#it gave me great comfort to go to the zoo this weekend and see it packed

[orcinus-veterinarius]

The idiots are already out saying Flaco is better off dead than in a life of captivity.

[7ndipity]

BTS As Girl Dads

Ot7 x Reader

Summary: Headcanons about how the members would each handle being girl dads

Warnings: none

A/N: Thanks to @coffeedepressionsoup for this request! This got me soo in my feels, they’d all be such great dads(I may have gone a lil self indulgent but who cares lol). Obviously, some/most of these could also apply to any kid, regardless of gender, but for the sake of the Hc, we’re focusing on daughters

Masterlist

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Jin:

He’s honestly such a girl dad, argue with the wall

I totally see him wholly embracing the title and all the things that are typically considered ‘girly’, like pink and sparkles and all that

He would indulge every single one of her interests. She likes animals? They’re going to the zoo every weekend. She likes music? He’s signing her up for lessons for whatever instrument she’s into

I have this mental picture of them sitting on her bed together while he’s reading her bedtime stories, using all these silly voices and wearing one of her princess hats or something bc she insisted he needed for the character and just-😭

Yoongi:

Yoongi would be the softest girl dad ever, like she had him wrapped around her finger from day one. He took one look at her tiny little scrunched up face, that reminded him waay too much of his own expression when he’s annoyed, and he was a goner

I see him just sitting soo patiently while she gives him makeovers, wearing like three different pairs of clip-on earrings at the same time

He would really focus on teaching her to stand up for herself and makes sure she never takes any shit from anyone

He might come off a little stern sometimes, but it’s just because he worries and wants the best for her

Hobi:

Okay, Hobi as a girl dad might be one of my favorite headcanons, bc he’d be soo fucking sweet with them!

The tea party King. Like he shows up dressed in the most ridiculous outfits to make her giggle, and ready to talk imaginary gossip with her and any plushies that are joining them🤭

He would love shopping with/for her, constantly trying to find the coolest outfits or pieces for her, and they would definitely wear matching outfits when she was little(she would be the best dressed toddler ever, lol)

I also see him being quite protective of her at times, being super nervous/worried about her doing things like riding a bike for the first time or on her first days of school

Namjoon:

Omg Namjoon as a girl dad would be soo fucking protective. Like if someone does anything to hurt or upset her, they’re fucked

I see him loving daddy-daughter days out together, taking her to the park or museums or bookstores, really just wanting to indulge her curiosity and interests

Like Yoongi, he would really work to make sure she knows how to stand up for herself, as well as others

For all of his sternness tho, he would have the biggest soft spot for her, he’s 100% the type to let her have dessert before dinner or something bc she gave him puppy eyes

Jimin:

Omg he’s soo girl dad coded, like it’s not even funny(he literally confirmed that on that ep of “are you sure?” like 🥺)

He would treat her like a little princess, doting on her at every possible opportunity, buying her toys/clothes/treats, taking her on special outings, etc. If she wants something, he will do whatever he can do give it to her

He would not be able to stand seeing her in any sort of pain. Like even her just having a scraped knee would make him slightly misty-eyed, even tho she’s not upset/crying about it

I see them having lots of long talks about whatever’s on her mind. He would really strive to be her safe place to ask questions about anything, from school and friends to life and the future

Taehyung:

I see him being an amazing girl dad! He has this amazing, comforting dynamic with the girls that he’s worked with/is friends with, so I can only imagine how supportive he would be with his own daughter

He would be so indulgent in whatever she wanted. Ice cream before bed? Heck yeah, let him grab a spoon too. She wants a new plushie/toy even tho she just got one like yesterday? Well, the new one needs a friend, soo-

But he would still have his more stern/protective moments with her, just moreso in little ways like making sure she’s always wearing her helmet and elbow/knee pads, brushes her teeth, does her homework, etc

He would play along with all/any of their imaginary games, fully committing to the role(and adding waay too many silly death/fainting scenes bc they make her laugh)

Jungkook:

Junkook would absolutely adore a daughter. Like she would be his little princess and anyone/anything that upsets her will have to answer to him.

On the flip side of that protectiveness tho, he is so unbelievably gentle with her. As an infant, he handled her like she was made of glass, and as she grows up, he would always speak to her in a softer tone than he uses for anyone else 

(Also dodon’t think about him singing her to sleep every night as an infant. Getting up with her in the middle of the night and walking her around the house, singing to her softly till she drifts back off to sleep in his arms)

He would love teaching her things and playing games with her(I totally picture him teaching her boxing in tiny and falling over all dramatic when she lands a hit, lol)

Taglist: @sopebubbles-replies @btsw1fe @this-must-be-my-tardis @whitefoxgirl @bethanysnow @coffeedepressionsoup @main-bangtansmauyeondan @feminympho @classicalelephant @dfqcsqueen @mother2monsters @comingupwithacoolnameishard @universal-travel-er @bo0ghol @captainorangegoose @k4ngelz

[libraryofloveletters]

hi! so i came across your blog just a couple days ago and i love your fics! if possible i have a request for an eddie diaz and buckley!read fic? it might sound like a weird idea and it might not follow the time line. but the reader is a buckley, her and eddie slept together and they were about to start dating. then his wife comes back and the reader leaves la because of that reason. she then comes back 3ish years later with a daughter. her siblings know it’s eddie’s baby and tries to get the reader to tell her, but she doesn’t want to. then eddie some how finds out (you can pick how) and then he tells her that he wants to be apart of both there lives. and one last thing, can the daughter be names stella? (i hope this isn’t to detailed!)

thank you and i hope you have a great day! 😊❤️

Build A Home With Me

Eddie Diaz x Buckley!Reader 

Warnings: fem!reader, slight insinuation of cheating, mentions of pregnancy, secret keeping, sibling teasing, alcohol and consumption of

Category: Angst and Fluff, lil mix of both :) 

Word Count: 5k

Author’s Note: First of all, thank you for the sweet words! I loved this request and I loved writing it! I hope you liked it!! <3

---

“What time are they going to be back ?” Eddie gets up off the bed, you shrug and grab your phone. You watched as Eddie got dressed, somehow this man always looked perfect. “Y/n ? What time are they coming back ?” he stops in front of the bed, the sound of the front door unlock causing the both of you to look towards your bedroom door. 

“Well, I guess now” 

“Y/n!” he half whispers, half shouts. “They’re going to kill me” he says, leaning down and tossing your clothes at you. “Not they Eddie, Buck. Buck’s gonna kill you” you laugh. 

“Y/n ?! We’re home!” your sister shouted from downstairs. You were currently staying with your sister, Maddie, while you came to visit LA. She was kind enough to let you stay with her because frankly, your brother could be a pain in the ass with all his routines. 

“Coming!” you shout back, Eddie grabs your arm as you go to open the door. “My shoes are downstairs” he looks at you, “okay and ? Come down and get them” 

“They're down there” his eyes go wide, the idea of your siblings seeing him was absolutely outrageous to him. 

“Eddie, I'm a grown woman. I don't think they’ll care.” 

“I do! I have to work with Buck, do you know how hard it’ll be if he’s upset about this ?” 

“Would you relax? He’s slept with 90% of my friends. Let’s go” you grab Eddie’s hand and pull him down the stairs with you. “Why are you walking so loud fu-” your brother stopped in his tracks. 

His little sister and his best friend. Holding hands. Coming down the stairs. 

Together. 

“Ed- how- wait what ? Since when?” Buck didn't know if he should be upset or congratulate them. “Buck, what’s wrong?” Maddie walks into the living room to see the 3 of you by the stairs. 

“Oh hey Eddie, wanna stay for dinner ?” 

Buck looks over at Maddie, she didn't seem surprised about the fact that their little sister just came down from her room with Eddie. “Did you know ?” Buck asks her, “I mean yeah, the walls in here aren't exactly thick” she laughs. Eddie’s face was a mix of shame and embarrassment. Buck didn't say anything, he just left the 2 of you by the stairs with Maddie. Eddie looks down at you and glances over to the direction Buck headed in. You shake your head and grab his hand again, giving it a little squeeze. 

“Come on guys, dinner’s going to get cold” Maddie smiles, walking towards the kitchen. The two of you follow her to the kitchen. Dinner was quiet, just talk about work and if you plan on moving out to LA which was still undecided as of now. Maddie asked you to help her get another bottle of wine, leaving the guys at the table together. 

“How long ?” Buck slouched in the chair, taking a sip of his beer. Eddie couldn't remember the last time he felt like this, he knows Buck is his best friend but right now, Buck was y/n’s brother and not his best friend. 

“A few days after you introduced us at the station” 

Eddie watched Buck. He was doing the math in his head, Eddie’s fingers drummed against his knees under the table, Buck looked over at him. “That’s almost 4 months” 

“It is” 

“And you didn’t tell me”

“Buck, man, she didn't want anyone to know” 

“Yeah she’s always been a private person” Eddie gave him a slight smile. “Did you introduce her to Chris ?” 

“Yeah, a few weeks ago. They really like each other” 

Maddie’s voice interrupted their conversation. “I have pie, who wants?” she turns to the fridge, the men give her a mumble which she takes as a yes. You make your way back over to the table, standing behind your brother’s chair. 

“So?” your hand rested on his shoulder, his hand comes up and pats yours, he glances over his shoulder and smiles at you. 

“Really ?” you smile at him, he nods. You lean down and kiss his cheek. Eddie watches the two of you, you remind him a lot of his relationship with his sisters when he lived at home. Maddie comes back to the table with a few plates in one hand and a pie in the other. 

“I should get going” Eddie stands from his seat, “Oh are you sure ? You don't want to stay for dessert ?” Maddie asks him, he shakes his head. 

“Thank you but I should get home to Chris” he comes around the table and pats Buck’s shoulder on his way over to Maddie. 

“Thank you for dinner” he gives her a hug, she wraps her arms around him.

“Anytime, come by anytime and it doesn’t have to be just to sleep with her,” she laughs, “you can just hang out if you want” 

“Hey, I'll walk you out” you reach for his hand, Eddie follows you to the door. He stepped outside, the cool air blowing into the house, you leaned against the door. 

“How long until the team knows?” you ask, he chuckles. “Maddie’ll tell Chim, Chim’ll tell Hen, she’ll tell Athena and then Bobby’ll find out” 

“So let’s give it two days ?” 

“2 days.” 

The two of you are just standing there, looking at each other, not saying anything. Eddie grabs your hands, “can I tell you something ?” 

“Anything” 

“You know how I'm trying to get Chris into that new school ? And I went for the interview” 

“Yeah, did everything go okay ?” 

“Yeah no, everything’s fine. It’s just that, uh- well you see,” 

“Eddie, spit it out” 

“They want to interview Shannon” he looks at you, your face is unreadable. Eddie’s brows furrow, he’s trying to read your expression. 

“His mom, right? Did you tell her? Because if that’s what it’ll take to get Chris in, you should tell her” 

Eddie sighed, a feeling of relief washed over him, “I thought you’d be upset” 

“Why ? It’s for Chris plus, nothing’s going on between you guys, right ?” looking at him, you were now trying to read his expressions. 

“Nothing’s happening, I haven’t seen her in years”  

Eddie gave your hand a reassuring squeeze. You smiled at him and pulled him into a hug. “Go home now, they're probably wondering where I am” you whisper to him, Eddie’s hands come up to your face. 

“Goodnight y/n”

“Good night Eddie” 

--

Anger, sadness, you didn't know which one you felt the most of right now. 

Eddie stood across from you, the two of you were in the living room of his house. Initially you had come by to spend the day with him and Chris, and to see how the interviews went. Upon arriving, you realized that Chris wasn’t home, Eddie told you that he was out with Shannon for lunch. 

“I didn’t- no, let me explain.” he looked over at you, taking a step over to you. You stepped back, you didn't want to be near him right now. 

“Explain then.” 

“She was feeling vulnerable, she felt like what happened to Chris was her fault and she was crying. She was blaming herself and felt horrible for leaving. I was just trying to comfort her.” 

“you couldn't comfort her without kissing her ?” you spat, your words laced with anger.

“Y/n, I didn't mean too. I pulled away, she kissed me” he tried to defend himself. 

You asked him the impossible question, the one he knew was coming, the one he didn't have an answer too. 

“Do you still love her?” you looked over at him, his answer would determine the rest of this relationship. 

“I’ll always love her, she's Christopher’s mother.” 

“Eddie, yes or no. Do you love her ? It doesn’t matter if she’s Chris’s mom.”

Eddie didn't say anything, he just stood there. You nodded, running your hand through your hair. Picking up your bag, you pull something out of your bag. Eddie watched your every move, he could see the hurt on your face, he truly never meant to hurt you, that was never his intention. Stepping towards him, you shove the picture frame from your bag to him. 

“This was for you” you say, Eddie looks down at the frame. It was a picture of the 3 of you. The 2 of you had taken Chris to the zoo one weekend and taken a few pictures, it was a picture from that weekend in one of the colourful frames from the gift shop. 

“When did you -” 

“It doesn’t matter.” 

Eddie followed your steps to the door, he watched you walk out on him. Once you go to the car, you look back at him, “You know, I hope things work out between you and Shannon, for Chris’s sake. He deserves to have both of his parents in his life.” 

Once again, Eddie doesn't say anything. He watches as you get in the car and pull out of the driveway. He watches you drive down the street, he watches until he can no longer see you. 

On the other side of the city you sat in the car. How do you tell your siblings that you ended it with Eddie because he kissed his wife? It’s not that you didn’t know he was married, he had told you but he also told you that it didn't even count to him, she wasn’t around. 

Was there even something to end ? 

The two you aren’t exactly exclusive nor did you ever say that you weren’t dating. Maddie and Buck were both at work, you took the time to go inside and pack up your things. You didn't want to leave like this but you couldn’t bring yourself to tell them in person, simply for the selfish reason that it would hurt you and to see Buck’s face when you have to tell him why you’re leaving would break you. You took all these things into consideration when you wrote the letter to them. 

To my Buck and Maddie, 

I love you both dearly, let me just start by saying that. I’m sorry that I had to leave so suddenly and with no explanation. There’s nothing here for me, at least not what I came in search of.

The two of you are my whole world, you know that. These last 5 months have been some of my favourites but our time has come to an end, at least for now. I promise I’ll come back and visit soon but I can’t stay here, not right now. I need to leave, to get myself together. I know what the two of you are thinking right now (I’m a Buckley too, don’t forget that) that you can help me get myself together but you can’t.

The reason why I’m leaving is Eddie. Well, not entirely, he didn’t tell me to leave but I feel like I should, for his sake and for Chris’s. As you both know, Eddie and I have been seeing each other but we never made it official, we just - well I just assumed we were. I went to see him today and he said he kissed Shannon and he still loves her, he “always will” so I told him that whatever we had is over and that I hope things work out for him and Shannon because Chris deserves his parents in his life, together, if they can make it work. I couldn’t tell you this in person because it would hurt, hurt me and hurt the both of you. Please remember it was my choice to leave, don’t take it out on Eddie (especially you Buck) he didn’t do anything wrong, I knew he was still married to her. If anything, I was the other woman and I don’t know why I allowed myself to get sucked into that.

Regardless of what happened between Eddie and I, don’t let that change the way you treat him. He’s a good man and he deserves happiness. I’ll find mine too, even if it’s not with him. I love you both, I’ll call you when I get home.

All my love,

Y/n.

---

*4 years later*

Buck’s birthday was this weekend. He didn’t have plans but in Buckley fashion, Maddie wouldn’t let his birthday go uncelebrated. Hence why you found yourself wandering the terminal at the airport, waiting on your brother to pick you up. 

“Uncle Buck!” the little girl shouted and sprinted down the terminal to the man in the green shirt. “Stella!” he shouted, meeting her halfway and picking her up. You made your way over to your brother, “hey birthday boy” you smile and pull him in for a hug. “Hey you, you know it’s not my birthday yet right ?” 

“I know, can't I be excited ? I missed your stupid face” 

“Oh thanks” he rolls his eyes playful, he’s carrying Stella with one arm and pulling a suitcase with the other. You tugged the other suitcase alone with you as the 3 of you make your way over to the car. Buck gets Stella strapped into the car suit and then gets in. Halfway through the drive, Stella falls asleep, she kept insisting on staying up the entire plane ride and kept talking about how excited she was to see her aunt and uncle. The car ride was quiet for the most part. Buck asked how your flight was, he caught you up on his life, you told him about Stella’s first day of school. 

“Who’s coming tomorrow ?” 

“Maddie and Chim, Hen and Karen, Bobby and Athena,” 

“Bobby and Athena.. as a couple ?” 

“Yeah, they got married”

“And neither of you told me?” you smacked his arm, he whined.

“Hey! I'm driving! anyways, Eddie and Chris are coming too” 

That’s who you really asked the question about, you wanted to know if you’d be seeing him tomorrow. 

“How’s Chris ?” 

“He’s good, he’s grown up a lot since you last saw him.”

The rest of the drive was quiet, you watched as the cars passed by and you couldn't help but think what could have been if maybe things had ended differently. Buck carried a sleeping Stella up to his apartment, you followed him with the luggage. Chim opened the door, Buck went to carry Stella up to his bed so she could get a proper nap. Chim helped you with the luggage. 

“Y/n! it’s so good to see you again” he hugs you, you smile. “It’s good to see you too! I missed you guys. Where's the boss lady ?” you follow Chim’s glance to the stairs, Maddie was giving Stella a kiss as Buck took her up. 

“Mads!” 

“Y/n!” 

She came down and pulled you into a bone crushing hug, “god I missed you” 

“I missed you even more” 

After everyone was situated, Maddie began naming off jobs. “Chim, cake and balloons tomorrow, pick up is at 2. Y/n and I will decorate, Bobby said he’s got most of the cooking done and Athena will help him. Hen and Karen offered to get a banner, I just said yes because who doesn't love a banner?” she laughed, you, Buck and Chim exchanged glances. “And Buck, you just be ready.” 

“As for right now, boys we need beer.” she said, the two of them standing there, looking at each other cluelessly. 

“Go! That means go!” you say, Buck groaned and dug his keys from his pocket. 

“I forgot how bossy the two of you are together” he teased, you pushed him towards the door and they headed out. 

You and Maddie were sitting on the couch, planning out the last minute details. “Stella’s gotten so big” she says, flipping through the binder in front of her. “Yeah, she keeps surprising me everyday” you chuckle. 

“She looks a lot like him” Maddie glances at you, the smile drops from your face and you nod. 

“His twin, she acts like him too. The same pulled together emotions, she’s a fighter just like her dad” 

“That’s good” 

“No I mean, she really is a fighter. She hit some kid for taking her snack” 

Maddie and you ended up in a laughing fit as you tell her the story. Sometime later, the sound of little feet pattering down the stairs caught your attention. “Auntie Maddie!” your daughter shouted as she straight to her aunt in the kitchen. “Hi sugarplum!” Maddie picked her up and gave her a hug. “I missed you” she says to her aunt, Maddie smiled at the little girl, “I missed you too” 

Chim and Buck come in a few minutes later, you were laying on the couch watching tv and Maddie had Stella up on the counter, they were having some sort of dance party in the kitchen. “Who’s this pretty girl with you?” Chim asks Maddie as he walks over to him. 

“This is Stella, my niece, she looks like me that's why she's pretty” Maddie tells him proudly, you roll your eyes at her comment and you hear Buck groan. “Shut it, you're just jealous you’re not hot like me” she gives Buck a look. 

“Stella, this is my boyfriend, Chim” Stella takes a seat on the counter, looking at the man for a few seconds before saying anything. “Are you a firefighter ? Like uncle Buck?” 

“I am, how’d you know?” he asks her

“Magic,” she giggles 

“I might have to hire you for my next party then,” Chim jokes, “it’s very nice to meet you Stella” he lifts his hand to give her a high five, Stella pulls him into a hug instead. 

The 5 of you have dinner before Maddie and Chim head out. You, Buck and Maddie were in the kitchen going over something and Chim sat with Stella on the couch. He was teaching her how to play some video game Buck left on, “uncle Chim?” the little girl called to him, he smiled at her and the fact that she called him uncle Chim.

“Yeah?” 

“This game is weird” her face screws into a weird expression, Chim laughs, “it is, isn't it ? How about we go see if Buck has ice cream ?”

Before he could get up, Stella had already ran off to the kitchen, Chim trailing behind her. Stella tugged on Buck’s hand, he looked down at her, “Do you have ice cream ?” 

“In the freezer, do you need help ?” 

“Nope”

She let go of his hand and waddled off to get the ice cream from the freezer. You lifted her onto the counter and opened the container for her. Your back was turned for a moment to get her a bowl and a spoon, turns out she had already found a spoon and was eating straight out of the container. Sometime after that, Buck decided he was going to bed, Stella didn’t like that idea so she followed him up the stairs and began bouncing on the bed. 

“Stels, come on, I'm tired” he told her, he watched the little girl bounce up and down on the bed. 

“No! I'm not tired, come bounce with me!” she shouted, Buck sighed. 

“5 minutes okay ?” Buck gets up on the bed with her. 

You were in the kitchen with Maddie and Chim, “excuse me for a minute, let me go get her before she kills Buck with her energy” you left them in the kitchen by themselves. 

Chim turns to Maddie, “Stella’s dad didn't want to come down for the party?” he sees how Maddie tenses up for a moment. 

“Uh, her dad isn't really in the picture” 

“Oh, does he know about her?” 

“No” 

The conversation drops, Maddie stands by the window and Chim makes his way over to her. “You know, she looks a lot like Eddie” he looks over at Maddie, her focus on something outside the window. “Maddie ?” 

“She’s his daughter” 

“He doesn’t know?” 

“Y/n left LA right when his wife came back. She found out she was pregnant a few weeks later. She had me and Buck, she didn’t want to drag Eddie into it.”

“Shannon died, Maddie. She could have told him.” 

“That’s exactly why she didn’t. He just lost his wife, she didn’t want to drag Stella into a messy relationship, Eddie needed time and she gave that to him.” 

“Do you know if she’s going to tell him ?” 

“I don't know, but that’s not our decision to make. What you heard here, stays here. Promise me that” she looks over at Chim, she loved that man with her whole heart but he wasn’t exactly the best at keeping secrets.

“I promise”

--

Turns out you can plan a party in a week. 

Everyone had arrived at Buck’s place, everyone was scattered around the apartment. Bobby and Athena in the kitchen with Karen and Maddie, Chim and Hen were by the tv with the kids, Buck was still upstairs trying to find something to wear. Stella ran over to you as you came back down from the kitchen. “Mom, look!” she pointed at the cake that was on the table, “I see it sweetie” 

“Can I have some pleaseeeee?” she looked up at you, “a little later, you gotta let Buck blow out the candles first okay ?” 

She ran off to go play with Nia and Denny. Someone knocked on the door but no one else seemed to hear it, you walked over and opened the door. 

There he was. 

“Y/n!” Chris wrapped his arms around your waist, you leaned down slightly and hugged him. “hey buddy, how are you ?” 

“I’m good, I missed you” 

“Awh, I missed you too” 

You could feel Eddie’s eyes burning into you as you and Chris walked into the apartment, he followed the two of you. Stella came running back over to you. “Stella come meet someone” you called to her, she stood beside you, looking up at Chris. 

“Who’s that momma?” 

“Chris is uncle Buck’s friend’s son, now you play nice okay ? I don't want trouble” 

“I'm Stella!”

“I’m Christopher!”

You crouch down beside her and point to Eddie, “that’s Christopher’s dad, Eddie, why don’t you say hi?” Stella marched up to him, she leaned her head back and looked up at him. “Hi!” she smiled at him, Eddie looked down at the little girl in front of him, she had to be around 3 or 4, she had brown hair and the same smile he did. Eddie glanced at you and then back to Stella and once at Chris. 

That couldn’t be a coincidence.

“Hi Stella, I'm Eddie” he smiled at her, she gave him another smile and made her way over to Chris. She began telling him about the plane she took to come see her aunt and uncle, the two of them walk over to Nia and Denny together. 

Standing up, you and Eddie are now looking at each other. “Hi” he steps closer to you, you don't move. “Hey” you move slightly closer to him.

“How have you been ?” 

“Good, you ?” 

“I’m okay, can't complain” 

“You never do. Want a beer ?” 

“Sure” 

Eddie follows you to the kitchen, you pull 2 beers out of the fridge, handing one to him and opening the other for yourself. Standing across from him, he asked you “how old is she ?” 

“4″ 

“How come you never told me you had a baby ?” 

“We stopped talking after I left, I wasn’t going to call just to tell you that. I figured Buck would have told you.” 

“He didn’t” 

Right on cue, the birthday boy came down the stairs. “Wow all of you are here for me ? I must be so special” 

“You know you are” Maddie pokes his cheek. Buck went around to say hello to everyone, he started with Eddie. You took that time to leave the very awkward conversation you were having with him and made your way to the kids. 

--

Chim dropped the bottle in the trash and headed to the fridge for another one, the party was well underway and everyone was having a good time. Well, expect for Eddie. He couldn't shake the fact that Stella looked so much like him. “You want another one?” Chim asked him, setting the bottle beside him on the counter. “Yeah, thanks”

The two men stood in the kitchen, chatting about work and just catching up. Chim had a slight buzz going and he kind of let the secret he wasn’t supposed to tell, slip.

“How’s your kid?” he leans back against the counter, looking at Eddie.

“Chris ? He’s good”

Chim shook his head, “no no, Stella”

The bottle nearly fell from Eddie’s hand, he looked at Chim. “What do you mean Stella ?”

Chim realized what he said, he turned the other way and began walking. “Chim!” Eddie grabbed his arm, “what do you mean Stella ?”

“I've already said too m- oh Maddie’s calling for me, bye” Chim walked off and left Eddie standing in the kitchen by himself.  Eddie looked over at the little girl sitting beside Christopher, she looked like him, there was no denying it. She had his smile, the same brown hair, she even had the same hazel brown eyes. You were walking into the kitchen when Eddie grabbed your arm.

“What ?” you look at him.

“I need to talk to you”

“Let go of my arm and maybe we can talk” you push his hand off of your arm. Buck made his way over to the kitchen, he could feel the tension. “Is everything okay ?”

“Yeah, everything’s fine Buck, Eddie’s just gonna come with me to get the candles from the jeep, right, Eddie ?”

“Yeah, we’ll be back in a few”

The two of you stepped out of the apartment and walked down to the parking lot. You did forget the candles in the jeep so it wasn’t a total lie. “Is she mine?” Eddie blurts out, you turn to face him. “Is who yours?”

“Stella. Is Stella my daughter ?”

“How’d you-”

“Chim let it slip”

You groaned, Maddie must have told him. It wasn’t a big deal that she told him, it was a big deal that Eddie knew.

“She is.”

“Why didn't you tell me?”

“It didn't make sense too”

“Y/n, she’s my daughter! of course it makes sense to tell me!”

“You had just gotten back with Shannon, I didn't want to drag you back into something you didn't want. I’ve raised her for the last 4 years and I'll continue to do so, it doesn’t have to change now because you know she’s yours.”

“Shannon’s- she’s dead.”

“I know, Buck told me, I'm sorry.”

Eddie let out a sigh, his hand ran through his hair. You stood in front of him, the two of you in the blistering heat, having a conversation you never planned on having.

“She wouldn't have stopped me from being in Stella’s life”

“I know.”

“Why didn't you tell me?”

“Eddie, you had just lost your wife when Stella was born. It didn’t seem like the right time to come to LA and tell you I had a baby, your baby.”

“What about after that ? It's been 4 years y/n”

“Eddie, come on. Would it have made a difference ? It wouldn't have fixed anything. I would have still just been some girl you slept with.”

Eddie looks at you, his expression softened, “is that what you think ? that you're “just some girl” I slept with ?”

You didn't answer him, you didn't have an answer for him. There were so many times you had wanted to call Eddie and tell him about Stella. When she said her first word, took her first steps, her first day of school. You wanted to share all those times with him, like a normal family.

“Y/n,” Eddie stepped towards you. “You were more than just some girl. You always said that Chris deserved to have both of his parents right ? And he did but what about Stella ? Doesn't she deserve that too ?”  Eddie’s arms wrap around you, your hands on his chest.

“She does,” you sigh, “I can't just tell her your uncle’s friend is your dad, Eddie.”

“So we’ll take it one day at a time. I want to get to know her, and you. I want you back in my life, in our lives.”

“Eddie, I have a life, a job, Stella has school. We can't just leave everything.”

“As I said, one day at a time. I want this to work, don't you ?”

“I do”

“How about we get lunch ? Or dinner? The 4 of us. If you feel like this is something you want to do, you want us to try and make things work, for the kids, we can. Okay?”

“Okay.”

Eddie pulled you into a hug, things felt at ease for once, like a weight was lifted off your shoulders, you weren't carrying a secret anymore. You never meant to give in so easily but Eddie had this hold over you, one you couldn't shake, regardless of how much time you spent apart. You ended things because of what happened between him and Shannon in a parking lot and here you were, making up with him in a parking lot.

Talk about full circle.

--- 

taglist: @mikaelson-emma @ssa-volturi @advicefromnixxxx @keenmarvellover @venusrosepetal

[potionsprefect]

Away in D.C

Pairings: Ethan Ramsey x Victoria Clarke

Word count: 3.7k

Summary: Ethan has to leave for a medical conference and the family learn to deal with it.

Rating: General Audiences

Category: angst, fluff

He ended the call and put his phone down, running a hand over his face.

It was confirmed he was needed in Washington D.C for a 4 day medical conference.

“Confirmation?” Victoria said from her spot on the bed.

Ethan looked at her. “Yes, 4 days in Washington.”

Victoria gave him a small smile as she moved closer to him and wrapped her arms around him. “We’ll be okay. You’ve had to do this before.”

“That was when they were really small. They’ll remember this one.” Ethan replied.

“It’ll be ok. I’m here and I’ll make sure they have the best time whilst your away.” Victoria said leaning in to kiss Ethan’s neck.

“I really don’t want to go though.” Ethan sighed.

“I know you don’t baby. But you have too. It’ll be over before you know it.” Victoria said.

The older the twins got, the harder it was to leave them. The last time Ethan had to go away for a conference, the twins weren’t old enough to remember. Now they were at an age where they would realise Ethan wasn’t around and it would hit them hard.

“Come on, let’s go tell them.” Victoria said getting up, gently grabbing Ethan’s hand pulling him up. The two made their way downstairs where their two young children were playing with their toys.

“Hi Mommy, Daddy.” Luke smiled up at them. Lily was concentrating on her Barbie dolls.

“We’ve got something we need to tell you. And you’ve got to be very grown up about it.” Victoria said sitting down and pulling Luke into her lap, Ethan did the same with Lily.

“What’s wrong?” Luke asked, noticing a change in mood.

“I’ve got to go away for a few days. I have something really important to do.” Ethan said.

The twins looked between Ethan and Victoria, Lily cuddling against Ethan the more she looked at him.

“Is it to do with work?” Luke asked.

“That’s right. But I’ll be home before you know it.” Ethan said.

“And I’ll be here to make sure you’re both okay. We’ll have the best weekend ever.” Victoria replied.

Luke smiled although Victoria could tell he was forcing it but Lily seemed to be taking it the hardest. She buried her face into Ethan’s shoulder, his arms tightening around her tiny waist, holding her close.

Victoria could sense that Ethan would talk to Lily so she turned to Luke. “How about we go find Jenner?” She suggested. Luke jumped up at that and raced into the kitchen. As Victoria followed him, she briefly looked back and could hear soft sobs coming from Lily.

“I found Jenner!” Luke exclaimed as the golden retriever licked his face making him giggle.

“Thats great. Mommy needs to ask you something.” Victoria picked him up and sat him at the kitchen table. “Are you okay with Daddy going away? It’s okay if you’re not, Mommy’s here to help you.”

“I know he’ll be back. Daddy always comes back.” Luke said, pretending to race his car along the kitchen table.

“It’s great that you think that. Lily’s a bit upset by it all so you’ll have to be extra nice to her and we can both cheer her up. I know! Shall we make a list of things to do this weekend and then we can tell Daddy all about them when he comes home?” Victoria suggested.

“Yeah!’ Luke grinned. Victoria grabbed a notepad.

“How about we have a pyjama day on Saturday? We can watch all your favourite tv shows and films?”

“Yeah! And can we have pizza?”

“Why not? How about ice cream as well? And on Sunday I’ll cook you your favourite meal.” Victoria said.

“Yes spaghetti!”

Victoria laughed as she made notes, this also included time on their climbing frame in the garden and going to the park as well as endless amounts of cuddles.

“Mommy will Lily be ok?” Luke asked.

“She’ll be fine. She’s just a little sad that Daddy’s going away but he won’t be long.”

Back in the living room, Ethan was comforting Lily who was holding onto him as if she didn’t want to let go.

“I don’t want to go away either Lil. But Mommy’s here and she’ll look after you.” Ethan forced Lily to look at him.

“I don’t like it when you’re not here.” Lily said.

“I don’t either sweetpea. But sometimes we have to do things we don’t really want to do.” Ethan replied stroking Lily’s hair.

“Like when Mommy makes me eat vegetables?”

“Yes exactly like that.” Ethan chuckled. “I’m gonna miss you too, but we can FaceTime with Luke and Mommy every evening. Does that sound okay?”

Lily nodded, a smile forming on her face. “When do you go?”

“I leave tomorrow night and come back Monday evening. I promise you the time will go very quickly. How about we do something tomorrow before I leave? Just you, your brother and me?” Ethan suggested.

“What about Mommy?”

“I already asked Mommy and she said it was a great idea.” Ethan smiled. Truth be told, Ethan knew Victoria would say yes because it would mean her having time to herself.

“Okay.” Lily smiled throwing her arms around Ethan who hugged her just as tightly back.

“Shall we go and see what Luke and Mommy are up to?” Ethan asked.

“Okay.” Lily replied. She hopped off Ethan’s lap and headed to the kitchen, Ethan following shortly behind her.

— — — — —

Ethan made his way down the stairs, luggage in hand and set it down by the front door. It was pitch black, the outside being lit by the street lights.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to drop you off at the airport?” Victoria asked coming out of the living room.

“No it will just make the goodbye even harder.” Ethan sighed wrapping his arms around Victoria.

“Try not to have too much fun.” Victoria smiled leaning against his chest.

“Impossible without you.” Ethan chuckled slightly leaning down to press a heated kiss to Victoria’s lips.

“Text me when you land.”

“Of course. I better get going.”

As if on cue, the kids ran into the hallway, throwing their arms around Ethan as he bent down to hug them.

“I’ll miss you both so much, promise me you’ll be good for Mommy?” Ethan looked at the twins.

“We will. Promise you’ll think about us?” Lily looked at Ethan, green eyes staring into blue.

“All the time, I promise.” Ethan smiled. Ethan gave the twins one last big hug before standing up and opening the door. “I’ll see you all in a few days.” Ethan headed out the door.

“Bye!” The twins and Victoria chorused before they shut the door.

“Go to the window and wave to Daddy.” Victoria instructed. The twins ran into the living room and climbed onto the sofa waving as the taxi pulled out the driveway and round the corner.

Once the car was out of sight Luke went back to his racing car whilst Lily flopped down onto the sofa and cuddled her teddy.

“Come on, let’s get you into bed.” Victoria picked Lily up who rested her head on her shoulder.

“Mommy pick me up too!” Luke said holding his arms up. Laughing, Victoria picked him up and carried them up the stairs.

It didn’t take the twins long to get ready for bed. As they were brushing their teeth, Lily asked “Mommy can I sleep in your bed tonight?”

“Is your bed not comfy enough?” Victoria knelt down so she was eye level with her daughter.

“It is. But Luke and I don’t want you to be lonely.” Lily sighed.

“We don’t?” Luke said, a mouth full of toothpaste. Lily nudged him, silently urging him to play along. “I mean yes we don’t!”

“That’s very sweet of you. And I don’t see why not.” Victoria smiled.

The twins grinned as they finished brushing their teeth and made their way to Ethan and Victoria’s bedroom.

“Did you both enjoy your day at the petting zoo with Daddy?” Victoria asked as she tucked the twins into Ethan’s side of the bed.

“Yeah we saw lots of animals.” Luke said.

“He even bought us something from the gift shop.” Lily replied.

Victoria smiled as she listened to their stories of today. It wasn’t long before both of the twins began to drift off to sleep and with a final kiss on each of their foreheads, she quietly crept out the room.

Victoria tidied up the living room and turned on the TV. She watched a few episodes of a new crime drama that was airing, until she felt exhaustion creeping up on her a few hours later and decided to go to bed.

Victoria slipped on her pyjamas and brushed her teeth before quietly making her way into her bedroom. Her heart swelled at her two young children cuddled up against each other fast asleep.

As Victoria hit the pillow, her phone lit up with a notification.

Landed safely, speak to you tomorrow x

Smiling, Victoria fell asleep.

— — — — —

The early morning sunrise woke Victoria up the next morning. Luke and Lily were still fast asleep as Victoria quietly got dressed. When she went back into her bedroom she gently roused the twins from their sleep.

“No Mommy I’m not awake.” Lily pulled the duvet over her and Luke.

“Sounds like you are to me.” Victoria chuckled.

“It’s too early.” Luke whined.

“Okay, I guess I’ll just eat all the pancakes.” Victoria pretended to walk away.

“No I’m up, I’m up!” Lily jumped out of bed and ran to Victoria, Luke not far behind her.

“Okay then let’s go make some pancakes. Do you want to hold my hand?”

“No we’re big now we can do it ourselves!” Luke replied.

The three made their way downstairs to the kitchen, Jenner jumped up and licked the twins’ faces making them giggle.

“Mommy can we have blueberries with them?” Lily asked.

“Of course you can.” Victoria smiled.

“Daddy let’s us have syrup as well.” Luke said.

“Luke! That was meant to be a secret!” Lily cried.

“Does he? Well I’ll be having words with Daddy.” Victoria pretended to be stern.

“Don’t be angry with Daddy Mommy. He was being kind.” Lily looked up at Victoria.

Victoria crouched down so she was at her height. “I can’t stay mad at Daddy for too long.”

The twins giggled and Victoria dished them up their pancakes, which they ate at lightning speed.

“Can we go watch a film now?” Luke asked.

“No Luke we have to get dressed and brush our teeth, right Mommy?” Lily sternly told Luke.

“Actually Mommy has decided we can have a pyjama day today, but you do need to brush your teeth.” Victoria said.

The twins raced upstairs and quickly brushed their teeth before they hurried back downstairs.

“What film do you want to watch?” Victoria asked.

“The Lion King!” The twins excitedly said. Victoria chuckled as she put the DVD into the player.

Victoria sat in-between the kids who snuggled up against her. As the film played, Victoria phone pinged, it was a message from Ethan.

How are you doing?

Smiling Victoria replied all okay, watching the Lion King for the millionth time.

I usually watch that with them, guess they’re missing me.

They’re not the only ones.

“Who are you texting Mommy?” Luke asked noticing Victoria was looking at her phone.

“Daddy. He wants to know if you two are ok.”

“We are! But tell him I miss him.” Lily said.

“I will sweetheart.”

The twins continued watching the film as Victoria text Ethan. Has the conference started?

It didn’t take long for a reply. In 5 minutes, are the kids behaving?

Victoria laughed a little as she text back. They are, and they miss you a lot.

The three little dots appeared at the bottom of the screen before Ethan’s message popped up. I miss them too. And you as well.

Victoria’s heart swelled at the comment. She knew Ethan wouldn’t be away for long but she missed him terribly nonetheless.

Luke and Lily continued to cuddle up against Victorias side as the film played out. The last time Ethan went away they weren’t old enough to realise but Victoria definitely noticed a change in mood between them and the minute Ethan walked through the front door, their tiny faces lit up.

Victoria knew they would have the same reaction when they reunited with Ethan on Monday.

— — — — —

Sunday soon rolled around and Victoria was currently reading a medical journal as Luke and Lily played with their toys.

“Make way for Captain Destroyer as he captures the Barbie palace!” Luke enthusiastically said as he crashed his action man into Lily’s Barbie palace.

“No! My Barbies! What did they do?” Lily hugged her Barbies to her chest to protect them.

“They’re mine now!” Luke went to grab them.

“No! Mommy!” Lily looked at Victoria.

“Luke leave her alone.” Victoria looked up from her book.

“But-“

“I’d think carefully about what you’re about to say.” Victoria said sternly.

Luke huffed and threw his toy onto the floor. “I’m bored.”

“I know. How about we build a fort? I used to make them all the time with Uncle Will and Auntie Sarah.”

“Yeah!” The twins jumped up.

“Okay. The first essential for a great fort is blankets. Can you go find some for me?” Victoria asked.

The twins eagerly ran out the room and up the stairs as Victoria took some of the cushions from the sofa and moved some of the furniture so it was closer together. The last time she has made a fort was when she was a kid. She had forgotten how fun it was.

“We’ve got them!” Lily said running back into the living room.

“Where’s Luke?” Victoria asked, noticing the young boy wasn’t with his sister.

“I’m under here!” A muffled voice said. Victoria pulled the blankets off him chuckling.

“Why don’t you put them under there and I’ll grab some fairy lights.”

Victoria headed upstairs to one of the spare bedrooms and found some old battery operated fairy lights. She brought them downstairs and hung them around the fort so there was more light.

“Wow it looks so cool!” Lily said looking round.

“Are these the kind of forts you built with Uncle Will and Auntie Sarah Mommy?” Luke asked.

“Yes. We used to build forts all the time as kids. Although Uncle Will didn’t like it when we brought lots of pink things in there.” Victoria laughed.

“Have you and Daddy ever made a fort together?” Lily asked.

“Ah well, I’ve always tried to persuade Daddy but so far I haven’t been able to. Maybe the three of us can persuade him one day.”

“How did you and Daddy meet Mommy?” Luke said cuddling up against Victorias side, Lily doing the same.

“I met him when I first started working. Although he didn’t really like me at first.” Victoria put her arms around her children.

“Why not?”

“He thought I was annoying and I thought he was very grumpy.” Victoria said which made them giggle.

“But Daddy is always so funny.” Luke said looking bewildered as if his Dad could be anything but fun.

“That’s because you two are his angels and he always saves his best features for us three.” Victoria tickled them making them laugh. “I know. Shall we take a picture and send it to Daddy?”

“Yeah!”

Victoria grabbed her phone and held it up. “Say cheese!”

“Cheese!” The twins grinned.

Victoria looked at the photo. “What do you think?”

“Great!” The twins beamed. Victoria sent the photo.

“How about I get started making the spaghetti?”

“Yes!”

Victoria chuckled as she headed out into the kitchen, As she put a pan of water on to boil her phone lit up with a notification.

Wishing I was with you x

— — — — —

Much later on in the day, the twins were fed and bathed and were in their pyjamas watching TV.

“Look who’s calling.” Victoria said holding her phone up in front of the twins. Their eyes lit up when they saw Ethans name.

“Daddy!” They cried when Victoria accepted the call and Ethan’s face popped up on the screen.

“Hi guys! How are you?” Ethan smiled.

“We’re good. Mommy helped us build a fort and then we ate spaghetti!” Luke said.

“I see. And how is Mommy?” Ethan chuckled.

“Mommy’s fine.” Victoria smiled.

“We miss you Daddy.” Lily said in a quiet voice as she cuddled her teddy.

“I miss you too sweetheart. I wish I was with you.” Ethan smiled.

“You’ll see Daddy tomorrow night Lil.” Victoria cuddled her.

“Daddy are you having a good time?” Luke asked.

Ethan laughed at that. “As good as can be.” He then went on to explain everything he had been doing even though Victoria could tell he was exaggerating. However, that didn’t matter when she saw the excited look on her children’s faces.

Victoria could tell the twins were getting tired so she suggested ending the call, promising them Daddy would be home tomorrow night. She carried them to bed, gently kissing them on their foreheads.

“Wait.” Luke suddenly said as Victoria was about to shut his bedroom door. She watched him get out of bed and head to his dresser and pull out a framed photo. On closer inspection, she realised it was a framed photo of them as a family.

“Why have you got that?” Victoria asked.

“So I don’t miss Daddy too much. And so he doesn’t get lonely.” Luke snuggled against the picture.

Victoria’s throat became thick with emotion and she felt tears forming in her eyes. Blinking them away she quietly crept out the room and once she shut the door, she let the tears fall.

It was remarkable to see how grown up the twins were. Naturally they were sad, Victoria wasn’t expecting anything less and some of the time, she knew the smiles were hiding that they were missing Ethan. But they had been so mature over the last few days and Victoria was proud of them.

She knew she was raising them well.

— — — — —

After another day of parks, food and endless amount of cuddles, Victoria, Luke and Lily were in the car on their way to the airport to pick up Ethan. Ethan’s flight got in at 8 and Victoria made sure she left with enough time to spare. The twins were in their pyjamas, Victoria deciding they could win that battle but were wrapped up in their coats.

Luke and Lily were so excited that Ethan was coming home today. In the morning, they went out and bought some of Ethan’s favourite foods, the twins made him a welcome home card for him to see when they arrived back. They managed to tire themselves out at the park in the afternoon, Luke even went down for a nap but Lily refused (‘If I fall asleep Mommy I’ll miss seeing Daddy so I have to stay awake.’)

5 minutes before they arrived at the airport, Lily had begun to doze off.

“Go to sleep Lil.” Victoria said as she pulled into the airport carpark.

“But Daddy…” Lily yawned as she shut her eyes.

“Will be here when you wake up.” Victoria said smiling at her. She pulled into an empty space and got out the car, heading to Luke’s side first helping him out of the car then gently lifting Lily out of the car, pulling her close as the little girl laid her head on her mothers shoulder.

“Can we go now Mommy?” Luke asked tugging on her hand.

“Yes, hold my hand.” Victoria said, Luke obeyed immediately.

The family walked through the airport, heading to the board where the arrivals were updated.

“Can you see Daddy’s plane number?” Victoria asked Luke as the young boy looked up at the board.

“No. Where is it?” Luke said.

“I can. It says it’s arrived.” Victoria pointed up at the screen.

“Does that mean Daddy’s home?” Luke’s eyes lit up.

“Yes sweetheart Daddy’s home.” Victoria smiled.

The family moved towards where the arrivals would filter out. The automatic doors kept opening and closing, passengers reuniting with loved ones.

“He’s not coming!” Luke said looking up at Victoria.

“He will, you just need to be patient.” Victoria ruffled his hair, glancing at Lily who was still fast asleep in her arms.

More and more people walked out until Victoria saw the one face she had been waiting for. Luke had seen him too.

“Daddy!” Luke ran to Ethan, the latter knelt down to greet his son, pulling him into a tight hug. Victoria couldn’t make out what they were saying to each other but her heart swelled at the reunion.

Holding Luke’s hand in one and pulling his suitcase in the other, Ethan made his way over to Victoria.

“Someone tried desperately to stay awake all day but inevitably fell asleep.” Victoria chuckled gesturing to the sleeping Lily.

“I don’t mind She’ll have the best reaction when she wakes up.” Ethan smiled pressing a short kiss to Lily’s head then pressed his lips to Victoria’s.

“Good to be home?”

“Definitely.” Ethan replied. He picked Luke up and with suitcase in hand, the family made their way out of the airport. “Pass me the keys.” Ethan said once they had reached the car.

“Are you sure? I don’t mind driving.” Victoria asked.

“I want to. It’s the least I can do.” Ethan smiled.

Victoria didn’t argue with that. She put Lily in her carseat then climbed into the front. Ethan’s hand found hers, lacing their fingers together.

“So tell me. How boring was the conference?” Victoria grinned as Ethan found the interstate.

“Almost as boring as all the other ones. I certainly won’t be going to anymore anytime soon.” Ethan chuckled.

“I’m glad. We’ve missed you. They’ve been good as gold though.” Victoria smiled as she looked behind her. Luke had also fallen asleep.

“I knew they would. And it wouldn’t be a trip away if I didn’t have a present to bring back.”

“Another piece of memorabilia.”

“Of course.” Ethan laughed. “It’s good to be home though. My place is right here.” Ethan squeezed Victoria’s hand.

Smiling, Victoria relaxed back in her seat as Ethan drove their family back home where they belonged.

— — — — —

I have all the feels after writing that 🥺🥰

Thank you so much for reading! Let me know if you would like to be tagged or removed

Tag list:

@ohchoices @openheartfan @queencarb @genevievemd @iemcpbchoices @choicesaddict5 @schnitzelbutterfingers @alina-yol-ramsey @stygianflood @malakemads-blog @gryffindordaughterofathena @magicalshepherdtreeprofessor @openheartfanfics @rookie-ramsey @sophxwithers @caseyvalentineramsey @romewritingshop @ethansramsey @codykosuckmytoe @mrsethanfreakingramsey @coffeeheartaddict @mm2305 @nikki-2406 @maurine07 @nishas-paradise @replayfootsteps

@choicesficwriterscreations

[secretlittlerandezvous]

A Day With The Benns - Jamie Benn

Summary: A look into the Benns household and a day spent with the family.

To the angel who requested this: From the bottom of my heart THANK YOU. I don't know who you are but I love you - for this request and for the beautiful words that came with it. It keeps making me feel like my heart will burst from happiness. I also thank you for giving me a reason to write about how I see my future life and what I hope for (this is basically me writing about my dream life) 💘🕊💫

Note: D/n means “daughter’s name”. The bedtime story is an excerpt from the book “Goodnight, hockey fans” by Andrew Larsen.

Words: 2487

“The truest, best love had nothing to do with luck. Luck was faithless, and worth little. True love wasn’t fancy, and it wasn’t magical, but simply true in every sense: honest, loyal and sure.” — Sonja Yoerg

It was that kind of a morning when you wake up and you know summer finally arrived. The sun was nicely warm and comforting unlike the stinging and cold winter sun, the birds were chirping in the trees from early in the morning and the air was fresh and warm. Y/n was woken up by the streaks of sunlight creeping into the bedroom through the window. She opened her eyes for a second and then closed them again and enjoyed the peace she felt which was quite unusual in the past few weeks. She didn’t hear a baby crying or the older kids running around the house wildly, she wasn’t woken up by them jumping on the bed to wake her up or by her husband leaving early for work. She loved her life and the chaos of it but it felt so nice to have a calm morning for once. After she fully enjoyed the silence, she opened her eyes, stretched her arms, and with a smile already present on her face she turned around to see her husband. Jamie had his back to her, but she certainly enjoyed the view at her husband’s muscular back and arms and she even blushed at the sight of him. But what warmed her heart, what couldn’t be beaten by his tattoos or muscles was the way he talked to their four months old baby girl. He had his arm protectively around her and Y/n found the contrast of his strong tattooed arm and her tiny little hand and fingers covered in a pink onesie absolutely adorable. He tickled her on her belly, and she smiled at him or watched him with her bright eyes with pure love. Y/n and the kids wished he could spend a little more time with them but they all understood why he couldn’t and whenever he was home he made the most of it and he dedicated his time to help his wife and to entertain the kids.

“Good morning my loves,” Y/n said happily as she looked over Jamie’s shoulder, kissed his cheek, and then smiled at their daughter who got even more excited when she noticed her.

“See? I told you mommy will wake up soon to give you a breakfast,” Jamie said to the little one. “Unfortunately, that’s the only thing I can’t do honey.” He said to Y/n and kissed her back.

“Not sure if anyone would want you to breastfeed babe,” she joked and took their daughter into her arms to feed her. “Are the kiddos awake?”

“Don’t think so,” Jamie mumbled. “I’ll go wake them up in a bit.” But first, he wanted to enjoy his wife’s company.

She was beautiful. He found her so beautiful. And he adored everything about her. Her kindness, the way she always loved him even though he could get a little grumpy sometimes. The way she handled everything with such ease. How smart she was. How supportive and understanding she was of him and his career. How she raised the kids, took care of them and their household on her own when he was away, and never used that against him. How good she was at her own job. How she created such a loving atmosphere in their family. Everything.

Jamie soon left to wake up the two older boys who even despite the complaints got out of the bed pretty quick and happily ran downstairs to help their dad in the kitchen. Y/n stayed behind a little to take care of D/n and to put herself together before she headed to the kitchen to join the rest of the pack. She heard laughter and giggles coming from there and she stopped and listened to the conversation they were having, she smiled to herself and enjoyed everything that was said.

Y/n often felt that she didn’t have enough time to pause and enjoy the present moment, but she was slowly learning to do so. The kids were growing up way too fast for her liking, life kept moving forward without a chance of it ever slowing down and she got sad at times when she realized how fast the kids will turn into adults. Y/n wanted to stay stuck in time, stay this old for a little longer and have the kids stay little longer, and have more time to process it all. But mostly she wanted a little more time off for Jamie who even though never said it out loud regretted not being there for them all the time. But they knew he loved them more than anything or anyone else in the world and that was enough.

“Can we go skating with you dad?” Their oldest son asked with hope, but he knew what answer was coming. He asked the same question, every morning when Jamie was home and about to go to practice. Each time the answer was no but he never gave up. The positive attitude towards everything and how he was never losing hope was Jamie’s favorite trait of their oldest son. It reminded him of Y/n.

“You know you can’t come with me buddy,” Jamie said with a sad voice. He hated saying no to him and he even wished he could bring the boys with him, but it was never convenient. “But I can ask the boys and we can go skating together on the weekend. What do you think?”

“I think we should hurry up,” Y/n joined the conversation, but no one heard her because the boys started screaming in excitement. She then sat down at the table and enjoyed the pancakes Jamie and the boys made for her and she helped their younger son with eating because he preferred to play with it rather than eating it. “Did you guys tell daddy where you’re going today?”

“No,” the older boy said. “We’re going to the zoo with the kindergarten.”

“And you wanted to miss the zoo to go skating? The zoo’s more fun for sure.” Jamie answered.

After the tasty breakfast, everyone headed to the bathroom to get ready for kindergarten and the day. Jamie helped them brush their teeth and hair, he even let them use a tiny little amount of his deodorant because both boys adored their dad and wanted to be just like him. It wasn’t rare for the boys to draw on their hands and pretend the drawings were real tattoos or them putting on Jamie’s hockey gear and playing hockey around the house. Y/n in the meantime prepared their outfits, soothed the crying baby, and managed to get dressed up without being disturbed.

“I’ll drop the kids at the kindergarten,” Jamie whispered as he wrapped his hands around Y/n’s waist from behind and hugged her tightly. “And I’ll try to get back home sooner than usual, and we can then do something fun.”

“Aren’t you amazing?” Y/n said happily, turning around to face Jamie, wrapping her hands around his neck, and kissing him before he got to answer. She expected a cocky answer from him, and she wanted to avoid it.

A few minutes later the whole family was outside their house, all of them about to head in different directions to different places. The boys were going to the kindergarten, Jamie to the arena and Y/n and D/n were going for a regular check-up at the doctor. “I love you boys,” said with a proud face and kissed all three boys goodbye.

“And we love you girls,” Jamie said, kissed Y/N and their daughter and the boys repeated after him before they all jumped into the car.

Later that day after Y/n returned home from the doctors and the grocery store, she cooked lunch for herself and then picked up the boys from the kindergarten. They then went for a walk around the neighborhood to put D/n to sleep in her stroller and the boys being the amazing brothers argued about who was gonna push the stroller. Y/n felt joy in her heart she couldn’t describe. She was simply proud of how loving the boys were.

When Jamie returned home, 2 hours earlier than usual, he expected to find his pack in the living room and he secretly hoped they would greet him, but the house was empty. He went to the living room and that’s when he finally found Y/n and the kids. They were in the garden enjoying the warm weather and the sunshine, eating some fruit, and playing with way too many things but they seemed to be enjoying. Jamie watched them from behind the glass door and adored Y/n once again. She was smiling widely, she glowed and looked even prettier than usual at that moment. She was showing D/n some flowers they probably picked in their garden and D/n was from what Jamie saw laughing at it. The boys were sitting on the blankets around the girls, their younger son was drawing something (and judging from the dozens of papers lying around it wasn’t his first artwork that day) and the older son was playing the puzzles while telling Y/n some exciting story. She listened carefully to every word and looked at the kids with so much love and adoration that Jamie wondered how he could get so lucky.

“Dad!” The younger boy screamed when Jamie came to the garden and both boys happily ran towards him to hug him.

“When you said you were gonna come home earlier I didn’t expect it would be this early,” Y/n said to Jamie as he sat down next to her. “But I’m not complaining. I missed you.”

“Missed you too love,” Jamie whispered as he leaned closer to kiss her and he then picked up D/n and took her in his arms to cuddle with her. Jamie was such a great dad and Y/n always knew he would be even though Jamie used to call himself a boy dad and say that he wouldn’t know what to do with a girl. But the moment they found out their next baby was going to be a girl he changed his mind completely and couldn’t wait to have a daughter. And from the second she was born she had him wrapped around her finger. “If you want you can go take a nap, I’ll stay there with the kids. I know you didn’t get much sleep.” Jamie offered.

At the first moment, she wanted to accept the offer and go to bed but when she looked around, she changed her mind. The sky was still blue, the sun was still shining, and the kids were having way too much fun and there was no way she was gonna miss this moment with her whole family. “I think I’ll stay right here.” She said with a smile.

The family stayed in the garden until the sun disappeared from the sky and just when the air got significantly colder, they all realized it was time to head home and have dinner. Neither one of them wanted to move because they were having so much fun but all of them were hungry and tired after a long day. The boys happily helped Y/n with dinner and although it took a little longer and the kitchen was a little messier than if Y/n did it on her own she enjoyed it as any other activity with her loves. Dinner was a favorite time of the day in the Benn family because it was usually the time when they all gathered and spent time together. For Y/n it was a time where she finally had everyone home and that was when she felt best even if it meant Jamie would leave for a game later. Jamie loved it because he was finally home with the ones most important to him and nothing could ever compare to the warmth of being home with his family. The kids loved dinner just as any other time they would get to eat but even they knew it meant they would most likely be all together.

“Dad? Can you read to us tonight?” One of the boys asked Jamie after the dinner.

“Of course!” Jamie answered with excitement. “Go brush your teeth and I’ll be there in a second okay?”

The boys listened and ran upstairs to their bathroom to brush their teeth and put on their pajamas and quickly jumped to bed and waited for Jamie. Jamie soon left Y/n alone in the living room so she could feed the baby in peace and went to the boys’ room.

“Alright, boys, ready?” Jamie asked the boys as he sat down with the book the boys picked. It was their favorite book about hockey that Jamie got them when they were younger and both Jamie and Y/n lost track of the number of times they read it to them. “A young boy doesn't want to go to bed. The hockey game is on! ‘What if I can't fall asleep?’ the boy says. ‘Don't worry,’ says his dad. ‘You will.’ After his parents have tucked him in and turned out the light, he shines a flashlight on his prized hockey possessions around his room: the posters of his favorite players, the pennant for his favorite team, the puck.” Jamie read. Not for too long though, the boys well asleep after a few minutes. “Good night boys,” Jamie said quietly as he left the room.

Y/n just finished putting D/n to sleep when Jamie walked into their bedroom. “That was quick,” Y/n noted.

“Told you I have a talent at putting the kids to sleep.” He said with a grin. “Abd good night to my little princess.” He whispered and kissed his little girl gently on her forehead before Y/n put her into her crib.

“You’re just lucky,” Y/n answered.

“I am,” Jamie said with a proud smile as he looked at his wife. He knew he was lucky. He hardly ever told this to his family, but he knew they knew he loved them more than anything. “And now I can finally focus purely on you.” He announced when he got out of the shower and went to Y/n.

“This was one of the nicest days in a while Jamie,” Y/n snuggled to Jamie and traced Jamie’s tattoos mindlessly. “Oh, and you better don’t forget to take the kids skating on the weekend. They were talking about it all day.” She laughed.

“I told the team and they all agreed to hang out,” he said. “And now give me a big kiss.” He said seriously.

“You’re horrible,” Y/n laughed before she kissed him. No matter how annoying and cocky he could get she loved him with all her heart.

[everywhereallofthetime]

Some Girl ... Part 12

Word Count: 2.3k

Warnings: None.

// * // * //

Sunday / July 25th

After talking before bed the night before, Charlotte and Shawn agreed that he would ride with her, Jonah, and Mackenzie to Elisa and Jack’s. It didn’t make sense for them to take two vehicles to the same place. Shawn said he’d walk over and grab coffee on the way. Make a good first impression, he had chuckled, although Charlotte could hear the truth within his words.

Shawn arriving early would give him, Jonah, and Mackenzie a chance to meet and get to know one another a little before they joined everyone else. They would talk over coffee and after Sebastian woke from his morning nap and nursed, they would leave for brunch.

Charlotte nearly swooned when she opened the door for Shawn.

His skin was bronzed and glowing, having spent so much time outside over the past week. His hair had lightened a shade as well, and whatever products he had put in it that morning had his curls and waves behaving beautifully.

He was wearing white jean shorts with a brown belt, a trim-fit, navy blue button-down with the first few buttons undone and the sleeves rolled up, and brown Vans with blue accents.

“Good morning, babe,” she beamed. She hated how only one day away from him had suddenly become too long.

“Good morning,” he grinned back, wrapping the arm of his free hand around her and snuggling her tightly to him. He breathed her in. It had been only one day but he had deeply missed the soft scent of her.

When they eased out of their hug, Charlotte ran the open placket of Shawn’s shirt between her thumb and forefinger. “You look so handsome,” she smiled. “I love you in blue.”

“Thank you, darling. You are as beautiful as always.”

Charlotte was wearing a white, short-sleeve, off the shoulder blouse and white and navy blue striped shorts. She noticed that her outfit complimented his perfectly.

“Are you ready to meet my brother and his fiancée?”

“I hope so,” he chuckled.

She linked her hand with his which wasn’t carrying their coffee and together they walked further into the condo. Jonah and Mackenzie had been sitting at the kitchen island but stood when Charlotte and Shawn entered the room.

Before any introductions could be made, Mackenzie breathed, “Oh my God, you two are adorable.”

“I swear, we did not discuss what we were going to wear today,” Charlotte laughed.

“It’s perfect,” Mackenzie giggled, “I love it.”

Charlotte introduced Shawn to Jonah and Mackenzie.

Jonah gave Shawn a once-over when they shook hands. He was tall, fit, and clean-cut, with a strong jawline and five visible tattoos. He was very attractive. Any man secure enough in who they were could admit when another man was attractive.

Mackenzie, on the other hand, gave Shawn a thorough head to toe.

Charlotte was used to women reacting favorably to Shawn, and she also knew it was something that was always going to happen with him being who he was. Even if the person didn’t know who he was, aside from being a global popstar, he was simply an incredibly attractive man. In any case, Charlotte had no true claim on Shawn. Besides, Mackenzie was happily engaged to Jonah; Charlotte knew she meant no harm or disrespect.

They all sat together at the dining room table with their coffees. Charlotte took a sip of Shawn’s coffee and instead of giving it back to him, she handed him hers.

“Babe,” he chuckled.

“Yours is better.”

“It also has a lot more caffeine,” he tittered.

She took a couple of additional sips and then, somewhat reluctantly, handed it back to him, reclaiming her own.

Charlotte looked at Jonah and Mackenzie’s amused expressions, and explained, “Too much caffeine isn’t good for Bash.”

“I started reading What to Expect: the First Year after I met Charlotte and Bash for the first time,” Shawn admitted, blushing.

“What? I didn’t know that,” Charlotte breathed, astonished. Shawn shrugged nonchalantly. “Why are you so fucking cute?” she smirked, briefly cupping his face, stroking the pad of her thumb along his cheekbone.

Jonah didn’t say so out loud, but that was something truly admirable. Not many male friends of a single mother would bother to take the time to do that. Hell, not many boyfriends would.

“How old are you, Shawn?” Jonah wondered. Shawn was already proving himself to be quite mature, but he still looked relatively young.

“I’ll be 23 in two weeks.”

“August 8th,” Charlotte offered.

“Leo,” Mackenzie tacked on. “And Charlie, you’re an Aquarius?” she asked. “February?”

“The 4th,” Shawn said, with a nod.

Mackenzie simply smiled in an all-knowing sort of way.

“Are you originally from Toronto?” Jonah asked Shawn.

“Born and raised in Pickering. Graduated from Pine Ridge.”

“I have a buddy who went to Pine Ridge. Played varsity hockey.”

“I played hockey. And soccer and basketball, too. I was in drama and the glee club. I also did Leadership Camp every year except my last.”

“Did you go to college?” Mackenzie asked.

“No. I was too busy touring…”

Jonah looked confused. “Excuse me?”

Shawn looked at Charlotte. Jonah and Mackenzie noticed that an entire conversation seemed to pass between them without words.

“I don’t meet very many people who don’t already know who I am,” Shawn said.

“Should we know who you are?” Mackenzie asked.

“Not necessarily. Not by sight anyway. Maybe not at all. You may know some of my music.”

At that moment they all heard Sebastian through the baby monitor. It wasn’t the ideal time for him to have woken up.

Charlotte frowned. “I would say, hold that thought, but...”

“It’s all right. Go,” Shawn smiled reassuringly.

She stood from the table and ran her fingers through the little curls at the nape of his neck. “May as well get it out of the way, babe.” Just before Charlotte entered the nursery, she said, “Alexa, play Shawn Mendes.”

// * // * //

The moment Charlotte returned after nursing, she heard Jonah ask, “Elisa and Jack, and everyone, you’ve met them already? We’re not springing any surprises on them?”

“He met them last weekend,” Charlotte answered.

“Hi buddy!” Shawn beamed at Sebastian.

Sebastian was already reaching for Shawn when Charlotte handed him over. “All except Valerie. And she is very excited to meet him today.”

Jonah could easily see that Shawn and Sebastian had already bonded, and he really liked that Shawn was thoughtful, sweet to, and respectful of his sister. They made a good match, even if they weren’t officially together in any capacity more than friendship.

“How did it go?” Charlotte asked, looking from Shawn to Jonah and Mackenzie. “You’re cool?” she said to her brother and his fiancée.

“We’re cool,” Mackenzie smiled.

“I always expect everyone to immediately recognize him.” Charlotte turned to Mackenzie, “I was anticipating having to have a conversation with you yesterday when you saw the picture of us on the console table.”

“What picture?” Shawn asked.

Charlotte retrieved the photo and brought it back to Shawn.

“Aw babe, I want a copy of this.” Sebastian tried to grasp the frame and bring it to his mouth. “Really, little man? Everything has to go straight into your mouth, eh?”

“I thought you might,” she smiled and pulled from her pocket the coolest flash drive keychain he had ever seen. “All of the photos from the zoo are on it. You can keep whichever ones you want and delete the rest.”

“This is amazing. Thank you, darling,” he said, grinning brightly, wrapping an arm around her waist.

“Should we get going then?”

// * // * //

Charlotte’s family was ecstatic when she and Shawn, with Sebastian in his arms, arrived at brunch with Jonah and Mackenzie.

As Jonah was swept up in hugs and excited chatter, Shawn whispered encouragingly to Mackenzie, “Try not to feel overwhelmed. You’re marrying into an incredible family.”

Mackenzie squeezed Shawn’s forearm. “Thank you, Shawn.”

Jonah introduced Mackenzie, who was eagerly and enthusiastically welcomed.

Everyone was happy to see Shawn as well. They adored him almost as much as Charlotte did, which settled warmly in her chest.

The only one who hadn’t met Shawn yet was Valerie, and with the tiniest nod from Charlotte in her direction, she finally approached, greeting her cousin with a bright smile and a hug.

Charlotte squeezed her back, quick and tight. “I’m happy you’re here.” She then took Sebastian from Shawn and introduced him to Valerie.

She and Shawn could both see how excited Valerie was to meet him, but she did an admirable job keeping her composure, which was good. She needed to get used to Shawn being around.

Elisa swept by and snatched Sebastian from Charlotte’s arms and yelled over her shoulder at the trio, “Go eat!”

// * // * //

Once stomachs were full and minds were mimosa-relaxed, and when Jonah had the chance to step away from the whirlwind of aunts, uncles, and cousins, first making sure Mackenzie felt comfortable enough for him to do so, he went looking for Shawn.

He found him with his sister, of course; they were practically joined at the hip after all. They were cleaning up the kitchen, laughing so hard about God knows what that they were wheezing.

“So this is where the real party is. Clean up. Who knew?” Once Shawn and Charlotte had a chance to catch their breath, Jonah asked, “Do you play pool, Shawn?”

Charlotte gave Shawn a look that said, I warned you this might happen.

Shawn just smirked at Charlotte before turning to Jonah to say, “I’m better at ping pong than pool, but sure.”

“Great.” He then said to Charlotte, “I’ll get him back to you before you know it.” She softly bit her bottom lip and blushed.

The two young men headed downstairs to the rec room.

After the break and when they had each had one turn, Shawn said, “Charlotte told me you would want to talk, man to man.”

“No pretext then, eh?”

“What are my intentions with your sister?”

“We’ll get there,” Jonah chuckled. “How long have you and Charlie known each other?”

“Not long. Less than anyone might expect. We’ve never been outright asked and we’ve always sort of skirted around the specifics.”

“Why?”

Shawn nervously ran his hand though his hair. “Because it’s kind of ridiculous and we’re afraid we’ll be judged for it.”

Jonah was both curious and apprehensive. He waited until after Shawn took his next shot, sinking one ball, but not the next. He was hoping Shawn would offer more on his own, which he did as Jonah took his turn.

“I don’t know how you felt when you met Mackenzie for the first time, but Charlotte and I... It was immediate, the connection we made. She was heaven-sent when I needed someone the most.”

“And when was that? I’m asking outright.”

Shawn’s cheeks reddened. “A week ago.”

“Wait. Hold on.”

Shawn looked at Jonah in a way which said, now you know why we skirt around it.

“Okay. Reserving my judgement. Go on.”

Shawn continued, telling Jonah about where, when, and how he met Charlotte, and how their lives have intertwined since then. He took a deep breath before saying, “You know how you hear about ‘love at first sight’ and ‘when you know, you know?’ It’s like that with us. I mean, not exactly. We’re not in love,” he blushed. “But there’s deep affection and appreciation between us. She’s the most honest and accepting person I know. She’s sweet, and she’s kind, and I know I can place my faith and trust in her.”

“Forgive me for asking, but I have to. I have to watch out for my sister. I’m sure you understand, having a younger sister yourself... You’re not looking for a rebound or taking advantage of her in any way, are you?”

“Wow. Blunt. But I appreciate that. If you know Charlotte at all, she doesn’t let anyone take advantage of her... And with who I am, I have to be careful that I’m not the one being taken advantage of.”

“I didn’t even consider that,” Jonah said, thoughtfully.

“Regardless, no. I care about her too much. I wouldn’t do anything to hurt her.”

“Has Charlie told you much about Booker?”

“I know that she loved him, and she said he was good to her when he was around, but she also used the words 'complicated', 'reckless', and 'dangerous'. I haven’t pressed her for more. We don't really talk about our exes.

“She hasn’t asked me about my ex aside from wondering how I’m doing. I know Charlotte would tell me about Booker if I asked, but I would rather have her offer to tell me when she feels ready to. It doesn’t seem to matter much though because, as far as I understand, he hasn’t even tried to reach out since she left him. Which is a dick move, by the way. If I had a son, I’d do anything to be in his life; never mind what kind of relationship I had with his mother.

“We’ll have those conversations when we’re ready, or when we need to.” Shawn then said, “She misses you a lot, you know. You should really make an effort to come back to Toronto more often. And Bash is going to grow up so fast. You don’t want to miss that.”

“I like your integrity,” Jonah said. “And I like you. I like you for Charlie.”

“We’re-”

“Just friends, I know. Still. You care for her. She cares for you. I like how you treat her and my nephew. I see how you watch out for them. I hope you’re in their lives for a long time, whether you stay only friends or someday it turns into something more.”

// * // * //

Part 13

[cass-y0inks]

Anonymous prompt: during an akuma battle Marinette gets turned into a cat and gets adopted by Damian who is on a business trip with Bruce. Mari and Damian BroTP.

I’m sorry anonymous I didn’t save the message and it got deleted. But thank you for your prompt!

What a CATastrophe

If Marinette had to describe this day in one word would be nightmare. It was going great in the morning, she woke up early and it was the weekend. Her friends chose to go to the zoo where Alya’s father worked at and hang out. They were laughing at the lame jokes they cracked up here and there. It was a normal day for them in Paris. Well Paris ‘normal’.

Kim has gotten to cocky again and taunted the animals at the other sides of the cages. Alya’s father heard it and ordered him out of the enclosure. Though his frustration and anger caused him to get akumatized again. He still had animal related abilities but now he was “Animal Tamer”. He turned others onto animals.

So far some of her classmates had been changed. Kim, the cause of all this mess, had been turned into a monkey. Juleka into a crow, Chloe into a poodle, Ivan was changed into a small bear, and Alix into a rabbit. Though they were with someone so no need to worry about them. Right now Marinette’s top priority was to the akumatized object and cast the miraculous cure.

At first everything was going according to plan. Animal Tamer had taken the bait and they were now near the Eiffel Tower. She had casted her lucky charm e few minutes earlier but she was running out of time. Animal Tamer saw her in a rush and called back up. Soon different species of animals were surrounding her. Grabbing her yo-yo she sung away but the akuma managed to blast her when she landed on a roof.

One second she lands on her two feet the next she looks down, and now she’s covered in fur? She was turned into a cat... great. She was smaller that she usually was and had four feet. Her body now covered in fur was a color that almost resembled her hair color and her ears had two different colord patches which she guessed was there in place or her earrings. Her earrings!

She couldn’t exactly feel her ears so she tried calling out for Tikki. “Meow.” Damit. She was a cat now. All she could do was meow and make other kitten sounds. Funny, even as a cat she was still very tiny. Tikki popped up in front of her with her earrings in her hands.

“Marinette, I know what to do. Get down from here and I’ll go to master fu and see what he can do. I think mister bug might be back in commission. Though we’ll need to get you to the masters later and we’ll also have to find the previous lucky charm. But for now try to get down from here.” Before Marinette could do anything Tikki flew away as fast as she could.

Carefully and slowly she made her way back to the bottom on the ground. She wished she had seen the animals around the area because before she knew it she was running away from poodle Chloe. She though Chloe was annoying as herself in human form but animal Chloe’s barking and yapping was driving her crazy. She reached Le Gran Paris Hotel.

She must have been terrified at the moment because near the lobby she jumped on a tall table where a boy around her age was sitting reading a book. Sabrina came in rushing behind Chloe and trying to pull her back as she started babbling an apology. “I’m so sorry, I thought I had her under control. It’ll never happen again. I’m sorry.” Chloe felt Sabrina loosen her hold on her and leaped forward towards Marinette.

Though the boy in the chair had faster reflexes and picked her up seconds before Chloe could get her paws on her. “I suggest that you gain control of your pet.” For a boy around their age his voice was stern.

Getting hold of Chloes neck again Sabrina continued apologizing until she finally bribed Chloe with shoes. Marinette let out a relieved ‘meow’ and let her ears fall down flat on her head. The boy was still holding her but he looked like he was looking for something. “You don’t seem to have a collar, a basic indication of a stray. I doubt you’d survive with living in these streets with owners who have no control over their own pets. I suppose I should take care of you. Let’s go inform father.”

‘You seem to be a natural at this. Do you go around adopting random strays all the time?’ She thought. But she couldn’t think of that. She had to get away from him and get somewhere where tikki could find her. The kid had her tucked in his side and didn’t seem to budge no matter how many times she would try to kick him. Going into what she guessed was his father’s hotel room they met with a strict tall business man. ‘So this is your dad. Good luck on trying to convince him to let you keep a stray cat.’

Bruce looked up at his son and down at the kitten hidden under his arms and let out a tired sigh. Pinching the bridge of this node he said, “Damian we’ve talked about this. You can’t keep it.”

“Father, first off she is not a ‘it’. And she is a stray, she won’t survive with the way the owners here controll their animals.”

“You can’t keep her. End of discussion.” Looks like he was getting a bit frustrated with him.

“You kept Todd. I get to keep her.”

‘Seriously kid, just back down. He’s your dad.’

Narrowing his eyes he started at his son. “Damian don’t talk about your brother like that. And if I let you keep her, will this be the last one?” In return Damian answered him with a nod.

“Now father if you’ll excuse me I have to go get some supplies for her.” He was ready to leave when Bruce stopped him.

“Damian be careful, and remember we will be leaving later today.”

Damian nodded then left. While he was walking Marinette tried to process what was happening. So she was this kids cat now and they were leaving Paris today. This is the worst day in the history of her life as of now. Damian had gotten her a simple collar. Since her fur was dark he got her a light color so for the it to be visible. He also learned very quickly that she didn’t eat cat food. He tried giving her some food at a part but she wouldn’t eat it. So he gave her food considered human food which of course she ate.

Damian had left her for a bit while she finished eating. That was when tikki found her. “Marinette! I’m so glad I found you! Mister bug already defeated the akuma but we are trying to find your lucky charm so you can change back into your original form. Hold on for a bit longer ok?”

“Meow”

“Right I’ll be back. Take care!”

She tried to race after her but felt a tug at her harness. ‘He’s back’.

“Let’s go, father is waiting for us.” Damian noticed how she wasn’t moving so he just picked her up much to her dislike. They made it back to the hotel and Damian made his way back to his room. He placed her on the bed and packed up his clothes and her harness. There was no point in running away, he had closed all the windows and doors and he had even placed a tracker in her collar.

His father called him to his room to say his goodbye to the mayor for treating them well, even if it was because of their status. Tikki came in through the window and she looked worried. “Marinette I heard what was happening, don’t worry we haven’t found the lucky charm but we will. And I know where your going, we can get Kaalki to get you back here and change you back. Ok?”

At this point Marinette was just tired so all she did was nod and lay her head down. Tikki sighed at her chosen and tried to comfort her but heard footsteps coming so she quickly phased back through the glass window.

Damian came through the doors and picked her up and placed her in his jacket and made his way to the lobby. Outside his father and a taxi were waiting for them. “I have already called the airlines and told them about the extra cargo. Since you haven’t gotten her a cage yet they will allow you to take her if you make sure you hold her and manage to keep her under control while on the air. Understood?”

Damian had looked down at her for a moment then looked up at his father and nodded. She hasn’t given him trouble while she was with him, while she proved to be energetic she was also very calm with him. A few hours later they were at the airport and after what felt like a nother few hours they were finally on the plane. She had taken a nap on the plane ride which made it incredibly hard for Damian to move because he didn’t want to wake her up.

Hours later she woke up and panicked. This wasn’t her room, were was she. Oh right she was a cat adopted by some stranger. That wasn’t creepy or crazy at all. She might as well get used to her new life. Master fu must have used something to make it appear like she didn’t just disappear. She felt a pair of hands scratching her behind her ears.

“You know we haven’t picked out a name for you yet.” Marinette sat up and faced him. He was sitting on his bed sketching. “Let’s figure that out. How about Sam?” ‘Hiss’ “No? What about Nala?” What is this the Lion king. ‘Hiss’. “Ok what about... Nette or Netti? That’s kinda original right?” ‘Well it’s the closest you’ve gotten, ‘Meow’.

“Ok then. Netti it is.”

Days went on and Marinette had lost all hope. Maybe she was going to stay in as a for the. Honestly she was starting to except it. She learned that Damian, even though most of the time a brat, he also needed someone to vent to. He had a hard time making friends and had a harder time understanding how to be a “normal” 13 year old. Though she had a hard time understanding him. Language barrier damit. Yet she picked up on the basics and when Damian would read a book she would try to read over his shoulder and she was getting better at understanding it. His words for his age were considered more complex, not of an average 13 year old.

Sometimes he said that he considered her his voice of reason. When he was doing something stupid all she did was lay her ears flat and lightly shake her head at him and he would stop. When he was feeling down though he wouldn’t say it she would purr on his head and that would soothe him. He also introduced her to Titus which she adored. He was a giant compared to her but he was a big teddy bear. When he little paws would get tired he would pick her up like a mama cat with her kitten and carry her somewhere comfortable to rest. And they were both surprisingly energetic so they would play together.

It was past midnight and Marinette was sleeping when a bright light had woken her up. Tikki and Kaalki had emerged from the light. Guessing that they hadn’t see Damian because Tikki quite loudly said, “Marinette come on we can change you back now. Master fu is wa-.” Tikki froze when she saw Damian standing there staring at them.

“What are you? What are you doing here?” He asked, his voice was dangerously calm.

It took Tikki a lot more time than she thought to explain what was happening and what happened to Marinette. In the end Damian wasn’t sure how any on this was real.

“Prove it, prove I’m not dreaming then and change her back. She’s a cat not a person.” Before he knew it ladybug’s where surrounding Marinette and changed her back. To which she was more than great full.

Hugging herself she looked back at Damian who was ready to pass out. “Shh you can’t tell anyone about this.” Her whispering came out as more of a hiss.

Damian mimicking her tone replied, “How do you not expect me to have a reaction? I thought you were a cat for weeks. You lived with me as a cat for weeks! What th-“

“Don’t finish that sentence I already had to listen to you cuss multiple times without saying anything. And I couldn’t tell you I was a person because I was a cat!�� He looked down at the floor with a glare displayed on his face. He slided down to the floor.

Marinette hesitantly made her way towards him and sat down next to him. They stayed quiet for a moment until she broke the silence. “You know all of this aside, we can still be friends. I noticed how hard it is for you to make friends, you vented a lot.” A small smile made her way towards her lips when he gave her an annoyed glare but it quickly fell Because he knew she was right. And she was the reason why he didn’t make many idiotic decisions.

He stood up and walked up to his desk. “Do you have a number I can talk to you from?” He sighed out in defeat and gave her a piece of paper and a pencil. She took them and wrote down her phone number on it and gave it back to him when she was done. They both stood awkward silence for a second. Marinette extended her hand to him, she had learned that he wasn’t an affectionate person. Damian shook her hand slightly and let it go. She made her way to were Tikki and Kaalki we’re waiting. Before she stepped into the portal she looked back at Damian.

“Thank you Damian.”

“Your welcome, Netti?” He wasn’t sure that was her actual name so that last part was more of a question.

She let out a small giggle, “it’s Marinette actually. Goodbye”

“Goodbye Marinette.”

Once Marinette had stepped into the portal and closed it. He knew it was the appropriate time to pass out.

Tag list: @the-black-fox

[hellfirenacht]

The Convention Fic Chapter 4

Beetlejuice x Reader (Gender Neutral)

First Chapter

Friday (Evening)

It didn’t take long for you to get ready to head to the aquarium. You dug through your suitcase and pulled out the outfit that you had brought specifically for partying in. Though you knew that this was a date and wanted to look nice, the aquarium would allow everyone to wonder around for a few hours before letting those who paid for the After Party into one of the Ballrooms, which Beej was quick to inform you was a 21+ event. 

You were practically bouncing with excitement as you changed and freshened up. The hyena that Beej had given you was sitting on the bed, protecting your phone as it charged. Beej was kicked back on the second bed, watching you with an amused grin.

“You know, you look great no matter what you’re wearing.” he commented, scanning you up and down. “But I gotta admit, if I wasn’t already dead you’d be killing me right now.” 

You gave him a smirk. “Is that rigor mortis, or are you just happy to see me?” 

He laughed, “And here I was worried that you’d be too tired for this.” 

“Normal tired is gone, I’m only left with that kind of 4 AM tired where everything is funny and I’m invincible. But don’t worry- I completely intend to pass out as soon as we’re done.” you affirmed. 

“That’s why you’re my best mod- you’re always ready to party and work.” he replied with a grin. “You ready to go yet, Babes?”

“Yup! Just gotta put my shoes on and I’m good to go!”

You grabbed your beat up tennis shoes, not wanting to risk blisters for the rest of the weekend. As much as you wanted to look good, you also had a job to do for the rest of the con. You swapped out your backpack for a small pouch that rested on your hip and around your waist and shoved your phone, camera battery, key, badge, and money in. 

“Ready!”

Beetlejuice just snickered at you as he pulled himself off the bed and looked you over. “I gotta say Babes, you look stunning for our first date. The fanny pack is really doing it for me.”

You pouted slightly. “Watch it, Bug Boy.” you warned in a playful tone. “Besides have you ever washed that hoodie?”

“Nope!” he said with such pride for a second you were inclined to believe him. 

The playful teasing continued as you made your way out of the building and towards the Aquarium a few blocks over. The sun was just now showing signs of going down, though late in the evening. Beej’s green-tipped hair was an interesting contrast to the warm yellows, reds, and hints of lavender of the setting sun. The air around you was comfortably warm as you crossed the busy street with other nerds who were also on their way to the nights event. The two of you cut through the large park where you had held the meet up the other evening, and Beetlejuice slipped his hand into yours again. 

It was comfortable. Though the two of you had only met in person just the other night, not even 24 hours before, it didn’t feel awkward or strange. Maybe you were closer to him than you had originally thought. All those late nights in the chat, playing games, talking on cam, they suddenly meant so much more now that he was there with you. He was real, and the two of you were close, and now here you were, on a date. A real actual date. A warmth spread over you at the thought. 

The air around the Aquarium was cooler than the air at the park. Perhaps it was the shadow the building cast in the late evening sun, or the slight smell of sea water that tinted the air. The two of you easily slid through security and presented your tickets before entering the building. 

The aquarium was large and tall, split up into five different sections ranging from river fish to freshwater fish, to ocean fish. Together you decided to start at the river fish, and you pulled out the video camera. Though this was a date, both of you agreed that even if you didn’t post the footage, it was still something the two of you wanted to remember together. You couldn’t help but be okay with that, plus seeing him through the lense of the camera as well as in person felt right to you. 

Together the two of you toured through the different sections, looking at fish, getting B-Roll footage of cosplayers and at one point Beej even interviewed a fan that came up and introduced themselves. With each new section brought new fish and creatures for the two of you to point and look at. Beetlejuice was fascinated by all the creatures, which surprised you. 

“I’ve never been able to see fish before.” he stated, which seemed like a strange answer. “I’ve never been to a fish zoo or even the beach before so this is all new to me. You know, I never understood the whole thing with humans being obsessed with other animals but I think I get- oh my god they glow!!” 

Beej grabbed you by the arm and pointed excitedly at the Jellyfish that were glowing against the blacklight of the tank that they were chilling in. Beej’s smile was so wide and his pupils were so large that you his eyes almost looked black. It was clear that this man was going to lose his shit at any fish that had bioluminescence. He was practically shaking with excitement as he pressed his face up against the glass like a little kid. 

You did manage to scoot him out of the way to allow yourself room to get some footage of the tangled mass of jellyfish. You agreed- it was really cool seeing the different fish glowing under blacklight. As you pointed the camera a Beej again, you swore that he was glowing under the light as well- the same green that you saw back in the arcade just the night before. You made a mental note to ask him what kind of hair dye he used but for now, your breath was caught in your throat with how... weirdly beautiful he looked. 

He was still the same Beej that you had seen a million times before on a screen, but there were some things about him that a camera just couldn’t do justice towards. His laugh was louder in person, and right now it felt more honest. Not that you were surprised, you always understood that internet personalities were just that- personalities. You saw what they wanted you to see but with Beej it felt different. Yes, in this time and place it was a more intimate experience being next to him and seeing him in person, but you were starting to realize how genuine and honest he was with his audience. You could feel your heart swell at the thought, not only could he be himself on camera, he could also be himself with you. 

“Oh man I’d stay here all night if I could!” he said, leading you out with a big smile on his face. “Next year we’re staying an extra day and we’re gonna sneak in here at night and scooba dive with the jellyfish.” 

“That’s a terrible idea.” you laughed. “I’m in.” 

He smiled at you, his eyes still shining with excitement. “And that’s why I asked you to be here with me!” 

“Someone’s gotta bail you out of jail when your roommates aren’t around.” you countered. 

The tour ended with the last area- the Ocean fish. It took you a little bit longer to make your way in there, as the two of you stood in front of the exhibit, pointing your camera at the mascot of the aquarium; a large orange fish named Deepo. 

The two of you stood there, laughing hard. Beej has his phone out and was going live as the two of you laughed at the ridiculous looking fish. 

“Disney... Disney please sue something!” Beej begged, zooming in on the wide lifeless eyes of the statue that smiled across time and space. “DEEPO. His name.. Oh God-Satan his name is DEEPO!” 

There were tears streaming down your face as you both pointed and laughed. Around you, some other con goers were also taking pictures, while some were looking at the two of you like you were high or drunk. It didn’t matter, the point is Deepo would either save your soul or destroy it. After cities collapsed, oceans dried up, and humans were eradicated- Deepo would live on as the uncaring God of the New World. 

You really needed to get some real sleep tonight. 

After finally pulling yourselves together, the two of you straightened up and finally the two of you stepped into the large tunnel, finding yourselves surrounded by fish and soft blue lighting. You couldn’t help but let out a small gasp as you looked up, seeing a fish swim over your head. All around you was ocean life- the tunnel was right under a large tank, allowing you to see fish from every angle. 

“Oh wow...” you whispered, looking up. Beej took the camera from your hands and started filming as you took in the view. Fish of all colors, shapes, and sizes were swimming around the two of you, feeling so close even though the glass protecting the tunnel was at least two feet thick. 

“I gotta admit, this is pretty impressive.” you heard Beej from across the tunnel, filming a small school of yellow fish. “I’m glad we- oh holy shit!” his head shot upwards and you followed his line of site and gasps. 

Above the two of you, a whale passed over head, followed by a shark. 

“That’s a shark!” Beej gawked, following the creature with the camera. “Holy crap, that’s a shark! Babes, I want that. I want that shark. I love that shark. I need that shark to live.” 

“Well it’s a good thing you’re dead because it’s staying here.” you replied, eyes still glued to the top of the tunnel, watching the larger fish swim around you. It was absolutely breath-taking. You moved to the side of the tunnel until your legs hit a ledge for you to sit on, keeping an eye on everything around you. You were suddenly okay with the suggestion of just staying here forever with these fish. You had no clue that fish could make you feel this safe or content. 

After a few minutes, you glanced over at Beetlejuice who had the camera pointed at you. How long had he been filming you staring at the fish? You felt a little embarrassed now. 

“Hey, I thought this was your show.” you said, trying not to be embarrassed. 

“It is, and I like to show off things that make me happy.” he said with a wink. “Plus you’re stunning in this light. I can’t be the only one that looks good here.”

The compliment felt warm in your chest compared to the cool air of the aquarium. You wanted to brush it off, or tell him no, or even fire something back at him but instead you said something that surprised yourself. 

“Thank you.” 

You accepted the compliment with grace and a smile. It felt true- between the amazing lighting, the outfit you had chosen, and the feeling of being with Beetlejuice... you felt stunning. Moe than that, with Beej around you felt seen. You felt like all your hard work went both noticed and appreciated. Everything you did for him he thanked you, praised you, told you how much it meant to him. He saw something in you that you hadn’t seen for yourself in a long time. For this moment, you could see yourself the way he saw you- an amazingly capable person, a fun person, a giant fucking nerd, a friend, a crush. 

That was the confidence boost you needed, and you felt secure. You felt safe. You felt like you could do anything you wanted because knowing that someone you looked up to and respected so much could see it in you. You stood up and walked over to him, keeping eye contact the entire time. You reached out and lowered the arm that held his camera knowing that this next moment was for just the two of you. 

Beej got the hint and allowed you to stay in control of the situation, knowing exactly what was going to happen next. You reached out and touched his cheek, feeling the scratchy beard against the palm of your hand. Briefly you wondered how much maintenance it took for him to keep it tinted green like his hair before leaning in and pressing your lips against his. 

His mouth shifted into a smile against yours as his free hand rested on your lower back. The cool skin of his lips combined with the cool air around you caused goosebumps to appear on your arms and the back of your neck. The kiss was short, only a few seconds long, but it was enough. When you pulled back, Beej was grinning hard and you could almost swear that he had hearts in his eyes. The two of you stared at each other like the dopey love-struck idiots that you were for a moment before you took his hand. 

“Come on, Love Bug.” you said. “Let’s keep going.” 

The two of you finally made your way out of the tunnel after getting a few more shots of different fish before making your way into the next room. Again, you were almost rendered speechless as the two of you found yourselves in front of a large tank that stretched from the floor to a very high ceiling. The large tank gave you a perfect view of how large the whales and sharks were compared to the smaller fish. There were whales and stingrays and large bloated looking fish you had never seen before. 

Maybe you would take up Beej on the offer of breaking in to spend the night. 

The two of you found a spot to sit in front of the large glass wall as you stared out into the water. In this moment, no words needed to be said. For once Beetlejuice was enjoying a comfortable silence as the two of you put away the camera and just let yourselves be. His hand found yours, and your head found his shoulder. Together for the next half hour, you rested and just took in the view of the amazing sea creatures swimming around. 

Around you, cosplayers took amazing pictures next to the tank, nerds took selfies with the fish, and the two of you couldn’t help but laugh a bit at one pink-haired cosplayer crying happy drunk tears over one of the large bloated looking fish. (“It’s so ugly!” she cried and laughed. “I love grouper fish! I love him so much he’s so ugly he’s beautiful!”). 

You almost dozed off once or twice as you rested against Beetlejuice. It felt so relaxing being next to him, that you wished that you could just spend the rest of the weekend here. But after a while, he nudged you. 

“You still good to go to the after party?” he asked. “It’s gonna start soon, but if you’re tired I understa-” 

“I’m gonna party!” you yawned and stood up. “Give me a sec to wake up and I’ll be good to go.” 

You took a moment to stretch and get your body to wake up. Turns out at the fish for however long you two were there had left you feeling pretty well rested and happy. Your brain was still a little fried from spending the past few days on little sleep but you could make the the next few hours. 

By the time the two of you made it into the ballroom where the party was being held, the DJ was already blasting music and people were lining up at the two bars set up on each end of the large room. There were two glass walls on different sides of the rooms, much smaller than what you had just been looking at but still large enough to peer in and see it was large enough to fit in a few whales. The tanks were dark at the moment, you assumed to give the animals some rest after a long day of being gawked at, but a few congoers were still camped out by the viewing areas, relaxing with their drink and peering into the darkened tanks. 

The two of you bought some drinks and found an empty standing table to stay at for the moment. There was a large dance floor in the upper right corner of the room, the DJ booth next to it. On the wall they were projecting clips from various animes and also Steven Universe for some reason. That was the only non-anime being shown on the screen, and you wondered who had put the looping montage together. 

Beej chugged down his two drink quickly, itching to get to the dancefloor. “I gotta show these breathers how to really party!” he said. 

You had to admit, you wanted to get on the dance floor as well. The DJ was playing an amazing mix of anime, cartoon openings, group dances, old emo music and songs that would make any nerd get up and dance. 

The music woke you up better than the drink in your hand. Beej politely waited for you to finish it before dragging you to the dance floor. Beej was a beast once he was in the crowd, jumping from group to group and dancing with anyone who would let him close. You couldn’t even be jealous when he found himself in the middle of a group of girls as he began flossing like there was no tomorrow. 

You could have sworn he said he hated flossing before. You wondered if that changed one he actually learned how to do it. 

The crowd started to form into a circle around Beej. People jumped in and out, showing off their moves and having small dance-offs. Everywhere people were cheering and having fun. The DJ changed songs, and a spark ignited inside you- this was a song that you knew very well. A specific song from A Goofy Movie that made every inch of your body suddenly go feral. Beej had his moment in the spotlight but now it was your turn. 

You were about to teach these nerds what it really meant to do the Perfect Cast. 

You waited for the right moment to jump in, your confidence fueled by the slight buzz of alcohol in your system combined with your amazing date with Beej. This was the moment you had been waiting for your entire life, and nothing could fucking stop you. 

The chorus kicked in and you found yourself rushing to the center, looking around at the crowd and starting on the dance that you had learned so long ago. Everyone lost their shit. 

“THEY’RE ACTUALLY DOING IT!”

“WOOO!”

“IT’S THE PERFECT CAST!!!”

“TEACH ME PLEASE!” 

“Oh snap, looks like we got someone who knows their Disney!” a voice said over the speaker and you realized that the DJ was talking about you over the mic. You snapped back into reality with a huge smile and looked over at Beej who couldn’t have been more proud of you. As you jumped back to the side of the circle and let someone else take over you got a few highfives and compliments. 

“Damn Babes, why didn’t you tell me you could dance?” Beej asked, still smiling wide. 

“I forgot!” you laughed. “Oh wow, I haven’t done that in forever. I... I forgot I knew it until I did it!” 

The two of you danced together on and off for the rest of the night, taking breaks to occasionally have another drink or rest. Beej had much more stamina than you, seemingly never needing to rest or take breaks. When you needed a second to catch your breath he’d hover between making sure you were okay and running back to the dance floor. You honestly didn’t mind, you loved seeing him out there, making friends and being the center of attention. 

By the end of the evening, as the party was starting to draw to a close, you found yourself sitting against the viewing glass, tipsy and happily gazing out into dark tank where a few whales swam in circles. The pink-haired girl who you’d seen earlier crying over fish was next to you, seemingly in the same boat. There was an unspoken agreement that this spot was the Quiet Spot. Even though behind you a party raged on, filled with nerds, and lights, and alcohol, this spot was for being drunk and watching fish. This was a pastime you could get used to. 

“There you are!” came a voice from behind you, causing the two of you to jump slightly. You looked up at beej and held your finger to your lips. 

“Shhhh....” you whispered loudly. “You’ll throw off the whales.” okay, maybe you were closer to the side of drunk than tipsy. 

The DJ started playing Don’t Stop Believing and there was a roar of excitement from the crowd behind you as drunk nerds scrambled to the dance floor. A chorus of voices of all kinds filled the air as everyone in the room seemed to sing along to the music that was pulsating through the air. 

“I think I’m having a religious experience.” the pink haired girl said, as she stared continued staring at the whales. 

“Me too.” you said, to Beej’s amusement. “Same time next year?” 

The girl nodded in agreement. “May the whales don’t stop believing.” she said solemnly. 

You stood up, wobbling a bit, but Beej held you steady. “You usually this much of a light weight?” he asked. 

“Strong drinks.” you mumbled with a smile, leaning into him. 

“Alright, I think you’re partied out.” Beej said. “Your fragile human body needs sleep. And probably other things too.” 

“Water... food.” you replied and the two of you made your way out of the building, headed back towards your hotel. The night air felt good against your warmed skin, you didn’t realize how warm the room had gotten with so many people dancing. You were comfortably drunk with a dopey grin on your face as you clung to Beetlejuice. 

“Hey... Beej.... are you my... booooooyfriend?” you asked, looking up at him. 

“I’ll be whatever you want me to be, Babes.” he replied. “Think you can handle dating a demon?” 

“Pffff... you aren’t scaaaary.” you slurred, and laughed at the offended look on Beej’s face. 

“Excuse you, I am the ghost with the most!” he said. “I’m the scariest demon you’ll ever meet!” 

“If you say so, neeeeeeeeerd!” you giggled. 

Beetlejuice managed to drag your drunk ass back up to your room, and helped you use your key card. This time you did not immediately drop your pants (much to Beej’s dismay) but instead went straight to the bathroom to pee, wash your face, and get a glass of water. 

“Beej... Beej I got a secret.” you said as you exited the bathroom. 

“Yeah? What’s that?” 

“I’m a little bit drunk.” you giggled and took a few long gulps of water. 

“No shit?” he smiled at you. 

“Not even a little turd.” he laughed at that. 

“I’m gonna... I’m gonna drink this water so I’m functional tomorrow.” you set the glass down. “OH! Oh! I did... I did something smart!” you were bouncing on your feet. 

“You’re the one that holds all the braincells here, but what did you do specifically?” Beej watched you with an amused grin as you stumbled slightly to the mini-fridge and pulled out a to-go box. “Got more food at Waffle House when we went. Because I’m SMART!” 

The two of you turned on the tv to watch a movie with too many commercials as you ate your cold waffle and drank your glass of water. You soon found yourself resting against his shoulder again. 

“Hey Beej?” you asked. “Where are you staying this weekend anyway?” 

He stiffened slightly at the question. He wasn’t ready to tell you that he was just teleporting between the con and his home hundreds of miles away. 

“I uh, don’t exactly have a room.” he replied, hoping that your drunk brain would let it go. It didn’t. 

“What?” you looked up at him. “Wh-where are you sleeping?” your eyes looked like they were tearing up, oh shit, oh fuck, he did NOT want to make you cry. “Are you sleeping in your car??” 

“Yes!” he blurted out. “I am... sleeping in my car!” 

“No!” you pouted. “No! Bad Beetlejuice!” you stood up with a look that would be angry if it wasn’t coming from a half-drunk breather. “Stupid Beej, dumbass...” you mumbed to yourself and walekd over to the tv, grabbing a small envelope and pulling something out. “Can’t do anything without me, I swear.” you threw a piece of plastic at him and he looked it over. It was an extra key-card. “You’re staying HERE for the rest of the weekend you stupid, dumb... stupid face!” 

When his mom had yelled at him when she was drunk, it was horrifying. He’d retreat into himself and tell himself he was as worthless as she said he was. With you, it was different. Your words sounded angry, but your eyes were full of hurt and concern. You didn’t really think he was stupid, or maybe you did, but either way it wasn’t a feeling of malice towards him. Someone was concerned for him, someone cared, someone wanted him around. 

Who was he to say no to that?

“Alright, alright, if it would make you happy.” he replied with a grin. “But where am I gonna sleep, there’s only one bed!”

You looked at him in confusion, glancing between the two beds in the room. You were drunk but you weren’t stupid. At least, you didn’t think so. 

“Beej there’s another bed right there...?” you questioned yourself. Was there one bed or two? 

Beej stood up and grabbed a hold of your suitcase that was laying on the floor in the corner of the room. He walked over to the second bed and sloppily dumped out the contents onto the spare bed. 

“I dunno what you’re talking about, all I see is this large pile of clothes!” he smirked. “I don’t know about you but in my experience humans don’t usually sleep on piles of laundry.” 

You smiled and let out a small chuckle. “Oh, silly me. I suppose you’re right. There’s only one bed. One large bed that we could both fit in.”

“I insist that you take the bed and I will sleep on the floor.” he smiled. 

“No no no, you’re the guest, you take the bed.” you said, grabbing his arm and pulling him onto the bed. He pulled back the covered and crawled in. 

“Nah, I think you should take the bed.” he pulled you close against him, allowing you to take in his scent. 

“...Your hoodie smells awful, take it off.” you grumbled, helping him remove the offending piece of clothing. You wondered if he had been correct about not washing it ever. 

You didn’t hear anything after that as sleep overtook you quickly. Beej’s cool body under the warm blankets created the perfect temperature for falling asleep. Beej held you against his chest and turned on the tv low. He didn’t need to sleep, but he would stay until you woke up. Your warmth and weight on him allowing him a feeling that he’d only ever felt in one other place. 

To Beetlejuice, you felt like home.

--------

NOTE: Want to make a cameo in the next chapter? Click here!

[takemedancingmaine]

Where I Belong

The weather had finally shifted to spring.

Although, if we’re honest, there’s not a real spring in Chicago. Only winter and then false hope then more winter and then, somehow overnight, summer. 

It was sticky and the air was heavy. You could feel it on your skin the moment you stepped outside. Paired with some of the bluest skies and the clear water of Lake Michigan, one could understand the allure of Chicago, finally making sense of why people brave the winters and the grey skies. Every year around this time, I fell in love with the city all over again, fell in love with the vibe of spring baseball games and a beer on my front porch with a good book in my lap. I fell in love with beach days and rooftop day parties and going to the zoo for a walk around just because. 

The trees along Lakeshore were green and full when I ran past them in the mornings, the birds were singing loud over the traffic, and kids were playing with chalk on the sidewalk in front of their houses.

It wasn't like I needed a reminder of all the reasons I loved Chicago, because I just did, but the month of May brought the reminders out for me anyway. I was enamored by the juxtaposition of the busy city behind me and the vast, empty expanse of blue water in front, kicking at the wall under my heels as I dangled my legs over the edge.

I was sitting on a concrete barrier on the edge of the Lake that separated two beaches in Bryn Mawr and writing in my journal. 

It was something I was doing more and more since starting therapy all those months ago. I was not a writer by any means, nor was I eloquent, but I never felt pressure to write well or to even make sense of my thoughts as they left my mind and etched themselves into words on the pages. I simply felt a pull to get the thoughts down so that they weren't festering inside of me. It was a relief I felt that was similar to running. It was a solitary activity where I was alone with myself and able to attempt to understand myself better.

Three and a half months since my secret came to light, since I faced it out in the open and gave it a name and came to terms with the fact that I had to accept it and push forward in a healthy way. Last week, Brian had ‘graduated’ us all from his self-defense class and was gearing up to start anew with another fresh batch of students.

He was excited to start all over again in the fall, and I was excited to have not only completed his class but to have gained more than just knowledge but two friendships as a result of pushing myself through it. Tala and Brian were instrumental in my healing process, and I couldn't be happier with them being a part of my life. They also folded in seamlessly with the rest of the group. Between Tala’s wit and Brian’s charisma, they were always a welcome addition whenever they could join us in our activities.  

There was just one thing about those activities that I had yet to rectify.

I also knew it had to be me, that I had to make the move to solve it. It took me a while to come to terms with this, longer than it had taken me to come to terms with everything else. It was countless hours talking to Louis and Cleo. I even spent a lot of time with Liam and asked his opinions. His advice had been incredibly simple: do what you feel like you’re ready to do, and even if you don’t feel ready, take that step anyway: test yourself.

Ordinarily, I would’ve scoffed at his idea, but Tala said something similar when I went to her with the issue as well. She was the one who, despite what her brother had told her, approved of my severing ties with Niall in the first place. She was the one who said it was better for me. Recently though, she was starting to push me more and more. The conversation we’d had last weekend had centered around the fact that I would probably never feel ready to make this move, but going off of everything else I’d done and all the progress I’d made, I was ready.

I still wasn’t sure, but that was the thing. Emotions are like water. They're impossible to compress. So once the thought was there, I couldn't push it back down. I had to follow through.

I think it was like Tala had said, that I might never be sure. I thought about how rarely sure we are in life and it made me realize just how much we as humans gamble and hope for the best, blowing on the dice for luck before we throw them down. So what if I still wasn't sure? I couldn't remember a time when I was sure. Life was about putting all the pieces together and hoping they made a puzzle, but if not it was okay, there was always a new path, a new puzzle to piece together waiting around each bend.

My journal entry was reflecting this sentiment as I scribbled in it in all caps. I noticed that when I wrote now, my penmanship was all capitals, blockish and somehow a little bit flowy. It was how I’d written notes and essays when I was in high school but had steered away from when I was trying to take notes at a much quicker pace in college. I had told Dr. Winters a few weeks ago that maybe it was because it was more deliberate, slower and more methodical to write in all capital letters. I wasn’t sure yet why or if it meant anything specific–it could always be as simple as I like the aesthetic more–but it was something to think about anyway.

“Hey,” a voice called me from my reverie. I’d been absorbed in writing, absorbed in listening to the sound of the water below me, entranced by the sunshine beating down on me. I slipped a page marker into the journal and closed it, setting it and the pen beside me before looking up. 

It was the hat on his head that made me smile. 

“Hi,” I said, patting the ground beside me, signaling for him to sit.

He did. He maneuvered himself down and leaned back on his hands, his head falling back as he looked up at the sky, his eyes closed.

I took that moment to look him over. He was tan, his skin practically glowing in the sunshine, and his facial hair was fuller. It suited him. I couldn’t tell what his hair was doing, but as he took a deep breath and lowered his head back down and opened his eyes, I noted that the easiness he’d always carried about him was still present. I’d worried that I might’ve stripped that from him, but from the looks of it, I hadn’t.

He turned his head toward me and I was struck by the blue of his eyes. Even with the blue water below me, the blue sky above me, and the blue hat situated on top of his head, his eyes were still the most vibrant, the most riveting of all the options. There was a depth to them that even the most renowned artists would struggle to capture. I could see them clearly even in the shade of his ball cap.

For months I’d thought that perhaps seeing those eyes again would cripple me, tear me down brick-by-brick until I was an amorphous blob on the ground, unable to function back at square one. Yet here I was, staring into those eyes and holding my own, maintaining myself. I had thought that I’d see something in those eyes that might indicate pain or regret. Instead, I saw curiosity and respect. I’d spent a few months dealing with both of those qualities in other people’s gazes to know what they were, and seeing them there, on him, felt natural. As if this was how it was supposed to be.

“You look tan,” I said. 

He nodded and looked out ahead of us toward the horizon. “Yeah, I um. I went on that trip to South Africa a few weeks ago with Greg. It was a place our dad had always wanted to go, so we figured we’d get down there and see what he’d been going on and on about for so long.” 

“How was it?”

“It was unbelievable,” he said. When he said that, I saw that smile, his smile, slip onto his face and watched as his features lit up. I could feel my own features shift into a smile as a response to his, the reaction involuntary, but I was unable to do anything but react to his contagious good vibe. “We did a great white shark thing, watched them breach from a boat and even went down in a tank to watch them from below. It was the scariest, coolest thing I’ve ever done by far. I don't know if I'll ever be able to top it, but I would like to try.” 

He was happy. 

I was struck by that when he looked at me full on again. He was happy and so was I.

We fell into silence. It was neither comfortable nor uncomfortable. There was so much to be said between us so much that needed to be discussed and sorted through, but somehow we both understood that we were under no pressure and that added a level of comfort to the situation.

He spoke first.

“You look lighter… somehow. Calmer,” he said, glancing at me, appraising, and then shifted his gaze back out to the lake.

“I feel lighter,” I said after a moment. Watching him, and then following his gaze to the horizon. He didn't interrupt me when I paused to gather my thoughts, and I appreciated his patience, and appreciated that even after all these months he still believed I deserved the time to get it right. “Therapy has helped quite a bit. As has telling everyone.”

“Louis mentioned to me that you told everyone, including your family,” he said. I watched him from the corner of my eye. “I was really proud of you for that. It must've taken a lot of strength.”

I let out a breathless chuckle. “The family’s response was something, to be sure. And it's funny, but I knew how our friends would react. I just didn't let myself believe that they would be so supportive, that it wouldn't make them look at me in pity. I knew that they wouldn't, but taking that leap of faith is still scary sometimes.”

“Yeah,” he agreed, the timber of his voice rattling my bones. “They're some pretty remarkable people, our friends.”

“If we're calling lunacy ‘remarkable’ nowadays, then sure.” He laughed out loud at my words and I felt it in my toes, his spirit floating lightly. His energy lifted me through this process. If it was anytime else, I couldn't have been able to do this, to tell them.

“I don't expect you to forgive me,” I said, my voice quiet suddenly. “I know I didn't exactly go about, well, anything the right way at first. But I'm trying now and I wanted you to know that I'm sorry.”

“You don't have to apol-”

“I do,” I interrupted him. He cut his gaze to me quickly, the confusion clear within it. “I do,” I repeated with a nod. “I hurt you. I know I hurt you. Regardless of why or the outcome, I still did that. And for that, I'm sorry.”

“I accept,” he said back quietly, his eyes still watching me.

I stayed silent for a long while, looking out over the water, but I knew he was watching me, and could feel his eyes on me. It must've been a handful of minutes later before I spoke again.

“I don't have my nightmare anymore.” As much as I wanted to keep looking at the water I desperately wanted to see his face when he processed that news. So, I turned and watched.

“You what?” His mouth was wide, his eyes searching my face and moving at a quick pace, his voice was nothing but a whisper of words on an exhale of breath leaving him in a gust.

“Since early March,” I said, nodding. “Two and a half months ago.”

“That's great, Ruby,” he said softly and looked away again. I watched as he took his Cubs hat off and ran a hand through his hair before settling his hat back down. His hair was wavy and long on top, but shorter onthe sides. It was my favorite style on him.

“It's been a relief,” I admitted. He nodded at my words.

“I'm sure Moggy appreciates not being woken up in the middle of the night, too,” he said, a smile pulling on his features, knowing that the worst was behind us.

“Oh she's never been happier,” I smiled back. “I was putting a real damper on her beauty rest.” We giggled quietly and then fell into another bout of comfortable silence, the minutes just passing by as we took in being beside each other again. A couple of kids passed by on skateboards behind us and a man blaring reggae music from a speaker walked by at a leisurely pace, the sound fading as he made it to the beach to our left.

“I was thinking,” I started after it had been silent for a while, “that it's probably time our friends stopped making two sets of plans.”

“Yeah?” He asked, pulling his gaze down to me and quirking his eyebrows.

“This wasn't nearly as hard as I built it up in my head to be,” I said, letting him know I'd been nervous about seeing him. 

He let out a slow breath and nodded, another smile pulling on his lips. “Yeah, it really hasn't been.” I let him think for a moment, able to see the thoughts whirring behind his eyes. “I think that's fair.”

“You think we can pull it off, being friends?”

“Well,” he drew in a breath and let it out slowly, “we've done being a couple, and we’ve done being nothing to each other, so I think that maybe friends can be a happy medium for us.”

I hoped so.

Sitting there I realized that although I had patched myself up and that I was happy, content with my life and who I was, I had still missed Niall.

I'd missed his contagious laugh and his easygoing energy. I'd missed his quirky bookish quotes that would come out when he was trying to be introspective and I'd missed watching him interact with Louis and the rest of our friends. 

I realized just how easily I could be his friend. I thought about how he would fit in with Tala and Brian and how he'd compliment each of them as well. I thought about our group game nights having good music again because my choices wouldn't be voted down and the Guinness that would be stocked in all of our fridges for just-in-case purposes.

If anything were to happen between us in the future–and I recognized that hypothetical as a long shot because of the trust that would have to be built back up–that was for the future. For right now, I was happy just having him around again.

It was enough for me. It was calm and I felt that ease settling into my belly as I thought about that. I wasn't wary of what was to come or nervous of screwing anything up. It was an easy friendship and there were expectations that went along with being a friend, but they didn't feel impossible to meet or to breathe under.

“Hey,” he said, pulling me again from my reverie with that single word.

I looked over at him.

“This feels good.”

“It does,” I acknowledged. “Thanks for meeting me.”

“Thanks for reaching out,” he said.

I took a deep breath and looking out at the lake in front of me, seeing it for what was far from the first time, I felt myself sink into happiness, all of my nervous energy from before leaving me like the waves pulling away from the barrier and all that was coming in was a warmth and a relief that spread through me. 

Looking right, I could see the green grass and trees and the golden beach past them, could see skyscrapers reaching up into the blue beyond above and could see the sun as it travelled its path, steady and constant and not concerning itself with anything but its own power and strength.

The sun knew that it would be cloudy some days, but that never dimmed its shine, it was bright regardless of what was happening around it. I took a deep breath and closing my eyes against the light hoped that I could be like that too, bright and unwavering and strong in the face of life. I finally felt like I was in a place where that wasn't an unreasonable hope.

[purplesurveys]

899

Do you know anyone with two different colored eyes? Yeah. Someone from my high school who’s a year younger than me has this condition. What was the last thing you bought for someone else? Spanish bread for my sister. I don’t even think it’s actually from Spain...I bet Filipinos just gave it the name. We do have the tendency to give some of our foods really confusing names, so I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s the case. Do you want to see Band Slam? I remember this movie being somewhat of a big deal because Vanessa Hudgens is in it and this was during the time when she was still on an HSM high, but I was never interested in seeing it. What month is your birthday in? April. When was the last time you got a new cell phone? I can’t remember if it was in January or February, but the year was 2018.

Do you like hot fudge sundaes? Yesss, even better if I have fries alongside it. What did you do today? I played with the dogs, had shawarma that my dad bought, took a nap, and applied for another transcribing website so I can do even more work at home. And I also repeatedly checked my emails to see if I finally got a message from the university saying that I’m officially a graduate. Didn’t get any, but they should be sending emails within a couple of days. Do you like to sleep a lot? Not really. I sleep when I’m sad so the less I sleep during the day, the better it is for me. Is there a garbage can in the room you're currently in? Nope. Have you ever been in a class that you thought you were too smart for? Hahaha yes. I didn’t need four years of English grammar classes because I got fluent much earlier from reading on my own; but I didn’t have a choice because in schools here, everyone in a certain grade takes the exact same set of classes. No free electives and all. I definitely thought it was a waste of my time but in a way I’m glad I had it because at least I had a breather class. Can you type without looking at the keyboard? Yes. Have you ever been snorkeling? I’ve done it a couple of times, yes. Once in Palawan and another in Boracay. I have my apprehensions doing it at least in the Philippines though, because I’m sure hundreds of tourists use the snorkel (which has a MOUTHPIECE) every hour and everyday and I doubt they clean it enough for every wave of tourists. I’m shuddering just thinking about it... Who was the last person you apologized to? Continued from last night. Gabie. Is there someone who you can tell anything to? Yes. Do you throw things when you're frustrated? I do throw things but I only hurl them in front of me and I make sure there’s something soft nearby to cushion their fall. So like sometimes if I want to throw my phone, I make sure I’m near my bed. Do you prefer sharks or dolphins? Dolphins. Are your friends mostly older than you or younger than you? I find that most are my age; but I do have a healthy balance of friends who are older and younger than me because of my org. How tall are you? 5′1″. I’m a couple of inches away from 5′2″ but just didn’t make the cut. Have you changed a lot in the past two years? Sure. Not as dramatic as my change from 2016–2018, but 2020 me is still a lot more confident than 2018 me. Would you ever get a pet tarantula? No. I’m willing to touch one, but I wouldn’t entirely get one as a pet. Do you want to dye your hair? I mean I do but I’m not desperate and I never felt tempted to buy hair dye kits. It’s enough for me to fantasize having green or orange hair. Do you charge your cell phone every day? Mostly, yes. Do you use livejournal, tumblr, or anything else of the sort? I use Tumblr. Sometimes I’ll check out LJ but only because they have their own survey tag and if I can’t find any interesting ones on my usual survey site, I’ll go to LJ instead. Are you old enough to legally smoke cigarettes? Yes. Have you ever gotten drunk in a foreign country? No. The last time I’d been abroad, I was still scared of the idea of drinking. It was a month later when I had my first cocktail. Have you ever even been to a foreign country? Yes. What is your favorite TV show? My favorite comfort show is Friends; my favorite show ever is Breaking Bad. What's your favorite zoo animal? I’m not too fond of zoos. My favorite animal is the elephant, but not in the context of zoos. I wouldn’t want to see them in one. Does your family vacation a lot? We do, when my dad is home. While other families stretch out their trips throughout the year, we cram all our trips almost every weekend for a month and a half. My dad works abroad and is gone for most of the year, so for the short time that he is home we make sure to catch up on vacations. How often do you use curse words? Several times a day. Is there anything in your room you'd be ashamed to show to your parents? No. Have you ever accused someone of cheating when they weren't? Nope. Is there a lot of drama in your life? I wouldn’t say so. Drama only ever liked to hang around in high school and that was forever ago. When was the last time you played hide and seek? Most likely when I was in Grade 4 and we were moving to this current house so it was still bare, which made it a great place for hide and seek at the time. Don't you hate when people stare at you? It only gets extra annoying when it’s because I’m holding hands with Gab. Do you have a secret you've never told anyone? Sure. Have you ever accidentally caught yourself on fire? No. That sounds horrifying. Can you go on the internet with your cell phone? OMG yes hahahahahaha. But I guess back when this survey was made (2009) this hadn’t become common yet, aw. Are you Jewish? I’m not. Does anyone copy the things you do? I don’t think so. Is your dad still alive? Yeah, he literally just walked out of his room right now. Do you know what year your mother was born in? 49 years ago. Have you seen the movie Orphan? I did, but it’s been a long time. Loved it. What time is it? 6:53 AM.

[clericofthebalance]

Life Needs Things to Live, Chapter Three

Class was going to be less of a struggle for Percy today.  Percy settled into his seat in his MW Lit class, one of his final core classes until he could fully focus on what he needed to graduate.  This was the only class he absolutely had to take at the university, something he couldn’t sub with community college classes for a much cheaper rate.

Only one thing made this class tolerable given the 8 AM start time and boring material.  He glued his eyes to the door, sipping his thermos of coffee, waiting patiently.  Finally, she floated in.

Long dark hair captured in a braid, the most beautiful smile he had ever seen, warm eyes that brought flames and autumn and the forest to mind.  She had a sharp and wickedly clever look to her face, joy radiating off every movement and gesture, unique to her very bones.  He adored how she wore blue feathers woven in her hair, how piercings lined her ears, how she emphasized her expressive eyes with perfect eyeliner, how she always had a giant zoology book under her arm.  She was beautiful and clever and just shone in the depressing classroom.

Fuck, he was pathetic and weird.  He really needed to get over his crush and focus on his life, not idolize some poor woman like she was his manic pixie dream girl.  Ugh.

Percy focused on his book, thinking about the two applications he had handed off yesterday. One to Gilmore, to work the counter in his coffee shop, the other to Keyleth for the apartment.  Hopefully, good things would come of it.  They both hinted that he would be accepted.

Maybe Asum could come visit soon, see Beau again.  It would be nice to see his old friend and savior.  To have something to celebrate rather than to mourn.

“Alright, class, we’re going to do a project instead of a final paper.  You’ll be working in assigned pairs to create a presentation and paper on a modern version of any classic novel and how it compares to the source material.  Your initial proposal is due to me in one week.  I’ll call out your assigned pairs now.”

Percy grimaced, praying he’d get someone tolerable that would do their share.  He couldn’t handle working with a freshman who left everything to him again.  He would commit murder.

“Percival and Vex’Ahlia.”

Wait, what?  He stared at Professor Shura blankly and she pointed to the back.  At his crush. Oh, shit fuck.  He was going to humiliate himself.

***

Vex stared at her notes, blanking out.  She hated core classes.  This English class was her absolute last one and it was a misery.  She wished she was out at the zoo or in a lab.  She only wanted to read what she wanted to read. Not this shit.  She sighed.

“Um, excuse me?”

She started and looked up, flushing at the quizzical brow and brilliant eyes on her.  The guy standing over her was hot.  White hair in a messy undercut, heavy brows, a strong yet elegant jaw.  It was the eyes that got her, though, blue as a winter sky and shining with intelligence. Vex easily mustered her most charming, most flirty smile for such a pretty guy.

“Yes, Darling?  How can I help you?”

The questioning frown lifted into a slight smirk, cocky and charming and matching his posh accent, one full and pale eyebrow going up, “Well, we’re partners on our final project according to the professor.”

“Project?”

“Oh, you checked out, too? Apparently we have to do a presentation comparing a classic novel to a modern adaptation while analyzing universal themes,” he rolled his eyes.  His unfairly pretty blue eyes, “And we have to work in pairs.”

“Shit!  I have labs to do! I thought this would just be a paper I could bullshit.”

“I was hoping for that as well,” he dropped into the seat next to her, looking unfairly comfortable in his formal slacks, a neat button up, and a tailored vest in royal blue. No tie, but he did have a black turtleneck underneath.  A little odd for a college student and very high class goth, but whatever.  He was still hot as shit.

“Vex’ahlia, but you can call me Vex.”

He tilted his head, chuckling, her knees going weak as the earrings up his ears sparkled in the fluorescent light of the classroom, “Percival de Rolo, Percy.”

“A pleasure to meet you, Percy Dear.”

“An even greater pleasure to meet you, Miss Vex’Ahlia,” he leaned forward with a charming smile, “So, exchange work and class schedules?  Find a time that works?”

“Schedules? You are a fancy one.”

“I have to plan every minute or I would crumble under the load,” she laughed as he pulled out an honest-to-goodness planner, “Yes, it’s color coordinated.  I was not joking about my life.”

“Okay, okay,” she giggled, grinning, “I get it.  Your girlfriend must keep you busy.”

“Oh-I-Uh-No,” Percy’s pale skin flushed and she noticed some light scarring around his eyes.  It almost looked like droplets, light pink against the lovely red of his cheeks, “I don’t have a girlfriend.  I just work two jobs, a double major with a minor, and a lot of responsibilities.”

“No girlfriend? Really?”

“N-no.  Oh, my phone is ringing!”

She barely held in her laughter at the Star Wars theme coming out of his backpack.  Vex ran her eyes over his profile, appreciating the fine jaw and strong nose, the disheveled hair and two-day scruff, the delicate metallic glasses that gave him a distinguished look only emphasized by his elegant outfit.  An outfit she could tell had seen quite a bit of wear judging by the precisely stitched repairs and fabric fade.  His phone was also an older model, older even than her three generations behind smart phone. So, he was posh but maybe not rich. Just particular about his clothing.

Damn, but he was a fine specimen of a man, his voice soft and refined and lovely.  She wanted to pin him down and see how far that lovely blush went.

“Oh, shit,” he sighed, looking absolutely devastated at whatever the person on the line was saying, “Well, good thing I put in a few applications.  It’s fine, ma’am, you don’t have the time to keep the place open anymore.  I had a feeling this was coming.  Take care and keep me updated.  I’ll be just fine.  You know me.”

He hung up and rubbed his temples, pushing the glasses up, “Sorry about that.  Former job.”

“That’s fine.  Are you okay?”

“Oh, I’ll be fine. This doesn’t even make the top ten of worst things to happen to me,” Percy smiled, but still looked strained, “So, free days?”

“Wednesday after 3 and all weekend except for Saturday morning.  Me and my housemates are interviewing a potential new renter.”

“Oh?  I’m inter-wait, do you live with Kiki?  Keyleth?”

“Yeah, I do!  Are you her Percy?”  Vex lit up at the prospect of getting to spend more time with him and leaned over to look at the organized but packed schedule.  Shit, he wasn’t kidding, “That’s an insane coincidence. She’s told us all about you and Beau. I work at a café just down the street from the house, Laina’s.  We could study there or at the house.  And you could bring Beau and Pepper along.”

“Honestly, that would be great.  I actually just put in an application at Laina’s,” Percy smiled back, “I really appreciate the offer.  You sure you don’t mind?”

“Only if you don’t mind my dog.”

“Deal,” he offered his hand with a wink, beaming, “I-Thanks.”

“Not a problem, handsome,” he flushed to his ears, those spots standing out once more against the red, blushing at her new nickname for him, “So, we can meet up around 4 at Laina’s and I’ll see you Saturday?  I see you’re free from 4 to 7 tonight.”

“I’ll be the one with the black Zemian Shepherd and small child.”

“Sounds great,” she winked, gathering her things, “I’ll see you then.  I need to get to my next class.”

“B-bye,” Percy was frozen, flushed, and staring at her like she was the most gorgeous thing in the world. She strode off with a confident swing to her hips, head held high, and a triumphant grin.  A study date with a handsome man and his babies.  Hopefully, she and Beau would get along.  Kids usually liked her.  Then, she could hunt down that sexy shy bastard.

But first…

She dialed Vax as soon as she was outside the building, knowing his first class wasn’t until noon and he was off this morning, biting her lip.

“What’s up, Stubby?”

“Morning, shitbird.  I met the potential roomie today.  He’s apparently in my lit class and we got assigned a project together.”

“You sound entirely too chipper for this early.”

“Well, he’s absolutely gorgeous and looks like a good guy.  He got fired while we were talking and didn’t even react.  Was just as pleasant as before the call.  I liked him,” Vax made a disbelieving snort, “Really! He color-coordinates his schedule. It’s absolutely adorable.”

“Are you thinking with your head?”

“Yes!  I promise, you’ll like him.  His phone is older than mine and he has definitely patched his clothes a few times.”

“Fine.  I’ll go a bit easier on him.”

“On that note, I’ll be studying at Laina’s tonight.  With him. While you’re working.  I’ll get Grog to walk me home.”

“Wait, what?”

She hung up with a smug smirk.  That would drive him crazy all day.

[melodysilverknight]

Activity 1: Autobiography

My name is (fullname), I'm currently (age) years old and will soon be turning (to be age) this (day/month of birth) of 2020. I am currently living with my maternal grandparents, Mrs. (Maternal grandmother's full name) and Mr. (Maternal grandfather's full name), in (complete current address) along with my, soon to be (to be age) year old, younger brother, ( younger brother's full name). We moved to Batangas 7 years ago but before that we used to live in Quezon City.

We live in (previous address) which intersected with the highway. Our house, or rather apartment, was within distance of the church, marketplace, and the mall, which made a lot of things, especially shopping, very convenient. I lived there with my father, Mr. (Father's full name), my mother, Mrs. (Mother's full name), my paternal grandmothers, (Paternal grandmother's full name) and her sister (Paternal grandmother's name) and, whenever she was around, my paternal aunt, (paternal aunt's name). For the most part of me and my brother's living there, we didn't get to spend too much time with our parents since they both worked, our mother at (occupation), and our father at the (occupation), meaning they were never home a lot and we mostly only got to see them on the weekends, so it was mostly our grandmothers who took care of us and we spent time with, even as toddlers, however, whenever we did get to spend time with them it was always a lot of fun. One of our main family activities back then was to head out to the mall parking lot behind the church in the morning, during those times the parking lot would be close to or completely empty, so we would take the car and head to the parking lot to either jog or play frisbee. There was even one time, while my father was off on his own jogging while me and my mother and brother were playing with the frisbee, I decided I wanted to go and join my father, so I did the most sensible thing I could think of, and ran after him, little did I know, something was going on behind me. Some people had come to the parking lot to jog as well and brought their dog with them, for some reason it got loose and started going after me, my mother and brother noticed and were yelling at me then I noticed my father had already stopped his jog and was gesturing behind me which is when I finally noticed the dog on my tail. I ran for dear life, as much as I loved dogs and still do, at the time I still didn't know how to handle myself around dogs other than the ones we owned so I was scared silly. By the time the dog's owners finally caught it I was already out of breath. While I was taking a breather my folks had a small chat with the dog owners then headed over to me where we talked and eventually ended up laughing about the whole incident. After the jog we would head to the market to do the regular weekend shopping. During this, while mother would finish up her shopping I would partake in my little tradition of buying and eating my casava cake.

One of the other things I did with my family was visiting wildlife institutions. We used to visit Manila zoo and the nature park of the Quezon city branch of the World Wildlife Fund. As you could probably tell I have a thing for animals, they're my passion and I love them with every fiber of my being, from the biggest animal in the world, the Blue whale, to the smallest and most resilient creature in existence, the Tardigrade, and even the one animal that terrifies me completely, the spider, I have never once tired of the creatures of this planet and even to this day they still intrigue me. My love for animals was inspired by Steve Irwin, the man known around the world as the "Crocodile Hunter", he was a world renowned wildlife conservationist from Queensland, Australia and a biologist and zoologist who specialized in reptiles. I've watched Steve work with and save animals all over the world alongside his wife, Terri, and his daughter, Bindi, and because of this they became my life idols and have taught me so many things about animals and the beauty of nature and its creatures. Whenever we would visit the zoo or nature park one of my favorite things to do was to feed the animals, I'd head to the gazelle or impala enclosure with my family and I'd feed them fallen leaves through the metal barriers and whenever I did I felt as if the Irwins were with me and whenever I did I always wondered, is this what it was like for them everyday at Australia zoo, getting to be with those animals everyday of their lives. Me and my father also used to play spotting games at the zoo, whenever we would get to an enclosure that had a water hole or thick brush we would try our best to find the animals in the enclosure, of course my father would always win but it's always fun regardless.

In the years I had spent living in Quezon city, I attended 2 different elementary schools. For my first grade up to third grade I went to (name of school), a private school then for fourth and fifth grade I attended (name of school) then finally I moved to Batangas where I spent my last year in elementary school at (name of school). Looking back on my more pre-mature school years, I can say for certain now that my school life, in comparison to my private life, was not what I would call the most pleasing experience. Growing I had always been very socially challenged, although I would make the effort to introduce myself and try to make friends with my other classmates, I was never really able to maintain the bonds I had made and just ended up becoming estranged again but worse because I already knew them and they already knew me so I drew and came to the conclusion that even though they knew me, they never approached me, so I won't try to bother them anymore. And so, I kept up with my pattern over and over and over again, I thought it was a good thing, that I just gave them their space, but it wasn't. I ended up more socially awkward and estranged than before, I didn't know how to properly handle myself around people and I just got more and more shy. Things then took a turn for the worst when I started getting bullied, being the already shy character I was was bad enough but getting looked down on and picked on made it several times worse, the feeling of awkwardness I had before was intensified by intimidation and loneliness which made me even more timid. Looking past all the bullying one of the only things about school were the yearly field trips, something not only I, but all of my classmates would look forward to. It was during a field trip I took that I had my first visit to Ocean Adventure a marine facility that rivaled Ocean Park to me at the time,and my first trip to Enchanted Kingdom. My school bullying experience didn't stop until after I had graduated and reached their peak in 5th grade when it was my group's turn to clean the classroom after classes that day and my classmates thought it would be fun to pull a prank on me so they trapped me in the classroom holding the door closed while I tried to get out. Now I know it's been my flaw to take things seriously a bit too much but that was a bad time to pick on me and a poor choice of action, 1: I was shy and timid and didn't know how to respond well to others; 2: the school creeped me out so I wasn't comfortable getting left alone or locked in; and 3: the ones who pulled the prank were my classmates I considered very obnoxious and loud the kind of people who really intimidated me at the time. I went home crying that day, when my folks found out they went to my school with me the next day and complained about it but it never did completely stop.

High school was a turning point in my life, after six whole years of getting bullied and nearly experiencing depression I would finally be able to get away from it all, the city and bullies. At first I was very reluctant to attend junior high school in a school I wasn't all that familiar with but then my folks mentioned there weren't any lower grades in the school so we would all be new to the experience so I agreed to go in the end. My junior high school were all spent attending, what was formerly referred to as, (name of school), it was here that I had made my first real friends. I started my time at my new school in the same way I did at my previous schools, with introductions, but as the days went by I started seeing the pattern again. I honestly thought that things would end up the same, don't get me wrong, I'm happy about the fact that no one bullied me sure but I was still socially awkward, then things changed when I met, them. Halfway through the first quarter I got to know 5 other girls from my class. First was Ms. Berry, she was also a quiet girl in class so I was able to relate with her, she was also cheerful and nice, I even met her at church once, turns out she goes to the same church. Next there was Yshie, she became my bestfriend, she was quiet, stern looking and at first slightly gloomy, but when I got to know her it turns out we had a lot in common. We both had a love for anime and sketching, and turns out our birthdays were really close together mine was on (month and day of birth) and her's was was on the (day of birth). Chuchay was next, now compared to the first two, she was much more outgoing, she was bubbly, hyper, cheerful and overall very musically talented. She was a great singer and could even play guitar, she was awesome, and to tell you the truth, she became one of my music idols along with Taylor Swift, not that she ever knew that. Another musically talented one was Jingjing, let me tell you, those hands of her's did magic on guitar and keyboard. Like Chuchay, she was outgoing and cheerful but much calmer than Chuchay at te time, she used ro play guitar in the classroom whenever we had no classes and my other friends including the next one usually sang along to her accompaniment while I'd stay quiet. Last but not the least there was ate A, she was the most mature out of all of them in my opinion, she was the big sister of the group and had an attitude to match meaning she was sassy, but in a good way. Together the six of us founded our own friends group called (name of friends group), we all did so many things together but the rest of the story will have to be for a different time.

[thetravelerwrites]

Blue: The Dry Run

Rating: General Audiences Additional Tags: Monster Lover, Gender Neutral Reader, Asexual, Agender Demon, Demon Friend, Reader-Insert, SFW Words: 2135

Blue is anxious about going out among people openly for the first time, so their partner suggests a trial to help them feel less nervous: a petting zoo.

The Traveler's Masterlist

“But what if they don’t like me?”

You sighed at Blue in exasperation. You were trying to convince them to come with you to one of your classes. Your young students often dealt with feelings of being different in a world that didn’t understand them, and you knew Blue understood that feeling very well.

“You’re blue and fuzzy, hon, they’ll love you. You’re like a giant teddy bear.”

“What if they’re frightened? I’m a demon, a creature, a… a thing. Won’t they be scared of me?”

“Of course not. You haven’t been out in hundreds of years, Blue. The world is a different place now. All kinds of creatures walk among humans these days. You’re not the only non-human out there. A handful of my kids are half-human. Orcs, werewolves, dragons, nagas, even other demons. Hell, my boss’s assistant is an incubus, for fuck’s sake. Openly! Like everyone knows he’s an incubus; he doesn’t even try to hide it. Everyone has to have a job these days, you know. And I think the kids would really like you.”

They were sitting scrunched up on the bed, twisting their tail in their lower pair of hands and looked down at themselves. “But… I’m naked.”

You folded your arms and smirked at them. “Now your grasping at straws, Blue,” You said. You turned and looked into your closet. “But if it’ll make you feel better…” You riffled through the rack with your lips pursed. “Hmm…you’re too tall for most of my clothes…” You said. “Oh, here we go.” You pulled out a long, pale pink sundress with yellow flowers. “My sister left this last time she stayed over. I’ve been meaning to send it back to her, but…”

You bid Blue to stand, and they stood up straight. You’re glad you made the decision to move to an apartment with vaulted ceilings so that they could stand at their full height. Their constant crouching was painful, even for you.

You put the dress up to their long, spindly body and considered it. “I think this would look good with your coloring,” You said. “It’s supposed to be ankle length, but I think it’ll be just over your knee. Would this make you feel better?”

They shrugged noncommittally.

You sighed. “Look, why don’t we try a dry run?”

“Dry run?”

“Yeah. Just go out. Nothing big. Maybe the petting zoo.”

“Petting zoo?”

“Yeah, it’s full of cuddly animals you get to play with.”

They gave you a flat expression. “I know what a petting zoo is, my love.”

You laughed. “I take my class there all the time. It’s great for trauma relief. The proprietor is a friend of mine, I can get her to let us in on the weekend.”

“What purpose would that serve?”

“You can play with the animals. Animals are a great judge of character. If they’re not scared of you, then the kids, who are old enough to be reasoned with, won’t be either. Come on, please? It’ll be like our first real date. We’ve never actually had one, for all the time we’ve been together. Please?”

You pressed your hands together as if praying and pouted a little. Blue squatted and sighed, taking the dress and pulling it over their head. Luckily, both sets of arms fit through the armholes. They looked silly and adorable in it.

“If it’s for you…” They signed reluctantly. “But I can’t promise I’ll enjoy it.”

“If you don’t, we’ll come home and I’ll never bring it up again. I want you to be comfortable, but I also think you’d really enjoy yourself.” You took their face in your hands and gently kissed where their nose would have been, if they had one. “There’s no reason to hide, Blue. This world is as much yours as it is mine and there’s no reason why you shouldn’t have everything you want from it.”

“I have you. What else could I want?”

You smiled and hugged them. “I love you too. But…” You sighed. “You’re immortal. Or, at least, you’ll live much longer than me. I want you to have something after… after I’m gone. I don’t want you to disappear again.”

They couldn’t argue with that, as much as they disliked the thought. They had been summoned to protect others before you, and had lost them all long ago. Despite never having revealed themselves to any of their prior charges, Blue always felt the losses deeply and had receded to the void after their deaths, waiting to be summoned again. Blue believed their only purpose for existing was to protect, but you were hoping to give them more than that this go round. They were more to you than a bodyguard or a guardian, they were part of your soul now. You loved them.

Blue couldn’t kiss you, as they had no mouth, but they nuzzled their face to your neck before pulling back and signing, “Okay. I’ll go.”

“You’ll love it. I promise.” You said, running a finger down the middle of their face. They did that strange smile that only involved their eyes.

That Saturday, late in the evening, you had made arrangements with your friend Lizzie for her to open the petting zoo for you simply so she could meet the elusive Blue you were always going on about. She admitted to you that she kind of thought you had made them up.

It was nearly midnight when you managed to get Blue, wearing the sundress, out of the front door. You promised to take all the back ways, so that they would be seen by as few people as possible. You assured them that it wasn’t necessary, that no one would scream or run from them, but they were still wary.

“Don’t look so worried, honey,” You told them, taking them by the hand and pulling them down the sidewalk in the dark just outside of the light of the streetlamps. “It’ll be fine.”

Blue allowed themselves to be lead by their hand, skulking behind you with their eyes darting to and fro.

“Lizzie is very nice, I promise. I’ve already told her all about you, so she knows what to expect,” You said.

“I doubt that,” Blue said.

“Blue, her husband is an onikuma and her best friend since childhood is a horned forest guardian. She’s really not going to be all that surprised by you.”

Blue shrugged and continued to follow you.

You walked up the steps of the community center and ignored the front door. All the lights were off except for the annex building where the petting zoo was kept in back. You skipped a little and pulled Blue forward, as they had stopped when they saw the light ahead.

“Come on!” You said excitedly. If they could have groaned, they would have.

Silhouetted against the open door was your friend, Lizzie, waving an arm over her head in enthusiasm.

Blue faltered in their steps, but you used your momentum to carry them forward. Blue was very strong despite the preternatural thinness of their body and extremities; if they really wanted to wrench themselves from your grasp, they absolutely could have. The fact that while reluctant, they were still complying, spoke to the level of trust they had placed in you. You hoped you weren’t betraying that trust.

“Hey, guys!” Lizzie called. Blue tensed but didn’t retreat.

“Hey, Lizzie!” You said in return, rushing up the stairs to give her a hug. You looked back and saw Blue lingering just outside of the light. “Blue, come on, she’s not going to bite you.”

“Unless you ask nicely,” Lizzie said with a grin.

Blue came forward slowly, fidgeting with their tail nervously.

“Wow, so this is Blue, huh?” Lizzie said, taking a few steps forward and putting out a hand. Blue eyed her warily, but took her hand in one of theirs and shook delicately. “I really did think you made them up, you know,” Lizzie added to me.

“Told you so,” I said.

“Yeah, you did,” Lizzie said, smiling brightly at Blue.

“Nice to meet you,” Blue signed after you nudged them.

“You, too,” Lizzie replied. “Well, ready to pet some animals?”

Blue nodded, the cascade of their hair shivering as they did so, and They followed you and Lizzie into the building.

Inside there was a miniature pony, a few pigs, a llama, some lambs, a goat, and a pen full of little rabbits.

“Ooh! Look, Blue! Bunnies!” You said, pulling them toward the pen. Picking one up, you set it in Blue’s upper pair of hands. Blue cradled it carefully, waiting for it to fight them or freak out, but it didn’t. It simply sat placidly in Blue’s grasp, nose twitching.

You took one of Blue’s lower hands and pulled it up, showing them how to stroke the bunny. When you let go, Blue continued on their own.

“See? Not so bad, right?”

Blue didn’t answer, just scratched the bunny behind its ear. They then knelt down and put their hand out, and the other bunnies came over and sniffed it curiously.

“Here,” Lizzie said, holding a cabbage in her hands and breaking off some of the leaves for Blue to feed to the rabbits. Blue took the leaves and held them out, and the bunnies flocked to them, much to their delight. Blue then sat cross-legged in the pen, surrounded by rabbits as if they were the bunny messiah.

“Cute dress Blue’s wearing,” Lizzie said in an undertone after you had retreated to give Blue some space.

“Yeah, it was my sister’s. I just forgot to give it back.”

“So, Blue’s a girl?”

“Nope.”

“A boy?”

“Neither,” You replied.

Lizzie scrunched up her face in confusion. “Well, I know you call them ‘they’ and all,” She said. “But… what have they got going on… you know… downstairs?”

“They’re an eldritch horror borne of the void, Lizzie, they don’t need to have anything ‘going on downstairs,’” You told her in a sniffy tone. “Besides, the only person who needs to be concerned about that is them.”

“Well, you’re together, aren’t you? Wouldn’t it concern you, too?”

“I’m a sex-repulsed asexual, Lizzie; it doesn’t make a difference to me what they may or may not have… physically. Blue is what they are and they don’t need to be anything else. It’s not complicated; they’re happy, I’m happy, and that’s what matters.”

Lizzie shrugged. “If you say so.”

Blue sprung up to their feet and trotted over to you, a small procession of bunnies following in their wake, and they smiled their eye-smile. They still had a rabbit on their shoulder.

“I want to pet the horse now,” they said.

It took another three trips to the petting zoo before Blue decided they felt confident enough to greet your class. You had also experimented with different articles of clothing, but Blue decided they liked the sundresses best. It allowed for freer movement, and they liked the way the fabric fell around their body. Halter top dresses worked best with their four arms.

While going to put away Blue’s new clothes, you hand touched a bag that you had stowed away in the closest nearly a year ago, the one with the bits of the bunny, Blue’s vessel.

“Whoa,” You said, holding it if for them to see. “I’d forgotten about this. Why did you rip this to pieces?”

“To get out,” They said. “Demons are physically trapped within the confines of their vessels. We literally have to ‘break’ free of them. I had no reason to do so before that night, but when I couldn’t discern why you were so distressed, I freed myself to try and comfort you better, though I seemed to have had the opposite effect.”

“Aw,” You said, hugging them around the middle. They’re lower set of arms wrapped around your waist while the upper pair settled on your shoulders. “It’s all good now. You’re a huge comfort to me, Blue.” You pulled up and looked at their face, frowning slightly. “I do wonder what you get out of staying with me, though.”

“I get love,” they said with their eye-smile. “That’s all I need.” They’d brushed their forehead against yours affectionately and you kissed their face.

The next day, Blue picked out the white sundress with the roses on it, their favorite, and shyly accompanied you to the school. They walked scrunched up at first, but when they saw other creatures, like demons, orcs, and beast-people, walking among humans, they straightened out a little and seemed a bit more eager.

When you got to the school, you introduced Blue to your colleagues, who greeted them warmly, which was surprising to Blue.

Outside your first class, you turned to Blue.

“Ready?”

They smiled and nodded.

Since my work is no longer searchable, please do me a favor and reblog this story if you enjoyed it. Help me reach a wider audience! To help me continue creating, please consider buying me a Kofi, becoming a Patron, or donating directly to my PayPal!

Thanks for reading!

My Masterlist

The Exophilia Creator’s Masterlist

[mikauzoran]

Adrienette Drabble: Zoo

(I swear I posted this already...but I don’t see it. :/)

Adrien collapsed facedown onto Nino’s bed.

Nino pursed his lips. “…So how was the zoo?”

Adrien groaned. “She has ruined me.”

“Yeah, Alya’s dad is really proud of the new penguins,” Nino sighed. “Marinette likes penguins.”

“I thought the other one had messed me up, but Marinette…ugh,” Adrien whined, fingers clutching at the comforter in his agony.

This was officially the last place Nino wanted to be and the last thing he wanted to be doing. “Did you see the sealions? She likes sealions too.”

“I am a goner,” Adrien realized in horror. “Friday night, I got my first real taste of her, and now I can’t get her out of my head.”

With a guttural curse, Nino got to his feet and went to the bed, rolling Adrien over. “What the f did you do?”

Adrien blinked. “Sorry?”

“Not as sorry as you’re going to be if you’ve hurt her. What did you do with her?” Nino demanded.

Adrien sat up and shrugged. “N-Nothing.” His quickly reddening face instantly denounced him.

“Adrien Emile Agreste,” Nino growled. “Did you sleep with her? Did you kiss her? I understand that you’re going through some pretty crazy crap right now, but Marinette has been as patient as a saint with you this past month and a half while you’ve pretty much worked your way through the school’s cheer squad and the girls’ volleyball team. I love you, but my patience is wearing thin. What the hell happened?”

Adrien hid behind his hands. “I don’t know. It wasn’t…I didn’t sleep with her. I didn’t make out with her. There was no kissing. It was just…I’ll start at the beginning.”

“Okay,” Nino sighed. “Sorry. It’s just—”

“—No. It’s okay.” Adrien shook his head, dropping his hands to his sides. “I know I’ve been taking advantage of her lately…for a long time, actually. I’m glad that there’s someone to stand up for her.”

Nino gave Adrien a comforting nudge.

Adrien nudged back but looked away. “Friday,” he announced. “I had my third date with my latest ex-girlfriend, Marianne. She was the university girl. We were in her dorm room, since her roommate was out of town for the weekend, and I was sitting in her desk chair, and she was on the bed, and she asked me if I wanted to make out. I didn’t really because I kind of would have rather talked, gotten to know one another better, but I said that we could make out if that was what she wanted to do.”

“Adrien,” Nino groaned, resting a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “Don’t do that next time. If you don’t want to do something, say so. Don’t just go along with whatever she wants to do.”

“Yeah, I know, but…it was obvious that she expected me to say yes, so…” He shook his head.

“Adrien,” Nino stressed. “I know your old man’s been training you wrong your entire life, but you don’t always have to do what other people expect you to do. Promise me you will say no next time you don’t want to do something with a girl.”

Adrien nodded.

“I don’t hear you promising.”

“Yeah, okay,” Adrien grumbled. “I promise.”

Nino shook his head. “I worry about you. You make me worry.”

“Don’t worry.” Adrien wanted to bang his head against a wall.

“Someone has to when you let girls do whatever they want with you, regardless of your own wishes concerning the matter,” Nino hissed. “Guys can be sexually assaulted too, Adrien. Date rape is a thing.”

“I’m fine,” Adrien insisted.

“You are so totally not, but whatever,” Nino snorted. “You were saying? You let that Marianne girl have her way with you?”

“Did not,” Adrien sighed. “She got up off the bed and came over to the desk chair and straddled me so she was sitting on my lap, facing me, and we started making out.”

“Uh-huh,” Nino grunted, tempted to say that he didn’t need the play-by-play, but…he’d taken it upon himself to make sure that Adrien was safe, and that involved listening to gory make-out session details.

Adrien pointedly avoided Nino’s eyes and drew his knees up into his chest. “Things kind of got heated, and she started…rolling her hips.”

Nino cursed softly. “Keep talking.”

“And I was going to tell her to stop and that I didn’t want to go that far like you’d told me I should, but…” Adrien squirmed.

Nino cursed again a little louder.

“It felt good, and I was thinking that maybe it was okay…maybe it didn’t count as long as you kept your clothes on, but then—”

Nino cut him off with another curse. “—Tell me you didn’t. Please, please tell me you didn’t have sex with that skank.”

“I didn’t!” Adrien adamantly insisted, meeting Nino’s eye. “I didn’t. I’m still a virgin.” He winced. “…Maybe. Probably.”

“Maybe?!” Nino shrieked. “How is that something you’re up in the air about?! If you’re not a virgin, who did you maybe lose your virginity to?!”

Adrien’s eyes fell back down to the comforter. “Marinette?”

Adrien was slightly impressed at Nino’s ability to use a single curse as noun, adjective, and verb.

“Keep talking,” Nino growled. “Just…keep telling the story, but hurry up. Please.”

“So Marianne was rocking her hips, and she hit this one spot, and it was like electricity, and I gasped…the wrong name.” Adrien gulped. “I called her ‘Marinette’.”

Nino sucked in a sharp breath. “Oh, Mec.”

“Yeah.” Adrien bit his lip. “That was the end of that. Marianne broke up with me, but my head was a total mess, and I couldn’t go home like that, so…I called Marinette and asked if I could come over to her house.”

Nino smacked himself in the face and went back to cursing softly. “Because that was a good idea.”

“Yes and no,” Adrien sighed. “I was really messed up, and she… She always knows what to say and do. She always knows how exactly to scratch behind my ear or where to nuzzle or when to just sit with me, so…I went to Marinette, and we were up on her balcony, and she said all this really great stuff that made me feel…I don’t know. Happy and okay and safe and cared for…but then we started fighting about all the ex-girlfriends, and I ended up saying some really intense stuff about how in love I was with the other girl, and…she was just there for me.”

Adrien rested his forehead on the tops of his knees and lowered his voice. “She tugged me over to the deck chair she has up there and had me sit down in front of her. She pulled me back so that I was lying against her between her legs but facing out, and she just started touching my face and playing with my hair and nuzzling me and trailing really soft kisses up my neck and along my jaw and…she never touched me below the neck, but…she pressed all of my buttons, and it drove me absolutely insane. I mean, I was still pretty wired from Marianne earlier, and all the girls making out with me recently have had me pretty on edge, so…but Marinette pushed me over.”

“Oh,” Nino muttered.

“So I may or may not have lost my virginity to Marinette on Friday, depending on if your definition of sex has to include penetration or if it’s enough to achieve orgasm through the assistance of another person,” Adrien groaned miserably.

“Oh,” Nino reiterated. “So…What… How… I mean…I don’t imagine that you’re very subtle; I’ve seen you kiss girlfriends goodbye before. Marinette had to have known what she was doing to you.”

“Yep,” Adrien confirmed in a small voice, ears starting to turn crimson in mortification once more.

Nino’s brow furrowed. “So…she just…?”

“Yep, and I want her to do it again so bad. I. Am. Ruined,” Adrien lamented. “I keep telling myself that she only sees me as a friend and she took pity on me because I was obviously a dumpster fire the other night, and I guess she figured I could use the release. She wasn’t wrong. I mean, I was kind of having a series of panic attacks, and…”

Adrien looked up pleadingly at Nino. “Today at the zoo, there were so many times I wanted to reach out and take her hand. There were so many times when we were standing close and she turned to look at me, and I wanted to kiss her. The only thing that stopped me was that she had specifically told me not to do those things because she could only hang out with me platonically.”

“Thank God one of you can set boundaries,” Nino snorted. “Adrien, I forbid you to kiss that girl.”

“Ever?” Adrien whimpered.

Nino rolled his eyes. “Until you get your head screwed back on.”

“I’ve been trying. It’s not working,” Adrien replied with a sarcastic grumble.

“Maybe try having a healthy relationship that lasts longer than a few days with one or two girls over the next couple months,” Nino suggested. “Don’t kiss anybody. Don’t almost sleep with anybody. I know you have enough willpower for this if you put your mind to it, Mec. Maybe, if you can manage that, you’ll be in good enough headspace to ask Marinette on a real date.”

“That would be good,” Adrien mumbled. “Sure. I can do that.”

“Good,” Nino sighed, taking off his hat to card a hand through his hair.

“Thank you,” Adrien whispered in a tiny, fragile voice.

Nino gave his shoulder an encouraging nudge. “You’re welcome. You okay now? We good?”

Adrien nodded. “Getting there, I think. Still a little bit of a dumpster fire, but I’m slowly improving.”

“Hey, at least you’re smokin’ hot.” Nino pointed finger guns at Adrien who rolled his eyes.

“Smoking hot garbage, maybe,” Adrien snorted.

Nino shrugged, arms wide and palms up. “You need anything else, Mec?”

Adrien shook his head. “You were going to show me another episode of Code Lyoko?”

“Dude, yes!” Nino laughed, clapping Adrien on the back. “Come on.”

[urdbell18]

Madamspellman Teacher AU Chapter 3: The One With Football and Milkshakes

The weekend felt like the bright light at the end of a very long tunnel for Zelda. Her fourth period Spanish class continued to cause her problems, as if the football incident wasn’t enough. Fourth period Spanish and fifth period French 1 were her biggest classes, a total of twenty five students each. By the end of the week all but seven of her Spanish students have turned in a journal, and Zelda didn’t like the look they gave her when she warned them about having the journal the following Monday. By Friday she was losing her patience with Seth Grinwis and his friends, they disrupted her class all week with outbursts and comotions that almost rivaled the football incident. On Friday, they came into class, smug as ever, and talked all throughout the warm-up. They didn’t even do the warm-up. She set up a folder so students who still didn’t have a journal could turn in the warm-up on loose leaf paper with the rest of class when the five minutes for warm-up were done. When they came back from lunch, Seth Grinwis and company were absent. Zelda was beyond relieved, class free of distraction, it was the best Spanish lesson that week.

On Saturday, Zelda woke up refreshed. It was a good time to be in the Spellman house. Hilda had a mountain of food made; pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits, and assorted homemade jams would crowd their kitchen table, surrounded by the whole family still in their pjs. Sabrina and Ambrose shared the bench, their plates piled high with bacon. Vida sat across from them trying to eat a pancake whole, strawberry jam dripping everywhere until Zelda came up behind her and cut it up to more manageable pieces. Zelda’s place was at the head of the table, closest to the window. The sun light shining behind her made it ideal to read her paper with. Zelda ate half a pancake with some sausage, a little egg, and a top of a biscuit lightly buttered, the bottom half went to Vida.

“Mommy are you excited?”

“Vida don’t talk with your mouth full, you know better. About what baby?” Zelda waited a minute for a reply as her daughter washed away the remainder of the biscuit with freshly squeezed orange juice.

“The zoo! We’re still going right?” Zelda’s blood ran cold as her heart stopped. She had completely forgotten that she promised to take her daughter to the zoo. She’d been promising to do it all summer, but was waiting until the weather was a bit cooler and the tickets were a bit cheaper. And of course, before Hawthorne making her attend the game this afternoon.

“We can’t go to the zoo Vida.”

“Why?”

“Because Mommy’s boss is making her attend the football game this afternoon.”

“But we had plans first!” Vida slammed her little fist on the table. Very rarely would Vida throw a tantrum, but it was ugly when she did. She had her mother’s temper which made her a force to be reckoned with.

“I know we did baby, but we will go, I promise.”

“You’ve been saying that for months! I want down!” Hilda jumped in her seat but helped her niece down from her booster seat. Zelda just sat frozen in her seat with tears in her eyes as she heard her daughters small footsteps run out of the room.

“I can’t believe Hawthorne is making you attend the game.”

“Neither can I, but there isn’t anything I can do about it Sabrina.” With breakfast done, Zelda went to look for her daughter. There weren’t many places where Vida would run to, Zelda found her in her chair on the porch. She looked so small curled in on herself on the seat of the chair and was crying, cheeks red and covered with tracks. “Oh baby.” Zelda’s heart finally broke, she hated seeing her daughter like that especially when she caused it. This made Zelda hurt even more. Vida did not resist as Zelda picked her up and pressed her close, cradling her to her chest. Zelda cried along with her daughter, they were both hurt and the only place that hurt could go was out. “I know I keep letting you down but we will go, I’ll get the tickets for next Saturday, promise.” Vida lifted her head, her eyes were as red as her face and a stray tear escaped which Zelda whipped away with a soft brush of her knuckle. “Okay?”

“Okay.” Vida gave her a small smile, it was enough to mend her heart.

“Let’s go back inside.” Vida just hummed and placed her head back on her mother’s shoulder as Zelda carried her back into the house.

It shaped up to be a great afternoon. The sun was shining in a cloudless blue sky and the temperature remained in the high sixties. It ticked Zelda off that she had to waste it, rather than properly enjoy it with her daughter.

After breakfast, Zelda got ready in a flowing red sundress and dressed Vida in a t-shirt and skirt. They along with Hilda and Sabrina, left. Hilda was working and Sabrina was meeting her friends at the game, which was why Vida was coming. Zelda didn’t trust Ambrose not after he let Sabrina, who was two at the time, cut out several chunks of her own hair with kitchen shears. He had grown since then, but Zelda worried less if Vida was with her. With advice from Sabrina, Zelda parked the car near the bookshop where Hilda worked. When they arrived at the school, the lots, even the faculty parking, was full. There was a huge crowd leading to the stadium, and there were even more people when they got inside. When she spotted her friends, Sabrina went off with them. Zelda went to the starting end zone for Baxter High where her fellow staff members were conjugating. That part of the field was the divider between the football field and the baseball diamond, so there was plenty of room to walk around. Some of the cafeteria tables had been brought out for extra seating.

“Mrs. Spellman!” It was Mr. Hawthorne, he was dressed in his usual suit, which explained why his face was flushed with sweat. “Glad you could join us.” Like I had a choice said the voice in Zelda’s head. Hilda called it her ‘bitch voice’, and there was a time and a place for it. This was, unfortunately, not one of them. “Who’s this?” He looked down at her daughter. Vida had moved to hide behind her, she didn’t like strangers leering at her.

“This is my daughter Vida. Vida this is my boss Mr. Hawthorne.” Zelda didn’t expect her daughter to reply, but it would be a sort of comfort to her daughter to know why someone was speaking to them.

“Oh! I didn’t know that you had a daughter.” The look on Mr. Hawthorne’s face… Zelda might of imagined it, but it looked dejected. Zelda didn’t know why he would feel that way, especially not because of her daughter. “Well, have a seat anywhere you like. The game is going to start soon.” Mr. Hawthorne gave her a small smile and turned in the direction of the field. Zelda looked around for a spot that wasn’t too crowded, but still had some protection from the sun. She remembered to place sunscreen on herself and Vida, but she didn’t want to tempt fate. There was a tree on a slight swell of a hill that was the perfect distance from the field. In her tote bag, Zelda packed a blanket, which she laid on the ground in the shade. Zelda sat with her back pressed against the tree trunk while Vida, after she was done running around, sprawled laying on her back. When they were hungry they had the sandwiches that Hilda quickly prepared for them, and water from the water bottle that Zelda fixed up before leaving home.

“Well you certainly have the right idea.”

“Ms. Wardwell.” Mary Wardwell looked stunning. The history teacher pulled off the white t-shirt with jeans exceptionally well and the sun made the highlights in her hair shine. Ms. Wardwell’s makeup was light but her lips were still their signature red color. “How are you enjoying the game?”

“Do you even need to ask?”

“No, but it’s polite.”

“How true.” Vida, who was reading one of her Madeline books, looked at Ms. Wardwell but didn’t show the same fear as she did with Hawthorne. “And who might you be?” Ms. Wardwell bent down so that she was at eye level with the small girl.

“V-Vida?”

“Are you sure about that?” Zelda smiled as her daughter puffed out her cheeks at Ms. Wardwell’s teasing smile.

“Yes. My name is Vida Spellman.”

“Well nice to meet you Vida Spellman, I’m Mary Wardwell.” Ms. Wardwell held out her hand to the small girl, the child’s hand barely covered her palm. “Would you mind if I joined you?” Vida looked at her mother, Zelda smiled and gently nodded.

“Yes!” Zelda bit her lip to stifle a laugh. Her daughter didn’t understand the way that Mary asked she was supposed to say no, but Ms. Wardwell smiled all the same and joined them on the blanket. Through the rest of the first half of the game, Ms. Wardwell nodded along as Vida rambled on about Madeline and her adventures. Vida had read the book so many times that she could read them all by herself even though it was in French. During half time Zelda left to go to the bathroom, she asked Vida to come along with her but her daughter didn’t want to go.

“I don’t mind watching her Zelda. You go, we’ll still be here when you get back.” Zelda wanted to protest. She didn’t know the first thing about Ms. Wardwell, nothing personal that would tell her to trust this woman with the most important thing in her life. But Vida looked content so Zelda agreed. On her way back Mr. Hawthorne spotted her and he waved her over to where he was standing.

“Mrs. Spellman, how are you enjoying the game? Can you believe that we’re  about to win against Riverdale? They’re our biggest rivals in the division.”

“Oh really?”

“Indeed.” Hawthorne then launched into a ten minute spiel on the history of Greendale’s rivalry with Riverdale. It sounded more like a slaughter to Zelda, Greendale hasn’t one a single game against the other school in almost three years.

“I’m sorry Mr. Hawthorne.” Mr. Hawthorne stopped mid sentence. He looked like a gulping fish before closing his mouth. “But I have to cut this short. My daughter is waiting for me.”

“Yes. Of course. Your daughter. How old is she?”

“She’s four.” Zelda tensed. She didn’t like talking about her personal life, especially when it concerned her daughter.

“And how long have you and your husband been married?”

“I don’t believe I ever mentioned having a husband. I’m not married.”

“Oh- I just- with the- and…” Mr. Hawthorne’s face went even more red than it was before, and he walked away still stuttering.

When Zelda returned, she found that Vida had made herself at home in Mary’s lap. She was reading aloud from her book, in perfect pronunciation that made Zelda flush with pride. Mary was nodding along, occasionally parroting some of the words. She looked up at Zelda and winked. Zelda took her old spot next to the tree but placed herself an inch closer to Mary, inhaling that subtle perfume, it smelt even more wonderful in the late summer air. And while she will deny it, Zelda dozed off, her head resting on Mary Wardwell’s shoulder. Mary didn’t seem to mind one bit.

Greendale ended up losing the game in the last quarter. After half time Greendale gave up a touchdown with a conversion and a field goal. It was almost five when Zelda and Mary folded up the blanket. They left through the cafeteria, it got them around the heavy crowd. While fall was still a few weeks away, the sun was going down earlier, it hung low and bright orange.

“Where are we going now Mommy?”

“Well, I was thinking we get chicken fingers and perhaps milkshakes.” Zelda smiled at the bright look on her daughter’s face. While Vida seemed to let go of her sadness about the zoo, Zelda didn’t forget. And Vida behaved herself so well at the game.

“Can Mary come!?” While Zelda held Vida’s left hand, half way into town Vida took her free hand and placed it into Marry’s. Hence why Ms. Wardwell was still walking with them.

“Why don’t you ask Mary if she’d like to join us?”

“Mary, would you join us for chicken fingers and milkshakes?”

“I would love to!” The squeal that left Vida was deafening but the smile was worth it. It was the happiest that Zelda had seen her in a long time. It was also how the three of them ended up sharing a corner booth at Hilda’s work. Hilda supplied them with a large platter of chicken fingers and milkshakes for Vida and, to Zelda’s surprise, Mary. Zelda had hot tea with honey and a splash of milk. Vida’s favorite milkshake was strawberry mint, while Mary stuck with an old classic, vanilla.

“I’ll be back.” Vida, who was in the curve of the booth between Zelda and Mary, ducked under the table to come out the other side.

“Where are you going baby?”

“I’m going to find Aunt Hilda so she can take me to the bathroom.” Zelda nodded and watched until Vida found Hilda.

That left her, Mary, and a half eaten platter of chicken fingers. Zelda twirled a french fry between her fingertips and looked anywhere but at Mary Wardwell. Eventually she was forced to look at the teacher because there was only so much of the decor she could stomach. Mary caught her looking, and they locked eyes over Mary’s milkshake glass. Mary’s smirk and the lipstick imprint on her straw caused a slight flush of Zelda's cheeks.

“You have one amazing daughter Zelda.”

“Thank you.” Zelda’s voice became soft, almost a whisper. “Some days I just hope that I’m doing it right.” Vida was not the first child Zelda had raised. She and Hilda have brought up Sabrina since she was a babe. And Zelda went through the ‘what ifs’, and the worrying, but when Vida came she brought all that back. All of Zelda’s fears and concerns played in her mind, making her second guess every decision when it came to Vida. But her love for her daughter, her determination to be the best mother possible, kept her grounded. It allowed her to enjoy those small moments.

“Well, from where I’m sitting.” There was a squeak of leather as Mary slid over to Zelda. “You’re doing a fantastic job.”

Zelda huffed and summoned all her willpower to not cry in front of Mary. Her dignity wouldn’t survive. Try as she might a tear fought through, it slid halfway down her cheek before it was brushed away by a gentle knuckle.

“I’m glad your cheek is looking better.”

“Completely healed.” Zelda replied with a weak smile.

Mary nodded, her hair slightly brushed Zelda’s face. She then moved back to her side of the booth like it was nothing the way she comforted Zelda in the middle of the bookshop. Mary’s smile had changed, it wasn’t its usual smirk, it was softer. Vida came back with Hilda, who wasn’t dressed in her usual Frankenstein dress, but rather in her regular everyday clothes.

“I found Aunt Hilda!”

“I see that baby.” Zelda smiled and got out of the booth. Vida crawled back in, scooting as close to Mary as possible without being on top of the teacher. Mary didn’t mind, she playfully nudged the little girl causing her to giggle. Hilda sat next to Zelda, letting out a small groan.

“I just need five minutes.” Hilda picked up the chicken tender that Zelda half finished, not caring that it went cold. She ate it in two quick bites.

“Tough day?”

“Long.” Hilda squeaked and dropped the chicken tender that she was taking from the basket. “Dear lord, where are my manners? Hi, I’m Hilda Spellman. Let me guess, Ms. Wardwell?”

“The one and only. My, I must be lucky meeting two Spellmans in one day.”

“Aunt Hilda, Mary’s my new friend!”

“That’s great love. What did you do today? How was the game?” Vida led the conversation when she wasn’t munching on a chicken tender or taking sips of her milkshake. When the basket ran empty, Hilda got out of booth and stretched with a groan.

“Ready to go?” They left the table, Zelda holding one of Vida’s hands, Hilda grabbing the other. Mary walked next to Zelda, admiring the small family scene. “Would you like a ride home Ms. Wardwell?”

“Please call me Mary, Hilda, and no I think I’ll walk. It’s a lovely night after all.”

“Are you sure?”

“I am. I’ll be fine but I thank you for the concern Zelda.” Mary waited on the corner as the Spellmans got into Zelda’s car. Zelda saw her in the driver's side mirror before Mary completely disappeared in the blackness of the night.

The car ride home was filled with Vida’s soft snoring. Hilda turned the radio on but kept the volume down so that it was a low hum. Zelda focused on the woods. The temperature had cooled when the sun went down but the sky was void of cloud, filling the night with stars. Mary was right, it was a beautiful night.

[luci-in-trenchcoats]

Broken Like Me (Part 14) - Christmas

Summary: The reader spends Christmas with the Winchesters...

Masterlist

Pairing: Model!Dean x reader

Word Count: 1,700ish

Warnings: language

Christmas Eve

“We’re here. Again,” called out Dean when you stepped inside his parents house after the third trip back to his place. “All presents and bags accounted for. If I lost anyone, I blame Michael.”

“How many cousins are there?” asked Michael, poking his head around a corner, eating one of the cookies you’d made over the weekend.

“Ten,” said Dean. “Two little ones.”

“Well we got the two little ones. Everyone else can fend for themselves,” said Michael, grabbing one of the bags you had. “Nice job on the cookies by the way. Uncle Bobby’s had like fifteen so far.”

“I have not ya idjit,” said Bobby, slapping Michael on the back of the head. “Go help your mom.”

“With what?” asked Michael.

“I don’t know. Get,” said Bobby, Michael holding up his hands as he left. “You two are supposed to set the table.”

“What are you doing?” asked Dean, cocking his head.

“Supervising,” said Bobby, taking a sip of beer and heading into the family room.

“I like him,” you said with a laugh.

“He grows on you,” said Dean. “Totally covered for me when I snuck out once.”

“Really?” you said.

“Yeah. I mean, I was totally forced to work at his salvage yard for an entire summer with no days off or breaks so he wouldn’t tell my parents but eh, I’m glad he did it,” said Dean.

“Oh sweetie,” said Mary, coming down the hall giving him a hug. “We always knew. We figured that would be a better punishment than grounding you.”

Dean rolled his eyes, Mary giving you a hug as well.

“You loved that summer and you did not work the whole time, mister. You and Charlie were thick as thieves,” she said.

“Charlie was five, stuck living with Uncle Bobby. Of course I took her to the park and swimming and crap,” said Dean, turning to you. “Charlie’s actually adopted.”

“She’s always looked at Sam and Dean as more of big brothers than cousins,” said Mary. “Dean always liked cars. We thought maybe he could learn a thing or two about them.”

“I learned a whole lot that summer,” said Dean. “I’d probably be a mechanic in another life.”

“Well you didn’t sneak out again after that, did you?” asked Mary.

“Not that you know of,” said Dean with a smile. She dropped her smile and crossed her arms. “I’m kidding...maybe.”

“Some things, I do not need to know, Dean,” she said. “After you two wash up, can you help set up the table? The big meal is tomorrow night so tonight’s a bit more laid back, Y/N. We’ll do stockings and everyone can open one gift.”

“Sounds fun,” you said, Dean pulling you along to the kitchen. It didn’t take long to put together the table, Dean having you pull on your coats and boots again once you finished. You followed him outside to the street, a few snowflakes floating on the air. He shoved one hand in his coat, brushing the other against yours, lacing your fingers together. “You okay?”

“Mhm,” he said, giving you a smile. “I wanted to go for a walk was all.”

“You have a big family,” you said.

“Yeah. It gets a bit hectic,” he said. “You hear from your parents at all?”

“Just a card yesterday. I didn’t open it,” you said.

“Maybe they’re trying,” said Dean.

“I’ll look at it later,” you said, walking around a small pile of snow.

“I have to talk to you about something. It’s pretty important,” he said.

“Okay,” you said, taking a deep breath. Dean stopped you on the street, turning to face you.

“I got you something,” he said, phising a small wrapped up bundle from his coat pocket. “I want you to open it.”

You let go of his hand as you peeled the green and red paper off, laughing as you opened it up.

“You like it?” he asked.

“I love it,” you said with a laugh. Dean ripped off the tag and took the trash from you as you pulled off your gray wool hat. You put the redish orange one on, complete with small pointed black ears. “It’s a fox hat.”

“You really do look like a cute little fox,” he said, bopping your nose with a smile.

“Thank you for the new hat,” you said, Dean pecking a kiss on your cheek. “It’s nice and warm. If not a bit ironic.”

“How so?” he asked.

“Uh, not to spoil or anything but you might be getting a similar present in the not too distant future,” you said.

“Is it a wolf?” asked Dean. You shrugged, Dean nodding his head when your lips started to curl up. “I knew it. Great minds think alike. Plus it just makes sense.”

“What does?” you asked.

“Well I’m bigger than you and a whole lot scruffier,” he said. “It just makes sense I’m a wolf.”

“And I’m a fox?” you said.

“Hey, you could have picked out any animal at the zoo,” he said, bumping into your shoulder. “I knew it was my super manliness that gave you the idea.”

“Oh, yeah, that was it,” you said rolling your eyes.

“What did?” he asked.

“I don’t know. Wolves are cool but you know, soft and loyal,” you said.

“Well I just thought you look cute like a fox,” said Dean. “Plush your hair looks all floofy in a ponytail.”

“Dork,” you said, bumping your hip against his.

“You’re the dork, dork,” he said, bumping you back, wrapping an arm around your waist when he nearly tripped. “Whoops. I guess I don’t know my own strength.”

“Shut up,” you said, wrapping your arm around his, Dean chuckling when you leaned your head against his shoulder.

“Y/N,” said Dean after a few minutes. He was walking slower, the snow sticking on the ground now as you continued around the neighborhood.

“Hm?” you hummed.

“I have a confession to make. I...I sort of want to get it off my chest,” he said. His tone was different this time, definitely not another little gift ahead.

“S’okay,” you said, Dean pausing. “I promise.”

“I posted another photo of you on instagram this morning. I didn’t ask your permission,” he said.

“Dean, that’s okay. When that happened before...you know how insecure I was about my appearance. I’m still insecure about it but you know I’m trusting you with it more and more,” you said. “I think you know by now what I am and am not comfortable with you showing of me.”

“I looked a little while ago...there were some comments on it,” he said.

“Were they mean?” you asked.

“I think you should take a look,” he said. You pulled out your phone, prepared for the worst.

You smacked him on the arm, Dean laughing when you saw it only had a few likes.

“You made your instagram private, didn’t you?” you said.

“Well, just for a while,” he said. “My actual friends can see that.”

“You know...” you said, looking at the black and white picture of you in bed, your messy hair covering your forehead perfectly, giving Dean a sly and sleepy smile. “You can post that. You don’t have to make your instagram private either for my sake.”

“You sure?” he asked.

“Positive,” you said. He fiddled around on his phone for a minute, tucking it back in his pocket. “Is that what was bothering you?”

“Mostly,” he said.

“What’s the other part?” you asked.

“Overthinking stuff in my head,” he said.

“Lay it on me, buddy,” you said. Dean pursed his lips. “Boyfriend-girlfriend confidentiality.”

“I’m not overwhelming you with my family, right?” he asked. “Like as soon as the holidays are over, you aren’t going to run for the hills?”

“No. Dean. I know I had an iffy morning on Saturday but I love your family. Yes, they are sort of insane but I really do like them. They could be assholes but I’d still suffer through them for you,” you said.

“I uh, I just worry,” he said.

“I noticed. I promise. Everything between us is great, Dean.”

Christmas

“You survived your first Winchester Christmas,” said Dean, back at his place late that night. “What’d you think?”

“Well I loved my stocking full of new hats and headbands,” you said, Dean chuckling as you crawled into bed with him. “I liked my new flannel and my handy dandy new tool box. Also, thank you for not getting the pink one.”

“Well I figured that wouldn’t be the smartest move. Now you got a good sturdy box to keep your stuff in. Maybe next year I’ll teach you how to change your own oil,” he said.

“Oh yeah. It’s every girls dream gift,” you teased. “You liked your car stuff?”

“I loved it. Plus you got me my awesome new wolf hat and that classic rock book. No one went too overboard,” he said.

“Good. I know we were both a little...nervous about that,” you said. He hummed and tucked himself in closer to you, letting out a soft sigh. “Early night?”

“Yes please,” he mumbled. You turned over in bed, just enough to get the light before Dean was rolling you back to him. “Night.”

“Night, Dean.”

A/N: Read Part 15 here!

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