#just anytime the brits win

[toffeeanddragons]

10 Fandoms, 10 Characters, 10 Tags

Thank you so much @idle-brit for tagging me!This was lots of fun :) 💖

My tags: @delyth88, @elymusplant, @galaxythreads, @chemical-processes. No pressure to answer, of course :)

1. Loki (MCU)

As much as I love everyone on this list, there is absolutely no competition for number 1. Loki has been my favourite character of all time for nearly 6 years now (because clearly the best time to join someone's fandom is after they've just been murdered), and is showing absolutely no signs of being replaced anytime soon. I have a Loki blog, for god's sake. The brodinsons are my favourite relationship in any kind of media, ever. I love them so, so much. Loki's a million different things and feelings, all at the same time, all fighting with each other, which makes for a wonderfully complex and nuanced character. Also, he's hilarious. Look at that eye roll. This is a man who hates his life, which makes me feel better about mine. Thanks, Loki.

2. Klaus Hargreeves (The Umbrella Academy)

As will become obvious throughout this list, I love me an emotionally traumatised crazy person. Klaus is that. One of the characters who makes me laugh the most, ever, show-stopping dress sense, and a bucketload of unresolved trauma which goes largely ignored by Klaus, the other characters and the narrative itself? It was love at first sight. Their banter with the other characters, especially Ghost Ben (rip) is one of my favourite aspects of the show. Here's to hoping that Klaus won't be getting the Allison treatment in season 4!

3. Pippa Fitz-Amobi (A Good Girl's Guide to Murder)

I binge-read the entire AGGTM series earlier this year, and instantly fell in love with it. Pip is one of my favourite protagonists ever. Impossibly clever, compassionate, obsessive, badass, and a teensy bit unhinged. What's not to love? I would die for her. I'd say that I'd kill for her, but I think she's got that covered. I think she's written in a very realistic way, firstly as a genius 17 year old girl who doesn't really know what she's getting into, and later as a haunted individual who wants to stop investigating but can't. The way she politely knocks on people's front doors to dig up their traumas, accuse them of murder and all-round ruin their lives is everything to me. She is my blorbo. I am so, so excited for the show to come out, and I'm sure that Emma Myers will do a wonderful job as Pip!

4. Katniss Everdeen (The Hunger Games)

One of the best-written characters, in one of the best-written series ever. Reading from her perspective is such a delight- she's endlessly suspicious of everyone around her, constantly on survival mode, trusting very few people and relying on exactly no one (to begin with, at least). She's a random teenage girl, from the poorest district, and she wins the Hunger Games. She's so mentally unstable that she has to be sedated, and still she's made to be the face of a rebellion. She's rude, and kind of unlikeable. She adopts all the weakest tributes, at risk to herself, knowing that they won't win. She's doomed to fail by the narrative. She's the it girl of 2010s dystopian YA fiction. Jennifer Lawrence is an amazing actress, who does a beautiful job portraying the depth and conflict of Katniss in the films. The themes and social commentary of the Hunger Games is one of its (many) strong points, and I am so so glad that people are talking about it again, because it is my favourite book series out there.

5. Mitchell Pritchett (Modern Family)

I have no idea what to say about this man, I just love him. He just like me fr. What an icon. Impeccable music taste. I've started saying, "no my god" now, and nobody understands what I'm talking about. Even in a sitcom, my favourite is the one with issues that he refuses to talk about or fix. The episode where he's trying to hide that he dressed up as spiderman makes me cry-laugh. Claire's speech at his wedding makes me just cry. He's not a perfect man, but he's certainly better than everyone else.

6. Shin Tsukimi (Your Turn to Die)

My favourite cringefail loser! I said Katniss was doomed by the narrative in a metaphorical way. This idiot is actually doomed.

No but in all seriousness, I do really love him. Before the beginning of the game, he was just a relatively normal young man- but, when confronted with the inevitability of his own death, he made himself into a monster to survive. He has a violent vendetta against the local badass teenage girl, who is traumatised as hell already and does not need Shin chipping in as well, thank you very much. I love his relationship with Kanna, his biological sister; how he uses her, manipulates her, and still cares for her so much that he dies for her with a smile on his face in the Emotion route. Conversely, in the Logic route, his actions are a direct cause of her death, and I just love how much YTTD hates siblings. I hope that his past with Midori is explored more in either a mini-episode or the final part of the game, because I find it sooo interesting. I'm super excited to see whether he actually has no chance of survival, or whether he makes it out, against the odds, on one of the routes. He's a bit useless, so I won't get my hopes up.

7. Rue Bennett (Euphoria)

I think it goes without saying that Euphoria has its issues, lol. Sam Levinson is an idiot. While a lot of the show (especially season 2) feels shallow and like it doesn't care about its characters, Rue's storylines always have heart and depth and I am so invested in her arc. It's no wonder that Zendaya won 2 Emmys for this role, because her acting is phenomenal! Rue feels so real to me, in the way that she's trying so hard to stay sober but she falls down and relapses time and time again. Recovery isn't linear, but she's getting there, and I adore her with all my heart. Her relationships with Lexi, her mother, her sister, and her sponsor, Ali, are my favourites, and the healthiest for her, in my opinion. Her brief friendship/ romance with Jules may have kept her more solidly sober than anything else in the show, but Jules (understandably) cracks under the pressure of Rue's mental health, and can't be there for her. Rue needs to heal for herself, which she appears to be doing at the end of S2.

8. Max Mayfield (Stranger Things)

Duffer brothers, please just let her be happy.

Despite only being introduced in Season 2, Max has, in my opinion, had the best character development out of everyone on the show. Her growth from someone standoffish, rude, and uninterested in the group (maybe I'm being a bit harsh. She was, like, 12) to someone who is willing to risk her life to help her friends and Hawkins means so much to me. The scene in "Dear Billy" (S4, Ep4) where she escapes from Vecna remains my favourite in the whole show and will probably be burned into my brain forever. Her relationships with Lucas and El are very sweet, and some of my favourites in Stranger Things. Her final line in S4, after all her struggles over the season, being that she doesn't want to die literally breaks my heart. I hope she gets some degree of a happy ending in the final season. She was my first profile picture when I joined this hellsite, and I love her a lot.

9. Anne Shirley (Anne of Green Gables)

The shenanigans that this girl gets up to never fail to make me laugh. The bit where she accidentally dyes her hair green and then has to hack it all off makes me feel awful for her, but. it's hilarious. Sorry, Anne. Her friendship with Diana is so sweet but also so funny to me because they really are the most chaotic duo of the 1880s. The scene where Anne accidentally gives her alcohol instead of fruit juice is so mortifying but so, so funny. Amidst all of the insane situations that Anne gets into are a lot of really heartwarming moments and relationships. Matthew and Marilla adopting Anne, even though they wanted a boy, because she's so endearing and alone in the world is probably what made me who I am today. I still haven't gotten around to watching Anne with an E, but I've heard it's amazing. I look forward to watching it when I have the time :).

10. Daphne Blake (Scooby Doo)

My first ever favourite character! Another one who I don't have a tonne to say about. She's an icon, she's a legend, and she is the moment. She has done nothing wrong, ever. She knows martial arts, so watch out.

Honourable mentions: Thor (MCU), Finnick Odair (The Hunger Games), Gretchen Weiners (Mean Girls), Jake Peralta (Brooklyn 99), Maurice Moss (The IT Crowd), The Eleventh Doctor (Doctor Who), James (The End of the F***ing World), Ali Abdul (Squid Game).

If you read all of this then thanks, and have a great day!

[s4turns-st4rs]

street fighting years

🎧 ﹐ ♡﹒a curtis biddick oneshot ﹒ ᶻ ᶻ

𝐚/𝐧: in denial abt episode 3 so here we are. thinking of a harry crosby or a john egan one too? idk we’ll see. anyway enjoy lovelies xxx

requests are open ‼️

in which: curtis is a winner, every single time.

words: 0.65k

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: brief mentions of blood and bruises, swearing

𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠: nothing matters - the last dinner party

the moon was the only source of light in the sky, and it shone across the houses, reflecting across the mostly empty road.

the base was holding another of their infamous parties, but tonight, the majority was gathered outside. they had formed a makeshift boxing ring, surrounding two soldiers. one of which was a british RAF soldier. the other, was a certain curtis biddick, the american lieutenant who had been flirting with you all evening.

with a wink, he tossed you his jacket.

“curtis, i don’t think—” you began, but he interrupted you immediately.

“don’t worry ‘bout me, darlin’.” he said simply, brushing off your concern with ease. “just sit back and enjoy the show.”

you frowned a little at his lack of self preservation, but you bit your tongue. for a second, anyway.

“curtis, you’re only going to come out of this injured and in pain, you know.”

“don’t be such a worrywart, its nothing.” he said as he dodged the british soldier’s first punch.

“i’m not a worrywart. i’m just trying to make sure you don’t knock yourself out. for no reason.” you said with a worried frown, crossing your arms, holding his jacket close to you. it smelt like him. like musk, smoke, and plane fuel.

“i think you just have a crush on me.” he giggled as he threw a punch at the british soldier, hitting him square in his chin. the soldier stumbled back with a groan, and in his brief moment of safety, he grinned at you, and sent you another wink.

“i don’t have a crush on— what are you, ten?” you sighed, clearly exasperated by his immature nature, if not a little charmed, although you were unlikely to admit it.

“a 10/10, yeah.” curtis said with a smug smile. only seconds after, the smirk is wiped off his face as the british soldier’s fist slammed straight into his nose.

curtis stumbled back, a slow stream of blood immediately trickled down his cupid’s bow. using all your self control, you didn’t move. he could handle this. hopefully, anyway.

he rebalanced himself, landing a punch on the british soldier’s right cheek, and sent you a wink with a cheeky smile.

“told you i could do this, darlin’.”

you don’t respond, ignoring the butterflies the nickname still gives you. he sensed your skepticism, so he smirked at you again.

“c’mon, there’s nothing to—shit!” just as he starts to reassure you, the british soldier punched him in the chin, busting his lip. curtis managed to keep his balance, as he ran a hand through his unkept hair.

a few more punches are thrown, and curtis hits the final blow to the brit’s stomach. he doubles over, signalling his defeat.

depsite curtis’ injuries, he grinned widely.

“i told ya i’d win!” he picked you up in his arms, spinning you around in celebration, as the rest of the american spectators cheered.

you rolled your eyes, but with a smile, as he placed you back down on the ground, but holding you close, clearly not planning to let go anytime soon.

“i could kiss you, you know.” he said, lowering his volume slightly.

“don’t.” you said, quietening to match his volume. “you’ve got blood all over your face.”

he frowned with a mock glare. “have you no romance?”

“just basic common sense.”

curtis rolled his eyes, but he loved it. he loved your smartass comments. he loved you.

slowly, the crowd dispersed, footsteps and exclamations echoing in the otherwise dull nighttime streets, money from bets changing hands, and men clapping curtis on the back with patriotic cheers.

despite the blood on his face, and your common sense, you pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. immediately, a blush spread across his face, contrast against his bright, shining eyes, and dark bruises already forming on his cheeks.

“c’mon dork, you’ve got some bruises just begging to be patched up.” you said with a little smile.

[cevansbrat0007]

Brit I absolutely love love love the detail you put into the food & cooking in your fics! I was wondering if Baby Girl and Bird have favorite dishes to cook, and/or if Andy and Ari have favorites as well? xx

Hi friend! It makes me so happy to know that you enjoy those little details. Both Baby Girl and Bird have a passion for cooking and baking, just like I do. And I often research different recipes when writing about the meals they create to help people visualize. So thank you for that lovely compliment!

And as for your question about their favorite dishes, here you go:

Baby Girl: Favorite Dessert: This girl will happily whip up a glazed lemon pound cake from scratch any day of the week. It's her specialty. The secret is adding fresh squeezed lemon juice as well as a package of instant lemon pudding to the batter. And if she's feeling frisky, she might even throw together a blueberry compote to go with it.

Favorite Meal: Smothered pork chops, with garlic red skin mashed potatoes and southern style green beans. Now this is a Barber Family Favorite that actually takes a bit of time to prepare. Which means that this is more of a Sunday dinner type of occasion.

She typically puts the beans on simmer around noon. In case people are curious, Baby Girl prefers using smoked turkey over ham hocks, simply because that's how she grew up.

Bird: Favorite Dessert: As many of you know, our sweet Bird does not play when it comes to baking. Ari almost got hurt when he insulted her legendary Peach Cobbler. That splash of bourbon really takes the recipe to the next level. She also loves making her award-winning Brambleberry Pie. Lately she's been busy perfecting her Brown Butter Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies. And her Beast is more than happy to be her guinea pig anytime.

Favorite Meal: Bird is not quite as accomplished a cook as BG, but she is pretty darn good when she sets her mind to it. Her favorite thing to make for both herself and Ari is probably a slow simmered Pot Roast, complete with potatoes, carrots, and mushrooms. Our girl also likes to add a healthy glass of red wine to the mix as well. Which truly makes for a delicious meal.

As for Andy and Ari, they will happily devour anything their girls set in front of them. They always appreciate the effort, even if things don't quite turn out like they hoped. Neither man likes seeing their lady upset when a dish doesn't work out.

So in the event that occurs, they're quick to order takeout of some sort and then go straight for the snuggles. Because those men are usually pretty attention-starved on a good day. It works for both couples and that's all that matters.

Thanks for the ask!

[enigmatist17]

Here is my piece for the Moon Knight Mystery Swap ran by @tiptapricot !

I know I'm a little late on the draw, but this piece is for my gift-ee @blueberryrock :)

I hope you enjoy!

---------------

It was supposed to be just a regular training session, just to loosen up and let off some steam from a job well done.

It's a bit funny of thinking of their workouts as such a simple thing, instead of training on how to better keep themselves uninjured in the field.

Tonight had started that way, the two Avatar’s heading to a warehouse Marc rented for their sessions. No regular gym could quite handle their powers without significant property damage, as they had all learned when Layla accidentally sent a barbell through the roof of Marc’s old gym after Marc insisted on becoming her trainer.

Very fun times he is not likely to forget anytime soon, much to her chagrin.

Layla was matching his moves beat for beat, her tied back curly hair bouncing as she ducked and weaved around bound fists. Marc can see the faint shine that envelopes her body as they spar, evidence of the power she was still learning to fully control, and he can’t help but think she’s beautiful.

She had never stopped being beautiful, despite everything he had done to almost ruin their marriage.

“You’re staring at me again.” Layla grins as she ducks a punch, popping up behind Marc and twisting one arm behind his back, while using a leg to force Marc down onto his knees.

“Am I?” Layla laughed as she pressed down harder, only to grunt in surprise when the other quickly jerked to the side, her back hitting the mat in the blink of an eye as Marc pins her wrists down against the ground.

“Mhm, absolutely.” Marc rolled his eyes as he kept Layla pinned, the two panting as they took the moment to catch their breath. “Not that I mind.”

“I would hope not.” Marc scoffed, trying to respond nonchalantly as he adjusted his grip, but Layla saw how his eyes took on a silver shine along with a faint dusting of pink on his cheeks. 

They’re not sure how it had begun to happen, maybe dying and coming back was the biggest reason, but Layla thought the shine was beautiful the few times she’d been able to get Marc or Steven flustered. It was easy with Steven, the Brit reminding Layla of a nocturnal animal looking into some headlights as they chatted in the kitchen, or relaxed in his flat after a night of crime fighting. Marc was less likely to show his own discomfort, that frown she knew by heart almost able to overtake the shine through what had to be sheer willpower. 

“Your eyes say otherwise.” Layla lifted her head to get closer, their noses barely brushing against each other as Marc swallowed, eyes darting around the room for a moment before focusing back on her. 

It was enough of a distraction for his grasp to loosen, and Layla took the moment to force her arms upright, causing Marc to let out a surprised noise before falling over to his side.

“I take it, I won?” Marc grumbled as she laughed, propping herself onto her side as the other sat up with a roll of his silvered eyes.

“I guess this can be considered a win.” His slight Chicago accent slipped through as he nudged her playfully, a rarity to hear to those who Marc did not trust. “Want to do another round?”

“Maybe, maybe I’d just like to sit for a minute and relax.” Layla waggled her eyebrows as Marc got to his feet, earning herself a slight chuckle as he went to retrieve their waters. “I don’t always get to see you so hot and bothered.”

“Hot and bothered?” Layla catches her tossed bottle with ease, taking a deep drink as Marc regards her with amusement. “You haven’t said that since before we got married.”

“To be fair, I never got to see you like that after you “gave up” your old job.” 

“That…is fair.” Marc shrugged, taking a moment to let out a breath before joining her on the mat. It was still a bit of a struggle to talk about the reason their marriage had almost failed, Marc still coming to terms with Steven and how to let the other parts of himself in without feeling the need to be ashamed. However, it was getting a little easier every day, Marc’s lips twitching into a smile when Layla placed one hand over his.

“So, have anything else you want to show me today, hero?” The faint purr was not lost, and Marc leaned forward to rest his forehead against hers with a grin.

“There are some….intimate poses I guess I could show you. Helps with runnin’ around on the field, stuff like that.” His lips are on Layla’s before either of them can draw a breath, and for a moment the world has fallen still around the Avatar's.

"Don't distract me with your kisses." Layla eventually hums, Marc's faint chuckle a near whisper as he moves his head down to kiss along her exposed shoulder.

"Hey, always works in my favor." The Egyptian rolled her eyes as Marc drew back, the two intertwining a hand as Marc gets back into his feet, Layla using him as an anchor to stand.

"I seem to recall the same for me you know."

"Hey, Steven doesn't count!"

"Hm...I think he does."

"No he does not!" Strong arms wrap around Layla's waist as she's hoisted into the air, and she can't help but laugh as Marc grumbles something about Steven blushing more than Marc has in his entire life. "You are no fun sometimes."

"Uh huh, yet here we still are." She grinned, leaning against Marc as he carried her over towards some of their workout gear.

"Bahibak ya habibi."

"Ani ohev otach." Marc replied without skipping a beat, setting his wife down and clapping his hands together. "Another hour, and then we can go hit up that vegan bodega Steven won't stop going off about."

"You know, the food isn't that terrible Marc." The American rolled his eyes, and Layla settles in for hearing another rant about vegan food and how his body can even handle the back and forth while tossing her some weights. "And they're still not called bodega's here."

"Eh, they will be to me."

Their relationship had never been normal to begin with, Egyptian gods using them as Avatar's aside, but at the same time they've never been so close dodging gunfire and flying into the night hand in hand.

"What are you smiling at?" Marc's question roused Layla from her thoughts, the man she'd fallen in love with looking at her with that adorable little grumpy frown as he picked up some weights for their next workout.

"Oh nothing, just you." Marc stared for a moment before smiling a little, and Layla returns the smile.

It's not a life anyone would ever consider normal, but it was theirs, all of theirs, and that's all the matters to her at the end of the day.

[liugeaux]

Greatest Songs Ever - Part 17 (The Formula)

Well here we are, back again, building another list of fantastic music. At this point, the subconscious formula I’m using to populate this list is both predictable and all over the place. Luckily, I feel like that’s the point. Part 17 plays it safe in some obvious areas, and gets a bit wacky towards the end. You probably know most of these, and that’s fine. The point here is to celebrate the songs themselves, not the popularity they hide behind, so let’s knock these out. 

1983 “Separate Ways (World’s Apart)” -  Journey

I’m embarrassed that it’s taken so long to get a Journey song on this list. “Separate Ways” is so needlessly haunting that it's easy to forget that it’s just a sad-boi anthem. There’s nothing wrong with a sad-boi anthem, but the grandeur and heft to the vocals and synths suggests it’s about an otherworldly conflict or a time traveler caught in a paradox. Throw in Journey’s commitment to surreal sci-fi album art and you’ve got quite a confusing package. Regardless, even with “Separate Ways” turning 40 this year (hey, just like me!) I still feel this song in my bones every time I hear it, and I don’t see that going away anytime soon.  

2019 “Blinding Lights” - The Weeknd

As one of the newest songs to make this list, “Blinding Lights” has stood out since the day I first heard it in 2019. The Weeknd is the closest thing this generation has to Michael Jackson, and seeing him having continuous success is really fulfilling, especially with the short-term nature of most modern attention spans. “Blinding Lights” stands out as a synth powerhouse and would have been just as comfortable in 1986 as it was in 2019. It’s understated bass grind against the chime of the synth, makes the song a 7-layer-cake of pop music. Apparently, I’m not the only person enamored with this 3:20 song. All Time Low, Saint Asonia and X Ambassadors are just three of the major acts that have released official covers since it’s release, a short 4 years ago.  

2004 “Mr. Brightside” - The Killers

Including “Mr. Brightside” is almost a formality. Somehow over the last 19 years it’s become a white girl anthem, and synonymous with the playlists of hopeful college kids. I was there at ground zero, a college kid, when Hot Fuss came out. It felt like the future of music. Part, tightly woven Pop, part, brash “I don’t give a fuck” indie rock, and part, Americana tinged Brit-pop, The Killers were supposed to be the new U2. As cool as the Strokes, and as marketable as Matchbox 20, there was so much promise in The Killers, but after Hot Fuss the quality of their output fizzled like a match in a tsunami. We’re left with a handful of absolute bangers, and possibly the most important rock track of the 2010s in “Mr. Brightside”. Instead of being the future of popular rock music, The Killers were an instrument in its swan song. 

1984 “The Warrior” - Scandal Featuring Patty Smyth

I don’t often have little to say about a song. “The Warrior” is a by-the-numbers 80′s pop song that thrives on tropes created by its predecessors. At the end of the day, it’s just great. I don’t know much about Patti Smyth or Scandal but the energy this song exudes is that of EVERY 80′s movie soundtrack. Kenny Loggins will gladly tell you that’s a winning formula. 

2010 “Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites” - Skrillex

Sure, Skrillex may be the poster-boy for Dubstep and thus has become the butt of many modern techno jokes, but for a moment, 13 years ago, Skrillex was composing some the most unheard-of music of my lifetime. “Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites” both the song and the EP are the first pure EDM pieces I’ve ever taken SUPER seriously. The journey you take through the song is visceral, whimsical, painful, and sometimes even frightening. The bi-polar delivery of sounds is so easily identifiable as both pain and bliss. It leaves the song feeling like the auditory representation of someone in the throws of grief. Does it also sound like a microwave fighting dot matrix printer? Kind of, but that’s part of the appeal. Ignoring the abstract nature of the instrumentation and bathing in the deliberate emotion of the track is how it should be digested. It’s brilliant and I don’t know if we saw just how brilliant it was 13 years ago.  

2019 “The Jester” - Badflower

Since their first album, Badflower has become one of my favorite bands, and “The Jester” has a lot to do with that. With his writing style, Josh Katz takes a lot of risks. He gets personal, controversial and sometimes too raw, but with Jester he hits a sweet spot where he pulls on strings that most have never thought about being there. The balance between being an entertainer and being respected woven with the fear of being a joke, then tying that to self worth and metal health is brilliant. That’s not even taking into consideration the infectious hook permeating the chorus. “The Jester” was technically a hit, but I feel like it will live much longer than it’s 15 minutes in the Modern Rock spotlight.  

1977 “Stayin’ Alive” - The Bee Gees

The next time someone tells you that the new generation lacks respect and morals, remind them that in 1979 Chicago White Sox fans got hammered and rioted because they hated disco. Disco is an important part of music history and is instrumental in the creation of hip-hop. It should definitely not be overlooked, and “Stayin’ Alive” is the pinnacle of the art form. Part of it is the wicked bassline, part of it is the piecing falsetto harmonies, or maybe even the transparent commercialism of your biggest hit being from a movie. This fucking song better live forever.

2006 “Big Girls Don’t Cry” - Fergie

It’s VERY easy to write-off Fergie as the female portion of one of the most unfortunate Pop music 4-peices in American history. She then didn’t do herself any favors when her 2nd solo single was the abomination, “Fergalicious.” The quality of “Big Girls Don’t Cry” is only trumped by the song’s unlikely existence. The way I look at it, I sat through 7 years of garbage Black Eyed Peas songs to have earned this gem. It’s catchy, it’s raw, personal and surprisingly understated. There are about a dozen and a half different artists I would have expected this to come from before Fergie even entered the arena, and I’m happy to see that she is credited as a writer. I get that this song is very much “of a timeframe” but if you’re too old or too young to have been impacted by it you deserve to check it out.  

2002 “On the Grind” (featuring King Jacob) - Nelly

I really wanted to include a Nelly song on this list, so I shuffled through all his hits looking for one that stood out to me personally. As good as “Country Grammer,” “E.I.,” “#1,″ “Hot in Herre,” “Pimp Juice” and “Air Force Ones” are this is the one that hits me as a personal favorite and has an aggressively infectious beat woven around a swag-filled chorus that perfectly encapsulates the Nelly era of hip-hop, which is a tight 2-4 year period.

1937 “Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)” - Benny Goodman & His Band

Here it is, the “out-of-left-field,” oddball-choice that I’ve gotten in the habit of including in these recent lists. A few things, for me to build this list and not acknowledge music from before the invention of Rock n Roll is foolish. Also, for a song to make it through the now 80 year filter of exposure and still have the impact “Sing Sing Sing” has, is wildly impressive. It’s a big band swing song that’s synonymous with the genre. So much so, that it defines it 80 years later. Even today the layered horns and rolling drums are impressive on both a technical and kinetic level. As with all songs pre-1950-ish, tracking down the original, and often most influential artist responsible for a hook, can be hard. With “Sing Sing Sing,” New Orleans Jazz artist, Louis Prima, is credited as the original songwriter. Hearing his version confirms that he indeed is originally responsible for the melody, it even had words, but Benny Goodman is the composer who brought it to the masses with his instrumental masterpiece. There’s probably a dumptruck-load of sub-text to be gleamed from a Jewish band leader profiting from an Italian-American-written swing track, but in 2023 I don’t think I have the energy to break that down. All I can do, is celebrate their accomplishments and enjoy “Sing Sing Sing” for what it is, one of, if not the most important swing songs to ever be written/composed. I’ll gladly credit them both for their contributions to the track. 

I’ve hit a groove. At this point, these lists might be posted pretty often. The race to 200 songs starts now. I have a special post planned to explain the journey and, in it, an announcement of a pending playlist. Until then, you’ve got to build your own. 

Since I was a pimply 16-year-old in my room listening to music, my interest in it has changed drastically. 25 years ago, I was obsessed with being the gatekeeper, the person people asked about new rock music. That directly led to both my college major and to my short stint working in the radio industry. Now, I feel more like a music historian. Current music is great, and important things are happening on that front, but new music feels like it doesn’t matter until I can properly measure its impact on both me and the world. 

This isn’t me trying to sound important, its more me trying to justify continuing this list. I know this is the internet and opinions need not be justified, but being able to back it up with ideals and principles makes for good music conversations, and I’m always hungry for those.  

See you soon! Cheers!

[saythankyoumood]

My Thoughts: 3.3 Winter Wear

1. Gabriela is not long for this season. Anytime a designer says, "I want this more than anything", their days are numbered. 2. Again with the jinxing, Yannik! "This is my assignment to win!" That's the kiss of death. 3. Wow, the Brit is doing a coat dress? Shocking. 4. Feel like Jeanette's headdress has been done before, and then Heidi just said the same thing. Love when I'm on the same wavelength as the judges. 5. "He always brings a hint of Disney villain."- Nicole on Rafael 6. How is Sienna's design at all winterwear? You can't wear either of those looks in the winter. 7. Really don't understand the planet Yannik lives on.

[granolagaeilgeoir]

Lads let’s bring this tradition back

[vinvantae]

ᴛᴡɪɴ ꜰʟᴀᴍᴇ

Epilogue

<< Previous Part

Rating - Mature

Warnings - Explicit language, mentions of sex and alcohol

*******************************************

Five years later

“Oh come on, you’ve got to be kidding? There was no way you could’ve caught me in the Williams!”

The bonfire was bright, illuminating the faces of your friends - the season had just drawn to a close and you had another third place Championship position under your belt. George was adamant he would’ve beat you this year regardless if he was in a Mercedes or not.

“Hey, I managed to knock the queen off her top spot, so let me relish in it however I want.” The Brit laughed.

You blushed a little, you had two consecutive Championship wins tucked under your belt and only just lost to George and Max this year. “I'm getting on a bit, I thought I’d let the kids have a go winning.”

After the regulations changed a few years ago, the fight for the top had become much closer than ever and it was mere points between the top teams now. The McLaren boys had finished comfortably in 4th and 5th this year, knocking George’s teammate right down to 6th. Dan sat down beside you at the fire pit, he’d really come into his own the past couple of years and won several races too.

“Hi darling, food is almost ready.”

“Thank you, love.” You smiled, pressing a fond kiss to his lips.

“You two are still as gross as you were back in the day, y’know.” Lando chuckled. “Just because you’re married, it's still not an excuse to be gross.”

Even though you’d been married for nearly 3 years now, you and Dan would always be those giddy kids in love. That fear you had of it all going away was a distant memory now. “Can’t help it, mate. Y/n Ricciardo is bloody flames.”

You grinned at him and clinked your beer bottles together. “Cheers to that.”

“So, are we getting any mini honey badgers anytime soon? I want baby cheeks to squish.” Max asked.

“We both want to finish our careers first.” Dan hummed. “It’s not fair to ask y/n to put her dreams on hold to have our baby… so we’re going to do that and then see where both of our heads are at.”

“Damn, the adult response.” The Dutchman chuckled, leaning forward a little. “After sharing several walls with you two over the years, I’m surprised there’s been no accidental babies.”

“We’re careful, mate, don’t worry.” Your husband laughed, squeezing your thigh. “But you’ll be one of the first to know when a little badger is on the way, alright?”

You smiled softly at the pair and headed inside to grab people some more beers. You flipped open the ice box and started pulling out some ice cold drinks. “Need a hand?”

“Yes please!” You didn’t even turn around, knowing exactly who the French accent belonged to. “Thanks Pierre, I always overestimate how many of these I can carry.”

“No worries, mon amour.” He smiled fondly, grabbing a couple of the bottles.

You returned the smile before popping some new beers into the ice to cool them off. “How’s it going with Lucy? You two seem really happy.”

“I actually have some news, I wanted to tell you first though.”

You shut the lid and turned to face him. “Pierre Gasly, don’t tell me you popped the question?”

His face split into a grin and he nodded his head enthusiastically. “I’m getting married!”

You grinned and pulled the Frenchman into a tight hug, cherishing the way he laughed. It was so wonderful to see him happy. All of your friends seemed to be in such good places now and it made you feel so warm inside.

“I’m so happy for you, Pierre.” You hummed. “Let’s get back out there, okay?”

The younger of you led the way out and started handing out beers to everyone who needed a top up. Swatting Dan’s hand away as he made an attempt to grab your bum as you walked past him. You pressed a kiss to Lando’s cheek as you passed him a beer; if anyone asked you the question now who your best friend was - hands down it was the Brit.

You two spent so much of your free time together; you were featured on a lot of his streams and even off camera you went on ‘guys trips’. You wrapped your arms around him in a big cuddle and he chuckled softly. “Alright, babe?”

“Mhmm, I’m so happy you’re here.”

“Me too. If you two asked me to move onto the ranch I absolutely would, one of my favourite places in the world.” He smiled fondly.

You continued making your way around the yard, chatting away and catching up with all of your friends. A fair chunk of the grid had flown out to spend the week with you and your husband - Yuki was chasing the dog around the garden, Charles and Pierre were debating something in French and some of the other boys were just chatting away.

“Hey Danny.” You said, walking up behind your man as he finished up grilling all of the food. “How’s it going, anything I can do to help?”

“Stand there and look pretty for me?” He winked, placing some burgers on a plate. “Something on your mind, my love? You’ve got your thinking face on.”

“…so you’ve been racing now since 2011.”

“I have.”

“How would you feel about next season being your last?”

He put the tongs down next to the grill and turned to look at you. “Baby girl, are you asking me what I think you are?”

You blushed a little, toeing the ground with the tip of your shoes; you felt all shy again. “Wanna have a baby with me?”

The Australian didn’t even hesitate before he swept you up in a bear hug, the biggest smile on his face. He squeezed you so tight, you almost lost your breath.

“Fuck yeah I do!” He beamed, placing you back on the ground, pressing a kiss to your forehead. “You wanna stop racing though? You’ve only been doing it for five years.”

“I know but I wasn’t as young as the rest of you when I started. I’ll always love F1, hopefully I can stay with it just not in a car - but I want a baby. Also, there’s two other girls on track now, I’m sure they can handle it.”

He chuckled fondly. “I dunno, love, they’re pretty fond of you.”

You’d become like a big sister to a lot of girls coming into the sport - whether it be as reserve drivers or the two girls who had raced alongside you this season. It was a great feeling being so looked up to. You finished helping Dan move the food over to the buffet table and called everyone over to grab something to eat. They all thanked you as they moved past you to get to the table, so you took the chance to nip inside.

The ranch hadn’t changed a whole lot since you moved in but it definitely wasn’t the bachelor pad it used to be; you picked up one of Dan’s rogue socks and chucked it in the laundry basket as you went to your bedroom. Just down the hall was the guest room where Max and Kelly were currently staying - you’d known why the Dutchman had asked you about babies, there were a few swatches of pastel coloured paint on the base of the walls as you’d been thinking about turning it into a nursery. Dan hadn’t spotted them himself as he was oblivious but they caught Max’s attention.

You stopped to look at a photo on the wall from 2021 - it was taken on your first official race day with all of your team there - you looked so young and had no idea what that year had in store for you. That y/n didn’t know that Dan loved her too; that he was thinking about her just as much as she did him. She didn’t know she was going to get 3rd place in her first season and then two championship wins for her team.

You’d had the chance to move teams a couple of times across the years but Redbull was the team you thought you had the best shot at the championship with. They were your family long before you were a driver and even when Mercedes asked if you wanted to replace Lewis after he retired, you simply couldn’t bring yourself to do it.

“Darling, are you gonna come eat something?” You looked away from the photo as Dan walked towards you, a concerned smile on his face. “Don’t want you missing out on your favourites.”

“Sorry baby. Was just reminiscing… When this photo was taken I had no idea that I’d be marrying you one day. How crazy is that?”

“Same with my first photo at McLaren.” He said, pointing to the photo just above yours. “Was my first year with them and I had no idea that I was gonna end up with the girl of my dreams.”

You blushed a little, even after all these years he still knew exactly the right words to make you shy. He took your hips in his hands and turned you to face him, his amber eyes meeting yours - a soft crinkle in the corners as he smiled. You’d stopped wasting time regretting you hadn’t been with him sooner and just cherished every moment you did have instead.

He pressed a gentle kiss to your cheek before leading you back outside for some food; he always made sure you ate well and most of the time you trained together as well so he knew your cues like the back of his hand. So when you realised he’d already set aside a plate of your favourites, it made you smile.

“You know me so well, Danny.” You chuckled fondly, taking the plate.

“Y’know after 30 years, I’d certainly like to think so.”

“Definitely.” You hummed, kissing him softly before rejoining the group, sitting yourself beside Pierre and his partner. He’d met her at Redbull’s party in Abu Dhabi and they’d been inseparable ever since, she really balanced him out and you were so happy for him.

Lando came over and sat on your other side, passing you the beer you’d left with him before. “You alright? Vanished for a bit then.”

“Oh you know me, I was reminiscing about my first year in F1. Remember when we went on that bike ride around the Bahrain track?”

“Oh yeah, Dan almost had my neck for that.” He teased, earning a playful glare from his teammate. “Not my fault you were blind to your feelings back then, bro.”

“I really was. Ah well, we got where we were supposed to in the end, didn’t we?”

You looked at him and gave him a soft smile - thinking back to all the memories you’d built together over the past few years. He was everything to do and you’d really grown together and become the best versions of yourselves - he was your best friend, partner in crime and the love of your life. You couldn’t be happier.

“Yeah, we did.”

******************************************

@loliismartios @lharrietg @paprikabadger @baueoud @breadsquash @lovebynorth @inconspicuousindo @abysshaven @stelena-klayley @picturethosesmiles @shes-unwell-babe @haterpenny @idkiwantchocolatee @savannah-elliott @art-outlaw @sahvlren @mp0625 @marianadj99 @witchy-whore

And my partner in crime @reidslefteyebrow x

[snobgoblin]

Headcanon idea: Gorillaz reacting to their non-british S/O making british jokes. The ones that make fun of the way they speak and their teeth and stuff that u see in those memes.

awwww a bit mean but i like it. some good lighthearted teasing

2-D: You made the poor boy insecure about his teeth :( no cuppa for you. no infodumping about Evil Dead either bc you dont like his voice. Until he forgets. then hes back to his old self

Murdoc: That's a fight you do not want to start because you will not win. He's just itching for an excuse to clown on Americans. Do not let him

Russel: Is American but lately he's had a bit of an accent. I guess that's what happens when you live with Brits for 20 years. But anytime you point it out to him he just completely denies it

Noodle: Probably just laughs and makes some light self deprecating jokes and disses the queen just for flavour

Ace: He's making fun of them with you

[writethelifeyouwant]

Runaway | Chapter 7

Pairing: Jared x Reader Rating: 18+ Tags: AU, slow burn, light angst, Jared’s on the struggle bus WC: 2.2k

Series masterlist | Read ahead on my website

“You’re late,” Cassie snapped as Jared rushed into her office, ignoring the exuberant ‘hello’ from Charlie as he ran past the reception desk outside the tall glass doors. He looked sheepish, in a way only Cassie was able to make him look.

“Sorry, I got caught up talking to Y/N/N.”

“Ah, yes. How is the little harlot?” Cassie sighs, aggravated, flipping through a file of papers.

“Don’t call her that, Cassie, she’s a good kid and she does her job well.”

“Yes, yes, we all know she’s a good little housekeeper, but I still think there’s something off about the whole thing. You know I worry about you Jared.”

“It’s been almost a month,” Jared rolled his eyes, now equally aggravated with Cassie. “If she was some undercover pap I feel like she would have had plenty for a story by now. She wouldn’t bother keeping this up. Plus, I can just, tell, I guess. I don’t know, but she’s not the kind of girl that would do that.”

“Mmhmm,” Cassie looked at him skeptically over the brim of her glasses but she could tell she wasn’t going to be getting anywhere with that discussion. “Well, anyways, the reason you’re here is because we’re in a bit of trouble at the moment.”

Jared cringed, he knew that ‘bit of trouble’ meant much more than that. “I didn’t get the last one either did I?” He’d been back and forth to auditions for the past month and nothing was happening for him.

“No,” Cassie shook her head apologetically. “They decided to go with some blonde, British kid,” she scoffed. The Brits were really closing in on her rom-com market and it was getting beyond annoying.

“Damn it,” Jared sighed and leant forward across his knees, steepling his fingers in front of his lips. “Is there anything else out there right now?”

“Not things I would normally recommend you for." Cassie shakes her head, looking just as disappointed as Jared. "All our standard production companies are really into sponsoring musical films and shows at the moment. That’s not really your scene is it?”

Jared grimaced, shaking his head. He would definitely not be getting a singing part anytime soon. He had what his sister called a ‘parent voice.’ He sang in tune enough to carry a lullaby or blend in with a group, but he was not winning a Grammy or a Tony anytime soon.

“And there’s nothing else coming out soon?”

“I promise I’ll let you know as soon as I see something.”

“Okay,” Jared stood up and headed for the door, clearly disappointed in the lack of offers. He didn’t even say a proper goodbye to Cassie, and brushed past Charlie’s offer of tea without a second glance.

On the drive back, Jared only got more and more frustrated, going over minute details of each audition in his head, trying to figure out where he had gone wrong this time. By the time he got home he was seriously angry with himself. He snapped a quick ‘hey’ at Y/N/N as he walked past her wiping down the counters in the kitchen and ran up to his room to change. Maybe a run would help him calm down and clear his head.

“I’ll be back later,” he shouted on his way out the door, barely even checking to see if Y/N/N was listening, before he bolted down the street.

Mindlessly running around the streets of L.A. wasn’t usually Jared’s scene. He was much more comfortable at the gym, with his trainer and the machines there telling him exactly what he was doing right and wrong. Their guidance kept him on the track he’d set out for himself. But maybe what he really needed right now was to get lost. Clearly, he was stuck in a rut and he wasn’t going to get another job unless he figured out how to pull himself up by his bootstraps. He’d managed it before, he could do it again.

The houses and sparse palm trees Jared was passing now were certainly unfamiliar but everything still looked the same to him. He was running through the streets of the city’s über elite, a place he’d always hoped would be in his reach someday. Running through here should have been motivating, awe-inspiring even, but now all he felt was a pang of disappointment.

In his tired state, the house fronts morphed into horrible taunting faces. The shiny waxed cars bounced blinding reflections into his eyes and the heat radiating up from the pavement was starting to make everything more than a few feet away from him go hazy. As he squinted against the sun, he thought he saw something strange appear out of the heat in front of him.

His baby sister seemed to glimmer, running towards him, as if to comfort him. But his sister wasn’t in L.A., she was… it didn’t matter. It wasn’t her; so he kept running, feet pounding relentlessly into the sidewalk.

Jared ran smack into the figure, because even though she wasn’t his sister, she wasn’t entirely the product of his hallucinatory mind. He had collided with a very real person who was now lying face up on the pavement by his feet.

“Oh my god, I am so sorry,” Jared panted when he recovered from the shock of the collision.

“Are you a complete idiot?!” the girl shouted, hoisting herself up on her elbows.

“Uh, no, s–“

“Well then you must be a great actor because you had me fooled.” She was picking herself up from the sidewalk now, brushing invisible dust from her skin tight running leggings. Jared was momentarily distracted by her long blonde ponytail swinging in his face and his subsequent examination of the rest of her person. She was the epitome of L.A. in a woman’s body: trim and athletic, with a chest that was disproportionately larger than the rest of her body being squeezed into a low cut sports bra. She was the kind of girl he saw at the gym every day hanging out on the treadmills and at the juice bar.

“I–” come on Jared, pull it together, he cursed internally. “Hey, you didn’t move out of the way either.”

The girl indignantly tightened her ponytail and scoffed at Jared. “I’m tired of moving out of people’s way.”

“Ah, I see I’ve run into a raging feminist.”

“Is that meant to be an insult?" She rolled her eyes and laughed cruelly, "because I have no problem being called a feminist.” Jared was a little scared she was going to hit him. “But you being a guy has nothing to do with it. I don’t let anyone knock me off my course, end of story.”

“Well, there is such a thing as common courtesy.” Jared shook his head minutely, completely taken aback by her brash personality, his first impression clearly off the mark.

“Says the guy who just knocked me over.”

“Look, I said I’m sorry," Jared sighed. "I’ve just been really distracted today, and my mind’s been kind of playing tricks on me. I didn’t think you were a real person.” Jared cringed when realised how odd that sounded out loud. He just made himself look like the biggest idiot on the planet in front of this, admittedly, very pretty girl.

“Are you tripping on something? Druggies don’t normally go for a run to come down,” the girl laughed at her own joke. An undertone of anger lingered beneath her words but had abated noticeably from her irritation of moments before.

“Wh– no, I’m not on drugs,” Jared squinted down at her against the sun. Was this girl for real? “It’s just– it’s hot. And I’m having a bad day, okay? I said I was sorry.” He fought the urge to roll his eyes as he started to turn away from her to head back home.

“Weren’t you going the other way, genius?” she called from behind him, and Jared turned with an exasperated grunt.

“Yeah, and now I’m going this way. Why do you care?” His patience was wearing very thin, and he regretted the snappy attitude as soon as his response was out of his mouth. “Sorry, I’m having a really bad day.” Jared reached up to ruffle his hands through his hair in an effort to shake out some of the frustration he was feeling and cool down. “See ya round,” he gave a short wave and turned away again, starting a slow jog back towards home.

A few moments later he heard footsteps growing louder, and glanced down to see his tormentor falling into stride beside him, keeping pace easily. He didn’t know what to say so he didn’t say anything, just kept running.

“Look, I’m sorry if I was a bitch,” she said sheepishly after a couple blocks of uneasy silence, confusion radiating from Jared the entire time. “I guess I’m having a bad day too.” She offered Jared a small, tight lipped smile that didn’t sit well on her face. She wasn’t suited to looking unhappy, he observed. Faces like hers were meant to be bubbly and smiling, without that she just looked … dull – like a blank piece of paper – full of potential but desolately and depressingly empty.

“Happens to all of us,” Jared nodded, still jogging. He looked back down at her, the sour expression pulling at her lips telling him that she still wanted to say something else. “Do you want to talk about it?” he offered, knowing that if the roles were reversed he would hope someone would ask him the same thing.

“It's just job problems,” she huffed, the effort of keeping up with Jared’s mammoth strides on top of talking starting to show. “We’re barely out of the gate with this new project and already had someone major pull out.”

“Sorry,” Jared nodded understandingly. “That’s always crap.”

“What about you?” she asked, visibly starting to struggle breathing, so Jared slowed to a fast walk, and she shot him a grateful smile.

“Job stuff too,” he shrugged, trying not to sound too put down about it. “I’ve been out of work for a while and nothing’s really popping up that’s a good fit.”

“So, you’re an actor?”

“Easy guess in this town, huh?”

“Been in anything I would know?” she brushed past his rhetorical question.

“Yeah totally, you watch a lot of romantic comedies, right?” Jared laughed at his own expense.

“Is that a comment on my feminism again?” The girl shot him a stern look and he backtracked immediately.

“No, not at all, I didn–” but Jared broke off when she broke out in laughter.

“Calm down, I was kidding,” she gave Jared a light jab on the arm and he looked down at the spot where she had hit, curiously. He wasn’t used to people being so immediately familiar. “But actually, you do look a little familiar,” she mused, stopping mid stride to get a better look at him. “Were you ever in this show called Starchaser?”

Jared was flat out shocked that she even knew what that was. “You watched Starchaser?”

“Are you kidding me, I loved it,” she laughed joyfully.

“No one has seen Starchaser, we got cancelled so fast,” Jared laughed too. Starchaser had been his last job, and he had known when he took it that it was a long shot. Space procedurals with a side of time travel were a bit difficult to get off the ground, but he hadn’t wanted to pass up the chance to get made into an alien for his job everyday. It was awesome while it lasted.

“I was really sad when it didn’t get renewed, I thought it was great,” she smiled remisciently and started walking again. “So you were that really tall red guy? S’amean?”

“Yeah, that was me,” Jared said incredulously.

“You were good,” she glanced sideways at him while they walked, wheels very obviously turning in her mind.

“Thanks,” Jared smiled gratefully.

“So, you’re looking for work right now?” Jared nodded in answer. “That project I was talking about, the one we had a drop out on? The guy that dropped out was our lead…” she let her sentence trail off, looking Jared up and down again, inquisitively. He froze on the sidewalk, watching the girl suspiciously. “You got a six pack under that shirt?” she asked boldly.

Jared’s brow raised, caught off guard once again, but then he pulled up the corner of his tank in answer, showing off the muscles that he worked very hard to look after. She nodded, impressed. Reaching behind her, she unzipped a pocket in the waist of her leggings and pulled out her phone, unlocking it and handing it to Jared.

“Put in your number,” she instructed without question.

“Why?”

“Because my producer is gonna give you a call later tonight and set up an audition.” Jared blinked down at the phone in his hands, not quite believing his luck.

“Do I at least get your name before I give you my number?” Jared asked.

“Quinn,” she smiled, reaching out to her phone and tapping the screen. “Number.” Jared rolled his eyes at her demanding tone but put his contact details in all the same, handing her phone back when he was done. She looked over the new entry and smiled. “I guess I’ll see you around then, Jared.”

“Uh, yeah, I guess so,” Jared laughed nervously, rubbing at his neck as he watched Quinn turn on her heel and jog back the way they came from.

Chapter 8 coming October 19th or subscribe to my website to read up to Chapter 12!

Runaway: @maliburenee @drakelover78 @samsgirl93

We’re All Mads Here: @vulgar-library @tintentrinkerin @negans-lucille-tblr @fandomfic-galore @petitgateau911 @schaefchenherde @kickingitwithkirk @little-diable @laxe-chester67 @kassyscarlett @austin-winchester67 @flamencodiva @katbratsupernaturalwhore

All SPN: @cemini-winchester @akshi8278 @stoneyggirl @deandreamernp @lyarr24 @lovealways-j @slamminmine @all-alone-he-turns-to-stone @eddiesgirl @raidens-realm @tatted-trina6 @defenderrosetyler @delightfullykrispypeach @05supernatural20 @sams-sass @calaofnoldor @thinkinghardhardlythinking

[someone-worth-racing-for]

First things first, this page is amazing! I really like your content here, it’s really great. Second, I love your fanfictions and I love your small stories that you’re always writing here. I’m wondering if I can ask for something... If you ever feel like it, would you write a small story about Lando winning a race in P1 for the first time and being so happy about it and so emotional that he immediately goes running to Carlos (who by the way is also extremely happy for Lando and can’t wait to see him) and literally jumps on him and starts crying tears of joy and Carlos is all emotional as well and they didn’t even care if there’s people around? In my mind it would be really cute and loving to read about it.

First things first, thank you very much for your kind words, anonym! I’m happy you enjoy my nonsense here, but also my stories ❤️

Sure you can ask! And do you know what? I have already really felt like writing something to your request 😉

But you are right, anonym - it will be all cute and loving, when it will finally, finally happen in real life. Because no fanfiction can prepare us for what these two dorks will do then.. 🥺

Carlos‘ Ferrari maybe hadn’t been that strong all weekend long to win the race, but after he had raced over the chequered flag, the only thing he wanted to know from his race engineer was who had won the race, even when it hadn’t been him.

About ten laps ago, Carlos had lost Lando and Max out of his field of view, with their cars being so much faster on this track. And even through his racing mind had hoped for them to take each other out, so he could win the race or at least for one of them to make a big mistake, so he could end the race on P2, his heart still wished at the same time for none of that to happen. He actually only wanted to see one thing today at the ceremony. Lando standing there on the very top.

His race engineer just wanted to praise him for his race, when Carlos already interrupted him because he just needed to know who had won. “P1 Lando, P2 Ma-“ But his engineer couldn’t even go on, when the Spaniard suddenly began to cheer in pure happiness for his friend’s first race win in F1.

Just two cars ahead of him, a little Brit was screaming, laughing and cheering the same way he did and his already overjoyed mood just got into another level, when his race engineer told him about that Carlos will share the podium with him.

“Carloooos!” Lando shouted in that one sing-sang voice of his into the microphone, getting even more thrilled about it with knowing that his friend will be up there with him together and celebrating, like they had done by his first podium back in Brazil.

When the Spaniard finally jumped out of his car, an even wider smile instantly formed onto his lips and he felt so damn proud about the younger, when he saw him there next to the McLaren team, them patting his back and helmet and hugging him all tightly over the fence, which really seemed to break soon, if they will go on like that.

Carlos didn’t want to destroy that moment of joy, so he first got over to his own team and let himself get celebrated for his achieved P3. Even though the whole team was screaming and shouting of happiness, the older one had still been able to hear that one cute, cheeky voice out of all these many, when that familiar “Carlooooos!” got to his ears.

The Spaniard just made it to turn around, while Lando had already run his way over to where he was standing and jumped up into his arms with such a big momentum, that Carlos began to sway and even though he had still tried to somehow get his balance back, it was still already too late for that, also because Lando felt a lot heavier compared to the last time he had jumped into his arms like that and held onto him like a little monkey, back then when Carlos had celebrated his first win.

Together the two of them fall to the ground. At least Lando landed softly on top of his friend, his arms were still wrapped around his neck, while the older one held him close by his back. “Cabrón! You are crazy.” Carlos laughed heartily inside his helmet, but instantly held on, when no words came from the younger one.

Carefully he reached out to first open the visor of his own helmet, before he opened the one from the colourful helmet of the number four driver with lightly shaking hands. Clear tears were falling over the edge of his eyes like little rivers and even through his fire proofs, he could see how much his bottom lip was shaking under those thick tears and how the happiness, but also the adrenalin rushed through his whole body at the moment.

“Carlos.” Lando cried out, but still his friend could tell how relieved he felt at the moment and also how thrilled he was to be able to share this moment with him together. “I have really made it.”

“Yeah. Yeah, you have, cabrón. And how you have made it, you have showed them all what you are able to do. I’m so proud about you.” The Spaniard told him, while he could also already feel the first tears burning in his eyes. “But you know, you are also heavier than you look.”

“Of course, sorry.” Lando laughed out, while tears were still soaking his fire proofs, before he rolled down of the older one. After they had both stood up and removed their helmets, they just couldn’t resist to let their helms fall all uncared onto the ground to give each other a proper bear hug.

Lando was crying tears of happiness and relieve into the curve of Carlos’ neck, while the older one held his shaking body close. “I knew you can do this, I know how strong you are, little one. You deserve it, you deserve it so, so much. God, I’m so damn proud about you, little one. When I think about how everything has started over four years ago and to see where you are now, on the very top, I’m.. I’m getting a little emotional as well.”

The first tear finally fell, when Carlos pressed a tender kiss into his friend’s hairline, before he pressed his head closer against his chest and he cried quietly into his cute curls. From the corner of his eyes, the Spaniard could see all those people, the teams, the interviewers, the cameras watching them, but if he was serious neither of the two of them cared about it.

This right here was their moment, they had both waited for it already since such a long time and they just enjoyed it now, no matter how many people here or on the whole world were watching them. This right here was their moment, they didn’t care about what the others were thinking or saying, because no one else did matter at the moment, except the friend in their arms.

But still no moment did last forever and when Carlos noticed how nervous the interviewer already got, because they were all impatiently waiting for the young Brit to give his first interview as a winner, the Spaniard gently patted Lando’s back and whispered into his ear “I think we should better let go now, little one. They are all already waiting for you, to hear what you will say and share your happiness with you. Don’t worry, I will see you on the podium soon.”

With big, glassy puppy eyes, Lando looked up at the older, because he would have actually preferred it to stay for some more close to his friend, in his arms and he would have also preferred it to share the happiness with him, but still he finally nodded agreeing his head. “So proud.” Carlos whispered when he kissed his cheek and finally shoved him lovingly into the direction of the interviewer.

With a proudly swollen chest and a wide smile on his lips, the Spaniard watched Lando giving his first interview as a race winner. They both seemed to not be able to stop that happy smile and excitement anytime soon, after they had waited for it for so long to happen.

Actually the two friends had pity with Max being together with them on the podium, because Lando and Carlos only had eyes for each other. The Spaniard’s hand did already hurt from clapping that much and strong when Lando came running out of the building to finally climb onto the very top of the podium.

For once the young Brit was smiling down at the older one with being two steps higher than he was. While Max got presented his trophy, Carlos leaned closer to whisper to his friend “I told you, one day we will end up on the podium together.”

“Yeah, you promised so, but I have never thought that it would feel that great.” New waves of tears did already burn in his eyes again and even when Carlos best wanted to take his friend into his arms again, he stayed right where he was and only patted his back in a well-meant gesture.

“Just enjoy every moment, little one. You deserve it like no one else.” And Lando finally really tried to do so, when he closed his eyes while the hymn was playing and Carlos watched those tears rolling down his face all proudly.

Following the tears on his face got some company with the sweet, sticky champagne, when Carlos sprayed almost his whole bottle at his best friend and the rest over his head. Lando’s eyes were now red from the bubbly liquid, but also from his tears of pure joy and happiness.

A picture Carlos really liked to see, a picture he could get used to. A picture he won’t ever forget in his life.

[im-an-adult-ish]

mutals as iconic sports moments??

I love this. fair warning: Most of them are going to be baseball because that’s what I know but please enjoy them.

@archaicmusings- the introduction of Gritty. Not only is Cal Gritty’s #1 fan, but every day she shares a new story thats wilder than the next and that’s how I feel about Gritty (See: his Ratatouille musical audition here)

@joemazzmatazz- Kirk Gibson’s go ahead home run, 1984 World Series (clip here) Anytime I see Regan get tagged in a “mutuals as” with time periods, she always rightfully gets the 80s so I went with an 80s clip. This home run solidified the World Series win for my beloved Tigers. It’s their last World Series win to date so this clip runs quite a bit. It’s one of my favorites, like Regan <3

@brianmays-hair- Jess’ doesn’t have a clip but I found this photo of Bobby Kennedy and he’s holding a football. It looks pretty iconic so it qualifies for this mutuals as ask lol

@six-bloodyminutes- Magglio Ordonez 2006 ALCS (here with the radio overlap, which is better than the TV call by far). Listen.... This moment that solidified my already deep love of baseball and the Tigers. It is one of those “where were you when?” moments that sticks with you forever. Mo is one of my favorites that will stick with me in my mind forever. shout out to Tumblr for bringing her (and all of these people mentioned) into my life.

@hijackmy-heart- David Freese Walk Off 2011 World Series (link). I honestly can’t even tell you why I tie Nat to this clip but while watching it I thought “Nat” and just went with it lol This moment is particularly iconic for me. I was rooting hard for the Cards to win because the the team they were playing, The Rangers, had beaten my beloved Tigers real bad. Again, not sure why I picked Nat for it but I love this moment so Nat I hope you take it as a compliment LOL

@almightygwil- Ellie is iconic and there is arguably no sports moment more iconic than Babe Ruth’s called shot. I couldn’t find a video (bc I’m pretty sure it doesn’t exist) so enjoy this artistic painting.

@kiwi-hardy- Ireland Vs. England Six Nations 2017 (link). I got a little lazy with this one but watching the Six Nations tournament has been a huge part of the last 5 years of my life and Leah is one of my favorite Brits (even though I cheer for the Irish ;) ). Maybe one day when travel is safe again, I’ll watch a game in person in the UK with you (idk if you even like rugby, I just really miss England and being able to travel anywhere lol)

@ineloqueent @deacyblues @dancingdiscofloof - These three are just iconic women that I adore. I also adore Queen at Ridge Farm so these photos seemed like a natural fit.

[wheresmynaya]

Lopez’s 8 Ch.6 | Brittana

Also available on ff.net (x) ao3 (x) & below the cut! 

Remember all that trouble that was bound to catch up to Santana? Well, it has and she’s loving every single minute of it because in this case trouble’s name just so happens to be Brittany S. Pierce.

Before, her thoughts revolving around the heist were usually what kept her up at night, but not anymore thanks to a less than PG encounter in Brittany’s garage. Since then, Santana and Brittany haven’t been able to keep their hands to themselves. It’s so reminiscent of how they were before Santana went away and she’s sure they probably shouldn’t be doing this, but she also knows that depriving either one of them of great sex is kind of a lost cause.

So now when Santana wakes in the middle of the night, it’s not because she’s stressing over the many details of her grandmaster plan. It’s because she’s too focused on giving midnight snack a whole new meaning.

Santana’s limbs are bit stiff as she slowly wakes after another sleepless night. There’s a little nip in the air and Santana’s exposed skin blossoms with goosebumps. She tries to cover up, but the sheets are wound around Brittany’s torso.

Once a blanket hog, always a blanket hog apparently.

Upon the movement though, Brittany begins to stir. A mess of blonde hair lifts from the pillow and slowly turns to reveal a disgruntled, very sleepy Brittany.

“Too early,” She mumbles as she sneaks a peek at Santana.

Something warms within Santana and she’s too tired still to catch the smile she lets escape.

“I don’t think it’s that early anymore,” Santana says through her grin. She doesn’t even think when she brings up her hand to brush Brittany’s hair from her eyes, “You’ve stolen all the sheets.”

“Sorry,” Brittany smiles into the touch, albeit a little lopsided, but she’s adorable nonetheless as she pulls the sheets from her to share.

Brittany rolls onto her side – unraveling herself from the sheets – and lays her hand on Santana’s hip. The sheets are barely covering the tops of her breasts and Santana can remember the exact moment last night when her face was right there between them.

She’s sure she could get back in there now, she doubts Brittany would even stop her. The sheets are barely hanging on so with one little tug, Brittany would be revealed and Santana could have her mouth on the blonde in no time yet again.

Sounds like a win for both of them!

“There’s a habit forming,” Brittany points out. She sounds a little more awake this time as she watches Santana with a weak smirk on her lips.  

If there’s a habit forming, fucking let it.

“Hey, you came into my room this time,” Santana says. Her hands inch closer until she can feel Brittany’s taut stomach. She’s warm and Santana fans out her fingers to feel more of her. Maybe she can put her mouth there instead? She can suck kisses all the way down her abdomen – slow and teasingly – until Brittany pushes her the rest of the way.

Yeah, that sounds even better than her first plan!

“You texted me at 3am with You up?” Brittany says smugly, “And we all know what that means. You wanted me to come in here and put it on ya.”

Santana blushes because she’s not exactly wrong.

“Yeah well, I wasn’t the only one who was a little needy,” Santana challenges as she starts to slip her hand down just past Brittany’s belly button, “Isn’t that right? How many times did I make you…”

Brittany’s smug grin quickly fades as Santana’s hand moves lower. A blush covers Brittany’s face and she fights the urge to buck her hips at the touch. She sputters a little for a reply and it makes Santana swell with pride. Anytime she can trip Brittany up is a moment to celebrate, it just never gets old and she’s always use to the roles being reversed.

“You’re trouble, Santana Lopez,” Brittany says playfully with her eyes narrowed.

“So are you,” Santana chuckles as she withdraws her hand and settles it on Brittany’s ribs.

Brittany flinches at the touch, the feel of Santana’s fingertips tickling a little at her side, but she focuses instead on her own trail up and down Santana’s arm.  

“I missed doing this,” Brittany tells her. Santana isn’t sure what this is, she figures Brittany means the sex because that has always been a main player in their thing second to crime and she can’t help but to agree.

“Yeah,” Santana she says because she feels like Brittany’s waiting on her to say something.

“Sex with you is the best,” Brittany adds wistfully.

Santana just nods this time. She can’t really concentrate on unpacking that when Brittany’s fingers keep trailing up and down her arm.

Her touch is featherlight but it’s the look on her face that does it. She’s a little sleepy and sated and everything about her just screams warmth. Santana really just wants to wrap up in her and lie in bed forever which should be a giant red flag for her, but she doesn’t move. She doesn’t roll away and she doesn’t push Brittany out of bed like she use to.

She just lies there and soaks this moment in. This is what waking up to Brittany every morning could be like: easy. There’s only been a handful of times where Santana’s let herself feel this and the thought makes her smile.

“See. Prison did make you soft,” Brittany teases gently.

Santana’s smile softens. Brittany’s words are like a reality check for her. Prison she said and it makes her think of the time she spent there and the heist and Dani and her talk with Quinn.

She has to get her head on straight, she can’t get caught up in Brittany again. She’s got a job to do, they both do and more importantly she has something to tell Brittany. Something she told Quinn she’d handle but hasn’t and the longer she waits the darker the storm clouds seem to get.

Santana rolls onto her side, “I gotta tell you something,”

“Mhmm,” Brittany hums as her hand glides up over Santana’s shoulder, along her neck, then goes to tuck dark hair behind her ear, “What is it?”

Santana licks her lips to speak again but the movement of her tongue captures Brittany’s attention and her eyes zone in on plump lips begging for a morning kiss. As she watches Brittany, she wonders if bringing up Dani right now is the best move. They’re enjoying themselves and she doesn’t want to ruin their morning by starting an argument – no matter how playful it might be.

“Prison did not make me soft,” Santana whispers.

When Brittany lets out a laugh, Santana knows it was the right move. God, she could watch her laugh on a loop in slow motion probably for the rest of her life and be completely okay with it.

“It totally did,” Brittany jokes as she pushes to sit up. The sheets fall and pool around her waist as she smiles down at Santana, “It’s okay though. I happen to find that face you make very cute.”

It’s another blow for Santana. She feels like a yo-yo, being drawn to Brittany and trying to find the will to push her away in one smooth motion. It’s hard for her to sever the ties when Brittany’s literally topless right now and staring at her like that. Then she goes and calls Santana cute? How can she keep from swooning? How can anyone possibly resist?

Santana Lopez is fucked.

“What face?” Santana wonders helplessly.

Brittany boops her on the nose, “That one.”

Santana frowns and it makes Brittany laugh again.

“Don’t worry about it,” Brittany assures her before leaning in to press a kiss to Santana’s dopy frown.

Then she’s flinging the sheets off of her and goes on the hunt for her lost articles of clothing and just like that, Santana’s worries are swept away for the moment all because Brittany said so. Whatever she was meant to bring up, she has long forgotten now.

Santana can do nothing but stare as a very naked Brittany wanders around her room. It’s a great sight to see and Santana rests back against the headboard with her hands folded behind her head. The longer she watches the faster her invasive thoughts seem to disappear and become replaced with nothing but Brittany.

When Brittany catches her staring, she swipes Santana’s tank top that had been discarded too and throws it at her face with perfect aim.

“Hey!” Santana squeals but it’s muffled beneath the top.

Brittany just giggles away as she slips on her shirt, “You want to go out for some breakfast with me?”

Santana’s heart flips at the question but she can’t tell if that’s good or not. They’ve gone out for breakfast before afterwards so what’s the big deal?

“Wait, what time is it?” Brittany rambles as she slips into her shorts next, “Can we still get breakfast?”

Santana eases a little because Brittany is just so Brittany. Of course she’s thinking about food within the first ten minutes of waking up and that’s all that this is. Their thing is supposed to be simple and easy so why the hell is Santana trying to complicate it?

“You can eat breakfast at any time these days,” Santana tells her.

Brittany shakes her head and mutters, “So confusing.”

“Yeah, it is. We can go though,” Santana answers, “But I have to shower first.”

Brittany glances over just as Santana finally gets out of bed. Blue eyes drag up and down Santana’s bare body with this hungry look which Santana can practically feel until she covers herself up with the sheet.

“You know, I can feel you doing that,” Santana points out through her smirk.

“You can feel more of me if you want?” Brittany flirts. Santana just rolls her eyes.

“I thought you were hungry?” Santana challenges with a hand on her hip.

“I am,” Brittany husks as she closes the distance and pulls Santana in close.

“For food,” Santana clarifies but Brittany just starts to litter her neck with kisses.

“Yeah. We can do that after,” Brittany mumbles against Santana’s skin. Her breath makes Santana shiver and the sheet falls from her grip and drops to the floor. Now that she’s completely exposed, she can really feel that nip in the air.

“Fuck Britt, it’s freezing in here.”

Brittany pauses and wraps her arms around Santana for warmth, “I’m sorry. I told you this place is a bitch to heat.”

“It’s a total mood killer,” Santana jokes and watches Brittany begin to pout, “Plus I’m pretty sure I just heard your stomach growl.”

Brittany looks down between them, “You couldn’t wait, could you?”

Santana giggles and starts to pull her towards her bathroom, “Come on. Maybe if you hurry there might be a little somethin’ somethin’ in it for you.”

Brittany beams at the possibility and quickly gets the water going.

 \\

 They’re at the café down the street awhile later and Santana’s already on her second cup of coffee. Brittany’s still trying to decide between pancakes and waffles while Santana just watches her behind the mug. There’s that crinkle between her brows that only pops up when she’s in deep concentration and it takes everything in Santana not to reach out and smooth it away.

“What are you getting, San?” Brittany asks for the third time.

“I told you already,” Santana chuckles as she snaps out of it, “I go for the same thing. You know that.”

“Don’t you want to switch it up?” Brittany asks without looking up from the menu. Her pointer finger drags along different menu items while she informs Santana of all her possible choices.

Santana just laughs, ���I know what’s on the menu, but I like what I like.”

“How can you be sure if you’ve never tried anything else?” Brittany questions.

“I have,” Santana assures her, “How about you focus on picking something before the waitress kicks us out?”

Brittany gapes at Santana, “She wouldn’t. Would she?”

They both glance over to their waitress who is leaning against the bar giving them the stink-eye.

“I’d like to see her try,” Santana says as she glares right back, “But hurry up, I’m starting to get hangry.”

It doesn’t take much longer after that before Brittany’s ready to order and the waitress’s spirits are instantly lifted. Also, it’s kind of hard for anyone to be annoyed with Brittany. She can charm the pants off of just about anyone.

“So I heard Mercedes is close to getting the revised camera plan from McCallister Security,” Brittany tells her like the heist is the perfect topic for small talk in such a public place.  

It must be because Santana perks up, “Really? She’s fast.”

“Yeah she is,” Brittany says proudly, “And the blind spot is almost done. Maybe in a few days it’ll be ready for a test run?”

Santana’s impressed by all the updates, “We’re so close to being millionaires. I can almost taste it.”

Brittany scrunches her nose, “Money tastes weird.”

Santana chuckles as she feels her phone vibrate with a new text. Maybe it’s Mercedes alerting her that she’s made a breakthrough? That’s the only thing that could make her day even better.

Quinn F. – Chairman’s Dinner tonight. Got Dani on the list.

Santana smiles devilishly at the text. She’s glad she’s wrong. Today just keeps getting better and better.

\\

After breakfast – which is more like an early  lunch by the time they get to the café – Brittany and Santana go their separate ways. Brittany has a few errands to run while Santana returns to the loft to do a bit of her own work.

At least, she had every intention of doing her own work but by the time she gets back to the loft she’s completely beat. Those three cups of coffee kind of had the reverse effect on her because she feels so lethargic now. She also blames Brittany and her magic fingers for keeping her up all night. In fact, she hasn’t really had much sleep the past few days since they started sleeping together again because someone always manages to slip into the other’s room in the middle of the night.

It’s safe to say that not much sleeping happens during those hours. She’s definitely not complaining. If she had to lose sleep over something, she’s glad it involves Brittany but it does take a toll on her after awhile.

“Hey Santana!” Tina greets as the brunette makes her way through the common area. Her old friend is busy at work at her station, crafting the mock necklace and she’s doing a damn good job of it on a closer inspection.

“Wow, great work!” Santana breathes out upon seeing it nearly done.

“Thanks,” Tina beams and nods over to Sugar who’s sidled up next to Mercedes, watching her work, “I’ve had to keep my eye on that one. I swear I’ve caught her wearing it at least twice now.”

Santana let’s out a sigh and looks to the pickpocket’s direction, “Sugar!”

Sugar jolts at the sudden shout and looks up, “What? Why are you yelling?”

“Keep your grubby little hands off of this necklace, got it?” Santana warns, “We’re not playing dress up. This is business and if this thing goes missing, so help me God, I’ll kick your ass myself.”

Sugar rolls her eyes and throws up her hands in defense, “I’m all the way over here. How am I going to – “

“Just don’t,” Santana cuts her off.

Sugar makes a disgruntled face while Mercedes chuckles to herself.

“Thanks,” Tina grins.

Santana just winks.

“Did you and Brittany have a nice time?” She asks next and Santana instantly freezes. Tina isn’t looking at her, too focused on her work, while Santana begins to implode.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Santana asks and her words are lined with suspicion.

Tina finally looks up with a confused frown, “Didn’t you guys go for lunch? I was just asking if you had a nice time, why are you being weird about it?”

Santana softens and goes to knead her brows, “Sorry. I’m just a little irritable. I haven’t been sleeping much.”

“Yeah I can tell,” Tina replies looking a little relieved that she was able to avoid confrontation, “Maybe you should lie down or take a bubble bath or something? Help you relax?”

Santana smiles, “That’s the best idea you’ve ever had.”

Tina looks a little offended by that as Santana heads upstairs.

\\

Santana feels a little guilty for heading straight back to bed for a nap while Brittany’s out working, so she decides to make those couple of phone calls she was supposed to. They suck about an hour and a half out of her relaxation time – who knew banks took personal security so seriously – but at least she’s done with them and she can finally get to that bubble bath she promised herself.

Santana decides to really make a moment out of this and lights a couple candles around the bathroom for a bit of ambience while she waits for the tub to fill. It doesn’t take long and when Santana slowly dips into the tub, the water feels just right. The bath bomb she used has turned the water a gorgeous swirl of purple dotted with clusters of suds while the aroma of jasmine and rose fill her senses as she relaxes back.

Tina was so right about the bath, Santana feels completely at ease. She wonders why the hell she hadn’t done this sooner as she glides her hands through the suds, letting the warm water wash away all her worries. After a moment, she rests her head back and closes her eyes.

Maybe she drifts asleep or maybe only a couple minutes go by when she’s suddenly jolted by the sound of her phone ringing. There goes all her peace and serenity as she quickly dries off her hand and grabs for her phone before the call ends.

When she sees it’s Brittany calling, some of that peace and serenity restores itself.

“Hey Britt,” Santana answers.

“Hi San. So I’m at the shops looking for that thing you wanted me to find but…I can’t find it,” Brittany rambles and no matter how kind of cute Santana thinks she sounds, she doesn’t have the energy to try and figure her out.

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about but I’m going to have to get back to you. I’m very busy right now.”

“What are you doing?” Brittany sounds like she’s pouting.

Santana sighs, “Things. Can you ask Q?”

“Quinn’s at work getting ready for that dinner event. What kind of things are you doing?”

Santana can hear the smirk this time but she brushes it off, “Important things, Britt.”

“How come I can hear an echo?”

Santana eyes grow wide and she sinks a little in the tub as if it’ll eliminate the echo, “I don’t hear anything.”

“That’s totally an echo.”

“It’s not.”

Brittany gasps, “You’re taking a bath, aren’t you?”

“No!” Santana tries but Brittany’s giggling too loud to hear her response, “So what if I am? You’re the on that told me to relax so that’s what I’m doing.”

“Awh, you should’ve told me. I could’ve helped,” Brittany teases and it makes Santana roll her eyes.

“Do you ever think about anything else?”

“Is that a trick question? You know your fine ass is always on my mind,” Brittany says suavely and Santana’s so thankful that she’s alone in the bathroom because she’s sure she’s a blushing fool right about now.

“You know, you’re partly to the reason why I need this.”

Brittany chuckles down the line, “What about me and what I need? I wanna relax with you in a tub too.”

The thought of sharing such a confined space with Brittany makes Santana sweat a little. Maybe it’s the warmth of the water or maybe it’s the prospect of reaching another level of intimacy; regardless, Santana’s open to it.

But soon her thoughts are interrupted by an incoming call. When she looks at her screen, a less attractive blonde is there and it makes her huff.

“You’re a mess B, but I have to go. Quinn’s calling.”

“Way to ruin the mood, Quinn,” Brittany grumbles playfully, “Can you at least send me a pic? Who knows how long I’ll be out here on the hunt for this thing. It’ll be the perfect thing to keep me going.”

Santana shakes her head, “Goodbye Britt.”

“I’m taking that as a yes.”

Santana lets out a laugh, “Maybe if you focus, you can hurry up and come home and join me.”

“But I’m an hour away!”

“Your loss then,” Santana smirks, “Bye Britt.”

“Fine. I’m going to remember this later tonight though when you’re begging me to – “

Santana swiftly hangs up on Brittany before she gets too flustered to think straight and connects the call with Quinn.

“Hey Fabr- “

“The Ego has landed.”

Santana rolls her head back and sighs, “What’s with everyone calling me about nonsense? What are you talking about?”

“That’s Dani’s code name: The Ego.”

“You could’ve done better.”

“Whatever. I’m just calling to update you. It looks like her and Rachel are really hitting it off.”

Santana scrunches her nose in disgust at the thought, “I can only imagine.”

“You talk to Brittany yet about all this? Also, can both of you just try to be a little quieter? I swear, I feel like I’m in the room with you two and I much rather not be.”

Santana sighs again, “Buy some earplugs, there are just some things we can’t help. And I told you not to worry about Brittany, I’ll take care of it.”

“So you haven’t yet..”

“Obviously not if I just said – “

“Hang on,” Quinn cuts her off to listen to something, “I just got word that we have to accommodate for Rachel’s impromptu performance. That’s a really good sign!”

“Doesn’t she always sing at these events?”

“Yes, but a stripped down version of You’re the One that I Want? That’s not on her usual set list. I bet Dani’s going to be her date for the Gala by the end of this.”

Santana looks impressed, “Damn. She really does move quick. Protect your ears, Q, I heard she’s a wailer.”

Quinn just laughs before they say their goodbyes and Santana can finally get back to her peaceful soak. But before she puts her phone away she glances down at the suds slowly starting to fade and decides to snap a teasing photo to send off to Brittany before they completely disappear. She gives the camera a sultry look – one that’s known to rile Brittany up in the best of ways – and snaps the picture, giggling to herself as she sends it off.

\\

When Brittany returns to the loft later that night, she makes her rounds greeting the others down stairs. Usually she’s up for a bit of chit-chat, but not tonight. Tonight she keeps it brief; just checking in on how everyone’s day went before she makes her way up to Santana’s room. When she pokes her head in, she finds the brunette lounging in a silk robe on her bed scribbling in a notebook.

“Hey,” Brittany greets and the sound of her voice has Santana looking up through long lashes.

“Hi,” Santana says back as she closes up her notebook. Her eyes take in the slight blush covering Brittany’s cheeks and the way her eyes never quite reach hers, too busy lingering on her lips or the way her robe falls open.

She isn’t wearing anything underneath for that exact reason. Brittany’s put her in a similar situation once before, but their will powers are much different than it once was. Back then, just imagining what could happen did the trick but not anymore.

Brittany just continues to stare at the stripe of exposed skin as she says, “I got your picture.”

Santana quirks her brow at the sound of Brittany’s tone. She’s already so wrapped up in her daydreaming, she doesn’t even notice that she’s practically undressing Santana with her eyes.

Santana loves it and goes to reply casually, “So you’ve said.”

“Oh yeah,” Brittany chuckles and she actually looks a little nervous, “It was a nice picture.”

“Just nice?” Santana asks teasingly.

“Better than nice!” Brittany rushes out, “It was great. My new wallpaper actually.”

The slight nervousness in Brittany’s tone makes Santana’s confidence grow, “Of course it is.”

“How could it not be?” Brittany licks her lips as they fall into silence.

Santana’s trying her hardest not to laugh at Brittany’s obvious arousal and how she’s kind of just lingering in the doorway staring like a weirdo. If Santana knew sending a risky photo of her in a bubble bath would cause Brittany to short circuit like this, she would’ve done it a lot sooner.

She decides to press a little more and let’s out a faux sigh, “So can I help you with something or you just going to stand there all night and stare?”

Brittany’s eyes finally land on Santana’s and it’s like a switch has flipped within her. There’s that same cocky grin Santana’s used to when Brittany asks, “You wanna make out?”

Not the smoothest thing she’s heard Brittany say but it makes her swoon nonetheless. She’s always loved a girl who knows what she wants and although the teasing is great fun, she also loves when they just get straight to the point.

Santana smirks as she beckons Brittany over with the crook of her finger, “Get over here.”

Brittany barely gets the door closed behind her before she’s whipping off her leather jacket and Santana’s tugging her in by the hem of her shirt. It’s like a sigh of relief once she feels Brittany’s lips on her after going all day without. She breathes her in while Brittany settles on the bed too and nips at her bottom lip.

“I’ve been thinking about you all day,” Brittany whispers hotly against Santana’s lips. She tangles her hands in Santana’s hair and feels that it’s still a little damp from her bath. It makes her wonder just how long she was in there for and it also makes her want to kick herself for being out later than she thought.

“Oh yeah?” Santana husks as she slips her thigh between Brittany’s. She doesn’t miss the whimper Brittany lets out and smiles into a searing kiss.

“Mm, yeah,” Brittany breathes out, “You looked so sexy in that picture.”

Santana smirks and starts to trail wet kisses along Brittany’s jawline until she’s just below her ear, “You really missed out earlier.”

Brittany shivers at the feel of Santana’s breath tickling her but the thought of Santana being anything but innocent in that tub really gets her going.

“What’d you do?” She asks.

Santana chuckles lowly and rolls Brittany on her back so that’s straddling her hips now. Her robe falls open all the way to reveal that she’s only wearing a pair of black, lacy panties.

Brittany’s mouth waters as her hand smooths up Santana’s toned stomach then drags down the expanse. It makes Santana shudder and she falls to brace herself on one hand. It’s the wrong move because now her breasts are very much in Brittany’s reach and she knows once Brittany gets to work on them, it’s hard for Santana to keep the upper hand.

She still tries valiantly though and flirts back, “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

Brittany’s almost too preoccupied with palming Santana’s chest now to even notice she said something, but a hard roll of Santana’s hips get her attention again.

“I really, really would,” Brittany says before she’s taking Santana’s nipple into her mouth. Santana instantly grinds her hips into Brittany again at the feel of her tongue on her. Dark blue eyes peek up, mischievous and filled with lust. She alternates from sucking and running her tongue over the hardening bud, loving every little noise Santana lets out.

“Jesus Britt,” Santana groans while her hand scratches at the back of Brittany’s scalp, holding her there. She’s so conflicted because Brittany’s mouth feels so good on her, “I was in the middle of seducing you.”

Brittany snickers against Santana’s breast and kisses her way to the other, making sure she gives them both equal treatment. Her hands splay across Santana’s upper back before she sinks her nails in and drags them down. Santana arches at the feel and Brittany sucks harder, marking her.

“Uh-huh,” Brittany mumbles half-heartedly.

“Damnit,” Santana moans out of frustration again, “I wanted to do you first.”

“Shouldn’t have these out in the open like this,” Brittany mutters against Santana’s chest, “You know your boobs are very distracting for me.”

“Yeah, I know but…” Santana trails off as she gets lost in the feel of Brittany’s hot mouth doing glorious things. For a moment she gets swept up but she’s able to shake away the haze and pushes Brittany down roughly.

Brittany cocks a brow at her forcefulness, a smug grin begins to form.

Santana’s quick to pin her arms above her head, “I said I wanted to do you first.”

“Okay baby,” Brittany just relaxes in Santana’s grip with this excited smile on her face, “It’s hard to argue when you’re like this.”

Santana’s heart skips a beat upon hearing her say baby again. A warmth rushes over her and settles right between her legs before she dips down for a kiss. It gets hot and heavy fast, just like it always does, and soon Santana is pulling at all the offending articles of clothing Brittany still has on.

“Take these off,” Santana practically growls.

“You do it,” Brittany whispers and Santana just about melts on the spot.

The blonde leans back a little so she can give Santana some room to work at tending to the buttons of her blouse. She can see the hungry look in those beautiful brown eyes, but Santana’s careful movements surprise her. She was totally anticipating losing another expensive top to Santana’s impatience, but she moves slow and with delicacy until she’s able to slide the article off Brittany’s shoulders.

“One down,” Santana says before she snaps Brittany’s bra off with accuracy and drops it on top of Brittany’s blouse, “That’s two.”

Brittany bites her lip as she watches Santana slide off of her lap. Santana’s eyes never leave Brittany’s as her hands move instinctively to the button and zipper of Brittany’s trousers. She begins to tug them down Brittany’s long legs along with her panties, slow and sensual. Brittany does the little butt wiggle to offer some assistance but Santana’s pretty experienced when it comes to getting Brittany naked, she barely needs any help at all.

Once Brittany’s pants joins the rest of her clothes on the floor, Santana settles between strong thighs. She’s licking her lips because Brittany’s already glistening with arousal and she really just wants to taste.

“You’re so wet already,” Santana whispers as she leans in closer.

Brittany’s watching intently from above. She feels like she’s shaking and if she wasn’t so turned on by Santana taking control like this, she’d just ask for her tongue and grind away. But she lies still and nods almost wistfully.

“Been like that all day,” Brittany informs her.

A shallow gasp escapes Santana as she looks up at Brittany, “All day?”

“Uh-huh.”

Santana tuts and lays a wet kiss to the inside of Brittany’s right thigh, “Should’ve come home sooner.” She then bites at the sensitive skin there and Brittany whines at the feel. It makes her smirk as she lays another soft kiss there before moving on to Brittany’s left thigh, “I could’ve helped.”

Brittany gulps at the sound of her own words being thrown back. She’s biting down so hard on her bottom lip that Santana wonders if it’ll leave a mark. She’s breathing so heavily now and her pretty pink nipples are just begging for Santana’s mouth next, but they’re going to have to wait their turn. She stays giving the insides of Brittany’s thighs all her attention and she knows she’s working Brittany up by the way her knees tremble every so often.

Brittany’s face is so flushed as she continues to watch Santana work. Santana gains such an ego boost knowing that she’s being watched like that so she tests the boundaries and moves a little higher, closer to where Brittany needs her most.

“I can’t believe you’ve been like this all day,” Santana mumbles before pressing a kiss just above Brittany’s clit. The blonde goes to jut her hips but Santana’s hands keep her anchored as she asks, “Can I taste you?”

“You can do more than just taste,” Brittany tells her almost pleadingly.

Santana smirks at her reply and doesn’t waste another second before she runs her tongue through Brittany’s slickness. She hums at the taste while Brittany let’s out a moan. God, she loves going down on Brittany. Just everything about her is so sexy; no matter which way she moves her tongue Brittany’s canting her hips searching for more.

And Santana gives it to her. She gives her everything she has because that’s what Brittany deserves. She deserves to feel so fucking good just like she makes her feel. Santana alternates from flattening out her tongue and making broad strokes to sucking at her clit.

“Fuck Santana,” Brittany whines as her thighs tighten around Santana’s head. She’s got her hand griping at Santana’s hair, holding her in place, while she starts to squirm in Santana’s hold.

Santana grins and starts to up her pace. Brittany’s soaked – like Santana’s cheeks and chin is covered in her – and it turns her on so damn much. To be the reason Brittany’s so close to losing control – to be the one making her feel like this, there’s no better feeling.

“Tongue,” Brittany instructs hurriedly, “Give me your tongue.”

Arousal shoots down Santana and settles low between her legs upon hearing Brittany’s request. She does as she’s told, but she keeps Brittany’s hips still as best as she can while she dips into Brittany’s heat tongue first.

“Yeah, just like that,” Brittany sighs contently as she relaxes.

She’s trying her hardest to grind into Santana, but the brunette keeps her steady and does the work for her. Soon Brittany’s building back up and her hand is threading through Santana’s hair again, pulling her in close because she just can’t get enough of her.

Santana can tell she’s close because her grip gets tighter and tighter and her hips are moving and Santana abandons trying to keep her still. Instead she just focuses on her movements and doing everything she needs to make Brittany feel good. For a split second, Brittany chances a look down and catches Santana’s eye. She stares and there’s just a glimpse of a smirk before she’s throwing her head back and arching off the bed.

“Santana!” Brittany cries out and it’s loud. Like Santana’s sure the whole loft heard her, but she doesn’t have time to focus on that when she’s got Brittany clenching and writhing about from a mind-blowing orgasm.

Santana slows her motions down, teasing her with soft flicks of her tongue and tender kisses to her clit, until Brittany’s pushing her away. She goes to pull Santana up her body, but her limbs aren’t really working. Santana chuckles lightly and does the rest of the work for her.  

“You taste good, Britt-Britt,” Santana smirks as she licks her lips.

Brittany shivers through a lopsided grin before she pulls Santana in for a heated kiss. She can taste herself on Santana’s tongue and it makes her hum lowly.

“You need to do that more often.”  

“What?” Santana chuckles, settling in Brittany’s embrace.

“All of that,” Brittany sighs. She rests back against the pillows in a daze, “So hot.”

Santana shrugs her shoulder trying to be nonchalant but her cheeks pink at the compliment, “Pretty sure everyone downstairs knows how you feel, talk about me being loud.”

Brittany doesn’t even look fazed as she sits up a little, “I can’t help how my body reacts to you.”

Santana laughs out at that, “Clearly.”

Brittany only shrugs as she wiggles her thigh between Santana’s legs.

Her playful reply fades as she feels just how wet Santana is. She’s been so wrapped up in the come down and pillow talk that she didn’t notice that Santana’s drenched. Brittany hikes her leg up further and Santana bites her lip at how Brittany’s strong thigh is pressing so perfectly against her.

She’s actually throbbing for Brittany and the blonde knows it.

“Like this,” Brittany says with her hands on Santana’s hips, rocking her against her thigh.

Santana frowns although it feels so good, “I need more.”

“I know,” Brittany replies but she keeps Santana’s hips grinding against her, “Like this first.”

Santana whimpers but complies and rocks against Brittany’s thigh, coating her in arousal. She glides easily and the feel of Brittany’s hands on her waist, strong and sure, turns her on even more. She tries to adjust herself a little so she can really start to ride her, but Santana’s knee bumps against Brittany’s still-sensitive center and the blonde’s movements stutter at the feel.

Santana notices and does it again. It doesn’t take long before Brittany’s grinding against her leg too. It’s like they’re competing to see who will break first as they both roll their hips in perfect rhythm.

The room fills with echoes of their breathless moans and desperate sighs, but Brittany gives up her earlier statement and rolls Santana onto her back. The brunette lands with this sexy groan and Brittany smirks as she sinks into her two fingers deep.  

“Fuck!” Santana breathes out.

Her hands reach behind her head for something to hold onto while Brittany pumps into her with these deep strokes. She’s hitting all those spots only she can and it’s embarrassing how quickly Santana winds up.

Brittany’s staring down at her with her lips parted like she’s hypnotized by every little moan that escapes Santana. She smiles but it’s soft, it’s tender, it’s too intimate.

Santana’s stomach flips while her heart beats harder, faster. Her hand drifts down to feel just how wet Brittany is again. The blonde’s motions falter and Santana uses that to slip inside of tight, heat.

“Shit,” Brittany sighs and starts roll her hips in time with her pumps, “Come with me.”

Santana’s too breathless to speak, she just nods. She works hard to keep up with Brittany’s pace, curling her fingers to hit that spot that makes Brittany call out her name again.

“Britt,” Santana whines as she builds and builds, “I – I’m close.”

“Me too,” Brittany whispers and it doesn’t take too many more thrusts before they’re both tensing and riding out that wave.

Santana braces herself as she guides Brittany to her, wrapping her arms around Brittany’s shoulders. Her skin shines with sweat and she can feel Brittany’s ragged breaths as she settles into the crook of Santana’s neck. She presses a kiss to Brittany’s shoulder and hugs her tight.

“I get what you mean about being tired,” Brittany mumbles a moment later. She turns her head a little and looks up at Santana with this sleepy grin, “I’m beat.”

Santana chuckles and tries to reach for the sheets to cover them. They’ve left the lights on and she kind of regrets that now because she’s so close to falling asleep, she’s that comfortable in Brittany’s arms and so sated.

“Let me get the lights,” Santana whispers.

Brittany just hums, her eyes already closed. Santana smiles fondly and slides out from under Brittany to pad across the room to the light switch. It’s then that she notices her phone light up with a new text. On her way back to bed she swipes into the new message and sees:

Quinn F. – The song worked! Updating the Gala seating chart now.

Santana grins proudly before discarding her phone and snuggling back under Brittany’s arm. There’s a content sigh as the blonde pulls her in closer and Santana eases into the embrace.

Fuck a bubble bath, this is how you really relax.

\\

The next day starts off with even more great news.

Mercedes was successful in acquiring the revised camera plan from McCallister Security so now, not only is the blind spot practically done, but they’ve also got an updated layout of where all the cameras are too. They can basically move around undetected while Mercedes guides them like an all-seeing eye.

With all the great progress they’re making and the awesome sex, Santana feels like she’s on top of the world!

Sugar and Tina are out grabbing lunch for everyone while Brittany and Quinn gather around Mercedes to check out the new camera plan.

“Woah, they’re everywhere…” Brittany points out, “How many did they add?”

“A lot,” Mercedes answers, “But I’ve got access to all of them. I’ll see what they see so we won’t need to worry about a thing.”

Brittany smiles and goes to bump fists with the hacker while Quinn leans in next.

“Oh, did you get my scan of the updated seating chart?” Quinn asks Mercedes.

“Let me see,” Mercedes nods and clicks around until the seating chart is brought up on the bigger monitor, “This one?”

The three of them look it over, but Quinn and Mercedes’ voices fade as Brittany spots a familiar name. She leans in closer, wondering if her eyes are playing tricks on her because there’s no way in hell that what she’s seeing is correct.

Right next to Rachel Berry is the name Dani.

Brittany stiffens as everything begins to click. There’s literally no possible way that Dani could be there because their social circles aren’t even on the same level. There’s no way it can be a coincidence either and that probably upsets Brittany the most.

This is an inside job and she knows exactly who the mastermind behind it is.

Quinn watches with this disappointed frown as Brittany works it out on her own in silence. Safe to say, Santana didn’t hold up her end of the bargain.

“Santana!” Brittany calls out suddenly as she straightens up. She looks up at Santana’s bedroom door, waiting for her to come out.

Quinn and Mercedes can hear the anger in her voice which is so unlike Brittany. They look to each other worriedly before Mercedes says, “She’s outside by the rocks.”

“Thanks,” Brittany huffs before she storms in that direction.

Mercedes’ brows rise, “I didn’t think she got mad, but damn. She’s pissed.”

Quinn let’s out an exhausted sigh, “Yeah. You don’t want to get on her bad side.”

Mercedes shakes her head, “What’s her problem?”

Quinn has an idea and slumps into the empty seat next to Mercedes, “Just a little lack of communication, I suppose. Can you take me through the camera layout again?”

Mercedes nods and the two of them keep their heads down and get back to work.

\\

Outside, Santana’s sitting on a rock smoking a cigarette just watching the waves when she hears gravel crunching behind her. When she turns, she finds Brittany stomping her way over with this scowl on her face. It makes Santana quickly put out the cigarette and hold up her hands in defense.

“I’ve only had one, I swear!”

Brittany huffs out of annoyance as she stops before her with her hands on her hips, “I don’t care about that. What’s this about Dani being Rachel Berry’s escort?”

Santana’s heart drops to the pit of her stomach. She fucking forgot to tell Brittany, fuck! She does her best to recover, but panics and goes with not knowing a thing.

“I don’t know?” Santana shrugs, “Maybe she finally realized the whole starving artist thing wasn’t a good fit and decided to pimp herself out to annoying celebs?”

Brittany continues to glare, clearly not moved by Santana’s acting.

“What? I don’t know!”

“Don’t lie to me, Santana. I’m not an idiot.”

Santana bites her lip at the sound of Brittany’s tone. She’s really stepped in it this time. She hasn’t seen Brittany this pissed in long time and she kind of doesn’t know how to handle it. She clearly fucked up, but like – her pride.

She tries to stand her ground but her expression gives her up. She looks to Brittany guiltily and it makes the blonde let out an exhausted sigh.

“Please tell me this isn’t what I think it is. Tell me it’s not.”

“I was going to tell you –“

“Damnit, Santana!” Brittany groans and her hand goes up to press at her forehead, “When? After it was all said and done?”

Santana isn’t used to hearing Brittany raise her voice and it kicks her into gear.

“Today, I swear! I’ve just been a little distracted with the whole,” Santana waves to Brittany and the blonde laughs bitterly at the excuse.

“No, don’t pin that on me. The sex was your idea.”

Santana gasps, “Uhm no. You’re the one that jumped me in the garage.”

“Yeah, after you put my hand up your skirt.”

Santana silences; now she’s getting heated too.

Brittany just shakes her head, “Why are you doing this? Why are you involving Dani?”

“Why not?” Santana snaps, “She deserves it.”

“You’re supposed to leave that up to karma,” Brittany dismisses.

“Well the bitch was taking too damn long for my liking. It isn’t fair that she’s just going about her life as if she didn’t nearly ruin mine.”

Brittany’s taken aback; her eyes roam Santana like she’s looking at someone she doesn’t recognize. She knows Santana’s all about getting even, but she didn’t think Santana would ever leave her out of a plan. It’s like trust has been broken or something and she hates how it makes her feel.

“You’re going to get yourself tangled up with her again,” Brittany argues, “I’m not going to stick around and watch it all go to hell just because you’re pissed off.”

Santana rolls her eyes and crosses her arms, averting her gaze elsewhere. She can’t take being called out like this. She can’t take how she’s made Brittany so angry.

“You frame her and I walk,” Brittany says seriously.

Santana’s surprised by her words ,“You can’t. We’re in this together. You’re…you’re my partner in crime.”

“Partner?” Brittany questions behind a bitter laugh, “Partners tell each other things like this, Santana. They communicate! But all you want is revenge and that’s going to get us caught.”

Santana’s shoulders fall a little as she reaches out for Brittany, “We’re not getting caught, Britt.”

Brittany pushes Santana’s hands away and looks out at the water, “I can’t believe I fell for this. I’m so stupid.”

“Don’t say that,” Santana frowns, she tries to reach for her again, “She deserves this.”

Brittany shakes her head, “Not like this. You don’t run a job within a job. That’s like Crime 101.”

Santana’s frown morphs into a grimace. Of all people, she wouldn’t have thought Brittany would be the one giving her a grief about including Dani. She would’ve thought Brittany would be into it, would be down for giving Dani a taste of her own medicine. To see her take this stance now, it frustrates and confuses her.

“She sent me to jail. Jail, Brittany. You have no idea what that’s like.”

Brittany softens and turns back to Santana, “And you wouldn’t either if you would’ve just let me take care of it.”

Santana shies away from the too-tender look Brittany gives her. She can sense where this is going and she much rather have Brittany argue with her about how much of a dumbass she is for not telling her about the side plan.

“I can handle myself,” Santana reminds her.

“I know you can. Believe me, I know but I could’ve helped,” Brittany says, “I could’ve made it disappear and you wouldn’t have had to go through that but – I don’t know – you just left me behind.”

“For fuck’s sake,” Santana groans like the floodgates of the past have opened up, “Don’t. We were joined at the hip! Anything we did, we did together and I didn’t want to drag you down with me if shit went sideways.”

“What happened to being partners?” Brittany questions, “What happened to it’s you and me?”

Santana’s jaw tightens. This is where her reasoning for her actions gets a little unclear, because Brittany’s right. When Santana decided to leave, it was out of the blue and ever since that day she’s been flip-flopping between excuses. She’s always avoiding the truth.

“I wanted to be my own person. I already have to deal with the expectations of being Hector Lopez’s daughter. I just wanted to be Santana, not Santana and Brittany,” Santana explains and she’s not completely wrong. But it hurts saying the words aloud, it’s like she’s sinking her own ship.

She knows her place though, she knows what she can’t have and what she can’t have is Brittany.

“Since when did you ever want that? You’ve never expressed wanting to do anything on your own,” Brittany asks through her confused expression, “We were great together, like Bonnie and Clyde but like…girls.”

Santana lets out another exasperated sigh, “Why are you bringing this up?”

Brittany’s equally exhausted, “Because we’ve never talked about it and I’m tired of pretending that it didn’t happen!”

Her words hit Santana like a punch to the gut. This is like her worst nightmare becoming reality but Santana digs in her heels, “It’s in the past, Brittany. It has nothing to do with what’s going on now. It has nothing to do with Dani becoming Rachel Berry’s date.”

“Are you kidding? It has everything to do with it,” Brittany laughs as she throws up her hands, “You wouldn’t have met her if you weren’t so stuck on proving a point.”

“Oh?” Santana looks to Brittany expectantly, “And what point was that?”

Brittany pauses to regain her composure. She’s giving Santana the worst glare Santana’s ever seen, but Santana takes that moment to speak up again.

“I left because I wanted something different and you don’t get to be mad at me for that.”

Brittany shakes her head and says simply, “I don’t believe that shit for a second.”

Santana throws up her hands next, “You tell me then. Seems like everyone around here knows so much more about myself than I do. So you tell me, Britt: why did I leave?”

Brittany stares back at Santana and it’s like she’s trying to decide whether or not she wants to hold back. She’s known Santana for years and the one thing she’s certain about is that the girl is a runner. At the first sight of someone caring about her, she bolts so Brittany has had to find the balance of caring but not too much that it scares her off.

But she doesn’t know if Santana’s ready to hear that just yet.

“You didn’t want something different. You wanted someone different. You wanted the complete opposite of me,” Brittany says instead, “And that was Dani.”

“There’s that Grade-A Pierce Confidence again,” Santana quips with the clap of her hands, “Thinking it’s always about you. Well it’s not and you’re wrong.”

“She didn’t give a shit about you and you loved that,” Brittany presses.

Santana avoids Brittany’s critical gaze and looks out at the waves, “She had a plan. We were struggling, you remember? We were stuck doing shitty cons and I wanted something bigger and she had it. I’m a con-artist, of course I’m going to go with her.”

“And you just so happen to come up with that the night after we slept together?” Brittany asks.

Santana stiffens. This really is her worst nightmare coming to reality.

“What are you talking about?” Santana plays it coy as she turns back to face Brittany, “We always slept together.”

Brittany crosses her arms and takes a step closer to Santana, “That night was different.”

“What night?”

Brittany narrows her eyes, “Don’t make me spell it out for you, Santana. You know what I’m talking about.”

And Santana does, it was the greatest and worst night ever. A night she’s tried to push away but can’t ever forget.

“Seven years ago,” Brittany begins, “We just finished up with the Schuester Dealership job. It was our first with lifting cars and you were so nervous about it because it was your dad’s thing, not yours.”

Santana remembers the night clearly, remembers every single feeling. She remembers the nerves. She remembers Brittany being there for her every step of the way. She remembers the sex in the back of the Fastback afterwards.

“You were great though, a natural, and we came back to the loft with that bottle of Clicquot and churros. Remember? We called it our classy combo,” Brittany giggles but her smile falters, “We got super drunk on expensive champagne and your kisses tasted like cinnamon sugar. Then while we were having sex on the poker table you stopped and told me you loved me.”

The hairs at the back of Santana’s neck stand on end, “No. No, I didn’t.”

She can’t own up to those words that slipped out of her so easily that night, she can’t put herself in that position to be hurt, to be heartbroken. What she has with Brittany is supposed to be simple and easy, they’re not supposed to be tangled up with love.

“Yeah, you said that back then too,” Brittany replies and her expression is unreadable, “You blamed it on the alcohol and I let you do that. I tried to tell myself that you were just high on the thrill of things, you didn’t mean it. We were just partners in crime who occasionally slept together, no real feelings there. Right?”

Santana swallows dryly. She wishes she could just melt into the ground or that Brittany would forget everything from that night and they could go about their lives. It’s the most embarrassment she’s ever felt and now here Brittany is trying to dissect it all.

“Right,” Santana nods but the word sounds foreign to her.

“I remember how you downplayed the hell out of it the next morning and then you were gone. You started to push me away and I thought our thing was ruined. I thought maybe it really was the alcohol talking and then what you said to Quinn the other week about love…it all makes sense now,” Brittany frowns, “Kind of. I guess I still don’t really understand. Why would you say that if you didn’t mean it?”

“People say stupid things when they’re drunk,” Santana lies, “It’s not a new concept.”

“Of course,” Brittany says as she looks out at the water. The tide must be coming in now as waves crash on the rocks, sending spray into the air.

Santana wants to run, run far far away but she’s stuck in her spot. She doesn’t know what to say, she’s never been called out like this and she’s honestly terrified of the truth coming out. She rather just push those feelings away than to embrace them, because what if she’s the only one who has them?

What if Brittany is pressing so hard because she wants to cut and run? They have a good thing as is, why complicate it?

“You should’ve forgotten about it. Moved on,” Santana says like it’s simple, “That’s what I did.”

Brittany looks up at her, like really looks at her and asks, “Did you though? Look where you are, Santana. You came right back here, right back to me. Do you even know why you did that?”

Santana softens for a split second like there’s a crack in her walls. She speaks truthfully, “This is the closest I have to home. I feel safe here. I feel safe with you.”

Brittany’s baffled and she looks like she’s about to either laugh or cry.

“Don’t you see how fucked up that is? The teasing and the flirting is one thing, but you can’t say something like that and expect me to believe you don’t have feelings for me. Not a single one?”

“God Britt, I don’t know! Okay?” Santana shouts, “Is that what you want to hear? I don’t fucking know.”

“Honestly, no it isn’t what I want to hear,” Brittany replies evenly, “You do risky things all the time but when it’s your heart on the line, you just run away and I don’t get it. Why won’t you just be honest with me for once?”

Santana takes a step back. She needs space or air or something. It’s like she can’t breathe with the way Brittany’s staring at her so expectantly. What she’s asking of her, she makes it sound like it’s so easy to do. To just wear your heart on your sleeve and put yourself out there.

Santana can’t do that.

“I don’t know what you want me to say. Do you want me to apologize?” Santana asks, “You’ve known me for years, you knew what you were signing up for.”

Brittany looks hurt by her words as she takes a step back too. She shakes her head and looks down at the ground and it’s in that moment that Santana realizes she might’ve just ruined this beyond repair.

“You know what? It doesn’t matter now,” Brittany says simply, “You’ve always been too focused on the heist to see anything else so why change now, right? This isn’t about us anyway. This is about you and your vendetta.”

What surprises Santana more than Brittany’s words is the fact that she turns her back and begins to head towards the loft.

“Don’t walk away from me,” Santana finds herself saying.

Brittany rounds on her, “Why? Doesn’t feel good, does it?”

Santana softens. Her hand itches to reach out for Brittany’s, to tug her back and apologize but she’s too damn stubborn for her own good. She doesn’t know where to begin, there’s so much she needs to say but hasn’t.

“You’re letting your need for revenge cloud your judgement,” Brittany tells her, “You’re so smart but you’re being such a dumbass right now. Dani’s going to send you to jail again.”

“She’s not,” Santana urges and this time she actually does reach out for Brittany.

The blonde looks down at Santana’s fingers wrapped around her wrist and she pauses there like she’s trying to remember how it feels to be touched by her. When their eyes connect it’s like Santana’s trying to say everything she can’t, but it’s not enough this time.

“I can’t do this, Santana,” Brittany says solemnly as she slips out of Santana’s hold, “I think this should be our last job together.”

[racewinnerlandonorris]

imagine thinking “little” lando was shit on a race where someone literally took him and multiple people out (and that made george get his first points) and that his second race was a sadly miscalculation from him during a session that should’ve been redflagged (and that most likely would’ve gotten him a pole and a race win). looks to me that that last anon is the shady little b*tch. you can recognise someone’s talent and sucess without bashing others. some people are truly born with so much hatred you might as well ignore them (sorry for the long rant). keep doing amazing bestie! hopefully one day the 3 brits will stand in the podium together

lol anytime i hear someone call him little lando now my heart just melts it’s not even an insult hahahah all the (mean) anons know how to do is talk shit and be hypocrites lol like so they not realise they sound delusional as they type or do they really think they’re on to something? never apologise for the rant bestie they are always more than welcome in my inbox! honestly that would be dream podium (again i go with the patriotism, i’m not patriotic guys)

[1ddiscourseoftheday]

🌊 Tues 18 Feb 🏅

Harry played a heartwrenchingly beautiful version of Falling barefoot in a pool of water at the Brits, a whole watery scape with a piano waterfall, then got drunk and crawled around on the floor! She has the range, darlings, never doubt it. He wore THREE stellar outfits, a suit and lavender jumper and pearls plus Mary Janes, head to bare toes in white lace with lace gloves, and bright yellow with purple ruffles like a little fashion clown?! Rounded out by the lavender nails, perfect with all three. Oh plus his sparkly jumpsuit showed up again in the opening skit (along with Harry's flawless comedic face acting so bless) so FOUR looks! Harry Lambert said "We have...been teasing elements of the tour wardrobe...and one of tonight’s looks is a taste of things to come"; it's hard not to suspect he means the lace one, which is another rendition of the blouse and braces outfit we've seen him performing in the whole Fine Line era but hey who knows.

Then, done being serious and making us all Cry, Harry was like TIME TO GET TIPSY, and I think that really was a wine glass full of tequila he was drinking so way to get it done babe, he got told to sit down and stop wandering around to all the tables chatting and stealing snacks, got wine spilled all over him (RIP yellow suit), was like to hell with it my suit's trashed anyway and was then seen crawling about to see everyone but he was still in good shape for the after-party so I'd say it was just silliness. He upstaged most of the attendees with his hijinks and costume changes but did not, sadly, win in his nominated categories tonight.

Niall didn't wear vivid yellow but his blue velvet suit and unbuttoned shirt were not boring, he got up there and presented an award with his furry chest just fully right out (and pressed it up against award winner Lewis in a very sweet and sincere looking celebratory hug.) He said he was there to support "his boys" but he meant Harry and Lewis not "the boys" to mild dismay but mostly everyone just enjoyed him saying nice things about Harry's album. He did the full red carpet chat tour and mentioned that he would be getting very drunk and hanging out with friends later, and, like the reliable guy he is, he was most recently seen getting started on just that.

And 1D sisters were on fire today! Not like in an appropriating AAV way but like, literal sisters: Gemma was Harry's date (and on his other side was Jenny of Canyon Moon fame, aka Kid Harpoon's wife) in her own stunning suit and gave us reaction faces to die for, and Ruth Payne showed up on Twitter to spill some TRUTH ("I bet the band category are glad that 1D aren’t together still") and got chatting while she was there. "This is the darkest place I've seen in the past in regards to comments about my brother and everyday it makes me worry if he's strong enough to take that much negativity in public daily" she said, and in answer to a fan who replied that some can and do support Harry, Niall, Louis and Liam, Ruth added "and Zayn," bless.

Everyone is very sad that Louis didn't show up to be amongst his industry peers and obviously anytime there's less Louis at an event I'm unhappy too but I will point out that it was within the last month that he straight up told us he wasn't planning on doing any red carpet events because he didn't like them and didn't want to, so like. I'm not exactly shocked.

BUT THAT'S NOT ALL THERE'S STILL SO MUCH MORE HONTENT jeez Harry:

The tabloids reported that Harry was held up at knifepoint on Valentine's Day which may or may not be true, all that's actually known is that a guy in his age category was and it was near Erskine House, and on the one hand I don't want to wish that on some unknown person but also gosh I hope that didn't happen to Harry, what a terrible week. He wore a black ribbon with his red carpet outfit presumably for Caroline, Eroda tweeted one (1) thing out of all the Harry things today, a picture of Harry's baby doll strappy shoe clad feet, he was seen via potato cam hugging both Nick Grimshaw (who he reportedly spent some friendly time with as well) and Niall, and the full Vanity Fair behind the album interview videos are up and it's just Harry getting to talk and ramble for ages so that's lovely and there's an interview out with Kid Harpoon also about making Fine Line, so many things are said! But there's no room to cover them! Oh well!

[harryshollands]

HERE FOR YOU  ( T.H )

Requested:  Nope!

Warnings: Angst, Fluff

Pairing: Tom Holland x Reader

Summary: A few months after your break up with Tom, you run into his brothers at the grocery store. Paddy manages to convince you to come to his football game by bringing up the pinky promise you’d made almost a year ago.

A/N: Let me know if you want a part two! I really really love writing imagines that involve Paddy and Y/N being adorable. This is no exception. Feel free to send me requests for the Hollands + Haz!

Masterlist! Send a Request!

Word Count: 2.3k

You were doing good. You were drinking your water, you were getting the right amount of sleep and your skin was pretty clear.

That was the overall definition of good, right?

But by your definition, your heart was hurting and you couldn’t bring yourself to chuck out all of the crap that your ex-boyfriend had left you with. It sucked. You’d given five years of your life to Tom Holland and now you had to find yourself once again. Your routine had always revolved around Tom. When you’re dating a movie star you take what you can get.

During your post-breakup slump, you’d managed to eat all of your junk food and now you needed to stock up in general, because once you ran out of sweet stuff you managed to eat all of your cereal.

So, here you were, in the middle of Tesco’s with a shopping cart full of cereal, ice cream, frozen meals and milk, trying to choose between two different types of Oreos.

“Y/N?”

You spun around, glancing at the person who had called your name before breaking out into a grin.

“Hey there, kiddo” You joked as Paddy flung himself into your arms, squeezing you tightly as if you were about to disappear.

“Paddy! Jesus, where are you- oh! Y/N! Hi!” Sam was rushing after his sibling, coming to a halt as he saw Paddy wrapped around you.

“Hiya” You laughed awkwardly, setting Paddy back on his feet as your finger’s gripped your shopping cart in an attempt to calm your nerves.

“I made it to the finals” Paddy blurted, a grin on his face as he watched your own light up.

“I knew you would! Congrats, Paddy! That’s so cool” You congratulated, giving him a high five as Sam glanced around the isle awkwardly. 

You and Sam had been the closest. You had considered him your best friend, so when Tom had ended everything with no warning you both snapped apart.

“Can you come?” 

“Huh?”

“Can you come to the game? You’re always there and we miss you” Paddy clarified, a hopeful look painted on his face paired with his best puppy dog eyes.

Your face fell slightly, but you quickly masked t with a small smile.

“I miss you guys, too, but I can’t just turn up, Padster. It’s different now” You told him softly, attempting to let him down easy before his older brother piped up.

“You should come. You’ve always been the only one who can stop Mum from screaming at people on the other team. Dad made her stay home at the last game” Sam admitted, trying not to laugh at the memory.

“I don’t know, you guys-”

“Tom is still filming in Italy so you won’t have to see him. Pleaaase, Y/N? You promised to be at all of my big football games” Paddy cut you off causing Sam to choke on a laugh at his little brother pulling out the promise card. 

Everyone knew that you kept your promises, and so, reluctantly you nodded your head, caving in to the youngest Holland’s puppy dog eyes and fake pout.

“Yes! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!” Paddy cheered, hugging you before rushing out of the aisle in search of Harry who had been flirting with an employee in the freezer section.

“I think you made his day” Sam joked as he gave you a grin, you smiled back awkwardly before nodding.

“He definitely made mine” You mutter softly causing Sam to frown.

“I’ll text you the details for the game. Maybe we could get lunch beforehand? It’s been really weird without you” Your eyes lit up at the thought of hanging out with your best friend again.

“Righty-o, my number is still the same.” You agree, a goofy grin your face matching Sam’s.

“I’ll leave you to your big Oreo decision. Let me know who wins, yeah?”

And that was when you knew that you were going to be okay. With or without Tom, you were going to get back on track and you weren’t going to let him stop your friendship with Sam just because of a break-up.

“I’m stuffed” You laughed as you split the check for lunch with the Holland family. Harry let out a groan of agreement as Nikki and Dom tried to persuade you to let them pay for your meal.

“Really, I can pay. You guys don’t have to pay for me when we go out anymore” You stated, your tone soft but firm and you saw Nikki’s face drop. The reality of the break up was back in her mind.

She’d loved you. You were always a daughter to her, and she really thought that one day you’d be her daughter-in-law.

“I want to” She replied, equally as firm as she squeezed your hand, pressing a kiss to Paddy’s forehead and walking over to the counter. 

Sam gave you a grin from beside you and by the time his mother had come back, it was time to pile into the minivan and head to Paddy’s game.

“He’s got this” You muttered to Nikki as she sat beside you, passing her camera to Harry for photos.

“I don’t trust those punks on the other team. Broke poor Toby’s ankle last year, you remember how distraught Paddy was for his friend? Disgusting. Should be banned” The woman grumbled causing you to giggle as the kids poured out onto the field.

You were always the calm one at these games. It was always you. But not today.

You decided to stand up and cheer.

Sam’s eyes were wide and Dom watched in amusement.

“You’ve got this, Paddy!” You shouted as the game began, Nikki grinning and standing up with you.

It didn’t feel like it used to. It felt better, you felt at ease and happy.

Harry was laughing to himself as he recorded the two of you screaming encouragement at his brother, not thinking twice before posting it on his Instagram story.

Nikki was laughing loudly and holding you close to her, almost like she was scared that you would slip away from her and her family again. But you wouldn't. Nothing could make you leave them.

Tom was whining as Harrison drove carefully through the crowded parking lot at the football field.

“Just get out, you div. Walk over there while I find a park” Haz grumbled, eyes squinted as he tried to find a small spot for his car.

“Good idea. Good luck!” Tom called to his best friend as he rushed out of the small Prius, slamming the door behind him.

It felt weird being back in London so soon after his break up. He’d pretty much left the day after he’d called it quits with you due to filming. It felt abnormal.

The brit weaved his way through the crowds, looking for a glance of his family, but his eyes landed on you. Cheering next to his mom whilst his family laughed along.

Tom felt like he couldn't breathe.

Seeing you again was like a kick to the gut.

You were with his family.

Not that he forbid them from seeing you, but he thought that you’d all go your own ways considering he broke up with you. 

It really was because of the distance. It sucked. He’d let some things that he didn’t mean slip out, too, and then you cried and broke down whilst he wheeled his suitcase out the front door, not looking back.

Before he even knew what he was doing, his feet were carrying him towards his family.

Harry was the first to spot him.

“Look at what the cat dragged in!” He laughed as he pulled his older brother into a hug. Tom laughed along with him before hugging Sam and his dad.

His mom had her hands over her mouth in shock. She hadn’t expected him to be home for another three months. You, on the other hand, were trying not to frown at the sight of your ex-boyfriend.

Nikki glanced at you before pulling her eldest son into a hug and turning back to the game, screaming tactics at her son and his teammates.

“Hi, love” Tom greeted you softly, his eyes drinking you in. 

He didn’t think that you could have changed much but he was wrong. 

You looked stronger. You oozed capability.

“Tom.” You nod back before shrieking as Paddy scored a goal.

“GOOD JOB, PADDY!” you screamed causing Tom to jump a little.

Paddy had won. Everyone was ecstatic, except for Paddy. You’d all gone for celebratory ice cream and Paddy was quiet the whole time.

“Why are you back?” Paddy asked Tom suddenly, the whole group falling silent. Tom frowned, seeing the grumpy appearance his little brother was maintaining.

“I wanted to see your game, Pads, what do you mean?” He questioned feeling slightly dejected as Paddy frowned at his reply.

“It took me two months to see Y/N/N and get her to come to the game. I don’t want her to go away because you’re here” Paddy replied bluntly, looking between his brother and you.

You narrowed your eyes at the child lovingly, shaking your head.

“Padster, I would’ve come anyway. I’m really happy to be here, but your brother came all this way for you and I think he’s feeling a little left out. I’m not going anywhere anytime soon but Tom is. Catch up with him while you can” You told the kid, and he listened. 

Tom looked at you in awe as his brother finally warmed up to him again.

God, he missed you.

“But I don’t want you to go again” Paddy mumbled causing your heart to shatter again.

“Hey now. I’m here right now, okay? And that’s what counts. Don’t blame your brother. Breakups are a two-way street” You console, pressing a kiss to Paddy’s forehead before motioning to Tom.

“Now go and hug him”.

The whole table was back in their bustle of a conversation, Paddy and Tom getting along marvellously and you and Sam cackling about Harry’s blurry photos from using the wrong lens.

“So you guys are still close, huh?” Tom asked you eventually. You glanced at him with a grimace on your face.

“No. I haven’t seen them in a few months. I’m only here for today”

Tom grinned and you already knew what he was thinking.

“I’m not here for you. I’m here for Paddy”.

You glanced around the table, looking at the faces that were permanently ingrained in your memory. It was time for you to go and let them be, you thought to yourself. You leant across the table to Nikki, a small smile playing at your lips.

“I think I’m going to head out now” You inform her, trying not to linger on the way that her smile turned sad.

“Are you sure? You could always crash at our house, sweetheart. You always have a home with us” The mother of four offered, trying not to sound desperate. You shook your head, playing with your fingers.

“No thank you, I think I’m going to call it a night” You whisper back before pushing your chair back, gaining the attention of all of the family at your table.

You cleared your throat and smiled awkwardly,

“I’m going to head home now. It was nice seeing you all again” You address the table, a sad smile on your lips as Paddy rushes over to you.

“Do you have to? We can make Tom go? Will you stay then?”

“Pads, you can’t boot your brother out” You laugh lightly, pulling him into a hug and smoothing his hair down.

“I’ll see you guys around eventually, yeah?” You mutter, pressing a quick kiss to the youngest Holland’s temple bone. 

One by one, the family stands up and hugs you before sitting down once again. Tom doesn’t know what to do with himself as he says goodbye.

“I’ll see you around, Tom”.

The young adult watched as you walked out of the parlour, his eyes following you until you were out of sight.

Nikki looked at him with a frown, shaking her head at her oldest son.

“Why did you have to let her go again? It hurts every time, Tom. Every godforsaken time” The woman sniffled, leaning her head on Sam’s shoulder and grabbing napkins to dab at her tears.

Tom looked at his mother, jaw slack and completely flabbergasted at his family’s drop in mood. They were all less lively than they had been only moments ago.

“I didn’t- she wanted to leave. I’m confused.” Tom admitted, his eyebrows furrowing as his mother continued to sniffle.

“I haven’t seen her since you left her, Thomas. I loved that girl like she was my own. She would walk in the other direction if she saw us in public. Can’t even look at us, Tom. I thought that one day we’d be sitting in a church watching you marry her and now all I have is a photo of her from Christmas last year and the birthday present she got me. Today was the first time we’ve seen her since everything happened and I saw the way you looked at her as soon as you saw her with us. I thought that maybe- just maybe you would stop her, talk to her- something! Anything! But you didn't and it’s like I just lost a child all over again.” Nikki ranted, shaking her head and standing up from the table, brushing off her husband’s attempt to comfort her by grabbing her hand.

“I’m glad you’re home, darling, but I wish that it was different.”

And with that, Nikki paid for their ice creams and told Dom that she’d see them all at home, leaving Tom and the rest of their family in silence.