#lexie seems to be in a better mood

[honeyjars-sims]

[ayyy-pee]

Hi lexi! I just finished Strangers in Love and it’s so beautiful that I just don’t want to let it go yet! Would you be open to maybe writing a drabble for Reader x Nanami in this story? Like when they first started dating in high school? I’d love to learn their history

Thank you for all your great works! ❤️

omg anon i'm sooooo sorry it took me so long to get back to you! i'm barely crawling out of my slump lol but i hope you like this. it got a little more angsty than i intended but it felt a little fitting for them idk T_T. hope you enjoy!

𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞 - 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐲

Discord 18+ - Twitter - JJK Masterlist

Pairing: Nanami Kento x Female Reader

Summary: You and Nanami take a trip down memory lane.

Genre: Divorced to Lovers AU

The tension is thick in the apartment as you and Nanami set down the final pair of small boxes you'd retrieved from your storage space on the coffee table. Satoru is over for some reason, lounging lazily on the floor. Without a word, you and Nanami take a seat on the sofa, a good amount of space between you two. The boxes sit there, untouched in the silence. Satoru's eyes dart between the two of you before he leans forward and peels the tape off of one.

"I take it therapy didn't go well..." Satoru sighs, pulling out the contents of the box.

An understatement. It's been quiet like this since you and Nanami had returned home from one of your couples therapy sessions. After a very intense session going over the reasons for your initial divorce, you both left feeling...honestly? frustrated with each other. 

Where you felt justified in how you handled the divorce situation, Nanami disagreed. He'd of course apologized for what you felt contributed to your first marriage’s demise, but felt he would have been willing to work through things had you come to him, had you waited for him to be in a better headspace.

Where Nanami voiced how he felt things could have worked out differently, you disagreed. You didn't feel there was a way to work past your issues at the time, Nanami being too stubborn and "too tired" to ever listen.

There didn't seem to be a way for you two to agree. And so, your therapist gave you homework. Your assignment? Go on a walk down memory lane together. Apparently you and Nanami had a habit of dwelling on the negatives when it came to discussing your divorce. It was a sore spot for you both.

You'd left therapy, annoyed and in a sour mood, muttering to Nanami to take you to your storage space where all the pictures, gifts and memories…your entire relationship with Nanami stood frozen in time. And Nanami, in as sour a mood as you, agreed. You'd arrived home to find Gojo sprawled out on your floor. Who even knew how he'd gotten in there? At this point, you just assumed he could move through walls.

"Ewwww, you kept this?" Satoru whines, pulling a picture of him, Nanami and you in high school from the box. It's a selfie of the three of you, though Satoru should’ve never been in it. You reach forward, taking the tiny photo from your friend and Nanami closes the distance on the sofa, scooting closer to have a good look.

You remember it well, the first picture you'd ever taken together.

High School Years

It had been a little under a year since you'd transferred to Jujutsu Technical High School for your Junior year and you were still adjusting to how insanely difficult the curriculum was. You were lounging beneath the shade of a tree during lunch period with Nanami, quietly chatting about how damn hard your physics lab was. Nanami listened patiently, humming to indicate he was paying attention to you as he flipped through your physics work.

You're waiting for your friend, Haibara, to get out of class, the one who'd introduced you to Nanami in the first place. You all made plans to meet, but he was running behind and this was honestly your first time being alone with Nanami. You'd worried you wouldn't have anything to talk to him about. Mostly because Nanami was always so quiet, hardly spoke a word to you even with Haibara around. Also because despite his silence, you had the biggest crush on your blonde, sidebanged friend of a friend. Though you could never bring up the courage to say anything about it.

Mainly because Nanami felt wholly unapproachable. Even so, you were surprised at how easy it was to simply...exist together without Haibara as a buffer.

Nanami's eyes scan over your classwork and after a moment of silence, he closes the book, placing it gently into your lap which makes your heart feel like it's trying to crawl out of your chest.

"If you'd like..." he begins quietly. "I can help you study the material. I'm pretty good at physics." He stares down at his legs laid out before him, a faint hint of pink dusting his cheeks. "I could come by your dorm tonight? We can study in the common room...if that's ok."

"Really?" You tried not to sound too excited at the prospect of spending more alone time with Nanami.

"I'd be happy to."

And for the first time since you'd met Nanami, you saw the tiniest bit of a smile appear on his lips. Your eyes widened, heart pounded, cheeks heated when you saw how beautiful the boy before you truly was. Now you wore a goofy smile of your own.

"I'd like that, Nanami."

He squirms briefly in his spot before he clears his throat. "You can call me Kento."

"Kento..." You test his name on your tongue, smiling when you see Nanami now staring at you, eyes wide, noticing the now red tips of his ears. So cute. "Thank you, Ken-"

"Awww, look at the lovebirds," an annoying voice you'd grown accustomed to teased. You sighed, looking up to find none other than your school nuisance looming over you, Satoru Gojo grinning down at you. "Should I take a pic so you losers can remember your first date?"

And before you could reply, he snapped a selfie of you three; you and Nanami still sitting on the ground and Gojo front and center, two fingers up to make a peace sign. He spun around, laughing when he saw the pic before he turned his phone to show it to you both. "Man, I'm sending this to Haibara. He'll love it."

Next to you, Nanami stands. "Speaking of, I need to get to class. I know Yu has your cell number. Is it okay for him to give it to me?"

"Oh, I can just give it to you now?" You offer, an attempt to delay his departure.

Gojo interrupted. "Oh, yeah! Gimme your number, too since we're all sharing." His thick, round sunglasses slipped down the slope of his nose, one of his freakishly blue eyes winking at you.

Nanami scowled at the upperclassman. "It's fine. I'll get it from Yu and will text you to meet up later. I have to get to class." He sneered at Gojo one last time as the snowy haired man settled down in Nanami's spot under the tree. "Try not to be more unbearable than usual, Gojo," he gritted out, making Gojo chuckle next to you.

You did get a text from Nanami that night. You'd met up to study, which was mostly you sneaking peeks at Nanami's beautiful side profile as he sat as close as he could to you, dragging his finger along your physics workbook.

Beneath the table, where you both gripped the edges of your seats, Nanami's fingers brushed against yours. The sudden contact made you jump. But Nanami didn't react, still explaining something about 7s and 3s. You weren’t listening. You brushed off the touch as an accident, until you felt Nanami’s finger on yours again. Just his pinky, gently running over your knuckles before he stopped when you didn't move. Nanami continued going over the study materials as if nothing happened, the red hue on his ears returning and you suddenly realized this was his tell. He was nervous, embarrassed. Just like you. 

Heart in your throat, you reached your pinky over and brushed it along his knuckles, his reaction immediate as he linked his pinky with yours.

Above the table, your eyes met, words lodged in your throat as you held hands with no one in the world aware except you two. Nanami's phone buzzes and it takes him a few seconds to tear his gaze away from yours before he picks it up. He tells you it's a text message from Haibara, so you lean over to see. There's a photo attached.

Yu Haibara: How's the study date going?

The tips of Nanami's ears redden even more if possible, and he quickly brushes his long golden strands over them. This makes you giggle beside him.

Yu Haibara: Gojo sent me this earlier and I meant to text it to you.

1 Image Attached

Nanami opens the photo, the selfie of you, him and Gojo taking over his screen.

"Cute," you whisper, the grip of your pinky tightening around Nanami's under the table. He doesn't say anything. He taps the screen, probably sending a reply back before he gets back to studying.

At the end of the night, as Nanami packs his belongings back into his bag, his phone buzzes again with a message. You spare a quick glance at his screen, doing a double take when you see his phone background. It's pixelized from the zoom, a little blurry, but it's definitely you beneath the tree that afternoon, rolling your eyes as Gojo took the picture.

That night changed everything for you and Nanami. Group outings soon turned into date nights, study sessions to makeout sessions, awkward smiles to shy kisses. All of it with Nanami, your first boyfriend, your first husband, your first love.

Present Day

Satoru has now dumped most of the box’s contents out. You and Nanami have joined him on the floor, you sitting between Nanami's legs with your back pressed against his front.

"Oh my god, Ken, do you remember this one?" You hold up a photo of you both at prom, awkwardly holding each other in front of a tacky background. Nanami is wearing a smile that looks almost painful, and you with your obnoxious blue eyeshadow are beaming. 

Nanami chuckles behind you. "Yes, I do. I remember Satoru spiking the lemonade and Yu vomiting everywhere."

You throw your head back with a laugh. "Yeah, right after he found us making out on the side of the building. Threw up the second he saw us..." You recall between giggles. "So rude."

Across the table, Satoru shifts the contents of the last box around. "He would've loved to see you guys workin' it out." He mutters. "Miss that kid sometimes."

"Me too," you and Nanami say in unison.

"He knew I loved you before I did," Nanami says solemnly, thinking of Yu. "He would've never let us get to the point we did."

You nod, remembering the wide, contagious smile of your first friend at your new school. And it brings you back to the beginning of you and Nanami, who you would've never known without Yu.

Haibara, who helped you navigate your relationship early on and hilariously guided you through your awkward stages with Nanami.

The picture reminds you of the first time you'd held hands in public. It takes you back to your first kiss outside of your dorm room after seeing a movie with Nanami, the first time you'd made love. It pulls back all of your first memories of your early stages with Nanami. The picture reminds you of when you'd moved in with Nanami. Makes you think about all of your ups and downs and what inevitably brought you back to each other.

It reminds you of Yu, who listened whenever you argued with Nanami and pushed for you both to make up. He knew you belonged together, even if you didn’t know it yet. It was Yu who brought you together, and Yu who was ultimately reminding you all these years later to remember where you began.

You lean back into Nanami's embrace when he holds up another photo; this one is of you two at your first wedding, both wearing big smiles. By that time, Yu had been long gone. But you made the most the day just the way Yu would’ve wanted you to. You couldn't wait to start your lives together, to be together forever.

You didn't know what the future held back then. But you know what the future holds now - a love withstanding time. A love that survives. A love that you know you both would fight for no matter what this time.

This force of nature, this strong, pure, burning love that never left either of you, even when you were miles and prefectures apart. It was what brought you together again, the reason you both were willing to try again.

Nanami kisses your head, breathing into your hair. "I want to keep looking through these, but I want to talk about therapy later. Really sit down and talk, okay?"

You nod, eyes still glued to your wedding picture and your heart swells knowing that one day soon, you'll be doing this all over again with the man you've loved for as long as you can remember.

[ladylooch]

Ooo 6 with Lexi and Nico! Although I can’t imagine Nico really being the arguing type!

They bicker more than anything. Rarely do things get escalated to an apology level. Lexi and Nico are both mature and recognize when things are escalating and walk it back down. But, when they do actually fight... which you will all see in something else that is coming soon🤭.... Nico is the first to apologize. He can't stand the discomfort of her being upset or hurt or angry. Lexi is stubborn when she is hurt and it brings out her sassy side, even when Nico is trying to reason with her. He will do anything to get her into his arms and hold her. Touching her hair, kissing her lips, stroking her back. He wants his hands everywhere to re-establish their connection. Between his words and touch, Lexi caves quickly.

Nico will usually wait until the kids are down for the night, or there is a quiet moment in the early morning, so the focus can be on their conversation. He comes out from the bedroom, glancing to the couch where Lucie sits quietly watching TV.

"Hi baby." He smiles at her. She looks at him, smiling back. The dimples in her cheeks are so pronounced in the shadows from the sunrise.

"Hi daddy." He walks to her, kissing the top of her head, then let his eyes find his wife's figure. She's in the kitchen, standing with her back to him, acting like she doesn't know he's there. He hates when she does that. It makes him feel invisible. His hand falls from Lucie's head as he works his way across the wood floor to the Kitchen island.

"Hey." Nico says to Lexi where she is working on toast for Lucie. "Can I take over?"

"I can handle it." She mutters back to him. He better cut to the chase; she doesn't seem to have patience for small talk.

"I'm really sorry about last night, Lex. I was in a bad mood after the game and I took it out on you."

"Yep. That's happening a lot lately."

"I know. I recognize that and I'm going to do better. I need to communicate with you when I'm in that place and take space to be alone." Silence falls over the kitchen except for the scrapping of the knife against the toast where she spreads strawberry jam. Eventually, Lexi sighs.

"You're making it really hard to stay mad at you." Nico chuckles. "Like usual...."

"Can I have a hug?" Lexi drops the knife. She dives into his chest, forgetting about their daughter's breakfast for five minutes while her and Nico sway together in the morning sunlight.

[when-jaguars-are-sick]

JAYDEN: Expecting a Miracle

Here's a pool-centric fic, featuring sick Jayden, also starring Colin and Alix as caretakers. I'm so excited to properly introduce *the pool*, one of the most important locations in my stories.

------

“Are you sure you should be going to the pool tonight?”

“Lexi, I’ll be fine. The pool makes everything better.”

“I know, Jay, but if you go to the pool expecting a miracle, it’ll seem less magical. You’re obviously upset about something. Why don’t we have a night in?”

Jayden gives a weary sigh… He’s so not in the mood for arguing. He wants to go swim for an hour, then collapse on his bed and go to sleep.

Alix knows him better than anyone, except maybe Keegan, so it’s no surprise that Alix knows something’s wrong. Alix is right in guessing that he probably shouldn’t go to the pool tonight, but they're wrong in their guess as to why. 

Alix thinks he’s stressed about something, which is fair, since that’s normally true, but tonight it’s not anxiety that’s causing his upset stomach.

It’s just some indigestion, he tells himself, remembering the ham sandwich and coffee he called lunch. He wouldn’t be Jayden if he let a little indigestion keep him away from the pool, though, so he shakes off his discomfort, and plasters on a smile for Alix.

He grabs his bag, all while Alix watches him with one eyebrow raised, trying not to smile at his stubbornness. Leaning over, he quickly kisses Alix good-bye, before heading out the door. As he’s leaving, he hears Alix call after him, “Call me if you need me!”

During the drive to the pool, he rethinks that conversation on loop, ranging from amusement, to frustration. On one hand, he appreciates Alix’s attentiveness, and his concern, but on the other hand, Alix doesn’t seem to trust him to know his body, and that’s bothering him.

By the time he makes it, he’s more than ready for a swim, needing the stress relief it brings.

When he changes into his swim suit, he notices that his stomach is kind of bloated, and he rubs at it gently, feeling it shift under his hand. He grimaces, but brushes it off as another symptom of his indigestion, figuring that a swim will help him start digesting.

Is it just me, or is the deck really warm today, he wonders, feeling a wave of heat wash over him, making him vaguely lightheaded as walks up to the water. He’s starting to wonder if it’s more than indigestion, but he’s too committed to his denial now to consider the alternative.

Shivering, he slips into the water. When it touches his skin, the sudden cold shocks him into alertness. He starts to hope the pool will work its magic and he’ll leave feeling better.

Normally, he would start with a warm-up, before working his way through a more intense endurance swim, and end with a couple sprints, lasting just over an hour. Tonight, he doesn’t do any of that, opting to start with a leisurely swim, hoping he can work off some of the gross feeling in his belly.

 Not even 20 minutes into his swim, he starts to wish he’d stayed on land. He doesn’t get seasick, but he thinks he’s starting to understand what it feels like. The water seems to be fighting him in a way it’s never done before. He feels the swaying of his body in a way that’s unnatural, and his stomach flips with every breath. 

He stops midway through the pool, and stands up, breathing carefully. He feels much steadier with his feet on the ground, the woozy feeling dissolving even as his stomach continues to flip. He frowns in discomfort, walking slowly back to the wall.

He sighs as he realizes that Alix was right, the thought bringing a sheepish smile to his face.

He’s now seriously regretting getting in the water, the small waves lapping at his chest as he reaches the wall mimic the unsettled movements of his insides, and he has to swallow back a burp out of fear that more would come up. 

He clambers out of the pool, making a mad dash for the bathroom. Thankful that he didn’t throw up in the pool, he throws himself to the floor in front of the toilet, leaning over the toilet with a deep belch. It relieves some of the pressure in his stomach, and he thinks for a moment that that might be all.

He leans back on his feet, and takes a deep breath, and when nothing more comes up, he sighs in relief. His stomach clenches, and tosses, pushing up another loud burp.

Normally he would be panicking over his embarrassing sprint to the bathrooms, but his stomach draws all his attention, and though he’ll probably obsess over it later, for now he can’t be bothered.

When nothing more happens, he carefully stands up, and that’s when his stomach decides it’s had enough, and he’s immediately spewing up lunch, and breakfast, and maybe even last night’s dinner.

He groans in pain as more stinging vomit comes surging out of his mouth, landing in the rapidly filling toilet with a splash.

Draping himself over the toilet as he continues to purge his stomach contents, he wishes he’d stayed home with Alix.

One hand laying on the toilet supports his head, and the other clings tight to his writhing stomach.

“Oh my god, are you alright?” a voice asks suddenly from behind Jayden, who belatedly realizes that he never locked the stall door.

“Nnnghh…” he groans in response.

He feels a hand touch his back, and he pulls away, wary of strangers, especially in his vulnerable state. He’s been on the receiving end of such hesitance before, and knows how much it can hurt, so he’s surprised when the man apologizes.

The man, as he leaves, promises to return, and Jayden vacantly wonders why he would come back, when he’s obviously a disaster, still soaking wet from the pool, and puking non-stop.

After a few long minutes, Jayden’s stomach settles enough that he’s no longer actively puking, but he’s tired and embarrassed enough that he stays slumped over the toilet, waiting for a miracle.

Luckily, a miracle is just what he gets, as a familiar voice says “Aw, Jayden, I’m sorry you feel so bad. Let’s get you cleaned up and out of here, huh?”

He slumps further in relief, knowing he’s in good hands. Even so, he feels a slight curl of disappointment, that it’s not Alix. Still, he trusts Colin to get him home.

Colin thanks the lovely person who stopped to help a vomiting stranger, and crouches down next to Jayden, asking “Hey, can I touch you?”

Jayden nods, knowing he needs help to get out of here. Colin peels him away from the toilet, flushing it. Then he grabs Jayden under his arms, heaving him to his feet, where he sways unsteadily for a minute, grabbing onto Colin until the world stops swaying.

Colin drags him to the showers, and quickly helps hose him off, cleaning away chlorine and puke that had settled on his skin.

They move to a bench, and Colin asks for the number of Jayden’s locker, before opening it and wrapping a towel around his shivering friend.

He pulls out Jayden’s phone, handing it to him, who shakily unlocks it and fumbles trying to find his boyfriend’s contact. Colin saves him again, gently taking the phone and calling Alix.

He picks up on the first ring.

“Jayden?”

“It’s Colin. Jayden’s sick.”

“Fuck, I knew something was bothering him.”

“Can you come pick him up?”

“Yeah, of course, I’m on my way.”

Colin sits with Jayden until Alix comes running into the room, frantic. His wide-eyed gaze lands on his wet, pale, shaking boyfriend, then Colin’s worried expression, and he springs into action.

He wraps an arm around Jayden, who sighs instantaneously out of relief, leaning into them. Meanwhile, Colin stands, heading back out the pool deck to check that the other guard is okay. Calling after him, Alix says “Thank you Colin, for looking after my stubborn boyfriend.” Colin laughs, answering “No problem. Hope you feel better!” he adds, addressing Jayden.

Alix pushes Jayden towards the changeroom with his dry clothes, before dragging him to the car. Jayden makes use of the plastic bag Alix hands him, heaving drily into the bag, before producing yet more vomit.

Alix gently places his hand on Jayden’s thigh, trying to watch the road and his boyfriend. As soon as he parks, he hops out of the car, rushing around to the other side, pulling open the door, and he puts his hand on Jayden’s back.

“It’s okay sweetheart, just let it out. You’ll be okay, I’m here now.” Jay finishes with one last mouthful of vomit, spitting harshly a couple times, before breathing heavily and relaxing. Alix pries the bag from his hands, dropping it in a garbage can conveniently placed a few feet away.

Jayden is almost asleep where he sits, and Alix knows he’s not going to be able to support his semi-conscious taller boyfriend up the stairs.

Keegan comes hurrying outside after receiving Alix’s text asking for help, and together they get Jayden upstairs, and into bed, where he collapses, having finally emptied his belly, and made it home with his boyfriend.

Alix changes into some pajamas, before laying down next to Jay.

He whispers “Maybe now you’ll believe me next time, huh, sweetheart?”

Jayden hums in agreement, before muttering “I’m so lucky Colin was there. Sorry I didn’t listen, Lexi.”

Alix rolls his eyes in response, knowing that it will happen again because Jayden’s just too stubborn for his own good, but relieved to have him home and feeling better nonetheless.

Alix kisses the back of his head, and Jayden falls asleep with a gentle little smile on his face, Alix soon following.

[simply-wlw-kpopstan]

Bonus chapter 02 : mischievous

You should've know that look on her face when you told her you hated mushrooms a few weeks ago. She just finished her pasta with mushrooms and wanted a kiss but you declined, before she could pout you confessed your dislike for the dirt tasting rubber things she seemed to love so much. Skip to today where you are eating a bowl of ice-cream with whipped cream as you're reading one of your favorite books.

She walked up to you with a dangerous little glint in her eyes but you didn't question it. She's been in a playful mood all day and it usually doesn't affect you as much as it does with her members, she usually teases them or plays around with hyunseo. That was probably your first mistake, brushing that look off. She's got trouble written all over her but you pay it no mind as she stands behind you with her arms around your shoulders and gently placed kisses on the back of your head.

Looking up at her from your position was your second mistake, you'd never stand a chance when she's giving you the sweetest smile and biggest puppy eyes. She leans down to plant a kiss on your lips and that's when you realize what she was doing. The awful taste of mushrooms was still on her lips making you grimace and pull back, "yujin!" you whined as she laughed.

"I just wanted a kiss" she smirks.

"I could've given you some gum to get rid of the mushroom taste before you kissed me. You know I hate mushrooms."

She doesn't say another word as she took a candy from her pocket and popped it into her mouth. After biting down on it she leans down again but you look to the side so her lips connect with your cheek," Baby I promise you will like this one. "she pouted as she placed a finger on your chin, making you look at her.

" I don't trust you" you glared as she smirked.

"just one kiss." her voice got a little lower and the words were paired with a seductive look she knew you wouldn't resist. You sighed and gave her such a Quick peck that it was impossible to taste what candy she was eating, "I want a proper kiss." she whines and puckers her lips again.

You knew she wouldn't let this go, not when she's this close to achieving whatever she wanted to do so you gave in once again and were heavily rewarded with the taste of raspberries. "mmh" you hummed as you kept stealing kisses from her making her laugh.

"told you you'd love it." she grinned with a cocky attitude, "I know what you like." it seems like she wasn't done with you just yet as she quickly stole some of the whipped cream from your bowl and smeared it on your face.

"yujin!" you laughed as you whipped it off your cheek, "You're gonna pay for that!"

Before you even registered what happened yujin had pulled you in by the back of your neck, kissing you quickly and licking off the last of the whipped cream on your lips.

"What were you saying about me paying for that?" she asked, smirking.

"I swear you better not break your own 'no sex in the living room ' rule tonight while we're gone." Brady said as she walked into the room after witnessing everything.

"leave them alone, they're being the cute couple they are." lexi smiled as she passed by Brady, "you're just not open to love my friend but one day. " lexi swung an arm around Brady's shoulder, "one day you'll meet your person."

Previous | masterlist | next

[tsuyuhito]

The madman's secret meeting(yaoi / Jokelex)

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

I tried rewriting the novel I wrote from Japanese to English.

I'm sure there are a lot of mistakes, but I hope you enjoy reading it.

（It's a long text so I've collapsed it.）

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

Lex Luthor believes himself to be essential to Metropolis.

This is because he has developed many things for the residents of this town, enriching their lives.

On the other hand, the blue boy scout flying around in the sky…He don't think it's essential.

"Humans are not meant to be protected. I would like to say whether we can bear having our worth determined by that alien."

His presence stops the residents from thinking.

This is because it gives the illusion that they are protected.

"Lexi, your speeches are always without a trace of humor. You should have more fun with your life."

Luthor, who was a passionate speaker, looked at the other party with a dissatisfied expression when he heard the voice of the person who gave his impressions without touching the contents of the speech at all.

The man with green hair and lifeless skin was lounging on a white leather sofa, unfazed by his gaze, beckoning Luther over and smiling.

The green-haired man who was brought there could be considered a kind of special partner for Luthor.

This is Luthor's temporary home.

Metropolis Penthouse.

To get here, Luthor must hold his keycard over a certain area of ​​the elevator.

In other words, it's a room you can't enter unless you come with Luthor.

Moreover, this room is one of his favorites. This is because it is a special temporary residence, located on a hill overlooking the metropolis, and equipped with first-class monochrome furniture.

"Joker, I feel like you're always telling jokes that aren't funny."

"Hahaha! Stubborn Lexi doesn't seem to understand how funny I am."

"I don't even want to understand."

"My thoughts on speeches…"

Undeterred by Luthor's insults, the man known as the Joker walked up to him, grabbed Luthor's wrist, pulled him close, and laughed loudly.

To many, it would have looked like a scary smile.

But Luther just shrugged his shoulders and sat down in the empty space on the couch he was lying on.

Joker said as he lay down and gently stroked Luthor's wrist from his grasp to his shoulder.

"It's like we're talking about the people of Metropolis, but it's all about you, Lex."

"what do you mean?"

However, the two of them, now face to face, just stare at each other for a few seconds.

Luthor asked, not trying to hide his bad mood, and brushed Joker's hand away in displeasure.

Joker's hand that have no place to toucch fluttered for a while, but he suddenly grabbed Luthor's necktie and draw down. Luthor hurriedly grabbed the sofa with one hand and supported his weight with the other, managing to avoid a collision.

"You discovered your weak side by getting involved with those flying alien."

"What are you so stupid about…"

"Is that wrong? I think you thought you were the one who was 'beyond humans', but someone who really is beyond humans has appeared and you're jealous."

Joker has hit the nail on the head, or maybe he was angry at his playful words, but the clown didn't stop talking as Luthor raised his fists.

"Jealousy is the act of admitting that you are inferior. Lex, even though the person you are comparing yourself to is just not human, you are really serious and competitive. I respect that kind of borderless way of thinking."

"Lexi, my baby. Lex Luthor is a stud. You're amazing guy enough to drive me to my senses. you're an amazing 'human being'! Big blue has superpowers, he can fly, people are crazy about him. but, you are the best even if you couldn't do things like be loved by others or save cats."

Joker was the first to move before his clenched fist swung down.

He knew that Luthor listen to him far better than anyone else.

Although Luthor would sometimes ask Joker to summarize his story, Luthor was well aware that there was no way he would be interrupted mid-way unless he got angry with Joker.

That's why the Joker was able to wrap Luthor's fist in his palm.

"I don't have to say that…"

"If you were born a Kryptonian or a metahuman, I'd be bored and holed up in Gotham."

After telling him that and laughing, he slides the hand that was holding his tie down to his hairless scalp and peck him on the cheek.

"I'm 'Lex Luthor'. I 'm only one person. I'm me. This is me. It is take it for granted."

His hand had won't be shaken off.

Luthor's fist trembled with mixed emotions in Joker's hand, but they both pretended not to notice.

Lex Luthor is considerate ,indulgent to human.

Is that why you invited me to your home because you wanted me to tell you something so obvious, right?

The words are swallowed up without becoming words.

Although his actions are often misunderstood as those of a villain, Joker believes that Luthor is someone who would have been on the hero's side if the location and environment had changed.

However, it is maddeningly endearing to see this man, who has such a heroic side, go mad, get angry, struggle, and push through the dirt road as a villain.

This man is always seeking approval.

He is crying out to be recognized.

He want to be 'number one', 'only one'.

That's why Joker often became sane in front of this man.

A love-hate relationship that makes you want to admonish him, like being in front of your arch-enemy Batman.

Although this clown has no feelings of hatred towards Luthor.

Sometimes a man named Luthor begs for help from a madman named Joker.

But The person himself is saying ' I don't want to be helped'.

That made Joker excited.

It was keeping the clown sane, and it was also driving him crazy.

Joker think "I'm sure if you ask him that question someday, I will absolutely love his expression. " and his smile deepens.

Why would solitary genius invite to this madman such a special place?

Why would he tell the clown about that blue alien?

Why call dude who is likely to deny rather than agree?

Even though why Luthor say he hate Joker, is he asking dude to come see him again?

The madman's secret meeting will probably happen sooner than they think.

[kamryn1963]

So Long, London- Chapter 15\30

Two days later found Al back at work. Michelle had been doing better and seemed to be getting settled in well. Currently her and Al were working on getting her enrolled in school as she had been out for the last couple months. 

Al had also reached out to Lexi the day before, and while she was obviously not ready to talk yet, she had at least let him know she went back to her mom’s and she was okay. Al was happy to hear that. 

Right now Al was trying to do some of his long overdue paperwork. He really needed to get this done today or Trudy was going to harass him more for it. God, was paperwork the worst part of the job. Al had always hated it and while he wasn’t above paying somebody else to do it, Al decided to at least attempt this pile of reports without resorting to that. 

His back ached from sleeping on the couch the last couple days which did not help his mood. Al didn’t regret giving up his room for Michelle, she deserved it more than him, but he was also almost fifty three and his body protested his hard secondhand couch. 

Al was just moving on to his third report and thinking about taking his lunch break when he sensed someone watching him. It was a slow day in Intelligence and they had yet to catch a case so everybody was hanging around the bullpen. 

When Al looked up he met Adam’s eyes. Al stared back having no idea why Adam was just watching him especially with how serious Adam looked. Adam didn’t say anything but his eyes glanced down to Al’s sleeves and Al looked down too, freezing as he realized what Adam had been looking at. 

Al had on a light blue sweatshirt which he regretted now. At some point during the last little while, his fresh cuts from this morning had reopened and his sleeve was slowly but surely being soaked in blood. Fuck. 

Al grabbed a kleenex, sticking it under his shirt to stem the bleeding before getting up without a word and heading down to the locker room. He could hear and see Adam following him but Al didn’t pay him any attention. 

Al headed to his locker and grabbed his duffle bag, relieved when he found a spare long sleeve black shirt in there. Al grabbed that and his mini first aid kit and headed into one of the stalls well aware Adam was outside waiting for him. 

Al removed the sweatshirt he was wearing, sighing when he saw the cuts. Two of the three he’d made that morning had reopened including one of the deeper ones he’d made. It took almost twenty minutes before Al got himself patched up and changed and he was thankful he hadn’t heard anyone else enter the locker room at that time. 

Al took a couple deep breaths knowing Adam wouldn’t back down until he got an answer and there was a really real chance Adam would go to Hank or Trudy if he figured out how Al had gotten injured. 

Al opened the stall door, heading back over to his locker and throwing his stuff back into his bag before putting the bag back in his locker and shutting the door. Al sat down on the bench not even bothering to try to leave. 

Adam sat next to him, his eyes just looking at his mentor for a few minutes before he finally spoke. 

“Are you okay, O?” Adam asked, his voice surprisingly gentle. 

“I’m fine, Ruzek”. Al replied, trying to make it clear in his tone that he didn’t want more questions. Unfortunately Adam didn’t seem to pick up on that. 

“You were bleeding, that doesn’t sound like fine, Al. What happened? Were you hurt on the case yesterday?” Adam asked and Al closed his eyes as he clenched his hands into fists trying to calm himself down. 

“I just hurt myself cooking yesterday”. Al lied and it almost scared him how easily the lie fell off his tongue. Just like it used to. 

“You cut your forearm while cooking?” Adam questioned and Al realized that Adam didn’t believe his excuse at all. 

“I don’t believe it’s any of your business”. Al snapped and he wasn’t even trying to hide how he felt anymore. He didn’t want to have this conversation, especially with Adam of all people. 

Thankfully before Adam could speak, Al’s phone rang. Al answered it as he held the phone to his ear. The caller ID had been Chicago Med. 

“Hello?” Al said. He had a really bad feeling about this. 

Adam watched as Al’s face slowly lost more and more color as the person on the other end spoke. He started getting really worried knowing that something bad had definitely happened. When Al finally put the phone down and just stood there, Adam finally spoke. 

“Al? Are you okay, what happened?” Adam asked urgently. He didn’t get an answer as expected, and Al just looked at him blankly before turning and leaving the room. 

Al didn’t pay any attention to Adam calling for him or when Trudy called his name when he passed her desk, he just headed outside and to his car his mind focused on one thing and one thing only. Getting to Med and getting to his daughter. To Lexi. 

As he drove, everything he’d been told ran through his head. Meredith and Lexi had been in a car accident. Rammed by a drunk driver. The driver had died on impact. And so had Meredith. 

He was told Lexi just had minor injuries thankfully. A broken wrist, a bruised face and a couple bruised ribs. That and she had apparently held Meredith as she died. His little girl, his baby girl, had held her mom while she died in front of her. 

When he hit a red light, Al hit the steering wheel hard in anger and grief. He had to put his own feelings about Meredith aside right now to focus on Lexi. She was what mattered. 

Al arrived at Med as fast as he could and ran inside, he vaguely recognized Jay’s brother Will and headed up to him. 

“I’m looking for my daughter, Lexi Olinsky”. Al said instantly and he saw recognition on Will’s face as he nodded and pointed to a treatment room. 

Al headed into the room spotting Lexi on the bed. She was laying against the pillows silently crying and Al saw Meredith’s wedding ring in her hand. Al was still wearing his. 

Lexi looked up when she saw him and instantly started sobbing as she stretched her arms out towards him, like she’d done as a little kid whenever she got a scraped knee. Al sat next to her, and just held her making sure he wasn’t putting pressure on her injured wrist as she sobbed. 

All Al could do was hold Lexi as she cried and mourned her mom. Al let a couple of his own tears fall as they both sat on that hospital bed. 

“She’s gone”. Lexi managed to get out between sobs. Al felt sick as he noticed Meredith’s blood all over Lexi’s arms and shirt. 

“I know sweetheart, I know”. Al mumbled, because what else could he say? 

[nicascurls]

A Sense of Happiness

Word count: 1.9K

Summary: Junior has been having a bad day and only begins to feel more lonely once he's back from school until Nica suggests he help her with dinner.

Notes: I was given this idea this morning and couldn't get it out of my head, so I wrote this instead of packing for a festival. I ended up really enjoying writing this and exploring what the relationship between Nica and Junior would be like. I also had to add some BarclayPierce into this cause I'm a sucker for them.

(As much as I have an issue with Tiffany in the show, I love the quotes from her mother, so one of them ended up in this if you want to look out for it.)

Tags: @losersclubisms @zelinksupporter @streets-in-paradise

It was just one of those days. Little things just seemed to keep going wrong and it made the things Junior could tolerate normally even more unbearable. 

It started off with him hitting his head as he got up that morning, followed by Jake taking even longer than usual in the bathroom, making Junior run late and things just continued to build up until he was just ready for the day to be over. 

By the time they had all got back from school Junior was in a spectacularly shit mood. The final straw being a teacher giving him the classic speech about paying attention in class and 'doing better'. Playing the discussion back in his head the teacher's voice sounded far too much like Logan's for Junior's liking. 

Lexy was busy hanging out with Nadine and Caroline, Junior didn't want to disturb her with his bullshit. Although neither said it out loud, they both knew that Lexy never really had real friends since kindergarten until Nadine came along. Meanwhile his cousin was too busy acting all lovey-dovey with his best friend, so that option was off the table too and the twins had to stay behind at school for rehearsal. 

Junior made his way to the kitchen, planning to get a drink before sitting in the living room and watching some mindless TV. He wasn't expecting Nica to be in there too, starting her usual ritual of staring at absolutely everything in the fridge before deciding what to cook.

She turned as she heard him walking towards her.

"Hey, you." She said in her cheery voice that she always seemed to use when talking to one of the kids. Junior only let out a hum of acknowledgement in response as he grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. 

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Junior responded without missing a beat, keeping his eyes trained ahead. 

"Just tired."

"-Just tired." Nica spoke simultaneously, mimicking his tone. He didn't even have to look at Nica to know the expression she would be wearing, the small comforting smile with her eyebrows slightly raised encouraging him to speak. Any other adult would just have accepted his response as a standard teenage thing. Damn Nica and her stupid psychology shit.

It's not that he wasn't thankful for it, he was. He just wasn't accustomed to it yet, he was trying to get better but it was a big change from his father's teachings. So in the spirit of trying, he decided to take a seat at the kitchen island instead. 

“You wanna talk about it?” Nica encouraged gently.

“Just little things keep going wrong, and there's teacher speeches about doing better, that kind of thing.” The phrase ‘like Logan used to’ hung unsaid in the air between them. Nica knew better than to talk about him if Junior had not brought his name up himself, it was simply too difficult at times.

“One of those days huh?” Junior nodded in response, finally looking Nica in the eyes. “What are the others up to right now?”

“Busy.” was the boy’s only response.

“Do you want to give me a hand? Cooking helps me when I'm annoyed.”

“I don’t think i’ll help you though, I always fuck it up. Something tells me that’s not gonna help me feel any better.”

“Maybe, but what if you helped me with chopping up the ingredients? That’s always the bit that helps me the most, you let your frustration out and then you're calm and able to focus when it comes to the actual cooking.” Nica knew she was starting to win Junior over when she mentioned using a knife.

“How much frustration are we talking?”

“As much as you need to get out. You in?” Junior gave in to the smile that had been trying to break out onto his features and nodded before Nica wheeled over to the knife block and returned to the island, presenting it to him. 

“Choose your weapon.” she announced with a smile. 

“Seriously?!” he asked in disbelief.

“What were you expecting to chop vegetables with? A spoon?” Junior rolled his eyes with a smile as he took the biggest knife from the block. “Your jokes are shit, you know that right?” 

“I don’t know about that, it still made you smile.” Nica retaliated as she took the second biggest knife. 

Over the next 20 minutes the two of them spend their time chopping up all the ingredients they needed as Junior enthusiastically ranted about anything that came to mind.

“You know, he was just the kind of person that no matter how much I did right he was able to find the one thing I did wrong.” Junior explained and he brought his knife down on another carrot.

“Trust me, I know that feeling.” Nica responded, tipping the chopped onions into the frying pan next to her.

“You do?”

“My sister had a pretty similar attitude towards me.” Junior smiled at her then, happy to have found a kindred spirit.

At that moment Andy made his way into the kitchen and stopped in his tracks as he saw the sight in front of him.

“I was starting to think you got lost.” Nica chuckled as she continued to prepare the ingredients. Andy tried to ignore the butterflies in his stomach whenever he saw Nica's smile.

“Yeah well, no such  thing as a short conversation with my mom.”

"How is she and Grandpa Mike?" Junior asked.

"They're good kid, looking forward to seeing all of you again." That earned another smile from Junior who was in a significantly better mood since talking to Nica and continued to aggressively chop the carrots in front of him.

Andy looked over at Nica, trying to make eye contact with concern etched on his features. Nica caught his expression out of the corner of her eye as she continued with the task at hand.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah. Uh, just an interesting technique" Andy signalled to Junior who was still massacring the vegetables in front of him.

"It gets the job done." Nica responded as she smiled at Junior. "But seriously honey, watch your fingers." Junior looked up at her before slowly inching his fingers back from the vegetables.

Andy was about to say something again when he saw Nica begin to chop the remaining ingredients in an identical fashion to Junior.

"Right, well I'm gonna check on the other- please, keep watching what you're doing." Andy said as Nica turned to look at him.

She saw the panic on his face and smirked at him.

"Relax, okay. I know what I'm doing."  Andy smiled before becoming aware of the fact that the other two both had knives in their hands and raised his own in mock surrender before leaving the room. 

The other two looked at each other before laughing, “I think we might have freaked him out.” Junior said between chuckles. 

“He’s dealt with far worse, come on we'll finish this off then we could try baking a dessert if you want?”

“Yeah, I'd like that.” 

By the time the twins had returned from their rehearsal the food was almost done and Junior was helping Nica set the table. 

“Ooh, something smells good!” Glen cries as they enter the kitchen with Glenda.

“Thanks.” Junior replied with a smile. 

“Nice try buddy, I think that was directed to Nica.” Glenda clapped back, looking over at Nica.

“Well thanks, but Junior deserves the compliment too. He did just as much as I did.” 

“Junior cooked?”

“And the house is still standing?” The twins responded simultaneously.

“And baked,” Junior added, signalling to the pie cooking in the oven for dessert, “So take that!” He stuck his middle fingers up at the twins just as Andy entered the room again. Junior simply smiled at Andy before slowly putting his hands down. 

In the end, dinner was a complete success with everyone complementing both Nica and Junior, although he often tried to redirect the compliment when it came to the dinner itself.

“That’s sweet honey,” Nica responded, “ We both cooked the dinner, but that pie was basically all you. You may need to learn a bit more about cooking but it turns out you're quite a natural baker.” Junior felt pride rise up through him at Nica’s compliment and all the issues from earlier in the day were forgotten for the evening. The kids decided it was a good night for a movie, and after dinner they all made their way to the living room to decide what movie they were going to watch as the adults cleared the table. Andy walked over to the sink with the last of the dishes in his hands as Nica added the soap to the bowl.

“I can do this if you want, you can go and relax.” Andy suggested in a gentle tone.

“In a room full of eight kids?” The amusement was clear in Nica’s voice.

“You know what I mean.” he responded with a smile, “You and Junior did all this the least I can do is the dishes.”

Nica moved to leave the room before having an idea and reaching towards the dirty dishes with a playful smirk. “Are you sure that’s the only reason?” She asked, about to grab the knife she had been using to cut the vegetables earlier. Andy caught on to what she was about to do and grabbed the knife first, moving it away from her. 

“And I can't deal with you wielding a knife again today.” Nica let out a chuckle in response, “I knew it. I can promise you, I won't stab anyone. Well, apart from Chucky or Tiffany but that’s different.” 

“Yeah I have no issue with that, I was more worried that you were gonna hurt yourself.”

“That’s sweet but you don’t have to worry about me.”

“But I will.” Nica exhaled through her nose and smiled again.

“I’ve been cooking since I was a kid and all these,” She held out her hands, showing the scars that littered her knuckles and the palm of her right hand, “Are from a specific murderous doll. You don’t have to worry about me, I promise.”

“I know that, I mean you stopped an axe with your leg and then used it to decapitate the fucker!” The amazement was prominent in his voice before continuing in a calmer tone, “I’m still gonna do the dishes though.”

“Thank you.” She responded, matching his tone before making her way to the living room where the kids were setting up the movie. As soon as Junior saw her enter he moved to sit next to her for the movie. 

“Thanks for teaching me,” He spoke softly, “I really enjoyed it.”

“Me too, are you feeling a bit better now?” Junior turned and smiled at her, “Yeah, a lot better.” He let a few beats of silence pass between them before speaking again, “Do you think you could teach me how to bake brownies tomorrow?” 

“Definitely.” Nica smiled at him. 

Before they knew it, Andy made his way into the living room and to the seat on the other side of Nica as they all settled down to watch the movie. Junior ended up resting his head on Lexy’s shoulder feeling full from the meal he helped cook and unlike before, not worrying about what that meant. As the movie continued, he felt Lexy rest her head on top of his and he allowed a sense of happiness to wash over him.

[cult-of-dollbabies]

Alright here's some thoughts on s2 ep5, spoiler warning

I had to rewatch/skim through it this morning bc the fight scene gave me such secondhand embarrassment that it literally fucked up my processing and the whole time I was like 😀 is this real.

Watching it again was fine but dear god the puppetry.. Anywho, the moments with Lexi and Nadine were my favorite by far, Nadine drawing a relation to assure Lexi she's safe to come to,, "you know how moms are, they do their best to make you happy, right?" And this is what made Lexi come out, she knows some things about neglectful mothers, and losing a parent, I think that in a way she wanted to be there for Nadine, too. They're there for each other despite hardly knowing one another, and yes Lexi seems to still have bully tendencies but I think Nadine will influence her development in being better, and especially her recovery. Nadine lightening the mood, helping her collect the pills and flush them was so tender and a huge step, if I'm being honest I shed a few tears, I love them sm (also Nadine autism real)

Love how hard it is to tell if Scout (or good chucky.. since thats rlly the name theyre settled on) is faking or not. Hes raised some red flags, he still has impeccable aim w/ blades, saying sum creepy shit in a suspiciously childlike manner, (i know this is the same as the last ep but this time it almost feels emphatic) Chucky is known for his manipulation and hiding in plain sight tactics, if it turns out it was all an act, can't say I'd be too surprised, "like I finally figured out what I'm for" was actually quite eery.

...that being said I am NOT immune to chucky manipulation this was fucking CUTE

Cant wait for Father Bryce to die, sister Catherine's the only one with sense clearly, that's all I have to say about that

I'm on Devon and lexis side but on the other hand I don't think Chucky could even pretend to be nice, let alone admit to finding god or something behind a closed door ( I fuckin lost it when he held the Bible up, ain't no way, and where'd he pull that from??) and also be willing to get baptized , personally i don't think hes faking but more like the brainwashing is wearing off.. like a ticking time bomb. I thought Jake baptizing him was strange at first but watching again it feels like he was only trying to help Scout feel better, like with a child, and we all know by now Jake is attached and using him to cope with losing his foster brother, (another scout-might-be-faking-and-manipulating-jake bit, the joker line) it's understandable, but dammit Jake please stop disregarding your boyfriends very real concerns! And Nadine definitely doesn't know what Chuckys capable of, yet, but I feel like she'll find out very soon.

the series feels more shocking than scary, and some of the humor between serious parts just feels too silly for me, I want to take it seriously but I can't

...now. About the end, boy oh boy, this is where I'm sour

Seen and had a couple ideas for who the hell Cornell was and its.. bald.. Russian chucky? Tf is that? I think they were trying to do a twist but it's .. so underwhelming. And as if he hasn't been through enough we come to find Andy's been.. getting tortured, for what we can assume to be a year, hes gotta be so broken, he doesn't know Kyle's alive, either. That is.. it's such a letdown, I'm so tired of seeing Andy be tormented, I'm not watching this to get sad, I prefer the theory that he was maiming those chuckys, at least that way he'd have some kind of payback and not another year worth of trauma. Im assuming Kyle, Glenda and Nica will try to find him and it cant happen soon enough. I actually lost sleep over this.. I'm serious, not in a fear or disturbed way either in a for the love of god just let him be happy for more than five seconds please kinda way :(

Hopefully it gets better, now I just want to see Andy be saved, not very ready to see the state he's in though..

[declinlalune]

Peach Rings & Apple Pie

PARTIES: @letsbenditlikebennett & @declinlalune LOCATION: The Generic Store TIMING: 2 1/2 years ago. CONTENT WARNINGS: N/A

Andy turned the block of soap over in her hand, gaze flicking up to meet Alex’s from across the way. The pharmacy they stood in was small, and though Andy had gotten a job at a local diner to make ends meet, there were still some things that were easier to steal than to purchase. It made room in the budget for school supplies, or even a nice meal every now and again if they did it right. “Lavender or…” Andy looked back at the shelf, scanning for a possible second choice, but the options were slim. “Never mind, lavender it is.” She dropped the soap into the basket and moved towards the toothpaste. The things they were typically running low on were what Andy made an effort to take without notice, so she set the basket down and began to rummage through her bag. Andy leaned into the shelf, knocking two tubes of the toothpaste into her tote. “Can you see how much those dish towels are?” Andy made a show of pointing towards the aisle she was trying to get Alex to go to, then pulled away from the shelf. She picked up the basket and moved to where her sister stood. “I like the blue one. What about you?” 

Home. It was a concept Alex hadn’t dared to think of since some time in the land of before— before her parents died, before she became a monster, before Andy had given up everything to protect her. Before. It seemed like such a distant idea now and she could barely remember what her own home had been like. All she knew is it hadn’t been worn. Training session after training session left her father more exasperated with her lack of progress even if Andy always tried to make it better. 

This home would be different. It would be theirs. Despite the monster that Alex could feel just beneath the surface waiting in wake for the light of the full moon, Andy loved her— accepted her, even. There was no one Alex had to be for her sister, but even still, she couldn’t shake the expectations that came with growing up in a prominent hunter family. Not that any hunter worth their salt would look in her direction now unless it was to fire a silver bullet.

The cabin they were renting was remote, out deep in the woods where she could always smell a hint of something else lurking in the night. They barely even had any furniture in it yet, but Lexi couldn’t bear to be the one to dampen the mood. Andy was excited. With a full time job on the horizon, things were finally looking up for the Bennett sisters. This trip to the general store was supposed to be the last one that would require shoplifting. 

Alex let her fingers glide over the towels as she eyed the colors. The purple was light and reminded her of the lavender fields out in Oregon and the deep, golden yellow looked too close to the sunflowers that once grew in their mother’s yard. Blue it was. “Blue is nice,” she mumbled, still perplexed by the idea of dish towels. These were pretty. Far less ratty than the scraps they’d used in the years prior. “Kinda frilly, though?” She turned it over in her hand, looking at the $7 price tag, “You’re not gonna go for a Live Love Laugh sign next, are you?” 

The guilt that had plagued Andy early on when their parents first died had no place in her life now. She couldn’t keep up with raising Alex and keeping them safe if she was drowning in her own self misery. Of course, it wasn’t to say that there weren’t nights where she laid restless, leafing through the number of things that she could have done differently to better support her sister, or even herself. But in the days since they had arrived in Wicked’s Rest, she knew she had an opportunity to change their lives for the better, and she would ignore every inkling of guilt or self-deprecation in order to do just that. 

“Only if it embarrasses you.” Andy grabbed the towel off of the shelf and stuffed it into the basket. Once they were around a corner, she would slip it into her tote. “But hell no. Just wanted something nice. T-shirts aren’t made for cleaning up all kinds of messes, it’d be nice to have something with some actual absorption.” The nights that Alex shifted were messy on several accounts. Whether it was because of the rabbit’s or deer blood she came back covered in, or because of her own mistakes in trying to help her sister, there were a lot of situations in which actual towels could come in handy. 

Andy clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth as she turned around. An assortment of candles, cards, and general house supplies were on the opposite end. “Did you burn through the last one we had? Candle, I mean.” 

It was difficult to bite back the edge in her voice. The uneasy feeling had no place in their light-hearted outing to get things for the hole in the wall cabin they now called home. Alex couldn’t shake the feeling this place gave her though. The sensitive nose that came with being a werewolf was hard enough to get used to on a good day, but here she could smell others like her and likely worse. She still couldn’t piece it all together. After years of faking being able to sense beasts, now she finally could and it was only because she was now one of them. So much for her family’s “sacred destiny”. 

Alex rolled her eyes playfully all the same, “There’s only one millennial in the house, it’s yourself you’d be embarrassing.” She gave Andy a playful nudge, doing her best to let the sense of ease settle in, “Spring for the Gatekeep Gaslight Girlboss is you really wanna set the tone.” Her eyes glanced over at the towels again. She wouldn’t admit it, but they were nicer than t-shirts. After a particularly bloody full moon, it would be nice to have something meant for cleaning. “Just don’t turn all Stepford Wives on me.” 

Before they even rounded the corner towards the candles and other assorted home goods, Alex could smell it. Her face was trained in a neutral expression as she refrained from a grimace. And to think she used to love the candle aisle as a kid. “I did, yeah,” she answered, “Nose has been a little… you know.” Maybe Andy could never feel the same things she felt or sensed, but they both grew up learning the ins and outs of beasts. Andy knew the challenges Alex was up against, which was a good thing most of the time. “Can we do one of the apple pie ones? They remind me of the McDonald’s playgrounds.” 

“Excuse you, ‘96 is on the cusp of both.” Andy rolled her eyes at Alex before nudging the candle on the shelf with her index finger, moving it to the side so that she could see the scents behind it. To say there were tons would be an understatement. There were scents that Andy wasn’t entirely sure should be candles. Who the hell wanted linen? “I don’t even get that reference. Who’s the millennial now?” She shot a look over her shoulder at Alex, immediately able to tell that the idea of getting a strongly scented candle was off the table. It had been years, but Andy still forgot some of the smallest adjustments that came with her sister shifting into a wolf. 

Even then as they stood in the aisle, the sinking feeling was ever present. It was like her skin was crawling, but all it took were the memories of her sister to push them away, to disarm the idea that no, Alex was not a monster. Andy’s gaze fell upon the apple pie scent just as Alex asked about it and she nodded. She put it into the basket and turned towards Alex, a bright smile stitched to her features. “Snacks?” Andy bumped into her sister lightly before turning a corner and moving towards the brightly lit section that had an assortment of treats, all of which were in brightly labeled packaging. “Strawberry wafers… biscoff cookies…” She hummed lightly before looking sideways down the alleyway. “Cheddar popcorn is obviously a must.” 

“I thought cusps were just for horoscopes,” Alex mumbled while looking over all the home-making stuff on the aisle. A comfortable home was such a distant memory, one she wasn’t even sure had been a happy one all those years ago. All the memories were so tied up in missing her parents and missing being human that it was hard to really parse through the good and the bad parts. The only thing she knew is that she didn’t fit then, she could always tell something was off with her. Everything that Andy did with grace never seemed to kick in for Alex. Their little hole in the wall cabin would be different though. Stable without the crushing weight of expectations breaking both of them. It made the idea of home slightly less unnerving, so she scoffed in response, “Andy, we don’t have cable or streaming. Obviously I watch old movies. Plus, Nicole Kidman is hot.” 

The mention of snacks was always enough to make Alex perk up. Whether it was a werewolf thing or not, she wasn’t entirely sure, but she could piece together that around the full moons, she always felt especially hungry leading up to it. “Snacks are never a question,” she nudged Andy as she moved quickly past the overwhelming smell of candles. The snack aisle was much more her speed. “Strawberry wafers. And the little sour worms…,” she agreed, “And obviously cheddar popcorn but we need the can cheese too. Maybe some crackers and make a movie board.” 

As they rounded the corner, Alex could smell something was off and tensed slightly. It didn’t smell like a wolf, but they sure as hell didn’t smell human either. She wondered if Andy could notice it or if it just felt the same as it always did being around her werewolf kid sister. She longed for the days of faking sensing something supernatural was around instead of her nose doing the job for her. “Hm,” she said, quickly gliding past the woman she suspected to be not entirely human either. She could feel the eyes on her, but did her best to ignore it. Once out of normal earshot, she whispered, “How’d you hear about this place again?”

“I mean, it’s not like we had it before, either.” Their parents weren’t exactly welcoming to the idea of the girls sitting down to watch television. The cable they did have was strictly informational; news channels, cooking channels— though, Andy never minded. The dessert segments on the cooking channels had been her favorite. “But yeah, I mean, I guess.” 

“How could I forget the sour worms?” Andy plucked a bag from the shelf and threw it into the basket. Though it should have been growing some weight to it, it didn’t bug Andy. “What about peach rings?” She eyed them longingly before deciding to grab them regardless of Alex’s choice on whether or not they should have them. With the few items they were stealing accompanied with the lump sum that Andy had made by cleaning a few houses, they were able to at least afford some nice things, even if that looked like mostly candy. 

Far too engrossed in the candy options, Andy barely realized it when Alex tensed up. It wasn’t until she spoke that she could hear the slight change in her tone. Andy glanced towards Alex, then to the woman who was standing down at the other end of the aisle who was also trying to choose between what cookies to get. “It just sort of fell into my lap, you know? Heard through the grapevine that it could be a good place to blend in.” She cleared her throat and turned to look at Alex, resting a hand against her arm. “We’re going to do fine here, Alex. It won’t be like before, and we don’t have to leave in… what, a month? Two?” 

“Fair. You did manage to sneak home that documentary about penguins from the library that one time though,” Alex smiled as she recollected one of her favorite memories. Television wasn’t exactly something their parents permitted outside of the local news and those viewings were usually filled with quizzes on finding patterns of potential supernatural threats. It was perfect nightmare fodder for a five year old which left her particularly anxious on a stormy full moon when she and Andy were home alone. When her sister had pulled out the DVD, she could still so clearly remember the rush of excitement. Penguins were her favorite animal and she knew it was something Andy had done just for her. “Lowkey still mad that Papa didn’t let me get a penguin costume to wear to school on Halloween that year.”

Their basket was becoming an odd assortment of items that resembled a kid with free range on the snack section combined with practical soccer mom purchases. Alex supposed they were kids with no rules when they first started shopping for themselves— though shoplifting for themselves was probably the more accurate statement. “Peach rings are a major food group,” she joked as the bag was already being placed with the other items. 

Alex knew her sister was right. Andy was always right, ever the example of all the things she was supposed to be. Blending in was the safest option. In a town crawling with werewolves and hunters alike, they were less likely to stick out. They always took precautions on the full moon, it wasn’t likely they’d draw a ranger’s attention with everything else present in the town if she wasn’t posing a threat. “Guess not being the strangest people in town doesn’t hurt,” she relented, “Might be nice to make friends, too. Think it’s too late in the school year for me to try out for a sports team?” 

Andy snorted at Alex’s dream to become a penguin on Halloween. “I mean, there’s still time. Just ‘cause you’re older now doesn’t mean you can’t dress up.” They hadn’t ever had the luxury, and dressing up as something other than themselves seemed to be a little too close to what they had been doing in the past several years. However, Andy had to admit that the idea of dressing up and doing something fun was a lot more interesting than focusing on the bad. 

“I think they’re better than the actual thing.” She remembered just after they’d gotten back to the states, they’d managed to find their way through Georgia where Andy had stolen a box of peaches off of a truck on the side of the highway. They were good, but after surviving solely on those and cajun boiled peanuts, Andy knew they needed a better system for their thievery. Luckily, peach rings tasted a little too artificial to incite the same feeling of when they’d been back in Georgia. 

There was a lot that both Andy and Alex had become accustomed to— never making friends, never putting down roots, those were only at the base of what they had given up. But over two years in one place? Wasn’t it about time to make those friends she and Alex had dreamt of? Andy knew that she couldn’t make excuses for not forming connections any longer, especially if she was trying to push her sister to make those same ones. “I think you should do whatever the hell you want to do. If you want to try out, do it. If they don’t let you, make them let you. Just kick a ball at their heads or something.” Andy smiled at her sister before motioning to the checkout. “We should go before we buy that twelve pack of gushers.” 

Given her height, Alex was already mistaken for being younger than she was on a good day. Something told her that unless she found a way to make a penguin costume slutty, people would assume she was 12. “If you can come up with a way to make a penguin costume sexy, I’m game. I don’t need all the cute girls thinking I’m an actual fifth grader or something party crashing,” she laughed, “Though hey, may keep the guys from hitting on me. So there's still a win in there somewhere.” 

As always, Andy was speaking the truth. Ever since a stint living out of the car in Georgia and stealing peaches and peanuts, both foods had lost their appeal for Alex. Peach rings however were their own food group and were exempt from the peach hatred. “So much better,” she agreed, “And you mean you didn’t want to clear out the entire snack aisle? It’s like I don’t even know you anymore.” 

Somehow, Andy always seemed to believe in her despite what she was. Even though Alex loved and trusted her sister more than anyone in the world, it was still hard to wrap her head around how Andy could just throw away everything they were taught about werewolves as kids and choose to protect her anyway. Alex liked to think that if the roles were reversed, she’d do the same thing, but in so many ways she felt like she was still trying to live up to their parents' expectations. Not that she ever could seeing as she turned into the very thing they taught her to hunt. It was a thought that left her feeling jaded on her worst days, but still sparked a bit of defiance in her, too. They’d think a sport like soccer or volleyball was a waste of time, so she’d do it and tell herself that it didn’t matter she wasn’t an actual ranger. “Try out it is,” she nodded affirmatively, “Looks good on college applications and good to get some energy out.” 

“Just wear some fishnets, isn’t that what they do?” Andy had little to no idea of how to make anything remotely alluring, especially a costume. She might’ve known how to sew patches into clothes, but the thought of creating something for aesthetics instead of longevity or necessity was a foreign concept to her. She scrunched her nose up at the thought and shook her head, shifting the basket from one hand to the other. “Maybe just go as something scary. Don’t men hate when women lean into the whole horror concept? I swear I read about that in a magazine once, it was from the 90’s in that one camper we were in for a bit back in North Carolina.” 

Andy rolled her eyes at Alex’s comment and knocked her shoulder into her sister slightly as she walked past. “Listen, we can do that at another store, but we might be a little over budget, if you know what I mean.” She could only stuff so many things into her tote bag before it became noticeable, and God forbid the cashier have x-ray vision or something. 

“That, and it’d be something you’d want to do. Wouldn’t have to be just ‘cause you think it’d be good for… your college stuff.” Andy shrugged, a simple expression melding over her features as she felt the telltale vibrations of knowing run up her spine. She averted her gaze from the person who walked into the store, looking down at Alex. “You should do it ‘cause you wanna do it. I think you’d kick their asses though. Wonder if they have a rule about moon beams on the team.” 

“Fishnet penguin, feels oddly on brand,” Alex joked with a light chuckle. In reality, it’d probably look ridiculous more than anything else, but maybe they both deserved a little bit of ridiculousness. It was hard to wrap her head around, knowing their parents would have never stood for it. Their home hadn’t exactly been the most loving of spaces, but their mom sometimes went a little easier on them. And it wasn’t like they had been thrown out of their home, their parents died the night she got the stupid bite that turned her into the very monster she was supposed to hunt. It was hard to pick out what her parents were right and wrong about when she still missed them so damn much. 

Given how much of the stuff they’d lived off over the years was stolen, it didn’t take long for her to catch Andy’s drift. Alex eyed their basket and tote, knowing they really had more than enough snacks on hand for the foreseeable future. “I think we’re good without, pretty sure we could feed my whole class with all these snacks,” she whispered. 

Between the encouragement from her older sister and the smell of another werewolf getting stronger in her nose, Alex felt herself growing more apprehensive. The unconditional support and acceptance Andy showed her still felt so foreign, even if her sister had been a source of it all her life. It was such a stark contrast from the high expectations their parents had set for the both of them that the younger could never live up to. “Yeah, it’d be fun for me– Still good for college though and I think I wanna do that,” she said, “It’d be nice to make friends and have an outlet for… you know. All of this.” She gestured to herself knowing that Andy understood what she meant perfectly. “But let’s get out of here,” she added in a more hushed tone, hearing the sounds of the other werewolf that she decidedly had no interest in talking to getting closer. 

“Or if you really wanted to fuck around, you could be The Penguin from Batman. I doubt they’d expect that.” Andy wanted normal for Alex. Hell, on nights where she couldn’t sleep, she swore she wanted it for herself, too. She’d been so caught up in making sure that Alex was well taken care of that she hadn’t been paying attention to herself very much, or even at all. So if Alex came to her in October explaining she wanted to be a penguin, Andy would make it happen, regardless if it cost an arm and a leg. 

Even just looking at Alex, Andy could tell that her sister’s mind was working around their situation. Even though she always felt the need to interject when those anxieties were clear as day on her face, Andy had to remind herself that sometimes it just took her sister working through them on her own time rather than Andy trying to patch everything to make it better. “Just let me know what I gotta sign.” She smiled at her sister before looking past Alex to the woman who, just like them, was shopping for snacks. “Yeah, we can open the peach rings on the way home. Car snack.” 

[nnothingnesss]

Serendipity (Short Story)

Alexie visits a club with her friend Sara. A night of anxiety spirals into a very silent car ride home.

"Lex, you came out of hiding," her aura flushes over me like a blush in my cheeks. "You want to hang out in my room for a little bit? We can do our thing alone before we go out,"

"Yes please" I say.

As we work our way to her bedroom we pass the living room first and then the kitchen. I see Mr. Mueller sitting on a sofa with a newspaper splayed out over his lap. Oldies are filling the room with positive vibrations.

"Nice to see ya 'gain hon'"

"Hey Mr. Mueller," I say excitedly. He's always been what I thought a father should be.

We make our way into her room and she locks the door behind us. She has no idea how badly I freaked out earlier.

"I'm actually kind of surprised you wanted to come Lex," she says

"Honestly I came just to hang out with you," I respond

"You know I love you but it's okay if you don't want to go you know?"

"It's okay, I promise I'm fine,"

"No Lex, I'm so serious, it's okay to not be fine" you can tell she cares the way she looks into my eyes.

"Yeah actually... I'm not fine," As soon as the words leave my mouth she wraps her arms around me and holds me for a second. I didn't expect it.

"I hope you know if anything happens I'm here for you,"

"I know"

I take a quick glance around her room before plopping down on her mattress. I wish we could hang out here forever. New people scare me but I'm not going to tell her that. As I look at the crystals on her dresser she rummages through her makeup box for lip gloss.

"Where are we going anyway?" I ask.

"I convinced them all we should go to Serendipity,"

"Oh they play really good music,"

"I hope you know I had to force them into it. Now you at least get to boogie if they bore you to death,"

"Ugh, thank you. So, who's they?"

"Well Mimi and I used to serve at The Jewel. I've never met her boyfriend but she wouldn't shut up about him so she dragged him along"

"That's nice" I say. Sara freezes to turn around and look at me.

"She said he managed to convince some of his friends to come along too"

"Yay" My tone is flat.

"Lexie if any of those boys piss you off you better come find me"

"Okay I promise" She acts just like a mom sometimes. She finally finds the shade of lip gloss she wants to use and covers her lips with it before giving a good pucker in front of the mirror. She walks over to her closet and bends over to grab her favorite pair of shoes. Dr. Martens. She slips them on and tightens her laces before collecting her essentials. Purse, keys, and even a heart shaped taser to ward off the unholy clubgoer.

"You ready?" she asks quietly. She can probably feel my anxiety from a planet away.

"No," I tell her but I get up and follow her anyways. Meeting new people always puts me on edge but I know she'll have my back if anything happens. She smiles before telling me to stay close to her if I need to. I nod and we begin to make our way through the living room. She kisses Mr. Mueller on the cheek and tells him she'll be back pretty late. We lock the door behind us and the mood suddenly shifts south for me.

It won't be so bad I tell myself. I want to believe I could have a good night and that Mimi and her friends are good people. She seems so excited to finally get her weekend started but I can feel a nervousness take shelter at the bottom of my stomach.

I try my best to keep it under control because I don't want Sara to worry about me all night. We manage to find some street parking in front of the club. It says Serendipity in a bright neon yellow sign pinned against a slate grey wall. As we wait in line keeping our eyes out for her friends you can hear the loud music sending shockwaves through the ground. The chatter is loud and you can see the combination of excitement, dread, and a mix of other emotions on each individual face that makes up the crowd.

People walk in and out in a drunken stupor some having a good night and others, not so good. As we're standing in line we hear a voice call out to us from behind.

"Sara is that you?" a short woman runs toward us. It's Mimi and her boyfriend plus his friends Sara mentioned. Two other guys. My heart sinks just a little deeper.

"Mimi! No way!" they embrace with a warm hug as the guys walk up behind her.

"It's been too long. I missed you so much." She let's go and takes a good look at Sara, "Please come back."

"I missed you too babe. I'll buy your freedom one day, I promise."

"Oh my god, you're making me so nervous. But wait, let me introduce you first. This is Isaiah and behind him is Jay and Huey. Huey's a cook at The Jewel now."

"What's goin' on y'all?" says Isaiah.

"Hey you guys, I'm Sara and this is my bestie," she introduces me and for a second everyone's attention is on me.

"Hi I'm Alexie,"

The line begins moving again and the boys taper behind us as Mimi, Sara, and I stand close together.

"I can't believe it's been so long everyone is like gone now" Mimi says.

"Is everyone really gone? That's so sad,"

"Yeah it's really just me now honestly. Huey's cool though,"

"I mean he is kind of cute too. What do you think Lex? Boyfriend material?"

"Uh-uh, no way, I'm not interested,"

"Don't like players?" Mimi chimes in, "I personally wouldn't either though, he has his moments."

"It's not that, it's just a guy isn't really in the cards as of right now,"

"But wait he's a player?" Sara asks.

"Well, he's just super friendly with all of the girls at work. Like, all of them."

"I mean he hasn't been sleeping around though has he?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure. I rather keep that stuff and work separate y'know? He's really funny though. They're cool people."

"If you don't want him Lex I just might be laughing at his jokes tonight," Sara winks at me and I roll my eyes back with a smile.

"Trust me, he's all yours,"

As we get closer to the front I dig into my tote and pull out my wallet. I show my ID and the bouncer gives it a rapid glance over before handing it back and ushering me in. I wait patiently for the rest of my group to pass security so we can take our first step into Serendipity together.

My anxiety begins quieting down a little as I hear the music getting louder and louder. It's healing. The further in we go past the coat check corridor the darker the room becomes.

You can feel the energy as soon as you walk in. Serendipity is in full swing. LED's shoot out the wall like lasers onto people's bodies reaching out to the far end of the club. The floor is shaking as the speakers are slipping sonic anodyne into my soul.

It's comforting knowing I can escape to the dance floor and hide behind the music at any time now. The combination of the sonics and ambience feels like entering Shangri-La. All my worries on Earth will just have to wait until I get back.

We manage to find a spot at the menacingly packed bar. Isaiah and Mimi go together to get drinks on the other side while me and Sara stood beside each other with Huey beside me and Jay beside him.

"Can I get a tequila sunrise please?" I wave at the nearest bartender.

"Cash or card?'' they're swamped by a riot of clubgoers. I hand her my card and she opens a tab for me. Once we all have our drinks in hand well all get together in a circle. Mimi suggests we have a toast.

"To the ups and downs. We'll be alright!" We all put our glasses in the air and our drinks illuminate under the sea of lights. Clink.

I make sure to drink as fast as I can so I can get as drunk as possible ASAP. Huey looks at me probably shocked to see me drinking so fast. Me and Sara almost race to the bottom of our cups before we go back to the bartender for seconds together.

"Feeling better?" she shouts at me through the music.

"A lot better!" I genuinely let out a laugh. Maybe tonight wouldn't be so bad.

As Mimi and Isaiah hit the dance floor me and Sara look at Jay and Huey. They're standing at the bar together ordering their seconds now too. We decide to hit the dance floor just the two of us and chug the rest of our seconds. We're really making those boys look bad right now, I thought.

On the floor I can feel my hips lose control moving like they belonged on a swing at a park. Sara looked so beautiful dancing it almost made me sweat. She was as hot as a mirage kissing the water in the summertime. She wore a black leather bustier to match her black skirt.

We laughed and lost ourselves to the heat of 2000s music as we put our hands all over each other dancing underneath the lights as lovers do. I could feel the intensity of the bass vibrate the room. Time began to blur and as the night went on the passion hit a fever pitch, I wasn't here anymore. I was in Heaven. Sara decided she needed a break. Out the corner of my eye I saw Jay approach her as she walked off the floor and I continued dancing. This was my element. This was my place.

Later into the night I notice Sara and Jay disappeared but I didn't mind it. I felt a sudden pang of anxiety rush back into my body as I realized I was on the floor alone surrounded by unfamiliar faces.

It made me dance harder. I wanted to forget everything. I never wanted to go back home. I danced and danced thinking about how I felt abandoned. I relished in it. Laughed at it. I close my eyes and enter hypnosis to lose myself in the music until I'm abruptly brought back to reality as I feel someone come up behind me. It was Huey.

"You look good," he said. Immediately I remember what Mimi said but I try to play it cool.

"Hey, I didn't see you," I say

"Yeah but I've been watching you, you're smoking on the floor right now"

"You think so?"

"I do."

He puts his hands on my hip and pulls closer to me. He just looks into my face without saying anything. His hands feel kind of good on my body so I don't say anything either. I know that Mimi said he's a player but he didn't seem like a bad guy.

We didn't dance for a whole minute before he tried to lean in and press his cheek on me and immediately the illusion broke. I didn't even know this guy and he only said about four lines to me and now he's trying to push it. Instead of slowing down he dropped his arms lower around me and looked even deeper into my eyes. This time his eyes looked hungry. I immediately felt sober. He was a tall guy and his grip felt too strong for me to fight back.

"Dude what the hell?" I push him off of me and start walking off the dance floor to find Sara.

I look around and all I see are strangers. Through a crowd of people dancing I see Huey coming out towards me and my first instinct is to run to the bathroom. I make a run for it and lock myself inside.

First a moment of stillness. A quiet self-awareness. I feel the weight of life slowly creep back into my bones as I stare hypnotically at the bathroom wall. It feels though the black paint is staring back at me as if to ask, what's wrong? Aren't you happy? Weren't you having fun? Did you forget? I was trying so hard to. I do that sometimes.

I'm afraid of the thought of going back out and seeing Huey again and I'm afraid to tell Sara what she already knows. I'm not fine. All I can do is sit here, curled up in a ball on the toilet, angry at the world for allowing my life to turn out like this. It wasn't always so bad.

I remember me and Sara would hang out all the time with the other kids from my neighborhood and I used to be so social back then. I used to love talking to people and getting to know everything about them. I loved the thought of being a light in peoples lives and spreading empathy as far as my own wingspan would let me.

But I realized if you get too comfortable in the wrong places you'll get hurt. Mom taught me that.

I let my guard down for a second. A moment of weakness. I tell myself never again. Flashes of my life go off in my mind like explosives. I didn't want to leave this bathroom.

I'm not even sure how much time passes by before I'm startled by a loud banging on the door. I don't want to answer. I get up to look at myself in the mirror. The same fair skin and dark hair. My eyes look so sad. I'm so sad. Another knock on the door but this time louder.

"Lex, please open up. It's me." It's Sara's voice. I know Sara would do anything for me. I know even if she saw me like this she'd have so much love to give. I know I need it. But I don't open the door. I don't want her to see me like this. It's so embarrassing.

"Lex, please." Her voice becomes a thoughtful plea. She knows. When I shut down even I don't know. I don't know what I'd do. I decide I need to face the outside world yet again before things get even worse. I open the door. The first thing I'm met with is Sara's eyes. She looks so damn worried.

"Hey," she says.

"Hey,"

"You okay? Huey said-"

"I'm fine."

"Lex, it's-"

"Can we go home? Please?" I don't mean to be so cold. I can see my sadness almost transfer onto her. She tries to hug me again but I back up. I'm so afraid and for no reason. It's almost as if I'm not even me anymore.

"Ok Lex. Let's go home."

We walk together outside Serendipity and in the front there's Mimi and the rest of them. Huey won't even look at me. I'm sure he feels bad about what he did and it's not that I hate him or anything. It's just I was having a really good time before he came and shook me out of it. I got too comfortable and he reminded me of that.

"Are you two okay? What happened?" Asks Mimi,

"Sorry Mimi but I think it's time to call it a night. We're not feeling too hot so I'm going to take Lex back home and go get some rest. I'll call you okay?"

"I'm so sorry. Was it..." Mimi gives Sara a look as if she's telepathically finishing her sentence. Sara sends back a reply with an expression of defeat.

"Call me," Mimi's voice fades into the distance as we return to the car and begin our drive home.

The car ride is silent. I can't take my eyes away from the window as I stare at the city skyscrapers as we pass them by. The buildings pass one by one and my eyes follow them until they're completely out of view.

I look at Sara and she stares at the road with this intensity I only ever rarely see on her face. The only time I ever seen her cry was when she caught one of her long term boyfriends cheating on her with some random girl from her job. They all worked together and even if Mimi never knew it that's the whole reason she quit. Every other time she got upset, she looked exactly the same as she does now.

"I'm sorry, Sara. I didn't mean to kill the night like that."

"Lex you didn't kill the night. It's okay to make sure you're okay first. Nothing is wrong with that."

"I know," She has so much more she wants to says but I can tell she doesn't want to. I don't blame her. I'm fragile sometimes.

"I'm guessing you didn't like Huey as much as he liked you?" She asks

"What do you mean?"

"He saw you dancing. He told Jay he thought you looked really good, he just didn't know what to say."

"Really?"

"I'm so serious. I told him he should go dance with you. I told him you thought he was really cute. I'm sorry."

"It's okay Sara. He kind of was. I just.. I don't know."

"Lex. Can I ask you a question?"

"Hm?"

"How come you won't tell me?"

"Tell you what?"

"Anything." I never seen her look so serious before.

"I tell you everything Sara, what are you talking about?"

"It's just that, ever since your Mom left you haven't really told me anything. Not about life at home, your dad, about yourself. You either tell me you're fine or you're not fine. Do you not trust me? I just want to be there for you. I have so much love I want to give and," she stops herself. I can tell she's felt this way for a long time.

"It's just that I miss you."

I don't even know what to say. I sit and say nothing for a while. She's right. A deep hole in my heart begins opening. The thoughts slowly come in one by one. My father. My mother. What happened?

"Sara. I love you. It's not that I don't trust you okay? It's just complicated."

"I want to know how complicated it is Lex. You always caught me on my worst days, every time. I just want to do the same for you."

"You do, Sara. Please. Can we just talk about it later?"

"Okay."

The silence fills the car again like smoke would a room. We arrive back at my house and I grab my stuff off the floor. Me and Sara hug tightly and for what feels like longer than usual.

I don't think she realized it but I needed that. She was the only comfort in my life and I'd do anything I could to be with her. I watch her drive off and turn around to face my house. It's a very pretty cage.

[coldgoldlazarus]

Found an older snippet I'd written back in 2018 or so, also set in my personal fan-continuity with Jazz and Alexis. Though some of the ideas and details have changed since this was written, I still think the overall vibe of it holds up, so figured I'd post it. And this one has music!

Takes place after a big peace meeting between the Autobots and Decepticons goes horribly, horribly wrong.

A Drive In Silence And Darkness

It was dark up in the mountains, with a moonless night sky and oppressive clouds hanging low overhead. Were it not for the reflective panels lining the road, and the rocky slopes visible on either side, Alexis could almost imagine they were driving through an empty void. As it was, even with the brights on, the view outside was almost entirely pitch black.

It was a fitting reflection of the sober mood inside, at least. Thoughts heavy with worry, Alexis couldn’t bring herself to speak, and Jazz was equally silent at first. They’d been driving like this for an hour or so now, yet aside from the road itself, there were no signs of civilization. “You holdin’ up alright, 'Lexis?” He finally asked, though for once it was unaccompanied by the cartoonish representation of his face that usually appeared on the console screen.

“I… think I’m okay, physically at least,” she answered, glancing down to make sure no sudden wounds would appear to prove her wrong. “But emotionally, I’ve… definitely been better.”

“You can talk to me anytime,” Jazz gently reminded.

Alexis took a moment to get her thoughts in order before speaking again. The red glow of the dashboard reminded her of the strange Decepticon who had appeared, and the chaos that had followed. “I still don’t understand what exactly happened back there. It was just… scary.”

“I’m afraid I don’t know any more than you do,” Jazz admitted. “But I think the ground bridge got taken out right as we were takin’ our leave.”

“Of course it would have,” Alexis muttered wearily. “So yeah, after all that, I’m worried. About us, lost in the middle of nowhere, probably without the ground bridge to take us back. About my parents, because they just had to pick now to come back home for a change, right when all this started up. About the other Autobots, if they’re doing okay after that whole… mess. About the Decepticons and whatever they may be planning now. And…” She crossed her arms, looking out the window at the dark mountainside racing past, invisible even at a mere meter away. “And I’m worried about you, Jazz. You’re acting different somehow; I’ve never seen you this serious. Are you okay?”

Jazz sighed, the sound filling his interior, before falling silent again. Alexis suddenly became aware of the noise of the road, subtly changing pitch in time with the speedometer’s needle as Jazz slowed down, just by the slightest of amounts. “I’m just tired,” he finally confessed, voice quiet. “I’m tired of hoping. Tired of thinkin’ we may just be on the track to doing a little better… Only to be proven wrong over and over and over and over. I’m tired of this war, ‘Lexis. Tired of fighting, and tired of bein’ afraid that when the day finally comes, when the war ends for real and we can all put down the guns… I may not know how to stop.” He paused for a moment, taking on a bitter tone. “Nobody else seems to remember, that’s for sure.”

Alexis nodded quietly, thinking for several long moments. “I… I think if anyone can, it would be you. I’ve seen you; you still know how to laugh, and build, and have fun, and blast music waaay too loud.” She chuckled. "You can appreciate the little things in life, more than I do at least. The likes of Prowl and Grimlock may not know how to do that anymore… But you taught me this stuff; I think you could be the one to remind them, too."

Outside, Jazz smoothly rounded a sudden hairpin turn, crossing the line and again to do so; Alexis barely felt the shift in direction. “…Thank you. I think I needed that.” he finally responded, and a simple smiley face popped up on the console; despite herself, Alexis grinned back. “And don’t you worry; we’ll get back home safe and sound, one way or another. Trust me, and I promise I’ll find that way!”

The silence that followed was different, more comforting and companionable now. Grinning contentedly, Alexis leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes to get some sleep. Despite her lingering fears and Jazz’s troubled words, deep down she had a feeling that somehow or another, everything would turn out just fine.

[mjlovescm]

16- New year's party

Completed, 30 chapters, “Grey” Fezco O’Neill x black fem reader

Trigger/content warning: Mentions of blood.

It was New Year's Eve and instead of trying to enjoy the party, you were instead searching for your little sister. 

“Where the fuck is Rue?”

Before he responds, Fezco looks around before shrugging. 

“Fuck if I know.”

You gave him a baffled look and puling out a blunt Fezco ignores it. You knew he had come with her to the party, so you expected him to have at least some idea where she was. But then again, Rue recently had been very elusive; Among other things. It was the breakup with Jules. If you could even call it that. It had her a bit shaken up and although you trusted Rue, she was still a vulnerable spot, and you knew what happened last time when Rue and Jules had a situation.

“Okay, well, if you see her, can you tell her I’m looking for her.”

“Got chu.”

You get up to leave and Lexi takes a seat on the other side of the couch. 

“Hi Lex.” You wave and smile at her.

“Hi, have you seen Cassie?” She asked flushed. 

“No sorry. Have you seen Rue?”

“No, but will you let me know if you do?” 

“For sure, will you let Rue know.”

“Of course.” She says with a smile. 

Feeling a bit better knowing that Lexi would be keeping her eyes out for Rue, you continued your search. Remembering Halloween, you decided to check the bathroom and found Maddy banging both of her fist on the door. You knew if Rue was in there, Maddy would have been more patient, but you still wanted to check to be sure. Maddy’s mood changes instantly when she sees you. She smiles and comes towards you with open arms, pulling you into a hug. 

“Bitch, you look amazing.” She compliments you, pulling away from the hug. “If I was Fezco, I’d be careful tonight.”

You rolled your eyes playfully at The festival comment and thanked her for the compliment.

“Have you seen Rue?”

“No sorry.” Maddy tells you genuinely. “Have you seen Cassie, though? Lexi is looking for her.” 

“Nope. Are you sure she’s not the one in the bathroom?” 

“It's Nate, he's taking a shit.” 

“Ew.” You grimaced. 

“I know, and he’s taking fucking forever.” 

“If you see Rue, tell her I’m looking for her, okay.” you tell Maddy before leaving her to continue waiting for the bathroom. 

You continued your search for Rue to no avail and eventually found yourself right where you started in the living room. Originally wanted to ask Fezco or Lexi for help, but it seemed they were a bit occupied with each other. They were laughing, giggling, and even sitting closer than they were before. Shit, they were even blushing. Confused, do you watch their interaction from afar before Jules came up to them. At first, you were more confused as to why she was looking for Rue. 

Then you laughed to yourself, finding it a bit amusing that Rue was definitely dodging Jules. Then again, you didn’t blame her. After their conversation, you decided to follow Jules outside, if there was one person who would lead you to Rue, it was her. And just like magnets or ironically moths to a flame, Jules led you to Rue, who was outside in front of the campfire. Your plan now was to go inside and let them talk, but a moment later Ashtray came up to Rue, and she got out of her seat, Leaving Jules. Then Ashtray came up to you, conveying the same message. 

“Fezco’s about to get into some shit. If you want a ride, meet me at the car.” He tells you before scurrying away. 

“What kind of shit?” You called after Ash, but all he gave you was a quick turn and shrug before leaving. 

Quickly, you returned to the party less than a minute before midnight. Fezco had abandoned his seat next to Lexi, as well as his green sweater. Picking it up for him, you scanned the room and found him making his way towards Nate. Instantly, your mind flooded with many things, none of them good. 

“Happy new year!” The coward of people between you and them erupted. 

Deciding it was best to watch from afar, you keep our eyes on them. Fezco grabs a bottle and cup, pouring himself a drink. They had a small conversation and honestly things felt calm, that was until they clinked cups. And the bottle in Fezco’s hand swiftly met the side of Nate’s head, breaking on impact. You almost jumped at how fast things escalated, but found yourself frozen as Fezco’s fist landed blows and quickly Nate began to bleed. 

It was over just as quickly as it started, and Fezco was already making his way out. Shooting Lexi a mean glare before grabbing your hand and walking out of the party. Still in shock, you stayed silent until you were both in the car with Ash. 

“What the fuck.” You whispered to yourself, your mind still painted with the image of a bloody Nate.

“You good.” Fezco asks, noticing your disconnect. 

“Yeah-NO.” You look at him confused.

“What happened?” Ashtray asked from the backseat. 

“He just beat the shit out of Nate in front of everyone.” 

“Oh shit.” He says with a growing smile, but quickly you shut down Ash’s enthusiasm. 

“Oh shit is right, there was people recording Fez, why would you do that.”

He groans a sigh, still heated from his earlier actions. You wanted to say more, but stayed quiet to give Fezco time to clear his head. You get to his place and Ashtray’s the first to get out of the car. Jumping out of it like a little kid. Leaving you and Fezco to sit in silence for a minute like arguing parents. Not wanting to make a bigger deal out of something that was definitely a big deal, you shifted the focus to Fezco’s injuries and not Nate’s. 

“Come on, let me clean your hand.” You motion to go inside, and he nods before you both leave the car. 

You started by washing the blood that consumed Fezco freckled skin. Before pulling out cotton balls and rubbing alcohol, shaking the bottle before putting some onto the small white balls. You took his hand into your yours, gently pressing the soaked ball to his wound. He winces on contact. 

“Sorry.” You mumble, eyes flickering between his and his hand.

“It’s all good.” Fezco whispers in reply. 

“I still can't believe you did that.” 

He frowns, assuming your words came from a place of disappointment. But the chuckle you fail to stifle gives him a different idea.

“I mean, you really beat Nate’s big ass.” You say with a growing smile. 

“I mean, his bitch ass had it coming.” 

“No, forreal, maybe the brain damage will knock some sense into him.” 

You both laugh and joke as you apply band-aids to Fezco’s knuckles. 

“Thank you.” He says softly, bringing his index finger under your chin as he stands. 

Looking up at him, you hold his gaze for a moment before Fezco kisses you. 

“Happy new year, baby.” He says against your lips.

Next chapter ;)

All chapters :)

[invisibleraven]

Birthday Boy Blues

Happy Birthday @innytoes!

It's Reggie's birthday, and he doesn't exactly feel like celebrating.

Inny, sorry for the eleventh hour angsty fic, but I hope you enjoy it and have had an amazing day! ❤❤❤

On AO3!

The thing about being a ghost is that Reggie isn’t sure there’s much point in celebrating their birthdays any more. They haven’t aged in twenty five years, and even as Julie grows up, they don’t seem to change. Reggie’s not sure how okay he is with staying seventeen forever, but he doubts he’d be much happier as a forty something year old man, staring down middle age and mediocrity in the face.

So when it is close to the day that would mark Reggie’s eighteenth? Forty third? birthday, he decides not to mention it. Out of sight, out of mind kind of thing. It’s not like he can really celebrate anyways. They still can’t eat, so cake is out. Any money they earn from gigs goes to Julie, well to her dad, since the guys don’t need much, and Julie has actual, like bills to pay. Thus neither Alex or Luke would have the money to buy him a gift, and once Ray found out they were haunting the studio, no stealing became a rule. So no presents to open.

Sure, they could play games, or watch movies, but they do that every other weekend, and Reggie doesn’t feel like donning a stupid paper hat to make it feel more celebratory. Better just to… not bother. Reggie didn’t want the fuss when it just made him feel worse about not really ageing any more.

Luckily, Luke was at his parent’s house today, and that meant he wouldn’t be in the mood to do much else but sulk once he got back. Which Reggie always tried to help with, his heart taking flight every time he managed to coax a smile on those days. Plus, Luke was horrid about remembering things like birthdays. Alex usually had to remind him a few days in advance, and their afterlives had been so fraught with peril thus far that Reggie’s had thankfully slipped all of their minds.

Reggie went off in search of Alex though, curious as to what he was up to. Hey, just because he didn’t want to acknowledge what day it was didn’t mean he didn’t want to spend quality time with his friends alright? Except when he wandered into the studio, he found Alex asleep on the couch, Willie blanketed on top of him, long fingers tangled in his hair.

Alex snuffled, blinking his eyes open, peering at Reggie. “Hey Reg,” he whispered, then smiled fondly down at Willie as the ghost let out a soft snuffly sound.

“Hey Lexie, didn’t mean to wake you, go back to your nap,” Reggie said. Alex gave him a gracious smile, his eyes sliding closed once more, and though Reggie longed for that sweet sort of intimacy, the chance of him finding another ghost their age who didn’t work for Caleb seemed pretty slim. And the heartbreak of falling for a lifer…. He gave a tiny, melancholy sigh, then tossed the light blanket that lived in the studio over Alex and Willie before shutting the door quietly after him.

Reggie wondered what Julie might be up to, and began wandering up towards the house, hands in his pockets as he walked. Only to have Julie slam into his chest, the two of them groaning and then giggling as they righted themselves. "Hey little darlin', where's the fire?"

"Flynn and Carrie are at it again so I have to mediate before someone ends up in the hospital… or jail." Julie sighed, but then smiled up at Reggie. "I'll see you later cariño, have a good day!"

Reggie waved as Julie rushed off, valiantly trying to ignore the flush on his cheeks whenever she used a sweet Spanish nickname for him. He had no clue what it meant, because he had slept through more of high school Spanish than not. But he figured Julie wouldn't call him something mean so it had to be sweet. Which made it all the harder to ignore how his heart ached when she used it.

No, nope, not getting into that. Reggie shook those thoughts away, walking further up to the house. He knew Carlos was at baseball with his aunt, but maybe Ray was free.

However, when he got into the house, he saw Ray hunched over his computer, stress lines on his face as he talked into his phone about re-shoots. Reggie shimmered into invisibility before Ray could catch sight of him, not wanting to distract him from his work. Reggie still wasn't sure why or how the Molina's could see and touch them, but not anyone else unless they were playing.

But it meant that if he wanted to chat with Ray, he could. Or if he just wanted to vent without bothering the man, he could do that too.

"Hey Ray," Reggie said, hopping into the chair across from the man, letting his legs dangle over the side. He blew out a breath, gaze drifting to the ceiling. "It's my birthday today. Not that it counts for much since ya know…" he waved over himself, indicating his ghostly state. "I always dreaded turning eighteen you know? Funny how fate has a way of playing with you."

He gave a sideways glance to Ray once more, seeing his phone finally down, though the man still looked troubled by the call. "See, my folks always said… that once I was eighteen, I'd be on my own. Good luck, but I wouldn't be their responsibility any more. Not that they were overly responsible for me since I was like… twelve. And I was mostly living in the studio with Luke come that last year. Couldn't put up with the fighting. So this was a birthday I wasn't overly looking forward to."

Reggie twiddled his thumbs, musing. "I bet you threw great birthdays for Julie and Carlos. Balloons, cake, the whole works. I never had that. Sure, MeeMaw did all right back in Georgia, but once we moved here… the guys bought me pizza or we had a Star Wars marathon. Which I loved, don't get me wrong, but it never felt any different than any other day. Maybe they just thought I would do something special with my family like they did. Kind of too late to wonder about now."

"I guess," Reggie whispered, trying to ignore the burning wetness of his eyes, "what I always wanted was to feel like part of a family who would take this day to actually celebrate me being born."

Reggie sighed once more, then eased himself up off the chair. "I think I'm gonna head to the beach, maybe stay and watch the sunset. Thanks for listening Ray." With that he poofed out.

Ray looked up from his computer, priding himself on being a good actor, and Reggie's inability to know when he was actually invisible or not. Because now he knew just what to do for Reggie's present.

~

Reggie sat on the dunes, letting the sound of the surf and the warmth of the slowly setting sun calm him. Even though he grew up on a farm, thousands of miles from the nearest ocean, he always felt at home on the beach. He was a natural swimmer, letting the waves embrace him when he was alive, loving the salty tang and chill.

But now, it gave him little comfort, just a big vast emptiness reminding him of the nothingness that weighed down on him. A sudden displacement of air next to him drew him out of his melancholy.

"Hey babe," Luke said, his voice full of cheek. "We've been looking for you everywhere."

"I've been here."

Luke hummed as he leaned back, closing his eyes and Reggie watched as the flaming colours of the sky made him glow a golden hue. "Can't say I blame you, it's beautiful. You always did love the beach."

"One of my favourite places in the world after the farm, and the studio with the band," Reggie replied.

"Well that's where we're headed. Band is waiting, come on!" Luke said, jumping up and offering Reggie a hand. Reggie was hesitant, not sure he wanted his sour mood to affect his friends. But Luke was there, and Reggie was never able to deny him anything, so he slid his palm into Luke's and found himself pulled into his strong arms in a flash. Then one disorienting moment later, they were in front of the studio doors.

“Whoa, head rush,” Reggie moaned, and Luke just smirked before pushing open the doors.

“SURPRISE!”

Reggie jumped and saw his friends standing there grinning. The studio was filled with balloons and streamers, a large birthday banner hanging over the piano. “Y-you guys, what is all this?”

Luke slung an arm over his shoulder. “What, did you really think we’d forget your birthday babe?” He then pecked a small kiss to Reggie’s cheek, and whispered into his ear, “Alex totally had to remind me, and then Julie heard and well… now we’re having a party.”

Julie bounced over, her grin a mile wide. “Are you surprised? Do you like it? Luke told me you never had a big party, so I decided to go all out. Eighteen is a big one!” She then popped up and pressed a kiss to his other cheek, dragging him towards the couch, and plopping him down on it.

“You guys really didn’t have to…” Reggie said, overwhelmed by the display, eyes flitting from the decorations to the small pile of presents to… “Is that cake?”

Alex grinned. “Yeah, Willie smuggled the stuff from the club, turns out it’s the ingredients not the place, but we didn’t want to chance it for anything less than a special occasion. Flynn and I made it for you, so it is actually safe to eat.” He levelled a look at Luke.

“Hey!” Luke gave an indigent shout. “I can bake okay!”

“Dude you almost burned down your house making microwave soup, I do not trust you in a kitchen,” Alex retorted, and Willie giggled from where he was curled into Alex’s embrace.

“It’s also safe for lifers to eat,” Willie said. “No soul stealing or anything.”

“Well that’s good because it looks delicious and I would be miserable if I didn’t get to try a piece,” Ray said. “Now, I do have one gift to give Reggie before we eat, if that’s okay.”

“You got me a gift?” Reggie exclaimed.

“Of course, why wouldn’t I mijo? It’s your birthday. I always get my kids gifts for their birthdays.”

“K-kids?” Reggie asked, his voice quiet and reed thin.

Ray grinned, crouching down in front of Reggie. “Reggie, you know I see you boys as my kids. Technically I guess I’m your legal guardian, or I would be if not for the whole ghost thing. But… if you want to be a part of this family, my family, you know I would love that. In whatever way possible.” He shot a look at Julie at that, and she blushed, but Reggie couldn’t really question that.

“You mean I could be Reggie Molina?” he squeaked.

Ray smiled brightly, “I would love it if you were. Even if it’s not official, you can be a Molina from now on.”

Reggie grinned, but then felt hands slip into his, Luke on one side, Julie on the other. “We have a present too, if you want it, cariño.”

Reggie nodded, finding his head turned towards Luke. Luke, whose ears had a pinkish tinge to them as he lowered his face to Reggie’s. “Happy Birthday babe,” he whispered, then slid their lips together in a toe curling, mind melting kiss. Reggie sank into it, letting himself revel in the blissful feeling of a kiss that mattered, that felt so full of love and promise. He blinked his eyes open as Luke pulled back, and gave him a shy smile.

Julie then turned his face to hers, with a sweet, tender touch. “Feliz cumpleaños cariño,” she said, her voice quiet and sensual, then brought him down into an equally earth shattering kiss, and Reggie was sure he was dreaming. There was no way that this was happening right? He had fallen asleep back on the beach and the universe was teasing him with images of what he truly wanted. But when Julie pulled back, biting her lower lip, a faint flush on the apples of her cheeks, Reggie knew this was real.

“B-but Julie, you and Luke...”

“Love you too. I thought we were pretty obvious honestly,” Luke replied.

“But we’re ghosts!” Reggie exclaimed. “Like, rattle chains and go boo ghosts!”

“That’s a hurtful ghost stereotype actually,” Willie piped up, and Flynn was holding her hand over her mouth and giggling, though only Julie, who was glaring at her, seemed to know why.

“You guys are not typical ghosts though. You can be seen and touched by some people, who’s to say that won’t change in the next few weeks? I have no idea how our love for each other did what it did, but I think…” Julie stopped, then took a breath in. “I know that the more I love you, the more… unghost like you become.”

“My parents can see me now dude, it’s true,” Luke said. “We can talk about it later. Right now, what do you say? You, me, Julie, we make a pretty sweet trio.”

Reggie looked at them, their expectant faces, and let a smile break forth on his face. “I say I love you both very much, and maybe after we have cake, we could talk about a date?”

Julie grinned, and motioned for Carlos to bring the cake forward, and Ray swooped in to light the candles, and hit the lights. All of them together sang to Reggie, and while he still wasn’t a big fan of birthdays, this might go down as his best ever.

“Go ahead mijo, blow out your candles and make a wish,” Ray said.

Reggie once more looked around the room, taking in his friends, his new partners, his family, and grinned before blowing out the candles.

“What did you wish for babe?” Luke asked, snuggling into Reggie’s side.

“You’re not supposed to tell, they won’t come true if you do!” Julie admonished from his other side.

Reggie just let himself be tugged further into their embrace, and said with the biggest smile. “I didn’t make one. I have everything I could ever wish for right here.”

[ntaliasmind]

The Bob Ross girl (Fezco x Lexi Euphoria)

Summary: Lexi Howard loves Halloween. She is especially excited for this year as she is dressing up as Bob Ross! Will anyone recognise her costume?

Word count: 2,209

Warnings: alcohol and tobacco mention

---

Author’s note:

Hi! it’s my first fanfiction and english isn’t my first language so please bear with me. I will try to get better next time! 

I believe that we were robbed of a Lexi x Fezco interaction on Halloween (bc Fez would’ve LOVED the costume) so I decided to take the matters into my own hands.

I haven't rewatched the Halloween episode but I tried to write the story in such a way that it doesn't interfere that much with the plot of that episode? Imagine Lexi was needed to help Cassie when MacKay showed up and she had to cover for her.

Fezco leaves the chilly autumn air behind him and enters the house. The speakers are blasting a random rap song. A bunch of drunk teenagers ran past him towards the liquor. Fezco sighs. It’s going to be a long night but business is business.

He walks past another group of teenagers and starts looking for a quiet corner. The room is messy, dark. There are a bunch of black cut-out bats on the white tile floor. Someone must have dropped the decorations while setting up for the party. Finally, across the room, he finds a big window that seems to be open. He approaches the spot mumbling “sorry” every time he passes someone. “Finally” he thinks to himself and takes a deep breath of the cold air coming out from the window. He leans back against the wall and lights up a cigarette. Inhaling the smoke, he starts to look around for potential customers.

***

Lexi enters the party with the girls laughing behind her. He dressed up as Bob Ross for Halloween. She was so excited about her costume, even ordered the wig online just so she could look like the painter. Unfortunately, the minute her friends and mother saw her costume they started to make fun of her.

“Hey Lex, we’re going to get something to drink and then hit the dancefloor. Do you want to join us?” asks Kat. She’s wearing a beautiful nun costume. Lexi looks back at her and Rue and Jules and nods her head.

“I’ll look for Cassie and then probably get something to drink. Have fun!” she responds. The girls weave and go towards the kitchen.

Lexi takes a deep breath and starts walking around to find her sister. Unfortunately, she doesn’t spot her. Instead, she meets a lot of her peers, every person more and more confused with her costume. Giving up, she decides to go to the kitchen to mix herself something to drink. She enters the kitchen and directly starts looking for a spirit she likes. Lexie isn’t much of a drinker. However, to entertain herself whilst going to random parties with her sister, she decided to (over time) try and rank all the available spirits. Approaching the counter with all the available hard alcohol, she firstly finds dark rum. Lexi winces. After many trials she realized that she is not a fan of dark alcohol. Next to it she saw Fireball. Now this is an exception. The cinnamon aftertaste of the liquor. She quickly shakes her head against it. She’s not in the mood to drink shots. Finally, she sees her favorite, gin! Grinning, she pours some to her cup and starts looking for some tonic. She quickly pours the other liquid and starts looking for some lemon or lime to add to her drink. Opening the fridge, she hears a snicker. She turns around. In the corner she can see a group of people she doesn’t know the names of. But she remembers the girls being on Cassie’s cheerleading squad. They’re accompanied by three guys who look like they belong to some type of sports team. She quickly realizes they’re pointing at her and talking to each other. Embarrassed, with tears prickling in her eyes, she quickly takes her drink and walks out of the kitchen. Leaving the room, she hears one of the guys speaking up. “Yo dude, what the fuck went through her head. The little Howard always looks like an old prude but today… Fuck. She could have tried at least once.”

She quickly runs outside. Her face is hit with cold autumn air. She takes a few deep breaths. “Stupid, so stupid. Why do you even care” She tells herself. She starts walking around taking more deep breaths to calm herself down. Who is she lying to? Of course, she cares. Of course, she wants to be regarded as pretty, or at least funny.

***

Fez steps out of the party. He needs to take a break from everyone. He’s used to a lot of chaos and noise, however, something about high school parties tires him out. He stares into the dark, a big tree with fairy lights around its crown catching his eye. He lights up a cigarette and walks towards it.

He leans against the big tree and looks into the misty sky, allowing for his thoughts to run wild. Suddenly, he hears a sniffle. He quickly turns around and sees a figure with a frizzy hair walking towards the tree. He freezes. From the way she walks and how her face is turned, he can deduce the person doesn’t see him. Quickly, he realizes it’s a girl, dressed up as Bob Ross. The painter his grandma would often turn on the TV at night when they were winding down after a deal. This memory brings a smile to his face. He decides to speak up.

“Cool costume you’ve got there”

The girl freezes. She clearly didn’t expect to meet anyone in the garden so late at night on Halloween. She must recognize him as she continues to walk towards him.

“Um thanks” she responds, her voice sounding unsure.

“Nah for real.. Bob Ross right?” he continues, smiling.

The girl approaches him. She looks so familiar. Quickly, he realizes he must have seen her hanging around Rue.

“Wait, you know who I am? I mean who I’m dressed up as?” she responds. She sounds so excited, Fez can’t stop himself from feeling excited as well.

“Yea man. Bob Ross the cool painter on CBS, the happy trees shit” he smiles.

The girl smiles under her nose.

“Can’t believe you’re the first person who recognized me, I mean him.” She responds softly. “I’m Lexi by the way” she adds quickly.

“Lexi.. That’s a nice name.” he responds, nodding his head. “I’m Fez”.

Silence falls between them as both of them smile at each other. Fez feels the overwhelming need to continue talking, although usually he feels comfortable in silence. He wants to know more about the mysterious girl. He clears his throat.

“So whatchu doin outside?” he asks, already cringing. That’s a stupid question to ask he bashes himself in his mind.

The girl, Lexi, chuckles nervously. “I could ask you the same thing. But yeah, I just needed a break from all the noise”

“Me too” he responds, lifting his hand showing a cigarette. The girl nods.

They continue talking for the duration of him smoking. He quickly lights up another cigarette to continue talking, not knowing what to do with his hands. The Bob Ross girl makes him nervous. Suddenly he hears a group of teenagers outside. They’re laughing about something. He hears Lexis breath hitching and quickly looks down at her. She flinches, her eyes teary. She quickly uses her sleeves to dry up the mess and sniffles.

“You good?” he asks her, looking concerned.

Embarrassed, she nods her head and responds.

“Yeah, sorry about that… It’s stupid”

“It’s not stupid if it got you feelin’ this way” he responds, concern in his eyes.

She shifts her stance, looking a bit uncomfortable. She takes a big sip out of her red cup and responds.

“It’s nothing, really… I was really excited about my costume because Bob Ross, you know? But when I met my friends nobody knew who I was. It was the same at the party, but some people started to make fun of me. I know it’s stupid, it’s just that I’m embarrassed for wearing this costume. I should’ve been a cat or something” she quickly turns her gaze, looking at the house.

Fez scrunches his brows and quickly responds.

“What you mean, it’s a dope costume!”

She looks at him, her tone unsure “yeah, thanks”

“Forreal man. I remember seeing him on tv when I was a kid. My grandma would leave him on and I would just chill.” He smiles. “Fuck em, they don’t know what they talkin bout”. He quickly adds.

Lexi smiles.

“Yeah, I used to watch him on the tv as well. His voice was always so calm. When I was little and couldn’t sleep at night I would turn the tv and listen to his voice until I would fall asleep.”  

Comfortable silence falls between them. They smile at each other. This is cut short due to someone screaming “Lexi come quickly, Cassie needs you!”.

The girls smile falls.

“Uh… I need to get going, my sister needs me” she says awkwardly, looking at him.

“I get it, no worries” he responds. Nervously, he adds “It was nice talkin to you.. Could I maybe get your number?” he shifts his gaze, trying to not look too hopeful.

Lexi smiles, quickly taking out the phone out of her pocket. “Yeah sure” she responds. She gives him the device, him quickly putting in his number. He smiles and gives her her phone back.

“See you later Lexi” he smiles.

“You too Fez” she responds. She turns around and quickly walks to the house.

Fezco smiles, looking at the girl in the Bob Ross costume. He did not expect to meet anyone interesting at the party, but here he was, looking at the most interesting girl in the world. His phone vibrates in his pocket. He quickly pulls out his phone and sees the text he sent to himself from Lexis phone. He smiles to himself, already thinking of what he could text her and what the appropriate time would be before he can do so. He wants to know more about the girl. The way she spoke was so genuine, her smile cute and bright. Her eyes so big and beautiful. He had to quickly stop himself from completely going soft, thinking about her. He still has some business to do today.

***

The next day, Lexi walks downstairs and sees her mother in the kitchen.

“How was the party?” she asks

Lexi pours coffee and takes a sip. “Surprisingly, it was nice” she responds, smiling. Her mom nods her head, and leaves the girl alone in the kitchen.

The party itself wasn’t the best, she thinks to herself. However, the redeeming part of the night was meeting the cute guy with a buzzcut and a ginger beard. She smiled, thinking about his voice and those beautiful blue eyes.

Suddenly, her phone vibrates. She quickly pulls out her phone.

From Fez:

Yo Lex, it was nice meeting you yesterday.

I meant what I said about the Bob Ross costume. It was dope.

Are you doing anything today?

Lexis hearts starts beating nervously. She already opened the message. He had to see the read receipt. Nervously she tries to write up the perfect response. But what can she respond to a cool guy like Fezco? He’s a known drug dealer among teenagers, he takes care of himself. Oh god she made such a fool of herself yesterday, he probably has much bigger problems than her stupid Halloween costume. Why can’t she ever shut up? She takes. A few deep breaths. Fez told her it was nice meeting her. Maybe not all hope is lost? She tries to quickly draft a nice, smart but funny message in her notes app. Happy about it, she copies the message and opens up the messages on her phone.

She looks up, Cassie entering the kitchen. She asks her about some clothes. Lexi quickly sends the message to Fezco, not looking at the screen and walks towards her sister, trying to help her with the newest crisis.

After a minute she looks down on her phone, checking if her message was sent. She freezes. Fuck. What the fuck happened.

From Lexi:

you?

Her face reddens. She must have typed you and forgot about double clicking and pressing paste. That’s such a stupid mistake. Especially coming from a person who drafts about 80% of her messages! She quickly types up an additional response.

From Lexi:

Fuck sorry, my sister came looking for my help. That’s not what I meant.

Thank you for yesterday, it was really nice meeting you as well.

I’m not doing anything today, just chilling. What about you?

She starts biting her lips, nervously. Why isn’t he responding? Oh fuck, she must have scared him off with her weird messages. First you and then a full paragraph of her rambling? How can she fix the situation? She quickly adds.

From Lexi:

Sorry, again. It was a stupid mistake.

About the message I mean.

Not meeting you.

She cringes. How is she so helpless when it comes to talking to boys?

After a few minutes, her phone vibrates.

From Fez:

No worries Lex. That’s what I thought.

There are no mistakes, just happy little accidents ;)

Lexi smiles at the Bob Ross reference. Who is she kidding? She’s smiling at the entire message and the fact that she received one from the cute guy from the party.

From Fez:

Nothing much, just chillin

Do you want to hang out today?

She looks at her phone, surprised. What? Fezco, the cute guy, asks her to hang out?

From Lexi:

Sure!

She smiles. Today is going to be a much better day than she initially thought. And the Bob Ross costume was a genius idea. Definitely not a mistake…  

[amanda-glassen]

But would Serena would swap out Jamie's workout playlist with a Zombie Chase workout?

(I feel I already know the answer, but wanted to check)

Yes. Yes, she would, and I loved this thought so much that I had to write a drabble about it. (But it's technically not a drabble because it's over 1000 words). I love these two idiots so if you have any other horror/autumn-themed requests I will gladly write them.

Slightly less than a month after their wedding, Jamie found herself back in Beverly Hills for Thanksgiving with the Benson family. It was her first time spending the holiday away from home, but with Serena’s family in Beverly Hills and her family in New York, they agreed to alternate between the two cities for the holidays. The morning after Thanksgiving, Jamie decided to go down to one of the basement-level rooms that had been converted into a gym. Her wife had stayed up watching Krampus and Black Christmas and a few other slashers with her siblings and Olivia the night before because they were considered holiday movies in the Benson household. At twelve, she felt Olivia should be watching The Grinch and she shook her head when she realized it was too late for Olivia; she had already become one of them.

So while the rest of the Benson family was still asleep, Jamie pressed play on her workout playlist and started running on the treadmill. She was five minutes into her workout when she heard someone start to describe a zombie apocalypse story and was given the revelation that a horde of zombies was chasing her. “Damn it, Serena!” she said as she put the treadmill in cool down mode.

“You rang,” Serena said jokingly, standing in the doorway in some flannel pajama pants and one of Jamie’s hoodies.

“I’m not even gonna ask if this was you,” she said as she stepped off the treadmill. “I know it was, but the joke’s on you because it actually seems interesting.”

“Come back to bed, Jamieson,” Serena insisted. “I like smelling you when you’re all sweaty.”

Jamie grabbed her phone, towel, and water bottle. “I wouldn’t admit that to too many people, Ser Bear.”

Although her workout didn’t last long enough to break a sweat, Serena cuddled up to Jamie in their bed and nuzzled into the crook of her neck. “This is your usual scent. I wanted my sweaty wife.”

Jamie couldn’t help smiling when she saw Serena’s pouty face. She placed a kiss on her wife’s forehead and started to rub her arm. “What’s come over you?” Jamie chuckled. “Are you pregnant? Did I knock you up on our honeymoon?”

“Just the opposite,” Serena responded. “The bloodening has happened earlier than expected. I’m cramping and I want cuddles.”

“Did you take something?” Jamie asked. “Want me to get you some Advil? A heating pad? Your cranberry tea?”

Jamie felt her wife pinch her lips shut. “Stop talking, Jamieson. No words. Just cuddles.”

“You know what’s really good for that time of the month?” Jamie asked once she was finally able to speak. “Exercise.”

“Ugh,” Serena groaned. “I am trying to not feel miserable.”

“A lot of couples exercise together. I think it’d make you feel better, too. You could cut down on the caffeine and actually have natural energy. Maybe if we both change our eating habits too it’ll－”

“You’re not attracted to me anymore?” Serena immediately sat up. “Are you cheating on me, Jamieson? What’s her name? Do I know her? Is she younger?”

“What?” Jamie asked in disbelief. She noticed the look in her wife’s eyes, the look she saw in movies right before wives killed their husbands. Be careful, Jamie. Not only is it her time of the month, but she’s crazy even on her best days. “Serena, no one has ever loved anyone as much as I love you and I’d rather gouge my own eyes out than check out another woman.”

With that statement, Serena’s mood went from homicidal to soft. She pulled Jamie back down to cuddle her, making her feel grateful that she had said the right thing. “Good,” Serena said as she cuddled up to her again. “Because if I ever caught you checking out another woman, I’d gouge your eyes out myself.” And we’re back to homicidal.

“I’m sorry, Ser Bear. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad. Wanna know something funny?”

“Always.”

“That first Saturday morning we spent together and you wore those athletic leggings and a sports bra, I got the impression that you were one of these women who went hiking or went to the gym on a regular basis. I thought it was something we had in common.”

“Yeah, that couldn’t have been further from the truth,” Serena smiled. “I wear those athletic pants when I’m too lazy for regular pants and, as for the sports bra, that all comes down to me not wanting to wear anything with underwire during the weekend.”

“I’m gonna get you to workout with me. I think you’ll like running if you use the zombie app.”

“My zombie apocalypse plan is not to run, Jamieson,” Serena said defensively. “If all you do is run, you’ll be running from zombies your entire life. My plan is to kill.” Imagining this 5’5”, 108 pound woman as a killing machine would have been laughable to those who didn’t know her, but Jamie felt it was entirely possible. “If the zombie apocalypse were to happen, my family and your family are going to the house by Tahoe. The whole reason that house was built is because Great-grandpa Benson went crazy and became a survivalist.”

“Serena, I know you’re messing with me again.”

“No, it’s true. One day back in the ‘90s, he just went crazy and had a house built with crawl spaces, a lookout tower, and a basement that could withstand an atomic blast. That last one is up for debate though. He also has a weapons room.”

“Like guns and knives?” Jamie asked nervously. “There was a shit ton of weapons in the house that we spent our honeymoon in?”

“Guns, knives, the bow and arrow he taught me to use when I was seven,” Serena said nonchalantly. “Lexie had her cheerleading. Kyle had baseball. I learned to kill a man from one hundred yards away.”

“That’s impressive and...frightening.”

Serena reached over and gently smacked Jamie on the behind. “You’re safe with me, Pumpkin Butt. You can like...plant us a garden or something while I protect our families.”

Jamie held Serena close until she fell asleep, careful not to disturb her. I love you, my little zombie killing machine.