#kirk is so boyfriend shaped

[iheartkirkhammett]

he's so boyfriend it hurts

[killerqueenhetfield]

I think they’re pretty

[metallicaislife]

Long Day

A/N: Other than the 80's I am not as familiar with the eras, so I hope this the correct era in the gif 🥲 hope this turned out good!

Requested by: Anon

Genre: Hurt/Comfort

Word Count: 834

Warnings: none, the hurt comes from your own feelings and Kirk comforts you :')

It was one of those days. I counted down the time until I could clock out and go home. But of course the time dragged on as if I was running through molasses. If anything could go wrong, it went wrong. Between phone calls, emails and coworkers interrupting me anytime I got into a grove of my usual work load, I definitely wasn't going to finish everything meaning this shitty day would bleed into tomorrow making it not only a current problem, but it would be future Y/N’s problem too. 

All that to say I was overwhelmed and in tears by the time I clocked out. As always I called my boyfriend from the car on my drive home. 

“Hey baby.” He answered. 

“Hi, Kirk.” I said, attempting to keep my voice even, but I could hear the shakiness as I spoke the two words.

“Hey, is everything okay?” He asked, worry was evident in his voice. 

“Um… yeah everything is fine.” I replied. 

“I don’t believe you… Just get home safe and you can tell me all about it.” His voice was so comforting. I knew a warm hug awaited me and it made more tears fall. 

“Okay.” I croaked, then hung up. 

I safely pulled into the driveway of the house Kirk and I had been living in for about a year now. I grabbed my bag and made my way inside. I slipped off my shoes, and hung my bag. Kirk came around the corner and fresh tears fell as he pulled me into a warm embrace. He cradled my head and rubbed my back. After I composed myself I pulled away. He used his thumbs to wipe at the tear stains on my cheeks. 

“So everything is fine, huh?” He teased with a small smile. 

“No… I mean, I’m just overwhelmed. It was one of those days ya know.” I said. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” He asked. Kirk was always so kind, and respected my boundaries,  he would give me space when I needed to mull over things before confiding in him. 

“Yeah, can we just snuggle and order some take out?” I asked. 

“Of course, baby. Whatever you want.” He smiled at me, I smiled softly for the first time that day since leaving for work in the morning. 

I changed into something more comfortable and crawled into bed with Kirk. We faced each other, legs intertwined as he drew soft shapes on my face. 

“What happened today?” He asked softly. 

“We were super busy, so I got behind on my normal workload, which will affect tomorrow since I’ll need to catch up and hope we don’t get lots of calls or emails to the front desk. I just hate getting behind on things. I know my bosses are aware of how hard I work but with days like these I feel inadequate, like I could’ve done more to accomplish everything.” I relayed my day as a fresh set of tears formed, “I feel like I have imposter syndrome, that they’ll realize I’m not an asset to the company and they’ll just get rid of me.” 

“Hey, hey. No, none of that. I mean your feelings are valid, and you’re allowed to feel those things, but please don’t dwell on them.” He started as he traced up and down my spine, “you work so hard, and you couldn’t have known that you would get an influx of the other things outside your usual workload. If your bosses don’t see all the hard work you do, that’s on them. You can’t control that, even though we all wish we could control how others view us. You gave it your all today and accomplished what you could given the circumstances. You’re not a robot and nobody should expect you to be able to control all these outside forces just so you can finish your whole work load in the allotted 9 to 5 hours. For what it’s worth, I’m proud of you, you did a great job.” He finished his little speech with sweet praise. I moved closer burying my face in his chest. 

“Thank you.” I said, though it was muffled. He nuzzled his head into mine. 

“Any time, baby. Whenever you feel that way, I’ll be here to remind you that you’re doing your best and absolutely killing it.” He replied. We stayed in the embrace until my tummy gurgled indicating I was hungry. 

“Let’s get you fed, then we can snuggle some more, maybe put a movie on. How does that sound?” He asked, pulling back enough so he could look down at me. 

“That sounds perfect.” I replied with a genuine smile. 

He kissed my forehead and left me in bed as he went to call in our regular take out order. 

I’ll always be grateful for my sweet Kirk who is always willing to help bring me back down to reality when my head gets away from me with the negative thoughts.

Thank you for reading! Feel free to request or chat :)

-Isa

[jules-and-company]

aye you thought i was done with tas ? i will never be free from this torment.

season 2. unfortunately. maybe after watching that i can finally move on and stop being haunted by this fucking stupid cartoon

episode 1 : spock deadly ill, another one for the follow-up episode bingo.

jim, calling starfleet command : pickuppickuppickup

starfleet command : oh my god what do you want

jim : RING RING MOTHERFUCKERS ALL HANDS ON DECK MY BOYFRIEND IS DYING

starfleet command : again ?!?!?

bones, it's been four seasons. we know you care about him. "don't worry, we'll get the cure soon" there's twenty minutes left of the episode out of twenty-seven. will you though. "what good doctors even are ? without our drugs and technology, i might as well be practising in the middle ages." "if you really believed that, bones, you wouldn't still be practising after 25 years." can y'all stop. with bones's complicated relationship with his job. please. oh and there's bomb asteroids too. oooh girl you know it's about to go down when jim kirk starts citing precise passages of diplomatic conferences. you know how you can tell that bones was WORRIED SICK that this time they would really lose spock ? because the second he's better they start arguing about whose constitution is better between vulcan and human (and spock of course saying he prefers vulcan) and bones just goes "he's as stubborn as ever..." and has the most sincere, warm laughter. thank u tas for this and solely for this.

episode 2 : shady "observer" aboard the ship, call him lego alien the way his body is detachable.

it's only now that you ask yourself this question ?

this show isn't real

and now they're talking to god. not that it's unusual

kirk and spock : *are in danger*

scotty :

"i am humbled" brother I am humbled by the amount of madshit crazy content i've been absorbing for the past four hours.

episode 3 : it has been exactly seven seconds of episode. they're already being attacked. romulans btw. they're going through an big ass energy fold and scotty is WORRIED

they're having a little party <3. "we used to pull that off all the time at medical school, with trick glasses" sir respectfully what the fuck were you doing back at the academy when you weren't studying. you know the crew is T I R E D when food falling off of your fork is enough to send an entire table of senior officers into a fit of laughter.

this show ain't real part 2

whoever is waging the prank war is DETERMINED. i love that bones uhura and sulu seem to regularly have time-off together, besties. there's a holodeck ??? i fucking knew it ! they never showed that on tos but i fucking knew it was there. it's the ship's computer who became sentient who's waging the prank war, not only does it have terrible humour but it also said "fuck around and find out" to spock. jim cannot believe he's being sassed by his own ship's computer. "when i find out who's the clown behind all this, i'll put him in sickbay for a week !" is the most bones threat ever.

this show ain’t real part 3

why is bones so weak to the cold like my man is always « leave me alone to die i’m frostbitten anyways ». the enterprise truly is a little fucker because now she’s getting revenge on the romulans by sending them on a wild-goose chase after an enterprise-shaped balloon. jimmy boy why are you having a panic attack on bridge ??? how it was a counterprank.

[andrea-lyn]

The Recs (Less Travelled)

I’m excited to bring you the first installment of my ‘roads less travelled’ recs! I will be doing another round of this, probably once the Ted Lasso fic tag hits about 25 pages, and then I’ll also grab a couple more fandoms to collect in there! 

The Rules:

Each fandom/pairing was sorted on Archive of Our Own by completed works. Anything recced here was not in the first ten pages when sorted by kudos at the time of reccing. There may be some more well-known authors on this list, but the specific fics I’ve picked are ones that didn’t crack that top ten or just didn’t get much traction and I think deserve it, so hopefully I have also balanced it out with other under the radar (and still great!) works. As ever, I have a pinned post of my other recs (none have been duplicated from there), so you can also check those out! Under the cut you’ll find 10 recs in each fandom for:

Raven Cycle

Roswell New Mexico

The Old Guard

Inception

Star Trek (mainly Kirk/McCoy)

The Raven Cycle

savor all the little pieces by littlelionvanz

“Since when do you garden?”

Ronan snorted, “Since I grew up on a fucking farm, genius. Jesus who gave you permission to pursue higher education.”

the old grip of the familiar by littleseal

"There is a single black feather and a printed out picture of Gansey, Blue and Cheng standing in front of some fucking monument Ronan didn’t care enough to remember the name of. Gansey sent it to Ronan’s phone some time ago, but it sat in his messages until Adam picked it up and grinned at it so hard that, one afternoon later, Ronan cursed and kicked and glared his old printer back to life in order to print it out.

Fuck, he thinks, I’m in love with a hoarder."

Adam collects things. Ronan is in love with him.

No Sweeter Innocence Than Our Gentle Sin by gansey_is_our_king

Ronan Lynch has wanted to kiss Adam Parrish for a long time.

(alternately titled: four times that Ronan could have kissed Adam)

Cheers to Another Seven Years! by skyermirth

Adam left Henrietta for Harvard and never returned. Now, seven years has passed, and an unexpected work assignment has brought him back to a place and people he hardly recognizes.

Row, row, row your boat by emmerrr

“What. Why are you smiling at me,” he says suspiciously.

Adam shrugs. “You’re cute.”

“I’m not cute, I’m terrifying.”

“Terrifyingly cute,” Adam says.

and now the world is ours to take / and every single move is ours to make by thatlittleblackcat

"Adam was the scientist, Ronan was the data, and Orphan Girl was the key that explained the strange outliers that Ronan presented, his previously unexplainable actions."

//

Adam sorts out his feelings, Ronan helps him, Gansey is the number one dad friend, Blue is the number one mom friend and Henry tries to make Ronan smile. Otherwise known as the story of how Orphan Girl became Opal.

All These Things You Make Me Feel by SilverOpals394

It was late. Adam could feel the long day catching up to him as he left Boyd’s, all his energy exhausted. When he started his car, the tape deck whirred to life once more. He sighed and raised his hand to turn it off, but before he did a soft melody began to play.

AU in which the mixtape Ronan made for Adam only plays the murder squash song until Adam realizes he's in love with Ronan, too.

Ways to Communicate by Jalules

Blue Sargent reflects on an early memory (and gets busy with her boyfriends.)

(The two things are related, trust me.)

Hold Me Closer, I'm Safe in Your Arms by actuallyronanlynch

“You wanna tell me why I had to hear from Henry Cheng that my boyfriend was at the hospital?” Adam hissed, though his voice wasn’t as acidic as it could’ve been. Ronan took small victories where he could.

“You don’t have a cellphone,” Ronan pointed out flatly. “It’s not like I could’ve gotten a hold of you.”

arts and crafts and the inevitability of death by sunshineinthestorm

Adam comes to the public library in search of a study spot, not a boyfriend. 

But it must be his lucky day—because he ends up with a bit of both.

 Roswell New Mexico

a conversation between insignificant others by Bellakitse

“Hey…have you noticed that our boyfriends are madly in love with each other?"

“You noticed that too, huh,” she answers dryly, letting out a huff of reluctant amusement.

***

Forrest and Maria share a drink and a conversation and start a friendship.

Own Personal Hell by BeStillMySlashyHeart

Now that Isobel's getting the hang of her telekinesis, Michael decides to test out his telepathic abilities. It backfires. Badly. Now Michael's trapped inside his own mind and only one person can break him out.

Drop the Hammer by brightloveee

Max makes a new friend at the shooting range, who turns out to be even more bad-ass than he expected.

(Takes place mid-S1)

Boys Like You by forgadgetsandgizmos

Curly, dirty blond hair (the mere description ‘curly’ felt like an injustice) twisted in every direction off his head, a sharp contrast with the scruff darkening his strong jawline and scowl-ridden face.

Alex made a mental note to compliment Maria on her excellent taste in men.

—

Or, Alex has coffee with Maria's one-night stand, a man who he definitely does not have a crush on.

let's exchange the experience by lostin_space

Michael decides they need to quarantine.

OR

Michael floods Alex with love and care over and over and over.

This Is Hardcore by Anonymous

Michael makes a proposal. Alex accepts. Michael wonders what the hell he’s gotten himself into.

i don't know what to think (but i think of supernovas) by Milzilla

michael discovers that the console can talk. then, he discovers it can do far more than that.

iridescence on skin by Lire_Casander

In a world where (almost) everyone has a tattoo on their right wrist with one set of coordinates that point to the place where their soulmate is born, Alex thought he wouldn't be any different. He couldn't be more mistaken.

He has two.

The Real Thing by elliebird

Max checks on Michael the morning after Michael saves Max’s ass from Wyatt Long and his dumbass buddies. He sees more than he’s supposed to.

Written for a Tumblr anon who one of their friends walking in on them or anyone of them finding out about Michael and Alex in an interesting way 

Sundering by romancandles 

“You know it was just an Air Force balloon, right?” says Alex.

Michael smirks. “That’s what they want you to think,” he says, with a wink.

The Old Guard

Peer Reviewed by ishandahalf

[From:] Journal of Medieval Studies (jms.eds@jms.com)

[Subject:] Ad-hoc note from the editor

I have noticed an uncommon level of animosity in your responses to your reviewers (or rather, one reviewer in particular). I am writing to ask if you would please do your best to keep your interactions civil. In fairness, I have also sent a similar request to the reviewer you seem to have this friction with. I trust you will both try and remain more professional in the future.

Again, thank you for submitting your work to this journal.

Sincerely,

James Copley, PhD

Editor-in-Chief

Journal of Medieval Studies

An (accidental) academic epistolary romance as (inadvertently) documented via a (theoretically) rigorously blinded peer review process.[citation needed]

third for a word and the song keeps going Macremae

It was honestly shaping up to be a pretty uneventful year before the Vatican got on Nicky’s bad side.

Or: three times in 2008 that the team genuinely thought about killing Nicky if only to get him to shut up about the changes to the Catholic English Mass and his unrelenting opinions on them, and one time Nile did.

Apex Predators In Island Ecosystems (Freeman et al., in press) by Sixthlight

Palaeobotany PhD student Nile Freeman and her supervisor Joe al-Kaysani are invited to billionaire Stephen Merrick’s new project – a theme park full of cloned dinosaurs. What could possibly go wrong?

This Rough Magic by Marivan

When Joe came to Scotland to study the sea, he did not expect to also encounter a beautiful man claiming that A. he’s a selkie and B. they’re married because Joe picked up his scarf.

It sounds like a fairy tale and that’s a problem. Because Joe’s a scientist. And selkies don’t exist.

Wars for the broken by Yuliares

Five years into his exile, Booker is joined by a companion he never expected to meet. Together, they try to work on healing.

Sometimes they go down to the sewers just so she can scream and scream. “I like to hear it echo,” she explains. “Underwater, you can’t hear anything. Here, at least I can be heard.”

“I don’t feel like a warrior anymore,” she tells him, throwing bread crumbs at pigeons. “I feel broken.”

“You’re still a warrior,” he says roughly. “This is still fighting.”

a good (eighth) impression by deanniker

Over the next few months, Joe runs into Nicky every so often at the farmer’s market. Some weekends Nicky doesn’t make it, because of his work schedule - Joe doesn’t understand it because he doesn’t ask, though he does start to recognize when one of those missing weekends is coming up because Nicky will stock up on things with longer shelf-life. When they do run into each other, they make small talk and move through the stalls together.

Joe doesn’t mention it to Lykon when he stops by, because it is kind of weird, that Lykon’s ex-boyfriend texts Joe things like - If you’re here, the apples look particularly good this week and thank you for that recipe, I did not know what I was going to do with that much couscous

Or,

Joe wouldn't usually consider starting anything with his best friend's ex, but as long as they keep it casual, it shouldn't be weird... right?

get back to where you once belonged by tenderjock

Nile takes a sip of her cappuccino and closes her eyes.

(Booker and Nile get that coffee. Life happens, along the way.)

a house; a home by mehm

“Is this a kidnapping?” Joe asks as Nicky checks both their seat belts. “Like, I don’t mind. It’s just not quite what I expected for my birthday.”

In which Joe gets a birthday surprise, because that’s the stuff you have time for when you and the love of your life become mortal at the same time.

the ties that bind by damaskrose

“There’s a story I heard many times,” Andy begins, “in the Mediterranean. Threads of fate and three sisters. One to spin, one to measure, and one to cut.”

Clutter And Croutons by flawedamythyst

Joe and Nicky have an argument, and then Nicky talks to Nile about what it really means to be in a relationship for 900 years.

Inception

My Big Fat Slightly Annoying Wedding by jibrailis

Arthur and Eames elope for ~tax reasons. Certain people in their lives are not happy at the lack of a wedding.

Remember Sydney by pathera

When Eames shambles into the safe house outside of London, he finds a red light blinking on the phone.

For the inception_kink prompt:

Arthur is on a plane which is about to crash. No way anyone is going to survive. Instead of panicking he calmly calls the team's office and gets the answering machine. He hangs up before the plane crashes.

Give me Arthur's last message to the team.

 (TW: Character Death / Angst)

Of Such Deceitfulness and Suavity by delires

In which emotions manifest themselves in unusual ways.

YO, K2tog (it's like a code) by lazulisong

“Oh my God,” moans Arthur. “I’ve paid less for Somnacin. Good Somnacin.” A horrible thought strikes him. “How much is the yarn --”

“I want you to have an unguarded reaction,” Eames tells him, and pulls him up from the floor.

(They run an extraction on a knitter.)

hit the ground running by orphan_account

"I travelled halfway around the world for you. I dealt with the French for you."

Valley by wldnst

It's an old story: a knight, a prince, a kingdom in peril.

If This Is Rain Let It Fall On Me and Drown Me by Brangwen

We used to be so brave, Eames thought. Of the two of them, Arthur had always been the more fearless.

a gentle familiarity by jollypuppet

Two weeks later, Eames is on his doorstep with bad Italian takeout and a grin, and Arthur tells him he can sleep on the couch.

Your Crisis Cannot Be Completed As Dialed by sevenimpossiblethings

Arthur doesn't do snow, Ariadne is determined to be as Midwestern as possible, and blizzards make cell phone service unreliable.

Let’s Say I Do (I Do) by xsilverdreamsx

There were, perhaps some things worse that this, Arthur thinks, as he glares at the letter in his hand with his name printed clearly in bold ink, indicating his presence in two weeks for his esteemed marriage to one William H. Eames, III, at St. Catherine's Church in London, England.

Star Trek (predominantly Kirk/McCoy)

Show the World That Something Good Can Work by knune

Leonard McCoy is a doctor, not a personal assistant, and maybe that's why he can't stand working for Jim Kirk.

It's in the little things by winterover

Bones is bemused by a persistent secret admirer.

"Wedding" Away with It by pendrogon

One morning, Bones wakes up and he's single. By the same afternoon, he's married to Jim Kirk for Arbitrary Fic Reasons(TM).

How Long Will You Stay (For Your Whole Life) by withthepilot

Jim Kirk, deputy director of the Enterprise parks and recreation department, sees all of his hard work fall to pieces when budget specialist Leonard McCoy arrives from the state capital to cut Jim's budget and threaten the livelihoods of his colleagues. But thanks to a major parks project, Leonard finds a place in the department, as well as in Jim's life—and when all is said and done, Jim doesn't want him to leave.

All-Time Favorite by mardia

What to do when your best friend suddenly starts making new friends. 

Joy Ride by Cards_Slash

While running for their lives from an alien species Kirk had accidentally enraged, they come across a car. And well, if you were to come across a car while being chased by aliens that wanted you dead, and you possessed some lingering knowledge of how to drive a car similar to said car, you would have decided to drive it toward the nearest cliff too.

Also a gunfight.

Syncytia by epistolic

He’d signed up for Starfleet on an impulse, but Starfleet meant James Tiberius Kirk: the first – and second, and third, and fourth – big mistake of Leonard McCoy’s life.

Renovation by canistakahari

Jim has a whammy put on him by an alien death ray and he suddenly craves domesticity. He's crazy with longing to shop at space!Ikea and get potted bamboo and he starts looking into adopting AND HE HATES HIMSELF AND CANNOT CONTROL THE SHIT. Luckily, McCoy is drunk all the time and plays house.

17:08 by butterflycell

She'd watched the news holos with a sick feeling, searching for information that was completely obvious in its absence. Amidst the reports of the the Enterprise's miraculous recovery and the damages sustained, there had been next to nothing about the crew or her captain. Jim had been mentioned only in passing, his name shied away from as his first officer limited interaction to the bare essentials.

The Honey of Hybla by shrift

"Bones, prepare to be my date."

[iheartkirkhammett]

loml

[whatiwillsay]

HYMN FOR TOMORROW - A Dianna Agron Playlist

Rozzi - Hymn for tomorrow

I got baggage on my shoulders, you say Girl, let go And I been the bitch with the bad weather, you say Life is a record, play a new song

Rozzi - Orange Skies

Say goodbye Baby, take one last good look at orange skies Greater love you had, you shoulda held on tight Now there’s nothing you can do Orange skies that should be blue

HAIM - Want You Back

Some things are long forgotten Some things were never said We were on one endless road But I had a wandering heart I said we were opposite lovers (Said it from the beginning) you kept trying to prove me wrong (Said you’d always see it through) and I know that I ran you down So you ran away with your heart But just know that I want you back

Sharon Van Etten - Seventeen

Down beneath the ashes and the stone Sure of what I’ve lived and have known I see you so uncomfortably alone I wish I could show you how much you’ve grown

HAIM - Los Angeles

New York is cold I tried the winter there once, nope Clearly the greatest city in the world But it was not my home I felt more alone

Angel Olsen - Shut Up Kiss Me

And don’t delay We could still be having some Sweet memories This heart still beats for you Why can’t you see

Jessie Ware - Ooh La La

Everyday, everyday, everyday I look For your car, to pick me up, on the avenue Driving round, take me out, listening to the music Put your lips on my cheek, that would make me happy Ooo la la Open up the door, you know I like it Ooo la la Chivalry was dead but you revived it

Perfume Genius - Slip Away

Don’t look back, I want to break free If you’ll never see ‘em coming You’ll never have to hide Take my hand, take my everything If we only got a moment Give it to me now

Oh, ooh, love They’ll never break the shape we take Oh, ooh Baby, let all them voices slip away

Your Smith - Wild Wild Woman

I tried to leave her hiding, all strung up I tried to keep her quiet, but she’s screaming inside of me I tried to keep her hiding, all shut up I tried to keep her quiet But she’s a wild, wild woman

Twin Shadow - Saturdays (ft HAIM)

Traveled around a bit Making my chrome heart say Know what could make me stay? Know what could make me sit? Maybe we’re a fault line Maybe we’re a fault line ready to break Maybe you’re a time bomb I don’t care what your boyfriend say

King Princess - Hit the back

Well I’m a star but you’re an icon A dirty girl with lots of passion Staring at my fingers while I talk to you And I don’t care if you degrade me 'Cause after all, you are my safety And everything you touch just feels like yours to me Ain’t I the best you had?

Lorde - Supercut

In my head, I play a supercut of us All the magic we gave off All the love we had and lost And in my head The visions never stop These ribbons wrap me up But when I reach for you, there’s just a supercut

Maggie Rogers - Say it

I knew it when you looked my way That I’d be begging you to stay I couldn’t say it to myself I couldn’t say it to myself I fought that burdened pain away I held on when you moved away I couldn’t say it to myself I couldn’t say it to myself I couldn’t say it I couldn’t just say it

Lola Kirke - Omens

Our fire is still smokin’ Never came, then all too quickly I don’t need to see one more omen I already know just what you mean Get ahold of yourself I don’t want you to be somebody else I can’t get ahold of myself Cause I don’t want anyone else

Jenny Lewis - Do Si Do

Turn up the stereo 'Till everything rattles, ooh Life is a disco, a mambo Put on your day glow

HAIM - You Never Knew

Go on and say it Was my love too much for you to take? Well I guess you never knew what was good for you Don’t keep me waiting, say the words that you’re too scared to say I guess you never knew what was good for you

Shura - The Stage

And it’s so romantic. And I’m so pathetic. I can’t see the stage, Cause I’m looking at you.

And we’re done with music, So if you’re assuming. You’re coming back with me, Then baby yes you can.

Kelsey Lu - Due West

Didn’t know my feet were too big for my shoes Running in them led me to bruise Falling over Running home to you You had both my fingers and toes turning blue So afraid of cutting me loose You’re holding onto me You’re holding on Due west, I’m headed on this road Due west, just cruise as far as I can go to California, California, California Never looking back, goodbye (goodbye) A list of all the reasons why I wear them through I do it all for you

submission ⬆️⬆️⬆️

THAT’S SOME SWIFTGRON SHIT IF I EVER SAW IT!?

[feverinfeveroutfic]

chapter twenty-three: flight or fight

“Every couple that loves each other very much will fight at some point.” -my dad about 14 years ago

Sam kept the sheet of rice paper close to her as Cliff walked her across the street. Even with the closeness to the San Francisco Bay, she believed it would snow at any given moment from the heavy dark blanket of thick clouds over them; meanwhile, she held onto his hand with her free one. Every so often, she took a glimpse down at the paper and the rose scrawled in soft pencil. Even as a young guitarist, he could draw quite well, as if he had been doing it for years.

She thought about the recent drawings she had made, namely the ones she made for her first tier drawing class, and she struggled with shading with the graphite pencils. Alex filled it in even with a bit of the graphite and he was able to resemble to a genuine rose, complete with those pointed petals and a pair of fine little leaves. His penmanship was quite neat but still scratchy with the rush of an autograph.

“You with me?” Cliff called back to her as they reached the street corner. Sam lifted her head in time for the curb right before them, and they stood side by side. She kept the paper next to her chest. She wondered why Alex didn't mention the fan club given she had sent in those papers two months before and thus they could've had enough time to give her something as a member of their new club, but then again, he was in a hurry and he needed to be home.

No sooner had that thought crossed her mind when she recognized Alex himself right across the street, and with the yarmulke still upon his head as well. He stood at the curb as if he awaited a ride from someone, or the city bus back to his place. Cliff saw him as well, and even though they had no ride themselves, he waved at him to grab his attention.

“Hey, Alex!” he called after him, and his voice echoed over the pavement. “—Alex!”

But Alex kept on going towards the other side of the street, way out of earshot. He walked at a brisk pace past a small blue car parked at the curb. A little beige car rolled towards him the stoplight across the corner, and he almost broke into a run towards it. He stuck his guitar case into the back seat first and then he slipped into the actual seat itself.

“He probably didn't hear you,” she assured Cliff, and she tucked the rice paper into her coat pocket. As long as she didn't forget it was there. “Anyways, where are you taking me?”

The car up ahead drove way and Cliff turned his attention to her.

“Right over here,” he pointed up the block. “Alex running up there brought my attention to this restaurant here. I was willing to call them from a payphone but that little nondescript car right there at the curb beat me to it, though.”

He held onto the crown of his hat as he led her into the cozy restaurant. She spotted an elderly couple and a young woman nestled in a booth on the far side of the room: the woman resembled to Cliff from the look in her eyes. She pointed them out once they made their way over to them.

The bespectacled white haired man wrapped in a heavy sweater then stood to his feet and turned around, and showed Cliff a big beaming smile.

“Hey, Dad,” he greeted Ray Burton, who put his arms around Cliff.

“What a surprise!” he declared as part of his own greeting.

“I recognized Con's car at the curb,” Cliff explained as he stood back a bit, “and I wanted to come on in and show you what I brought.”

He turned his attention to Sam, and Ray gasped at the sight of her.

“Is this that little girl you were telling me and your mother about?” he asked his son in a broken voice.

“Darling Samantha from New York,” Cliff introduced her, and Sam held out her hand for him. “The art student who already has a bit of a reputation with us, Anthrax, and also Stormtroopers.” Ray put his hands on either side and then he brought her hand to his lips for a little kiss.

“A friend of Cliff's is a friend of ours,” he told her with a little twinkle in his eye. He then gestured for the two kids to join them at the table in the corner.

Connie had a lovely heart shaped face and her dark hair sat flat upon her head much like with her brother. She was a bass player herself but she hadn't the same confidence as him.

“I hope you can do something with it, though,” Sam assured her.

“Cliff is the true artist,” she replied with a shrug of her shoulders. “There's something empowering about being his eyes and ears, though.”

Jan whispered something into Cliff's ear right then and he nodded in response, complete with a lopsided little smile on his face.

“Eyes and ears but not the whole dead body, though?” Sam joked as she held her water glass close to her lips.

“Not the whole dead body, exactly!”

“If the dead body starts playing an instrument, I'll be impressed,” Cliff retorted as he took a sip of his black tea.

“Like bass?” That brought a laugh out of Ray and Jan both. But Connie gasped and Cliff almost gagged on his cup of tea. Sam paused for a second. It was something meant to be innocuous but she had no idea that would bring the whole conversation to a grinding halt around her. She brought her hands to her mouth and she could feel her face growing hot.

“I'm so sorry, I didn't mean—”

But then Connie burst out laughing, albeit a nervous laugh. Ray reached across the table so as to touch her hand and Jan shook her head.

“Oh, no, it's okay, sweet heart,” she assured her. “We've learned to laugh at pain! It's brought us a world of good for the better part of ten years now.”

But every so often she looked over at Cliff, who showed her a look of disdain whenever he got the chance. And she knew she had to pay for that joke as it came in the form of a glass of sparkling apple cider spilled onto her jacket pocket. Frantic, she brushed off the cider with her napkin as she remembered that rice paper was inside of that pocket.

She bowed into the ladies' room to wash it off all the way with paper towels and a bit of cold water. She wadded the paper towel in her fist and then she took the paper out of her pocket and she held it up to the pale bathroom lights. Not a single blemish one, but the graphite on Alex's name began to fade, perhaps from being in her pocket for so long.

She had to better protect it as she tucked it away in her pocket for a little while longer.

Cliff was silent for the rest of the evening and their dinner with his parents and his sister. But it looked as though he had let it go given he never mentioned that joke one time, and in fact he offered to buy Sam a plate of cake for them to split after dinner. Ray and Jan both insisted on slices of cake for each of the three kids. Connie vowed to find something for Sam if not for Christmas then her birthday.

“Oh, shit, that's coming up here, isn't it?” Cliff asked her right then.

“My birthday? Yeah. The twenty first. I'm turning twenty one believe it or not.”

“Good thing we got the sparkling cider then!” Ray chuckled with a raise of his crystal glass.

By seven thirty, the Burtons let Sam and Cliff loose back on the street, where they spotted Ruben and Esmé's car posted by the venue. They flashed their head lights of them and they hurried up the street together. Sam had completely forgotten about the joke as they returned home to Reno: they had had dinner already but Esmé wanted them to at least try the new cake they had brought home with them from San Francisco.

Indeed, it would be a full ten days of treats and all manner of food courtesy of the parents, but Sam didn't mind in the least. She was on vacation with her boyfriend and in what better place than the area she grew up in: if she returned home with a few extra pounds, it was all worth it.

The day after Christmas, she showed him her old school near the north side of town. They sat inside of the back seat of the car as she pointed out all those old buildings and the old courtyard in the center of it all.

“The onslaught of memories right now,” Esmé remarked at one point.

“There's just so many,” Sam agreed with her as they reached the far corner outside of the campus. “Almost too many memories to think about!”

A couple of days later, the four of them made another day trip over the mountains to the Bay Area, but that time it was for the first of Metallica's shows before the new year. Sam noticed the waist of her jeans and the bottom of her long sleeved shirt both fitting her a little bit more snugly than before, but at the rest stop in the mountains, she walked along the wet pavement towards Cliff with a bit of a sashay to her step, and he returned the favor with a wink and a mischievous little smile.

She also noticed Lars and Kirk both looking at her more than usual as well before the show after he had whisked the four of them backstage. Ruben made a joke about how they had the best seats in the house but it was confirmed. Given the whole set stood wide open under a series of lights, they found they sat right next to the stage with a full view of James' long blond hair as it sprawled down his shoulders; of Kirk and his long black curls in the vein of the tentacles of an octopus; of Lars and his wild jerky movements all around his drum kit; and of Cliff himself as he towered on one side of the stage, complete with those big bell bottoms over his boots. They plowed forth with the vast wall of noise, but Sam noticed something different about them.

Maybe it was the size of the stage, or maybe it was the lack of glances to each other, but they seemed a little more distant from each other in comparison to Legacy, Anthrax, and the Cherry Suicides.

She began to wonder if everything Cliff had told her about him and Lars started to ring true as he hardly looked over at the big drum kit for the entire show.

They only played a small set, but it was enough to for her to start thinking about their tour with Anthrax in a few months. The stagehands waved him off and he caught up with Sam and her parents right there. The four of them ducked out to the backstage area and ultimately, the back door.

“Cliff, that was incredible!” Esmé declared over the roar of the crowd, but then again, it might have been the leftover whirring from all the noise within Sam's ears that made her think the crowd was still going.

“I definitely wanna see you guys again,” Ruben agreed as he pushed open the door.

“Wait, don't you all wanna come along backstage and meet everybody?” Cliff asked them.

“That's so lovely of you, but it looked like it was gonna snow, though,” Esmé replied.

“Yeah, I'm sure you know how that road gets when it snows,” Ruben added, and he held the door ajar enough to let in a sliver of a street light to the otherwise dark spot. “I mean, we've got chains once we get back into Nevada—”

“Oh, absolutely! I'll just tell the three of them that we're going, though.” Cliff then hurried back to the dressing room to do just that and also to fetch his hat. Meanwhile, Ruben held the door for Esmé and Sam. The snow was upon them as they piled into the car there at the curb together: Sam shivered and rubbed her arms, even though she had on her jacket. That piece of rice paper still in her pocket.

“Yeah, we better get a move on,” Ruben declared as he took a glimpse in the side mirror. “Is that him?”

“If he's got a hat on, I would think so,” Sam told him. The door next to her swung open and Cliff slid into the back seat with that hat upon his head. Without another word, they drove away from there and headed on over the freeway. A four drive and the clouds over them menaced with that orange glow of snow.

“We're doing another show on New Year's Eve,” he told them at one point. “But Sam's leaving tomorrow, though.”

“Yeah, I am,” she replied as she huddled closer to him there in the back seat.

The four of them were silent for a little while longer, at least until they reached the top of the mountain summit and the snow still hadn't begun yet. Ruben said something and Esmé chuckled at it. Cliff then turned his attention back to Sam.

“Stay with me,” he begged her in a hushed voice. “Please stay with me.”

“But my life is in New York!” she said: it was a bit difficult given her ears still whirred from the noise of the show and whirred even more from the noise of the road, but she managed to keep her voice down low.

“But I want you with me, though,” he insisted. “Please. Sam, please, stay with me.”

“You'll have to come to New York then,” she pointed out.

“I don't really want to, though—as much as I love it over there and as close as it is to me.”

“But you can do it, though,” she insisted. “You can move across country.”

“I'd think it's hard, though,” he resisted.

“It is, like it take a bit of adjusting, but it also isn't, though. You get acquainted with the weather changes and the three hour time difference pretty quick if you let it.”

“But I can't really leave the Bay Area, though. This is my home, and you hailing from California, it'd be like a home coming of sorts.”

“Going to New York was a home coming of sorts,” she continued, stubborn.

“Well, I don't know if I can keep doing this long distance thing,” he confessed.

“Why?” She frowned at that.

“Because it's long distance,” he explained. “I want to be closer to you.”

“We can work it out, though,” she consoled him.

“But how can we work it out is what I'm asking. Neither of us are willing to leave our homes for each other. I think that's fucked up.”

“It is fucked up. But it's the truth about the both of us, though.”

They both fell back into silence as Ruben and Esmé chatted about something in the front seat before them. Her parents had lasted that long and yet they still spoke to one another as if they were the only best friends they ever needed in life. They were the only best friends they ever needed in life.

She glanced over at Cliff and she had no idea what she was doing wrong right then.

It was a four hour drive but they managed to make it back home to Reno in time before the next snowstorm from the lake slammed into the area. A black sky and a gust of snow riddled wind later, and Sam and Cliff returned to her old bedroom for one last night before she returned home to New York City alone. Sam set down her purse and she draped her coat over the back of the chair. She began changing her clothes when Cliff took a seat on his side of the bed. It was going to be a long distance thing and she had no idea if it would last given the entirety of the distance. She hesitated for a second and she watched him take off his boots and his bell bottoms.

“I also don't know how our parents would react to one of us having a spouse from either coast, either,” he confessed in order to break the silence.

“What do you mean? I thought your parents liked me.”

“They do. It's just—” He hesitated as she slipped on her pajama bottoms.

“What?”

“I don't know if they like your sense of humor, though,” he replied in a small voice.

“What—What you still thinking about that?” she demanded.

“Yes,” he answered, nonchalant.

“I was just making a joke, though!” she declared. “I even apologized to your dad and he told me it was fine. Connie even took it in stride!”

“Yeah, it might be fine by my parents and my sister, but that doesn't mean I'm fine with it.”

“Cliff, I was trying to have a laugh at that!” she said, heated. “I figure that, since it's winter time, it's a good time to laugh at things that make you feel otherwise somber. And your family is willing to remember Scott in a fond light, too. You're making a huge deal out of something that can probably help you.”

“Yeah, but sometimes it can be in poor taste, though,” he pointed out. “And hey, at least I didn't let my dark sense of humor out of the bag at the worst possible time over Christmas dinner.”

“Oh, my god, will you let that go already?” She was scorn. “I apologized to Connie and she told me it was funny. But I didn't know it would hit a nerve like this.”

“Oh, come on, you know how difficult it is for us to talk about Scott's death,” he retorted.

“No, I didn't?” She had to stifle a chuckle at the sound of that. “Also—us? It's just you, Cliff!”

“And it's not funny!” he exclaimed.

“I wasn't laughing right then? Hey, you know what? I'm not the one who laughed like a maniac when I got that wine on my blouse and I was freaking out it soaked through my coat, onto that little piece of rice paper that Alex gave me.”

“Yeah, but I'm not the one who pulled that kind of petty tasteless shit in front of your parents, though, Samantha,” he jeered. “Petty, tasteless shit when the wound is still raw.”

“Yeah, well, I'm not the one who lied about going on tour with Anthrax, Cliff!” she spat, and then she stopped herself. That took him aback at first, and then he frowned at that.

“Wait, how'd you know they were coming with us?” he demanded.

“Joey told me,” she blurted out.

“Joey told you? When did he tell you?”

“Last month. We had coffee together and he told me that you guys were going on tour with them. What I want to know is why didn't you tell me you were going tour with them?”

“Because we had no idea if they actually were, Sam!” he insisted. “And that shit's confidential, too, I'm sure you know about that.”

“Well, of course but—”

“But what?”

“But you still lied to me about it, though,” she continued on. “You could've at least told me about it and then maybe I could work something out with my classes.”

Cliff kept the frown firmly plastered across the face, and he tilted his head to the side a bit.

“Wait a minute,” he started in a low voice. “Are you seeing Joey behind my back?”

“What does that have to do with anything?” she argued.

“You met up with Joey for a cup of coffee,” he recalled, “are you seeing him behind my back?”

“No! Why would I do that?”

“Because he's a New Yorker! That's why you don't want to leave New York, isn't it?”

“No—Cliff, what the hell, no!” she stammered. “I told you clearly that I'm not leaving New York because I have school and I went there for a reason. It has nothing to do with you or Joey. And now, let me ask you something.”

“Surprise me,” he commanded with his arms folded across his chest.

“It's perfectly okay for you to lie to me but not for me to do it to you, too?” she demanded in a single breath and with her hands pressed onto her hips. Cliff nibbled on his bottom lip and he watched her with a stern look on his face. She had him right there.

“It's okay for you to lie to me and slack away, but it's not okay for me to do it back to you?” she repeated.

He never replied. Without another word, she rolled her eyes and she crawled into bed next to him. She reached up and switched off the lamp on the nightstand, and the room engulfed with tense darkness.

“Your lies are not comparable to mine,” he pointed out in a low voice. Sam rolled over onto her back and she glared up at his dark silhouette, still upright before the headboard of the bed.

“When have I ever lied to you?” she demanded to him.

“No, I'm not talking about you,” he clarified, “talking about my own lies.”

“What the hell does that even mean? When have you lied to me about something so serious that it can compromise our relationship? Besides the fact that you don't trust me?”

“It means—it means—” He could hardly speak, and Sam rolled her eyes again and she turned back onto her side. She sighed through her nose and closed her eyes. She didn't hear Cliff's answer and she didn't care, either.

She especially didn't move a muscle when he touched her hip and whispered, “you're getting soft. I like it.” right into her ear.

She fell asleep and she awoke the next morning ready for the return to New York.

She didn't even give Cliff a good morning kiss or anything of that nature upon her waking. Ruben offered to drive Cliff back home to the Bay Area given the snow had melted away enough to make that drive solo; Sam took to the back seat with her arms folded across her chest. Every so often, Ruben peered into the rear view mirror and he knitted his eyebrows at her. When they reached the airport and climbed out the cold crisp snowy morning, he turned to her with a concerned look on his face.

“Is everything okay?” he asked her in a low voice.

“We got in a big fight last night,” she replied right into his face. “He's lied to me about some things and I don't know if he trusts me. Like he basically admitted to me that he doesn't trust me.”

“Well, honey—every relationship has its speed bumps from time to time,” Ruben explained, “like your mom and I have had our share of arguments when we first got together. But after a while, you learn from each other's mistakes. I can hope that Cliff learns his lesson and he can learn to give you what you want. My best advice is to convince him to trust you. Keep showing yourself to him. Show him how you feel when you get the chance.”

Sam swallowed and then she nodded her head in response to that. Ruben put his arms around her and she lay her head against his chest for a minute, but it felt like a blink of an eye. They followed Cliff into the airport, towards her gate near the far end of the shiny white corridor. Ruben gave her one last embrace before he let her go back home to New York.

She picked up her things and she strode past Cliff towards the gate.

“Sam!” he called after her, and she turned to him with a stone cold expression on her face.

“Will you at least come back here to visit before we head out on tour with Anthrax?” he asked her.

“I'll come back when I feel like it,” she scoffed at him as Ruben's words remained firmly in mind, and she turned away from him.

“Will you come to any of the shows this spring?” he called after her. She stopped right in her tracks. She had promised Joey that she would for them at the Northeastern dates, but after the night before, she had no idea if she was willing to do it for Metallica.

“I don't know. We'll see.” Without another word, and without a kiss goodbye, Sam wheeled around and she headed on down the gateway to the plane, which at that moment felt as though it awaited her. She took her seat next to the window, once more behind first class. She folded her arms across her chest and sighed through her nose.

The first flurries of snow floated down from the gray sky overhead. Cliff was still in there and although she knew he couldn't see her, she couldn't help but feel that he could see her. Sam sighed through her nose as she kept on thinking about what her father told her. He needed to know the truth. He deserved the truth.

The one question that hung over her head was could she even tell him the truth once she landed back in New York.

[kinetic-elaboration]

April 3: 2x13 Obsession

Okay, trying this again! My live-blog thoughts from watching Obsession last night. I didn’t remember this ep very well, and I was a little uncertain about it going in. But ultimately I think it was a really solid Kirk episode and a really solid triumvirate episode.

How many times as hard as rock is this mineral you’re looking for? Let’s be precise. (Aka how Spock flirts.)

I’m really into the sets and special effects today. This big rock that is obviously Styrofoam. The ominous cloud of smoke.

Set phasers to disrupter-b? I feel like he just made that up.

Oh no, three red shirts set out on their own! I feel like this one is pretty smart, though.

Leslie!!! RIP my favorite extra.

“Something that can’t possibly exist… but does anyway.” That’s it, that’s the show.

Well Kirk’s obsession is obvious right away. That’s good. We’re getting right to the point.

They have to meet up with another ship in order to transport perishable vaccines!! I know from first-hand experience that that is very important! Get it together Kirk. Admitting straight out, “I’m okay with some other people dying so I can further investigate the monster” is not a good look on him.

Also I feel like TOS often confuses “cure” and “vaccine” (as in Miri) but even if these are actually vaccines, they could still save lives urgently!

McCoy’s autopsy report: uh, just look at their faces??

The Yorktown, the Farragut… someone on the AOS team loved this episode apparently. (I remembered that the Farragut was Kirk’s first assignment but I did not remember the Yorktown.)

Interesting that the creature smells of honey because “rotting honey” was the smell that indicated the presence of Area X in the Southern Reach.

Some gratuitous touching.

When Garrovick Jr. first showed up, the shot was so ominous and dramatic that I legitimately thought that the creature was a shape-shifter and that was him lol.

Is this another episode where Kirk sees himself in a promising young man and then proceeds to judge him incredibly harshly as a way of judging his own past self? I think it might be!

Garrovick looks like he’s sitting in front of a green screen during this interrogation. Honestly, the colors in this episode are really going off in general! I can see how this would be fun to watch on a new color tv.

“Go to your room! You’re grounded!”

“Put it in your report, Spock!” I really wish we’d seen AOS Kirk do that. Like, fighting with reports and regulations is one of my favorite parts of TOS but we only saw AOS Spock use that as a weapon and it was made to show what a stick in the mud he was but like… they all do it! And AOS Kirk should have too.

And now a scene where Spock and McCoy gossip about Spock’s boyfriend.

I honestly love McCoy and Spock scenes. They have such a great rapport… the respect is not even grudging, it’s clearly there, but they make it more palatable to themselves by adding in some barbs and little digs at each other. But it’s still McCoy that Spock goes to when he needs advice or even, as he says here, just someone to bounce an idea off of, and McCoy is there to listen to him.

Oh, Spock definitely understands obsession.

Kirk’s quarters are looking very purple today.

Mccoy is trying to wax poetic and Kirk just wants him to get to the point.

Time to lie down in an Emo Fashion again.

Not to be nitpicky, but if the creature killed 200 people on the Farragut, and that was half the crew… wouldn’t the Farragut be a lot bigger than the Enterprise? I don’t think that’s right. Also, not to be even more nitpicky, but how did they finally get away from it? Did it get on their ship? If it killed all the people on the surface, could they not have just… stopped hanging out on the surface?

Anyway. McCoy is such a good best friend.

Garrovick was Kirk’s Pike.

Oh no, bringing in the big guns: the boyfriend. A blue shirt conspiracy.

Spock sounds like he’s in one of those HR training videos. Like, he’s attempting to sound conversational while still blatantly quoting from the Starfleet Handbook.

“Why are we delayin’ here?” Heavy Southern drawl.

They really are ganging up on him.

Intuition is a command prerogative.

I love how Bones says “We’re not ganging up on you” after a long scene where they gang up on him.

Oh no, the creature’s on the move! Just straight up floating through space. Cool cool cool.

Kirk’s so distracted by the creature that he’s not even looking at Spock’s ass.

Another bad day for Scotty.

I like Chapel but honestly, imagine Rand in this scene with Garrovick… I miss her.

Garrovick, what an idiot. Throwing shit and hitting switches across the room.

I legit don’t understand how the creature moves in space. Or what this has to do with gravity… which doesn’t exist in space.

Monster hunt, monster hunt!

Spock is agreeing with Kirk now, about the creature’s intelligence.

Whatever is going on with the vents in this ship, it seems like maybe they’re not the most well made.

“Let’s just nuke it.” That’s always a good idea.

Spock is trying so hard to make Kirk feel better. Even calling him “Jim”—which he used to do almost every episode and now rarely does anymore.

Lol, now he’s off to try the exact same thing with Garrovick. “If Jim won’t let me comfort him, perhaps this other irrational human will.”

“Garrovick, let me explain your own thoughts and feelings to you. I’m an expert on humans, you know. I’m around them all the time.”

“I know you want to be emo, but could you please just listen to me??” The absolute transparency with which he’s trying to be helpful.

Kindness actually isn’t an emotion… it’s a choice. Spock really will call anything a human emotion in order to avoid having to deal with it.

I'm sorry but he SNAPS THE KNOB OFF, goes "eh," throws it away, and then tries to stop the gas coming through the vent with his HANDS? How did Sarek raise this boy?

Garrovick is so Dramatic. A true Kirk protégé.

The creature tried to eat Spock and Spock didn’t taste so good.

"I'm asking for your military appraisal of the techniques used against the creature." Professor Kirk coming out.

Poor creature was lost, I guess. Just wants to go home.

And SPAWN. That word just gives me flashbacks tbqh…

Kirk and Spock having their usual ‘who will sacrifice himself first’ – off.

Realistically it should be neither the XO NOR the Captain but this is a tv show.

I do remember this part. Carrying that weird little device down to the planet. It is very aesthetically pleasing. I kind of want it for my apartment, to display as like a modern art sculpture. Minus the bomb

Mmm, a delicious snack for the creature. Yum. Got that gross green blood taste out of its mouth.

LMAO at Garrovick trying to be all heroic, knock Kirk out, and become the sacrifice. You thought!!

Spock and Scotty at the controls so you know how serious the transporter situation is.

McCoy versus the transporter again.

"It was my cross-circuiting to B that recovered them." Yes, Spock saved his space husband, he saved the day, and we should all acknowledge it.

Aw, that’s sweet, Kirk volunteering to reminisce with Garrovick about his father.

The end! I ended up enjoying it a lot overall. We gotta stop having episodes where Kirk is questioned or learns lessons though lol. I want my unabashedly heroic captain! Still no matter what he is always a hero in the end. And as I said, really great triumvirate ep with good individual characterizations, and scenes with each part of the triangle together.

If the Farragut incident was 11 years before this, and, as established in the last ep, Kirk is 34, that means he was 23 at the time. Pretty young to be a lieutenant imo. He was also a lieutenant at the time he was teaching Gary Mitchell at the Academy, which I’m going to personally headcanon, starting now, was right after Garrovick’s death. He returns to San Francisco, takes a year or a semester off to teach, and meets Gary.

Next up is Wolf in the Fold, a rare Scotty-centric episode.

[insidiousclouds]

seems you've started a harem of yer own. Whats everyones occupations/hobbies? Issac/Ethan are alternates of Kirk/Andrew, for why? how are they such? do the others have such alternates?

Well uhm-

*coughs in non age-appropriate occupations*

I think of the more normal professions, both Ethan and Andrew are programmers, but Ethan more so makes video games while Andrew is focused on digital security. Elliot owns his own library of books, along with being a lighthouse watch.

Hobbies

They do have- some good hobbies... they aren't entirely irredeemable. Andrew, Jake, Kirk, and Ethan all like to play video games. (*I go into more depth under the cut)

Michael is a total health nut, and most of his hobbies just include staying in shape, dieting, working out.. all that bullshit. He's pretty weird.

Isaac doesn't really have time for hobbies with his jobs, (he has two, neither I feel like mentioning), but if he ever gets the chance, he'd really like to just sit down and watch a fluffy anime.

Alternate Versions

Andrew and Kirk are boyfriends, which the 'switch' of their alternate versions. Kind of like how Altertale is pivoted around the soriel ship?? Anyway- to make it clearer, Kirk -> Ethan, and Andrew -> Isaac.

Kirk is naturally very outgoing and quite.. flirtatious- So Isaac has his extroverted personality while still technically being a version of Andrew.

Andrew is quite shy and reserved, which leaves Ethan to be relatively the same. Unlike Kirk, he doesn't really care to maintain his body as well, so he's a bit chubbier and his hair is longer. But hey- more to love, right?

They still both maintain their origin stories, (tragic tales of bullying and abuse for both sides), but how Isaac and Ethan deal with their past is what makes them different from Kirk and Andrew. But thats a whole 'nother post...

As for others with alternate versions, there is a version of Jake that comes from Isaac and Ethan's universe, but he's not switched with anyone specifically, he just dealt with the loss of his leg differently. He managed to finish college and become a private investigator. Kirk and Andrew's Jake wasn't so equipped to achieve that dream..

Hobbies continued

Jake more so likes slower paced games when he's alone, but likes to play more intense shooters when he's with friends. His favorites are mostly Minecraft, Slime Rancher, Stardew Valley, and even Subnautica.

Kirk likes intense shooters, but he only really finds them interesting if they have a compelling story. His favorites are DOOM, Halo, and Bioshock! But he sometimes plays minecraft just to fuck with Jake and prank him a lot.

Andrew really likes platformers, or more 8 bit styled games. His favorite game by far is hollow knight. But he also plays a lot of Don't Starve, and on occasion he loves to dive into the newest indie games on the market.

Ethan plays a lot of strategy and RPG games. He plays the Elder Scrolls online probably the most, along with any one of the Final Fantasy games despite not knowing the plot. But every now and then he goes into a phase of playing World of Warcraft for a week straight and then forgetting about it again for months.

[revisionaryhistory]

Three Days ~ 43

~*~Emma~*~

 I remembered Will from a couple of parties and Kirk and Boone's wedding. Nice guy. Apparently, he and some of his friends thought I was the extra in a three-way with Eli and Angie. Eli didn't see a reason he should correct them. Angie invited Alissa out on one of our girls’ nights and she became one of the group. It had probably been six months since I’d last seen her. I liked her and we got along well. The friendship had never progressed past those nights. I can't remember if I met her before or after Jimmy and I broke up. Either way, I moved, and we only ever saw each other on nights out. Now I find she's married to one of Sebastian's best friends. We have at least three friends in common and our friends' group overlaps. Very cool, but very weird. Almost like we were supposed to meet.

 Wednesday I got the photoshoot "before" picture about fifteen minutes before my kids arrived. Looked like Sebastian in the morning. Hair a little messy, a crease on his face from his pillow, and his eyes not quite awake. His beard had grown in more and I ran my fingers over it in the picture, knowing it would be gone in the after. I didn’t dislike either version. I was just used to the way I’d met him.

 My aide took the kids to lunch and I went in search of my after. The first thing I noticed was his beard was trimmed super close, where it was long stubble, but it was still there. I guess they'd changed their mind. His hair was styled not that different than he did except every hair was in place and I was betting it was fixed where it wouldn't move. Makeup perfected his skin tone and somehow made his eyes even bluer. Maybe it was the dark blue robe he was wearing. It had been hours since he'd sent, but I still sent a text telling him how handsome he looked.

 I grabbed my lunch out of my mini-fridge and headed down to Mallory's room. I'd made some pasta salad loaded with veggies while talking with Sebastian last night and was looking forward to eating. Our secretary was walking toward me with a bouquet of cookies. They were shaped and iced like crayons, rulers, apples, notepads, and glue. Outside of teacher appreciation week that usually signaled a parent had gotten pissed at a grade or consequence and sided with their kid. At least, until they got both sides of the story. Cookies were good apologies and could be shared with the other grade level teachers who were sure to know every word you said and the tone of voice you used.

 "Who got yelled at this time, Jamie?"

 She lifted an eyebrow, "You."

"No one’s yelled at me." That meant they were from Sebastian.

"Then your new boyfriend sent cookies instead of flowers."

I laughed, "Good possibility." I took them from her. "Take one for you and Kim."

"I was hoping you'd say that. They smell delicious."

 I walked into Mallory's room with my healthy pasta salad and not at all healthy cookies. "I brought dessert." Our lunch group made appreciative noises.

Cindy laughed, "Who's parent did you piss off?"

I shook my head, "No one."

Mallory snatched the card while my hands were full, "I believe these are from the new man." I went ahead and sat down, trusting the card would be G-rated. Mallory read, "Halfway into the last full week. Hope this helps you all make it through. Sebastian." She looked to me, "Sebastian? That's a mouthful."

"Yes, he is."

 Before we dug into the cookies, I had everyone take one and gather together. I'd send the picture as a thank you. They'd heard about him Monday after the tournament and I talked more about him today. I wasn't ready to share him yet. I was a little surprised word hadn't traveled from the tournament, but I guess there wasn't enough overlap. Outside of my team, where I worked wasn’t common knowledge. This was an advantage of not working and living in the same school district. If there was gossip it was more than likely identifying me as the setter on that team than a teacher. The moment his last name entered my school it would be a topic of conversation in all three buildings. I don't know exactly what that would mean. I'd been here four years and it was common knowledge where I went over winter break. Ed may eclipse Sebastian, but not when you throw Marvel in the mix. We have superhero day during our anti-drug week. I see the Marvel costumes and t-shirts. There'd be a lot of talk. Once the kids were gone, I’d feel more comfortable sharing who this new man is. The kids could make this a zoo.

 Mallory, Cindy, and I were the last left. Cindy asked, "Will we ever meet this Sebastian? See a picture."

 "I’m sure." I smiled, "We haven't known each two weeks yet. It's good and I'm protecting the new relationship like you do a new kitten. It needs to grow a little more."

 Mallory agreed, "You know the Barbie Bitches at the high school are going to want all the details."

 I did know that. "I’m not ready to share."

Cindy took our trash to the cafeteria while Mal and I cleaned up the tables. We sat down to finish our drinks, stretching out our break as long as possible. Her kids coming into the room was my cue to head back to my room as mine would be a few minutes behind them. It wasn’t quite time yet.

My text alert went off with a picture of Sebastian. I reached for my phone, but not so quick that Mallory didn’t see. Her eyes went wide and I held up a finger, “Give me one minute and I'll show you.” He was wearing a dark blue suit, with an unbuttoned white shirt, and an untied bow tie. He looked amazing and about two seconds away from sex. I put my hand over the screen and pushed it toward Mal, "Can I trust you to tell no one. I'm not ready for this to be here."

 Mal put her hand over mine, "You know I'm not telling anyone. If that's who I think it is, the kids finding out will make Field Day crazy. Too much unstructured time to gossip and ask you questions." She started lifting her hand, "Let me see."

I moved my hand from the phone to my mouth.

Mallory looked at the picture a long time before she said, "Yep, that’s a Sebastian. Damn, Emma, you met him," she tapped my screen, "in the grocery?"

I nodded.

"Now I really wish I would have come to volleyball. Although, I probably would have just stared."

 "No, you wouldn't. A few minutes and you would see he's like anyone else. Nothing special."

 She grinned, "Except to you." Her kids started coming into the room.

 I stood, "Except to me."

 As I headed to the door she called out, "We're sitting in the back at faculty meeting."

 Sebastian had sent another picture by the time recess rolled around. He was in black jeans and a t-shirt a least one size too small.

 Emma ~ Might have to cut you out of that shirt. This is not a complaint.

Sebastian ~ It was stretchy.

 Emma ~ How is it going?

Sebastian ~ Good. I'm sitting in a chair having my hair changed.

 Emma ~ What are they doing to it?

 Sebastian ~ Making it look like it did when I got here. Apparently, people sleep in very expensive watches. I' II be done soon. No tommorow.

Emma ~ What will you do with the unexpected free time?

Sebastian ~ Clean my apartment.

 Emma ~ I was going to say you don't have to, but you do. Ha Ha, the first time at least.

Sebastian ~ Exactly. I’m pretty neat. Bathroom is a wreck.

Emma ~ Bathrooms always need cleaning. I have to run. Argument on the monkey bars.

Sebastian ~ Talk to you later.

 It would be Thursday night before we talked. Real-life set in. I had a volleyball game Wednesday night and Sebastian went out for drinks with the photographer once the shoot was over. I got home and was exhausted. We lost. I don't like to lose.

 Thursday during the day there were no texts. My guess is he got home late and drunk. Overslept. Busy at gym. Returns home to sleep off the night before. I was driving home when a call from Sebastian came in.

"Buna ziua, Sebasti-an.” <Good afternoon>  

 “Ce mai faci?” <How are you?>

 Thankfully he kept it simple. “Bine, tu?”  <Good and you?>

Sebastian switched to English. “I broke my phone. I pulled it out to text some woman, got elbowed by a guy on the sidewalk, and threw my phone on the ground. Screen shattered and I held it in my hand watching it slowly die. It just glitched and sputtered away in front of me."

"My poor, baby. Are you mourning the loss?"

 "Nope, an hour in an Apple store and I have a shiny new iPhone. They were able to transfer my data over. Good as new. That's why you hadn’t heard from me."

I smiled, "I thought you were sleeping one-off."

"I barely drank. Too much to do today. Sheets changed, bathroom clean, kitchen has some food, and the family room is clean. When are you going to be here?"

 "I got permission to leave a little early. I’ll definitely make the three o’clock train, but I’ll try and do the two. If that's ok with you?"

 “I'm not going anywhere after the gym. I'll be here waiting."

 "I'm excited. Seeing you. You with my friends and your friends. It’s going to be fun."

"It is."

Just to be sure. "Most excited about you."

"I like hearing that."

 I set my alarm a little early to give myself time to finish packing. I’m not normally an over-packer, but I couldn't decide on a dress for dinner. Or anything else. Insane. At least today wasn't a theme day I need to wear a costume for. I wore a pair of black capris and a bright pink top with rolled sleeves and a long zipper up the front. Up for school, a little less so for Sebastian.

 First text of the day.

Sebastian ~ Are you here yet?

 I had nothing but fun things planned for the day. Yesterday I'd had them vote for their favorite books and we read those at the top of every hour. We played math games, a science and social studies game show, and our top music and movement videos. I ate my lunch getting the STEM Lab cart and prepped everything for my assistant. The kids had been wonderful all day and I didn't feel the least bit guilty when I fled the building when she took them outside for recess.

 I waited until I was safely on the train to text Sebastian.

Emma ~ On my way

Sebastian ~ Early!

Emma ~ I’ll beat the worst of the traffic

Sebastian ~ Exactly what I was thinking.

Sebastian ~ I should shower.

 I put in my ear pods, clicking shuffle on my "Current Faves" playlist. This one changed all the time. Some never left the list. Recently there'd be an influx of happy love songs and sexy mood music. I think I even dozed off a couple of times. The closer I got the more butterflies were in my stomach. I was excited to see him, but a little nervous. I was going to his place. It would be different than surrounded by my stuff. I’m nervous about stupid stuff like where do I put my toothbrush, is it ok to look through the books in his extra room, what I do with my dirty clothes, and what if I get thirsty in the middle of the night? It's making me think back and wondering if I'd made him welcome... comfortable.

 I took a cab from the train station, looking out the window at the city I used to call home. I wasn't familiar with where he lived so I watched the numbers on the buildings. His building from the outside looked like an old converted warehouse. The brick was red with a gray stone line between every floor. Looked about seven floors. He'd texted me the entry code and I hopped on the elevator to the fifth.

 Sebastian opened his door so fast it was like he was standing beside it and I almost fell over. He was barefoot in ripped jeans and a Rutgers t-shirt. He held the door open with a hand high on the door. Add in the finger styled hair, bright blue eyes, and a smile that said he was happy to see me and he was the sexiest thing I'd ever laid eyes on. It was the barefoot part that got me.  "I'm here."

[portals-to-a-new-world]

A Good Suit

(gif isn’t mine)

Who? Leonard McCoy x Reader

What? I have to give a massive massive shoutout to @bakerstreethound for the idea: {So have a later night party at the enterprise (can be for Kirk's birthday, but let's say you and Kirk are on bad terms so you don't go to the party) you stay in your room tussling with your body pillow to make up for Bones absence. You wake up to find him sitting on your bed wearing the suit he went to Kirk's party in.} Love, you’ve absolutely slaughtered me in this process but oml was it worth it. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it <3

Series? No(?)

Word Count: 1390 (I seem to be stuck in a rut and a lot of my fics have come out at this range lol)

Warnings: SMUT, 18+ ONLY!!, Some language, Mentions of being tied up, Oral (male receiving), uhhh I think that’s it tho

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Are you sure you won’t come with me tonight? -L

Not unless he apologizes. -Y/n

This feud is getting ridiculous. -L

He tried to fight my best friend’s boyfriend, Len. I’m not gonna just let that slide. -Y/n

And he’s refusing to apologize for “nothing.” Y’all both need to grow up. -L

I will when he does. -Y/n

You’re a mess, you know that? -L

Yeah, but you love it. I’d say see you tonight, but god only knows how long a Kirk party will last, so see ya when I see ya. -Y/n

You set down your PADD with a sigh. It was shaping up to be yet another lonely night in your quarters. You could just swallow your pride and go to the party; you’d even had a dress picked out knowing Leonard’s face would be priceless when he saw you in it. But that was before James T Dumbass decided he was gonna get drunk and pick a fight with your best friend’s boyfriend in an attempt to win her favor. Obviously, he didn’t do much damage to the other guy, but his refusal to apologize and insistence that it wasn’t a big deal meant that the two of you had been at each other’s throats for nearly two weeks. You let out a frustrated groan and resigned yourself to a night of cuddling the body pillow you’d gotten for the fairly frequent instances that Leonard was stuck working overnight in the Medbay. In all honesty, even if Kirk hadn’t acted stupidly, you still wouldn’t have gone; double shifts in the lab had you completely exhausted. You’d barely had the energy to strip out of your uniform dress and crawl into bed, let alone get dressed up and mingle for a party. You were kind of disappointed though, the thought of Leonard in a suit was enough to make you weak in the knees. Ah well. Maybe Christine will take some photos for me You thought as you drifted off to sleep. 

‘Leo,’ Your moans echoed around the room, desperation dripping from them. Your pleading had no effect on the man himself, his exploration of your body never ceasing and never getting any nearer to where you wanted him. 

‘What did you say again about these hands?’ He murmured darkly in your ear, breath hot against the sensitive skin there. 

‘I said they weren’t legendary, that it was just all talk,’ You were struggling against your restraints, trying for any sort of friction. ‘Please-’ 

‘You still think so?’

‘No! God, no Leonard your hands are perfect, and I want them inside me please Leo,’

“Y/n. C’mon beautiful, open those pretty eyes for me” Your eyes blinked open, blearily trying to focus on the shape sitting on the edge of your bed. “There she is,” Leonard’s face came into focus, a gentle grin gracing his lips. “Any particular reason you’re clinging to that pillow like it’s a lifeline?” You reached up to rub the sleep out of your eyes.

“It’s my Leonard’s-busy pillow,” Your brain had just caught up and realized the man in front of you was, in fact, wearing a suit, and decided it was going on vacation for a while.

“Something wrong?” You shook your head, moving forward to run your fingers through his hair.

“You look good, Leo,” His lips turned up into a cocky smirk, and he raised an eyebrow as his hand landed on your bare waist. 

“Do I not usually?” At your eyeroll, his smirk turned into a full-fledged grin, and he pulled you in for a kiss.

“I wonder how Jim would feel if he knew I get to unwrap the best gift tonight,” Leonard pulled back from your lips in confusion. It was a testament to how used to him you’d gotten that he only needed to raise an eyebrow in question for you to know what he was asking. “Y’know,” You fiddled with his tie before using it to pull him close. “Cause a good suit’s like pretty gift wrapping. It looks great while it’s on, but the fun part is tearing it off,” You barely finished the sentence before his lips were crashing into yours, the hunger of the kiss sending heat flaring to your core. You shoved your hands beneath the jacket, dragging your nails over the fabric of his shirt as his own landed on your back to pull you even closer to him. Each movement of his lips against yours was like a breath of fresh air, drawing you in and claiming you for his own. You worked your hands up to his shoulders, pushing against the fabric for him to shrug out of it, a silent request he happily obliged. He groaned deep when you tugged on his tie roughly. 

“You keep that up, and I’ll tear the damn thing off for you,” He growled, reaching up to loosen the tie before tossing it to the side. Images of Leonard tied to his headboard with the tie flashed through your mind, sending a shudder down your spine. Next time, maybe Your hands found the buttons on his shirt as your lips reconnected, trying not to yank them open. Three buttons in and his hands found yours and tore through the rest of the buttons with ease. “Told ya,” Leonard’s smug grin quickly faltered as you palmed him through his trousers. 

“You’re not done yet, McCoy. Put your hands behind your head and don’t move them till I tell you to. Understand?” His eyes darkened even more before he complied.

“Yes, ma’am,” Your fingers began working slowly on the fastening of his trousers as you kissed your way down his chest.

“Good boy,” You purred, slowly tugging his pants and boxers down. He groaned and bit his lip as you leaned forward to drag your tongue along his length before taking him deep into your mouth. He wasn’t exceptionally large, a fact for which you were grateful as you swallowed around him before pulling back and beginning a steady rhythm. Looking up at him through your eyelashes, you could see Leonard’s fingers knotted together at the back of his head, muscles tense as he fought the urge to drop his hands. You locked eyes with him, moaning around his length as his face contorted in pleasure. Every gasp and moan that escaped him spurred you on, and you were tempted to suck him dry, but the knot growing in your lower abdomen had reached a point that it couldn’t be ignored any longer. You pulled back quickly, earning a disgruntled whine.

“Please, darlin’, I need you,” His eyes were wild with lust, chest heaving as he gasped for air. A nod from you was all it took before his hands were lifting you up and he was inside of you before your back could hit the bed. His submissive side was long gone as he pounded you through the mattress, arms pinned above your head. “Look at ya, being so good for me,” Each word was punctuated with a thrust until you were begging for more.

“Fuck, Leo, please I-” Every nerve ending in your body was on fire as his lips found your neck and left more marks than you could cover up the next day. You were teetering on the edge of oblivion as he adjusted his angle to brush his cock head against your g-spot with every stroke. “God, Len I’m so close please-” His fingers found your clit, drawing a scream of his name as you came; one Leonard echoed as you clenched around him, dragging him over the edge with you. He continued to thrust lazily, prolonging both of your orgasms till you nearly shoved him away at the overstimulation. After you both finally came down and cleaned up, you wrapped your arms around him. “You realize I’m never gonna be able to be around you when you’re wearing a suit now without jumping you, right?” His lips turned upwards into a smirk.

“So, what I’m hearing is ‘Find every excuse to wear a suit’” He just laughed and placed a kiss on your temple when you smacked his chest playfully. 

“Keep it up, Doctor McCoy. You’ll find yourself tied to that bed with your own damn tie,”

“Is that supposed to be a threat, future-Lieutenant McCoy?”

“It’s a promise,”