#it'll be ok i'll feel normal again i will see this as dramatic in a few weeks

[transfusible]

pms is crazy bro

[volfoss]

Doll faceup/doll nudity under the cut 👍 this is a big project so word heavy

Dindrane, my poor Bobobie Apollo is in for his THIRD faceup because I just couldn't figure out the vibes of what I wanted to do with him until a day or two ago. I wanted to test how I could make burn scars seem realistic on a BJD, as I wanted to give him several, along with several scars on his body and head! This was in a way, preparing for my VERY big Frankenstein doll project, as I would be blushing that full doll in different colors with pastels. The mockup on this one was definitely a bit harder and I decided to not include it here for the fact that it would be way easier to just jump into the work!

First off, I used a watercolor pencil in burgundy to sketch out where I wanted my scars and a normal pencil to sketch the burns out. There's a LOT of spots I wanted the burns so I wanted to use a lighter color pencil but they weren't showing up on the resin at all 😭

^ first coat of blush (VERY faint. He's white resin so I have to do very pale colors unless I want it to overly stand out). The outlines are kinda hard to see here but they are definitely there!

Then I saw some peachy orange pastels I had mixed up for my last faceup on Theo, and realized that would be a perfect color for under the actual 3 dimensional burns I would be making later on. So I just jumped right into it, running out and then mixing up a color that I thought was the same but turned out to be more red. I would have to add more orange/peachy tones next layer.

^ not to Bob Ross here but I had a few happy accidents with this layer! My sealant had kind of been finicky in a couple places but really just added more texture/depth to the scar sites! You can definitely see where the burns are more vividly now! I obviously still have to do the regular faceup and the rest of it but so far so good! I keep the head right by to match with the body so I can really make sure that the scar is matching from the neck to the head. I had originally wanted to do something similar with Dindrane, with a scar instead of a burn but I feel that he is really coming together like this! A lot of the areas I'm not showing (ie the back) are still blushed but I can't go TOO picture heavy or I'll have to make this a 2 part post 👍

Next layer was adding more colors to the pastels, the method I use to seal (using a sponge on sealant) gives me really interesting edges when I do this so I'm really happy with again all the happy accidents of the pastels picking up on the sponge I'm using! When I switch to the rest of the faceup, I am definitely going to get a new sponge but for right now it creates a lot more natural edges on the burns imo!

I have the head and body separate here because they're drying (shocker i forgot to take a pic before sealing lol)

Burn is pretty much at the color I want! We did run into SOME technical issues with the eyebrows as you wouldn't guess that white pencil wouldn't show up on a white resin doll but it doesn't. So i had to paint the general shape on w acrylic paint lmao. They are BARELY visible but they're pretty even for what I'm working with rn! Next up is adding a lot of the really dramatic black eye makeup that he had before and then doing small burns and scars on the body! Also blushing the lips but I also might do a lipstick, it'll really just depend on how I'm feeling when I hit it 👍 the blushing is cracking a lot less in the joints than I expected which again is very good to know for my Frankenstein doll since 99% of the joints are going to be going through a similar treatment!

My favorite hobby is being like hmm ok this is where I'm going with this faceup ^-^ -> get into it and am like hmm. Ok whole different direction. This is definitely what happened here lmao. I had been struggling to pin this guy's character down for a month and while doing the eyebrows, it hit me fully and I knew what I wanted to do with this faceup! Which was a wonderful feeling tbh! So in my horribly terrible mistake fashion, I decided to do my acrylics and pastels on the same layer as I did NOT want to wait for it to dry and my inspo leave me in the meantime. This basically means I cannot make any mistake which is scary. Do not do this etc.

Brows still BARELY visible in pics but everything else turned out perfectly. By some FUCKING miracle my god. No clue how tho. So this now just leaves the burns and the scars, the latter of which I'm putting the red paint on rn bc i am um. Impatient so so bad lol. Very happy w this faceup tho like... It's him to me and that's a really good feeling :)

Realized the dark ass pencil was in fact a pain to cover up so mixed a kind of skin color paint with a tiny bit of my blood color to get a kinda middle shade between the skin and the scar which created a nice edge which will hopefully blend a bit better when I get to the glue and texture stage!

This is while it's still drying BUT. If it looks anywhere near this good when dry I'll be THRILLED. This worked way better than I expected and I am VERY glad I did such dark pastels under bc it set a really good foundation for the textured part of the burn! It's 7 am as I'm writing this and I am so so sleepy so I postponed the arm for another day but here's how the torso is looking! I'm letting it dry overnight, as well as the head and then will see if I need to do another coat tomorrow

^ very early on as I covered all the red on the torso but this pic shows it looking pretty dry so wanted to pick this one 👍

Faceup still drying here but. I added more definition to the scars on the body by doing another layer of glue + pastel and did the same on the face. Added piercings to him and it's basically all just waiting for a ton of it to dry now 👍

^ first pic is before the second coat but just showing how it all looked dry and second pic is faceup finished minus gloss! I will be posting finished pictures later but this was a BIG project so I hit max pic limit quickly. Obviously when I did the rest of the glue, I added the arm burns and the rest of the burns on the lower arms. I'm STILL not done with this body though. I need to do a lot of burns on the legs and add tattoos on the legs as well! This is definitely a very long project lol. The tattoo stuff is definitely going to wait for later because I have no clue what I want to do with him but this entire project has been a HUGE help with doing 3 dimensional modifications like this and it's going to be insanely helpful when I work on my Frankenstein body next. A lot of the techniques I used here are ones I will also use there so it should be pretty easy! Hopefully lmao.

[what-if-nct]

Hihii! So a few things again. First, I've been spending ages to come up with a good signature thing, I ended up with 'hihii' as first word and 'ily' as last. (In case you hadn't noticed, everyone who sent an ask starting with 'hihii' and ending with a sentence with 'ily' was me lol) I'm not proud of it but still use it because I really can't come up with anything better. Second: I have a serious problem with teachers now. They try to befriend me, what the actual fuck. Like seriously, asking me about the manga I'm reading (it was haikyu!) or the music I'm listening to, or literally just talking to me out of the lessons. Okay I am probably being dramatic. I'm really introverted and don't like talking with people that are a lot older than me. Also a thing, my school only has old teachers. Some of them are pedophiles, staring at minors asses. I had that too when I was like 14 and I felt grossed out. Also when they said that ateez' music was noise in a negative way. Bro I am not going to rant on this because it'll be too long again lol. Anyways, next point. Marks backing vocals in we go up. I have a love hate relation with it, sometimes it's so cringe but sometimes we just vibing. But his rap in misfit. I'm malfunctioning. Alright it's too long I'll go lol. Ily ♡

Okay, I figured you were the same person. Sometimes I can notice when anons are the same person. Just from text tone. And with experiences like that of course you'd feel uncomfortable, it's not dramatic at all. If a teacher makes you feel uncomfortable you are not obligated to engage with them. You can be short, give one word answers, walk away. Your comfort and safety when your getting weird vibes is more important. Now I did have friendship with some teachers, I was the only one allowed to call my science teacher mommy, and I went over her house and saw her at the mall. A friend of mine even had breakfast at her house and she got us a limo for prom and we all got ready at her house. So being THAT friendly with teachers is probably not normal. My teacher was sweet though, loved her she did my nails in the middle of class and picked me up for summer school. But that's the extreme, you can just really put out that don't talk to me energy and they will back down. No yeah sometime Mark's adlibs are like........ok...I see... Or it like just feels right. Seriously, he really owned Misfit, shout-out to Sungchan Jeno and Yangyang though. Sungchan owned 90's love though. I miss hearing Sungchan rap. Please let him rap again soon. Please.

[imagines-by-a-typical-fangirl]

Californian Dream (Pt. 10 of 11)

Pairing: Billy Hargrove X Reader

Word count: 2.5 K

Summary: Being part of one of the richest families of California doesn't mean you're happy. Your life is boring, and you're surrounded by meaningless people and their meaningless talk. Even during Summer, with the break you have from college, there's nothing good going on. Nothing but the new pool guy, Billy, the most handsome man you ever saw. You were successfully avoiding him, not wanting to act like an idiot in front of the guy until Billy accepts to be your date for a fancy gala you're forced to attend. The night was going well, even better when he sneaked you out to go to the beach. But a gang of criminals breaks into the party, kidnapping the heirs to the wealthiest families, which includes you. So, for your safety, your parents want you to stay with Billy, living in his apartment until the criminals are caught. And that could take weeks, maybe even months.

Warnings: Light violence

<- Previous part (09)

Next part (11) ->

{Stranger Things Masterlist}

{Dacre Montgomery Masterlist}

×

Home

“It won't take long now,” Billy mutters, his hand holding yours are you both walk through the beach. Everyone is at the snack bar, eyes on the TV, getting all the details about the most famous gang being finally arrested. “Your father will call and you can go back home.”

“I know.” Moving a strand of hair away from your face, you look down as the ripples reach your feet. “I'll go. Spend the night there and on the next morning I'll tell them.” The plan comes up suddenly because that's the best you can give them. A last night in the house before moving out for good. “I'll tell them I'll drop out of college and look for something I really wanna study. That we're dating and I'll be living with you.”

“Are you sure about this? Because you know they won't let it go that easily.”

“I know and I don't care.” Stopping, you move to stand before him, cupping his cheeks. “I mean, you still want me to live with you, right?”

“I do.” Leaning closer, Billy kisses you, soft and slow. Wrapping your arms around his neck, you tiptoe. “And I need you to know that I won't accept the money your father said he'd give for... Sheltering you.”

“Baby, you can accept it. I don't mind.”

“I can't. Having you at my place was... It is amazing, all the money in the world wouldn't be enough to pay for what you gave me.” Biting your lip, you smile at his words, causing him to raise an eyebrow. “What?”

“You're so romantic.” In a sassy tone, you step back when his face changes, ready to run if necessary.

“Just don't tell anyone,” Billy whispers, and, in a sudden motion, he moves forward, arms around your waist, lifting you up.

“I won't!” You exclaim, laughing as he spins you around before setting you down again. “It'll be our secret.” Whispering on his ear, you giggle when a bigger wave hits your calves.

“I guess the future talk will happen sooner rather than later.” He states, pulling away before another wave soaks your skirt even more.

“Yeah... I guess so.” Clearing your throat, you blush a little to remember what he said earlier. “That, Uhm... About kids.” Wait. You shouldn't bring that up. It's way too soon, and be was probably kidding. “I mean, let's get real first. I'll drop off of college and focus on my job. I like it and maybe choose another course I like. Mmm... That's pretty much it. You?”

Billy gives you a look, shaking his head lightly. Trying to dissimulate with Billy is useless. You're an open book to him, you have been since day one. “Neil was a devil of a father. And I want to be better.” His voice gets darker at the mention of Neil. You don't know the man, but you hate him with all your strength for what he did to Billy. You hope you'll never see him face to face, or else you won't be able to keep from breaking his damn nose. “Of course I never actually thought of it before, but now... You just... You messed me up, ok? In a good way, but still, you messed me up and now I'm making plans.” Rolling his eyes dramatically, Billy sits down on the sand, and you do the same, climbing on top of him. “And that's all your fault.”

“My fault? I wasn't trying to make you fall for me.” Defending yourself, you push him down until he's lying on his back and you're lying on top of him.

“If you were trying, I'd have fallen for you when you gave me that lemonade.” He places a kiss on your nose, making you giggle. “Or even before, when I saw you walking around the house... Avoiding me.”

“What?”

“Yeah, I noticed that, princess.”

“Well, I couldn't talk to you and risk sounding like a complete idiot.” Taking both his hands, you hold them down on each side of his head, ignoring his cocky face. “And it's your fault for being so good looking.”

“Hey, hey! You two!” A yell gets your attention, and when you turn your head to see, you find Stacy and Anne. “We're watching you.”

“Creepy.” You mutter, moving off of him and back on your feet. “But guess the party isn't over yet, and honey, I want to dance.”

“What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't dance with my lady.” In a quick motion, he's back up, arms around your waist as you make your way back to the bonfire.

•••

It takes three days until your father calls you. He doesn't say much, just that the gang is arrested and it's now safe for you to go back home.

Home. That house isn't home, but you comply, not wanting to make them sad or anything. So it's after lunch when Billy is driving you there, not a single thing with you. You didn't even bother to bring a bag to fake it. It'll be only one night, and then you'll sit and talk to them.

When you're moving through the gates, the same feeling you once had comes back. You feel suffocated, surrounded by all the things you don't care about. There will be a few people over, and they'll get into those meaningless conversations again, and they'll be looking at you, judging you. They'll talk about your clothes. They're normal, not insanely expensive. No... Your mother will make you go upstairs and change immediately. The lump in your throat only surrenders a bit when you feel Billy's hand on your thigh.

“You'll alright?”

“Yeah, just... Thinking about tomorrow. I'll talk to them, get my car, and when you're back from work, I'll be there.” That's your goal. That's what you're so damn excited for. Tomorrow evening, which will be exactly like the evenings you've been having for months. And you love every single one of them.

“I can't wait.” He gives you a glance and smiles. Your smile. The one that's not cocky and doesn't have a hidden meaning behind it. Not a sassy one. Just a bright, beautiful, genuine smile, that lights up his whole face.

The moment he stops the car by the front door, you get separated. You knew this would happen, so you're prepared. After hugs, tears, and welcomes from both your parents and the sea of people here, your mother guides you upstairs, making you change into a white dress with sunflowers. You don't complain, you just do as she says. For the last time.

Back downstairs, you see Billy and your father talking by the door. He tries to hand Billy a piece of paper, a paycheck probably, but Billy refuses. After a while, Billy leaves, but not before glancing at you. You know it's only for a short period, but you feel like part of your heart is going with him.

“(Y/N), honey?” Your mother calls. “Won't you answer Mrs. Vanner?”

“Oh, yes...” Shaking your head lightly, you try to focus on... Whatever they're talking about. “Sorry, what was it again?”

“I'm sure you're happy to be back home after so long having to live in such a small space.” Mrs. Vanner says, her fake, wide smile making it really hard not to roll your eyes.

Of course they know where you were now. Mother had to tell them, just for the sake of the gossip. “How can you possibly know the size of Billy's apartment?” You snap, not really trying to keep the sweet tone.

“Oh, please. Mr. Hargrove is the man who washes my son's car. How big can his place be.” She sounds so gentle, so plastic.

You should keep your mouth shut. You should play along, keep up the act until tomorrow morning, just until tomorrow morning. But you can't. You lost the ability to fake it. “Yeah. It is small. Your ego wouldn't fit in it.”

“(Y/N)!” Your mother exclaims, almost choking on her drink. “Where are your manners?”

“That's alright. Living with someone from a different class may have her used to different kinds of behavior.” Mrs. Vanner snaps, in an apologetic tone.

“Something we can agree on!” You exclaim, giving her a big smile. “That's a first.”

“(Y/N), that's enough.”

“I agree with that too.” Putting your drink down, you stand up from the armchair. “I'll head upstairs and rest for a bit.” Without saying anything else, you walk away, the high heels echoing through the empty spaces. But you stop in the middle of the stairs to kick them away before running to your bedroom.

But of course, there's a hell of a dinner. And, of course, you have to be there, nodding and smiling, pretending to pay attention to whatever they're saying. With your leg bouncing under the table, you play with your fancy food. Your mind floats back home. To the apartment. Billy is probably home already, eating what's left of the lasagna you made together yesterday. That lasagna is so much better than this boeuf bourguignon you're being forced to eat.

“Are you excited to go back to college, (Y/N)?” Mr. Eleanor asks, and you silently nod. “I bet you'll be an amazing lawyer just like your father over there.”

“Yeah.” Until they find you a rich husband and you have to abandon your career to turn into a housewife, with nothing to do but to administrate the house and spend rivers of money on useless things.

The dinner goes on for endless hours, and the small get together after has you exhausted. When you excuse yourself, getting to your bedroom, you fill up your tub and spend an hour or two there, trying to relax in a house that doesn't feel like yours anymore. It never did, but now, that feeling is amplified since you found a place you feel at home.

By the time you're in your pajamas, lying on the bed, it's way past midnight. The chattering died and everyone left, but still, you can't sleep. Kicking the sheets away, you get to your feet, walking to the balcony and breathing in the night air when you push the slide door opened. Billy fixed your railing. He was here before you even exchanged a single word with him. And you wish he was here now. With you. You didn't know exactly why you couldn't sleep, but now you do. Billy is always holding you, one way or another, and hugging the pillow doesn't compare. Is it what love is? Losing the capacity of falling asleep away from the person you love? Stepping forward, you let your fingers touch the cold metal, a smile coming to your lips.

California never felt like home. Until you found Billy.

Giving your huge garden a look, taking in the green grass and threes under the low lights, eyes wandering through its extension, you smile. And, in the blink of an eye, you know what to do.

The car keys are in the same place you left them, in a small vase on your dresser. Taking them, you put on the first pair of flats you find, having the decency of trying not to make too much noise on your way out. But you don't care, not anymore. On your way downstairs, you halt on the last step when you see Amelia, in her nightgown, coming from the kitchen with a mug in her hands. She's a little startled and confused, but her expression softens after a while.

“Don't try to stop me.” You say in a low voice.

“Are you going to be with Billy?” She asks, but by the look on her face, she already knows the answer. Amelie knows you too well, a lot better than your parents.

“Yes. I love him.” It comes out naturally, and it gives you a sense of freedom you can't describe. Saying it, here, is amazing.

“Then go, bunny.” Amelia smiles, and you rush to give her a tight hug before making your way to the garage, straight into your pink Cadillac.

You never enjoyed driving as much as you do now that you're going somewhere you wanna be. The streets are only half empty, and you decide to put the top down to feel the night air on your face, only to put it up again when you reach the parking lot. There are a few spaces, thank God, and you park on the first one you find, running up to Billy's apartment, panting after the six sets of stairs leading to the third floor.

But it doesn't matter. You're at his door, and it doesn't matter. You have the key, but the whole keychain is inside, so you have no choice but to knock a few times.

And when the door is open, a very sleepy Billy seems all confused, as if he just saw a ghost. “(Y/N)?”

“I couldn't sleep.” You simply say, keeping your voice as low as you can despite still trying to catch your breath.

His confusion fades away, and a smile takes over. “Me neither.” Stepping forward, Billy wraps an arm around your waist, pulling you inside with him before pushing the door close and crashing his lips on yours.

This was the right decision, as crazy as it seems. When Billy kisses you, you know that everything you did that led to this moment was right. He's pulling you to the bedroom when the phone rings. The damn thing has the bad habit of interrupting you.

“Let me–”

“No. I know who it is.” Cutting him off, you pull away, walking over the phone. You don't think much before answering it. “Hi, dad.”

“Wha– (Y/N)?” He stutters, and your mother says something on the back about her being right. “What the hell are you doing there? Your mother went to your room and you were gone, she almost had a heart attack!”

“I'm sorry. I'm at Billy's.”

“Why in the hell are you there? Get your ass back home now.”

“No.” You state, crossing your arms.

“What do you mean by ‘no’?” He scoffs. “What do you think you're doing?”

“Father, I'm an adult and I know exactly what I'm doing.” Taking a deep breath, you run a hand through your hair. “We have a lot to talk about, and I'll explain everything, I promise. Meet me tomorrow in your favorite restaurant at noon.”

“What? I won't–”

“If you want to know what's going on and why I came back here, you'll go. Tell mother to go as well. Have a good night.” Without allowing him to say anything else, you hang up. Turning to look at Billy, you sigh. “Call in sick tomorrow, because I'll need you with me.”

“I have a couple of days off I can use, don't worry.” He comes closer, pulling you into a tight hug. “I'll be right there with you.”

“They'll say all kinds of mean things, you know that, right?”

“I don't care.”

×

@multific @dontxfearxthereaper @nope-thanks @nikkixostan @shinydixon @clockworkballerina @infinitelycharmed23 @lilred91

[sienna-writes]

Butterfly Blood // update 1

woo! first writing update on this WIP so far! (Finally!!). Since I don't want to include huge spoilers on this book, as I might one day end up publishing (who knows), I will be splitting these posts into chatting about my process, character development, edits etc. and then include extracts that aren't too spoilery! I think it'll be okay for the first sections of the book, especially as alot of the first few chapters is character building and imagery to set the scene, tone and atmosphere.

Also, the working title of "Bleeding Out" that I HATED with a PASSION is finally gone! My novel is now called Butterfly Blood based on a excerpt way in the future of the story. (Which I'm very excited to share c: )

I wrote the prologue after I’d finished the first chapter, to introduce the book and it’s mystery in a more captivating way than it had initially been introduced.

Frog finds himself underground in the middle of a forest with no knowledge of his surrounds, his past, or his identity. He clings to one certainty, that he is and was raised by frogs. (This book is a bit wack, just roll with it.)

As he crawls into the middle of the road, a truck starts hurtling toward him and careens off the road last minute. The driver drops down and searches for for Frog, but cannot find anyone.

There is no blood, no screaming, no mangled man wailing on the ground. Reluctantly, the driver withdraws from the dark and locks himself in the enclosed cabin of his truck, steadying his breathing.

As the exhaust sputters to life again, and tires tug against the initial friction of the gravel, the disappearance twists the driver’s thoughts.

His passenger clings with sticky tree frog palms to the trucks stomach; well-oiled organs huffing heat and fumes onto his face.

So this book actually began with a very horribly written chapter. The structure was a mess and for some reason I kept bombarding the reader with information about my main character Rowan and really pushing forward the idea that she’s an energetic person... Which was stiff and just poor writing, honestly. (Also, I've changed my ideas since about how I want to characterise her.) But out of the 3000 word (approx) start, there were salvageable aspects, and those went into the first chapter along with a lot more fleshing out of the scenes, setting and character. I also finally decided on a tense and perspective after being super inconsistent with it and unable to make my mind up.

But! We got there in the end, I just thought I’d share my struggle since writing is not a perfect process and there is a lot of rearranging, and sometimes it feels like pulling teeth.

The premise of this chapter is to set the scene of Blackerwick (a fictional, dreary british seaside town), introduce Rowan (our main character), and the complex relationship with her father, who has become insular over the past month before the story starts.

—excerpts;

A little world building and set up!

Everything about the sleepy town Rowan’s family had moved to is soaked in a distinct achromatic despondency. Inland residents slumped and slogged in their routines, never caring to change them, almost afraid of living. It had confused Rowan at first when she’d come here from Ireland at fourteen, how much the dull town contrasted its landscape. It seemed undeserving of such beauty; a tall mountain range to the left of Blackerwick, and beyond it a city; wide stretches of moors headed toward the forests, and beyond the forests—the ocean. It was as if all the world’s natural beauties had congregated here millions of years ago as the earth slid into place, waiting for settlers to enjoy it. They didn’t even seem to notice.

    Fading out of view behind her, a mangle of dark rooftops mesh amongst each other, a severe contrast to the pallidly painted house fronts, and chimneys slice into the sky, puffing endlessly on their pipes.

Hot air is exhaled from the horizon, tugging striking, unruly orange hair from her heavy ponytail as it whistles past her face. She closes her eyes peacefully against the feverish winds, her clothes buffeting and pounding as if fighting it off. Grinning, she leans toward the sea, trusting its breath to hold her weight.

In the course of this chapter Rowan has had an altercation with her teacher and gotten a detention, pushed through the forests toward the beach, and now is returning home. She rouses her dad’s attention by feigning a headache, because he doesn’t bother with her unless he sees she is in pain etc. Now for some quality mild gore!

    Turning, she leans in to hug him when she realises there’s blood gushing from her nose.

    “Oh shit! Shit, shit, shit! Not again!” Rowan scoops shaking hands to her nose, tacky blood spilling over her fingertips. “Dad, Dad!”

    He is already on it, tipping her head back into his cupped palm, holding tissues tightly to her nose. She wheezes and sputters, the world spinning as she lurches toward the sink, clinging to the draining board to keep her balance. Everything red, the four walls of the kitchen, red. Her blurring vision, red. Everything bleeding like her gums beneath grinding teeth as she bites down on the impulse to say something. She wants to scream, or throw up, head swimming as her world tilts upside down. Her skull rests in her father’s strong palm, a fleshy safety net.

Wash your mouth out with soap, ma’am. 

I was considering having Rowan not swear around her father, but her mother is pretty aggressive and her dad (Karmen) swears regularly, so it doesn’t seem too outrageous anymore. (I could never, my mum would flip).

When the bleeding slows finally, and her chin closes in on her neck again she notices her father’s shirt is covered with dried, grubby gore. It looks like he is bleeding out from a deep gash notched into his chest. His heart clawed savagely from its dwelling. 

Karmen being a worried dad is best dad;

     “You said not again.” He says finally, as she gathers herself, filling glass after glass with water and gulping hungrily, throat tilted toward the sky.

    “I’ve been getting more than usual recently.” She replies nonchalantly.

    “That’s shouldn’t be normal.” He says.

     Rowan shrugs, “I’ve always been prone to bleeding and bruising.” As if to defend herself or prove her case, she pulls down her jeans slightly, revealing a black contusion on her hip. It fades into swarthy purple and blue; a gradient discolouring her pale freckled skin; a deep ink blot, as if the flesh had been punctured with a fountain pen.

    Her dad hisses sharply. “How did you do that? I told you not to go into those woods anymore!”

Ok! Enough blood! I really made nosebleeds overly dramatic lol.

Anywho!

the first 2000 ish words of this chapter follow Frog (he's later named Mint), and let me tell you, his perspective came so naturally, and was such an interesting world view to write in. I'm not saying i like him, but I enjoy writing him for sure.

This chapter was initially 2100 words and I intended it to be a brief introduction of mint, but I merged it with the next one because I thought they joined together nicely. The other aspects of this chapter introduce more of the friend group (honestly the only relevent characters within this group are Damian and Jamie, the rest are low-key assholes) and set up later events.

—excerpts;

Mint is wandering in the forest, and hunting.

He slinks into step with the deer as it rises, shaking his head as it shakes its placid mane. Serenity slices the air in two.

     Frog strikes.

    The blade almost glitters in the air as it shoots toward the limpid animal’s vulnerable throat, veins pulsing beneath frosty, translucent fur. Incorporeal beast. A surreptitious streak in the night, headfirst, embedding with a gurgle and a coarse, barbaric scream. Deer’s aren't meant to sound like this. Like a human, like something capable of feeling and hurting. Frog wriggles the blade out of its fleshy sheath and exhales into a whistle. He looks gleefully at the drowned grass damp with blood. Gushing over his squirming toes.

      Its crown tumbles to the soil, antlers embedding deep into the foliage at Frogs feet. He sits beside Stag on the floor laden with pine needles--wreathing its glazed face like christ’s crown-- and strokes the un-bloodied fur of its forehead, holding its unblinking, waxy glare. Frog is the victor.

Frog/Mint is hunting! He kills a stag! Then he brutally dissects it;

      Peeling away at the thick membrane enshrouding Stag's skull, with tender interest, Frog carves muscle and fat from its head, pellucid and opaline, dropping the pale crumbs of carcass onto the ground. The deer’s dense ghost is not yet cold in his crimson tinted hands. 

Rowan feeling numb, because oh boy us writers like to see our characters in pain;

The water is scalding. Rowan breaks out in goose bumps. Catching her reflection in the rippling bathwater she almost doesn’t recognise herself. Flushed, pale cheeks. All sharp edges, cheekbones slicing beneath the eyes, graceful slanting nose scooping down into a slight point. Her lips protrude from her face, full and large, accommodating an easy smile. Rowan pulls her downturned lips into a small grin. The constructed happiness blurs in the water. Holding her breath, she leans into the baths hot grip, filling with her fiery hair.

    The silence smudges in her ears.

I also wrote some banter-y dialogues but I think I'll share them another time... After they've been edited.... a heck ton... There's an over exaggerated smoking description in this chap too but I've shared that before heh :)

I hope you enjoyed this LONG overdue chapter update! So far there are 7 chapters, so I have a lot of updating to catch up on! :)

I don’t have a tag list at the moment, but if you’re interested in this wip and want to be on it, then please send me an ask or a comment and I’ll add you :)

Tag list, ask to be added or removed;

@alicewestwater @elaz-ivero @coffeeandcalligraphy @hanwatchingmovies @sirfitzroys @chloeswords @nev-953

[jinxthequeergirl]

149 days & The Grieving Stage

Steve harrington x hopper!reader

Summary: things hurt but luckily you have people to help.

Song choice: Ease my mind by Ben platt

Warning: swearing/ angst

I also kinda wanted to make this a part of "unseen things" but I'm obviously probably not gonna work on that cause it sucked but enjoy this anyways

~~~~~

You and El both tumbled out of the car as quickly as you could and raced to your friends.

You where especially excited to see Steve again. He wrapped you in a hug and supn you around. "Hey dingus, don't hog her!" you grinned pulling away to met robin. "You've been keeping an eye on him?" you mumbled into her hair, you could feel her chuckle as he pulled you away holding you out at arms reach.

"There isn't really much to keep an eye on...you know he's crazy about you, plus he's awful at the flirting thing." You both laughed and could feel Steve come up beside you taking you from her grasp.

"Be careful steve, she's miss steal your girl." you joked leaning into him. He simply rolled his eyes and wrapped his arms around you.

"Watch where you put your hands on my daughter, Harrington!" you both turned and spotted hopper pull up in his car.

"Holy shit..." you breathed you freed yourself from Steve's hold and watched el run towards him. Tears welled in your eyes as you watched them hug.

And from the back of your head you instantly remembered everything you where trying so hard to forget About that night. The overall fear and pain from that night, waiting in the ambulance with El and steve, waiting and hoping that by any sort of mirical it would be over and hopper and Joyce would make there way back to so everything would be normal.

But instead you got Joyce who gave you and your sister both a look from over wills shoulder that took all that hope and crushed it.

And now here he was. That stupid patterned shirt he insisted on calling "cutting edge", a huge smile, one you had to admit you hadn't seen in a while. And all you could do was stand there and stare at him. El pulled away looking back at you with the same excited grin and moved away a little making room for you.

And within an instatant you went racing towards him collapsing in his arms, so much so he stumbled a bit upon catching you in his arms before falling to your knees. You instantly felt your self sob into his shoulder murrmering things that you didn't even understand. You chocked out more tears as his hold on you tightened a little, finding hard to keep any sort of breath do your wheezing.

"Kid, kid, it's ok, everything is fine, deep breaths." You pulled your head from his shoulder and looked at him. He cupped your face in his hand rubing away tears with his thumb. "I...I...though...thought...thought You where...where..." you couldn't even mutter out the last sours before you coughed out another cry. He only nodded in response giving you a sympathetic look.

"I know...it's ok...it's all over now..." you wrapped your arms around him again. "Its all over...you can live life again." You nodded into his shoulder blinking away tears until you finally shut your eyes and relaxing in his hold.

You blinked your eyes again suddenly feeling the loss of warmth around you, you opened your eyes full taking in everthing around you and sighing lightly.

The moonlight filled your new room do to not owning any curtains yet. Or maybe Joyce had some and they hadn't been unpacked yet. Your bed was pushed up against one of the wall's with a small night stand that held a few things, a dresser was pushed against the opposite wall, really it wasn't much yet. You stared at the ceiling taking note of the glow in the dark stars the previous owner of the room had left.

Do to the moon light they wheren't doing much, but they still kept your mind off of what had just happened. Until finally they didn't and you broke.

You let a real sob wrack through your body and tears spill as you did your hardest to bite your lip and keep quiet making sure not to wake the other four members in the house.

You brought your fists to your eyes and held them there until explostions of color where the only thing you saw behind your eye lids, you could feel the mattress beneath you along with your cheeks and chin become soked as tears scilently continued to fall.

After what had felt like hours of tossing and turning in bed, crying off and on again. You finally sat up on the edge taking one of the two blankets on your bed and wrapping yourself up in it before crossing the room to the dresser.

Your eyes hurt and your feet where now cold from the wooden floor under you. You grabbed the phone from onto of it ignoring the picture frame you had purposefully facing down and sat in the little book in your window, you cracked it open inorder to obtain fresh air and started dialing the number.

You sat there for a few moments letting it ring, and ring, and ring, you stared out the window into the moonlit backyard.

Joyce told you when you moved in that maybe the three of you girls could go to the local garden center and pick out a few plants and stuff to start a garden back there.

You where suddenly yanked from the thought as a clearly exhausted voice filled your ear. "Hello?"

You took a shaky breath and turned from the window to look down at the phone cord. "Hey Harrington..." you finally breathed.

"Y/n? Are you ok? What happened?" you could hear the sleep in his voice vanish with every question along with the shuffle of bedsheets. "I..." you stopped to clear your throat. "I'm just holding you to that promise you made before we left...it's not to late is it?"

Before you moved steve made the promise that no matter the time, the issue, the want he would answer the phone and be there for you.

That was the same day you missed your chance to tell him you loved him. And that you had since God knows when. Instead you cried barrelly able to get a "I'll miss you." out.

You reached over to your night stand and grabbed the alarm clock to check the time in the light. 1:40.

You mentally cursed yourself as you set it back down and leaned back. "No not at all what's up?"

"Just...just a nightmare..." You combed a finger through your hair and sighed. "I'm sorry...was it about-"

"No it..it was different this time..."

He humme. "Care to talk about it?"

"I..it's late I just wanted a little comfo-"

"No, no, hey I'm up now so you have to tell me." you chuckled and took a breath.

"Y/n?" you licked your lips before answering. "I saw...him..."

"Who?"

"My...my dad." you croaked looking back out the window.

"Shit...y/n I'm so sorry...I..." he trailed off attempting to find the words to comfort you. You only laughed when you realised it. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing...nothing. Just you always where just the worst at these kinda things."

He gasped a little and you could only imagine him placing a hand over his heart dramatically. "Wow no matter how far away you still manage to hurt me y/n." You laughed again.

"It's times like these I wonder-"

"Why the hell I'm your friend?" you asked do ishing his scentence.

"Yea." he replied. Steve sat at the edge of his bed, phone tucked between his shoulder and ear all the while he held a photo he stole from your photo album.

His heart swelled a little just looking at it. You where happy, happier than you have been lately. And he looked at you in that picture with the same goofy grin he was wearing now.

"Steve?" he jumped at the voice instantly putting the photo down. "Did you fall asleep over there?"

He lied back down. "No...not at all...I wouldn't dream of it."

You smiled softly. "How are the kids?...and robin?.." you asked.

"The little shit's are fine...they miss the three of you a hell of a lot, speaking of which you should be gettinging something in the mail soon."

"Oh?"

"Yea...you've been gone a month and we decided to wip something up for you guys."

"What is it? You asked curiously."

"Can't say...don't wanna spoil the surprise."

"Right I forgot Mr. Steve "the surprise king" Harrington."

He rolled his eyes but mustered a smile. "Whatever."

There was a beat of scilents Before you spoke again. "I miss you Steve..."

"Hey, I miss you too....but you'll be here for Christmas soon enough."

"Steve that's so long..."

"No...149 days to be exact...it'll fly by and before you know it you'll be back in Hawkins."

"You've been counting?"

"Of course I have." you hummed and again went quiet for a moment.

"Listen there's something...something I've been meaning to tell you.."

"Oh yea?" you opened your mouth but the words refused to come out.

How difficult was it to just say it? Why no matter what the words never fully formed on your tounge. You sighed. "You know what never mind...it can wait.."

"How long?" he asked clearly anxious. "149 days to be exact...it's better if i tell you then."

"Oh c'mon at least give me a hint?" You shook your head with a smile. "No...I wouldn't wanna spoil the surprise." you joked. He laughed making your heart jump." just swear to not find someone to replace me within that time frame."

"I swear. No one would even come close to you." You smiled softly. "Uh listen thanks for taking my mind off of things....you should probably get some sleep....I promise to call in the morning if anything happens."

"Just call no matter what."

"Ok...goodnight shit head."

"Night loser."

You hung up the phone and sat there for a while. Letting things pan over in your head.

Your mind was finally off of your dad for a little bit. And you though about how you said you would tell him at Christmas and wondered of you even meant that, you wondered if he really meant the last thing he said about not finding anyone else.

"Knock knock..." you looked over to your door and found Joyce peeking in.

"Hey...what are you doing up?" you asked turning so your feet touched the cold floor.

"I could ask you the same...another nightmare?"

"Yea...something like that.." she let her self in shutting the door and leaned against the dresser. "How do you not...not have nightmares?...I mean you where right there..."

"Well I never said I didn't..." She said picking up the picture frame and looking at it.

"How do you keep it together then?"

She glanced at you but kept her eyes on the picture for a moment. "Someone's gotta be strong for You kids..." she took the picture and made her way over to you sitting down.

"You don't have to be all the time."

She nodded. "I know...but life had been so rough on you guys already...it helps." You leaned your head on her shoulder and looked at the picture frame in her hands.

"I don't remember these." she said looking at it with you. In the frame was a photo of you do and your dad, tucked outside of it was a picture of you Steve and robin.

You smiled pointing to the one of you and hopper. "The night me and el went to the snow ball...I told him it was an important night for all of us and we had to remember it. He fought me on it but eventually gave in."

She smiled.

"What about this?"

"That was the day we moved...johnathan wanted to make sure I had something good to remember them both by...I miss them all so..so much..." you mumbled.

"I know..."

"Will it ever...not hurt?" you asked sniffiling.

"No...not Right away...just give it a little time..." she placed the picture frame on the bed stand.

"I think you should get some sleep...sleep in extra long if you need."

She kissed your forhead before you got up and walked over to your bed. "Y/n..." you and Joyce both looked up and saw El come in with puffy red eyes that matched your own. You opened your blankets and she quickly made her way over and fell into bed next to you.

"Hey it's ok...it was just a dream..." you kissed her head and Joyce quietly left the room letting you two get some sleep.