebum nodded and then added, “well, more Suji’s than mine, I guess. I knew Cassie from university – she was a year above me. She was my coordinator—well, not just mine, but—anyway. Mark had a crush on her at one point so we hung out a lot in less official settings and became friends, I guess. Cassie is, uh—s-she’s the one that introduced Suji to me.”

As you looked down at your hand, still palm down on the table between you, you realized that this explained the unexpected hand-holding. He was looking for a way to prove that he’d moved on.

“I see,” you said awkwardly. “She seemed awfully eager to reunite with you.”

“Right,” he scoffed, “that’s not happening. That whole thing is over. When I tried to escape Suji,” he continued and you’d have judged his choice of wording if you hadn’t known what Suji was like, “I also ended up escaping half of my friends.”

“Well, if they didn’t stick with you, are they really your friends?”

Jaebum removed his hand from his face, giving you a nod. “I know. That’s why I never even considered reuniting with them. Although, it did seem childish at first. It felt like I was holding a grudge against them because they took Suji’s side after our initial break-up but… they were never really on my side per se, to begin with.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

“No, it’s not,” you disagreed, angry about this on his behalf. “This is the place where you’d created so many memories. It’s not fine that Suji took them away from you. It’s not fine that you can’t come back here without running into any of the people that had pretended to be your friends for all of these years. It’s—it’s not fine, Jaebum. And I’m sorry.”

His heart – that had been hammering in his chest ever since Cassie came over to your table – finally seemed to calm down.

“It’s fine,” he said again, “because I'm not here alone.”

You swallowed, blinking slowly. “I would love to meet the other half of your friends. The real ones. The ones who stayed with you.”

This touched him even more as he nodded with no hesitation whatsoever. “You will. They will love you.”

He didn’t add anything else but this already meant so much. After having been left alone by nearly all of his friends, he was showing more and more willingness to finally trust someone new. He was finally ready to return to the places that had meant so much to him and create new memories – memories that he trusted not to become false in the long run.

And you were beyond confused.

He’d held your hand – which was a way to show Cassie that he couldn’t have cared less about Suji, no doubt – even though he was the kind of person who didn’t really care about what the others were saying – unless it was about his music, of course. But, you could find explanations to that. Cassie was Suji’s friend, it was likely that she was going to report all that she’d seen today back to her and Jaebum took precautions to make sure Suji didn’t try to come back into his life again. These precautions weren’t particularly unpleasant – you certainly didn’t mind Jaebum holding your hand or people assuming that you were together – but the confusion caused by his earlier confession was. It made your stomach churn all the way back to your apartment.

You just didn’t get it. He said he wasn’t interested in dating and yet you and him were doing almost everything a couple who was dating would do, except without the label. You knew he’d dated Suji and it didn’t end well – and you weren’t trying to be dismissive of all the emotional trauma caused by that relationship and all that had come after – but you had genuinely thought that he had moved on. He’d finally cut his ties with her, once and for all. He’d showcased signs of actually having feelings for you and even admitted that he’d actually thought you and him could have dated when you first met at the bar. Hell, he’d even kissed you on several occasions.

But he wasn’t interested in dating and, even though you knew that the current state of your friendship with Jaebum had its lines blurred by how far the two of you had gone with each other, you were suddenly even more confused about what you were doing. Was he just taking the chance – since you lived with each other – and doing whatever he wanted without worrying about any official statuses because he didn’t think this was a permanent thing? But then, if that’s the case, why did he say all of those things – why admit he’d thought of starting a relationship with you when you met? Why admit he’d been afraid you’d rip his heart out if he put it on the line?

Perhaps you were stupid for believing everything he’d told you – he was basically writing songs for a living, after all – but some of his statements didn’t coincide with the other ones, and you were simply—and yet, unexplainably—confused.

Meanwhile, Jaebum, as he walked next to you back to your apartment, noticed the clouded expression on your face and was able to realize that he was to blame for it. It was very obviously something that he’d said but he wasn’t sure what. He debated if holding your hand in front of Cassie was the right thing to do because that could have lead you to believe that he was hoping to make Suji jealous to get a reaction out of her when that couldn’t have been further from the truth. He just didn’t want to see her again and, alright, a small, very bitter part of him wanted to spite her -- he wanted her to know that he was happy without her.

But Jaebum wanted to believe that you understood that. That you believed he didn’t care about Suji anymore. So, it must have been something else that had brought upon your change in demeanor.

You didn’t understand what had happened there at the store and he didn’t, either because, after having learned how similar you were to each other, you could have never imagined you’d be able to misinterpret each other’s words in a way that put a pause on your developing—or… regressing—relationship.

    chapter directory

[of-thoughts-and-phobias]

Part Two: Realization

Sorry for the long wait! My phone broke, deleted everything, and now the new phone I got deleted the art I was working on. So no art for this chapter sorry.

A big thank you to my good friend @tinykitty252 for editing this!

Sean woke up on the floor beside his bed with the worst hangover ever. Was it even a hangover? Did he drink at all last night? What was his name again?

Red and green swirled through his vision, which made it hard to focus on anything.

"Ughh,hu" he sat up shaking his head, hoping to wipe away the pain. Nope, nope. Bad idea. Sean shot up and ran into the bathroom, before promptly throwing up in the toilet.

"Best way to start the morning," he thought spitefully, rubbing at his mouth.

He shuffled to the kitchen and filled a semi clean glass with water to wash out the sour taste in his mouth. Afterwards, he put a pot of coffee on and threw a few pieces of bread in the toaster. He downed another swig of water along with a pepto bismol. He sat up on the counter, counting the seconds by the indicator light on the coffee maker. The toast soon popped up, quickly followed by a high pitched beeeeep, so he hopped off the counter and grabbed them both before migrating over to the couch.

There was a wet squelch under his feet which made him jump a bit. It was his hoodie, tossed haphazardly on the floor the night before. 'Oh right,' he thought as he remembered the freak storm that came out of nowhere.

Next to his jacket was his phone. He picked it up and examined it; there was a sizable crack in the protector but that was easily replaceable. Sean switched it on and almost dropped it again.

"4:50??!" He'd missed both uploads! "Great. Just friggin fantastic," he groaned, swigging some coffee from the pot. He pulled up his Twitter to post a quick apology to his fans, and then speeding into his bedroom to get ready for the day.

Now feeling slightly less dead, Sean downed the rest of the coffee and set the pot in the sink to be washed later. He then headed to his recording room to at least get some work done. Camera up? Check. Game up and loaded? Sweet. Alright. In and out, Sean.

In.

And out.

"Okay and a 3, 2, 1 GO!"

As he worked, Sean could feel the tension start to leave his body and he found it easier to breathe.The pounding in his skull calmed down considerably and little by little, his strength started returning to him. Before he knew it, he had finished filming four whole videos! And that wasn't even counting the two that he'd uploaded earlier!

Sean sat back with a sigh. He checked his watch to find it was 9:45. "Some work, eh?"

His stomach started rumbling. He never did eat that toast, he remembered. He went to the kitchen and opened the fridge and good lord when was the last time he went shopping? Let's see here, peanut butter, m&m's, a half empty jar of pickles and what he hoped was a peach. Now, Sean didn't really feel like making a nightmare sandwich and having it exist so once more, he grabbed his keys and went out.

The roads were still wet despite not raining at all that day and the sky was clear for the first time in a while. A few stars were visible against the stark blue sky. The whole street was painted blue and it seemed that the only colors came from inside the shops.

Sean waited for a car to pass before running to the other side. He walked for a bit more until he arrived at a little, run down establishment. Best pizza in the neighborhood if you asked him. The door let out a pleasant chime as he entered and the smell of fresh baked bread welcomed him in.

"Heya Sean!" The guy behind the counter greeted.

"Hey Bruce," he greeted back.

"The usual?"

"Yeah but could you make it a large?"

"No problem."

"Thanks Bruce."

As he gave him the money, Bruce jumped back, flustered.

"Sorry man, y'kinda shocked me there," he said, grabbing the money from the floor.

"Did I? Huh, sorry."

"Don't worry about it," the tall man said, picking up the change he'd dropped. "Here's your receipt."

‘Huh, that was weird,’ he thought as he sat down. He rubbed at his wrists as he waited for his food.

Sean found himself awfully anxious but he wasn't quite sure why. His legs were bouncing, his fingers drumming on the table, his eyes darting to every little thing that twitched. The nervous looking man in the blue sweater had stopped to check his watch every thirty two seconds, poor dude. The barking of a dog a few blocks away followed by disgruntled shouts. He could clearly hear the lyrics from the music coming from one of the nearby apartments. He could perfectly see the wings of a fly circling one of the dangling lights. The lights. Why did they hurt? He was overwhelmed by just how loud everything was. The talking, the laughing, the dinging of the door, the colors, the lights. Why were they so loud?

"Sean!"

Everything stopped. He looked up to see a very concerned looking Bruce holding a fresh pie. Everyone in the restaurant seemed to be looking at them.

"Are you okay?"

Was he?

"Um yeah, m'fine. Haven't really eaten today, heh."

That didn't really ease his nerves but Bruce thought it best to not push it, so he placed the pie on the table and went back to the kitchen.

"T-thank you!" Sean yelled and he was answered by a mock salute.

It felt nice actually having food inside him and somehow Sean managed to eat the whole thing in about twenty minutes.

"You forget to breathe or somethin?" Bruce huffed as he came over to pick up the tray.

Sean chuckled "Absolutely. Nah, I just forgot lunch today."

"Whatever, goodnight Sean."

"Night Bruce."

Sean left the pizzeria with a full stomach and a ding from the door. Congratulations, he thought, you're a human being. Why'd he have to live so far away? If he had to walk any farther, he'd probably have to learn how to drive. ‘At least it wasn't raining this time,’ he mused.

A high pitched piercing noise came from nowhere and hit Sean like a punch to the face.

"Gah!!" He pawed at his eyes. What the-

"Sean.. McLaughlin?"

"Who's there?" He cried, still clawing at his face.

"William McLaughlin?"

"Do I know you?"

He could vaguely see two figures down the alley coming closer to him. A man and a woman by the looks of it. They were moving oddly, like they had no choice. Soon they stopped right in front of him.

"Sean.. William McLaughlin?" Okay now they were starting to freak him out.

"Yes! That's me! I swear if you guys say you're fans I wi-"

The man suddenly lunged at him, pulling him deeper into the backstreets, the woman standing directly behind him, blocking the way out.

"Hey! What're you doing? Let go of me, let go!" The man's grip did not budge. He continued to limp farther down the dark road. Sean started to panic, breaking his fists up and pounding against the man's chest. That did nothing to slow him down, but he kept trying.

"Let me go," He felt his hair rising on the back of his neck and his fingers start to tingle.

"Do you understand me ya fathead? I said " He raised up his fist.

"Let go of me!"

He clocked him right in the face, sending him across the street. "Woah what?"

He looked down at his hands. Blazing green mist flowed around his hands with his veins shining through his skin. What's happening to him? Oh no. Is he dying? Was the pizza radioactive? Was he drunk? What is happening?

The woman clumsily but determinedly ran towards him. Right. Now's not the right time for a break down, Sean. She reached out to grab him. But, grabbing her first, he pushed her away. She sprung back and grabbed him by the neck and pinned him down. The light from the passing cars rapidly illuminated her face. There was something definitely wrong with her, Sean could tell right away, but at the moment he was more focused on not dying than on the woman trying to kill him.

He put all of his strength into throwing her off. How was she so strong? She looked like she hasn't eaten in weeks!

"Ahh!" He yelled, reeling back.

"AAAGHHHH!!" Then everything went white.

When he came to, she was off of him and was trying to get back up. He looked around for the other one, taking note of his surroundings. For one thing, everything was on fire. Did he do that? Trash cans and discarded items were blazing and the water on the ground was steaming. The man from earlier had recovered and was slowly making his way across the street.

Sean ran to the back of the alley, only to be greeted by a ten foot fence. He was trapped.

Well, he thought, I hope these zombies are up for round two. They both jumped at him but he dodged under them. The man swung at him but he easily side stepped it. The man kicked his knee and sent him down, where the woman held down his legs.

"No!" He yelled.

The man wrapped his arms around his waist and started to pick him up.

"No! No no no n̷o̸ N̵̛̿O̴̻̎ ̵͚͝Ñ̸͊Ŏ̵̆ ̷͍̀N̸̈̄O̵͋̇!̵͓͆" power surged through him, burning him out of their grip. He felt like he was being torn apart. He screamed out in pain while they just watched in what could only be seen as confusion.

The street was alive with electricity, bolts of green lighting dancing across the walls. Glass from the nearby windows shattered and the ground below them started rumbling. And Sean was right in the middle of it.

"A̶̅̔ A̴̘̋ A̴̢͆ Ȁ̸̉ Ạ̵͝ Ğ̶͝ H̴͚͝ H̸̏̿ Ĥ̵̤ H̴̓̄ H̵͋̉!!"

They tried to get to him but the pure power surrounding the Irishman wouldn't allow them to come closer. And then.. Just as abruptly as it started

It was over.

The rumbling had ceased, the street had stopped hissing and it was dark once more.

The couple stood unfazed as the fires around them dwindled down into nothing as they looked down at the place where Sean William McLaughlin once laid.

Cold, brisk air rushed all around him, jostling him awake. He felt like he was floating on air. He opened his eyes and saw.. stars? Wasn't he in an alley?

A large rumbling thing whizzed underneath him.

It couldn't be.

'British Airways' was written in dark bold lettering along the body of the plane.

Those weren't stars. They were buildings.

"HOLY-" he was cut off by the plane shooting passed him, practically blowing out his eardrums.

"AHHHH"

Focus. How did this even happen? Last he checked, he was in the middle of being kidnapped!

He felt queasy, which was understandable considering the situation. The wind tugged at his face, pulling tears out of his eyes. This was it, he realized.

He held his arms out in front of him, ready to accept his fate when he noticed something odd. His arms were still glowing slightly, the burning green mist streaming behind him. Great, he still had some of that radiation left. Huh, that was a sentence he never thought he would say.

He focused on the burning sensation in his chest, drawing all of his power to his core. He felt worn out and overtaxed but he wouldn't be feeling anything if he'd just focus!

He thought of home.The nest of blankets on the couch, his recording room, the kitchen. The coffee pot he hadn't washed. Power flooded all throughout him. He recalled him and some friends playing on his Playstation when he first moved in. The God awful curtains he still hadn't gotten around to changing. The elevator that will probably never be fixed.

His apartment. His home.

He closed his eyes and dreamt. And it h̷u̶r̴t̷.

Pure, raw force circulated through his body, pulling it out of the sky and back to the earth.

Around thirty feet outside the complex, an old man was taking out the trash to the dumpsters. It was a pretty uneventful day if he were honest. Nothing really happens around here anymore. He sighed. The street lamps behind him started to flicker. He opened the lid to throw the bags in when a large blast suddenly came from the building across the lane. Emerald sparks shot up from a trash bin, followed by smoke.

There was coughing and wheezing coming from the bin, and it shook with every noise. A hand, followed by another came out the trash, accompanied by the rest of the man. He hopped out the dumpster and immediately keeled over.

He gasped "Young man!"

He didn't respond.

"You! On the ground! Is everything alright?!"

A moment passed.

".. Yeah," he wheezed "s'bad day."

"Better go home while there's still light."

"Thanks.."

Sean waited until he heard the door shut. Then he groggily got to his feet. Through shaking eyes, he saw the familiar glow from his apartment building across the street. He sighed with relief and started crying.

Close enough.

@septilover3 @cookiethedevil @obsidiancreates @reverseblackholeofwords @the-editor-is-bored @ytcoma @caori-azarath @alexis

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[spockuhurashipper]

“A Risk Worth Taking” - Chapter 12 - Hank Voight/OC Fan Fiction

Previous chapters on tumblr and fanfiction.net (here).

Let me know your thoughts! :)  

Chapter 12

A few weeks later, Hank was sitting in his office finishing up a case report when his phone rang. Glad for a distraction from his least favorite part of the job, he answered it without looking at the caller ID.

“Voight.”

“Hey Hank.”

At the sound of Erin Lindsay’s voice, Hank couldn’t help but smile.

“Erin. How are you? It’s good to hear your voice.

“You too. I’m sorry I haven’t called in a while, I…”

“Don’t worry about it.” Hank interrupted, “I know you’re a big shot FBI agent now.”

Erin laughed. “Yeah, yeah.”

“Listen, my boss says I can have a few days off for Christmas so… is my old room still available?”

Hank leaned back in his chair, smiling from ear to ear.

“Absolutely, kid. When do you land? I’ll pick you up from the airport.”

“Not sure yet but I’ll let you know.” Erin told him.

“Alright.” Hank said, then he added, “There’s someone I want you to meet while you’re here.”

There was a beat of silence.

“Who am I meeting?” Erin asked, intrigued.

“Layla Martin. She works in IT for the department, and she’s Cindy Herrmann’s sister. We’re…” Hank tried to think of the right word but all he could come up with was, “...dating.”

Erin made a sound of surprise.

“Wow. That’s great, Hank. I can’t wait to meet her.”

Hank could hear some noise in the background.

“Hank, I gotta go. I’ll let you know about my flight. See you soon.”

After he hung up the phone, Hank looked around his office and reflected on the changes in his life over the past year. He’d gone to a dark place after Erin left and Al was killed. Finally, and mostly thanks to Layla’s presence in his life, he was finally coming out of that darkness.

Hank hurriedly finished his report and decided he was going to head home. Layla was supposed to come over after visiting her sister and he was going to be waiting to tell her just how much she meant to him.

------

While Hank was working late, Layla sat in her sister’s kitchen, rolling out cookie dough for homemade Christmas cookies.

“Remind me why I volunteered to help with this again?”

Layla asked, swiping her hair out of her face and leaving a trail of flour across her forehead.

Cindy laughed and transferred a cookie sheet from the oven to a cooling rack.

“Because you are such a loving sister.” Cindy smiled sweetly.

Cindy had recruited Layla to help bake 12 dozen cookies for the church’s nativity play and reception.

“Right.” Layla said, grabbing a cookie cutter to start on her next batch.

As the women continued baking, Layla’s phone buzzed on the counter. Her sister watched as Layla read the text and smiled.

“Hmmhmm, and will Hank be joining us for Christmas dinner this year?”

“We haven’t really talked about Christmas plans yet.” Layla replied. They’d both been so busy they hadn’t gotten around to it yet.

Cindy looked up at her sister, eyes twinkling, and said, “Well, you’re going to be here so I have a feeling he will want to be here too.”

Layla smiled and said, “I’ll talk to him tonight. I’m headed to his place when I leave here anyway.”

Layla finished placing her cookies on the cookie sheet and loaded the last batch into the oven. Chris walked in as soon as the oven door closed and said, “Alright, what’s the gossip ladies? I hear you in hear whispering.”

Cindy, who was busy washing dishes, said, “If by whispering you mean talking normally, then yes we were.”

Chris grabbed a cookie when Cindy wasn’t looking and motioned to Layla to keep quiet.

“Actually, Christopher, I was telling Layla that Hank is invited to Christmas dinner.”

Chris grimaced. “When I think of Hank Voight I don’t really picture Christmas cheer.”

Cindy shot her husband a reprimanding look and he quickly added, “But, he did help out Severide a while back so I’ll allow it.”

“You’ll allow it?”

Chris quickly corrected and turned to Layla, saying, “I mean, we’d love to have him.” As Chris retreated into the living room, he shouted, “The more the merrier, that's what I always say!”

After her husband was gone, Cindy said, “You guys are getting pretty serious then, huh?”

Layla smiled to herself. “Yeah, I guess we are.”

Cindy smiled and said, “It’s nice to see you so happy.”

About that time, Annabelle walked into the kitchen holding a teddy bear.

“Young lady, I thought I put you to bed?” Cindy asked her sleepy-eyed daughter.

“I know, mommy, but I want Aunt Layla to read me a bedtime story.”

Layla turned to her niece and laughed when she saw her bottom lip poked out. She was milking it.

“She is good, Cin, you have to admit.” Layla said to her sister, then turned around and scooped up her niece in her arms, carrying her back to her room.

“Come on, sweetie. I’ll read to you.”

----

When Annabelle finally fell asleep, it was almost 9:00 PM and Layla was exhausted. She’d come straight from work and hadn’t really stopped going all day.

She said goodbye to her sister and headed out to her car.

As she waited for the engine to warm up and defrost the windshield, she texted Hank.

“Sorry. Bedtime story emergency. Still want me to come over?”

She watched the bubbles, indicating he was typing a response.

“Absolutely.”

Layla smiled at his response and put the car in drive, turning the radio from Christmas music to classic rock as she pulled out of Cindy’s neighborhood.

As Layla sang along to the song on the radio, she thought about Hank and what her sister said about them getting serious. They were serious. In fact, Layla was spending more nights at his place than at her apartment now. But neither of them had yet to say the words, “I love you.” It was a big step for both of them and Layla was afraid of saying it too soon. She was finally happy and she was afraid of rocking the boat.

Glancing in her rear view mirror, Layla realized that the black sedan behind her had been there ever since she’d left Cindy’s.

At first, she told herself it was just a coincidence that the car was going the same direction as her, but after making a few unnecessary turns, she was convinced she was being followed.

Trying to remain calm, Layla picked up her phone and called Hank.

“Hey, you almost here?” He answered.

“Hank, I think I’m being followed.”

Hank stood up from where he sat on his couch and walked into the entryway, grabbing his coat from its hook.

“What kind of car? Can you see the driver?”

“I can’t really see. It’s a black sedan, older model. Maybe a Ford? I think it’s been following me since I left Cindy’s house.”

The thought of someone hanging around Cindy’s house, with the kids there, made Layla scared and angry.

“Okay,” Hank said, getting into his car and turning on the blue lights, “Where exactly are you right now?”

As Layla told him where she was, Hank drove as quickly as he could. Due to the holiday season, there was more traffic than usual and Hank cursed more than once at drivers that wouldn’t move out of his way.

Layla stayed on the phone and kept driving, the sedan still tailing her.

Finally, Hank caught up, turning off his patrol lights before turning onto the street Layla was on. When Layla saw his SUV in her rearview, she let out the breath she’d been holding. She watched as he slipped into the lane behind the black sedan.

Using the radio in his truck, Layla heard Hank call in the license plate to dispatch. A moment later he got a response. “Sergeant, the plate is registered to Jerry Blackman. White male. 40 years old. No active warrants. Should we show you in pursuit?”

Now knowing who was following her, Layla felt sick. What exactly was his goal here? To scare her? It had worked.

Layla’s hands tightened on the steering wheel as she heard Hank respond to dispatch, “Negative, dispatch. Disregard plate information.”

Hank put his phone back to his ear.

“Layla, listen to me...” From spending time in Intelligence, Layla knew the tone in his voice. He was all business now.

“... I want you to drive to Precinct 21. Trudy is filling in on desk tonight. I’m going to call her and let her know to be out front waiting for you.”

“Got it. What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to follow this son of a bitch and make sure he never comes near you again.” Hank said, ending the call before Layla could say anything else.

Layla put her phone down and tightened her grip on the steering wheel.

When they got about three blocks from the precinct, Jerry must have realized what was going on and shot out of the lane, almost hitting an oncoming car. As he sped past Layla, she let out a shaky breath and pulled up in front of the precinct.

Immediately, Hank turned on his lights and sirens and took off after him, the roar of his engine almost drowning out Trudy, who said, “You okay?” as soon as Layla stepped out of the car.

Trudy led Layla into the vacant office at the bottom of the stairs and closed the door.

“Yeah. I’m fine.” Layla replied, but her shaking hands betrayed her nerves. Trudy smiled and said, “Let me go get you a cup of coffee.”

Layla nodded and Trudy started to open the door.

“Trudy?” Trudy stopped and turned back to face Layla.

“What is Hank going to do when he catches up with Jerry?”

Trudy pressed her lips together and her eyes flickered to window.

“Cream and sugar?” Trudy asked, ignoring her question.

Layla sighed, wondering if maybe it was better she didn’t know anyway.

“Yes, cream and sugar. Thanks.”

As Trudy left and closed the door behind her, Layla tried to ignore the fear she felt. Fear from being followed, fear from wondering what Hank was going to do and fear from wondering if Jerry was more of a threat than she’d originally thought. Clearly, if he was willing to go as far as to tail her car, she’d mis-judged him.

Trudy came back in with two coffees and gave one to Layla.

“Hank can take care of himself.” Trudy assured her, but Layla knew she’d be nervous until he walked back into Precinct 21.

---------

Hank followed Jerry to an old cabin on the edge of town. Jerry pulled into the driveway at a high rate of speed, swerving as the snow and slush caught his tires. Hank pulled in after him, throwing the car in park and jumping out as Jerry tried to run into the house.

“Jerry. Stop running!” Hank called out, loudly.

Jerry, in his haste to get away from Hank, slipped on a patch of ice and went down. Hank stalked over to where he was and put his foot on his back, keeping his face down in the snow.

Jerry, out of breath, started cursing at Hank.

“What the fuck, Voight? I wasn’t doing anything.”

Hank knelt down and drove his knee into Jerry’s shoulder. Then he leaned down and put his face close to Jerry’s ear.

“Listen to me, you son of a bitch. I don’t know what this obsession is that you have with Layla, but it ends now.”

Jerry tried to buck Hank off, but Hank added more pressure.

“All I was doing was trying to apologize for the misunderstanding we had at the mayor’s party. That’s all.”

“Maybe I’m not making myself clear.”

Hank pulled his gun out of it’s holster, placing the barrel of the gun against the back of Jerry’s skull. He stilled immediately.

“Turn in your resignation tomorrow and don’t ever come near Layla again.”

Jerry started to say something and Hank cocked his gun.

“Jerry. You’re not listening. Turn in your resignation tomorrow and get out of Layla’s life within 24 hours or I’ll be coming back here without this badge. Do you understand?”

When Jerry didn’t answer right away, Hank put more pressure on his shoulder and Jerry cried out in pain.

“I understand!”

Hank stayed there for a moment, letting the message sink in, before finally standing up and releasing Jerry.

As Hank walked back to his car, he holstered his gun and called out over his shoulder, “Don’t make me come back here, Jerry.”

[geekygoddesss]

Awkward days

Los Angeles was the kind of city that never failed to surprise me, that was something I haven’t stopped saying since the moment I got here just a couple months ago. Not only because this was a gigantic city, more than any place I have lived in before, but also because of the contrast that seemed to change drastically everywhere I go, It went from very fancy to very normal with every step I took and that was something that really caught my attention in an odd way, this was something that would never get old at all.

One good example of it was currently happening right now, how after receiving an unexpected call from my boss on a Friday afternoon, I had to walk all the way from my place (which is more than average) all the way to the nearest Panda Express (which was around one of the most touristic zones of LA) and then all the way to one of the fancy neighborhoods in the middle of the city, place where mortals like me weren’t exactly invited so easily and that made me feel weird from the moment I got here, that’s how weird the contrast was, I went from an overly normal place to somewhere totally off my league in a matter of hours and on foot.

Never in my wildest dreams, I would have thought I would have to one day come to this kind of place and get things done, even when my job required me to do so, it still felt a little unreal. Standing in front of this place felt weird.

I take a good minute to stare at the tall houses standing in one large rows in front of me. Extending along a beautiful neighbourhood and show up incredible gardens, just  by taking a simple look I knew I kind of wanted to live there, they looked like beautiful houses, but being real, they are way out of my league so the best thing I could do it's sit on that thought and enjoy the view.

I walk up to the front gate, just the thing that separates the neighborhood to the rest of the street and also the public eye, it was pretty obvious not anyone could come in here, so I could consider myself lucky that I got to at least take a peek inside this place. I look for the security guard who’s supposed to be in charge of not letting people in, but I see no one, just a bunch of button next to the gate and the numbers of all houses, I guess that made sense, otherwise, my boss wouldn't have told me the number at all.

I look at the numbers of the houses and quickly find the one I’ve been told to go and ring the bell. It goes on speaker right away, it rings once, twice, thrice, and keeps ringing, until one ring seems to cut off and a male voice with a slight accent answers the door. I wonder if there are cameras here, if he sees me, I hope not because I bet if he did, he wouldn’t even answer in the first place.

“Hi, Ashton” I say close to the little mic on the wall, not really knowing if I should get this close to it or not, I wasn’t used to ringing on people’s homes like this.

“Hey, Uh…” he says trying to remember the name, good thing he apparently recognizes my voice.

“(Y/n)” I complete.

“(Y/n) yes of course, hi” he says now In a more serious voice, I guess he did remember a little bit who I was “can I help you?”

I fail to find words for some reasons, I feel dumb, people with relevance made me more nervous than they should for some reason. I should just get over it already, I’m going to be working for them for a while, I might as well grow up and stop letting them get to me like this.

“Ben rang me and said you needed some papers from the office?” I say, my voice sounding insecure as I stared down at the bag in my opposite hand.  “He also said something about bringing lunch so” I struggle to say, doing my best to find the right thing to say but I end up just mumbling a quiet “yeah”

“Right” he says immediately after I finish  “Doors open” he announces. A loud beep sounds on the door beside me and I push it just a little, as an instinct, it opens easily, now I have access.

“Thanks” I mumble into the microphone and let myself inside.

From up close, these houses look a lot better than they do from a distance, no exaggeration, this neighborhood is beautiful. Gardens were colorful and kids played outside, music played in one of the many houses, creating a beautiful atmosphere around the place, it almost seemed like someplace you would see in movies and I was loving it.

It is not very hard to localize Ashton’s place, for some reason, I recognized his car right away when I saw it parked outside the house with the big tree in front of it and I knew, this was probably the one place I was supposed to go, so I run to it. The door was open, so I take the liberty to peek inside, I suppose this was the right place, I see a guitar right by the entrance and that’s how I know, I can come in.

“Wow” I sigh as I take a walk inside, taking a good look around my surroundings and taking in the thought that I am now standing in this place.

It felt wrong to be letting myself inside so easily, but at the same time, it felt better than just standing at the door like an idiot, since this is Ashton’s house clearly. I just hoped he didn’t think it was rude of me to enter his house so suddenly, but I’ve got an excuse and a very heavy a bag on my hand so I would take this as a perfect reason to get in.

I admire the house as soon as I step in, it was beautiful, really beautiful, more beautiful than I would expect the house of a rockstar to be,and I wish I could take a deeper look because it was a really nice place and felt worth to look at. I stand by the door, not really taking any other step further until I wait for him to come over, now that would feel rude if I had just walked in a way far than I was supposed to.

Thank god he doesn’t take that long.

Ashton comes in running from upstairs, he looks weird, good weird, but very different than before. He had some old shirt on, ripped in all the upper part of the shirt and stained with weird colors everywhere, I kind of wondered what it was, but I also wondered why is he even wearing something like that, I guess that’s the kind of things he wears at home now, doesn’t look bad at all if you asked me. There is a towel around his neck and his hair is messy, very messy, so I am guessing, he’s been busy enough.

“it’s a big place” I say with a shy tone, smiling at him when I catch his attention for the first time.

“Thanks” he says, smiling kindly at me “you can leave that over there” he said, walking past me and grabbing one of the bags in my hand, guiding me along the room and towards where he planned to leave all this.

“Alright” I mumble following him.

With every step I took, the house just seemed to grow bigger and better, more beautiful each time, I could fall in love with this place easily. He had a piano, instruments all around, beautiful decorations, Windows everywhere, plants, the plants were beautiful, I wonder what it feels like to live on a place like this, it must be a dream come true on its own.

We go straight to the kitchen, of course, it was really the only place to leave this. Oh, and The kitchen, just as I was expecting, dream kitchen, I couldn’t expect anything less from him.

“is it too much if I ask for some water? I just- I walked all the way here” I say, not being able to hold a big sigh coming out of my lips unintentionally. I was honestly so tired, I needed a drink of water right now before I could head back.

He looks back at me and nod his head “Oh yeah, for sure”

I silently thank him and leave the bags on the kitchen counter, figuring it’d be better if I just take this weight off me and set everything off so I could leave, because as much as I’d love to stay this place is still not meant for someone like me to stay for longer than needed.

He points at one of the chairs in front of the counter, telling me is okay if I take a sit so I do, that was nice of him, it’s nice to take a break. My mouth waters at the sight of the cold water pouring into that clear glass from the cup. I was getting really thirsty half way along the way, the only thing that really mattered at the second was to load up just a little before I could get going.

I mumble a small thank you, once again, when he passes the glass to me and I am immediately bringing it to my lips and swallowing down all the liquid in just matter of seconds, it was delicious, it felt good to finally be hydrated.

Ashton takes advantage of this moment and goes to take a look at the bag of goods I just bought, he smiles as he took out the plastic containers from there, I guess my choice with food was good after all, he looked happy to finally have some food ready for him to eat.

There was something off, something was a little weird here, I couldn’t put my finger on what it was that seemed so weird, but it just felt that way, I just wondered why. I take a good look at him and just try to look for what was so different that caught my attention so quickly, I get it, as soon as I detail it carefully my jaw falls open and I can’t help to hide my surprises look, I also can’t help but think how dumb I was to not notice he was looking so damn different, anyone could have noticed quicker than I did and still it took me a good minute to figure that out.

He had a haircut and it was totally different than it was before. I guess that explains the towel around his neck.

“What happened to you?” I ask, not controlling the words that come out of my mouth as soon as their out. I’m so dumb.

“Pardon?” He says, raising his look at me when he hears me talk, I don’t know if he is confused or really didn’t hear me, because I really didn’t mean to ask this so suddenly.

I stutter “Oh sorry, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be intrusive, I know it’s not my place, I just-“ I say, already getting up the sit in one nervous move “you look different”

He chuckles, laughing at me and shaking his head as he pointed up at his new hair cut “Oh yeah uh, this girl- my friend was trying this makeover thing and it’s going… crazy, yes that’s the word” he says with a bit of a nervous tone as he walked a little closer to me and mumbles “Between you and me, I don’t love it but it is what it is”

I chuckle, really finding funny that he thought that way of his new style If he asked, I thought it wasn’t bad, it's just weird that he did such a drastic change right now.  

“Then why do you do it?” I ask, crossing my hands over my chest as I took a step closer, just to see the look a little better.

“I don’t know” he said, walking up to the closest mirror he could find, taking a look at his reflection and teasing his hair up a little trying to make it look better. “I mean, it’s not bad, right?” He says, looking at me through the mirror for a second, before reflection on his question with a sigh “What am I saying? you probably don’t know about these things”

Oh well, excuse him. I actually did like to have an opinion on stylish things every once in a while, I wouldn’t say my taste in this kind of things is bad, but I definitely knew enough to say, he didn’t look that bad.

“Im not an expert but I would say I have some knowledge in this field” I shrug, walking up to him and standing behind him.

“Okay, fair enough” he says chuckling as he turned around “Thoughts?”

Being this close to him made me a little nervous, especially since he was facing me like this, it was fairly intimidating, especially since we didn’t really know each other that much and in my book, he was what could be considerate as a very handsome man. It was more than I could take.

“I like your hair pushed back” I say, a timid smile pecking from my lips  “like it was before was great but- Uh, Just”  I say trying to explain, but my words fail and I can’t help but let out a chuckle. I take a step forward, then a step back and before I can even notice, I am standing on the tips of my toes and mumbling a small “Let me” to then shamelessly run my hands over his precious hair.

I just do a couple of things, nothing life-changing or anything, I just try making it a little better. I run my fingers through his soft hair and push it back, as If I was combing it entirely until none of his hair was falling on his forehead and he looked a little more put together. I liked this look, I could see his face better, he looked more mature and professional, handsome, always handsome, that is for sure.

I take a step back once I am finished and without even saying a word, he is turning around and taking a look at himself in the mirror. His eyes inspecting my vision of his look carefully and nodding at his reflection.

“Oh” he says in a low voice, running his own fingers back on his hair and fixing it just a bit. He sighs deeply.  “wow, I haven’t had short hair in a while”

I smile, looking at him through the mirror “It doesn’t look bad” I say  “you look classy and handsome, you always do” I freezy, that was unexpected and I shouldn’t be saying that out loud  “I mean, You are really good looking, I mean” I stutter, closing my eyes, mentally slapping myself hard as I mumble “Whatever”

I open my eyes again, he is smiling at me through the mirror and chuckling. I wish I knew if that was a good or bad signal, but this was really embarrassing, I should be more careful with my words around this kind of people, when he is so damn popular and relevant and I am a no one, I had to be careful from saying stupid shit out of the blue.

“Yeah” he says, turning around and saying “thanks for lunch”

“Thanks for the water” I say right back and I take one step back nervously towards the exit  “I’ll be on my way now” I say, pointing at the door on my back and walking backward slowly. This visit had to be short and sweet and this was too long from my liking.

I turn around, walking myself to the door and away from my embarrassment as quickly as I can, but something stops me, he is saying my name and that immediately stops me in track, I wish it didn’t because being here was really making me feel nervous, I just hope he didn’t think I was dumb from getting so nervous out of the blue.

“Hey, Uh, (y/n)” he says, walking up to me before I could get out that door “Sorry for forgetting your name, won’t happen again”

I blush and shake my head, it was nonsense that he apologized. “It’s okay I don’t expect you to remember it anyways”

“Why not? You’re always around, it’s the least I can do”He says, shrugging, his hands flying to the pockets of his jeans “are you busy tomorrow?”

My eyes widen at the sudden question, without even realizing, I was leaning down just a little as If I had missed hearing anything and needed to catch up “What?” I ask, he repeats the question and now I am oddly confused “I-I-I”

“You should come by tomorrow” he says, in the middle of my stuttering and giving me a sweet smile  “No need to bring lunch this time, I could take care of that myself, but you could- come over and y’know… help me on stylish decisions” he says, chuckling at the end of his sentence and shrugging just a little.

“I’m an assistant” I said. That absolutely made no sense at all, one more time I slap myself for giving the more stupid questions in the least indicated moment.

“Then assist me on my wardrobe” he says, shaking his head as if he was just finding an excuse to invite me in “You know how to get here, I would like a second opinion on… other things” he says with a more logical explanation.

I was blushing hard right now, was he inviting me for lunch? at his place? Just to assist him on his wardrobe?. Now, this was definitely the weirdest thing that's happened so far, since I got to LA. It made it to the Top 10 in just a couple of minutes.

“Yeah” I say, accepting the invitation without asking too much.

he nods back, smiling at me a really sweet smile. His hand flying to the back of his neck, he scratches it just a little, he looked like he was fidgeting and I wonder why. “I’ve been meaning to ask for a while but you know, busy times” he said chuckling nervously.

I smile back to him, taking a deep breath and swallowing back my nervously, I already said yes, I might as well make it official. “I would love to” I mumble.

His eyes light up brightly as he asks “See you tomorrow then?”

“See you” I nod, walking back to the door and saying my goodbyes, I had to get out of here before my panic attack came in, because holy shit, Ashton Irwin just invited me in for lunch.

I step outside, try to act like a normal human being as I reach the very front door and step into the street, cursing hard with every step I take and freaking out on the inside.

Was this a dream? Did the hottest guy I have met in my life just invited me in for lunch?. I guess this is real, I am pinching myself right now and this seemed very much like real life, maybe this was my boss’s plan all along, calling me on my day off and have me bring lunch to him so he could step up and ask me out, knowing that I would probably say yes as soon as he said it out loud, but I would say yes to that at any moment. I mean, he is the Ashton Irwin, who could anyone say no to that?.

My feelings were a mess, I was happy, nervous, excited, afraid, but in between all my feeling, there was a little hope inside of me, I was grateful for this, I really was. Ashton is a good guy and I hope that after whatever this was, I hope that he sees the good in me and saves it in his heart.

[rogers-sweatbands]

Where I Want to Be: Chapter 2

A Ben Hardy!Roger Taylor/Joe Mazzello!John Deacon x Original Character multi-chap.

Previous Chapters: 1 (x)

A/N: Thank you so much for the support I’ve gotten so far on this fic! Let me know what you think of this chapter xoxoxo

Word Count: 4706 Chapter 2-

John Deacon was never the confrontational type. From the day he was born, he would rather keep his mouth shut than risk embarrassing himself or getting involved when it wasn’t absolutely necessary. It didn’t matter the situation, if he could avoid opening his mouth, he’d take it. His avoidance of human engagement and interaction closely correlated with his relationship (or lack thereof) with women. John often found that his shyness would increase by 100% if an attractive woman was in his presence. He would attempt to put himself out there, however, even if he was able to get a conversation going, it would inevitably end a few moments later when he would go blank on conversation topics. Although John would never admit it, he was secretly jealous of Roger’s natural skills when it came to women. He had never seen Roger even remotely struggle when it came to flirting… or at least that was true until Lane came into the picture.

John had taken an immediate shine to Lane when he observed her tearing Roger to shreds at The Laughing Fox. He was actually the first one to notice Roger’s failing, nudging all of his friends to watch as he epically failed at picking her up. It was nice to finally see Roger be in the position of being flustered when it came to a woman. Especially a woman who looked like Lane. John could have never dreamed of a woman like her, someone who was nothing short of perfect, so actually finding her was a whole other story. However, John knew that given the opportunity, he’d only be able to get a few words out if he were to strike up a conversation with her. There was something about her presence that completely mystified him… but that was a mystery he never wanted to solve.

Band practice had been nothing short of explosive, several arguments breaking out between Freddie and Roger as they were discussing where they wanted to go with the new music they were all writing. Freddie was still on his “I want more” campaign and Roger had reached the end of his rope of hearing him repeat that phrase.

“How the fuck are we supposed to get more, Fred? We’re doing the best we can, we did a pub tour for fucks sake. What else do you want from us?”

“I want an album, darling.” Freddie lowered his sunglasses so he could stare at all three of them directly. “That’s the next step.” “We can’t afford a fucking album! How the hell do you expect us to do that?”

Freddie paused for a moment as he thought about it. “Well we could always sell your van…”

The mere suggestion of Roger selling his van was enough to set the boy into flames, John having to hold him back in an attempt to keep him from beating Freddie’s face in. It was Brian who had suggested that they cut their practice short for the day, knowing that after Freddie made that comment, no work would actually get done. Unsurprisingly, the ending of rehearsal was the one thing that was agreed upon all day.

The weather was undeniably perfect when John began the journey back to his flat, his bass strapped to his back and his amp tucked under his arm. It was beginning to get annoying having to lug his equipment back and forth to Roger’s place all the time, but it wasn’t like he would ever complain about it aloud. He wouldn’t want to cause any issues. He just hated when he’d accidentally bump into other people with his amp, earning an annoyed look before they sped up to walk ahead of him. He truly hated confrontation.

Lane was lounged at an outdoor table at a small, hole-in-the-wall café she found in her neighborhood. A well-worn book sat in her lap as her forgotten tea tray laid virtually untouched on the table in front of her. She had almost leapt out of bed that morning when she saw the sunbeams pushing through her curtains. Ever since she had moved to London, the weather had been the same: dull, grey, and cold. However, the idea of being able to sit outside for hours on end, basking in the Sun’s warmth was almost too good to be true. She’d already made it through a book and a half by that point, having stuffed several novels in her bag before she left her flat. That was her plan for the day: sit at the café and read for as long as humanly possible. Lane honestly wasn’t sure how long she had been sitting at that table, but she couldn’t have cared less. She knew that this weather wasn’t going to last and she was going to soak up every last drop of sunlight that she could.

John was only two blocks from his apartment when he saw her sitting at the café in his neighborhood, his face warming at the mere sight of her. She looked absolutely enthralled in whatever she was reading, the novel perched on her lap as her legs were swung over the arm of the chair. Her mess of blonde curls had been half-heartedly pushed back with a pair of sunglasses and her sandals had been abandoned next to her bag. She looked angelic in that moment, the light falling on her just right… John almost wished he had a camera so he could capture it for her. The way she was gently gnawing on her lip as she turned the page slowly, as if she were trying to absorb every last word before moving on; the way her legs were gently swaying to some invisible beat; the way her eyes would widen when she got to a particularly good moment. He didn’t want to disturb her though, she was so captivated by her book that it would be a shame for him to pull her out of her trance. He knew his life would go on just the same if he continued right past her on his walk home. He’d end up seeing her that evening, Mary having invited her to come with them for drinks… he could speak to her then. Plus, that’d give him some time to prepare some conversation topics, just in case the conversation began to go downhill.

But as he attempted to sneak past her, it was almost as if she could sense his presence. Lane peered up from her book and locked eyes with him, a familiar smile spreading across her face as she waved.

“Hey! Deaky, right?” She asked, her eyes sparkling up at him.

He nodded quickly. “Y-Yeah… or John. That’s my first name.”

“Well John, it’s lovely to see you again.” He gave her a nervous smile. “Same to you.”

“Are you on your way to practice?” She jutted her chin at the amp he was struggling to balance.

“Just got out, I was actually on my way home.”

“Do you live around here too?”

“Two blocks north. I have a flat on Church Street.” “No way! I’m in a flat on Kingsway about a block and a half from here.” Lane’s eyes lit up. “Good to know I have a friend in the area.”

He swore his face could have never been redder at the fact that she called them friends despite their only having one interaction, especially one where he didn’t even bother speaking. Freddie had provided the introduction for them, knowing fully well that John would have likely stammered over his words. “Yeah,” he agreed quickly. “It’s always nice to have friends nearby.”

John stood nervously as he tried to think of something, anything to say to keep the conversation going, knowing that he was nearing the wall he hit when it came to communicating with the opposite sex. He was just about to make up some comment about the weather, knowing that the subject (although boring) would at least keep them communicating when she quickly swooped in.

“Do you want to join me?” She asked with a large smile. “I understand if you have somewhere to be, you just look awfully tired of carrying all of that.”

“Oh, I-I wouldn’t want to disturb your reading” he responded. John was lying… he would love to disturb her reading, have her talk his ear off for the next century if she wanted to, he’d love to sit in that chair and never leave.

“No, I insist!” She gestured to the seat across from her, closing her book and setting it face down on the table. “How was rehearsal?”

John felt himself chuckle before he shook his head, quickly setting his things on the ground before sliding into the other chair. “Not great. Roger and Freddie were arguing for most of it so we didn’t get much done.”

“Roger sounds like he always loaded for bear,” she laughed. “But I’m sorry you didn’t get much done. I know that must be frustrating for you guys.”

He shrugged. “We’re kind of in a holding pattern right now anyways so it’s not like we’re wasting precious time… we’re trying to figure out what to do next.”

“Well I’m sure you all will figure it out soon enough,” she sent him a reassuring look that made his stomach twist into a giant knot. “You all have gotten this far.”

He nodded in agreement before letting his gaze fall to her book, a semi-comfortable silence falling between them. “What’re you reading?”

“Oh,” she giggled, picking it up and facing the cover towards him. Shakespeare’s Sonnets: The Complete Set, it read, the book’s binding beginning to fall apart due to it’s obvious use. “I’m a huge Shakespeare nerd,” she admitted, her cheeks reddening slightly.

John almost wanted to laugh at Lane calling herself a nerd, knowing that her statement was far from the truth. Of the two of them, he was the nerd. An electronics-loving, socially awkward nerd… however, he’d never point that out to her. “Makes sense, being an English major and all,” he smiled. “I’d have to say my favorite would be Sonnet 138.”

“‘O! love's best habit is in seeming trust, and age in love, loves not to have years told: therefore I lie with her, and she with me, and in our faults by lies we flattered be’,” she spoke, her eyes twinkling as she recited the sonnet from memory. “I’m a big fan of 138 too.”

John swore he melted then and there, watching her light up at the fact he knew the sonnets well enough to say one by name. However, he would never admit aloud that the reason why he picked 138 was because it was the only one he remembered studying in his English class in year 9.

“Oh, so you’re really a Shakespeare nerd,” he teased with a smirk.

“I’m telling you that in strict confidence though, you can’t let anyone in on my secret nerdiness.” Lane gave him him a playful grin as she shot him a wink.

“Well your secret is safe with me.”

They ended up talking for hours, their conversation continuing until the Sun showed it’s last few beams of light. An orange and purple glow had casted itself over the sky, Lane finding herself staring up at it dreamily as John walked her back to her flat. His amp was purposefully tucked under the arm opposite of hers just in case their arms drifted a bit too close and brushed the other’s. They arrived at the front of her building almost too quickly, their conversation drawing to an end.

“I’ll see you tonight?” She asked, gazing up at him.

He nodded quickly. “Of course.”

“I’ll see you then.” Lane allowed her hand to drift up and rest on his bicep to give it a gentle squeeze before turning into her building.

John held it in until he knew she was inside and far enough away from the door, but once he was able to, he let out a long, relieved laugh. A laugh that he’d wanted to release ever since she invited him to sit down across from her, ever since she kept him there talking about everything and nothing… he couldn’t believe that had just happened.

The Laughing Fox was in full swing by the time everyone bothered to arrive meeting for drinks. John was usually the first to arrive, always followed by Brian. Then Freddie and Mary would come in, “fashionably late” in Freddie’s eyes, before Roger would roll in (which was always a minimum of 30 minutes after the agreed meeting time). They were already sipping on their drinks by the time Roger bothered arriving, sauntering into the pub as if he owned the place. He quickly grabbed a drink from the bar before sitting down with his friends, eyeing the empty seat across from him.

“Who’s that for?”

“Lane,” Mary responded, her eyes glued to the door. “Poor thing, I wonder if she got lost trying to find this place again.”

“She found it once, I’m sure she’ll be fine,” Roger huffed as he gripped his pint tightly. He still hadn’t gotten over his interaction with her from the other evening, it completely throwing him off his game. Roger had never faced much rejection in his life before, especially when it came to women. It jilted him, Roger second guessing his actions for the remainder of that week. He had worked out such a flawless formula that hadn’t failed him since it’s creation in his formative years… but it didn’t work, at least not on Lane.

“Someone’s bitter because they haven’t gotten laid all week,” Brian joked. “He’s finally realizing what it feels like to be a normal guy who isn’t balls deep in someone new every night.”

“Fuck off, I’ve gotten laid this week,” Roger lied. He almost went home with girls several nights in a row… he’d just second guess himself at the end. And it was all because of her.

That’s when Lane finally showed up, Roger’s eyes nearly bugging out of his head when he saw her. She was adorned in a mini-dress, the neckline featuring a very significant “V” that made Roger’s mouth water, and a pair of platforms that made her legs go on for days. She may have been a bitch to him, but that didn’t cancel out the fact that she was so god damn attractive. Her eyes scanned the pub for a moment before she found their table.

“Hey! Sorry I’m late, I got caught up in unpacking some boxes and lost track of time.” She smiled widely as she shrugged off the jacket she was wearing, draping it over the free chair.

“Was starting to worry about you, love. Thought you had gotten lost or picked up or something,” Mary joked.

Lane shook her head before laughing. “I promise that I just lost track of time. John actually offered to walk me over here tonight! However, I didn’t want to compel him to have to listen to me talk any longer than he had to. Talked his ear off for hours already.” She looked over at him before giving him a large smile. “I’m going to grab a drink though, be right back!”

The group silently watched Lane walk to the bar before they all turned and stared at John with wide eyes.

“You two saw each other?” Brian asked confusedly.

“She lives in my neighborhood. We ran into each other at that little tea shop near me.” He blushed. “I wasn’t going to disturb her… she was reading… but she saw me and invited me to sit down with her and we kind of just talked for a while.”

“You ‘kind of just talked’? How’d you manage that? You can barely speak to women as it is.” Roger scoffed as leaned back in his chair frustratedly.

“Roger!” Mary scolded. “I think that’s really sweet, Deaky. Did you two have fun?”

He nodded before allowing his gaze to fall into his lap. “Yeah, it was really nice.”

“Good,” she smiled before turning to Roger. “You can be such an ass sometimes, you know that?”

Roger shrugged before taking a long sip of his pint. “It was a legitimate question.” He shifted in his chair to look at the bar, his jaw clenching. “Not like it matters for either one of us though. Looks like she’s otherwise occupied now.”

The entire table turned to look over at the bar, John’s stomach dropping when he saw what was going on.

Lane was stood at the bar, giggling at something the guy next to her said. He was openly flirting with her and she was eating it up, the smirk spread across her lips being a tell-tale that she was dishing it back. Roger growled a bit, the sound rumbling in his chest. He thought it was a bit hypocritical. She’d flirt with this random person, but when it came to him, he was verbally berated? The man pointed to the bar and she nodded her head quickly, the guy waving down the bartender before ordering them both drinks. Two pints and two shots were sat in front of them, Lane wiggling her eyebrows before taking her shot. The man winced as he pulled his shot glass from his lips, immediately taking a long swig from his beer. Lane laughed openly at his twisted reaction, the man only shaking his head at her with a slight smirk. They chatted for a few more moments before she waved goodbye, turning and walking back to their table.

“Sorry about that,” she apologized as she sat down next to Mary, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

Roger rolled his eyes before crossing his arms across his chest. “So it’s alright when that bloke tries to pick you up?”

Lane raised her eyebrows in surprise, her lips parting as she studied Roger with a glare. “Not that it’s any of your business, but I actually know him from university. He was in his third year when I was a first year and I haven’t seen him in ages.”

“Well it looked like you were very invested in him chatting you up.”

“So what if I was? Got a free beer and a shot of tequila out of it.” She gave him a smirk. “Sounds like you’re still a bit hurt from when I shot you down.”

Roger huffed and rolled his eyes, not bothering to respond.

“But if it makes you feel better, love, I would never date him. Gave half my class the clap within the first three months after we first started.”

“Half your class?” Brian laughed.

“My class wasn’t the brightest bunch.” She admitted with a giggle.

“But they had you,” John offered with a large smile. “That’s got to be something.”

Roger rolled his eyes at Deaky’s comment, not in the mood to watch him swoon over Lane. “How smart can you actually be then? All I know is that you graduated Oxford. You claimed to have finished at the top of your class but-”

“Third,” she responded flatly, cutting him off. “I finished third in my class of five hundred. Does that suit you?”

“It was still an English major though” Roger smirked. “Can’t be that hard to do well when all you have to do is know how to read a book and write your name.” “Oh wow, I didn’t realize that was all my major was! Thank you so much for explaining it to me! I’d love for you to read my two hundred page thesis on the challenging of conventional notions of gender roles and sexuality in Macbeth. It’d be amazing to get your feedback on it.”

Roger huffed before rolling his eyes, bringing his half-empty pint to his lips.

“You were third in your class?” Mary asked, trying to lower the tension that was created by Roger.

Lane nodded, slightly blushing. “I don’t like bringing it up though, it’s not very humble.”

“Still impressive though! You must’ve lived in the library in uni.”

“I wouldn’t say I lived there… merely frequented it,” Lane laughed. “I’d normally study in my flat where it was quieter. Too many people would hook up in the stacks.”

The table (save Roger) all laughed at her comment.

“Well, did you join them?” Freddie asked with a smirk. “Sounds like a lovely time.”

“No comment.” Lane brought her pint to her lips as her cheeks reddened, trying to hide the involuntary smirk that spread across her lips.

“You didn’t!” Mary gasped, swatting at the girl’s arm.

Lane wiggled her eyebrows at her with a chuckle. “I never confirmed or denied the statement.”

“So naughty,” Freddie laughed as he reached across Mary to poke her arm. “I knew I liked you for a reason.”

Several beers later and Lane felt as if she were on top of the world. They had all moved to the pool tables, she and Mary watching a heated match between Roger and Deaky as Brian and Freddie played on another table nearby. A soft smile rested on her lips as she embraced the slight buzz she felt.

“I’m just saying, when Pong is released, I’ll be able to beat you in ping pong both in real life and virtually!” John exclaimed.

“And I’m just saying, why do you care so much?” Roger rolled his eyes, making a shot and sinking it.

Deaky’s face fell as he frowned at Roger, leaning against his pool stick. “You’re just mad because I’m better at ping pong than you.” “And you’re just mad because you can’t get lai-”

“I didn’t know you liked ping pong!” Lane interrupted, giving John a warm smile. “I’m absolutely awful at it. You’ll have to teach me.”

Deaky’s cheeks flushed a deep red before he nodded. “I-I can do that.”

Roger rolled his eyes, sinking another shot. “Too bad your impeccable ping pong skills don’t transfer over to pool, I’m about to win the game.” He shifted around the table before knocking the eight-ball into a pocket. “Sucks to be you, Deaky.”

Deaky frowned deeply, glaring at his friend. “You can shove your stick up your arse, Rog.”

“And you can take the stick out of yours, mate.”

They glared at one another for a few moments, neither one wanting to be the first to break the stare.

“John, let’s go play another round of pool over there,” Lane smiled at him, her hand caressing his bicep.

He looked down at her and nodded before sending one last glare to Roger, allowing himself to be led by Lane to the next open table. Roger sighed before looking over at Mary, her blue eyes narrowing in on him.

“Why are you being extra bitchy tonight?” She asked quietly, her voice dripping in annoyance.

“I don’t know what the fuck she sees in him. Why is she flirting with him? A girl like that isn’t the type of girl who ends up with guys like Deaky.” He muttered, chugging the rest of his pint.

“She isn’t flirting, Roger. It’s called being a nice human… you should try it for once.”

Roger carded a hand through his hair before shaking his head. “I’m going to go take some shots.”

By the time Roger bothered removing himself from his barstool to return to the pool tables, he was staggering, barely able to keep himself upright. He didn’t know why he was so torn up over Lane. Sure the rejection was hard, but seeing her be friendly to everyone but him was even harder. He took a sip from the forgotten pint he ordered in addition to nine shots of tequila, spilling a bit down the front of himself as he fumbled over his feet. He collapsed himself in a chair next to the pool table Deaky and Lane were at, the game having been forgotten due to a passionate conversation regarding movies.

“How have you not seen ‘A Clockwork Orange’?” John asked, completely astounded.

“It seemed creepy!” She admitted with a giggle. “I’m easily scared.”

“It’s not that bad,” John chuckled. “It’s more weird than scary.”

“Still,” she shook her head quickly. “I don’t think it’d be for me.” “S-So did you just forget the game?” Roger slurred. “Looks like you lot didn’t even try.”

“I’m apparently extremely bad at pool so we stopped,” Lane explained before studying Roger.

“Are you okay?”

Roger nodded before taking another sip of his beer, “I’m fine, don’t know what you mean.”

“How much have you had to drink?” Deaky asked, walking over so he could stare at Roger directly.

“A few…  What’s it to you?” Roger glared at the younger boy.

“That’s it, I’m cutting you off.” John grabbed the pint from his hand, quickly setting it aside.

“You can’t just fucking do that!” Roger whined as he attempted to stand up in order to be at eye level with Deaky. “I have every right to fight you right now.”

“Oh yeah? You and what army?” Deaky held Roger’s shoulders steady in an attempt to keep him upright. “You need to go to bed.” Roger paused for a moment before fishing his keys from his pocket, waving them in John’s face. “I’ll just go home then.”

“Oh you’re not going home alone,” Deaky laughed.

“Who said I’d be going home alone,” he smirked as he shot Lane a wink.

“I did. You’re staying with me.” With that, John took the keys from him and shoved them in his pocket.

Getting Roger out of the bar was worse than managing a toddler, seeing as when he was this drunk, he was an infant with anger management issues. John ended up having to half hold him up as they walked out of the bar, Lane walking at his side. He had offered to walk her home earlier in the night seeing as he didn’t want her walking the unfamiliar streets of London when she too was a bit drunk, but now they had a plus one joining them.

“Bloody hell, why’d you walk here tonight?” Roger complained as John led them down the sidewalk. “Feels like it’s been fucking ages.”

“Lane only lives a block more from here and then you have less than a block until you’re at mine. I believe in you,” John sighed. He knew it was going to be a long night once he dropped Lane off. Roger was absolutely intolerable when he was in this state. He was prone to puking everywhere and breaking everything he touched, always leaving a huge mess that he’d never clean up himself the next morning.

“Too fucking far,” Roger mumbled under his breath. “Not like you’re getting laid tonight.” John’s face paled as he whipped his head to make sure Lane hadn’t heard what Roger just said. She had thankfully been zoned out, humming along to some invisible tune as she gazed up at the sky. “I’m being a decent person and walking a friend of mine home. You should try being nice and not expecting anything in return for once.”

“That’s unlikely,” Roger chuckled before hiccuping. “Nice guys never finish first.”

John rolled his eyes before getting them both to the front door of Lane’s apartment building.

“Thank you so much for walking me back.” She smiled sleepily up at John, her eyes blinking slowly.

“Of course, wanted to make sure you got home safe and sound.” John reassured her. “Are you sure you don’t want help getting upstairs?”

“I’ve got it from here,” she promised. “Goodnight, John.” Lane reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him in for a tight hug.

John swore his heart was beating out of his chest as he wrapped his one free arm around her waist, wishing that he didn’t have to be holding Roger up at that point. She pulled away almost too soon, Deaky fighting a pout that threatened to appear on his face.

“I’ll see you soon. Goodnight.”

John watched as she entered her building, an involuntary sigh passing his lips. He almost forgot that Roger was there for a moment as he replayed the entire night’s events in his head. That was, until Roger puked onto his shoes.

Tag List: @mimisfangirlfantasy @ceruleanrainblues @16wiishes @ayomercury @brianmaysnailpolish @bitchwilly

[granpafrisbee]

Truth or Dare Part 1

Warnings: Cussing                    

Word Count: 3,752 (it’s gonna get longer tho)

Pairing: Bucky x OFC           

Masterlist

Summary: After going to Italy and avoiding any romantic relationships for pretty much all her life Joey comes back to the U.S. to move in with her life-long best friend, Sam Wilson, and his two closest friends from college. Joey’s met Steve but is apprehensive to meet the elusive Bucky, whom she’s always missed despite having visited Sam consistently throughout college. Once she meets him, however, she wonders how she’ll be able to run from love when they share a bathroom.

A/N: Hey, so I'll be updating this most Wednesdays. I'll try my hardest to stay regular. 

I wrote this using an OFC bc I cannot work my brain to replace my name with fucking Y/N and I know I'm not the only one. (I always end up reading it as fucking "yuuhnnumm"). I am fully in love with Zazie Beetz so our OFC is completely based on her except maybe a lil chubbier because why not. Really for the apartment just picture the layout of the New Girl loft.

I always have a confusing time picturing characters in fics so I'm gonna lay it out for y'all. Steve is full nomad, them honey brown locks and the full beard. Joey's hair is natural like Zazie so often wears it. Bucky is just Seb in fall/winter 2017 because I am weak for the I, Tonya press tour look. Sam is Mackie's classic look. The rest of the characters can be left to the imagination.

Also  I mention good music so listen to that if you want. Please let me know if you like this and follow my hot garbage tumblr.

Special thanks to @buckybarnesxoxo for asking to be tagged!

the AO3

Stay Sexy

It’s the bathroom that really impresses Joey. She believed Sam when he said the apartment was nice. On seeing it for the first time when moving in, she discovers that her best friend is distinctly incorrect. A working sink is nice. A proper heater is nice. A nearby laundromat is nice. This loft, this four-bedroomed palace, is exquisite in comparison to her previous abodes. The kitchen has all its necessary appliances. There are a washer and dryer in unit. The walls are thick enough that if Sam was stabbed in his neighboring room, she would maybe hear it. Four bedrooms with their very own closets. All of these have her speechless as she tours around. However, as stated above, it’s the bathroom that is killer. The idea of sharing said room with three men is maybe one of the more foreboding aspects of her new sweet digs, but once she sees the giant clawfoot shower and tub, she is sure the positives will heavily outweigh the negatives.

She immediately slides down into her new porcelain palace. She’s a medium height at 5’6”, and even she has to point her toes to touch the far end of the tub. She sighs comfortably and is already planning an essential oils combination for her first real bath when the door swings open and her fantasy is interrupted by one her new roommates. He’s the one she hasn’t met yet but Sam and Steve have shown her plenty of pictures. His hair looks soft and well-coiffed and he wears a tank top under an unbuttoned striped short sleeve button down. Rather than judgment appearing across his abnormally handsome face, he smiles like there was nothing else he could have expected when entering the bathroom.

“You see I specifically told Steve to get a bathtub that doesn’t come with a human.”

“Oh no, you got it all wrong. I’m actually a ghost here to haunt you but hygienically. Instead of boo, I say floss.” She says without a beat and he nods, very seriously, in response to this.

“You know I’m pretty sure I just carried in a bed to our fourth room that might be more comfortable than the tub, but who am I to judge one’s preferred sleeping arrangements.” His quip is followed by another fantastic smile, and based on the past ten seconds of her life Joey is absolutely sure that this is her kind of human.

She smiles back and extends her hand from the tub. “Joey.”

“Bucky,” He shakes her hand and nods again.

“You guys brought up my bed? I told Samuel to let me handle that shit.”

He laughs and scratches his beard, “Ah just gave me another opportunity to show Sam how much stronger I am than him. And Steve the chance to show up both of us.”

Joey chuckles and silently appreciates how Bucky balanced his dig on Sam with some light self-depreciation of himself. Although it would be unrealistic to pretend that anyone was stronger than Steve. The man is built. “Seriously though, I’ll come help y’all out. I’m not gonna be the useless roommate.” She gets out of the tub and starts out the door.

“Oh I wouldn’t worry about that, I think Sammy’s got that title covered, Darlin’.” He follows her out and therefore doesn’t see her face cringe at the pet name.

She considers calling him on it when Sam yells from the front door, “I know you’re not in there besmirching me to my very own best friend Barnes,” He enters view sweaty and smiling, “And I especially know she wasn’t participating, because she is my best friend and therefore automatically on my side.” He wraps his arm protectively around her shoulders causing her to shrug away from him with her nose scrunched.

“Consider our friendship on sabbatical until you take a shower, Wilson.” Joey continues backing away.

“Jesus I always knew your personality stank but I guess the inside always comes out huh.” Bucky mirrors Joey’s disgusted face as he walks towards the door.

Sam rolls his eyes, “Not funny.” Although the involuntary “Hah!” Joey lets out at Bucky’s comment seems to contradict his statement. Sam just flips her off.

“Thank you, Doll. You see Sammy, even your best friend thinks I’m right.” Bucky mocks as he heads back outside.

This time Sam sees her face twist in reaction to the nickname. Misinterpreting it he grumbles, “Oh come on there’s no way you can smell me from over there.” He starts to head to his room, presumably for deodorant.

Joey follows Bucky downstairs to help with some more furniture moving. Steve is outside their building, ass in the air, bent over picking something up. “Damn Rogers,” Joey calls out appreciatively, “If I knew I’d be getting a view like that I would have shacked up with you years ago.”

He stands up, holding up an entire bookshelf on his own, further challenging the poor under armor shirt that is being stretched to hell on his giant frame. “Hey killer, thanks for joining us.”

She picks up a lamp and smiles at him, “Well I figured you guys needed the extra muscle.”

His smile is bright against his beard as he walks into the house with the ease of a man who isn't carrying a bookshelf.

The four of them finish loading their sporadic furniture into the loft and the afternoon fades to early evening. An old but amazing and huge high-quality leather sectional provided by Steve’s mom. Sam’s flat screen, whom he’s named Esmeralda, and may or may not have a near sexual attraction to. Bucky’s records and a player that’s older than any of them, plus a big wooden dinner table his Dad handmade. Steve’s varied level of completed canvases and paint stuff. Joey’s shelves and chairs she found on the side of the road her senior year in college. A mix of plates, bowls, and utensils have been loaded into varying drawers and cabinets. As well as cooking instruments, although, beyond Joey’s waffle iron and an old cast iron from Steve, it’s all Sam’s. Everyone’s personal boxes and furniture is piled in their own rooms.

Joey sits on the kitchen island as the boys lean against it, all sipping the cheap beer Joey bought as penance for them carrying her bed in. She takes that moment to appreciate the weird chain of events that got her where she is now. She and Sam have been friends since grade school. They went to different colleges but remained good ol’ buddies throughout. When they graduated Joey traveled around and did an apprenticeship with an Italian glassblower. Sam went to Culinary school, and when he graduated the second time around Joey was offered a job with a world-renowned blower (god she will never get tired of calling her profession that) stateside. After little luck finding a two bedroom inexpensive enough for the two of them, Steve, one of Sam’s old college buddies Joey had met many a time during visits, mentioned his friend's dad owned a couple lofts in the neighborhood they were looking in. Sam toured with Steve and Bucky and the three of them signed the lease that day. Sam called Joey that night and announced he was so confident that he forged her signature. He was insistent that it was the best option they’d find, all Steve is a good guy and fellow artist, and even Bucky is sometimes bearable but don’t tell him that. Steve paints and sketches in his free time and works as a personal trainer to pay the bills. Joey knows he isn’t passionate about it, but with his perfect body and matching attitude, she is sure he is fantastic at his job. Sam is starting at a new restaurant with a name Joey can only pronounce thanks to high school French. A plus for living with Sam is that he brings work home with him. Although Joey had visited Sam plenty over the years and even struck up a solid friendship with Steve, she always seems to have missed Bucky. They had never met but she knew he was a language major with a focus in Eastern Europe and Russia. Sam had told her Bucky translated English books into Russian and vice versa and made more money than he should. Earlier Joey had heard him curse in some sort of Slavic tongue when Sam “accidentally” dropped his end of a coffee table on Bucky’s foot. She also had heard a few stories about Steve and Bucky’s childhood, the rambunctious troublemakers lived up to every tall tale. As the four nursed their beers she felt confident that this was going to be a very important group of people in her life.

“Joey?” Sam snapped her out of her thoughts.

“What?”

“Barnes suggested we get more beer and pizza and invite some friends over. Are you down?” The three men looked at her expectantly.

“I say hell yeah. Who are we calling?” She looked down at her watch and was surprised to see it was only 6:30.

“Well there are the couples, Nat and Wanda and Thor and Bruce,” Steve suggested.

“I told Shuri I’d pay her in alcohol if she set up all the tech shit,” Bucky adds.

Steve nods, “Now that you mention it, we should probably invite Tony, he’s the reason we got this place.”

“Tony means at least Rhodey and probably Pep, Clint is a must, and if we invite Wanda we should call Pietro too.” Sam finishes his beer and scrolls through his messages.

“Brunnhilde and Okoye are in town too.” Joey hops off the counter and recycles the empty bottles collecting on the island.

“Alright you guys decide who to invite, and I’ll go get libations and sustenance,” Bucky grabs his keys.

“With the list we’ve got you’ll need some help, I’ll come with,” Joey volunteers.

Bucky smiles vibrantly and nods towards to Steve, “You okay babysitting Rogers?”

“As long as Killer doesn’t mind your unreasonably picky ass,” Steve’s retort is so quick that Bucky and Sam raise their middle fingers simultaneously at their aggravator.

Joey and Bucky decide to start off to the pizzeria three blocks away and pick up the beer on the walk back. The walk begins in mildly uncomfortable silence.

“So… you’re picky?” Joey asks to spark some sort of conversation.

“Nooo..” Bucky’s defensiveness creates an endearing drawl, “Those two pompous asses just don’t understand that I like my pizza simple. Margherita pizza is a fucking gift. Who am I to screw it up with a bunch of American bullshit?” He gestures widely as he speaks.

“You’re kidding right?”

Bucky’s must have misinterpreted her smile as he quickly responds, “Alright I’ve been judged enough in my life, I know you lived in Italy and-”

“No, no, Bucky!” She grabs his forearm, “Margherita is my favorite! I ate it all the time in Italy, judgment-free.”

“Jesus Christ Doll, where have you been all my life?”

She smiles and they continue a brisk pace to the pizza place. “How did you know I lived in Italy?”

“Ah, I know plenty about you. Sammy talks about you non-stop, has since I met him. Steve even thought he was secretly in love with you until he hung out with you in person.”

This makes Joey raise her brows, “Really? Wow. What, if I may ask, ultimately caused him to accept our relationship as extraordinarily platonic? Was it the sibling-like side hugs? The lack of sexual tension in our banter? The fact that I knew him during his first mustache phase?”

“Are you telling me there was a skinnier mustache than the one we know and mildly tolerate?”

“I’m talking Prince but pubescent. It was so thin models asked his mustache for dieting tips. It was so thin his first girlfriend thought he had an eyelash over his top lip. I mean you would’ve thought he drew it on with a ballpoint pen. In fact, it’s very possible it was. Just because I never saw doesn’t mean he never-”

Bucky is laughing uproariously, “Please, please, you’re killing me. I’m gonna need pictures as soon as possible.”

“No can do. I will recite the epic of the mustache homer-style until the day I die, but any physical evidence shared will prompt an all-out war between Samuel and me. That is just something I can’t afford.”

“Oh now I have to see them. What’s your secret shame, sweetheart? Bangs? Braces? Please tell me it was an emo phase,” As he lists off he starts walking backward, the goofy smile didn't dim once.

“I’ll never share, but trust me when I say if you find something behind my back, I’m sure Steve will be more than willing to share some pictures of your past. Emo phase is a good guess, but if I didn’t know any better I’d say that was a projection, hmm?”

That does a good job of replacing his smile with pursed lips and a quirked eyebrow, contemplating his next move in this battle of embarrassing adolescence. “Steve would never betray me.”

“Don’t be so sure, all men have their weaknesses,” She smiles deviously.

“Oh yeah, you gonna seduce him for a picture of me in eyeliner?”

“First of all, I would seduce Steve for much less so thanks for confirming my emo theories. Secondly, I may not know Steve like you do, but I know him well enough to see that seduction would hardly prove fruitful.” She holds the door open for him and they both bask in the practically orgasmic scent of the pizzeria, “Steve is so suspicious of anyone who wants to sleep with him that he’d see through me. My method would be to trick him to do some sort of high school ‘Where are they now?’ portrait. He’d be so inspired he’d paint your lined eyes and black, I’m guessing, over parted hair in a second.” The line is moving slowly and he admires how she never lowers her volume or hides from strangers eyes.

“Damn, Doll, you’re good.”

“I minored in manipulation.” The store isn’t too packed for Saturday night and Sam Cooke is playing lightly in the background. She’s nodding her head and he’s mouthing along to words and when they both realize this they share a smile at the music.

“So Steve is a suspicious mind in your book?” She chuckles at his reference.

“I’m not the biggest drinker and neither is Steve, so when Sammy went hard when I visited, Steve was always good for a tipsy talk. The poor guy has the same self-esteem he must have had in high school. Unlike us three cool cats Steve will show me pictures of his past self. I know you were there through it all, but just because the outside changes doesn’t mean the inside follows suit. I have seen the most dedicated and gorgeous women throw themselves at him and yet he remains sure that she was ‘just being friendly’. It’s actually impressive.”

“I know what you mean. To be fair though a lot of that is just his college girlfriend. She really did a number on him.” He runs a hand through his hair but doesn’t hide his contempt for whoever she is.

Solemn surprise covers Joey’s features, “I never knew. Never met her on any visits.”

“She wasn’t big on him talking to other girls, probably hid him anytime you came around. Although that isn’t my story to tell, I’m sure the punk will tell you about it sometime.” She follows his eye line down to his shoes. He’s drawing stars with the tip of his shoe, a tic she’s just noticing.

“What about you? You have a girl hiding you away, distracting you during your collegiate years? She the reason our meeting was so unluckily delayed until today?”

He thinks about the answer for a second or two. “Nah, no anchor to this ship. At this point, I’m just convinced Wilson just didn’t tell me you were around because he knew you would like me more than him.”

“Well turns out I like Steve better than both of you.”

He puts his hands up and reassures her, “I don’t need to be first, Sweetheart, just as long as I’m on your radar.” As he lowers his hands the song changes and they simultaneously recognize the song, both begin humming the initial notes. “Penny & The Quarters fan huh?” He asks.

“Nobody, baby, but-” she sings before quickly turning her attention to the cashier, “We’ll have two large Everything Pizzas and one large Margherita.” Facing Bucky again she smiles and drops another line that makes his heart race, “Just for you and me, huh?”

The pizza is out quick, and a trip to the local gas station provides them with more than enough beer. They continue discussing music, Joey is surprised at their similarly irregular taste. He describes his favorite Etta James songs, but can’t forget the Simon and Garfunkel song that he thinks is his first love encapsulated. He lists his top three favorite rappers after ranking contemporary folk bands. She adds in her opinions sporadically, and he apologizes twice for dominating the conversation when they get in the elevator.

She is being honest when she says, “There’s nothing I want to hear more than whatever you’re going to say right this moment.” He thinks that every lyric in every song he’s just listed doesn’t have shit on that sentence.

He’s about to tell her so when an alarming large hand last minute catches the elevator as it closes. The doors open to the Thor and Bruce. The couple is the lynchpin of every good party, from rager to kickback. Thor is the greatest hype man in history but is never hammered, probably because it would take two handles of tequila to get him there. Bruce is much more chill but a secret god at beer pong, not to mention he always has weed. Bucky’s favorite part of their presence always happens when Bruce is particularly high and begins a lecture on some sort of subject no one else understands. He isn’t exactly captivating, especially not to anyone far from sober although his passion is palpable, but Thor will plop down on the couch next to him and watch him like he’s the only thing in the universe (while rubbing Bruce’s neck to keep him from getting too wound up). Bucky loves those guys.

“Looks like we arrived just in time, wouldn’t you say Thor?” Bruce shakes Bucky’s hand and smiles at Joey.

“Of course! I was worried we got too much pizza, but now that you’re here Thor I’m sure you’ll help us with any surplus.” Joey sets the pizzas down before Thor pulls her into a bear hug.

“Joey, you know I never leave a damsel in distress,” Thor agrees as he sets her back on her feet.

Joey’s eyebrow playfully shoots up, “Who are you calling damsel, Odinson?”

“In this case, definitely Sam. I’m surprised he even let you order out.” Bruce answers for his boyfriend.

“My love is right in my insinuation. Never ever have I seen you anywhere near damsel status Joe.” Bucky watches their interaction with curiosity.

The elevator dings and Bucky asks, “This may seem like a dumb question but how do you guys know each other? Just through Sam?”

Joey picks up the pizzas as Thor holds the door open, ”Thor’s siblings and I were all in a group home together as teens. I’ve known this big lug long before he was the Nordic party god we see before us.” Thor laughs and he and Bruce go to greet everyone inside.

“Are you telling me Thor hasn’t always been a blonde beefcake?” Bucky whispers in Joey’s ear as they set the pizza and beer on the counter.

“Sadly no, he’s looked like that since I met him. I just like making that joke because he’s too humble to care.” She makes note that he doesn’t question the foster home part of her story. She wonders just what Sam has told him about her past.

People start to crowd the food and drinks, so Joey and Bucky greet everyone who has arrived. Nat is there sans Wanda, who is at home sick. Bucky knows this means Nat will be leaving early. Pietro made it despite his ill sibling, but he still looks pretty sick of the conversation in front of him. Shuri and Clint are mid-argument about the chicken and the egg when Bucky thanks them for coming. Clint gives him a smile and points to a fake succulent on the table and mumbles, “Got you guys a housewarming present,” before returning his attention to telling Shuri that the Chicken is the obvious choice. Shuri tells Bucky she set up the wifi and the apple tv and Clint doesn’t even register that she’s talking over him. Bucky kisses her cheek and hands her a beer.

Steve is sitting with Bruce and Thor on the couch, all of them engrossed in conversation and pizza. Sam is chopping fresh onion for his pizza when Bucky asks, “These are the few you could bribe to get here?”

“These losers are the only ones without any plans on a Saturday night,” Sam says without looking up.

Clint and Pietro both look up and say a simultaneous, “Hey!” Before turning their attention back to their conversation.

“T’Challa and Nakia are in Paris. Brunnhilde has a gig tonight. Okoye hung up on me when I said pizza and beer. Parker has an exam. Tony named six events he was invited to tonight and would’ve kept going if Steve hadn’t hung up. Pepper and Rhodey are probably plus thing one and two wherever Tony ended up at. Thus, this motley crew is all we got.” Sam sprinkles his diced onion on top of his already spilling slice and when he bites into it his groan stops the conversations surrounding the apartment.

“Lame. Your intestines are not going to be thanking you for that monster you are devouring under the alias of pizza.” Joey makes a face as he continues to stuff his face.

“Like eating just mozzarella and basil is enjoyable at all,” Sam dismisses her and joins the rest of their crew.

“Heathens,” Bucky dramatically admonishes their friends, “You ready Doll?”

This time he catches the tightening of her expression at his comment, ”Born ready.” They both grab a piece of their untouched pizza and taps crusts in cheers.

Part 2

Part 3

Thanks for reading!

[thatbluegibson]

CH 93

"Can we talk?"

She sounded hopeful... or maybe he was just imagining it.

"You can talk all you want," he muttered, the pictures he had been sent of her and Johnny at The Rainbow were still fresh in his mind as he leaned against the foyer wall and crossed his arms.

Liz calmly finished climbing the front steps and took a deep breath to start explaining, but a call from the dark driveway made her jaw snap shut.

"You good, baby girl?"

Dave slowly craned his neck to see Jesse nervously watching them from the seat of his bike and felt as if he might snap. She had been on a fucking date with Depp, knocking back shots like they were best buddies and then showed up on the back of Jesse's bike when she had specifically promised him she wouldn't anything of the sort and now she was here to beg for forgiveness? "She's good, man," he replied for her, eager to hear how she was going to explain her way out of this one.

Liz closed her eyes and sighed deeply, pivoting on her heel to wave goodbye to Jesse when he fired up his bike. Once the bike was revved enough to wake the entire neighborhood, he gunned it out of the driveway and down the hill.

Dave waited until it was quiet again then raised an eyebrow at her. "Baby girl?"

"Do you want me to start with that or with the thing that I agonized over the entire trip here?" she asked, her voice low and even.

"Ladies' choice."

"Great," she sighed and reached into her leather jacket to produce a white card with his handwriting on the front in black marker.

He recognized it instantly as the one he decided upon after having written several drafts in the front seat of Jordyn's rental car as she broke several Parisian traffic laws to get him to the airport before Liz left. The first notes were long, poetic and romantic, but they didn't feel right. They weren't the words he really wanted to tell her and in the end, he had settled on a memory from the night they met, knowing it would get through to her better than some bullshit Hallmark prose. Can we start over?

"I...," she started to speak and he looked from the note to her face just as the tears spilled over her lashes, "I had a whole speech but I was never any good at monologues. Maybe I found this far too late, but I'd like to start over too... If you're still willing."

He could very easily toss her a polite, 'No, thank you' and turn her out into the night. She knew where Taylor and Allison lived, certainly they'd give her a ride home and then he'd be free from the drama that seemed to plague his life as of late. He could simply walk away and go back to running the vast musical empire he had so painstakingly created, maybe he could even check out of that as well and just be a dad for a while, but if he were honest with himself he knew he'd always miss her. He'd always wonder what she was up to and if someone was making her laugh as much as he did.

"You ready for that date?" he asked casually, taking her by surprise.

She tilted her head slightly in confusion, but dashed the tears off her cheeks and forced a smile, "I mean, that's why I'm in this dress."

"Great," he quickly repeated her words and snatched his keys off the little table next to the door, knowing that if he stayed in that house with her another moment they wouldn't be going anywhere.

Liz's heels clicked on the tile as she followed him out into the garage, then stopped short when she saw the entirety of his motorcycle collection lined up next to the Tesla. He had finally managed to get all of them out of the garage at his old place, much to Jordyn's delight, but didn't even realize that Liz had only seen two of them until that moment. She walked between them, running her fingers over the custom paint on the tank of his newest Harley and glanced up when she heard him swear. He was standing on the other side of the Tesla, staring down at the floor with an annoyed look on his face.

"Your rocket ship out of juice?" she teased from her spot behind the Street Glide.

"I can never remember to plug the fucking thing in," he grumbled and roughly shoved the charger into the outlet in the wall.

"It was charged after the Oscar's though!"

"Yeah, I made Taylor come over and plug it in because I was trying to impress you."

"No, your little 'Hi, I'm Dave' line was charming enough for me," she said quietly. "We can take a bike if you-"

"Hell no," he interrupted and fished his truck keys out of his pocket, "Now that I know how cranky you get when you're cold, the bike's off limits when you're not wearing jeans. And I never said 'Hi, I'm Dave', I said 'Elizabeth, it's nice to finally meet you.'"

"That's a very detailed account of our first encounter, David," she replied, trying to keep up again as he strode towards the pickup.

"That's because I think about it all the time," he grinned while opening her door for her.

A little taken aback by his sweet statement, she blushed and climbed into the passenger seat, wondering what exactly he had planned for their night.

*

"What... are we doing?" she asked, looking around the empty loading dock at the Staples Center as Dave locked up the truck.

"I'm taking you on a date, Elizabeth," he replied, pretending to be deeply offended by her questioning.

"Okay...," she smiled and took his offered hand, following him up a ramp and into the depths of the building.

None of it looked familiar to her, it was just one endless white painted hallway after another and though Dave seemed to know exactly where he was going, they didn't see another soul along the way. She wondered if anyone knew they were there or if maybe Dave just knew they kept the back door unlocked, which seemed unlikely. They didn't speak as he led her along, walking with a purpose until he stopped in front of a nondescript grey double door and pulling it open.

The green room seemed so much bigger now that it wasn't full of celebrities and catering tables, and the only way Liz recognized it was from the blue velvet curtain that hung on one end. The same one Dave had stood in front of when she first met him.

"Wait here."

He said it quietly, but it echoed all the same across the empty room. She shoved her hands in her leather jacket so she wouldn't fidget and looked around, recognizing the door off to the side that she and Travis had gone through to get to the stage. It all seemed like a lifetime ago, back when she was just trying to keep her head above water and failing miserably. Back before he casually strolled into her life like the missing piece she didn't know she was even looking for.

"Move a little to your right," Dave called out his instructions from his spot in front of the curtain and she took a half step to the side, then looked up at him expectantly.

"Little bit more," he urged, waving his hands until she was just where he wanted her. "There."

She stood as still as she could, feeling awkward and exposed as he stared at her with a half grin in silence. "Okay, now what?"

"Nothing," he shrugged. "That's the exact spot I first laid eyes on you."

Surprised, Liz looked at the doors behind her and then back at Dave. "You saw me when I first walked in?"

He nodded and began to walk back to her, keeping his eyes on her face. "I did and I thought, 'Great, another vapid actress-slash-model that thinks she can sing and I'll have to put her on a fucking record because Paul asked me nicely.'"

Liz's smile faltered a little and she cleared her throat just as he stopped in front of her. "Oh."

A faint smile pulled at his lips as he reached out to brush her hair off her shoulder and she let out a ragged breath, expecting him to elaborate on his statement, but he only lightly touched her cheek before stepping past her. "Okay, next stop."

*

Liz felt the familiar apprehension when she saw John Silva's driveway lined with expensive cars and sat motionless even when Dave opened her door.

"Coming?" he asked, watching her closely.

"Yeah," she whispered and stiffly pivoted out of the seat.

Following him up the stamped concrete in silence, she took a moment to look back at the spot where he almost kissed her that first night and felt a warm giddiness spread through her. Dave's knuckles on the massive wooden doors got her attention and she hurried to his side, lacing her fingers with his just as the doors opened like the gates of Oz to reveal a man about Liz's height with ripped jeans, skate shoes and a sharp stare.

"Hey, man!" his deep, gravelly voice boomed across the front lawn as the man threw his arms around Dave's shoulders and Liz instantly remembered it from the hallway argument her old manager had the morning of the Grammy's.

"John, this is Liz," Dave said proudly and threw his arms around her shoulders.

"It's so nice to finally meet you," she said politely and had to steady herself when he roughly shook her hand.

John stepped back to invite them in, his voice still far too loud for how close they were standing and announced, "We would have met sooner if that jackass you had as your manager had allowed it."

Liz forced a laugh and leaned into Dave's hand on her back. "Yeah, he was an idiot. Sorry about that."

"It was obvious he thought I was going to snatch you up," John replied, crossing his arms over his chest. "Which, if he had done any fucking research, he would know that I don't go near actors. You're all fucking disasters."

"That's an accurate statement and a wise business decision," she laughed again, this time genuinely.

John smiled at her for a moment, then abruptly stepped back and waved them towards the living room. "It's all yours," he said, again far too loudly. "Yell if you need anything."

"Thanks, John," Dave replied and grabbed Liz's hand once again, pulling her towards the steps that led to the basement, down the hallway and into the dark room still illuminated by the swimming pool just outside that gave a rippling effect to all the guitars hanging on the walls. Liz gazed at them as Dave softly closed the door behind them.

She melted into him when he wrapped his arms around her from behind and whispered just behind her ear, "This is where you proved me wrong."

"What?" she giggled nervously, worried about where he was going with this.

"You played that twelve string like it was an extension of your own arm and you didn't fucking sing, Liz."

"The tone was too beautiful to sing over," she whispered, almost to herself as she turned to look at the guitar hanging in its spot on the wall.

"That!," he said sharply and let her go, moving to stand in front of her. "That's what proved me wrong. You're not a vapid actress-slash-model that just wants to be some rock stars girlfriend."

Liz looked from the guitars to him and then back again. "I gotta tell you, man. This is a really weird date."

"Yeah, the narrative sounded better in my head," he admitted and once again stepped close enough to kiss her, but didn't. "Hungry?"

The memory of them standing in front of the table upstairs flooded her mind and she slowly smiled at him.

"... starving."

When they reached the bottom of the stairs, John was at the top waiting with a wide grin on his face. "Got a minute to talk business, Grohl?"

Dave hummed a little sounding unsure, so Liz answered for him. "He does!" she shouted back and left him to the group of people waiting excitedly in the living room for him. She slipped into the foyer to avoid being a distraction herself, thankful for a moment alone.

Sitting on the snow white settee, she thought again about the night of the party. The huge security men, the wasted topless woman sitting in that very spot, the moment when James Hetfield's bellowing had scared the woman so much she spilled her red wine. Liz began to look around for any sign of a stain and was wondering if maybe it had been reupholstered when she felt a hand on her back.

"Hello again, gorgeous."

Liz spun around and jumped up. "Nancy! Hi! How are you?"

"Oh, fine," she said sweetly and hugged Liz tightly. "I see you took my advice and found one of the few nice ones," she nodded towards the living room just as Dave's laugh echoed across the foyer.

"It was pure luck, I assure you," Liz laughed and noticed Dave's eyes on her as the group around him tried to keep his attention.

"Men like that convince me that God is a woman," Nancy mused, blatantly looking Dave up and down. "It's like he was custom made as an apology for the rest of them."

Liz drew in a sharp breath, but Nancy interrupted with an upheld hand. "No! I know you're going to tell me he's not perfect and I don't want to hear it. Let me live in my bubble, Elizabeth," she laughed and Liz giggled with her, remembering she was in the very same bubble the last time she was there. "So what are you kids up to this late at night?"

"We're on a date," Liz explained. "So far he's taken me to all the places we were at the night we met."

Nancy raised an eyebrow and snatched up Liz's left hand, running her thumb over the bare ring finger. "Oh, romance," she sighed and pulled Liz in for another hug. "I'll expect an invitation to the wedding," she whispered and let her go with a wink just as Dave joined them in the foyer.

Liz watched her go in a daze, only snapping out of it when Dave cautiously took her hand. "Ready?"

Back out on the front walk, Liz was almost to the truck when Dave tugged on her arm. She didn't even have time to look over before she was pulled to his chest and sighing against his lips. He kissed her in the way he always did when he had something to tell her but either wasn't totally ready or was too embarrassed to put it into words. She held on to him tightly, first gripping his forearms, then his shoulders and finally his face, unwilling to let him go until she was damn good and ready.

"Would you have let me kiss you that night?" he asked softly when she finally gave up to breathe.

"Well, you didn't let me win at Uno," she said bitterly and giggled when he rolled his eyes at her. "And I let the whole party think we were already sleeping together so... Part of me wishes you would have but the other part is really enamored with the kiss in the hotel hallway."

"Yeah, that was pretty good," he grinned at the memory and kissed her again, pulling away far too quickly for Liz's liking. "Let's go."

*

They sat next to each other on the table outside the In-N-Out just as they had done that first night, though this time felt much more relaxed.

"So what did you do after I left the party?" she asked and snatched a fry, careful not to mess up all the work Dave had done to organize them just a moment earlier.

He chuckled nervously and scratched at his beard a bit, "Taylor and I hassled some people into playing CalJam with us and then I left when the strippers showed up."

Liz's drink halted on it's way to her mouth and her eyes danced with laughter though her lips didn't betray a smile, "The what now?"

Dave shrugged and watched her carefully. "Someone invited a bunch of strippers over for the crowd that was still there."

"Got it," she nodded and slid across the few inches that separated them when he put his arm around her.

"Then I went home and laid in bed for an hour staring at the ceiling and thinking of any possible way to creep into your life," he said honestly.

She threw her head back in a laugh and set her drink down beside her. "Creep? David, you blew into my life like a goddamn hurricane."

"Knocked a bunch of shit over and left just as quickly as I came?"

"Exactly," she nodded and huddled into him when a soft breeze chilled her exposed skin.

He was quiet a moment, remembering all the insane ideas he had come up with just to try and see her again. "At first I thought I could ask you to play on a record and then make you hang out at the studio long enough that you'd fall in love with me by default."

"Mmm...," Liz smiled into his shoulder. "Stockholm Syndrome! I love it."

"But I knew you wouldn't agree to the record. Not when it took three grown men to get you on a drum kit."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

"Option two was to weasel my way on to one of your movie sets, but since the entirety of my acting career involves the Muppets and dressing up as Satan, I didn't think they'd let me anywhere near you."

Liz giggled softly at the thought of him showing up on one of her sets looking lost and out of place.

"Option three was to just show up on your doorstep and wing it from there."

"Oooh, I like that one," she said excitedly. "Did it work?"

"It did, actually," his wide smile returned when she played along and he kissed the spot above her ear that he loved so much, even when it was broken. "You agreed to drag the bikes almost 50 miles one way just so I could stare at you in my mirrors."

"Yeah, I caught you doing that a couple times," she whispered, then sat up a little to look him in the eye, now with a stern glare. "Don't do that anymore, it's dangerous."

"I couldn't help it. I was too busy trying to figure you out."

"And did you?" she asked, not really expecting an answer and shook herself out of his arms so she could slide off the table. It was getting cold and she wanted back in the truck.

"No, but I think I'm going to spend the rest of my life trying."

She stood in front of him as he leaned forward onto his knees, watching her as if he were expecting her to say something witty and charming, but she had nothing of the sort to offer. "So what's next?"

He climbed off the table and once again put his arm around her, something he knew he did too much of but he just couldn't be around her and not touch her. "Nate's waiting in his driveway with that pink apron on so I guess we should go there next."

"Oh my god," Liz laughed and shook her head, just hoping he was kidding.

*

Dave slowed the truck just before the evergreen shrubs that surrounded Nate's driveway, fighting back a laugh when she gasped a little and then continued on past his bassist's dark house and figured he and Kate were long since asleep.

"Ass," she accused under her breath and he looked over to find her sitting back with her arms crossed as if she were angry, but she couldn't hide the smile playing at her lips. He loved when they were like this, in their little playful competition to see who could make the other laugh first and the high he got from winning was something he thought he would always chase.

Once again back in his own garage, he killed the engine on the truck and closed the garage door behind them, then quieted the stereo to a dull hum while she unbuckled her seatbelt. It was one of his favorite things about his new truck, that he could turn off the engine and the music would still play until he opened his door like a killswitch. Liz went still, seemingly mesmerized by the soft glow of the dash lights and the Royal Blood song that was playing until he reached into his back pocket and held out the note that had passed between them twice now. He heard her breathing become shallow when her eyes landed on his bold handwriting loudly proclaiming, I love you, as he hovered the card over the console and cup holders that separated them.

"When I wrote this back in Paris, I wanted to start your night over," he said in a voice just loud enough for her to hear and flipped open the card with his thumb to read the handwriting inside, "I felt, and still feel, so bad about what I did that night and the plan was to sit you down and play you Lumberjack on whatever guitar I could scrounge up and try my fucking hardest to be worthy of any apology I could possibly give you. We keep fucking up, Liz. Why is that?"

He paused when she let out a long breath that was clearly masking a sob and covered her lips with the back of her hand. She rested her elbow on the sill of the door beside her and just stared straight ahead, the dash lights reflecting off the tears in her eyes as she gave her silent answer.

"We managed to fit like a decade's worth of fights into eight months and we're both still here. We keep coming back for more, so either we're both complete idiots or there's something here that neither of us wants to throw away."

Again, he was met with silence though her glassy eyes were now on his and he forced himself not to do or say anything that might distract her from whatever she was working up the courage to say. She worked her jaw, opening and closing her mouth as if she were deciding how her words tasted before she spit them out.

"That was a really good speech," she finally said in a whoosh of air, effectively lifting the heaviness around them.

"Right?" he agreed, leaning forward a little to see her face better, "I'll probably never be able to do that again, so I'm glad you were here for it."

That earned him a laugh and when her hand reached for his, he pulled her across the console to his lips. It was meant to be fleeting, something reassuring before they went inside and felt out more of the unknown, but only seconds passed before she was suddenly in his lap with her tongue against his. He hadn't thought his words were that good, but he welcomed her all the same with his hands sliding up the outsides of her thighs until his fingers grazed the hem of her green velvet dress. Her hand left his cheek to pull the seat lever and he found himself almost flat on his back watching her peel off her leather jacket and toss it into her abandoned seat. And, oh fuck, she couldn't have chosen a better dress to wear for a night of apologizing. The emerald green played up her eyes and exposed her skin in all the right places while modestly covering the rest, altogether classy and sexy and maybe a little dangerous when she added the leather and heels. She looked like she had stepped off the set of Mad Men, the kind of girl that had her shit together in a world where everyone else was faking it.

She sat up on his hips with her back almost touching the steering wheel and swatted his hands away when he tried to pull her down to him. Their grins matched when she moved on her own, lowering herself against him and flipping her hair to the side just before her lips grazed his.

"I thought we were gonna talk."

His voice was already thick in his throat, heavy with the weight of her thighs on his, her hands pressed against his chest and how badly he wanted her. The last thing he wanted to do was talk, but he still had questions about what had happened at The Rainbow and though it made him feel like a manipulative jerk, he wanted her vulnerable enough to spit the truth.

"You're talking right now," she reminded him with her lips dancing along the line of his ear. "Start making those words count."

The planets somehow aligned and the garage was plunged into blackness when the light mounted on the garage door opener timed out, making her draw in a sharp breath and push herself up again to look around. He groaned and rolled his head to the side as her hips bounced against his, the incredible dislocation between what his mind wanted and what the rest of him wanted becoming overtly painful; cruel, really and in an attempt at self-preservation, his hands went to the narrowest part of her waist to lift her just enough to break their contact and gently guide her over the console and into the backseat.

He clumsily crawled after her, eager to start talking or finish what they had started in the front seat, though this time it was her that was flat on her back. It was cramped and dark in the narrow backseat, illuminated only by the blue and green dash lights filtered from just feet away and forced them to focus on just one another with no distractions.

"Tell me about your date," he kept his voice low and hovered above her, raking his eyes down her body as she watched, keenly aware they weren't actually touching. When his eyes returned to her's, she tilted her head as if she were thinking and exposed the length of her neck that he could never resist kissing. The game was in play and neither of them were saving their heaviest hits for last.

"I'm actually kind of in the middle of it and so far it's going really well so ask me tomorrow," she sighed when his lips touched her skin.

"No, your other date," he growled against her jaw.

She caved like a house of cards in a tornado, tangling her fingers in his hair in case he had any ideas about breaking contact with her skin. "He picked me up...," she gasped when he hummed against her throat, her entire body shivering against his. "And I threw a little tantrum when I realized it was him," she tried to laugh, but it caught in her chest when he pulled away.

"You didn't know it was him?"

She shook her head almost imperceptibly and gently tucked his hair behind his ear. "The only info Sophie had was that his name was John. Travis had security cleared ahead of time so..."

They both stared at each other for a beat while Dave tried to put the pieces of the puzzle together. Maybe he had this whole thing wrong...

"I refused to go unless we went on my terms," she added. "and I chose The Rainbow because I didn't want anyone to think..."

She didn't need to finish her sentence, he knew where she was going with it. She didn't go to The Rainbow to humiliate him, she went there because she knew every move she made would be reported back to him in great detail and the receipts of that were already in his phone.

"I only agreed to one drink," she tried to go on but he ducked back into her shoulder and found the zipper on her dress, slowly dragging it down her skin. A soft whine curled from her lips when his hand slipped beneath the open zipper and down her ribcage.

"... And?" he pulled back with a teasing grin and she huffed in frustration at him, hooking her leg over his hips to try and regain some contact, but he held fast. His hand went back to her knee and drifted upwards, his smile widening when he almost made a comment about how her tights kept her from complaining about the cold when he felt the lace tops of her stockings. There was a sharp intake of breath, probably from him though he wasn't able to confirm it, and tried, really tried to keep it together as he talked himself down.

Don't look, don't look, Jesus fucking Christ, don't look... but the disconnect between the side of him that wanted answers and the side that just wanted to be fully wrapped up in her was so great that he dropped his head anyways, groaning at the black french lace wrapped around her upper thighs with just a peek of more black lace around her hips, still mostly covered by green velvet.  And Liz, for her part, took his hand and encouraged it to continue it's path over the lace bands and the bare skin above it then giggled when he finally broke.

"Oh fuck," he whined and lurched back to undo his belt and jeans, only able to get them down just enough before Liz was pulling him in and gently holding his face to hers as he guided himself inside of her. She purred against his lips and pushed back against him, just as desperate for him as he was for her.

Once that need was well met and they were both somewhat coherent again, he tried to steer them back to the original conversation while coaxing her body towards the edge. "Did he kiss you?"

"He tried," she breathed and tightened her hold on him, knowing he was doing all he can to keep the anger at bay. "Jesse bailed me out."

He shifted his weight to one elbow and raised an eyebrow at her, hoping she grasped the irony of Jesse bailing her out of a jam at The Rainbow and with his mind circling thoughts of putting his fist through Depp's face began to move faster, chasing her up the leather seat as her back arched in the early stages of her downfall. Then with a simple cry of his name, it all fell away. The fear that she would find someone else, that she would betray him in such a devastating way, it was just gone and replaced with an almost overwhelming sense of need for her. And maybe she felt the same because at that moment she broke, scrambling to bring him flush against her as she repeated his name over and over again, shuddering and stretching against herself as she dragged him over the edge along with her.

Once they were still again, trying to catch their breath and wrap their minds around what had just happened, she raised her shaking hands to his face. "I missed you," she whispered, staring up into his eyes as tears streamed out of hers. "Baby, I missed you so much. I need you and that scares me and-"

"I know," he shushed her. "I'm scared, too."